Valdano to have power curtailed in Real shake-up

Real Madrid's influential sporting director Jorge Valdano is set to have his wages slashed and power restricted under an organisational shake-up at the Spanish giants, according to reports.

Real President Florentino Perez, who is standing for re-election at the end of the season, wants to modernise the club's managerial structure and Valdano could be one of the major losers in the shake-up, according to ABC newspaper.

Relations between Valdano and Perez deteriorated at the end of last season, according to a source close to the club, mainly over the way that Argentine international defender Gabriel Milito was treated by the president.

Milito was recruited by Valdano, who won the World Cup as a player with Argentina in 1986, but was refused a contract on medical grounds and is now playing for Real Zaragoza where he has been hailed as one of the finds of the season.

Valdano is often the public face of Real and frequently talks to the media, but Perez reportedly wants to bring in a director of communications to shape the image of a club whose stars such as David Beckham, Zinedine Zidane and Ronaldo have global marketing appeal.