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Organisation

“We’ve started the restructuring; there will be no continuity”

José María Muñoz and Kike Pérez spoke about the institutional and sporting future of the Club, underscoring Loren, who will assume the “integral” sports management of Málaga CF.

Speaking before the gathered media, Kike Pérez said that “forgiveness is words, now is the time for actions and to express appreciation for the support in Málaga and away from home,” referring to the Malaga fans. “We’ve started the restructuring of the Club, and one of those fundamental pillars will be the hiring of the sporting director. It will be Loren, who will be introduced in public this week, and we’ll be able to go deeper into the project,” he stressed.

Muñoz specified, regarding his remuneration as judicial administrator, that “I have already spoken with the judge and I’m going to reduce the fees, but I’m not going to work less. I’ll be working more.”

Since the arrival of Pérez, “it has been almost four months, and I have identified the failures or deficiencies within the Club. The first is that there was no sports plan and the first thing Málaga must have is a sports plan,” adding that “when you bring in 16 players in a season, they are 16 families and individuals. I have quite a bit of experience in this area, and sometimes the procedures don’t work; we need to identify the leaders, who will pull their weight, who will communicate what Málaga is about, amongst other things. We are where we are now, and it remains to work, work, and work, and have a comprehensive sports plan.”

About Pellicer, the executive stressed that he’s already expressed his opinion about the coach but added that it is not “any imposition. The sporting director has things to say about it, and it’s also time to know the opinion of the coach,” he said. José María Muñoz, on this subject remarked that “Kike Pérez and Loren have the authority to make the decisions that they deem appropriate.”

The judicial administrator of the Club, in regard to the institutional aspect, underscored the following about a possible collective dismissal (ERE): “I’m not going to talk about a collective dismissal, but about restructuring. We have started to do it, and next week we will have news.” Muñoz was definite that there will be updates regarding the advisory committee of the Club. “There will be ambassadors and advisory board members that we hope to announce in the coming weeks.” Pérez on the other hand went down the route of self-criticism: “When there’s a relegation, the entire club descends. In the end, my experience tells me that the club is a machine. This deep restructuring is going to affect both the sporting and non-sporting aspects of the organisation because we’ve all been relegated. Things haven’t been done well. We are the first to be self-critical, internally, and we need to see what has failed within the departments. We’ve all failed, everything has failed.”

About the new sporting director, Loren, Kike said: “I’ve always been very clear about it. I saw from the beginning that this is a club of youth development, and we must know how to handle that youth system. I needed that profile, someone who knows the life of a footballer. And someone with success in their professional career and a prestigious club. Real Sociedad is a club that I have always looked up to, both in terms of finance and in terms of sports. I reviewed more than 30 profiles, and the decision was that this guy meets all the requirements for this major sporting project. We are not hiring just a ‘recruiter’ of players from the category, but someone with experience in the dressing room and the offices, who can provide us with a comprehensive plan. And to manage that landscape and create something that Málaga has been lacking for years, which is a sense of belonging. To instil that feeling, as football is all about emotions. We want kids to see that there’s no better team than Málaga and to feel proud of the youth system in the province. And I reckon Loren gets this and will encourage this,” before adding that, “the restructuring is going to involve everyone because we have all failed.”

Pérez affirmed it is “obvious” that “there’ll be no continuity in the club. There is going to be a profound reorganisation. It’s quite clear. While a mistake can be a serious problem for us, and we must respect all our colleagues,” he added.

Towards the end, the general manager of Málaga CF went on to refer to the possible departure of youth players. “Some want to take advantage of Málaga. There is a specific case of one player who has had some time playing and is nearing the end of his contract. He’s asking for €200,000 and plane tickets. I don’t mind; whoever leaves through the door, I don’t want them to return to the club,” he concluded.