The Engineer is the oldest DT in the Spanish first division, at 69 (in September he changes folio). After extending his relationship with Betis until 2026, his stay will end, on paper, with 72 years. He is the fourth oldest of the five major European championships. This Sunday, he makes his debut in the local tournament against Villarreal.
“You didn’t see this one coming.” This sentence used Betis to communicate one of its great novelties in the transfer period: the extension of the contract of Manuel Pellegrini (69). The Engineer has extended his relationship with the cast of Héliópolis for a year, until June 30, 2026. In this way, the institution has sheltered itself from the interest aroused by the figure of the Chilean coach, especially in Saudi Arabia and its petrodollars, who have taken on a series of renowned players and coaches to boost their local championship.
This Sunday, Verdiblanco’s casting campaign officially begins with the first LaLiga date. At the La Cerámica stadium, they will visit Ben Brereton’s Villarreal (1:30 p.m. in Chile), in an expedition that inevitably generates mixed feelings for the Engineer, due to his successful past in the Yellow Submarine.
Betis arrive at the first after a pre-season that left them with some doubts, due to the results of the friendlies. He won only one of the six preparatory duels he played. It was a 1-0 victory against Middlesbrough, an English Championship club. The rest was a draw (1-1 with Burnley) and four defeats (3-1 with Eintracht Braunschweig, 3-1 with Monaco, 1-0 with Sevilla and another 1-0 against Real Sociedad).
The Chilean coach spoke in the preview and said his team needed more alternatives. “There are players missing if we want a competitive team because important footballers have left and there are positions that are not filled, especially in creation. We didn’t replace Sergio Canales (he left for Monterrey in Mexico) or Joaquín (retired)… We tried to structure a group that lacks players,” he said.
The idyll that has been forged between the coach and the Betic world is undeniable. Pellegrini’s good results in the Verdiblanca store earned him the consideration of demanding Andalusian fans (as happened in Villarreal and Malaga), who show him their respect every time they play at the Benito Villamarín stadium. The Engineer has 148 games managed with Betis, with a record of 73 wins, 36 draws and 39 losses in all competitions. This gives a positive return of 57.4%.
The highlight of this story was with the 2021-2022 Copa del Rey title, when they beat Valencia on penalties. Another positive aspect that they highlight in Seville is that Betis have qualified for the European Cups three times in a row, which also implies an economic injection into the coffers of the institution. For the campaign that is starting, they will be in the Europa League. Although the desire is to enter the Champions League.
The years
A recurring phrase throughout Pellegrini’s long and award-winning career, when a cast shows interest in his services (or his name is whispered in the corridors of Avenida Quilín, ultimately thinking of La Roja), is : “I fulfill my contracts.” Indeed, it happens except for when he ended his contract with China’s Hebei Fortune to sign for West Ham United, in 2018. Therefore, if the new bond is fulfilled as stipulated, the Chilean will end his stay in Andalusia at the age of 72.
In an activity that increasingly empowers young coaches, the case of Pellegrini ends up being striking. The main beam of the Betis project (and its stability) goes hand in hand with the experience of a technician like the Engineer. At 69 (he will be 70 on September 16), the Chilean is still going strong. In fact, he is the oldest DT in the Spanish league 23-24.
Those next on the list are five years younger. With 64 appear the Italian Carlo Ancelotti, from Real Madrid; the Mexican Javier Aguirre, from Majorca; and the Spaniard Quique Setién, new boss of Brereton in Villarreal. Of the 20 Premier League clubs, six have managers who have been around for more than six decades. In addition to those already mentioned, there is Rafa Benítez (63), who arrived at Celta de Vigo, and José Luis Mendilibar (62), in Seville, the last Europa League champion.
at the antipodes is Xavi Hernandez . Barcelona’s DT, current LaLiga champions, is the youngest in the league. He is 43 years old. The average age on the benches of the Spanish championship is 54.3 years.
The former Madrid and Manchester City manager is the fourth oldest manager among the five major European leagues (England, Spain, Italy, Germany and France). In September, he will join the select group of strategists that has existed for seven decades. The oldest is Englishman Roy Hodgson, who turned 76 on August 9. He took over the Crystal Palace bench last March. The mission he had was to improve the results of the London club and he succeeded. His contract runs until 2024.
In the list, Italian appears Claudio Ranieri, with 71. The experienced DT, who were Premier League champions with Leicester, was promoted with Cagliari to Serie A 23-24. For its part, in France, we find Romanian Laszlo Boloni, 70 years old, on the bench of Metz, a club mounted in Ligue 1 which also started on Friday. In the competitions of the second line of UEFA, there are also cases. It happens with Besiktas, one of the greats of Turkey, whose coach is Senol Günes, 71, at the head of the Istanbul Eagles (ex-club of Gary Medel) since October 2022.
From time to time, the name of Manuel Pellegrini is associated with the chilean team, predicting that paths would eventually cross. In October last year, in dialogue with ESPN, the DT said that “I would like to finish my career leading the national team and leading a World Cup”. But his renewal with Betis again pushes back any option. His new contract ends just before the World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada.
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Source: Latercera
I’m Scott Moore, a professional writer and journalist based in the US. I’ve been writing for various publications for over 8 years now, and have been working as an author at athletistic for the past five years. My work has been featured by some of the leading sports websites and magazines across Europe.
