“I will not destroy what I built.” The Turkish coach responds to calls for his departure after the World Cup setback | sports

Türkiye’s Italian national team coach, Vincenzo Montella, refused to respond to calls for his resignation after the early exit from the FIFA World Cup.

“If the question is whether I want to resign, the answer is (no),” Montella said in a press conference on Thursday, before the last round match in the group stage against America.

He added: “I have the necessary energy and enthusiasm, and if anyone wants my resignation, he must accept that I will not resign.”

Montella refuses to resign

Montella has been coaching the Turkish national team since 2023, and the team qualified for the World Cup for the first time since 2002. It lost in the first two rounds to Australia and Paraguay, and lost its chances of qualifying for the knockout rounds.

Montella pointed out that no Turkish coach has ever led the national team to the European Championship or World Cup, noting that he led the Turkish national team to reach the quarter-finals of the European Championship (Euro 2024).

Montella added: “It is enough for me that I have the support of the president of the Turkish Football Federation, as well as the support of the players.”

The coach criticized some Turkish media reports, saying: “I am subjected to an unacceptable personal attack, and I demand that everything we have achieved not be destroyed.”

Montella also criticized an incident that occurred at the Turkish national team hotel on Tuesday, when a group of three or four people insulted the players, and the incident spread on social media. Montella said: “But there were 50 people who also supported us.”

He concluded his statements by saying: “People must realize that we qualified for the World Cup after an absence of 24 years. It is a great achievement, and we must unite.”