Most wanted: Why Premier League clubs are battling for Mauricio Pellegrino

There is something of the philosopher about the quietly assured Mauricio Pellegrino, the 45-year-old coach who is on the brink of coming to the Premier League.

“Sport instils values that go against the grain of the rest of society which says that everyone has to save their own arse,” he told El Pais before the Copa del Rey final this year. “This sport goes the other way. It reinforces the feeling of being part of something greater than yourself.”

As the quote suggests, the Argentine coach is big on team-building. It was togetherness that was at the heart of Alaves’ finest season for years and it will be the basis of whatever he builds next, wherever he ends up building it.

The El Pais interview came before the cup final, where he had put the Basque side for the first time in their history.

It’s a compliment to him that opponents Barcelona went into the game not overly confident because Alaves had taken three points from them at Camp Nou just three weeks into the new season. Those two games against the side he once played for neatly bookended a marvellous campaign.

It was little wonder that there were no recriminations from supporters when he quit several days after the cup final defeat. They knew he had outgrown their club. He’s a young coach who wants to see what he can do with a bigger budget in a highly competitive league.

Most Alaves fans think Crystal Palace will be lucky to land him and if he ends up going elsewhere then their loss could be Southampton's gain.

Scoring goals was what Alaves found most difficult last season, netting just 41 times. Only three teams in La Liga scored fewer and two of those sides – Granada and Osasuna - were relegated. But the considerable flip side was that they only let in 43 – only three sides conceded fewer, the champions Madrid let in 41.

Pellegrino is big on organisation. “There is a reason why players who can play in confined spaces have gone from costing €5 million to €30 million,” he says. “Coaching attack is now the biggest challenge.” In other words, everyone is defending better so you must do the same to give yourself a chance.

That defensive prowess was never better showcased than in that 2-1 win at Camp Nou last September, when Alaves defended deep and frustrated Barca. Luis Enrique’s team had to go looking for their rivals and when they found them it was deep in their own half with space between defensive and midfield lines at a minimum. There was nowhere for them to play. And unlike many teams that go to Camp Nou, Alaves also managed to do more than just defend. There were brief spells in the game where they did take risks and they took their chances, too, winning 2-1.

An elegant central defender, Pellegrino won a league in Argentina with Velez Sarsfield, who he joined as a teenager leaving rural Cordoba behind for life in the big city. Barcelona took him to Spain and he played 24 games in the 1998-99 season before joining Valencia, where he won two leagues and a UEFA Cup in five seasons and was coached by Rafa Benitez, who would go on to have a big influence on his career, taking him to Liverpool first as a player and then as a coach.

He was taking coaching badges as early as 2000 and team-mates were not surprised when he became a manager. After four seasons alongside Benitez, first at Liverpool and then at Inter, he took his first big job at Valencia and had them qualified from their Champions League group with a game to spare. League form suffered from European competition, though. and the team had lost six games - although with five wins and three draws they were still comfortable in midtable when Valencia – being Valencia – sacked him before Christmas. They have changed managers eight times in the five years since and few have records as good as Pellergino.

They would have gladly taken him back last season as they struggled with relegation but he is in a different league now. The Premier League. And supporters fearing a little too much of the philosophy and not enough realism needn’t be too concerned. This is a centre-back who learned the coaching ropes under Benitez.

Speaking with Alaves Club TV before the Copa del Rey final, he said: “Sometimes people talk about teams playing well when they are aesthetically pleasing. If you are tough, committed and well-organised no-one says you play well.

“But what is playing well? It’s not just the aesthetics. If five players go up for a high-ball you can’t be worried about aesthetics - you must get to the ball first. That’s playing well too.”