Women's Super League side London City Lionesses have appointed Eder Maestre as manager following the sacking of Jocelyn Precheur.

Spanish coach Maestre managed CD Tenerife Femenino in Spain's top-tier, where he guided the club to a sixth-placed finish, but he departed in December.

It is believed that the 39-year-old is viewed as a future world-class coach with a strong Spanish style which London City want to implement.

He also previously managed Spanish side Real Sociedad.

Maestre, who has a contract until the summer of 2028, will take charge of his first match on Sunday, 11 January against Liverpool in the WSL.

"Working in English football has always been my goal, and representing this club is a real honour," said Maestre.

Precheur was dismissed on 21 December with London City sitting in sixth place with five wins from their first 11 matches in their debut WSL campaign.

Maestre added: "The project presented to me by the club is one of the best projects in women's football. The club's ambitions are clear and aligned with my own, and I am excited to start work."

London City Lionesses chief executive Martin Semmens said Maestre's arrival "is a significant moment" for the club.

"After a detailed search, it was clear that Eder's values as a person align with ours, and his vision of what we will see on the pitch will help us reach our ambitious goals," Semmens said.

Maestre previously held sporting and technical management positions at Spanish sides Zalla and Sestao River.

Emma Sanders

BBC Sport women's football news reporter

London City Lionesses wanted a coach who could help develop and consistently deliver a specific style of football.

They have been influenced by Spanish football and its successful possession-based style, and also the full-throttle approach, mixing creativity and direct football, which has helped deliver eight Women's Champions League titles at Lyon – one of the clubs also owned by wealthy businesswoman Michele Kang.

A shortlist of coaches was drawn up when they decided to replace former manager Jocelyn Precheur and they did not rule out some from the men's game.

The main criteria was centred around the playing style, the coach's ability to collaborate with a wider team of expertise and to have a track record of developing players and talented youth.

Maestre showed his potential with Spanish clubs CD Tenerife and Real Sociedad and London City believe he can become a future leading figure in the game

Led by chief executive officer Martin Semmens, London City have been working on a long-term project to achieve their aims of reaching European competition by 2027.

That is an ambitious target for a club only promoted to the WSL for the first time this season and their decision to replace Precheur with Maestre may have been premature but they were willing to take the risk and will be judged on that with intrigue.