Former national team manager Vahid Halilhodzic insisted Friday that he still had not "found out the truth" as to why he was fired two months before he was set to lead Japan at the World Cup.

"This has been the most difficult time of my life," Halilhodzic said at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo, where he launched an impassioned defense of his record in front of over 300 reporters and 30 TV crews.

"Maybe I was a little naive, but everything I did was to make the team successful. I feel there has been a lack of respect."