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Romanian Gheorghe Hagi stepped down from the position of head coach in Istanbul, stating that he did not receive enough support from the club's management.
The former playmaker of the Romanian national team ("number 10") announced his decision after the last Turkish league match with "Denizlispor" on Sunday, which Istanbul club won 4-0, finishing the season in third place in the league table.
Although "Galatasaray" won the Turkish Cup, the club's hundredth season was unsuccessful as they did not secure a spot in the UEFA Champions League for the following year.
G.Hagi told journalists that he was satisfied with what he had accomplished in his one year of work, but mentioned that the club's management did not support him. The Romanian revealed to journalists that he decided to leave the club ten days ago but chose to wait until the end of the season.
G.Hagi played for "Galatasaray" from 1996 to 2001, when he ended his playing career, scoring 78 goals in 167 matches and helping the Istanbul club become Turkish champions four times and win the UEFA Cup once.
Later, he coached the Romanian national football team for half a year, but resigned after his players did not qualify for the 2002 World Cup. In 2003, he became the coach of "Bursaspor", and in March 2004, he took over at "Galatasaray".
G.Hagi mentioned that he already has offers, with Bucharest's "Steaua" looking very appealing. Recently, the leaders of the Romanian league "Steaua" dismissed their Italian head coach Walter Zenga with three rounds left until the end of the season.
