Hector Cuper has been sacked by Racing Santander after leading the team to just one victory in the opening 13 Primera Liga games.
Coach loses job after just five months in charge
Hector Cuper has been sacked by Racing Santander after leading the team to just one victory in the opening 13 Primera Liga games this season.
The Argentine coach met with the Cantabrian club's squad before training on Tuesday afternoon to tell them of his exit and to say goodbye to the players having only joined in the summer.
A decision to part company with Cuper was made when the coach went to meet Racing's sporting director Juanjo Gonzalez to discuss the team's poor start to the campaign that has seen them stuck to the foot of the table with just nine points.
Assistant coach Jose Carlos Fantaguzzi took the training session after Cuper had left without knowing if he too would be asked to depart.
Racing turned to the former Inter Milan and Parma tactician as they sought to spend a year away from the relegation zone, but Cuper struggled to find results.
Funding
Funding has been an issue for Racing and club surpremo Francisco Pernia was in Brazil looking to raise capital when the decision to sack Cuper was made in Spain.
Cuper made his name in the Spanish top flight during a spell in charge of Real Mallorca between 1997 and 1999 before leading Valencia to the UEFA Champions League final in 2000.
A second spell at Mallorca was followed by stints with Real Betis, Parma and the Georgia national team before he spent two seasons with Aris Thessaloniki in Greece.
Michael Laudrup has immediately been installed as the favourite to take over at Racing Santander, but the Dane will have to be convinced that he will have money to spend in January.
