Valencia CF

Goncalo Guedes has signed for Valencia from Paris Saint-Germain in a deal worth €40 million. He joins Los Che permanently after spending the 2017-18 season on loan at the club. 

The Spanish team announced the move on Twitter:

🦇 👕 🆕 pic.twitter.com/ik6Yr8bBjz

— Valencia CF (@valenciacf_en) August 27, 2018

AS' Julian Burgos and Manu Sainz reported on the total cost of the deal.

Long regarded as a top prospect, Guedes broke through last season. The 21-year-old played a key role in Valencia's strong La Liga campaign, which eventually saw Los Che finish in fourth place and earn a spot in this year's UEFA Champions League.

The youngster scored five goals and produced nine assists in La Liga, and this effort against Real Betis was arguably the standout strike:

His strong form led to a spot in Portugal's World Cup starting XI, but the former Benfica man wasn't ready to make an impact on that stage. He also played out of position with the European champions, flanking Juventus' Cristiano Ronaldo. At Valencia, he spent more time in behind the striker, playing both in a wide role and centrally.

Transfer speculation emerged almost as soon as the summer started. According to Marca's M.A. Rodrigues, Guedes was only interested in a move to Valencia, turning down a move to Watford. L'Equipe (h/t Sport Witness' Naveen Ullal) mentioned Wolverhampton Wanderers as a destination, pointing at the healthy relationship with agent Jorge Mendes.

Throughout the process, Guedes' full focus was on Valencia, per La Liga writer David Cartlidge:

PSG had more money on offer from the PL, Guedes was also offered more. He only wanted Valencia though. Massive for the club.

— David Cartlidge (@davidjaca) August 27, 2018

PSG had no real plans for Guedes last year, and things hardly changed this summer. Neymar and Kylian Mbappe are still the favourites to start as the team's wingers, while there is plenty of attacking depth in the squad in the form of Julian Draxler, Angel Di Maria and Timothy Weah. 

A sale always seemed likely, with PSG still awaiting a final decision from UEFA in their ongoing financial fair play investigation, per BBC Sport. The Guedes deal will at the very least lift some of the pressure should the decision go against them.

It's a tremendous coup for Valencia, who had a full season to scout their new signing last year and have no doubts about his fit. 

Valencia confirmed on Friday they have reached an agreement with Chelsea to sign forward Michy Batshuayi on a season-long loan, per the club's official website.

The Belgium international spent the second half of last season on loan at Borussia Dortmund before his domestic campaign was ended prematurely by injury.

He will now head to Spain and join Marcelino's squad who finished fourth in La Liga last season which secured them a place in the UEFA Champions League.

La Liga writer Andrew Gaffney said the loan includes the option for Valencia to sign Batshuayi permanently:

This *is* an option to buy clause for Valencia to make Batshuayi’s loan move permanent: €50m (via @Generaldepie_) https://t.co/miJySVQ7VB

— Andrew Gaffney (@GaffneyVLC) August 10, 2018

Goal's Nizaar Kinsella said there were other La Liga clubs interested in Batshuayi:

Michy Batshuayi pretty much confirmed, a nice fit, particularly for marketing reasons. He chose Valencia over Sevilla due to the Champions League offering. Atletico were also keen. #CFC https://t.co/y3LpadNG56

— Nizaar Kinsella (@NizaarKinsella) August 10, 2018

It looks a good move for Valencia who enjoyed a strong season under Marcelino last time out and will be looking to progress further. They will also need reinforcements as they make their return to the Champions League.

Batshuayi is a lively presence up front and is a useful finisher. He scored seven goals in 10 appearances for Borussia Dortmund last season before suffering an ankle injury.

The decision to allow him to leave will be seen as a risk by Chelsea supporters. It could leave them struggling for goals next season, according to Kinsella:

I think goals will still be a problem this season. Maurizio Sarri needs to resolve it on the training pitch. Not just Morata, but every single player, will have to be more clinical than last season. Pre-season hasn't provided promising signs in that regard though. #CFC

— Nizaar Kinsella (@NizaarKinsella) August 9, 2018

Striker Alvaro Morata has failed to live up to his £60 million price tag since joining from Real Madrid in summer 2017.

The Spain international found it tough going in his first season and lost his place in the team to Olivier Giroud by the end of the campaign.

Morata has not looked like recapturing his best form in pre-season either. He was unimpressive in Chelsea's 2018 Community Shield defeat to Manchester City on Sunday and failed to score.

Giroud is another option but is not known as a prolific goalscorer. He will also turn 32 in September and is heading towards the end of his career.

The club also have 20-year-old Tammy Abraham in the squad. He will likely play back-up to Giroud and Morata following Batshuayi's departure.

Speedy Goncalo Guedes has lit up La Liga. The young Portuguese winger only made his first start for Valencia—having arrived on a season-long loan from Paris Saint-Germain—towards the end of September, in a league tie against Malaga at the Mestalla. Valencia romped home 5-0, and Guedes chipped in with an audacious assist for the fifth goal.

His team-mate Rodrigo passed to him on the edge of the box. Guedes, with his back to goal, controlled it and then stabbed the ball with a backheel straight into the path of Rodrigo, who scored with a single touch.

Guedes has added another four assists and three goals—each goal better than the other—in six games, which has helped keep Valencia unbeaten and on the heels of league leaders Barcelona.

