Manchester City have decided on a man to replace Txiki Begiristain as the club’s new sporting director.
Hugo Viana will step into the role, when Begiristain, heralded as one of the finest sporting directors in European football, departs from the Etihad at the end of the season.
Begiristain joined the club back in 2012 and has played a pivotal role in the club’s rise to the top over the years and bringing fellow countryman Pep Guardiola to the club in 2016.
The Spaniards departure comes as a new era dawns on the Manchester side which is plagued with uncertainty over Guardiola’s future and the 115 charges of allegedly breaching financial fair play rules.
Selecting the right successor to Begiristain will be crucial as the club look to move forward and continue their dominance in England. So who is Hugo Viana? Here is everything you need to know about Manchester City’s new director of sport.
Manchester City have agreed a deal for Sporting’s Hugo Viana to take over from Txiki Begiristain as a new era dawns at the Etihad Stadium
Begiristain (left), who has held the role since 2012, will step down at the end of the season
Who is Hugo Viana?
Viana’s name may already ring a bell to some long serving England fans, more specifically fans from the Toon.
The 41-year-old Portuguese is the current director of football of Sporting CP.
However before dipping his feet into the business side of the sport, Viana enjoyed a 15-year-long career as a central midfielder.
Following a breakout debut season at Sporting CP, Newcastle signed the then 19-year-old for £8.5m, marking the first major deal that the agent powerhouse Jorge Mendes orchestrated with an English club.
Viana was brought in following a stellar first season in the Primeira Liga, however he failed to hit the ground running and couldn’t emulate the same form he showed in Portugal.
Viana played 56 games for Newcastle United during the early 2000s after joining for £8.5m
In 2004 he returned to Sporting on loan after failing to find a place in the team alongside Kieron Dyer, Jermaine Jenas and Laurent Robert.
He would go out on loan once more to Valencia for the 2005-06 season before leaving the Toon for good in 2006 joining Los Ches in a permanent deal.
Viana departed Newcastle having made 39 appearances and finding the back of the net on two occasions.
Spells at Osasuna and Braga followed before he drew a close to his playing days in Saudi Arabia with Al Ahli and Al-Wasl.
Viana would retire in 2016, with 29 Portuguese caps, scoring once.
Viana would retire in 2016, with 29 Portuguese caps, scoring once
Becoming a director of football
Immediately after hanging up the boots, he began his next career venture, becoming sporting director of Liga 3 side Belenenses the following year.
His role would only last six months before he left the Portuguese side, however he rejoined Sporting as their director of football in 2018 during a time of turmoil.
Viana joined in the midst of fan unrest following a poor 2017-18 campaign, which saw a group of Ultras invade the club’s training ground and attack players and staff, spurring Bruno Fernandes and nine other players to tear up their contracts with the club.
However the Manchester star soon signed a new deal.
Viana rejoined Sporting as their director of football in 2018 and has been in the role ever since
Viana’s impact joining the club was instantly notable despite a turbulent start to the role which saw the club go through three permanent head coaches in a small window.
In 2021 the club claimed their first league title in 19 years before lifting it for a second time in four years after they regained the title last season.
Viana has been applauded for his rigorous work in the transfer market, with the Portuguese side building up a €200m (£167m) profit over the last five years thanks to big money deals for Bruno Fernandes, Manuel Ugarte, Matheus Nunes and Pedro Porro.
Viana’s ability to add value to his club’s squad and sell them at the highest price in the transfer market is likely one of the key factors why the 41-year-old emerged as Man City’s new director of football.
The squads development under Viana and Ruben Amorim has seen their transfermarkt value more than double since
Success at Sporting
Since Viana joined the club, the squads transfermarkt value stands at £370m, which is more than double of what it was before the Portuguese joined.
On the other end of the market, Sporting have capitalised on selling some of their big star names, bringing in nearly £500m from player sales and loans.
The squads development under Viana and Ruben Amorim has also seen the Portuguese outfit return to the Premier League, bringing in further stable income and profit.
