The sporting director at Valencia already has a name written down for the day Javier Aguirre’s grip on the job slips.

Spanish outlet Fichajes reported on 25 October that Braulio Vázquez, who runs the club’s football operation, has placed José Luis Mendilibar on his list as a contingency if Aguirre cannot pull Valencia out of La Liga’s relegation places. The piece stressed there were no formal contacts with the 65-year-old, who left Olympiacos on 10 September and is available.

Aguirre took the Mestalla job on 23 September after Carlos Corberán was removed in mid-September, with Valencia next-to-last in the table after seven matches. The Mexican signed only until the end of the current season, with a one-year extension option held by the club.

One La Liga win in six weeks

Aguirre opened his Mestalla tenure with a 0-0 draw against Athletic Club on 17 October, then followed up with a Copa del Rey defeat to Racing Santander and a 1-2 home loss to Villarreal in La Liga.

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His first league win eventually came at Elche, but the lift did not last. At Mestalla on 7 November, Real Madrid beat Valencia 3-0 with goals from Fede Valverde, Arda Güler and Kylian Mbappé.

Aguirre refused to pin anything on the officials afterwards.

“It would be easy to talk about the referee and win the fans’ approval,” he told reporters at his post-match press conference.

On the club’s official channel, he ruled out a transfer-market fix.

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“Ultimately, it’s a matter of hard work. I’m not going to sit here and say we’ll improve by bringing in 14 new signings.”

Copa relief, league worry

Four days after the Real Madrid loss, Valencia finally found their shooting form. The side went to Tavernes de la Valldigna in the Copa del Rey first round and won 6-0, the manager’s heaviest victory at the club so far.

The scoreline eased the mood but not the standing. Valencia remain in the La Liga relegation zone going into the international break, and the club has still not won a home game this season under Aguirre.

Valencia return to La Liga on 21 November at Mestalla against Rayo Vallecano, their first chance to put a home win in Aguirre’s column.

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