"Guedes has won over the fans even though it's a short time. He's become an idol," said El Pais journalist Salva Folgado, who reckons no player since Predrag Mijatovic has adjusted so quickly and so decisively at the club.

The iconic striker arrived in 1993 from Partizan Belgrade. "Mijatovic changed Valencia," Folgado said. "I can't think of any other player who has generated the same impact in the team—and who has adapted so rapidly—like Guedes.

"Guedes is only 20, but he's very mature. He carries himself like an adult. He's got a very sensible disposition. He takes care of himself. He's very professional. The manager Marcelino and the team's physical trainer Ismael Fernandez are very content with him. He trains well. He doesn't go out socialising to nightclubs; he stays at home. It seems like he's only interested in football."

Joao Diogo Manteigas, a TV football pundit and lawyer who works for Benfica, has followed his career from close quarters. Manteigas' brother-in-law played with Guedes at Benfica, the club that Guedes joined as an eight-year-old in 2005. Manteigas concurs with the picture painted of the player as a football obsessive.

"The kid is consumed with football," Manteigas said. "The last time I saw him, a couple of months ago, he was driving an old Audi van. It possibly belonged to his family. This kind of sums up Goncalo: he's one of the most straight-up kids there are in football. He's not your typical young football player—who's obsessed with cars, his haircut, shoes and baseball caps. Just take a look at how he dresses."

Manteigas points towards Guedes' background for clues. Guedes comes from Benavente, a small town in the heartland of Portugal about an hour from Lisbon. It's known more for bullfighting than football. "Guedes likes bullfights, which is very traditional from that area," Manteigas said. Guedes' father used to drive Guedes and his brother—who is a goalkeeper—to Benfica's youth academy for training on a daily basis.

Luis Nascimento trained Guedes at Benfica's academy. Guedes' personality made an immediate impression. He was a livewire.

"Guedes was an extremely extroverted young man, almost a hyperactive kid," Nascimento said. "He couldn't stay put, always running around. He transposed that energy to the game. He was an aggressive player, an animal in competition. He hated losing a game, even in training."

Nascimento saw in Guedes an irreverence, an ability to handle pressure that stands him in good stead in the bear pit of professional football.

"He was always a real brat," he said. "We say in Portuguese he's 'traquinas,' totally extroverted, but he was never a rude kid. He was very polite, but not an easy kid to handle. We had to help with his education, to cut the edges off him, as we always do with every kid. He was very bold on and off the pitch. He never feared his opponents. He was never afraid of making mistakes. He was ambitious. He didn't have a lot of patience for small talk in the locker room or on the pitch.

"I remember an episode when he was playing under-13 and we had a very decisive match against our rival Sporting Lisbon. Guedes was having lunch with his mates and he was relaxed, playing with the others. He never succumbed to the pressure. He was always happy. He loved to get out on the pitch and play the game. As soon as possible, he wanted the game to start.

"In that occasion, a team-mate asked him: 'Goncalo don't you feel the pressure of the match?' Guedes replied: 'It is just another match, and all I want is to play it!' He was just like that. For him playing against Sporting CP, FC Porto, FC Barcelona or Real Madrid was the same. He didn't fear his opponents. He didn't fear having the ball, taking risks and I believe that comes from his personality."

Guedes had a knack for scoring five or six spectacular goals a season, as he came up through the ranks at Benfica while invariably playing on teams with boys a year older than him.

"I remember a goal he scored against Barcelona in a tournament final," Nascimento said, "when he was under-13, where he picked the ball up in midfield and finished by striking the ball into the top corner of the net."

Benfica guarded Guedes closely. He was never loaned to another club. "He was one of the few that Benfica betted on since the very beginning," Manteigas said.

He made his debut for the first team at 17 years of age, and he became the youngest Portuguese scorer in the Champions League group stages since Cristiano Ronaldo when he scored against Atletico Madrid in September 2015, per ESPN FC's Graham Hunter. It's notable that Marcelino handed Guedes the No. 7 jersey, with all the history that number bears in Portugal following the exploits of Luis Figo and Ronaldo over the last two decades.

It was only a matter of time before Benfica would have to cash in on him. Valencia came within a whisker of signing him in August 2016.

"It was the first time that Jorge Mendes [Guedes' agent] offered him to the club," Folgado said. "Guedes was in camp with the Portugal U21 team. Guedes left with the permission of the team's management. The information I have is that he left to go to Valencia for a medical check-up."

Everything was set for him to join Los Che. The only problem was the fee, which was set at €20 million. Valencia had just spent €24 million on Ezequiel Garay, per Transfermarkt; they had also closed a deal with Eliaquim Mangala from Manchester City.

They were short the cash to sign Guedes. "[The club's owner] Peter Lim wouldn't authorise it," Folgado said. "Also they didn't want to take a risk for a player still so young. Valencia totally lost an opportunity."

Valencia missed out a second time during the January 2017 transfer window. Again Mendes offered Guedes to the club, but Paris Saint-Germain outbid them, signing him for €30 million, per Marca's Fernando Alvarez.

At Paris Saint-Germain, however, he hardly got a look-in, only managing to start a single game until the end of the season. He was too young, and, arriving midseason, he had to take his place in the queue behind other wide players like Julian Draxler and Angel Di Maria.

