HONG KONG — Former Italy head coach Roberto Donadoni has been appointed the new head coach of Shenzhen FC, the Chinese Super League club announced on Tuesday.

The 55-year-old replaces Juan Ramon Lopez Caro, who led the team to promotion last season from the second division.

However, with Shenzhen dropping into the relegation zone, the Spaniard was relieved of his post.

Shenzhen slipped to 15th place in the 16-team standings on Sunday following a 2-0 loss at the hands of Jiangsu Suning as the team extended their winless streak to 12 games, their last victory coming on May 5 against Shanghai Shenhua.

The bottom two clubs at the end of the 30-game season will be relegated to China League One. — Reuters