On Monday the third of April, Real Valladolid sacked their manager Juan Jesus Rojo Martin, or as you know him, Pacheta. It was the 12th sacking of the season in La Liga, but this one felt particularly desperate.
Pacheta took charge of La Pucela two summers ago as Valladolid looked to win promotion back to La Liga, having been relegated the previous season.
No fault could be found with Pacheta there, as he got them promoted straight into La Liga via the automatic promotion places, despite not investing as much as some of their rivals. Players like Kike Perez, Anuar Tuhami and Jawad El Yamiq improved under him.
The question for owner Ronaldo Nazario will be who can he find to better Pacheta’s contribution. Sites like Fun88 will be worth visiting to keep a close eye on how Valladolid are doing in the coming weeks, as they hope to benefit from a new manager bounce.
This season Pacheta had relatively little investment in the summer, as they relied on veteran Sergio Leon and Shon Weissman to score the goals. The former hit a purple patch of form before Christmas, but the latter was loaned out after once again failing to impress in La Liga.
Only in January was Pacheta given reinforcements, with Cyle Larin, Selim Amallah and Darwin Machis arriving in the winter transfer window. Larin has hit the ground running with 5 goals in 8 appearances, while Amallah and Machis have been good when fit.
It is true that Valladolid find themselves with just one win in seven, but they do remain above the drop zone by a point in 16th. The truth is though, that about reflects their hopes for the season.
Pacheta did not have the squad to be much higher in the division, and with the league so tight, could easily have moved several places up with a single win.
Sacked just after an international break and shortly after a thumping from Real Madrid, the latter should not have served as any reflection on his side.
What Ronaldo has done is put pressure on himself. If Valladolid do not have a replacement in mind, if they do not have a solid choice, then his decision to dismiss Pacheta will be questioned.
Well-liked, passionate and committed, there aren’t too many obvious options for a side like Valladolid to improve on Pacheta. While it is understandable that Ronaldo wanted to arrest the poor run, Valladolid had a functioning relationship between fans, players and coach. Thta has been jeopardised now, and Ronaldo has gambled on short-term improvement over long-terrm harmony.