If Guedes continues to prosper at Valencia—where he's integrated well, and, according to Folgado, has made friendships with fellow Portuguese speakers like goalkeeper Neto and Gabriel Paulista, as well as Rodrigo, another young tyro—he'll be called back to Paris at the end of the summer where the club will take stock. Three possibilities would await him. 

One, PSG have to sell him in a push to balance their books because of UEFA financial fair play regulations, and a big club like Barcelona or Real Madrid could make a swoop at a significantly higher price than the fee PSG paid to buy him originally.

Valencia—who have an option to buy Geoffrey Kongdogbia from Inter Milan for €25 million, per Reuters (h/t Marca), and are due to make further bank debt payments in June 2018, according to Folgado—would be priced out again in this market.

Two, his star will have risen so much that it is demanded he's shoehorned into an attacking lineup at PSG that already features the vaunted front three of Neymar, Edinson Cavani and Kylian Mbappe.

"There is no place for Guedes in PSG's system unless the manager Unai Emery changes his system of play to find a space for Guedes. This is a possibility," says Folgado.

Manteigas is sceptical about his prospects in Paris: "It will be very hard for him to get his place with Paris Saint-Germain—too many important players and egos. If he stays with the club, he'll be loaned again unless there's a coach at PSG that has the courage to put him in the starting 11 and he sacks some hotshot from the team."

Three, PSG bide their time and offer him back to Valencia for another loan season. "Valencia are working to get PSG to release him for another season," Folgado said. "It's practically impossible. It's utopia thinking, but they are going to try because the player is very comfortable here. In the dressing room at PSG, he is one more, but here he is a leader."

         

All quotes and information obtained firsthand unless otherwise indicated.

Follow Richard on Twitter: @Richard_Fitz

Valencia are playing with verve. If there is a player who encapsulates the transformation of Valencia this season—and their rapid, direct counter-attacking style under new coach Marcelino—it is Goncalo Guedes. The 20-year-old Portuguese winger has been explosive since moving south to Spain on loan from Paris Saint-Germain over the summer. 

At PSG, Guedes was unable to establish a regular starting position behind a number of more senior players; at Valencia he's been pivotal, contributing five assists and scoring three goals in eight league appearances, including a couple of stunners against Sevilla and Real Betis. The latter was a 6-3 goalfest, the first time Valencia have scored six goals in La Liga since 2004, per El Pais (in Spanish).

Guedes is thrilling to watch, arguably La Liga's most exciting player this season (with the exception of Leo Messi's remorseless brilliance). He's fast and unselfish. He makes amazing offloads by contorting his feet as though made of rubber, and he can generate fierce force with a short backlift when shooting.

It used to be that shambolic Valencia—who are second in the La Liga standings and unbeaten in 10 games after finishing 12th two seasons running—were a clearing house for players on the books of agent Jorge Mendes. The tale of Guedes, who is part of the Mendes stable, illustrates how things have changed at the club.

"Valencia was seen as one of the showrooms for Jorge Mendes in European football," said Aitor Lagunas, editor of Panenka, the highly regarded literary football magazine. "The way of Valencia used to be accept any kind of player with a Jorge Mendes profile. This summer it has been the other way around.

"Marcelino sent the club's owner Peter Lim to Paris, and he told him: 'Don't come back without Goncalo Guedes. From all the players of Jorge Mendes, I want him.' And that is what happened—Peter Lim got Goncalo Guedes in the last day of the transfer window. Right now, we can see what Goncalo Guedes has done for Valencia and the Spanish league." 

Marcelino believes in youth. He earned his spurs as a player and a young coach in La Liga at Sporting Gijon, a club that is renowned for its youth academy in Spanish football circles. The elevation of Guedes by Marcelino, who was capped as a full international by Portugal when he was 18 years old, is a testament to that conviction.

Marcelino's faith in hometown boy Carlos Soler, who has come up through the ranks of Valencia's "cantera" (youth academy) is another example. Lagunas, who recently finished filming a documentary on Valencia that will be broadcast in the New Year on BelN Sports, reckons the 20-year-old Soler is destined to be a "franchise player" for the club.

In order to give youth its fling, Marcelino had to get rid of some troublesome older players during the summer, including Enzo Perez (shipped back to Argentina), Diego Alves (sold to Flamengo in Brazil), Alvaro Negredo (signed with Besiktas in Turkey) and Aymen Abdennour (loaned out to Marseille).

"These players were earning a lot of money, but their performances were very poor," El Mercantil Valenciano journalist Cayetano Ros said. "This was the key—the ejection of the club's worst players, and the signing of very good, young players to replace them. Players with a lot of ambition, who were hungry to succeed after spells at clubs where they weren’t prominent."

Ros cited several examples: Guedes at PSG; goalkeeper Neto, who didn't play much in Juventus; Geoffrey Kondogbia, who didn't get on great at Inter; and the same with Gabriel Paulista at Arsenal and Andreas Pereira at Manchester United.

"Marcelino is clear about the team he likes," Ros said. "He wants a young team, players who are very fast, who have absolute faith in him as a trainer. He doesn't like veteran players who are suspicious or wary. He likes players with a lot of illusion, who are hopeful, who dream, who learn fast.

