#360view: Sevilla's UEL dominance reflection of Emery brilliance

Andy West 08:42 19/05/2016
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    When the subject of the best managers in world football is discussed, names like Pep Guardiola, Jose Mourinho, Jurgen Klopp and Diego Simeone are always at the top of the list.

    You might occasionally also find advocates for the likes of Luis Enrique, Carlo Ancelotti and, in the last few weeks, Claudio Ranieri.

    One name you will almost never hear, however, is Unai Emery.

    And it is high time that changed, because last night’s Europa League triumph with Sevilla – their third in a row – demonstrates that Unai deserves to be regarded as belonging in the elite of the game’s coaches.

    It is an astonishing achievement, even more so when you consider that Unai has been forced to contend with losing his star players on an annual basis, with Carlos Bacca and Ivan Rakitic among those to have departed since the first of their trio of triumphs.

    Indeed, only three of the team which started the penalty shoot-out victory over Benfica two years ago are still with Sevilla, and more stars are likely to depart the cash-conscious club this summer with prolific striker Kevin Gameiro and midfield string-puller Ever Banega in high demand.

    Emery's managerial career pre-Sevilla

    • 2004-06: Lorca Deportiva
    • 2006-08: Almeria
    • 2008-12: Valencia
    • 2012: Spartak Moscow

    The players have changed, but the style has remained the same thanks to Emery’s ability to identify the right men for the right positions, and then clearly communicate his ideas over how the game should be played.

    In the former task he is greatly helped by the club’s sporting director Monchi, who acts as the Peter Taylor to Emery’s Brian Clough by making brilliant move after brilliant move in the transfer market.

    But once the squad has been bought and sold, responsibility for how they perform on the field of play is passed over entirely to Emery, and the 44 year-old has consistently excelled in that regard.

    As they showed in the second half against Liverpool last night, Sevilla are capable of playing brilliant football.

    In a similar way to Klopp’s Borussia Dortmund during their 2012-2013 peak, Emery’s team are fast, direct, dynamic and exciting, knowing exactly what they can do well and how to go about it.

    That formula makes them a hugely dangerous adversary for any team, with the fact that they have defeated Barcelona, Real Madrid, Juventus and now Liverpool this season clearly demonstrating their capabilities.

    It’s nothing new for Emery to taste success, and the scale of his achievement in leading Valencia to three consecutive third place finishes in La Liga has only been made fully apparent by how much they have declined since he departed.

    Even before then, Emery started his managerial career by leading two unfancied teams to promotion at Lorca and Almeria. For more than a decade, if you want success on a relatively low budget, Emery is your man.

    Fortunately for Sevilla, very few people in football seem to have recognised that fact – with respect to West Ham United, he should be getting linked with much bigger jobs than a team who regard mid-table comfort as a decent season.

    On Sunday, Sevilla will have another chance for glory and, although fatigue will surely count against them, it would be unwise to rule out the chances of Emery’s men beating Barcelona in the Copa del Rey final in Madrid.

    And if that happens, maybe he’ll start to get the recognition he deserves.

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