Ottmar Hitzfeld: I’ve had offers from Lokomotiv Moscow and Dynamo Kyiv

Switzerland national team head coach Ottmar Hitzfeld, who had been working at Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, has revealed that he had had offers from Russia and Ukraine.

«CSKA, Zenit, Shakhtar all won the UEFA Cup. Is it the upper limit for teams from the former USSR?»

«I don’t think so. The victories in the UEFA Cup should give you confidence. In 2008, I and Bayern also wanted to take the UEFA Cup, but St. Petersburg won – though we had a star team then. However, it’s the Champions League that should be the main yardstick of success. Nevertheless, every international success is a remarkable achievement which does not go unnoticed in Germany.»

«Some time ago you had offers to take charge of Lokomotiv Moscow and Dynamo Kyiv. Why haven’t you accepted them?»

«Yes, there was an inquiry from Loko, but I did not engage in any negotiations. However, I did visit Kyiv, met Surkis [president of Dynamo Kyiv – Sports.ru], took a look at everything, including the facilities. I wanted to be a sports director, but in Kyiv they wanted to hire me as a coach. In general, it wasn’t the right moment for that offer – I had just made a decision to take a break from coaching when I received those offers.»

«There has never been a single Russian player at Bayern. Is it true that Yegor Titov [former captain of Spartak Moscow – Sports.ru] could be signed during your time in Munich?»

«Yes, Bayern were interested in him. In 2001, he played some good games against us with Spartak and we liked him very much: he had a perfect vision of the pitch while being in possession, always held his head up high, showed excellent skills, made good passes. I don’t remember precisely why the transfer fell through: perhaps, Titov’s price turned out to be too high. But he would fit in at Bayern,» the 62-year-old coach said to Sport-Express.