CFR sack Mandorlini, appoint Cârţu

CFR 1907 Cluj have sacked coach Andrea Mandorlini and replaced him with Sorin Cârţu ahead of Wednesday's UEFA Champions League opener at home to FC Basel 1893.

Mandorlini guided CFR to the Romanian double last season but has paid the price for the team's indifferent start to the season. CFR lost 2-0 at FC Rapid Bucureşti on Friday to drop to 11th in the First Division – six points off the summit – after seven matches. The Italian replaced Antonio Conceição last November.

Cârţu, 54, arrives on a two-year contract and with a reputation as a disciplinarian. He won seven caps for Romania and made more than 300 appearances for FC Universitatea Craiova. He has had three spells coaching his former club, winning the double in 1991, and his extensive CV also includes two years at the helm of Romania's Under-21s.