EXCLUSIVE: Branko Culina's first words after leaving Sydney FC were: "F**k me - have they taken the car back already?"
To see Branko's final moments at Sydney...
We were the only people at Branko's side as he walked out out of Sydney FC's Bondi Junction HQ for the last time.
And he spoke exclusively to au.fourfourtwo.com about his feelings at parting with the club.
He admitted it was "unfortunate" that he'd been forced out the club and said he'd been relishing his time at the helm.
Branko denied there had been a dressing room revolt against him - and laid the blame squarely with the boardroom for the decision.
"I don't think that was the issue," he said. "It was never a question.
"The players would never have played with the determination they did if I had lost the dressing room.
"Obviously the turning point was that the board wasn't too pleased with the results."
He stopped short of branding it a kneejerk reaction - but questioned why he had been axed when other clubs had worse results in the past without changing coach.
"Coaches live or die by the results," he said. "At another time maybe we could do a comparison and say look, where was Melbourne Victory in the first year?
"Where was Central Coast last year? Perth haven't had a win in 16 games...yet they all still have the same coaches."
As he walked away from the club, Branko cut a lonely figure in the seedy car park underneath the Syd Enfield expressway opposite Sydney's boardroom suite in the Westfield Bondi Junction complex.
At one stage, he thought he'd lost his sponsor's car, given to him by the club as manager and he joked: "F**k me, have they taken the car back already?"
Branko's departure came after a long goodbye in the board room following a meeting with club chairman Andrew Kemeny and CEO George Perry that lasted around two hours.
At the meeting's final conclusion, a shattered-looking Branko shook hands briefly with Perry and then left Sydney's office suite to face the media.
He breezed past the waiting press pack before making a brief statement, confirming he was part of Sydney's history.
"I'm a little bit disappointed," he admitted to au.fourfourtwo.com later. "I've enjoyed my time at Sydney Football Club.
"I really appreciate my relationship with the media and I was always honest with the media but some of the time that didn't help me."
His admission that there was nothing more the club could do to stem the tide of defeat after his side lost 1-0 at home to Adelaide last weekend may have been the breaking point for the boardroom's patience.
Culina joined the club in February after the sacking of Terry Butcher when the England legend failed to take the club into the latter stages of the A-League finals series.
Culina's impact was immediate and he led the team into the Asian Champions League tournament with a series of excellent performances and some good results, narrowly missing out on a place in the knockout stages.
He was given a two year contract in April and began work on building his side. Sydney then had a protracted search for a marquee player for the new season until they signed Juninho.
But Culina was tied into several long-term contracts with other players that he inherited from the previous coach, who simply failed to perform in the A-League for him.
His woes increased when David Carney was sold to Sheffield United and the side suffered a string of injuries, including a long-term problem with Juninho, and the squad was hampered by Olyroo call-ups.
Nine games into season three and Sydney FC have only recorded two wins, three draws and four losses, and are third last on the ladder.
Chairman Kemeny was reluctant to talk about the split with the coach when he left the meeting with Culina.
"We have decided to part and it was amicable," he said "We agreed to a parting of the ways and Branko will stop working for Sydney FC.
"It is not a knee-jerk reaction – it was a decision made with careful consideration."
Kemeny denied speculation the club had John Kosmina lined up to take over later this week and claimed: "We have not spoken to anyone yet about being a replacement."
The club later revealed Sydney FC and Culina's assistant, Aytek Genc, also parted company by mutual consent today.
"Anthony Crea will take charge of Sydney FC's team until such time that the club appoints a new permanent head coach," a statement from the club added.
Sydney now face league leaders Central Coast Mariners - boasting new signing, Socceroo hero and one-time Sydney marquee target, John Aloisi - on Sunday afternoon.
To see Branko's final moments at Sydney...
We were the only people at Branko's side as he walked out out of Sydney FC's Bondi Junction HQ for the last time.
And he spoke exclusively to au.fourfourtwo.com about his feelings at parting with the club.
He admitted it was "unfortunate" that he'd been forced out the club and said he'd been relishing his time at the helm.
Branko denied there had been a dressing room revolt against him - and laid the blame squarely with the boardroom for the decision.
"I don't think that was the issue," he said. "It was never a question.
"The players would never have played with the determination they did if I had lost the dressing room.
"Obviously the turning point was that the board wasn't too pleased with the results."
He stopped short of branding it a kneejerk reaction - but questioned why he had been axed when other clubs had worse results in the past without changing coach.
"Coaches live or die by the results," he said. "At another time maybe we could do a comparison and say look, where was Melbourne Victory in the first year?
"Where was Central Coast last year? Perth haven't had a win in 16 games...yet they all still have the same coaches."
As he walked away from the club, Branko cut a lonely figure in the seedy car park underneath the Syd Enfield expressway opposite Sydney's boardroom suite in the Westfield Bondi Junction complex.
At one stage, he thought he'd lost his sponsor's car, given to him by the club as manager and he joked: "F**k me, have they taken the car back already?"
Branko's departure came after a long goodbye in the board room following a meeting with club chairman Andrew Kemeny and CEO George Perry that lasted around two hours.
At the meeting's final conclusion, a shattered-looking Branko shook hands briefly with Perry and then left Sydney's office suite to face the media.
He breezed past the waiting press pack before making a brief statement, confirming he was part of Sydney's history.
"I'm a little bit disappointed," he admitted to au.fourfourtwo.com later. "I've enjoyed my time at Sydney Football Club.
"I really appreciate my relationship with the media and I was always honest with the media but some of the time that didn't help me."
His admission that there was nothing more the club could do to stem the tide of defeat after his side lost 1-0 at home to Adelaide last weekend may have been the breaking point for the boardroom's patience.
Culina joined the club in February after the sacking of Terry Butcher when the England legend failed to take the club into the latter stages of the A-League finals series.
Culina's impact was immediate and he led the team into the Asian Champions League tournament with a series of excellent performances and some good results, narrowly missing out on a place in the knockout stages.
He was given a two year contract in April and began work on building his side. Sydney then had a protracted search for a marquee player for the new season until they signed Juninho.
But Culina was tied into several long-term contracts with other players that he inherited from the previous coach, who simply failed to perform in the A-League for him.
His woes increased when David Carney was sold to Sheffield United and the side suffered a string of injuries, including a long-term problem with Juninho, and the squad was hampered by Olyroo call-ups.
Nine games into season three and Sydney FC have only recorded two wins, three draws and four losses, and are third last on the ladder.
Chairman Kemeny was reluctant to talk about the split with the coach when he left the meeting with Culina.
"We have decided to part and it was amicable," he said "We agreed to a parting of the ways and Branko will stop working for Sydney FC.
"It is not a knee-jerk reaction – it was a decision made with careful consideration."
Kemeny denied speculation the club had John Kosmina lined up to take over later this week and claimed: "We have not spoken to anyone yet about being a replacement."
The club later revealed Sydney FC and Culina's assistant, Aytek Genc, also parted company by mutual consent today.
"Anthony Crea will take charge of Sydney FC's team until such time that the club appoints a new permanent head coach," a statement from the club added.
Sydney now face league leaders Central Coast Mariners - boasting new signing, Socceroo hero and one-time Sydney marquee target, John Aloisi - on Sunday afternoon.
To see Branko's final moments at Sydney...
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