Ronald Koeman Fired After Barcelona's Defeat to Rayo Vallecano

 

Less than three weeks after getting a public show of support from Barcelona president Joan Laporta, Ronald Koeman is out as manager of the club.

The final straw was Wednesday's 1–0 defeat at Rayo Vallecano, which followed a home loss to rival Real Madrid in El Clásico. It was after Sunday's defeat that fans impeded Koeman's car as he attempted to exit Camp Nou, expressing their frustration in personal, potentially dangerous ways.

"We have every confidence in him, he's our coach, and he deserves some leeway as he believes in the team and hasn't been able to call on the entire squad yet," Laporta said on Oct. 8 on Catalan radio.

That leeway didn't extend very long. Barcelona did manage to defeat Dynamo Kiev to keep its hopes at securing a place in the Champions League knockout stage alive, but the club has three wins in its last 10 matches across all competitions and has fallen to ninth in La Liga, six points behind the four teams that are currently tied for first place.