ISTANBUL - French coach Jean Tigana on Thursday blamed pressure and personal attacks for his decision to quit Istanbul giants Besiktas at the end of the season.
"There was extreme pressure from outside, much of what I said was twisted, which made some sections of the fans turn aggressive," said Tigana.
"There was also a destabilisation of the club on the inside (which was) very difficult to manage."
The 51-year-old former Monaco and Fulham boss complained that he was subjected to lies every day in the press.
He joined Besiktas in 2005 but last Wednesday announced his decision to quit the club.
Asked about the aggressiveness of supporters, he said: "Physically no one has touched me, we received only kicks to the car and windows and as we had a good chauffeur we managed to escape."
Tigana revealed he had received more than 10 offers of work and said that he had the choice of going to many countries in Europe.
Besiktas won the Turkish Cup for the second year in a row under Tigana and sit second in the table with two games to play but Fenerbahce have already been crowned champions.
05/17/2007 16:38 GMT