Dinamo Zagreb manager sentenced to jail days before Tottenham Europa League clash
By Sean Walsh
Zoran Mamic has resigned as manager of Dinamo Zagreb after being sentenced to jail for four years and eight months for fraud.
The ruling was passed on Monday by Croatia's Supreme Court and confirmed by national broadcaster HRT, and comes in the build-up to the second leg of Dinamo's Europa League last 16 tie with Tottenham on Thursday.
Mamic confirmed in a statement released by the club that he would keep true to his word to leave his post should a guilty verdict be handed down.
"Although I don't feel guilty, I resign as I said before I would do if the sentence was confirmed. I wish all the good luck to the club," he said.
The Croatian Supreme Court also confirmed (via Reuters) that Mamic's brother, Zdravko, a former executive at Dinamo, has been sentenced to six and a half years in jail, while former Dinamo director Damir Vrbanovic will be imprisoned for three years.
The trio were found guilty of tax evasion worth 12.2m Croatian kuna (£1.37m) and the embezzlement of 116m kuna (£13.13m) from Dinamo via transfers of players.
Dinamo have confirmed the appointment of former player Damir Krznar as their new head coach, with his first test to overturn a 2-0 deficit against Spurs in the Europa League.
Tottenham were put through their paces to record a first leg victory in north London, with Harry Kane grabbing both goals either side of half time.
Spurs head to the Croatian capital off the back of a dismal performance in their 2-1 north London derby loss at Arsenal on Sunday.
Son Heung-min will miss the trip after picking up a hamstring injury, but despite initial fears over the severity of the strain, there is fresh optimism that he could return in time for Sunday's Premier League match with Aston Villa.