Egil Olsen, right, says he had an agreement with the IFU that he wouldn't need to go into Iraq [EPA]

"I'm still waiting to hear I've been sacked, I haven't heard a word yet, no phone call, no email, no letter," Olsen told Reuters by telephone from his home in Norway on Monday.
 
"I was told last week that the speculation was nonsense.

"I would like to continue working with Iraq, we have a good team, we have come so far."
 
Basem al-Rubaie, deputy head of the Iraqi Football Union (IFU), told Reuters on Sunday the IFU board had unanimously agreed to discontinue with Olsen after he refused to coach the team in the Kurdistan region of Iraq.

However Olsen, who was in charge for only three competitive games - none of which were defeats - said Iraq had agreed he would not have to train the team inside the war-torn country.

"It's strange, because most of the players are outside Iraq."

The Norwegian scoffed at suggestions by Rubaie that the IFU board were concerned about his health.

"I've never felt so fresh, this is not true," Olsen said.

"I had minor back surgery but I have no health problems at all."

In a recent interview, the former manager of now-defunct English club Wimbledon FC said he was prepared for the cut-throat hire-and-fire culture of Middle East football and knew he had only a limited time to prove himself.

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