Football: Lavička new coach of Sparta Prague

Sparta Prague football club has a new coach – and that man is Vítězslav Lavička. On Thursday, Lavička signed a two-year contract with this year’s Gambrinus Liga’s runners-up. Lavička, who up until now was coaching the national under-21 squad, replaces Michal Bílek as the Prague club’s manager. The 45-year-old is himself a former Sparta player; he has also worked as the team’s assistant coach. He said on Thursday that it had been a hard decision for him to quit the under-21 team post.