Russia's football coach Fabio Capello will appear before a parliamentary hearing to explain his team's poor showing in this summer's World Cup, a news report said Wednesday.
Igor Anansikh, the head of the State Duma's Sports Committee, said Capello would be called before lawmakers in October to inform them of how he plans to improve the fortunes of the country's national team, Lenta.ru reported.
"The current Russia team is one of the weakest in the last 15-20 years," Anansikh was quoted as saying by R-Sport.
Russia exited this summer's World Cup at the group stages, following draws against Algeria and South Korea and defeat to Belgium, with coach Capello coming in for heavy criticism for lawmakers and fans alike.
On Tuesday, outspoken lawmaker Vladimir Zhirinovsky called Capello a "thief" in an interview with Sovetsky Sport, while LDPR lawmaker Oleg Pakholkov said the Italian should return at least half of his salary following his side's lackluster performance in Brazil, ITAR-Tass reported Tuesday.
However, if the Russian Football Union, or RFU, decides to cut its losses and end its contract with Capello, the Italian could be in line for a hefty payout.
In accordance with his current contract, which runs until 2018, Capello could receive up to $25 million in compensation if the contract be annulled, ITAR-TASS reported Wednesday citing an unidentified source in the RFU.
"After successfully qualifying for the World Cup in Brazil, the contract between Capello and the RFU changed. If earlier the amount of compensation owed for a breach of contract — by either side — stood at $5 million, now it stands at $25 million," the source was quoted as saying.
Capello, the former head of the England national team, was recently revealed to be the best paid coach at this year's World Cup, picking up a cool $11.2 million a year — or more than 763 times more than the average Russian — according to Forbes.
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Politician Calls Upon Capello to Return Salary After Russia's World Cup Fail