Comoros coach resigns after eight years at helm

MORONI : Amir Abdou, the coach who masterminded the rise of the tiny Comoros Islands in African football, has resigned after eight years in charge, the Comorian Football Federation confirmed on Friday.

Abdou, 49, had been coach since January 2014 and taken the tiny Indian Ocean Island from near the bottom of the FIFA rankings to a place in the last-16 of the Africa Cup of Nations finals last month.

Abdou said he felt there was a need for change at the helm of the team, made up almost exclusively of players born in France of Comorian heritage.

Abdou is also French-born from the large expatiate community who live in Marseille.

The federation said it would begin the search for a new coach immediately.

Comoros were ranked 198 out of 207 members at the start of 2014 but are now 131 in the latest FIFA standings.

(Writing by Mark Gleeson in Cape Town; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)