CALCUTTA (India): East Bengal Club on Thursday appointed Mario Rivera as their head coach and replacement of Alejandro Menendez, who resigned two days ago.
The red and gold brigade has been on the look out for Alejandro, who stepped down two days after the 2-1 defeat against Mohun Bagan last Sunday.
Names of former Bagan coach Karim Bencharifa and ex-Bengaluru FC manager Ashley Westwood had been doing the rounds.
But the club decided to appoint Mario, who spent last season as Alejandro’s assistant, as they felt the Spaniard possess a good experience and understands the team well.
The club also said that Mario’s past relationship has motivated them to sign him.
The 42-year-old, who has UEFA Pro license, had previously coached the Under-21 Brunei national team. He was also a video analyst for Atletico Madrid C team.
Mario will be assisted by Bastab Roy, who was also an assistant to Alejandro.
The red and gold brigade are currently struggling at the seventh position in I-League with just eight points from seven matches.
Under Alejandro, the team has lost three consecutive defeats.
In fact, the New Year turned out to be a disastrous one for East Bengal, who lost to Churchill Brothers away and then against Gokulam Kerala at the Kalyani Stadium before the setback against Bagan.
