Monchi's best deals as Sevilla sporting director
Sevilla fans have been in a state of shock since Monchi's decision to end his stint as sporting director of the club came to light. His legacy has been impressive in his 16 years as head of the technical secretary department. He has been responsible for various successful deals, in both a sporting and economic sense.
Monchi's Sevilla have profited hugely with their youth players. The sales of Sergio Ramos (for 27 million euros to Real Madrid), Jesus Navas (25m to Manchester City), Jose Antonio Reyes (24m to Arsenal) and more recently Alberto Moreno (18m to Liverpool) stand out.
Signing players for low prices and selling them on for far greater fees, after they reach their maximum potential at Sevilla, has been the hallmark of Monchi. Here are the best examples of this way of operating:
DANI ALVES
Signed in 2002 from Brazilian club Bahía for 550,000 euros and sold to Barça for 42 million euros in 2008.
JULIO BAPTISTA
In 2003, Sao Paulo was paid 3 million euros for his services and in 2005 he was sold to Real Madrid for 20m.
IVAN RAKITIC
A fee of 2.5 million euros paid to Schalke in 2011 and sold to Barça in 2014 for 18 million.
CARLOS BACCA
Brugges received 7 million euros in 2013 and the player was transferred to AC Milan for 30 million in 2015.
ALEIX VIDAL
Paid 3 million euros to Almeria and Barça signed him for 18 million last summer.
Monchi has always said he has also got some deals wrong, whereas a study by "undergroundfootball" valued the transfer income generated by the sporting director's work at 270 million euros.
The next big deals may involve Gameiro, Krychowiak or Mariano. Gameiro was signed from PSG in 2013 for 7.5 million euros and now Sevilla do not envisage selling him for less than 20 million. The striker was not excelling at the Parisian club but has exploded to life at the Pizjuan.
Krychowiak, a strong defensive midfielder, cost 5 million euros when he was an unknown at Stade Reims and now the Polish player has multiplied his value. Mariano is in a similar situation, the right back is already a target for the big clubs. Sevilla spent 3 million euros to prise him from Bordeaux.
