Straka crosses bitter Prague divide

Straka crosses bitter Prague divide
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Slavia Prague defied fan protests and named Frantisek Straka as their new coach on Sunday despite the 53-year-old's long association as player and manager with bitter city rivals Sparta.

"I expected this kind of reaction," said Straka, after Slavia fans demonstrated their opposition to the announcement during Sunday's 1-0 win over Sigma Olomouc.

Straka takes over from Michal Petrous at 17-time Czech champions Slavia, who are struggling in 13th place in the league, 18 points behind leaders Sparta.

As a defender, Straka played for Sparta between 1979 and 1988 before moving to Borussia Moenchengladbach in Germany until 1991.

He also played for the Czech national team 35 times before coaching FK Teplice, Sparta Prague, Viktoria Pilsen, Ceske Budejovice in the Czech Republic, Tirol Innsbruck in Austria, Greek side OFI Crete, Fury North Queensland in Australia, Slovakia's Ruzomberok and Arka Gdynia in Poland.