Halilhodzic admitted "informal contact" with an English club

Football authorities in the Ivory Coast have denied speculation that Elephants coach Vahid Halilhodzic is set to quit.

Rumours linking the Bosnian with a move to an unnamed English club have dominated the Ivorian football landscape in recent days.

The speculation has intensified since Halilhodzic's admission of "informal contact" with an English club.

But the Ivory Coast Football Federation (FIF) has insisted that the coach's future lies with the Elephants.

"The executive committee [of FIF] would like to clarify that Vahid Halilhodzic is under contract with Ivory Coast until the end of the World Cup qualifying stage," said a statement issued by the FIF.

The statement went on: "The executive committee will do all it can to maintain the interests of the national team... and reaffirms its clear desire to see Ivory Coast qualified for the World Cup and the Nations cup in 2010."

Halilhodzic himself moved to quash speculation of his impending departure, telling reporters on Thursday that he was not leaving.

He said: "You need to listen to people when they're interested in you. I'm not leaving, I'm staying and you'll be informed of everything in time."

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