Why Big Phil said ‘no’ to England
Portugese coach Luiz Felipe Scolari has spoken about the reasons he turned down the offer from England’s FA to succeed Sven Goran Eriksson as national team coach.
Scolari led sides have eliminated England for the last two major tournaments, but the Brazilian withdrew from the race on both principle and after witnessing the intense media pressure surrounding the role.
“Some people like me like to respect contracts and I had a contract with the Portuguese FA. I’m very happy with it.
“If my ‘no’ to the English FA hurt someone, I’m sorry, but I respect contracts and will stick with Portugal until the end.
“My contract ends on July 31, so I’ll be a free coach after that, and can speak with whoever.”
The 57 year old added that he was “very proud” that the English FA were interested.
“But the timing was not correct. Come July 31 I’m a free man and the Portuguese FA is also free to choose another coach.
“I have some ideals in my life that I like to show my players and I can’t break them.
“In the future, who knows? If the English FA comes again with another proposal, probably we can speak again and maybe we can deal.”