Institutional crisis at Espanyol. Following the news that Chen Yansheng will continue to head the club after ignoring the interest of an American group to buy the shareholding controlled by Rastar Group, the white-and-blue entity is now losing its top executive , José María Durán Farré. As he has advanced La Grada Online and has been able to confirm ARA, Durán will leave Espanyol due to disagreements with its owner. His departure could be made official later this Wednesday, once his contractual severance is resolved.
According to this newspaper, this is not a resignation of Durán Farré, but a decision by mutual agreement. His departure will lead to two changes in the organization chart of the club. On the one hand, Chen Yansheng will take a step forward and become more involved in the day-to-day: he will take over the reins of direct management, hitherto delegated to Duran. Durán’s departure means that the club will lose an interlocutor with extensive knowledge of the club, the Spanish League and sports management. In return, the Chinese side of Rastar is gaining momentum.
The current deputy general manager and director of the club, Mao Ye Wu, would rise to the position of CEO. This Chinese resident in Barcelona is one of Chen Yansheng’s most trusted men, both for the role he played in facilitating the entry of the Asian businessman and for the communication they have maintained. With a technical and discreet profile, Mao Ye has on numerous occasions served as the president’s translator at various public events and private board meetings. The club’s new CEO began overseeing women’s football and, since 2017, has focused on the international and business area.
Mao Ye landed at Espanyol in January 2016, coinciding with the entry of Rastar Group. He previously held a position at RCD, the law firm of Rousaud Costas Duran – managed by Adolf Rousaud, who until 2018 was Vice President of Espanyol – who managed the transaction between Dani Sánchez Llibre and Chen Yansheng ( and the same one that was managing some bureaucratic aspects derived from the interest of the American group that in November approached the club). He was also an auditor at PriceWaterhouseCoopers. Trained at Pompeu Fabra University and Abat Oliva CEU University, Mao Ye has knowledge in financial analysis and accounting.
The figure who put the club in order
Mao Ye Wu will be Espanyol’s fourth corporate general manager under Chen Yansheng. Ramon Robert, Roger Guasch (in a double general management, as he was in charge of the economic part and Òscar Perarnau of the sports part) and, finally, José María Durán Farré, who had already worked in the ‘Spanish between 2014 and 2016 as CFO. He left the club, precisely because of the arrival of Rastar.
Considered one of the most prestigious executives in the league, Durán managed to bring order to Espanyol after doing so at Getafe. Despite not being able to avoid the decline – he arrived at the club in December 2019 – he turned the club’s economic and sports paradigm upside down: he put an end to the policy of reinvesting only 50% of the income derived from sales in new reinforcements. A white-and-blue partner for 47 years, Durán was key to bringing in players like Cabrera (he knew his clause was $ 9 million), among others. His departure could have a direct effect on the sports planning for the 2022-23 season, as Durán was the main endorser of Ramon Planes, one of the favorite profiles to hold the position of sports director.
