De Biasi quits as Albania coach, says his cycle over

TIRANA (Reuters) - Albania coach Gianni De Biasi resigned on Wednesday after six years in charge during which he led them to Euro 2016, their first and only appearance at a major tournament.

De Biasi quits as Albania coach, says his cycle over

(Reuters)





The 60-year-old, who made his announcement three days after Albania beat Israel 3-0 away in a World Cup qualifier, said he believed he had taken the team as far as they could go.

"This is a page of my professional experience in Albania that I would never have wanted to write," he told reporters.

"I have decided to stop now because I want the best for the growth of the team...

"It is difficult for me to leave but I am conscious my cycle with this group has ended and I would like to give the chance to whoever will replace me to know the boys in the next four matches," De Biasi added.

Affectionately referred to as Gani, an Albanian form of his Italian name Gianni, one of De Biasi's first moves was to scour the Albanian diaspora to make sure the country no longer missed out on talents such as Granit Xhaka and Xherdan Shaqiri, who both play for Switzerland.

"I would like to point out I leave today without having a team to work with," he said. "I hope people will understand my decision although not everyone will accept it."

Albania were knocked out in the group stage at Euro 2016 last year after losing to France and Switzerland, although they won one game against Romania.

Arguably their most impressive win was in the qualifiers when they beat Portugal 1-0 away.

Albania are third in their World Cup qualifying group but are seven points behind second place Italy and have little realistic chance of going to Russia next year.

























(Reporting By Benet Koleka; additional reporting by Brian Homewood, Editing by Toby Davis)


Share

2 min read

Published

Source: Reuters


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world