Qatar has fired Serbia's Milovan Rajevac after only four months in charge of the national side, replacing him with Brazilian Sebastiao Lazaroni.
The unexpected move announced late Sunday comes after Qatar was beaten by Vietnam last month in the second leg of its 2014 World Cup qualifier. It still advanced 4-2 on aggregate.
Lazaroni, who previously led local club Qatar SC, is the third coach this year for the Gulf nation, which is under pressure to improve after winning the bid to host the 2022 World Cup.
The 54-year-old Rajevac had a contract through the 2014 World Cup. Rajevac, who coached Ghana until 2010, then Saudi Arabian club Al Ahli, told the AP last month he hoped to make history with Qatar by helping it qualify for the World Cup.
Rajevac could not be reached for comment but in a statement the Qatar Football Association hinted that his departure was connected to the Vietnam loss. It described the team as qualifying for the group stage of the Asian zone qualifier ''in rather alarming fashion.''
''We thank him for his efforts. But we feel this is a time to move on so we mutually agreed to end the contract,'' Qatar Football Association President Sheik Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani said in a statement.
Lazaroni coached Brazil at the 1990 World Cup, where his side was eliminated in the second round by Argentina. He has since coached Turkish side Fenerbahce, which ended the 40-year undefeated European home record of Manchester United in the Champions League in 1996.
Lazaroni has also managed teams in China, the Caribbean and Japan. He was named Qatar's coach of the year in 2009.
Lazaroni is likely to take charge of the team as soon as Wednesday for its friendly against Iraq.
