Villarreal coach Manuel Pellegrini looks set to take over at Real Madrid. Villarreal general manager Jose Manuel Llaneza told the national news agency Efe on Monday that an agreement had been reached between the two clubs.
A spokeswoman at Villarreal club said there had been contacts with Madrid but insisted there was no official confirmation of the deal. Pellegrini, who has reportedly agreed to a two-year contract, would replace Juande Ramos, who took over at Madrid in December after Bernd Schuster was fired. Any Spanish club looking to employ Pellegrini would have to buy out his contract, which is worth $5.7 million.
Pellegrini transformed Villarreal since arriving from River Plate in 2004. The Chilean’s fluid style of attacking soccerl – often compared to Arsene Wenger‘s Arsenal – twice helped Villarreal reach the Champions League, including a run to the semifinals in 2006. Pellegrini’s arrival would coincide with the return of Florentino Perez, who assumed the presidency of Real Madrid for the second time in the club’s history on Monday.