Lokomotiv Moscow coach Jose Couceiro will not have his contract renewed, and is to be replaced by Croatian national team coach Slaven Bilic after Euro 2012, the club said Monday.
The Portuguese coach joined Lokomotiv in June from Sporting Lisbon and immediately took the railwaymen on a 12-game unbeaten league run.
But he only managed three wins in the following 16 games, suffering five defeats and three draws in his last eight that saw Lokomotiv nosedive to seventh in the Russian Premier League and outside the European qualifying zone.
"The contract with current coach Jose Couceiro is expiring and will not be renewed," the club said in a statement. "The club thanks Couceiro for the work he has done and considers him to have built a good foundation for further development."
Before taking over at Lokomotiv, Bilic, 43, will lead Croatia to Euro 2012 looking to at least match their 2008 run to the quarterfinals that earned the tournament's youngest coach wide praise.
"I'm very glad that we have managed to sign a contract with such a strong and renowned coach," Lokomotiv president Olga Smorodskaya was quoted as saying on the site.
"Bilic is one of the best coaches in Europe, and in fighting for him we had to hold off serious competition from many clubs, including from the English Premier League."
"I don't doubt that Bilic will take our team to a new level and find success with Lokomotiv."
Bilic's Croatia are in Group C with world champions Spain, Italy and Ireland, and are looking to bounce back from failure to qualify for the 2010 World Cup.
Bilic coached Croat champions Hadjuk Split before being appointed to the national post in 2006.
Before that, he had a successful playing career as a defender with Bundesliga side Karlsruher and English teams West Ham United and Everton.
