Iran manager gets sack

Iran sacked Croatian coach Tomislav Ivic (left) yesterday just three weeks before the start of the World Cup finals after the national team lost 7-1 to Italian club AS Roma. "Following the crushing defeat of the Iranian national soccer team in the friendly match against AS Roma on Tuesday night, the Croat head coach of the team Tomislav Ivic was dismissed and replaced by Jalal Talebi," the official news agency IRNA said.

Talebi was a member of the Iranian team in the early 1960s and coached Indonesia's Olympic team in 1996. He was appointed technical adviser to the World Cup squad earlier this month.

Ivic, 64 (left), was appointed in January on a six-month contract to succeed Brazilian Valdeir Vieira, who took Iran to only their second finals by winning the final World Cup qualifier against Australia in November. Vieira was only in charge for two months after the previous coach had been sacked.

Iran were jeered off the field in Tehran after Ivic's first match - a 2-0 loss to Hungary - and the Croatian increasingly failed to satisfy Iran's politically charged soccer federation. Subsequent lacklustre performances by the team in a tour of France - they lost their first match 10 to first division En Avant Guingamp - raised hackles in the media and Ivic found himself defending his record and tactics on national television.

Last week he predicted Iran would beat either Yugoslavia or Germany in group F at the finals and said Iran were like a diamond that just needed to be polished. But Tuesday's defeat was too much for his federation - Roma were missing Brazilians Cafu and Aldair but still led 5-1 at half-time.

Iran's next pre-Cup match is against Inter Milan in Milan on Saturday.

A Nigerian goalkeeper has been ordered to leave the Super Eagles World Cup training camp in Switzerland after letting in four goals during a friendly. Crewe keeper Ademola Bankole let in the goals in the first half of a warm-up match against Swiss champions Grasshopper on Tuesday. Ademola, who played for local teams like Shooting Stars of Ibadan, before moving to England, was invited last week by national coach Bora Milutinovic as replacement for injured Super Eagles first-choice goalkeeper Ike Shorunmu.