Philippe Troussier Gets A Three-month Salary Severance Pay After Being Fired From Vietnam Coach

JAKARTA - The Vietnamese Football Federation (VFF) gave severance pay to Philippe Troussier who was fired from the Vietnam coach seat.

The dismissal of the French coach was the aftermath of the team's poor results during its treatment since March 2023.

At its peak, The Golden Star lost twice to the Indonesian national team (0-1 and 0-3) in the second round of Group F of the 2026 Asian Zone Qualification World Cup.

Based on the contract, if the VFF decides to cooperate with the Troussier earlier then in fact they don't need to pay compensation.

However, VFF offers to provide severance pay. The amount is not bad, three times the coach's salary.

According to VnExpress, Troussier has a higher salary than the previous coach, Park Hang-seo, which is 50,000 US dollars or approximately IDR 794.3 per month after tax.

The big salary cannot be separated from the responsibility of the Troussier. Like Shin Tae-yong, Troussier also does not only lead one team.

The 69-year-old coach is in charge of Vietnam U-23 and the senior team.

Meanwhile, the dismissal of Troussier was in accordance with the points in the contract.

VFF and coaches from France can decide on cooperation if the target of qualifying for the third round of the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers for the Asian Zone is not achieved.

In fact, Troussier has a long contract until July 2026. In addition, Vietnam still has two matches left in the second round of the 2026 World Cup Qualification.

However, VFF prefers to fire Troussier because the squad and supporters are pressing for restructuring.

"We persuaded Troussier to see the reality. Trust from the squad has reached its lowest point, fans reacted strongly (to Troussier's style of coaching), and the squad needed immediate restructuring," VFF officials told VnExpress.

"Troussier seems to have prepared for this (determination of cooperation and receipt of severance pay)," he said again.

For more than a year with Vietnam, the only achievement of Troussier was securing a place in the 2024 U-23 Asian Cup finals.

Previously, he failed to bring Vietnam U-23 to the success of the 2023 SEA Games and only won a bronze medal. They lost 2-3 to Indonesia in the semifinals of the 2023 SEA Games.

The team was also unable to get through the 2023 Asian Cup group stage, losing in all three matches.

VFF says they opted for Troussier because of their background which has many achievements.

Troussiers play defenders for several French clubs, such as Angouleme, Red Star 93, Rouen, and Reims from 1976 to 1983.

He became a coach after retiring. Troussier is nicknamed the 'White Magician Doctor' for his success in Africa while handling Ivory Coast, Nigeria, South Africa, and Burkina Faso.

His international career peaked while on duty in Japan (1998-2002) when he won the 2000 Asian Cup.

Two years later, he led Japan to the round of 16 of the 2002 World Cup, the Blue Samurai's best achievement in the world's biggest football tournament at the time.

In 2020, the Asian Football Confederation named him one of the greatest coaches in the history of the Asian Cup.

Troussier acted as a strategic advisor and technical director of the Vietnam Football Talent Promotion Fund (PVF) in 2018.

He was appointed head coach of Vietnam U-19 a year later. Troussier helped the team qualify for the 2020 U-19 Asian Cup which was canceled due to Covid-19.

Troussier left after his contract with VFF expired in June 2021 before returning in 2023.