Former Birmingham boss Pep Clotet was left furious with striker Raimonds Krollis after the striker was sent off on Friday night, with the Triestina boss making his anger clear
Former Birmingham boss Pep Clotet has defended himself for furiously shoving one of his own players after they were sent off during a game on Friday.
Clotet spent a year in charge of Blues between 2019 and 2020, having previously managed Oxford United. Since leaving St Andrew’s, the Spaniard has had three stints at Brescia and also spent time at Torpedo Moscow.
The 47-year-old was appointed by Triestina last month, with the Italian side languishing at the bottom of Serie C. They hosted midtable Giana Erminio but fell to yet another defeat, their ninth in 14 games this term.
The hosts’ chances of claiming a much-needed win suffered a serious blow just 33 minutes in when striker Raimonds Krollis was shown a straight red card. Clotet immediately made his unhappiness with the Latvian clear.
As he made to go down the tunnel, Clotet appeared to call him over, with the furious boss grabbing Krollis by his collar. The coach then began to shake his shocked striker and dragged him back towards the tunnel, with Krollis not trying to free himself from Clotet’s grasp.
Triestina were forced to play with 10 men for over an hour and looked to be on their way to claiming a draw when Giana Erminio grabbed an 87th minute winner through Gabriel Avinci.
The defeat leaves Triestina rooted to the bottom of the table and seven points adrift from safety, with Clotet having amassed just two points from his four games. But the Spaniard was unrepentent about his actions towards Krollis.
Instead, he insisted the striker deserved the punishment and the outburst. Clotet also revealed that Krollis’ actions meant he no longer had a future with Triestina.
“I think, regarding the incident with the red card, the reaction was justified; that sending off should never happen in football. Krollis is here on loan, representing another club that sent him here,” Clotet told Triestina’s club website.
“He does this to Triestina, to the club that entrusted him to us, and to the game itself unacceptable—if a player does something like this on the street, there would be legal consequences.
“It’s not normal, and we must not accept it in any way him exactly this face to face; with me as coach, he’s done with Triestina from today. The red card was a hard blow. I have no complaints about the players who gave their all to hold the draw.
“We responded well to the numerical disadvantage, but getting out of the situation we’re in is challenging with this kind of error—we need to stay more focused. The mindset isn’t right; we have to understand what Serie C football is, managing key moments of the game, and this is an individual responsibility.”
Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
Learn more
