Rivaldo walks out on Brazilian champions

In this picture taken July 13, 1999 coach Wanderley Luxemburgo (L) listens to Brazilian soccer player Rivaldo. Rivaldo quit his club Cruzeiro after Luxemburgo was fired under mysterious circumstances

Rivaldo walked out on his club Cruzeiro 24 hours after his close friend Wanderley Luxembergo quit as coach in mysterious circumstances.

"My arrival at Cruzeiro was, as everyone knows, linked to Luxembergo, a man I hold in great esteem," explained the 2002 World Cup winner and former FIFA Footballer of the Year.

Rivaldo joined the 2003 Brazil champions in January from AC Milan.

The 31-year-old told reporters he had left on amicable terms, adding that he had no idea which club he would play for next.

Luxemburgo resigned on Friday just eight months after being given a jail sentence of five years and three months after being found guilty of tax fraud in Brazil.

The judge imposed special conditions allowing Luxemburgo to work normally during the day before returning to sleep in prison at night.

Luxemburgo was named Brazil coach after the 1998 World Cup finals but was sacked in October 2000 following a string of poor results in qualifiers for the 2002 World Cup and amid mounting speculation surrounding his tax affairs.

He was found guilty of making false tax declarations from 1994 to 1997, and was also found to be in possession of false identity documents.

Luxemburgo's crime came to light in 2000 when his former secretary, Renata Alves, tipped off police.