Diego Martinez has been chosen to turn on Granada’s Christmas lights. This is a big deal, report Marca, an honour ‘reserved for a few’, and given the manager has in been place less than two years it shows the impact he’s had.
Winning promotion in his first season, Martinez now has Granada in eighth position and another good season looks on the cards.
He’s previously worked under Unai Emery at Sevilla, and Marca say he’s a friend of the manager. Emery hasn’t been doing quite as well as his old pal, fired today by Arsenal after many around the club turned against him.
Speaking at his press conference this week, Martinez was asked about Arsenal dismissing Emery.
The Granada manager is quoted by Marca as saying: “It’s a shame, it hurts. For Spanish coaches it is not positive. However, Unai, with the prestige and quality that he has, personally and professionally, will surely take on new challenges and be successful again.”
Given the tough time he’s gone through at Arsenal, few would begrudge Emery a more positive period of his career going forward. There shouldn’t be too much trouble over finding a job in Spain, having won three Europa League titles with Sevilla.
