Ernesto Valverde has confirmed that he will leave Valencia this summer, citing the club’s instability as why.
The Coach had taken Los Che to the verge of Champions League qualification after replacing Mauricio Pellegrino in November, but was the subject of speculation, having only signed on until the end of the season.
On from seeing his team lose 4-3 to Sevilla in Week 38 and hand the final Champions League spot back to Real Sociedad, the 49-year-old confirmed that he will be leaving the Mestalla outfit at the end of June.
“It is true that the club asked me to renew at a certain time,” explained Valverde to reporters post-match.
“My concern was that the club was not stable, we were all pushing to the end of the season, but I was worried about what I would face next season.
“There was talk of some signings, such as Iago Aspas. The club was willing to make a significant investment, we were talking about it, the club gambled on me and we were very close to an agreement, and then came the resignation of the President and the events of the last few days, one after another lined up, which led me to this decision.
“I was unable to take the team to the Champions League. The game on Saturday was too unbalanced by the referee, the penalty of the red card to Jonas left the team with an instability and we were quite affected by the situation.
“My decision is one taken by a point in time. I did not think that when the team was in moments of euphoria and when everything was more stable, before the resignations of the last few months, because otherwise I would have chosen to continue, but I have made this decision and that is what I am taking, and nothing else.”
Valverde has been linked with taking over at Athletic Bilbao for next year, whilst Miroslav Djukic is rumoured to be Valencia’s first choice to replace him at Mestalla.
