It took just 10 days for Australian football coach David Magrone to realise that that taking charge of Greek SuperLeague 2 side Trikala FC was not the dream job he had hoped.

Mr Magrone the chief scout for another London club, Queens Park Rangers, before moving to take charge at the north-western Thessalian city earlier this month. He had served on the Tottenham Hotspur technical team under Tim Sherwood (2013-14) and was in charge its European scouting network.

He told the Australian FTBL website that his brief Trikala experience was like being in the “wild, wild West” and cited a unprofessional practices that he encountered in his brief tenure at the club.

These included allegations that Trikala officials took payments from outside sources to sign some players while delaying to the last minute the registration of other players in case a better offer came up for them or they were injured before joining the club.

“I was hired to build a squad composed of talented, ambitious players we could develop because that was my background at Spurs and QPR,” Mr Magrone told FTBL.

READ MORE: PAS Giannina continues shocking the Greek Super League’s top teams

“But the moment I stepped through the door, I could see the enormity of trying to change a culture which was anything but a merit-based system.

“Two of the three owners wanted me to make big changes to drive the club forward with players signed on their promise and potential. But the existing hierarchy and administration weren’t having any of that.

“It was just an impossible situation and I feel for those who shared my vision of trying to turn the club into a development hub. I was undermined from the word go – I know how a football club should operate and this wasn’t it.

“The issues were insurmountable and when you look at the scandals that have dogged Greek football over the years then perhaps it shouldn’t be so surprising,” Mr Magrone said after his return to the UK last week.

Earlier this year, controversial Sydney businessman Bill Pappas and owner of Xanthi interviewed Mr Magrone to take over coaching following the sacking of fellow Australian Tony Popovic.

Mr Magrone said that the experience in Trikala had not dampened his desire to coach and that he was looking for new and better opportunities.