Unai Emery has dramatically rejected the chance to take over at Newcastle and has confirmed he is ‘100% committed’ to staying at Villarreal.
With Newcastle chiefs scrambling to find out if Emery was interested in replacing Steve Bruce on Wednesday, the 50-year-old clarified his position with a statement in the afternoon.
‘No matter how much noise there was yesterday in another country, within the club there was transparency and loyalty with the Roig family and with my squad, which is the most important thing,’ he said in a statement released on his personal social media accounts.
‘Villarreal CF is my home and I am 100% committed. Honestly, I am grateful for the interest of a great club, but even more grateful to be here and that is why I communicated to Fernando Roig my decision to want to continue being part of this project because of the commitment and respect that I perceive from the club and from my players, which is mutual and reciprocal.
‘I want to thank the fans for the support they have always shown me. On Sunday we have a very important game and I hope that together we can achieve victory.’
Leading Spanish football pundit Guillem Balague had earlier claimed Emery rejected a move to Newcastle over a ‘lack of vision’ from the ownership.
Emery, 50, was the Saudi-backed club’s primary target to replace Bruce ahead of the weekend trip to face Brighton.
But they now find themselves back to the drawing board after being rebuffed by the four-time Europa League winner.
After Villarreal’s 2-0 Champions League win over Young Boys on Tuesday night Emery, who has a £6million release clause, remained coy when quizzed on interest from the Premier League side.
He said: ‘They (Newcastle) have told me that they are interested in me. But there has been no offer to the club and I have been focussed on this game.
‘If there is an offer it has to be the club. If there is an offer then I will talk to (Villarreal President Fernando) Roig. I would consult with them and it would have to fulfil certain requisites.
Asked if he would rule out Newcastle Emery, whose contract at Villarreal runs until 2023, said: ‘I’m not closing or opening any doors’.
Villarreal president Fernando Roig reiterated that he was not worried about Newcastle’s interest in Emery and was ‘sure that his mind is not drifting elsewhere’ on the eve of the Young Boys game.
‘Unai has a contract with us and contracts are there to be fulfilled,’ Roig said on Tuesday.