Braulio Vazquez has been and will be subject of keen debate amongst fans. He has had his fair share of hits and misses, though one could argue that before him, Fernando Gómez –who was placed as the sport manager and recruited Braulio as his head of scouts- did also a good job with even less money available.
What about his deft and often not-praised-enough decisions? Braulio managed to snatch Jonas out of Brazil for a mere 1 million. The striker’s performance, since, has been absolutely outstanding. A real bargain, indeed. Some of his other credits include: Joao Pereira’s signing, selling more-than-expendable Tino Costa for 7 million, recruiting goalkeeper Alves, young star Canales –though his physical fragility leave the matter somewhat unresolved-, Parejo’s resurrection last season, proving that he can be a helpful player for Valencia… And, last week, he didn’t start a bidding race with Villarreal. The ‘submarine’ is paying 10 million for Pina and Dos Santos. Good for them.
Alas, the sports manager has also committed his fair share of slip-ups. Victor Ruiz and Piatti come to mind: over 15 million between both signings have fans banging their heads against the walls. He tried bringing French striker Kevin Gameiro from abroad for two consecutive seasons, and failed both times. Discussing Barragan and Cissokho’s performance last year is a waste of time. He didn’t take a stand in Isco’s delicate matter and allowed the talented young player to be pestered by Emery until he left. Isco has been signed by Real Madrid this summer.
But, above everything else, Braulio’s greatest flaw is the he left former president Manuel Llorente to poke about in his matters. Mauricio Pellegrino comes to mind: Braulio wanted Djukic, but Llorente imposed his thought that the Argentinean was the better choice. He was wrong. And Braulio didn’t have the heart to oppose him.
Braulio’s situation nowadays is quite weird. He hasn’t earned yet Amadeo Salvo’s trust, but he has been given enough freedom to execute decisions and shape at will next season’s squad. But his relationship with the new general manager for the training school, Rufete, is less than stellar. Friction is the common denominator day after day. But surely Braulio has cyclically proved something for the last three years: he’s a survivor. Merits and flaws come in a mixed bag. No one should forget that. And no one should underestimate him.
Paco Polit (@pacopolit)
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