Unusual occurrence involving previous HSV trainer ignites a series of problems
Ricardo Moniz is enjoying a prosperous period at FC Zurich, but despite the victorious streak, a significant issue is surfacing at the top of the Swiss Super League: a substitution incident is causing a stir. The coach is under fire from within his own squad.
In the first round of the Swiss Cup, Zug 94 against FC Zurich. Initially, not an exciting prospect for an international sports enthusiast. However, the first-round match gets more intriguing. Not because of FC Zurich's 2:0 win, as they are the Super League's table leaders. But due to an unusual incident: After Labinot Bajrami was substituted, "a spectator from the main stand approached the coaching bench, shouted at the head coach, and threw an umbrella in his direction," the club later disclosed. "It was soon clear that it was Bajrami's father who attacked the FCZ head coach with the umbrella." Moniz managed to dodge the umbrella by a narrow margin.
Moniz, who had briefly coached Hamburger SV in the Bundesliga, had earlier substituted Bajrami in and then off after only 20 minutes, "following the player's response to the head coach's instructions with extremely disrespectful language," the club stated. Bajrami's father was not amused by this.
"We strongly condemn this action and will reserve the right to take legal action alongside Ricardo Moniz," said FC Zurich. Moniz also spoke to SRF about the incident, stating, "I've never encountered anything like this. This is an all-time low. There will be consequences. This is not good for talent." Bajrami, who joined FC Zurich in 2021 and was promoted to the first team this season, has only featured once for the first team. The substitution had "no relation to his performance, but to his conduct towards the head coach," FCZ revealed. Bajrami reportedly responded to the coach's instructions with "Fuck off."
"And then you're so disrespected!"
Moniz has only been in charge at FC Zurich since this season - and has already caused a stir: FCZ leads the table after three wins in the first four games. However, trouble over substitutions by Moniz has surfaced before. In the first league game, he took off new signing Doron Leidner, who had only been on for 26 minutes, relatively calmly during halftime.
The situation escalated for the first time after the qualifying game for the Conference League against Vitoria Guimaraes. Moniz substituted Jonathan Okita in and out again just a few minutes later. And delivered harsh words following the Congolese national team player. "We gave him a chance because we saw his quality - and then you're so disrespected! If you don't show any willingness to learn, you're out of the squad." FCZ President Canepa backed Moniz - and said he would have conveyed the criticism even more strongly. Okita was at least able to play again against Zug. As for Bajrami, his future with the club remains uncertain.
Moniz led Red Bull Salzburg to a double in Austria in 2012, then embarked on a journey: Eleven different clubs in ten countries feature on the trainer's resume. In Germany, Moniz has served as a head coach for Hamburger SV and 1860 Munich, but was let go after nine league games.
The incident with Labinot Bajrami's father is causing a divide within the FC Zurich squad, with some team members expressing support for Moniz's actions. Despite the other players' opinions, other fans at the game seemed to side with Bajrami, as evidenced by their reaction to the substitution.
The aftermath of the incident has led to calls for a united front within the team, with Moniz stressing the importance of respecting authority and maintaining a positive team environment, especially towards the head coach.
