Raków Częstochowa will pay a quarter of a million złoty for new coach Dawid Szwarga. The 36-year-old's contract includes a bonus clause of 100,000 zł if he keeps the club in the Ekstraklasa, the primary objective for a team currently sitting bottom of the table with just six points.
Dawid Szwarga will replace Tomasz Kaczmarka on the bench, who was already the fourth manager of Raków this season. The club paid around one million złoty to buy Kaczmarka out from Radomiak Radom, and he departed despite a 2-1 win over Wieczysta Kraków on Friday 16 October. That win is part of a recent run of two wins and three losses in their last five matches. Szwarga, a former assistant to Marek Papszun between 2021 and 2023, previously managed Raków on a caretaker basis in the 2023/24 season, overseeing 52 matches with an average of 1.52 points per game. He most recently worked at Arka Gdynia, leading them to promotion to the top flight.
The club from Częstochowa will incur significant total costs related to the recent managerial changes. Buying Szwarga out from GKS Katowice is an expense of 250,000 zł, on top of the mentioned survival bonus. Michał Świerczewski, a former player and pundit, highlighted the new coach's qualifications. "Marek, just like me, was convinced that Dawid should get a chance as a head coach sooner or later," said Świerczewski.
His priority is an immediate improvement in results and lifting the team off the bottom of the table. Raków sits 18th in the Ekstraklasa with only six points from eleven games, having recorded two wins and nine losses. Their goal difference stands at 15 scored and 26 conceded. The team trails league leaders Gornik Zabrze by 20 points. The first test will be an away match against Wisla Krakow on Saturday, 24 October. The opponent occupies a high sixth place in the standings, promising a difficult encounter.
Szwarga takes over a team after an unstable period but knows it inside out. His first major decision will concern organising a defence that has been error-prone this season. The key figure in attack remains Patryk Makuch, who with six goals is the team's top scorer. The new manager has less than a week to prepare his tactics for the match in Krakow, which could define the start of his tenure. Recent results, including a heavy 1-4 defeat to GKS Katowice and a 4-1 victory over Polonia Bytom, illustrate the inconsistency he must address.
Background and full detail: Sport.pl
