First team

MONCHI EXPLAINS HIS DEPARTURE: "ONLY AND EXCLUSIVELY A NEED FOR CHANGE"

31/03/2017
Monchi cited exhaustion from the pressure of his role as the reason for his decision to leave the club and thanked the club for their efforts to keep him at the Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán: "An offer was made to me that I would never get from another club"

After news broke on Thursday evening that Ramón Rodríguez Verdejo, Monchi, will leave Sevilla FC at the end of the season, the General Sporting Director sat down before the assembled media at the Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán on Friday to discuss the reasons behind his departure.

Visibly emotional throughout the press conference, Monchi explained his motives for leaving after 17 years in charge of recruitment at the club. 

"My reasons are to do with exhaustion," he said. "I have been here for 29 years, 17 as Sporting Director, with a very high level of pressure.

"I wanted to leave in May and I was wrong, in timing and in manner, in every sense. But my feelings remained. I don't have any other reasons. It's uniquely and exclusively down to the need for a change.

"And the effort that the club has made to keep me here is beyond words. Until you leave, you don't realise the affection that people have for you. They've tried to convince me in every way possible, with care, lots of care, and economically too. 

"In fact, I can say that an offer has been made to me that I would never be offered anywhere other than here.

"Again, it's a personal matter of a need for change. It can't be considered a failure by the club because it was down to me, there was nothing that they could have done to convince me."

Monchi continued: "I can't say 'goodbye' here, I will always say 'see you soon'. I don't know what will happen in the future but I hope that everything goes well and that what I've put in place here stays in the memory and is erased by whatever comes next. 

"But if Sevilla FC were to be so kind as to call me because they needed me, I would have no doubt, even if they needed me to paint the lines on the pitch."

"The effort that the club has made to keep me here is beyond words. Until you leave, you don't realise the affection that people have for you."

The 48-year-old also admitted that he had made errors in his departure which come naturally in a situation such as this.

He said: "It's true that I was in London and in this process I will get things wrong, I'm sure, and I have made mistakes, but I don't have anything sorted with any other teams.

"I have to choose well where I go and that is what I am doing, I am young and I have to work."

He continued: "I have an objective in leaving the club, and it is to thank everyone who has helped me, everyone who has praised me, criticised me, understood me, not understood me, with whom I agreed or not.

"Every time that I have said something, I have always said it while thinking about Sevilla. At times knowing that I could bring about consequences, but always having in mind what was best for Sevilla."

"My reasons are to do with exhaustion. I have been here for 29 years, 17 as Sporting Director, with a very high level of pressure."

Monchi closed: "It is never a good time when you don't want something to happen. I had two things clear. One, that I didn't go to leave pleasing everyone, and, second, that it is never a good time to leave.

"And if you ask me about how this might affect the squad, the four captains are here. They know me and today I told them that if they want to help me, they will do that by winning the ten remaining games.

"Because if things go badly, lots of people will look at me. But I have chosen this time looking to cause as litte damage as possible."