Wieczysta Kraków have appointed Jacek Zieliński after dismissing Zeljko Kopić, with the club bottom of the Ekstraklasa on eight points. The change follows a 2-1 defeat to Górnik Zabrze, their latest setback in a run of five straight league losses. This is not a reset made from comfort. It is a rescue job.

Interia Sport carried the club confirmation, quoting a statement translated from Polish: "Zeljko Kopic zakończył pracę na stanowisku trenera pierwszej drużyny Wieczystej." The key detail is simple enough: Kopić's time in charge is over after a collapse that left Wieczysta 18th after 14 matches.

The scale of the slump

The urgency is easy to understand from the table alone. Wieczysta have eight points from 14 matches, with a 2-2-10 record and a minus-10 goal difference. For a club that came into the season with ambition, those are relegation numbers.

The latest defeat made the pressure unavoidable. Losing 2-1 to Górnik Zabrze extended the run to five straight league losses, and that sequence appears to have pushed the club into another change on the touchline.

There is a small dispute over how long Kopić's spell lasted. Interia Sport reported he led the team in 11 matches before being dismissed. Weszło counted 10 matches and said Wieczysta took only five points in that stretch. However you count it, the results were poor and the club moved quickly.

Wieczysta are now on their third coach of the 2026-27 season. That says plenty about the pressure inside the club, but it also reflects how little margin there is once a promoted side gets stuck at the bottom.

Zieliński's brief and the contract question

Zieliński is back in work only weeks after leaving Korona Kielce on 19 October. Wieczysta have gone for experience, and there is at least some logic in that. A team in this position does not need a long bedding-in period or another experiment.

There is less clarity on the exact contract length. WP SportoweFakty reported that Zieliński signed until the end of the 2026-27 season with an option for another year. Piłka Nożna and Weszło reported a deal until the end of the current season, also with an extension option. The common ground is that Wieczysta have not framed this as a guaranteed multi-year project.

Interia Sport also noted that Zieliński coached Lech Poznań to the 2010 Polish championship, which helps explain why Wieczysta turned to a manager with a long domestic track record rather than a lower-profile appointment.

The immediate task at Wieczysta

The first target is not style or long-range planning. It is points. Wieczysta have already burned through too much of the season for this to be about patience, and a return of eight points from 14 matches leaves little room for a soft start.

Zieliński's first game is scheduled for 23 November, when Wieczysta host Motor Lublin. By then he will be trying to halt a five-match losing run with the club still rooted to the bottom of the Ekstraklasa.

FAQ

Why did Wieczysta Kraków appoint Jacek Zieliński now?

Wieczysta made the change because the season has become a survival fight. The club are bottom of the Ekstraklasa with eight points from 14 matches, have lost five league games in a row and were beaten 2-1 by Górnik Zabrze in their latest match. Zieliński arrives as an emergency reset rather than a long-term luxury hire.

How bad has Wieczysta Kraków's form been before the coaching change?

The numbers are bleak. Wieczysta are 18th in the table with eight points from 14 matches, a 2-2-10 record and a minus-10 goal difference. Their latest result was a 2-1 defeat to Górnik Zabrze, and they have lost five straight league matches.

How many matches did Zeljko Kopic manage before leaving Wieczysta Kraków?

That depends on the source. Interia Sport reported that Kopić led the team in 11 matches before his dismissal. Weszło described his spell as 10 matches and said the team took five points in that stretch. The wider point is not disputed: his stint was short and the results were poor.

When is Jacek Zieliński's first match as Wieczysta Kraków coach?

Wieczysta's first game under Zieliński is scheduled for 23 November, when they host Motor Lublin. It gives him only a short period to work with a side that is bottom of the Ekstraklasa and coming off five straight league defeats.

Written by Sam Whitfield with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 4 outlets. How we work →