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He's the other half of Everton's managerial dream team but who exactly is Monchi?

The Blues are ready to step up their pursuit in the Sevilla sporting director after closing in on the appointment of Ronaldo Koeman as manager.

Koeman's exploits are well known to Evertonian's but the Spaniard's less so.

Monchi, short for Ramon Rodriguez Verdejo, the transfer maestro has operated largely under the radar for the best part of 15 years.

No longer. After the Spanish club secured their third consecutive Europa League trophy, and their fifth in 10 years, the spotlight has fallen upon the man predominantly in the shadows.

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Monchi, a former goalkeeper at the club, has been sporting director at Sevilla since 2000. He took charge with the club in the second-tier, as well as financial ruin.

Since then, his work – the headline of which is player recruitment and sales – has seen them move back into La Liga, establish themselves both domestically and in Europe, as well as reach 14 finals in 10 years.

But he is now looking to move on; nothing coincidental about his raised profile as he seeks pastures new. Everton, under Farhad Moshiri, are also contemplating appointing a sporting director. Better still, Monchi is close to Blues managerial target Unai Emery, whom has led Sevilla to that treble Europa success.

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A match made in heaven? Perhaps not. Monchi has been told by Sevilla that any club who wants to prise him will have to pay his hefty buy-out clause. Add that to big competition for his signature, and the Blues would have a lot of work to do if they wanted to follow up their interest.

Still, no surprise Monchi would be considered. His record in terms of signing players is superb. Here are some of the stars he brought to Sevilla in the past 15 years.

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Dani Alves

Bought for: £400k from Bahia

Sold for: £26.5m to Barcelona

The marauding right back was snapped up from Brazilian side Bahia in 2003, first on loan, before buying him on a permanent deal. He enjoyed nearly 250 appearances for the club and established himself as his country’s first-choice right back.

Julio Baptista

Bought for: £2.6m from Sao Paulo

Sold for: £15m to Real Madrid

‘The Beast’ arrived after three years in his homeland, and was transformed when joining the La Liga side. Playing as an attacking midfielder, his reputation grew, and his two years there secured him a move to giants Real.

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Ivan Rakitic

Bought for: £2m from Schalke

Sold for: £13.5m to Barcelona

The classy Croatian was an astute signing from the Bundesliga. Despite a solid three-and-a-half seasons in Gelsenkirchen, he was snapped up for a tiny fee. He would go on to become a midfield general in Spain, captaining the club to Europa League glory.

Seydou Keita

Bought for: £3m from Lens

Sold for: £10m to Barcelona

Another player sold to Barcelona, and one who would go on to lift the Champions League with them. The Mali midfielder enjoyed five years with Lens in France, and was handed the armband. That alerted Monchi, who snapped him up, before selling him on after just a season.

Carlos Bacca

Bought for: £5.25m from Club Brugge

Sold for: £22.5m to AC Milan

Two excellent seasons in Belgium, including the 2012-13 campaign which saw him score 25 in 35 league games, secured the Colombian a move to La Liga. He was a revelation there, scoring at a rate of just under 1-in-2 and lifting the Europa League twice. He was a man in demand last summer.

Grzegorz Krychowiak

Bought for: £4.1m from Stade Reims

Sold for: N/A

Polish midfielder has been a key component in the Sevilla side for the last few seasons, establishing himself as one of the best defensive-minded midfielders in Europe. He remains at the club but has been linked with a big-money move away.