Kosanovic calls it a day
Tuesday, March 8, 2005
Article summary
Milorad Kosanovic has resigned as coach of the Serbia and Montenegro Under-21 squad, citing a lack of support.
Article body
Selection issues
The former FK Crvena Zvezda coach's resignation follows an announcement by the Football Association of Montenegro (part of the Football Association of Serbia and Montenegro) two months ago, stating that it would not let its youngsters participate in the U21 set-up as long as Kosanovic was in charge. It argued that Kosanovic had neglected young players from Montenegrin clubs such as FK Zeta, FK Sutjeska and FK Buducnost Podgorica, instead giving more chances to Serbian players.
'No support'
The 54-year-old, who includes FK Vojvodina, China's Dalian Shide FC and Malta among his former coaching roles, said: "I am leaving because I don't want to get in the way. This post is not important enough for me to want to be at odds with an association. I have not had any support in my work and I do not want to contribute to a bad atmosphere around the team ahead of important matches."
Mixed results
Kosanovic led the side to autumn victories against San Marino (twice) and Bosnia-Herzegovina in UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualifying before a defeat by Belgium in November. A replacement will be named ahead of the qualifier against Spain in Novi Sad on 29 March.
