The new working method of the Spanish that turns its back on the World Cup

BarcelonaWhen, by chance, Monchi became the sporting director of Sevilla in his office there were no reports on footballers or drawers to store them; only a handful of tapes with recorded matches. It was May 2000 and the former goalkeeper from San Fernando, without structure, resources – the club was technically bankrupt – or experience, had to assemble a team to compete in the Second Division. In a notebook, he jotted down the phone numbers of some agents and scouted fields to see players he could sign for free. With one boot and one espadrille, that's how he began to build the success of a Sevilla that, after a while, lifted seven Europa Leagues and made a fortune in player capital gains.

A self-made man and inspired by Porto and Olympique de Lyon, selling clubs, he created a business model based on buying cheap, achieving sporting success, and selling high. The most emblematic case is that of Dani Alves, signed for less than a million from the Brazilian club Bahia and sold to Barça for 35. “Now that is practically impossible. The big clubs have all the young players under control and discovering unknown talents is a pipe dream,” says Daniel Pinilla, journalist and author of El Método Monchi.

A manual on the Monchi method

His methodology is so famous that a book has even been written about it, a kind of manual on the keys to Monchi's working system, who two years ago signed Morgan Rogers for Aston Villa. He came from the English Second Division and paid 10 million for him. It is his latest great operation: Rogers is now worth 90 million and is one of England's stars. "He has a great eye for detecting the best ecosystem to make a player shine and get the best out of footballers who are not doing well at their club," says Pinilla. But like everyone else, he also makes mistakes. Monchi usually says that "getting 50% of signings right is an absolute success".

Espanyol's first signing will likely be that of Catalan Álex Calatrava, from Castelló. Many more are expected, as Monchi is known for signing and selling a lot. And for being very aggressive in squad construction. At Sevilla, he wanted the money on the field and played hard. At Espanyol, it will depend on Pace's investment. The negotiation will indeed be Monchi's business, as he has an endless contact list. Face-to-face is one of his strengths. "He exudes authority, but he is not one to step on heads. You always leave with the feeling that all parties have come out winning," says an agent who has shared a table with him. His prestige has allowed him to build squads beyond his means and aim for signings out of his reach. Like that of Van Persie, who when he was about to sign the contract with Sevilla in a London hotel received a call from Arsène Wenger that made him change his mind.

Let no one expect him to sign footballers for Espanyol who stand out at the World Cup. A club like Sevilla, comparable to Espanyol, "cannot compete for players who have put themselves on the international showcase," Monchi said in the book, which dedicates a chapter to the topic. Monchi believes that aspects such as motivation, the time of year, and physical condition can make a player's performance misleading. And that all clubs already monitor internationals in detail.

"His best virtue is not signing"

“As strange as it may sound, his best virtue is not signing players. He makes a difference in the dressing room. At Sevilla he was omnipresent, paying attention to everything, even minor personal details that allow a player to perform well. Anticipating problems and managing the day-to-day is very good,” explains Pinilla. When aspects of this kind were not yet so valued, at Sevilla he created a player care department. He believes that the sporting direction of a club must also facilitate the development of people and that his responsibility towards them does not end until they leave the entity. From a business perspective, it is about taking care of the investment and generating a context that increases its value.

In fact, Monchi defines himself as a “dressing room sporting director” and is very close to the coach, without diminishing his power, as was demonstrated at the end of the season with Espanyol.The 20 days alongside Manolo allowed him to take the team's temperature and confirm that the coach has clear ideas and that, despite the bad dynamic, his message was reaching the footballers. That's why he has renewed him and is planning signings with him. He is clear that the sporting director is a tool at the service of the coach. Manolo defines the characteristics of the signings and he gives them names and surnames. The book exemplifies this with Kanouté: “Juande Ramos asked me for a tall forward, good with his head, who would go out wide... and Kanouté was one of the names we had in the database”.

Teamwork

He speaks in the plural because Monchi works as a team. He believes that his great legacy at Sevilla is having provided structure to the sporting direction, where more than 15 people work. At Espanyol, he has arrived with two of his soldiers: Fernando Navarro and Miguel Ángel Gómez. He signed the former, a former Barça player, as a player. Monchi spoke a lot about football with him and shortly after he hung up his boots, he incorporated him into his team. He often says he is one of his great discoveries.

Gómez was responsible for the psychology department, the key man in treating Jesús Navas' anxiety disorder, which prevented him from leaving home and almost ended his career. Monchi relocated him as a rival analyst 20 years ago and since then he has done everything by his side. He is his right-hand man. Both, with Monchi at the helm, are in charge of establishing the famous method at the white-and-blue club that took Sevilla from the Second Division to the top of Europe.