MADRID (AP) — Villarreal said Monday it reached a deal to hire coach Iñigo Pérez, who led fellow Spanish club Rayo Vallecano to the final of the Conference League this season.
Pérez is set to sign a three-year contract with Villarreal, which finished third in the Spanish league and will play in the Champions League for a second straight season.
Villarreal was eliminated in the league phase of the Champions League last season, its first in the top European club competition since it reached the semifinals in 2021-22. It will be the first time Villarreal plays back-to-back seasons in the Champions League.
The 38-year-old Pérez, a former midfielder who retired in 2022, will replace Marcelino, who announced late last season that he would not stay in charge of the team.
Pérez's Rayo lost 1-0 to Crystal Palace in the final of the third-tier Conference League.
Pérez was an assistant at Rayo and took over the main job in 2024 after not being able to accompany then coach Andoni Iraola when he moved to Bournemouth in England because of work permit issues.
The new Villarreal coach will be officially introduced on Tuesday.
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
Only subscribers can view and post comments on articles.
Already a subscriber? Login Here
Amy Sousa, a women's rights activist and psychologist, Keith Lierre, founder of Women's Libe… Read moreTalk at RWC Library - The transgender assault on Women and Girls
Dirk van Ulden said:
Dirk van Ulden said:
Dirk van Ulden said:
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.