Valenciennes dismiss Sanchez

Valenciennes have sacked manager Daniel Sanchez following a dismal start to the season.

The Ligue 1 side sit bottom of the table after taking just four points from their opening nine games.

Sanchez took over at Valenciennes in June 2011, successfully establishing them as a top-flight club, however his tenure has now come to an end with the Stade du Hainaut outfit seemingly set for a fight against relegation.

Valenciennes opened the campaign with an emphatic 3-0 win over Toulouse, but a winless run of eight matches has since followed.

A 1-1 draw with Reims on Saturday sealed Sanchez’s fate, but club president Jean-Raymond Legrand admitted that the decision had been a hard one.

“On a human level Sanchez is someone I appreciate a lot and the decision was particularly difficult to take,” he said.

“But with only four points from nine games something had to be done so that the club stays in Ligue 1.”

Legrand is eager to fill the managerial void as quickly as possible, and is hopeful that he can find the right man to move the club away from the lower reaches of the division.

“I’ve done the hardest part now and on Thursday I’ll start working to find his successor,” he added.

“I’ve already received 40 CVs, including a couple after we lost 4-0 to Nice. I want someone experienced with the charisma necessary to get everyone moving in the right direction.

“I think we’ve got a squad capable of finishing between 10th and 17th and we are not the worst team in the division.”