To say that Real Valladolid’s Paulo Pezzolano had the last laugh would be an understatement.
The Uruguayan head coach endured a tough season with supporters turning on him for his style of play, lack of ambition and perceived arrogance in the media.
With their Segunda Division season drawing to a close and Valladolid heading towards automatic promotion, a late stumble in their penultimate matches of the season saw the side dragged back into the play-off picture.
Fans attacked the manager with chants of ‘Pezzolano dimisión!’ or ‘Pezzolano resignation’ throughout the season, and that only increased when it looked like things would go awry.
However, on matchday 41 of 42, Valladolid beat Villarreal B and all three teams below them dropped points, meaning the side owned by Brazilian legend Ronaldo will be back in LaLiga next season.
A day later the team celebrated in the city’s square, and instead of basking in the glory, Pezzolano began mocking the supporters present by singing ‘Pezzolano dimisión!’ in extraordinary scenes.
Some joined in and many whistled. How many of those were ironic remains to be seen.
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