King Otto in Trouble after Greek Exit
June 23, 2005
Greece drew 0-0 with Mexico in their final Group B match here on Wednesday but finishing bottom of the group without scoring a goal was not the plan before the tournament. A 3-0 defeat against Brazil and a 1-0 loss against Japan had already sealed Greece's fate and it is back to the drawing board for the side's German leader Rehhagel.
"It goes without saying that we wanted to be more successful," said Rehhagel. "I would like to the thank the fans for getting behind us. It is just a shame we let them down."
Rehhagel became the most popular man in Greece when he guided the country to Euro 2004 success with a 1-0 win over Portugal, but since then things have gone downhill for the man then dubbed 'King Otto'.
To reach the 2006 World Cup Greece face an uphill task with Ukraine eight points clear in the qualifying group and only the winners assured of automatic place in the finals. Victory against Kazakhstan, Denmark and Georgia in the final three matches could see Greece sneak in via a play-off but a barren spell in front of goal does not bode well.
"We obviously have a problem in attack," Rehhagel said. "We have not scored for five games and you can not win games without scoring."
Bonus rows and talk of quarreling in the camp have plagued Greece of late and Rehhagel is feeling the heat. The president of the Greek football federation, Vassilios Gagatsis, offered support on Wednesday by claiming they wanted Rehhagel to sign a three-year contract extension, despite the poor results.
"I hope and I want him to stay with us for the next three years and that he extends his contract until 2009," Gagatsis told Sport Bild magazine.
Gagatsis said he would do everything in his power to persuade Rehhagel to remain in charge of the team he transformed from no-hopers into the surprise European champions in Portugal last year.
"I don't even want to think about what we will do after he has left," Gagatsis said.
Rehhagel, who turned down the German national job after Euro 2004, has refused to discuss his future until the 2006 World Cup qualifying campaign is over. If Greece fail to qualify and Rehhagel resigns, there are rumors that the Serb coach Dusan Bajevic would take over. Bajevic has won eight league titles and five cups in Greece with a variety of clubs.