|
Hiddink flies into Moscow for talks over future
| |
|
|
Guus Hiddink's Russia side lost to Slovenia
in the World Cup play-offs / GettyImages
|
Former Zenit St Petersburg president Sergei Fursenko was
elected head of the Russian FA (RFU) on Wednesday and his first major
task will be to decide whether to extend the contract of national coach
Guus Hiddink.
"He's arriving this afternoon in Moscow and we intend to meet tomorrow
and we'll talk over all the details," Fursenko told reporters after
easily beating his only rival Alisher Aminov for the RFU post, with 95
votes out of 106.
Russia failed to qualify for this year's World Cup in South Africa under
Hiddink, whose deal expires at the end of June.
When Dutchman Hiddink arrived in Moscow he was warmly greeted by several
dozen Russian fans, who shouted: "Only Guus, Only Guus, together
we will win."
"It was a nice welcome," Hiddink said at the airport. "I
already know that Fursenko was elected the new boss of Russian football
and we plan to meet on Thursday to discuss a number of things."
Asked about the reports, linking him with coaching jobs in Turkey and
China, Hiddink said: "I've heard there is a lot of interest but I
can't say anything until I speak with Fursenko.
"Yes, we (Russia) failed to qualify for South Africa, I also feel
that I failed as a coach but now I feel refreshed and ready for a new
challenge," he added.
"I feel like I'm not finished with my job here in Russia just yet
and I intend to fulfil my contract at least until the summer. What happens
after that we'll just have to wait and see."
Fursenko succeeded Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko, who resigned from his
dual role as RFU president in November after Russian President Dmitry
Medvedev demanded government officials in charge of national sports bodies
be replaced by professional personnel.
The 55-year-old, a close friend of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin,
had been a clear favourite to replace Mutko after another leading candidate,
Sergei Kapkov, an associate of Chelsea's billionaire owner Roman Abramovich,
pulled out of the race.
Fursenko, an engineer who worked in the space industry, was a top manager
at Russian energy giant Gazprom before being named Zenit president in
2005. He held that job for three years, overseeing the club's most successful
period.
In 2006, he hired Dutch coach Dick Advocaat, who the following year led
Zenit to their first Russian league title in nearly a quarter of a century
and then steered them to the UEFA Cup and the European Super Cup the year
after.
Soccernet.espn.go.com,
February 3, 2010
|
|
