LILLE, France (AP) French club Lille provisionally suspended coach Marcelo Bielsa on Wednesday following a string of poor results in the top tier.
The northern side said in a statement that Bielsa has been suspended ''as part of a procedure started by the club.'' Lille did not elaborate.
Bielsa joined Lille this season but has failed to make the club competitive again, with the team second to last after 13 rounds.
After finishing a disappointing 11th last season, Lille hired the coach - affectionately known as ''El Loco Bielsa'' (Crazy Bielsa) to his fans - with the aim of returning to the Champions League while playing an exciting brand of football. Lille also recruited more than a dozen new players, but the team failed to gel and has won just three of its league matches so far.
Bielsa returned to France two years after he abruptly quit Marseille amid a contract dispute. The Argentine, who quit Lazio two days after signing in July 2016, left Marseille after its French league opener in August 2015.
