Matthaeus Granted Blank Check to `Purge` Bulgaria`s National Team

Matthaeus Granted Blank Check to `Purge` Bulgaria`s National Team - Report

Sofia News Agency, www.novinite.com
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Matthaeus Granted Blank Check to 'Purge' Bulgaria's National Team - Report

After Bulgaria practically lost any chances to make it to Euro 2012, the Bulgarian Football Union has given head coach Lothar Matthaeus a "black check" to "purge" the team of those who failed to live up to expectations.

Bulgaria drew Switzerland 0:0 in a lackluster match in Sofia Saturday night, with made it hardly unlikely for both teams to end in one of the first two spots in qualifying Group G for Euro 2012. Bulgarian defensive midfielder Stanislav Angelov and midfielder Zdravko Lazarov will be among the first to be "purged" from the national team by Matthaeus, according to the Meridian Match newspaper.

Angelov and Lazarov are not part of the team which left Monday for a friendly with Cyprus. Midfielder Blagoy Georgiev and the goalkeeper of the Dutch club FC Twente were also left in Sofia.

32-year-old midfielder Georgi Peev, a player of the Russian team Amkar, himself announced on Monday that he is retiring from the national team.

Matthaeus is reported to be considering letting go Bolton's winger Martin Petrov.

Meanwhile, commenting on the situation of the football in Bulgaria, Nasko Sirakov, a legendary forward of the national team and FC Levski declared that the "Bulgarian football is dead."

Sirakov did praise the national team for their enthusiasm against Switzerland but stressed the total failure of the local league to reach a higher level of professionalism. He urged the football managers in Bulgaria to cast aside any illusions and to start working anew for the development of the sport.

Tags: Lothar Matthaeus, national football team, Bulgarian Football Union, Martin Petrov