Rayo Vallecano have been a hotbed of promising managers in recent years, but hanging onto them on a limited budget is not the easiest task. After a modest start to life as the main man in the dugout last season, narrowly avoiding relegation, Inigo Perez has shown his talent this season, keeping Rayo in the European race into the final third of the season.
Previously, Girona manager Michel Sanchez won promotion with the club he came through at and played for, while Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola also cut his teeth in top level football at Rayo, following spells at AEK Larnaca and Mirandes. Perez moved into coaching with Iraola, and was his assistant at Vallecas during the ex-Athletic Club player’s stint there.
He was also due to move to the Premier League with him, but Perez was unable to gain a work permit due to Brexit rules, and as such remained in Spain. In his first full season, Perez has gone from strength to strength, with Rayo currently in eighth spot on 36 points, just one removed from a Conference League position. It is regularly pointed out that their goal is to avoid relegation and with 11 games remaining his side are ten points clear of Alaves in 18th.
Vallecas has fallen in love with the return of aggressive and fast-paced football under Perez, but there may be an expiry date on Perez’s tenure. As per OK Diario, Perez has agreed to join Osasuna this summer, when his contract expires. They say that Osasuna are unconvinced by Vicente Moreno in his first season – the two sides are separated by six places but just three points – and will triple Perez’s salary to €1.8m per annum.
This has been denied by a report from Diario AS, who say that while Osasuna like Perez as a manager, that is the extent of their interest in him. They say that once survival in La Liga is confirmed in Pamplona, they will then discuss future plans with Moreno, but that Rayo believe they can secure the continuity of Perez.
“I’d like him to stay. Me, 100% the fans, the board, and Inigo himself. I hope so. We’ve started talking. I’m in contact with him daily, and the disposition on both sides is the same. I hope we can put it down on paper so we can be at peace. My impression is that Inigo is extremely happy and grateful and that he’ll continue with us,” Rayo Sporting Director David Cobeno told AS.
Perez, who only retired in 2022, spent the final four seasons of his career at El Sadar, but was born in and grew up in Pamplona, hence it is no surprise that there are strong links with him. Perez could well become a man in demand by the time the summer rolls around, particularly being available on a free, but with seven or eight clubs in La Liga vying for European football next season, it would be a surprise if many had definitively decided on their plans for next season at this stage.
