Bahrain coach Josef Hickersberger quit the post Wednesday to return to his former club team in the United Arab Emirates.
The 62-year-old Austrian had only been in the job for four months. He succeeded Milan Macala of the Czech Republic, who left after Bahrain lost to New Zealand in a World Cup qualifying playoff last November.
Hickersberger, who also coached Bahrain in 1996, will return to coach Al Wahda which he helped lead to a United Arab Emirates league title last season, club spokesman Khalid Awadh said.
Al Wahda has been desperate to find a replacement for Adenor Leonardo Bacchi, who resigned as coach to accept an offer to return home to Brazilian club Corinthians.
''The club has accepted the resignation of Bacchi, who received an offer from a Brazilian club,'' a statement on Al Wahda's website read.
Sheik Ali bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, the vice president of the Bahrain Football Federation, admitted he was disappointed by Hickersberger's decision but said football coaches often leave for bigger paychecks. Hickersberger had a two-year contract with Bahrain.
Al Khalifa said he hopes to hire a replacement within the next 10 days. The team is set to play in next month's Gulf Cup in Yemen and then in the Asian Cup in January.
''We will be able to recover,'' Al Khalifa said. ''I think we have to be optimistic in the coming days. At the end of the day, the players need a quality coach.''
