Russian media have reported that the national football team’s coach Fabio Capello will be fired with a payoff of €20M ($24M). "The decision is made, there are just technical details to be sorted," a source in the Russian Football Union (RFS) was quoted as saying by the Russian news agency R-Sport. "We are currently negotiating the lowering of the payoff for the termination of the contract." Radio station Kommersant FM reported that Capello, who has worked with the Russian side since '12, is to collect about €20M. Capello's dismissal has been seriously discussed since Russia lost 1-0 to Austria at home in a Euro 2016 qualifier on Sunday, which substantially jeopardized the team's chances of qualifying.
BACK PAY: Meanwhile, RFS apparently does not have the cash for Capello's payoff and reportedly is two months behind in paying his salary. Russian fans have set up a website, Fabio Go Home, in a bid to collect money for Capello's payoff, which on the website is stated to be €21.4M ($24.1M). According to the R-Sport report, Leonid Slutsky, the coach of the Russian side CSKA, which won the league twice before finishing as runners-up in the '14-15 season, is the likeliest replacement for Capello.
Vladimir Kozlov is a writer in Moscow.