"He has a very frank relationship with his players. He told everyone in pre-season what he expected from them; for example, with Fabien Orellana, he told him he wasn't counting on him for the season, that he wasn't going to be calling on him. That is something the players are grateful for—the truth."

Lagunas points out that Marcelino has returned Valencia to their roots—the DNA that was nurtured during their most recent glory years at the turn of the millennium when Hector Cuper brought the club to successive Champions League finals and Rafa Benitez won two La Liga titles in 2002 and 2004.

The club has just gone through a chaotic period in which it was changing managers several times a season, including a bizarre interlude in which Gary Neville was parachuted in as head coach. "Gary Neville was one of the strangest appointments in the last 10 years in Spanish football," Lagunas said. "Perhaps only Tony Adams at Granada was worse." 

After a few years when it was uncertain of its style, Marcelino has returned Valencia to a traditional, counter-attacking philosophy. He eschews the slow build-up of, say, Barcelona and Spain national teams in favour of a fast, direct route to goal. He keeps it simple.

"His way of understanding football is 4-4-2, which can be seen as a classical view of the game, with a few small adjustments to the model," says Lagunas. "He's very influenced by Italian football. It won't be a surprise if we see him someday coaching in Italy. He has this approach, which isn't always popular in Spain—that it's better to arrive to the box in three passes rather than 15.

"He sees the game as being uncomplicated. He doesn't give his players a lot of orders, just a few simple ideas, easy to do. He doesn't like to explain a lot of things to guys who are playing in the first division in Spain, most of whom are internationals.

"During pre-season, he divided the pitch into zones. Every player—central defenders, full-backs, Dani Parejo and Geoffrey Kondogbia in midfield and so on—understood where they should be during a game. He started from ground zero. It was very simple, but now they understand where to be during a game, which wasn't always the case last season—Valencia were a very chaotic team.

"During one of those first training sessions in the summer, he said to his players: 'I want to hear the ball when you pass it. I want to hear the 'pam.' I want to hear that noise—the sound of the ball.' I asked Marcelino about this aspect. It's because he wants his team to move forward quickly, to take advantage of the opposition when it is off guard."

Marcelino also has an obsession about the diet of his players. Players are tested daily. If a player's body fat index tips over 9.5, he can't play, as per the Guardian. "He imposes a very strict food diet, with very precise measurements," Ros said. "It's very controlled. They are all very thin. For example, Parejo weighs 5.5 kilos less compared to last season."

Parejo has been a revelation this season. Marcelino has reinstalled him as club captain. He makes the team sing. Alongside him, France international Kondogbia has found his mojo again after a failed big-money move to Inter, while Simone Zaza has scored nine goals in 10 league games following a goalless, eight-game misadventure in London last season with West Ham. Only Messi has scored more than Zaza in La Liga this season.

Valencia's scintillating form, which includes a 5-0 win against Malaga and a 4-0 rout of Sevilla, has bowled everyone over. "This is the biggest surprise," Ros said, "even here in Valencia—it's not only that they are winning but also they are playing really well. They are playing with style, very attacking. Marcelino has never been as dynamic a coach as he is now. The players are playing with confidence and enjoying every minute, every goal."

This could go either of two ways. Marcelino achieved great things at his last station, winning Villarreal promotion and securing three top-six finishes as well as a run to the semi-final of the Europa League, but he was bombed out of the club during the 2016-17 pre-season.

"Marcelino has a reputation of ending up having a bad relationship with his players," Ros said. "Every day is so stressful. At Villarreal, it ended up in tensions and conflicts." As Gabriel said in a radio interview on Cadena Ser: Marcelino can be "muy pesado" (very annoying).

But if Valencia keep knocking in the goals with such abandon—and without the distraction of European competition to wear them out—they could well give early-season league leaders Barcelona a run for the title. It’s something we would all enjoy dining out on.

         

All quotes and information obtained firsthand unless otherwise indicated.

Follow Richard on Twitter: @Richard_Fitz

Eibar continued their chase of a top-half finish in La Liga as they beat Las Palmas 3-1 on Thursday. 

Valencia claimed a late 3-2 victory over Celta Vigo, with Carlos Soler scoring the winner four minutes from time.

Both teams remain rooted in mid-table, as Los Che move up to 12th place in the division.

Here are the latest results from Spain's top league:

Eibar	3-1	Las Palmas
Valencia	3-2	Celta Vigo

Here are the latest standings:

Pos	Club	P	W	D	L	GD	Points
1	Real Madrid	29	22	5	2	48	71
2	Barcelona	30	21	6	3	62	69
3	Atletico Madrid	30	18	7	5	32	61
4	Sevilla	30	17	7	6	15	58
5	Villarreal	30	14	9	7	19	51
6	Athletic Bilbao	30	15	5	10	6	50
7	Real Sociedad	30	15	4	11	2	49
8	Eibar	30	13	8	9	8	47
9	Espanyol	30	11	10	9	0	43
10	Celta Vigo	29	12	5	12	-4	41
11	Alaves	30	10	10	10	-8	40
12	Valencia	30	10	6	14	-9	36
13	Las Palmas	30	9	8	13	-5	35
14	Real Betis	30	8	7	15	-15	31
15	Malaga	30	7	9	14	-13	30
16	Deportivo La Coruna	30	6	10	14	-15	28
17	Leganes	30	6	9	15	-21	27
18	Sporting Gijon	30	5	7	18	-27	22
19	Granada	30	4	8	18	-36	20
20	Osasuna	30	2	8	20	-39	14

Thursday Recap

Las Palmas were no match on their travels as they lost to plucky Eibar, with the hosts running out 3-1 winners at the Ipurua Municipal Stadium.

