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The French first division club Angers, last in Ligue 1, announced on Tuesday that coach Abdel Bouhazama is stepping down. In addition to the sporting failure, his position was made untenable by inappropriate comments in support of a player being prosecuted for assault.
Vincent Van GenechtenBron: BELGIAN
“Under pressure from the media and in order to preserve the image of the club and the serenity in the dressing room, Abdel Bouhazama has informed chairman Saïd Chabane that he has decided to resign,” Angers said in a statement.
It was not announced who will succeed him. It has been since September that Angers was able to win another match. Last Sunday it even suffered a heavy 5-0 defeat on the field of Montpellier.
Bouhamaza, who has previously come under fire for failing to get the team back on track, was on the rocks after it became known that he made comments during Sunday’s preliminary meeting to boost defender Ilyes Chetti’s confidence.
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Chetti was only in the starting line-up for just the third time this season, as the local press just revealed that the player admitted groping a young woman in a nightclub. He was to be tried in April.
“It’s not mean, we’ve all touched girls before,” Bouhamada said, according to several sources quoted by the daily newspapers Ouest France and l’Équipe.
“Angers unreservedly condemns these statements, even if they seem more like a clumsy gesture than an attempt to downplay sexism,” the statement continued, which also assured that Bouhazama has apologized “to his colleagues and in particular to the women”.
