Sparta Prague women fire head coach after defeat in Plzeň

Sparta Prague, the reigning Czech champions in women's football, have parted ways with head coach Michael Steiner. The decision came right after a surprise 2:3 defeat to Plzeň — a match in which the Prague side had led 2:1 at half-time but failed to hold on.

The game in Plzeň turned out to be the Austrian coach's last in charge of the team. "Early in the season, the team's performances lacked quality, and that showed in the results. After the loss to Plzeň, it became clear that we needed to react immediately," said Pavla Satrapová, head of the club's women's section, in a statement on the club's website.

Last season was perfect

Steiner took charge of the Prague club in July last year and immediately delivered a double: under his guidance, the team lost just a single league match all season and also reached the semi-finals of the Women's Champions League.

This season, however, that success has proved impossible to repeat. Sparta first stumbled in Champions League qualifying, then lost the key Prague derby against Slavia, and has now also fallen to Plzeň. After five rounds, the team trails league leaders Slavia by six points.

Changes also hit the men's team

Steiner's dismissal comes just days after similar upheaval in the management of Sparta's men's team. Following a defeat in Hradec Králové, two assistant coaches to Brian Priske — Jan Kolль and Jack Wilson — left their posts.

Around Prague, based on reporting by prazsky.denik.cz