Former Manchester United starlet Bebe opened the scoring after 14 minutes, calming slotting the ball into the corner of the net to gain the advantage.

Aythami Artiles' own goal doubled the lead 10 minutes later, severely hamstringing his side's hopes of a quick recovery before half-time.

However, Mauricio Lemos' free-kick expertly found the top corner shortly after the hour mark, offering the travelling side tangible hope.

The visitors' joy was soon extinguished as Adrian Gonzalez put the result to bed, scoring just four minutes after Las Palmas' goal.

The three points see Eibar consolidate eighth place in the league, and they now remain only two points behind Real Sociedad.

The fallen giants of Valencia claimed their 10th La Liga win of the season as they crept past Celta Vigo at the Mestalla Stadium.

Gustavo Cabral gave Celta an early lead, but Daniel Parejo equalised seven minutes before half-time.

The hosts grabbed the advantage after 67 minutes as Munir El Haddadi doubled his side's goal tally, but Iago Aspas believed he had won his side a point with his finish in the final 10 minutes.

Soler was the matchwinner for the Bats, forcing his shot home after being assisted by Enzo Perez's precision pass.

Valencia climb one spot to 12th in La Liga, but remain five points outside the top 10 in Spain. 

Valencia's revival in La Liga continued as they defeated Leganes 1-0 at the Mestalla Stadium on Tuesday.

Real Betis also earned a victory on the road as they beat Malaga 2-1.

There was a wonderful contest between Real Sociedad and Eibar at the Anoeta Stadium, as the visitors scored a last-minute equaliser to break La Real's hearts in a 2-2 draw.

Here are Tuesday's results:

Home	Score	Away
Real Sociedad	2-2	Eibar
Malaga	1-2	Real Betis
Valencia	1-0	Leganes

Pos	Club	P	W	D	L	GD	Points
1	Real Madrid	23	17	4	2	38	55
2	Barcelona	24	16	6	2	45	54
3	Sevilla	24	16	4	4	19	52
4	Atletico Madrid	24	13	6	5	23	45
5	Real Sociedad	25	14	3	8	5	45
6	Villarreal	24	10	9	5	14	39
7	Eibar	25	11	6	8	8	39
8	Athletic Bilbao	24	11	5	8	2	38
9	Espanyol	24	9	8	7	2	35
10	Celta Vigo	23	10	4	9	0	34
11	Alaves	24	8	9	7	-5	33
12	Valencia	25	8	5	12	-8	29
13	Las Palmas	24	7	7	10	-4	28
14	Real Betis	24	7	6	11	-13	27
15	Malaga	25	6	8	11	-10	26
16	Leganes	25	5	6	14	-20	21
17	Deportivo La Coruna	23	4	7	12	-13	19
18	Sporting Gijon	24	4	5	15	-22	17
19	Granada	24	3	7	14	-30	16
20	Osasuna	24	1	7	16	-31	10

Tuesday Recap

Eibar stole a point in stoppage time as they scored with the final kick of the game against Real Sociedad, drawing 2-2 at the Anoeta.

Juanmi had opened the scoring after 14 minutes for the hosts as they caught Eibar cold. However, the visitors struck back 12 minutes later, with Gonzalo Escalante finding the target to level the score.

Carlos Vela’s 67th-minute penalty appeared to have given La Real the points, with the hosts in control and comfortable.

With time running out, Eibar made one last dash for the line, and Pedro Leon was rewarded as he stroked in the second equaliser of the night, with home fans groaning in disappointment.

Juanmi and Eibar’s Florian Lejeune both saw red in the second half as the match descended into a war of attrition.

Valencia edged out Leganes at the Mestalla, collecting a 1-0 victory as Los Che’s revival continued in La Liga.

Eliaquim Mangala’s first-half effort from close range was enough for the Bats as they dominated possession throughout the contest.

Real Betis disappointed Malaga on the road, defeating their opponents 2-1 after a convincing comeback in the second half.

Pablo Fornals opened the scoring shortly before half-time for Malaga, but the match was to turn sour for the home side as goals from Jonas Martin and Antonio Sanabria gave the visitors three points.

Cesare Prandelli has resigned as Valencia manager, becoming the latest in a long line of coaches who failed to turn around the fortunes of the iconic Spanish club.

Los Che released an official statement on Friday announcing the news:

Cesare Prandelli has communicated to Valencia Club de Futbol his irrevocable decision to resign from his position as coach, as of Friday, December 30th. ‘Voro’ Gonzalez will take over in charge of the first team squad. Valencia CF director Anil Murthy and sporting director Jesus García Pitarch will hold a press conference at the Ciudad Deportiva on Saturday, December 31st, at 10 a.m.

Sky Sports' Guillem Balague took a closer look at the motivation behind the Italian's decision:

Prandelli put club in a corner. Either they got 4 players by his chosen deadline or he went. Blackmail? Search 4 authority? Protect himself?

