Valencia have sacked head coach Ruben Baraja after winning just two of their opening 17 La Liga matches this season.
Sunday’s 2-2 draw at home to Alaves lifted Valencia off the bottom of the table thanks to their superior goal difference over Real Valladolid, but they remain four points from safety.
49-year-old Baraja had overseen just one victory in the club’s last 11 league matches and none in their last five — a run of results which has brought just two points, including defeat at Valladolid.
At the club’s AGM on Friday, Valencia club president Lay Hoon Chan said there were no plans to part ways with Baraja, the club’s 16th full-time boss since 2012.
Comunicado oficial | @RubenBaraja
Gràcies, Pipo! pic.twitter.com/TCtyWp5um3
— Valencia CF (@valenciacf) December 23, 2024
Valencia have not finished higher than ninth in any of the five seasons and they have been in Spanish football’s top division since 1987.
Baraja was appointed as the club’s head coach in February 2023 and secured the club’s top flight survival by a two-point margin on the final day of that season, before finishing ninth in the 2023-24 campaign.
A former central midfielder, Baraja made 364 first-team appearances across 10 seasons as a player at Valencia, winning five trophies including two La Liga titles and the UEFA Cup.
His coaching career included stints at Elche, Rayo Vallecano, Sporting Gijon, Tenerife and Zaragoza.
(Top image: Eric Alonso/Getty Images)
