It is little secret that Villarreal and Quique Setien did not end on good terms, with the Cantabrian coach sacked just four games into last season. However the Yellow Submarine are yet to pay out his contract a year on from dismissing him.
The Yellow Submarine decided to move Setien on early last season, with reports abound that his relationship with the dressing room had been broken. During an interview with Cadena SER, Setien confirmed that he was in legal proceedings against Villarreal, with the Castellon-based club claiming that they dismissed him with cause, and are therefore are not due the same amount.
“Villarreal has a reputation as a paying club. I was delighted, but now that is not the case. Before my trial we had that of one of my assistants, Fran, my physical trainer. The sentence has already been issued and they lost it. They have appealed and we have to wait a year until it is final,” Setien explained.
He went on to say that it has alleged that his preseason was disastrous, and that he did not carry out his duties. Relevo detail that part of that is due to him attending a charity match in Cantabria during the week, and missing training to do so – it is also claimed that he organsied the team’s schedule around his decision to play that match. In addition, they signal that Setien told them it was ‘not necessary to run as much’ in training, and he only brought two members of backroom staff with him in comparison to Marcelino Garcia Toral’s 28.
Quique Setien has confirmed on Cadena SER that he has not been paid by #VillarrealCF a year on from his sacking.
"Villarreal has a reputation as a paying club. I was delighted to go, but now it's not the case." pic.twitter.com/MbKghZ5Qqk
— Football España (@footballespana_) September 17, 2024
It has been reported in the past that the veteran leadership group at Villarreal had fallen out with Setien, and he revealed that Raul Albiol and Dani Parejo had testified on his supposed lack of professionalism against him in court.
“I had a good relationship with them and it makes me feel ashamed. They are not going to do any damage. I don’t understand why they have made themselves available, I understand it in other club workers because they have a salary, their life there… In two players I was very surprised, I didn’t expect it.”
Setien seemed confident that Villarreal’s case against him would not be successful.
“Now the judge has to decide if my preseason was disastrous. Sadly. It is the exclusive intention to delay payment. They know they are going to have to pay. In the last decade, not one club has won a case against a manager.”
Setien was recentlly part of the managers’ union meeting during the international break, where coaches gathered in order to discuss the matter of the pay disputes. It has been suggested that they could strike if La Liga do not bring in a law that requires clubs to pay off managers before they hire a new one, although Setien did note that La Liga ‘seem very willing’ to enforce that rule.
