FC Porto announced the dismissal of head coach Vitor Bruno on Monday, making him the third manager to be sacked by one of Portugal’s top three clubs this season.
The 42-year-old assumed the role earlier this season, succeeding Sergio Conceição, who left to join AC Milan. However, Bruno’s tenure came to an end after Porto suffered consecutive league defeats, losing ground in the title race.
The club has confirmed that academy director José Tavares will step in as interim coach while the search for a permanent replacement begins.
Sunday’s 3-1 loss away to Gil Vicente marked Porto’s third consecutive defeat in all competitions. They had also been beaten by Sporting Lisbon in the semi-finals of the League Cup on January 7.
Porto have now slipped to third in the table, four points behind leaders Sporting, while Benfica moved into second place over the weekend.
Benfica parted ways with German coach Roger Schmidt at the end of August, while Sporting sacked Ruben Amorim’s successor, João Pereira, just over a month after Amorim departed for Manchester United.