Villarreal coach Manuel Pellegrini has been linked with Javier Aguirre's job at Atletico Madrid.

Atletico sports chief Jesus Garcia Pitarch admitted yesterday that Aguirre's future depended on Atletico qualifying for Europe this season - this coming amid reports of a rift between the pair.

Chilean Pellegrini has already signed on for next season with Villarreal, which would mean Atletico paying a hefty compo fee to take him to Madrid at the end of the season.