Goalkeeper coach sent without ‘proper explanation’
Amir Doksanaltic, joined as Goalkeeping Coach and was Assistant Manager at the time of his 'unceremonious' exit
After a stint of two-years as the Goalkeeping Coach of the Sri Lanka football team, German Amir Doksanaltic left the country, but with a heavy heart. Doksanaltic, who joined the national football coaching setup on February 18, 2020, has not been granted a service extension by his employee, Football Sri Lanka (FSL), and the Bosnian born German lamented that he deserves an explanation.
Speaking to the Sunday Times, hours before his flight back to his country of birth Bosnia, Doksanaltic said that he was subjected to constant ‘bullying’ by not one, but many within the mechanism.
“I considered Sri Lanka as my home, and this is very sad. I have no complains with regard to my work and most of the national players were similarly shocked as I was, when I was asked to leave. They (FSL) simply did not extend my contract that ended on February 18. That’s it,” Doksanaltic said.
Doksanaltic, and his superior Amir Alagic, have been a unit for many years working with different setups, mainly in Asia. Doksanaltic revealed that this was not his first experience in being expelled without proper explanation, yet in Sri Lanka the level reached another height.
“With my experience in Sri Lanka of two years, I know how matters take place inside the office and on the field. All I wanted is to see was them being more professional. I was able to do that with players, but I was not successful with the top people. I guess that may have played a role in my exit,” Doksanaltic added.
Before joining Sri Lanka as national Goalkeeping Coach in 2020, Doksanaltic has stints with DPMM, premier club in Brunei as Assistant Manager and then as Assistant Manager of the Brunei national team. He also worked with Xuan Thanh in Vietnam as Goalkeeping Coach before joining Al-Riyadh FC of Saudi Arabia in the same capacity. Doksanaltic also had a short stint with Bosnian club J. Bihar as Assistant Manager before joining Sri Lanka. He was elevated as Assistant Manager when his contract expired with Sri Lanka last month.
“I will fly to Bosnia and then go to Germany, where I’m living for 30 years. Then I’ll decide what to do next. Sri Lanka is a place very close to my heart for many reasons, and I would definitely like to return if the current administration reconsiders me or even if it changes under a new management. People here and the players are very kind to me, and in return I was able to perform my duties with utmost satisfaction,” he explained.