Football
Paul Murphy 7y

Former Premier League striker Leroy Lita leaves Thailand's Sisaket

Former Premier League striker Leroy Lita has left Thai League side Sisaket FC after the struggling club reportedly fell behind with his salary payments.

A post on the Thailand FIFA Agent Facebook page claimed that Lita's payments were over a month in arrears, prompting a cancellation of the contract.

The former Swansea City and Middlesbrough man leaves the club five points from safety, with just eight games of the season remaining. The Koupreys are paying the price for a disastrous start to the campaign when they took just four points from the first nine games.

Lita joined Sisaket in January and some of his energetic early performances alongside Leandro Assumpcao suggested the pair could make a formidable partnership.

But the results failed to materialise, and they have been playing catch-up ever since. The departure of Assumpcao for Muang Thong United in June deprived the club of their top scorer, and Lita gradually became a less regular starter.

In July, the club reported that Lita had apologised to fans after complaints had been made about his off-the-field lifestyle. However, Lita told ESPN FC that no one at the club had even spoken to him about these allegations.

Former Kelantan head coach Velar Popov left the club in August, and signs that all was not well continued when German midfielder Bjorn Lindemann moved on after less than two months in Sisaket.

Lita netted five league goals in his time in Thailand, but he leaves under a cloud. ESPN FC understand that Sisaket are experiencing financial difficulties, and have moved to get their biggest earners off the wage bill.

Lita, meanwhile, will begin the process of looking for a new club. Before coming to Thailand, he had a brief spell at Yeovil Town in England's fourth tier. As a free agent, the 32-year-old former England U21 striker's experience may be attractive to a number of clubs back in his homeland.

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