Burnley appoint Fabio Celestini as head coach, four days after sacking Nicky Hayen

Burnley turn to Celestini four days after a sacking

Burnley have appointed Fabio Celestini as head coach, four days after sacking Nicky Hayen. The club announced the appointment on Wednesday, 28 October, and did not disclose the length of the 50-year-old's contract. Hayen, a Belgian who joined from KRC Genk in summer 2026, was dismissed after a 4-1 defeat by Lincoln City on Saturday, 24 October. In the week of 26 October the club had named Diego López chief football officer and given him the task of finding a new manager. Rob Edwards, seen as the early favourite, did not take the role, and attention moved to Celestini.

A side in the relegation zone

Burnley were relegated from the Premier League in spring 2026 and have made a poor start to their return to the Championship. After 12 games they sit 22nd of 24 with 8 points from one win, five draws and six defeats. According to rts.ch, they are three points above Preston North End, the side in last place. Burnley have not won a home league game in more than a year, and the new coach's first task is to pull them out of the relegation zone. Zeki Amdouni, the Swiss striker who has been at the club since 2025, is also part of the squad, and rts.ch reports that Celestini will coach Jamie Vardy and Kyle Walker as well.

Celestini's record and exit from Moscow

Celestini led Basel from the bottom of the table to a league and cup double within 18 months, and the 2024-25 double brought the Swiss Super League title and the Swiss Cup. Earlier in his career he coached Lugano, Luzern and Sion, and he won the Swiss Cup with Luzern in 2021. He then took charge of CSKA Moscow, where he won the Russian Super Cup, before the club parted ways with him in May 2026 after less than a year in the job. The 50-year-old, who won 35 caps for Switzerland and spent 10 years as a player in France and Spain, has never managed in English football.

Statements and first match

Diego López, Burnley's chief football officer, said:

“Fabio brings the passion, experience and knowledge we were looking for.”

López added that Celestini had shown extraordinary determination and conviction to come to Burnley, and that the club wants people who truly want to be there. Burnley's statement described Celestini as a coach with a proven capacity to win and to adapt to different football environments. Celestini told the club's website that he saw a club with potential:

“I look at Burnley and I see a club with big potential and players with real quality, who can help us achieve our supporters' ambitions.”

His first match in charge is the home game against Portsmouth on Saturday, 31 October, at Turf Moor, where the Clarets are looking to end a wait for a home league win that has stretched beyond a year.