On one level the sacking of Jorge Valdano as director-general at Real Madrid is the outcome of a power struggle with Jose Mourinho. There were personal tensions between the two men, the special one wanted more autonomy and he has come out on top.
But it is interesting that when he announced the move club president Florentino Perez explicitly said that he wanted to move the club towards an English model.
On one level the sacking of Jorge Valdano as director-general at Real Madrid is the outcome of a power struggle with Jose Mourinho. There were personal tensions between the two men, the special one wanted more autonomy and he has come out on top.
But it is interesting that when he announced the move club president Florentino Perez explicitly said that he wanted to move the club towards an English model.
“The experience of this just completed season demonstrated a need for
more autonomy, including within the coaching unit,” said Perez.
“Mourinho demanded an autonomy on the sporting side like that
which works with English clubs. I think for the sake of the institution
that this is a reorganisation that has to be done.
“We signed the best coach in the world, so we want to be sure
that even when he leaves one day and we sign another of the world’s
best, the structure is there.”
The influence of the Premier League model on Spanish football is a very real one.