Get Guardian on GoogleClub Brugge announced on Monday that it was parting ways with coach Nicky Hayen and replacing him with former coach Ivan Leko, two days before hosting Arsenal in the Champions League.
Hayen is paying the price for his team’s poor results in the league, with three defeats in their last four matches, the latest a 3-2 reverse at Sint-Truiden on Saturday.
The result dropped the Belgian champions to third in the table, five points behind leaders Union Saint-Gilloise and one behind Sint-Truiden.
Club Brugge are also struggling in the Champions League, with four points and only one win, a fine 4-1 victory over Monaco in September, in five games, leaving them 26th in the standings.
Hayen, who had been in the job for a year and a half and won the domestic title last season, is replaced by Leko, who had been managing Gent since the start of the season.
The 47-year-old, who won 13 caps for Croatia, played 98 times for Club Brugge, winning the Belgian Cup in 2006-07. He also had a previous stint as manager, winning the league in 2017-18.
Meanwhile, coach Mikel Arteta is without two of his best defenders due to injury and Arsenal’s injury problems are showing no signs of easing throughout the busy winter schedule.
