Russia’s Football Union said Thursday it has terminated head coach Stanislav Cherchesov’s contract after the team’s disappointing first-round exit from the Euro 2020 championship.
Ahead of the RFU’s statement, Cherchesov himself said he did not plan to resign after Russia ranked last in its group and failed to qualify for the quarter-finals last month. The team's embarrassing loss after a strong showing in the 2018 World Cup had prompted calls for top-down reforms in Russian football.
“The RFU will start searching for candidates for the position of head coach who will prepare the team for the 2022 World Cup qualifying matches,” said its president Alexander Dyukov.
The squad plays its next World Cup qualifier against Group H rival Croatia on Sept. 1, followed by Cyprus and Malta later that week.
Cherchesov was named the Russian men’s national football team head coach in 2016 and oversaw its unexpected run to the quarter-finals at the 2018 FIFA World Cup which Russia hosted.
The national team won 25 games and lost 21 under Cherchesov’s tutelage.
The 57-year-old’s earnings totaled 2.5 million euros ($2.9 million) a year.
The RFU’s technical committee last month evaluated Cherchesov’s performance at the Euro 2020 as “unsatisfactory,” but still “expressed confidence” in him at his post.