— Guillem Balague (@GuillemBalague) December 30, 2016

So Prandelli decided enough was enough... Italian coach felt his authority was diminished and has resigned #whatNow

— Guillem Balague (@GuillemBalague) December 30, 2016

Prandelli took charge of Valencia in September, becoming the 10th man to coach the Andalusian club since Unai Emery's departure in 2012. Only one of his predecessors lasted more than a year in charge of the squad.

Valencia have struggled for years, failing to reach the lofty expectations that usually come with the club. Los Che traditionally challenge for one of La Liga's UEFA Champions League spots every year, but the side has fallen on hard times since Peter Lim became a majority owner of the club in 2014.

Prandelli couldn't turn the tide, and following the 3-2 loss against Real Sociedad in La Liga on December 10, Valencia sit in 17th place, tied with Sporting Gijon on 12 points.

Football writer Sid Lowe was one of many shocked at Prandelli's decision:

Bloody hell. Prandelli resigns at Valencia.

— Sid Lowe (@sidlowe) December 30, 2016

Sport Witness shared this short video, showing some fans applauding the veteran manager during his departure:

Prandelli quite literally waving goodbye to Valencia, met by applause. pic.twitter.com/XRfAr2YUJO

— Sport Witness (@Sport_Witness) December 30, 2016

Prandelli enjoyed a fantastic spell as Fiorentina boss between 2005 and 2010, and he took the job as Italy national team manager upon his departure from Florence. At the time, the Azzurri were in a bit of a slump, but he shocked everyone by guiding the team to the final of UEFA Euro 2012, restoring the side's pride.

He replaced compatriot Roberto Mancini at Galatasaray in 2012 but was sacked less than half a season into the job, with the Turks disappointing in the Champions League. 

Prandelli's last outing with Valencia was the Copa del Rey win over Leganes on December 21. He took time off after he was sacked at Galatasaray and could do so again.

Manchester City defender Eliaquim Mangala has joined Valencia on a season-long loan.   

City announced the move on Wednesday ahead of the close of the summer transfer window.

Mangala arrived at the Etihad Stadium from FC Porto in 2014 with a great deal of promise—the Sky Blues reportedly paid £32 million for the defender.

Indeed, his imposing frame, aerial ability and pace should have made him well-suited to Premier League football—he has all the physical hallmarks of an excellent centre-back.

His career at City started well with a commanding performance against Chelsea, per Squawka Football:

Eliaquim Mangala's Man City debut:

100% aerial duels won
91% pass accuracy
4 tackles won
4 clearances
1 key pass pic.twitter.com/KmIH52pvZN

— Squawka (@Squawka) September 21, 2014

The 25-year-old struggled to convince during his time at Eastlands, though, often proving unreliable and erratic at the back.

His positioning, concentration and decision-making have all often left something to be desired, resulting in numerous costly errors in defence. For Mangala to reach his potential, he needs to improve his mental attributes and tactical awareness—something he has been unable to do at City. 

At Valencia, Mangala will be tasked with replacing Shkodran Mustafi following his move to Arsenal.

Barring an unexpected turnaround, Mangala's career with City is likely over. The arrival of John Stones from Everton pushed him further down the pecking order, and manager Pep Guardiola has yet to give any indication he has plans for the Frenchman.

However, a solid spell with Los Che should boost his transfer value ahead of a permanent move at some point in the future, which would be a good thing for all parties involved.

The Citizens would love to recuperate some of their funds, and Mangala is in the perfect place to stand out and earn his next major contract.

It was a breathtaking opening weekend in La Liga, with 40 goals scored across the entirety of the fixtures. Not everyone, however, was so thrilled by it. It’s normal for a few teams’ new-season optimism to take a knock in the opening game, but saying that in the case of Valencia would suggest that there was some positivity around Mestalla in the first place.  

The situation is serious, which should have been clear before Monday night’s defeat at home to Las Palmas, and the top line in terms of problems (on the pitch, at least), is clear. Valencia’s leading sports newspaper, Superdeporte, didn’t attempt cleverness or nuance with its Tuesday headline. “Este equipo necesita fichajes,” it said: This team needs signings.

A team that was enjoying sealing a return to the Champions League on this week last year, having won a play-off with Monaco, already has next to no chance of making it back there at the conclusion of the new campaign.

Last season ended with a gentle optimism, when Pako Ayestaran took the reins after the chaotic tenure of Gary Neville (as this column noted on a trip to Mestalla), but that upward mobility had been swept away long before Quique Setien’s side did likewise to this season’s crop in the season opener.

Ayestaran was hardly a unanimous choice among the fanbase or the local media to be appointed to the post permanently, particularly with heavy hitters like Manuel Pellegrini and Rudi Garcia available on the summer’s market. Yet the mess into which the season’s preparations have fallen has little to do with the new coach, who has been restricted to sitting back and watching in horror as his chances of making something out of a cherished opportunity have nosedived.

Rather than being a cause of the problem, Ayestaran has become a symbol of it, a poster boy for inaction and inertia, which is the same strategy (or lack thereof) that started the slide last summer. Nuno had created an impressive team in terms of strategy and focus, which belied his relative inexperience in coaching at the top level, but having guided the team back into the Champions League, little was done to reinforce the squad.

