Pfister quits as Cameroon coach

Veteran German coach Otto Pfister resigned as Cameroon coach on Wednesday after failing to join the squad for a training camp in Belgium the ministry of Sports confirmed to AFP.

The 71-year-old apparently resigned on the spot after an incident at the airport before they boarded their flight for Belgium according to an official of the national football federation (FECAFOOT).

However, she added that they had yet to receive an official letter of resignation from Pfister whilst not denying that he had given up the post which he took on in 2007.

The Ministry were not so reticent.

“The information is correct, but I cannot say anymore than that,” ministry spokesman Linus Pascal Fouda told AFP.

Pfister – Africa manager of the year in 1992 – has been under pressure since a 1-0 loss to Togo in a 2010 World Cup qualifier last March and three local coaches were appointed assistants this month.

Critics of the German include Roger Milla, plucked from semi-retirement on the Indian Ocean island of Reunion in 1990 at the age of 38 to score four goals as Cameroon reached the World Cup quarter-finals.

Pfister was a controversial appointment in October 2007, getting the nod from the sports ministry after failing to impress FECAFOOT, and guided Cameroon to second place behind Egypt in the African Nations Cup the following year.

Cameroon are in Belgium to prepare for World Cup qualifiers against Morocco in Yaounde on June 7 and Gabon in Libreville two weeks later with the Group A winners advancing to the 2010 tournament in South Africa.