S-Pulse part ways with manager Shinji Kobayashi

Shimizu S-Pulse have terminated the contract of manager Shinji Kobayashi, the club announced on Tuesday, just days after it narrowly avoided relegation to the second division.

Kobayashi got S-Pulse promoted to the top flight last season but the Shizuoka-based club struggled this year and finished just two points above the relegation zone after a 3-1 win away to Vissel Kobe on Saturday, the final day of the league campaign.

S-Pulse have yet to decide on a successor to the 57-year-old Kobayashi.

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