OFFICIAL: Lucescu leaves PAOK
PAOK have confirmed that Romanian head coach, Razvan Lucescu, has left the club with immediate effect after he received an offer from Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia.
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On Friday evening, PAOK released this following statement on their official website:
“PAOK FC announces the end of its cooperation with Razvan Lucescu. The Romanian coach stated that he is using a condition of his contract regarding his departure.
PAOK wishes Razvan Lucescu good luck in his career.”
Various sources have stated that Lucescu, 50, has accepted a lucrative offer from Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia. Al-Hilal are expected to confirm the arrival of Lucescu in the coming days.
PAOK owner, Ivan Savvidis, had allegedly tried to keep Lucescu in Thessaloniki by offering him a new contract. However, despite Savvidis’ best efforts, Lucescu rejected his proposal in favour of Al-Hilal.
According to Sport FM, Giorgos Savvidis - the son of Ivan - played a role in Lucescu’s departure. If the reports are to be believed, Lucescu was unhappy with Giorgos’ behaviour towards him, and their relationship had recently turned sour. At the meeting between Ivan Savvidis and Lucescu, the latter stated that one of the reasons behind his decision was Giorgos. Lucescu also expressed his disappointment that Jose Canas, Yevhen Shakhov and Omar El-Kaddouri have all been allowed to leave PAOK.
After joining PAOK in 2017, Lucescu earned three trophies with the Dikefalos tou Vorra, winning the Greek Cup twice and the 2018/2019 Super League. This season, PAOK became only the second Hellenic club in history to win the domestic championship undefeated, claiming 26 victories and four draws in 30 matches.
PAOK will begin their 2019/2020 UEFA Champions League campaign in the third qualifying round.
Al-Hilal, the club which Lucescu will join, boasts the likes of Alberto Botia (former Olympiacos defender), Sebastian Giovinco and Bafetimbi Gomis on its roster. The team finished in second place of the 2018/2019 Saudi Professional League.
Pablo Garcia, the current manager of the U19 PAOK team, has emerged as the initial favourite to replace Lucescu.
