Spartak Moscow sporting director Dmitry Popov said at half-time against Benfica (Portuguese victory by 2-0) who will present, on Thursday, the resignation of the club, in a letter. At issue, according to the Russian press, is the refusal of club owner Leonid Fedun to sign River Plate right-back Gonzalo Montiel.
“The last straw was the story of River Plate’s right-back Gonzalo Montiel,” Popov told a newspaper reporter Sport Express, after the end of the first part of the game with Benfica.
Popov also said that he was surprised by Fedun’s explanation, who told the sporting director that former Spartak coach Domenico Tedesco would not endorse the acquisition.
“Today, Fedun refused the deal but, above all, I was impressed by the explanation: “This is Tedesco’s opinion, and I agree with him”. I’m also tired of being constantly humiliated in public by the club owner’s wife. [Marina Fedun]. Fedun promised to solve this problem, but nothing has changed. Now I understand: as the composition of the team is being consulted with your favorite Tedesco, it cannot have changed. I can’t stand an open distrust of my work. The only thing left for me to do under these conditions is leave. If the team has the task of fighting for the championship, why don’t they trust the sporting director or the coach?” said Popov, to the Sport Express.
At the press conference, Rui Vitória responded with the need for “stability”, saying that he would later understand what had really happened.
«The question of the sporting director, I will know exactly what happened and it has to be a personal conversation to find out the reasons. But, still not knowing this, what I can say is that it is essential for a club of this size to achieve stability. And stability goes through the continuity of people, because people all believe in each other and work together. And the more instability there is – when I say instability, I mean entry and exit of people – it becomes more difficult for us professionals to work. It is essential to have a strong structure and what I want and wish is for this stability to exist», said Rui Vitória, still talking about the squad.
“In relation to the squad, things were discussed with the sporting director, about the necessary parts. Of course I won’t say it publicly [ndr: os jogadores pretendidos], but it is also good that we know that one thing is to compete in a national championship, another dimension is the Champions League», expressed the Portuguese coach.
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