The numbers might suggest otherwise—a list of the club’s dealings in summer 2015 on Transfermarkt shows Valencia having spent just over £122 million on players, but this is misleading. The likes of Rodrigo, Andre Gomes and Joao Cancelo were already at the club, having officially been loaned in anticipation of new owner Peter Lim completing his purchase of the club, which he eventually had in autumn 2014.

So £79.5 million of that original figure quoted here had already been committed, including the obligation to buy Alvaro Negredo from Manchester City at the end of his loan spell (a player Nuno would have rather done without, as became increasingly plain towards the end of the Portuguese coach’s spell at the helm).

Rather than the wholesale reinforcement suggested, it was more papering over any cracks ahead of what was always going be a thoroughly demanding campaign.

Moreover, the third-most expensive signing of last summer, Aymen Abdennour, was brought in to replace Nicolas Otamendi, who had been La Liga’s outstanding defender in 2014-15 before leaving for City. Abdennour cost half the fee that the Argentinian was sold for, and he has struggled to adapt to Spanish football.

So rather than heralding a bright new day, and a return to the glory years of the Rafa Benitez era (which Ayestaran is inextricably linked with, having been his assistant), it’s just been more of the same for Valencia’s support. One of Spanish football’s ultimate cliches is how demanding the Mestalla crowd are, but they have a right to expect more than this.

As we can see from the below graphic (courtesy of B/R’s Instagram), bringing together an XI comprised of some of the players sold since 2010, Valencia have had numerous opportunities to build something, chances that have successively slipped away in recent years. Six of the club’s top 10 most lucrative sales have been made since 2010:

The current regime can’t be held accountable for past player exits, of course, and even without the club’s well-documented financial problems pre-Lim, it’s highly likely that elite talent like Davids Villa and Silva would have moved anyway, to fulfil their desire to compete at the very top of the sport.

What this line from the past to the present tells us, though, is that nothing has changed post-takeover. Lim’s acquisition might have saved Valencia from financial ruin, but the much-trumpeted new direction is yet to come into view. Where is the club going? How does it intend to build? Most importantly, who is it being run for?

The worst aspect of this is that the concerns over finances are still there. Earlier this month, Superdeporte wrote that Valencia were yet to register their new signings Nani, Martin Montoya and Alvaro Medran with the Liga de Futbol Profesional (LFP) as they struggled to fit within financial fair play limits, despite having already cut players including Negredo and Pablo Piatti from their wage bill.

Montoya’s presentation, meanwhile, was overshadowed by sporting director Suso Garcia Pitarch’s stinging criticism of captain Dani Parejo’s conduct after he apparently tried to force a move to Sevilla, saying he would “have to say sorry to the fans,” according to El Desmarque (article in Spanish).  

Making out Parejo to be some sort of villain is convenient, but it isn’t accurate. When your captain thinks an ostensibly direct rival represents a better bet with which to build his career (and Sevilla don’t have the financial resources of Atletico Madrid, let alone Real Madrid or Barcelona), questions need to be asked.

With doubts still hanging over the futures of Shkodran Mustafi, who is heavily linked with Arsenal—according to Sky Sports—and Paco Alcacer, who is a target for Barcelona to back up their all-star front three, it could get even worse than Monday’s defeat. According to Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish), Paco Alcacer has agreed to terms, even if Valencia seem determined to keep him.

The plan is to shift unwanted elements of the squad—as has already been done to an extent, with A Bola reporting that Aderlan Santos and Abdennour have been linked to Porto this week—though time is running out to be choosy.

In current form, Ayestaran’s team, outthought by a canny Las Palmas, even though they lost their star Willian Jose to Real Sociedad this summer, look underprepared for the season ahead.

Really like the team going forward, but Abdennour is a disaster waiting to happen. Hope Everton keep increasing their bids

— James Feligha (@jamesfeligha) August 22, 2016

https://twitter.com/IraqiNotArab/status/767826791377633281

The defence was a particular concern, vulnerable to visiting counter-attacks, with Mustafi still short of match fitness after an injury-affected pre-season.

The tweets above, from Valencia fans during the Las Palmas game, are indicative of the level of desperation and of general recognition of the level of difficulty the club face, which has been obvious for weeks. Pitarch and Co. are not in a strong position as they attempt to reshape the team via some late-window business.

After the game, Ayestaran was left to fend off questions that he is ill-equipped to deal with, on the futures of Mustafi and Alcacer in particular, as noted by Marca (in Spanish), as he looks to the future with hope rather than expectation. He must look upstairs for direction but on recent form, it doesn’t look forthcoming. Valencia’s future, as long as this continues, will remain shrouded in doubt.

The cover from Superdeporte was distasteful and tinged with nastiness, but concurrently, with two simple words it reflected a certain relief that promised change was coming.  

"Gracias, Boro," it read. 

The snide gratitude followed the news that Valencia had agreed to a deal with Middlesbrough for a one-year loan of Alvaro Negredo, the expensive and misfiring striker who had been so emblematic of Valencia's turmoil. 

Two years earlier when he'd been signed, Superdeporte's cover had depicted Negredo as the centrepiece in a "forward line of champions" that also featured Paco Alcacer and Rodrigo Moreno. His move involved big money and big potential at a club that had the exactly that itself thanks to the wealth of new owner Peter Lim. But that potential never materialised; already, Negredo is gone, for now at least.

