New coach of Villarreal, Manuel Preciado, dies after one day on the job
Villarreal coach Manuel Preciado died of a heart attack Thursday, one day after joining the team. He was 54.
The team said Preciado was in Valencia when he was stricken early Thursday.
“We are all shocked,” Spain coach Vicente del Bosque said from Poland, where he is preparing his team for the European Championship.
“We were having breakfast and we were all taken back by the news,” he told Spanish radio Marca. “He was a caring person and a great sportsman. He was a man of football that was an honor to coaching.”
Preciado played for several clubs, including Racing Santander, and had previously coached teams including Racing Santander, Levante, Murcia and Sporting Gijon.
He had a one-year deal at Villareal, which was relegated from the Spanish league last season.
