Struggling Villarreal sack manager Luis Garcia Plaza, bring back Javi Calleja

Calleja was earlier fired on December 10 when the club was sitting just three points above the relegation zone.

Struggling La Liga side Villarreal have sacked coach Luis Garcia Plaza and brought back former manager Javi Calleja, the club has confirmed.

Calleja was fired on December 10 when the club was sitting just three points above the relegation zone.

However, his replacement Garcia had managed to secure only one win in his nine games in charge – a 2-0 Europa League victory over Spartak Moscow.

Following Garcia`s appointment, they were eliminated from the Copa del Rey by Espanyol and failed to win any of their six La Liga games. The 2006 Champions League semi-finalists have slipped to 19th, five points from the safety zone.

The club have won just three of their 21 league games this season and with just 17 games remaining and Calleja now faces an uphill struggle to keep Villarreal in the top division. They also face a tricky tie against Sporting in the Europa League last-32 next month.

The move to reinstate Calleja, who first took charge in September 2017, comes after French side Monaco made a similar decision with former coach Leonardo Jardim last week.