Alaves sack Zubeldia after just four matches

MADRID: Alaves sacked Argentine coach Luis Zubeldia after just four games in charge as they slipped to the bottom of La Liga with a 3-0 defeat at home to Villarreal.

“Deportivo Alaves has decided to sack the coach after the results obtained at the beginning of the new season,” Alaves said in a statement yesterday.

“We thank Luis Zubelda for the work done during this period and wish him the best of luck in his future career.”

Javier Cabello will take temporary charge and could oversee tomorrow’s trip to Deportivo.

Zubeldia failed to muster a point or even a solitary goal in his brief stint in charge with defeats to Leganes, Barcelona and Celta Vigo also sealing his fate.

Alaves finished ninth in an impressive first campaign back in the top flight and reached the Spanish King’s Cup final last season under Mauricio Pellegrino.

However, Pellegrino departed for Southampton and a host of key players also returned to their parent clubs after successful loan spells, including Real Madrid duo Theo Hernandez and Marcos Llorente.

So far a series of high-profile recruits such as former Barcelona pair Bojan Krkic and Munir El Haddadi and Enzo Zidane, son of Real boss Zinedine Zidane, have failed to fire in the opening weeks of the season.

A comfortable win for Villarreal at Mendizorroza on Sunday thanks to a double for Cedric Bakambu either side of Carlos Bacca’s strike moved the Yellow Submarine up to seventh.

Sevilla’s impressive start to the season also continued with victory on the road at Girona to move up to second.

Luis Muriel’s first goal for the club since completing a move from Sampdoria was enough for a 1-0 win. — AFP