PRAGUE: The Czech football federation (FACR) announced the sacking of national team coach Ivan Hasek on Wednesday, following a humiliating 2-1 defeat in a 2026 World Cup qualifier against the Faroe Islands.
Seeking their first World Cup appearance since 2006, the Czechs are not even completely sure of a berth in the playoffs next March — a situation compounded by their loss in Torshavn on Sunday.
Croatia top Group L, three points ahead of the Czech Republic, and the 2018 World Cup runners-up also have a game in hand on their rivals.
The Faroes lie one point behind the Czechs, with both having one match remaining in their campaign.
“We have terminated cooperation with Ivan Hasek as of today,” FACR head David Trunda told reporters.
Trunda added that the FACR would now look for a new coach, possibly a foreigner.
An “interim coach” is meanwhile likely to lead the team in their last World Cup qualifier at home to Gibraltar in November.
Hasek started his second stint as national team coach ahead of Euro 2024, at which the Czechs were knocked out in the group stage.
Pundits criticized the 62-year-old former midfielder for his unattractive style of play, while he bemoaned having no players coming even close to the level of former Czech greats such as Pavel Nedved or Tomas Rosicky.
Hasek came under heavy fire following a 5-1 defeat in a World Cup qualifier in Croatia in June.
As a player. Hasek scored five goals in 56 games for Czechoslovakia and led the country as captain to the World Cup quarter-finals in Italy in 1990.
As a coach, he took Sparta Prague to back-to-back Czech league titles in 2000 and 2001.
Since then he has had a nomadic coaching career taking him to France, Japan, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and even the Lebanese national team.
His first stint as the Czech national team coach was in 2009 when he oversaw just five games.
Czech Republic sack coach Hasek after Faroes flop
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Czech Republic sack coach Hasek after Faroes flop
- “We have terminated cooperation with Ivan Hasek as of today,” FACR head David Trunda told reporters
- An “interim coach” is meanwhile likely to lead the team in their last World Cup qualifier at home to Gibraltar in November
Manchester City narrow gap in table with dominant win over Sunderland
- Phil Foden also scored his fifth goal in three games
- Sunderland are provisionally seventh on 23 points
MANCHESTER: Manchester City’s center backs Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol struck less than four minutes apart in the first half in a 3-0 thrashing of Sunderland that tightened the Premier League title race and kept the pressure firmly on leaders Arsenal.
Phil Foden also scored — his fifth goal in three games — as second-placed City seized the opportunity from Arsenal’s 2-1 loss at Aston Villa earlier in the day, to climb within two points of the leaders with 31 points after 15 games. Sunderland are provisionally seventh on 23 points.
While Pep Guardiola’s men dominated possession, neither side really threatened in the first half before Dias ended the deadlock in the 31st minute with a rocket from 30 yards out that took a slight deflection off Dan Ballard. Less than four minutes later, Foden whipped in a cross that Gvardiol leapt to head home.
Foden netted his own in the 65th minute with a goal that was all about Rayan Cherki’s jaw-dropping rabona assist, a chip that Foden needed only to head home and then had the England midfielder shaking his head in disbelief at Cherki’s skill.
Sunderland ended the game with 10 men after Luke O’Nien was shown a red card for a bad foul deep in added time.
