Sevilla Legend Returns to Replace Emery
Liga BBVA side Sevilla have announced the departure of Spanish manager Unai Emery, but have brought a new manager in with immediate effect. Emery, who only joined Sevilla in January this year leaves the club following what he calls a "huge disappointment" of a season. When Emery took over from the sacked Míchel, Sevilla sat in 12th place in the table - today Emery tells Spanish sports newspaper MARCA that he had hoped to push the team up the table to challenge for a UEFA Champions League spot. This was not achieved, and Emery cites this as his reason for leaving the club.
Ultimately, the season ended with Sevilla finishing in 9th place, and scraping UEFA Europa League qualification. Emery questioned the attitude of the squad in his interview with MARCA, accusing the team, nicknamed Los Rojiblancos, or The Red and Whites, of "going for the easy options" rather than trying to push on for a better league standing.
He leaves on good terms with the chairman, but not with the squad. Captain Ivan Rakitić hit back at the Spaniard, querying his managerial techniques in an interview with the BBC.
"Unai is clearly very bitter about the half season that he spent with us. I think that he has no right to tell the media about our attitude when he has spent so little time with us. If he had not gone to speak with the media, not one week after the end of the season, then I would have the respect that I had for him while he was with us, but because of what he has done, I lose respect for him."
"If he can be bitter, then so can we. We feel that, although he did a good job in the rise of our league position, his tactics weren't right, he relied on other staff for advice on training, and was generally lacking in professionalism. I'm sorry to say this, but he has insulted us, and we are offended."
Sevilla have acted very quickly to resolve the situation - hiring Brazilian striker and club legend Luis Fabiano as Emery's successor. This marks the end of the 33-year-old's playing career, which spans sixteen years. Fabiano spent six years as a player at Estadio Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán, and arrived back on a plane this morning from Brazil after a tearful farewell to his employers São Paulo, with whom he had two spells with.
Fabiano refused to speak to the media in his first day in the job, with his reason being that he would like to ease in to his first managerial role and get to know the club and players again before giving any interviews. The club spokesman tells us that the new man is not intent on spending big, and will instead opt to utilize the squad he has available to him, with a few exceptions.
