The Syrian Football Association (SFA) announced on Tuesday that the tenure of manager Valeriu Tița with the Syria national team has come to end with immediate effect after the team’s 2-0 defeat to Korea Republic. The SFA has also sacked the administrative staff of the national team.

Tița was not the first manager with whom the committee parted ways, as local coach Nizar Mahrous was also sacked following the poor performance of the team at the beginning of the AFC Asian qualifiers.

The Romanian coach’s best efforts and passion could not help his team achieve success in the AFC Asian qualifiers. Syria failed to win a single match in the tournament and their best results were two draws.

Tița’s initial appointment questioned

The temporary committee of the SFA had a lot of expectations with the appointment of Tița. However, many people questioned his appointment as his winning percentage as a manager is a lowly 42%.

It was always going to be a tough ask of Tița as he inherited a team that had been struggling for many years. This was not his first stint as Syria manager, having coached them back in the 2010/11 season. He did not have a very successful spell the first time around either, as he left the team after they failed at the quarter-final stage of the 2011 AFC Cup.

The SFA must take its time before making any decisions regarding the next manager and support staff. The Association has to look at the successful countries and realize that the manager needs time to gel with the team. The firing of Tița after just three months in charge is bad for players and administrators alike.