And he's not the only one.

This had long loomed as a key summer for Valencia, and the look of restructuring is obvious. As well as Negredo, the club has sold Andre Gomes to Barcelona, Rodrigo de Paul to Udinese, Antonio Barragan to Middlesbrough and has loaned Pablo Piatti to Espanyol, who have an option to buy. Sofiane Feghouli has also been lost on a free transfer to West Ham United. 

In that group, Negredo and Gomes are of course the headliners, but collectively those deals stand as evidence that Valencia have recognised the need for it: The reset button. 

Aquí os dejo nuestra portada de hoy. pic.twitter.com/lksi2HeyDd

— Superdeporte (@superdeporte_es) July 19, 2016

Now two years into Lim's reign following his takeover in 2014, Valencia have discovered that money alone doesn't translate into footballing success. 

After a promising first season, the club saw any sense of progress fall apart in a 2015-16 campaign riddled with the sort of headaches that stem from structural issues. Valencia finished 12th—their worst finish in almost three decades—had three different managers in the space of four months and missed Champions League qualification by a whopping 20 points. 

That absence of European football is damaging. Across two summers, Valencia's squad had been expensively assembled, but now a slash in revenue awaits without the Champions League's television money. With UEFA's Financial Fair Play in mind, the club's loaning of Negredo to Middlesbrough was done to dial back the wage bill—hence the Superdeporte cover—while the sale of Gomes to Barcelona for an initial €35 million that could rise to as much as €70 million, per Goal, was necessary to raise funds. 

Now the task is to spend shrewdly, to build something—the things Valencia have neglected under Lim to date. 

When Lim arrived, it was hoped that his wealth would propel Valencia into a heavyweight existence. The expectation was for a challenge to the established order, but the reality has become very different because of structural fault lines, as explained here at Bleacher Report in January:

Last summer, Valencia fans held high expectations for a blockbuster transfer window. Big names and big fees were expected, but it was only the latter the fans saw.

Instead of marquee names, the club spent over €100 million on players it already had, completing permanent transfers for players they'd taken on loan the previous season in Alvaro Negredo, Rodrigo, Andre Gomes and Joao Cancelo. There were new faces, yes: young ones, promising ones. But not the sort envisaged.

At board level, there were more concerns. In July, former president Amadeo Salvo departed, as did sporting director Francisco Rufete and scout Roberto Fabian Ayala. It was seen as a sort of civil war, Lim assuming full control, inserting adviser Lay Hoon Chan to replace Salvo and turning to the influence of good friend and agent Jorge Mendes.

The lingering feel of Mendes' influence has been the most troubling aspect of Valencia's issues. The renowned player agent had helped bring Lim to Valencia, but following the exit of Rufete, he quickly began to look like a quasi-sporting director with conflicted interests. 

In 2014, Mendes' first client, Nuno Espirito Santo, was installed as manager. In the same summer, Mendes was also involved in bringing Gomes, Rodrigo, Joao Cancelo and Enzo Perez to Mestalla; in 2015, it was Danilo, Zakaria Bakkali and Santi Mina. 

Many perceived the fees to be inflated in several cases, and it didn't go unnoticed that Mendes was the man who took Nicolas Otamendi to Manchester City, too.

The circumstances led to suspicion, fury in the stands at Mestalla and uncomfortable questions over Valencia's direction as a club. 

"The truth is I am fed up speaking about Jorge Mendes at every press conference," said Chan in December.

By April, though, there was a recognition that the club's setup needed addressing, that an inexperienced regime in a footballing sense had gotten it wrong. 

"We see the issue here this season, and we'll plan forward very carefully," said Chan when Pako Ayestaran replaced Gary Neville as manager. "We will see a lot of changes."

One of those changes will be the influence of a genuine sporting director. In January, Jesus Garcia Pitarch, who worked alongside Rafa Benitez between 2002 and 2004, was appointed to the position, and this summer is his first real chance to start shaping a squad. To build something. To instil an encompassing idea or model into Lim's Valencia.

Straightforward? Not at all.

Valencia's squad is undoubtedly talented, but it is also unbalanced. The centre of the defence desperately needs strengthening, the midfield doesn't entirely convince and a new striker is required. And yet the issues go beyond merely personnel. 

In large stretches last season, it was difficult to work out exactly what Valencia were trying to do. The complicated background picture was reflected in the confused identity on the pitch, a sense of the club not quite knowing who or what it was. 

For addressing that, this summer is pivotal. Ayestaran's task is to give his squad a new clarity in their purpose and a philosophy for Pitarch to build the squad around. To date, the latter's signings are Nani (something to prove) from Fenerbahce and Alvaro Medran (inexpensive promise) from Real Madrid, and though the budget is tight for buying more, that might not be a bad thing. The splashing of cash with little thought for institutional structure is what led Valencia here—to the reset button. 

They had no choice but to hit it. 

In doing so, Valencia have taken a step in the right direction but are now facing a defining season in Lim's reign. Big names have left, the challenges are vast and the club's rivals are strong, but more than anything, this is a year about recovery; about foundation setting and steady progression; about Lim's Valencia finding itself. 

And as Lim has discovered, money alone won't do it. 

Follow @TimDCollins