Malaga

Abdullah Al Thani bought Malaga FC for £36 million in the summer of 2010, making him the first Qatari investor coming into Spanish Football.

Despite this many were not surprised. Rich investors buying football clubs has become a common trend in today’s game. In 2008 English side Manchester City were taken over by Sheikh Mansour, while more recently this year foreign investors also bought French giants Paris Saint-Germain.

However the Malaga Qatari owner was quick to inform the football world that it would not be the kind of takeover we were used to seeing. His aim was to show people that the rebuilding of a club could be done in a way that would make people appreciate it.

For example you just have to take a look at the players who have been signed since the takeover; Saloman Rondon, Julio Baptista, Martin Demichelis, Ruud Van Nistelrooy, Joaquin Sanchez, and Francisco Isco to just name a few. It goes without question that these players above are very talented, but they are not world-beaters or superstars.

This contrasts greatly to the method taken up by Manchester City in the transfer market, who since being taken over have spent large fees on some of Europe’s great players. Robinho was the first big name to arrive for a total £32.5 million, on the same day of the takeover. Carlos Tevez, Yaya Toure, David Silva and Sergio Aguero also later followed, making the switch to Eastland’s for big money.

One word to describe the Malaga project so far would be sensible. Malaga General Manager Fernando Hierro: “it’s important that people don’t think it is just about the money. If you look at the players we have signed for rational prices; there has been no madness”.

Another example of the club taking sensible actions involve the appointment of manager Manuel Pellegrini. The Chilian coach is very highly respected throughout Spain, which will therefore help the club themselves be more respected and liked by football fans all around the world.

The appointment of Pellegrini demonstrated great football knowledge by the new owner. The former Real Madrid manager took Villarreal from the lower end of La Liga to the Semi Finals of the Champions League on a minimal budget. This kind of dramatic rise he achieved with the Yellow Submarines is one, which the Sheikh owner will be looking to achieve.

The club showed no madness last season, when results were going against them and relegation seemed the most probable outcome. Malaga stood by they’re man and it ended up up being the right decision, as a dramatic change of form saw them end up in 10th position.

Fernando Hierro: “He was not sacked when things were going badly last year because there is total faith in him. His position was reinforced by survival and the way that the team played in the final weeks”.

Put in this position would the Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich have made the same decision? More than likely not! Since the Russian billionaire took over back in 2004, the club have seen seven different managers. This lack of stability at the club is seen by most people as the main reason for they’re failure to win in the Champions League.

Another intelligent move by owner Abdullah Al Thani was bringing Antonio Fernandez to the club. Fernandez joined this summer and fulfills the role of Sporting Director. He is extremely highly thought of in Spain as a result of his time with Sevilla, where he identified and bought talent, such as Brazilian duo Dani Alves and Julio Baptista.

The owner also showed good judgment by retaining former player and club president Fernando Sanz. Sanz has been kept on in an advisory role, keeping an element of the clubs heritage as well as maintaining years of insight and footballing experience.

In the transfer market the club have shown great care in the type of person they have brought into the group. There is no room for prima donnas in the Malaga squad. Antonio Fernandez says: “it is vital that we sign good people as well as good players”.

They have signed a good combination of experience and youth. Van Nistelrooy for instance, a player who has played for two of Europe’s best clubs; Manchester United and Real Madrid and has won numerous titles throughout his playing career. The younger players can look up to players like this as a role model. He can help them to progress and improve on the pitch, as well as being an example for the correct way to look after yourself and behave.

There has been an immediate investment in youth since the takeover. Nineteen-year-old attacking midfielder Isco was signed for £6 million from Valencia in the summer. The creative Spanish under 20 international is highly thought of in Spain, as one of the brightest stars in La Liga.

Promising youngsters Francisco Portillo, Recio and Juanmi have also been promoted into the first team and are set for a bright future. Striker Juanmi in particular, he became the youngest player ever to play for Malaga when he made his debut for the club last season at just sixteen.

The objective is to train and nurture the homegrown players, before moving them into the first-team squad when the time is right. This is a very similar model to the one of current La Liga and European Champions Barcelona. From the team that started against Manchester United in the Champions League Final in May, seven of the players had developed and been brought through the famous Barcelona youth academy La Masia.

There are two major benefits from adopting this strategy. The first is that you will be spending a considerable amount less on transfer fees, as the majority of the players will be coming from the youth, and therefore costing nothing. The other benefit is that the young players would of been spending years training and learning the clubs style of play. So when it comes to making the step up to the first team, the transition will be a simple one, compared to the adjustment and settling in period of player coming in from another club.

So there are clear signs that this Malaga project is heading in the right direction. They have the right people in place on and off the field to progress and help achieve the clubs objectives. The rest of Spain very well respects the ways they are going about doing this, and this has resulted them in becoming everyone’s second favorite team