Managers

Losing three league matches in a row is not a thing you are allowed to do if you are the manager of Olympiakos. Paulo Bento found that out when he was fired after losing three league matches in a row, even though he has only lost four this season and his Olympiakos squad is leading the Greek Super League by seven points.

Bento was Olympiakos' second manager this season. His predecessor was fired after the club was eliminated from Champions League qualifying (they are still alive in the Europa League round of 16).

After wrapping up his second preseason as manager of New York City FC, Patrick Vieira is looking ahead to today’s match against Orlando City. There is optimism in the air for the Frenchman. After all, his first season in the Big Apple was considered a success. He guided the second-year franchise to a second place finish in the Eastern Conference and the conference semifinals of the playoffs – albeit the embarrassing aggregate loss at the hands of Toronto (0-7).

Brazil will travel to Montevideo, Uruguay for a clash between the top two sides in CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying without David Luiz, the Chelsea center half and captain of Brazil’s 7-1 capitulation to Germany once again omitted from Tite’s latest squad announcement.

Luiz has been in great form for club this season, helping Chelsea to the top of the Premier League table with a defense that’s allowed only 19 goals in 26 matches. However, Luiz hasn’t appeared for Brazil since last March, and Tite has ignored him since being placed in charge of the Seleção last June.

Luis Enrique has confirmed that he will step down as Barcelona manager at the conclusion of this season, bringing an end to three highly successful years as Barca’s coach. Enrique signed an extension to manage Barcelona until the end of the 2017 season after he’d sealed a treble in his first season at the helm, but questions regarding whether or not that contract would be further extended have been extinguished by Enrique’s announcement.

Fiorentina manager Paulo Sousa has a problem. Paulo Sousa isn’t very good at his job. What’s more, people are starting to notice. For a while now, Fiorentina fans have been trying to tell anyone who will listen that the Portuguese manager is performing well below expectations. After two high profile capitulations in the space of a week, Sousa’s problem is now clear for all to see. Paulo Sousa isn’t very good at his job.

Claudio Ranieri was fired yesterday after leading Leicester City to the Premier League title last season and the Champions League group stage this season. It was very sad, and even more sad is this statement from Ranieri regarding his time at Leicester:

Here is the statement from Claudio Ranieri, released to @PAdugout #LCFC pic.twitter.com/5u6ZrfEENE