Santos have sacked coach Muricy Ramalho as part of a wide-ranging restructuring of the club just days after letting their Brazil World Cup hope Neymar join Spanish champions Barcelona.
“The management committee decided Muricy Ramalho is no longer coach of Santos FC’s professional team. The trainer was told of the decision,” the club said in a statement.
They added that their under-20s coach Claudinei Oliveira will take charge of the first team for their third Brazilian national championship match of the season at home to Gremio at Vila Belmiro (played last night).
Ramalho, who reports say he turned down the Brazilian Football Confederation’s (CBF) offer to take charge of Brazil’s World Cup squad when he was at Fluminense in 2010, is the first coaching victim of the Brazilian championship that kicked off last weekend.