• Rijkaard leaves Turkish club after poor results
• Dutchman now the favourite to replace Roy Hodgson
Frank Rijkaard's contract as coach of Galatasaray
has been terminated by mutual agreement, the club said
today.
The former Uefa Cup champions are ninth in the Turkish
championship after eight games, eight points adrift of leaders
Bursaspor. They lost 4-2 against mid-table side Ankaragucu on
Sunday. The Dutchman was appointed by the Istanbul club in 2009
after leaving Barcelona the previous year.
"As a result of mutual talks with technical director Frank
Rijkaard ... we have decided to part ways," read a Galatasaray
statement.
Rijkaard's availability has already led to speculation that he
could replace Roy Hodgson as Liverpool
manager. The 63-year-old Englishman has endured a torrid start to
his tenure at Anfield and the club are in the relegation zone after
almost a quarter of the season.
The odds on Rijkaard replacing Hodgson tumbled today and the
Dutchman was 5/2 favourite with William Hill this morning. Martin
O'Neill (10/3), Kenny Dalglish (5/1) and Guus Hiddink (8/1) are
next on the list.
