Granada sack coach Anquela
Granada have sacked their charismatic coach Juan Antonio Anquela after a poor run left the modest Andalusian club in 17th place in La Liga with just over half the season played and in danger of relegation.
"The board of Granada CF has this morning sacked coach Juan Antonio Anquela," the club said in a statement on their website (www.granadacf.es).
Lucas Alcaraz, who started his coaching career at Granada in the mid-1990s and was recently in charge of Greek strugglers Aris Salonika, was named as Anquela's successor for the remainder of the season.
"The coach Lucas Alcaraz will take charge at Granada until the end of the season," the club said in a statement on their website, adding that he would oversee his first training session later on Wednesday.
Granada appointed Anquela in June 2012, the 55-year-old's first top-flight job after guiding tiny Alcorcon out of the third tier to the brink of La Liga, where they fell to Real Valladolid in a promotion playoff last season.
He masterminded Alcorcon's famous 4-1 aggregate win over Real Madrid in the King's Cup in 2009-10 when they were still in the Segunda B division (third tier).
Granada returned to La Liga in 2011 and narrowly avoided the drop last season when they finished 17th, one place above the relegation zone.
The club's next game is a prestigious league fixture at home to champions Real Madrid on Saturday.
