Making the Grade: Five new La Liga coaches evaluated

By Liam Bambridge
Updated: 6 April, 2012

2. Alvaro Cervera (Racing de Santander)

Cervera is the kind of coach who you hire when you have no money and your owner has gone AWOL. A former Racing player with no La Liga coaching experience, he was always going to accept the opportunity to try and rescue the club where he began and ended his career. However even bearing in mind the thin and limited squad which he has inherited, he does not seem up to the job. His record reads just one point out of fifteen since taking over from juan Jose Gonzalez, who by contrast won three and drew two of his first five in charge before ultimately paying the price for a run of six winless games.

The manner of last Saturday’s 1-0 defeat against relegation rivals Granada was as upsetting as the result itself, with a hugely cautious approach in a crucial home game leading to a predictable outcome. Only one of Racing’s last eight fixtures is against a side in the top six, and two are against relegation rivals Zaragoza and Villareal, but it would still take a very brave man to bet on Cervera leading them to safety by the end of the campaign.

El Centrocampista rating: E

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