Majidi sacked by Ittihad Kalba
Sports Desk
Iranian head coach Farhad Majidi was shown the exit door by Ittihad Kalba FC, the Emirati top-flight club announced on Friday.
The 47-year-old coach leaves the UAE Pro League side “by mutual agreement”, the club’s statement read, after his team managed a single victory – a 3-0 win against second-tier outfit Dibba Fujairah in the UAE President’s Cup in mid-February – in eight matches, suffering five defeats.
In Majidi’s final game on the bench on Thursday, Ittihad Kalba took the lead against Al Bataeh at home through Mahdi Qayedi’s sublime finish in the first half before the visitors bounced back to score twice and inflict an eighth league defeat on the home side.
Having steered Esteghlal to a historic title in the Iranian Persian Gulf Pro League two years ago – going a whole campaign without a defeat – Majidi took charge in Ittihad Kalba for the start of the previous season and led the club to a best-ever ADNOC Pro League finish, when his side stood eighth in the table.
However, the tide turned for Majidi and his men in the ongoing season as a run of only three wins in 15 matches, the last of which came away to Emirates Club (4-2) on December 1, has left Ittihad Kalba struggling right above the relegation zone in the 14-team standing.
Citing an interview with his agent, sports news website Varzesh3 reported later on Friday that Majidi “has no intention of returning to the Iranian league in the near future” as he will be looking to continue his managerial career in the United Arab Emirates by joining a top-flight side “in the coming days.”