Valencia dismissed Carlos Corberán on Sunday after a 1-0 defeat by Sevilla at the Sánchez-Pizjuán left the club with the worst start to a season in its history. It is the first managerial sacking of the La Liga campaign, according to the Guardian.
Corberán dismissed as crisis escalates
Corberán was told of his dismissal during a video call from Singapore, with owner Peter Lim some 10,000km away. He had arrived in December 2024 with Valencia in the relegation zone and pulled them up to 12th, later steering them to the edge of Europe, and his contract had been extended by another year just two months before he lost his job.
CEO Ron Gourlay and his entire staff were sacked alongside him, ten days after Gourlay defended stability and continuity at a two-hour press conference. Braulio Vázquez has joined from Osasuna to lead the search for a new coach, with the club’s B-team manager, Óscar Sánchez, placed in interim charge. The club described the overhaul as a restructuring and a “new era.”
Valencia’s worst start and the wider crisis
Five games into the season, Valencia sit bottom of La Liga with a single point, nine goals conceded and just one scored.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Barcelona | 5 | 17 | 15 |
| 2 | Real Madrid | 5 | 10 | 12 |
| 5 | Sevilla | 5 | 2 | 10 |
| 20 | Valencia | 5 | -9 | 1 |
The 5-0 home defeat by Barcelona was the third time in four games opponents had scored five past Valencia. Fans protested against owner Kiat Lim with signs reading “Lim, go home,” and roughly 100 supporters waited at Paterna after the Sevilla loss to shout abuse at players and staff. Since Peter Lim bought Valencia in 2014, Óscar Sánchez becomes the club’s 15th coach, with more than 20 players arriving and departing in the last two years alone.
Rodri’s verdict and the reaction
Withdrawn to a standing ovation after an hour against Barcelona, Rodri was caught on camera telling Pau Cubarsí: “This lot are very weak, eh? Very weak, mate. Very bad.” He later called Valencia captain José Luis Gayà to apologise and issued a public apology following Barcelona’s Champions League win over Feyenoord.
Corberán called the comments “unfortunate” and said they had “not been born of respect,” though the assessment was treated as an unvarnished read on Valencia’s collapse. Rodri added: “We all want Valencia to get back to where they should be, one of the best clubs in our league.”
What happens next at Valencia
Braulio Vázquez’s immediate task is finding a permanent successor, with Ernesto Valverde and Jagoba Arrasate among the names floated, according to Reuters. Óscar Sánchez remains in interim charge as the promised restructuring takes shape.