Dastan Satpayev’s Burnley appoints Fabio Celestini as head coach

English football club Burnley, which Kazakhstani forward Dastan Satpayev plays for, has appointed Fabio Celestini as its new head coach. The Swiss manager replaces Nicky Hayen, who was dismissed on Oct. 24.

«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. I know the situation we are in, and I have lived it before. Our supporters deserve to see a team playing with belief from the first whistle,» Burnley’s press service cited Celestini as saying.

Before joining Burnley, Celestini managed CSKA Moscow and won the Russian Super Cup with the club. He previously coached Basel, taking charge in October 2023 after the team made a poor start to the season. During his tenure, he led the club to the Swiss league title and the Swiss Cup. The league title was Basel’s first in eight years.

Celestini has also managed Lausanne-Sport, guiding the club to promotion to the country’s top division, and Luzern, with whom he won the Swiss Cup. As a player, he made 35 appearances for Switzerland’s national team, featured at Euro 2004 and played for clubs including Marseille, Levante and Getafe.

Celestini will make his Burnley coaching debut on Oct. 31, when the club hosts Portsmouth.

Hayen fired after heavy loss

Burnley’s former head coach Nicky Hayen was dismissed on Oct. 24 following a 4-1 defeat to Lincoln City in the Championship’s 12th matchday.

The Belgian manager spent just over three months at the club. After 12 matchdays, Burnley sits 22nd with eight points, in the relegation zone.

In Hayen’s final match in charge, Satpayev returned to the starting lineup after an injury and played for around an hour.