Zico has left Iraq after 14 months as manager Baghdad – Jaafar al-Nasrawi The Iraqi Football Association [IFA] has announced that manager Zico has officially resigned from his post at the helm of the national team, taking up an administrative role in his native Brazil .
The IFA has also denied that Iraqi manager Hakim Shaker has been appointed to lead the national team for the duration of the upcoming Gulf Cup of Nations [GCN].
The chairman of the IFA, Najeh Humoud, told Arabstoday that the Brazilian coach passed on his final resignation to the association through his personal interpreter, Salam al-Ubaidi. \"He will not negotiate a return to Iraq, preferring administrative work in Brazil to coaching,\" Humoud said.
The IFA chairman added that Zico had resolved the matter \"unofficially\" in order to avoid the penalty clause in his contract, but said the former midfielder had told them he would not be demanding any more money from the association \"as he had decided not to renew his contract for 2013.\"
The contract itself was until 2014. The chairman also said the IFA was \"proceeding with its latest complaint to FIFA\" proving that Zico abandoned his post more than a month ago in breach of his contract, which makes him liable to pay the penalty clause to the association.
\"The association gave Zico many chances and was under presssure to arrive at a resolution that satisfies both parties, but he is a man of contradictory statements and strange actions,\" Humoud said.
The IFA chief also said the Zico’s successor is likely to be a foreign coach, adding that the association was \"studying the CVs of global coaches before making a final decision to appoint the new coach.\"
The appointment could be announced over the next week, although Humoud denied reports that Argentine legend Maradona was one of the proposed replacements and said that “14 local, Arab and international names are currently being discussed.”
The IFA chairman also denied reports that the organisation had appointed Iraqi coach Hakim Shaker to lead the Iraqi squad for the duration of regional Gulf tournament.
Sources close to IFA had reported on Thursday that the association was leaning toward appointing Frenchman Philippe Troussier to succeed Zico. Troussier has coached the national teams of Nigeria, Burkina Faso and Morocco. He also led Japan to a 2000 AFC Asian Cup win, the finals of the World Cup and second place in the Intercontinental Cup.
Zico announced his decision to quit on his website towards the end of November. In a statement, he branded his contract with IFA \"void\" due to the football association’s \"failure to abide by its terms.\" The IFA then released a statement denying receipt of a resignation and held a meeting with Zico’s interpreters to persuade him to back down and continue in his position.
Zico took on the Iraqi national team post in September 2011 and has managed for 21 matches. His first match was against Jordan, which Iraq lost 0-2.