Lazio owner Claudio Lotito claims former coach Vladimir Petkovic was looking to be fired from the club as he sought the managerial position with the Swiss national team.
Petkovic was controversially sacked on Saturday and replaced with former coach Edy Reja, after the club learned he had signed a contract with the Swiss Football Association to coach the national team after his deal with the Biancocelesti was scheduled to end on June 30.
During a press conference, Lotito explained that he felt he was “lied” to by his club’s former coach, and that when media reports started to arise that Petkovic was interested in the Swiss job he told Lotito “it was all invented by the media.”
“I respect what people say to me and am accustomed to hearing the truth,” he told reporters.
“Why shouldn’t I have believed what my coach said? At the time, I made my decision to keep him based on the principles and values that proved to be empty.”
Meanwhile, Petkovic is suing the club for damages and is attempting to at least get the wages he was to earn until June 30, equivalent to €600,000 according to his lawyer Paco D’Onofrio.
D’Onofrio has said that since Petkovic’s contract with the Swiss was not set to begin until his deal with Lazio expired in June, his client had not broken any rules.
