Vietnam national football team coach Henrique Calisto Wednesday handed in his resignation letter to the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF), heading for Thailand to coach Thai Premier League reigning champions Muangthong United.
He told Tuoi Tre in an exclusive interview that one of the reasons for his quitting is he has not been trusted by VFF.
He talked to Tran Quoc Tuan, VFF general secretary, and Nguyen Lan Trung, VFF vice chairman, about his resignation on Monday, Calisto said, adding the two failed to persuade him to stay.
He revealed he has been thinking a lot about saying goodbye to Vietnamese football atmosphere after ten years of working in the Southeast Asian nation.
It is now time to carry out his own new plans, he said. Calisto was under tremendous fire every time his teams, at national or under-23 levels, did not play well, he complained, saying it was unfair for other managers to criticize him and his men despite their hard work.
He would not have been appointed to chairman of Portugal’s coach committee if he were as incompetent as some Vietnamese coaches denounced him, he grumbled.
According to Calisto, it was truly absurd when he was to be responsible for any losses but when his team won, the victory would then be credited to this or that player or sometimes luck.
Vietnam’s most recent failure to win the AFF Suzuki Cup 2010 was due to his best players’ injuries, he explained.
But what most disappointed him is a provision in his contract with VFF right after the AFF Suzuki Cup 2008 trophy that says the federation reserves the right to prematurely terminate the contract and will just pay him two months’ salary as compensation.
He reckoned this as a sign of distrust of him. He decided to leave because he wanted to refresh himself and also because he has found no respect from the people he was working with, the outspoken coach said.
Asked if he has any regret, Calisto gave a ‘no’ answer, adding working in Vietnam for more than 10 years is really meaningful to him.
Calisto confirmed he will coach Muangthong United F.C. in Thai Premier League after leaving Vietnam.
One of the reasons why the Thai club signed him is they was fascinated by Vietnam’s performance at the Cup, he said.
He then rebutted conjectures that the main reason for his resignation is the monthly US$40,000 salary this club has reportedly promised him.
He hopes he will be in Thailand for his new job within a week after having finished the contract termination procedures. He also thinks of returning to Vietnam one day.
Explaining his decision to choose the Thai Premier League 2010 champions instead of a club in Vietnam, Calisto said no Vietnamese club has approached him this year.
Calisto has yet to talk to his close friends Vo Quoc Thang, who brought him to Vietnam more than ten years ago, and Le Hung Dung, chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Football Federation, about his resignation but merely discussed it with VFF.
Via Tuoi Tre, Calisto also wanted to convey his sincere thanks to Vietnamese football fans and Mr Thang for their relentless support during his memorable stay in Vietnam.
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