Could Valencia Implode Before La Liga Begins Again?

Just over two months since they surprised everyone and won the 2019 Copa del Rey final against a Barcelona side that were looking for their fifth title in a row, Valencia are on the verge of imploding.

A club where controversy, bad luck and appalling decision making have followed them around like a bad smell for many years, there was genuine optimism at the end of the last campaign that Los Che were, finally, heading back to the promised land.

After an awful start to the 2018/19 season, Marcelino steered the team into the Champions League positions at the death, whilst winning a long-overdue piece of silverware.

During their bad run, general director Mateu Alemany stood steadfastly behind the Asturian, arguing against other board members who wanted the club to sack the coach and replace him.

That decision was one that was praised at the time by club captain, Dani Parejo, and it was proved to be correct.

Only now Alemany is at loggerheads with club owner, Peter Lim.

Never the most popular figure, particularly with supporters, Lim has had to put a block on all negotiations for prospective signings, until the malaise is sorted one way or the other.

The disagreement between the pair is apparently insurmountable and could very well end with Alemany walking out of the club, and that could spell disaster for Valencia’s immediate future.

Alemany can be credited with helping to steady the ship at Mestalla, and were he to leave, chaos will most likely reign once more. Lest we forget that Lim was the guy who hired Gary Neville as first-team coach once upon a time, because he was a friend.

Coming as it would just a few weeks before the start of the new La Liga season, it could have a significant impact on how Valencia begin 2019/20.

There would be immediate question marks over Marcelino as it’s unlikely the coach would want to work in a scenario where he has little to no support in the boardroom, and transfers in and out would also become a sticking point.

Clearly, this isn’t where such a historic club expected to be as an organisation at this point, and it can only harm their efforts to genuinely get themselves back into the upper echelons of European football on a regular basis.

If the cards do begin to fall, then Peter Lim only has one person to blame… and it isn’t Mateu Alemany.