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| Mladen Krstajić raises his hands after losing to Albania |
Bulgaria's national football team played their last friendly match under the management of Serbian coach Mladen Krstajić. His departure had been speculated for some time, with the final blow coming after their 2-0 defeat to Albania at "Air Albania" stadium, where the goals for the Albanian side, led by coach Silvinho, were scored by Qazim Laçi and Ernest Muçi.
Mladen Krstajić had overseen Bulgaria in 12 matches, but it was the loss to Albania that sealed the fate of the 49-year-old coach. The Bulgarian Football Federation has officially relieved Krstajić from his position.
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| Albanian team players celebrating after scoring the second goal against Bulgaria at Air Albania Stadium, October 2023 |
The Executive Committee of the Bulgarian Football Federation (BFU) recently decided to end their collaboration with the Serbian coach. Krstajić leaves Bulgaria at the bottom of Group G in the "Euro 2024" qualifiers, having accumulated only 2 points from 6 matches.
"After evaluating the results achieved by the team, there was a unanimous decision to dismiss Mladen Krstajić. It was a natural decision to make. We are currently in negotiations with another coach, and we are in the final stages, but we haven't reached a final decision yet. Therefore, we cannot announce it yet," said Georgi Ivanov, the technical director of BFU.