TOKYO: Japan will stick with coach Javier Aguirre for next month’s Asian Cup, despite the former Mexico coach being involved in a match-fixing scandal which has rocked world football.
Aguirre is due to appear in a Valencia court in February following a probe into match-fixing allegations dating back to 2011 when he was manager of Spanish side Real Zaragoza.
Prosecutors in Spain allege that Aguirre and 40 others were involved in rigging a league match which saw Zaragoza defeat Levante 2-1 to avoid relegation.
The prosecutors claim that Zaragoza paid a total of 965,000 euros into the bank accounts of certain of its coaches, staff and players who then gave the money to Levante’s players as a “bribe”.
Aguirre, 56, vehemently denies any wrongdoing and the Japan Football Association (JFA) on Thursday said he would continue as national team coach for January’s Asian showpiece in Australia. “Aguirre will lead the national team in the Asian Cup,” JFA technical director Hiromi Hara said. “What we need to do now is to understand the current situation correctly, and most importantly, to collect information to see where the scandal is going,” he added.
Meanwhile, Ronald Koeman, remains upbeat, even if he will be without the likes of suspended Morgan Schneiderlin and Victor Wanyama and injured Dusan Tadic for tomorrow’s home clash with Everton.“If somebody told me in pre-season that in the middle of December we’d be fifth, I’d say give me the paper and I’ll sign it now,” Koeman said.
Managing Southampton in the Premier League had been a south coast breeze for Koeman - until this month. The Dutchman’s Saints have spent almost the whole season in the Premier League top four but four consecutive league defeats and another in the League Cup have been a harsh reality check. AGENCIES
