A year ago, Víctor Sánchez del Amo was fired by Richard Shaheen, then the club's general manager and Al Thani furrier corporal. The reason argued was an intimate video of the Madrid coach, released without authorization and with the sole objective of causing harm. Since then, things at Málaga have started to change.
Those were very turbulent times at La Rosaleda. Al Thani was in the middle of an anthology of nonsense, the team was playing with fire too close to relegation and with only 17 pro chips. Victor did what he could by giving the alternative to affiliate footballers who responded by taking the chestnuts out of the fire despite their inexperience. We highlight the case of Antoñín, who went in a few months from playing in Third to being transferred to Granada for 1.5 million saviors euros for the entity.
The fracture between Victor and Al Thani was total. On the eve of the match against Oviedo, which was to be played on January 5, 2020, the coach criticized the owner's management and planning. He said he felt “cheated from the beginning” and went further. “If I don't explain the situation, I become an accomplice.” The Al Thani-Shaheen duet was clear that the coach had to be fired. But, of course, paying him.
The excuse of the video
Two days later the video in question was released from an account that was subsequently deleted. But the trail remained there. Instead of supporting an employee who was being harassed through social media, Shaheen sent him to the lions. Sudden dismissal that after being denounced by the interested party, ended up being recognized as inadmissible. The Malaguista fans, unanimously, took the side of Victor. Such was (and is) the dislike he felt towards Al Thani.
The Pellicer era
Sergio Pellicer, who was directing Atlético Malagueño, Tercera's affiliate, was urgently appointed provisional coach (while Shaheen negotiated with Luis Fernández). That event marked, without anticipation, a before and after. The figure of Al Thani added more points of unpopularity (which was already difficult) and a countdown began that culminated shortly after, on February 21, with the dismissal of Al Thani as president by decision of the head of the 14th court of Malaga , MarÍa Ángeles Ruiz, and the appointment of a judicial administrator, José María Muñoz, to correct the excesses of the sheikh and his children.
43 games
Sergio Pellicer debuted on January 14 at La Rosaleda against Ponferradina. Juande also premiered that day. Málaga won thanks to a goal from Antoñín. It was the first stone in the resurrection of the team. There are already 43 games in charge of the team (40 in the League and three in the Cup). Against all odds, despite the difficulties and having the lowest salary limit in professional football (3.6 million euros), Malaga is in a quiet area of the classification, closer to the playoff than relegation and alive in the Copa del Rey.