Ex-Portsmouth chief Roberto Gagliardi finds new club after quitting Southampton owners

The Italian quit as head of football operations at Fratton Park in March 2022 to take up a role with Southampton owners Sport Republic.

He was subsequently appointed as head of recruitment at Turkish top-flight club Goztepe SK, following Sport Republic’s takeover months later.

However, Gagliardi, who was credited with recruiting Ronan Curtis, Rasmus Nicolaisen and Petar Durin during four years with the Blues, has now linked up with Notts County.

He has been unveiled as the League Two club’s new head of football, replacing Richard Montague, who left to become Swansea’s director of football in February.

Gagliardi will officially take up his Meadow Lane position on May 1 ahead of their final match of the season against Doncaster Rovers.

And, in a statement on Notts County’s website, owners Chris and Alex Reedtz have praised the qualities of the ‘highly skilled’ Gagliardi.

They said: ‘Following Richard Montague’s departure, we have taken some time to evaluate the club’s structure and identify the qualities that would be most valuable to us in his replacement.

‘Having previously worked with Roberto, and having seen the way his career has progressed over the years, we believed he would be a great option for us - and we’re pleased to have attracted him to the club.

‘Roberto will lead on all aspects of our recruitment and negotiations with agents and clubs – areas he is highly skilled in thanks to the experience he’s gained and the notable people he’s learned from throughout his career.

‘He has an excellent understanding of the game, both tactically and in terms of player recruitment, shares our way of thinking and comes highly recommended by people we trust.’

Replaced by Rich Hughes

Gagliardi arrived at Pompey in March 2018 as head of international recruitment, having previously worked as a recruitment consultant at Bolton and head of recruitment at Leyton Orient.

Following the dismissal of Kenny Jackett as Blues boss in March 2021, he was promoted to interim head of football operations before being appointed permanently by chief executive Andy Cullen.

However, Pompey were keen to adapt the role into a sporting director position and, following Gagliardi’s departure for Sport Republic in March 2022, they opted to make changes.

The newly-created sporting director job was eventually filled by Forest Green Rovers director of football Rich Hughes in September 2022.

Under Hughes’ guidance, the Blues subsequently won the League One title and are presently 17th in the Championship as they aim to avoid relegation.

Gagliardi told Notts County’s official website: ‘My career has taught me that it’s very important to work for people you believe in – and that is certainly the case for me with Chris and Alex.

‘They have a clear philosophy which has brought stability and patience to the club, with decisions not being impacted by emotion. This was one of the big factors in my decision to take on this very exciting challenge.

‘I’ll be coming into the role at the busiest time of the year. It’s a really important period for setting strong foundations for both the transfer window and the season ahead.

‘In terms of attracting players, Notts County has many strong selling points. It’s very difficult for clubs, even those from higher divisions, to compete with our brand, history, city, fanbase and project.

‘In recruitment, I see data as a fundamental part of informing decisions and helping to shortlist players. A big part of my role will be to understand which of the many good players we identify are the right ones for us – because they also need to fit into our system and be the right characters.’

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