It's official. Diego Martínez is no longer the Espanyol coach. Sunday's defeat against Girona has proven his sentence after a bad run of results.
The Catalan side suffered their fourth consecutive defeat at Montilivi, a new setback that exhausted the patience of the club's president and owner, Chen Yansheng.
Martínez leaves Espanyol after nine months in charge, having joined the club in July 2022 following his time at Granada. His experience on the bench at the RCDE Stadium was full of ups and downs, capable of drawing at Camp Nou but losing to some of the weakest teams in the league.
Espanyol have now got rid of the coach from Vigo and will have to find a new manager for the rest of the season. Saving the team from the 'burn' of relegation is the number one objective. They are just only out of relegation on goal difference for now.
"RCD Espanyol have decided to terminate Diego Martínez's tenure as first-team coach. The sporting results have led our club to take this decision with the sole and clear objective of achieving continuity in the top flight. The club, through its president and board of directors, wishes to thank the work and commitment of the coach and his staff since he took over the management of the first team, and wishes him the best of luck in his future professional challenges.
"RCD Espanyol will soon inform about the new first-team coach".
The best-positioned option to replace Diego Martínez is Luis García Fernández, who currently coaches Internacional de Madrid (Primera RFEF) and is liked by the president and owner of the Catalan club, Chen Yansheng.
Another name that is very popular is that of José Bordalás. The former Valencia and Getafe coach, among others, has been without a team since he was sacked by the Los Che in June 2022. With plenty of experience in the first division and a very marked style of play, the Alicante-born coach is liked by Espanyol.
Espanyol have 11 league games remaining and are level on points with Almeria on the border of the relegation places. Next week's clash with Athletic Club could be key to calming the spirits of the fans, who are already fearing the worst.