The general idea of having a Sporting director is to keep some consistency in the transfer strategy even when managers come and go, but it looks like the structure may be a bit muddled at PSG.
Leonardo is the Sporting Director who’s responsible for negotiations and securing preferred targets, but the latest reports from France suggest he and the owners are having very different thoughts:
At PSG – SD Leonardo & has his summer targets & the Qatari board has their own – both holding talks simultaneously & not coherently: Qataris in talks with Jorge Mendes about Sergio Ramos, Leonardo in negotiations with Tottenham for €10m Serge Aurier deal – per @Romain_Molina.
— Get French Football News (@GFFN) May 11, 2021
Mauricio Pochettino unconvinced by the idea of signing Serge Aurier, but Leonardo is in direct talks with Tottenham about it & player would love to return, according to @Romain_Molina.
— Get French Football News (@GFFN) May 11, 2021
Obviously Sergio Ramos is the bigger name and he’ll command a higher salary, but he and Aurier do play in different positions so it does indicate that they aren’t on the same page when it comes to that either.
It also shows that jut because a manager has worked with a player before it doesn’t always mean that they want to sign them again, but it probably does make sense if PSG sign both of these players.
They need a leader at the back to help the defence next season and Ramos brings that, while Aurier would provide added competition at right back so perhaps they are working well to build a stronger squad, albeit with slightly different priorities.
Perhaps alarm bells are ringing over the Spurs defender if Pochettino has worked with him extensively before and doesn’t want him, but the rumours linking him with a return to France continue to grow stronger.