Monchi

Ramón Rodríguez Verdejo (born 20 September 1968), commonly known as Monchi, is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a goalkeeper, currently president of football operations at Premier League club Aston Villa.

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Rodríguez and the second or maternal family name is Verdejo.
Monchi
Personal information
Full name Ramón Rodríguez Verdejo
Date of birth (1968-09-20) 20 September 1968
Place of birth San Fernando, Spain
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Youth career
Sevilla
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1988–1990 Sevilla B 41 (0)
1990–1999 Sevilla 85 (0)
Total 126 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Playing career

Born in San Fernando, Cádiz, Andalusia, Monchi graduated from Sevilla FC's youth system. He made his senior debut with the reserves in the 1988–89 season, in Segunda División B.

In the summer of 1990, Monchi was promoted to the main squad in La Liga. He first appeared in the competition on 13 January 1991, starting in a 1–1 away draw against Real Sociedad.[1]

Monchi spent the vast majority of his career as a backup to Juan Carlos Unzué, only featuring more regularly from 1995 onwards.[2] He played a career-best 26 matches in 1996–97, as the campaign ended in relegation.[3]

Monchi retired in 1999 aged only 30, after contributing 20 games – playoffs included – to his team's promotion.[4]

Sporting director

In 2000, after Sevilla were relegated from the top division, Monchi was appointed their director of football.[5] He was given two objectives by the board: develop the club's youth system and implement a vast scouting policy inside and outside Spain.

Monchi helped discover Diego Capel, Alberto Moreno, Jesús Navas, Antonio Puerta, Sergio Ramos and José Antonio Reyes,[6] and he also created a network of over 700 scouts around the world. Within this setup, he sourced a number of profitable bargains (including Adriano, Dani Alves, Júlio Baptista, Federico Fazio, Seydou Keita and Ivan Rakitić),[7] making a profit of around €200 million in the transfer market, as the club established itself in the top half of the top division in his 16 years there.[8]

Monchi asked to leave Sevilla in the 2016 off-season,[9][10] but the board did not accept his request unless he paid his €5 million buyout clause.[11][12] He left in April 2017, having helped win 11 trophies during his tenure.[13] Later that month, he signed a four-year contract in the same role with A.S. Roma in Italy's Serie A.[14]

On 17 March 2019, Monchi confirmed that he would be returning to Sevilla as sporting director the following month.[15] He returned again and occupied the position until June 2023,[16] when he was announced as president of football operations at Premier League club Aston Villa.[17]

See also

References
  1. Sáez, Félix (14 January 1991). "La Real no pasó del empate" [Real could get nothing more than a draw]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 January 2015.
  2. "Unzué recuerda su etapa sevillista en una visita al Sánchez Pizjuán" [Unzué remembers Sevilla spell in visit to the Sánchez Pizjuán]. Diario de Navarra (in Spanish). 14 June 2021. Retrieved 27 December 2021.
  3. "Julián Rubio y el Betis-Sporting que dio la puntilla al Sevilla hace 23 años" [Julián Rubio and the Betis-Sporting that finished burying Sevilla 23 years ago] (in Spanish). El Desmarque. 31 May 2020. Retrieved 27 December 2021.
  4. Jensen, Pete (20 October 2015). "Who needs Moneyball if you have Monchi?". The Independent. Retrieved 2 June 2016.
  5. Stamp, Alex (19 December 2008). "The mastery of "Monchi": The power behind Sevilla's throne". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 2 January 2015.
  6. Lowe, Sid (17 May 2016). "The secret behind Sevilla's success? Meet Monchi, the transfer wizard". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 June 2016.
  7. Platt, Oliver (23 October 2014). "Meet Monchi – the man who discovered Dani Alves and is attracting Barcelona". Goal. Retrieved 2 January 2015.
  8. Hunter, Graham (11 August 2014). "Monchi: The man who made Sevilla". ESPN FC. Retrieved 2 January 2015.
  9. Florido, Eduardo; Ortega, F.J. (31 May 2016). "Bomba en Nervión: Monchi decide irse" [Bomb at Nervión: Monchi decides to leave]. Diario de Sevilla (in Spanish). Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  10. "Monchi confirms Sevilla exit". Football Italia. 3 June 2016. Retrieved 25 June 2016.
  11. Florido, Eduardo (1 June 2016). "Monchi se queda a la fuerza" [Monchi is forced to stay]. Diario de Sevilla (in Spanish). Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  12. Fernández, Alberto (3 June 2016). "Monchi: "No pedí salir por tener 15 ofertas, sino para descansar y coger aire fresco"" [Monchi: "I did not ask to leave because I had 15 offers, but to rest and take a breather"]. Marca (in Spanish). Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  13. Lyttleton, Ben (10 April 2017). "Monchi sets out on new challenge after impressive reign as Sevilla sporting director". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 11 April 2017.
  14. "First interview: Monchi sets out his aims after joining Roma". A.S. Roma. 25 April 2017. Retrieved 30 March 2019.
  15. Costa, Phil (17 March 2019). "Monchi officially returns to Sevilla". One Football. Retrieved 20 September 2019.
  16. "Monchi se desvincula del Sevilla FC" [Monchi cuts ties with Sevilla FC] (in Spanish). Sevilla FC. 16 June 2023. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
  17. "Monchi appointed President of Football Operations". Aston Villa F.C. 16 June 2023. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
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