THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
PRAGUE — The Czech Republic football federation fired coach Petr Rada on Wednesday because of the team’s poor results in World Cup qualifying, and expelled six players for disciplinary reasons.
Rada’s contract was terminated by mutual agreement because of "unsatisfactory results of the national team, especially in the last two qualifying games and also the team’s performance in the games," federation chairman Pavel Mokry said.
The Czech Republic was held to a 0-0 draw at Slovenia on March 28 and lost another World Cup qualifying match to Slovakia 2-1 in Prague a week ago.
The 12-member executive committee also indefinitely expelled captain Tomas Ujfalusi, Milan Baros, Martin Fenin, Vaclav Sverkos, Marek Matejovsky and Radoslav Kovac. The six players have been under fire after a tabloid newspaper criticized them for going to the restaurant after the loss to Slovakia last Wednesday.
The Czechs are fourth in their World Cup qualifying group with eight points from six games, five behind leader Northern Ireland in the race to qualify for the 2010 tournament in South Africa.
Only the group winners qualifies directly, while the best eight runner-up teams in the nine groups advance to the playoffs.
It is not immediately clear who will replace Rada. The federation’s executive committee is scheduled to discuss the situation at its meeting on April 28, but it may not decide then.
"I don’t have a simple solution," Mokry said. "We have four more qualifying games and we have to attempt to change the situation we find ourselves in and qualify for the World Cup."
The Czechs next play at Slovakia on Sept. 5, which gives the federation several months to find a new coach.
The 50-year-old Rada took charge in July, replacing Karel Bruckner, who resigned after the Czechs were knocked out of last year’s European Championship.
The Czechs were 2-4-2 under Rada, beating San Marino 3-0 and Slovenia 1-0 in World Cup qualifying, and have been widely criticized for their play.
The punishment for the six players’ late night restaurant visit is "indefinite," Mokry said. But he said that the federation’s new leadership, scheduled to be elected June 28, can overturn the decision.
"It must be the greatest honour for any player to represent the country," federation deputy chairman Jiri Kubicek said.
The 31-year-old Ujfalusi announced he was retiring from international football over the restaurant incident because of the lack of support for the players from the federation.
"The federation didn’t stand by them," his agent Dalibor Lacina said Wednesday.
Ujfalusi had become a regular starter since his 2001 debut in a friendly against Macedonia. The Atletico Madrid player scored two goals in 78 international matches.
Another key defender, Marek Jankulovski, said he is also considering retirement.