Must watch: New Levski Sofia manager gets his shirt pulled off by angry supporters and is forced out of his first press conference
Group hounds new manager because they think he supports rivals CSKA Sofia
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Your support makes all the difference.It may be harder in England, but fans in Bulgaria have no problem displaying their power after newly appointed Levski Sofia boss was forced Ivaylo Petev to resign. Here he is in his first press conference having his shirt pulled off him by an angry supporters' group of the team – known as the Levski Ultras – because they believe he is a fan of rivals CSKA Sofia.
Petev got barely five minutes into his unveiling on Tuesday before the atmosphere became sour – the fans surrounding Petev and telling him he was not welcome and they did not want him wearing their colours. They then crowded round him and took off his shirt before hounding him out of the room.
"Levski will not play under you as coach,” a fan shouted.
Petev has since denied that he has ever supported CSKA, and sensationally resigned from the 26-time Bulgarian champions on Wednesday after the incident.
"What happened yesterday is extremely ugly and I would not like to work in such an environment," Petev told a press conference.
After the incident, the club’s disgusted sporting director, Nasko Sirakov, who was sitting alongside Petev during the brief presentation, also announced his resignation from the club.
“I will not stand here any longer. This is not my Levski and it's not our audience. It's a shame and a disgrace to the club. I gave 80 per cent of my life to this club and I got a lot from the club,” Sirakov was quoted as saying. “I participated in 12 titles, but I cannot work in such an environment. This is the hardest day in my life, but I wonder if there's a place in the world where the fans choose the coach.”
Watch the shocking press conference below...
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