John Carver quit as Toronto FC boss over the constant big-brother antics of MLS bigwigs. The Geordie revealed to the Evening Chronicle: "First of all this is the hardest decision I have had to make.

"When you are manager of a team that has just gone top of the league, playing well and in with a shout of winning something - it's tough. But it has nothing to do with football.

"It was all to the way I was being treated by the league. It all came to a head recently. There were a few situations where they weren't happy with the way I was behaving in the technical area.

"I got a few warnings and they didn't like it. After a game with Dallas recently I had a go at the referee publicly and then got fined $750.

"I knew I couldn't say anything so I took myself out the firing line and watched the game from upstairs against Chivas USA the next week.

"I saw the game from a total different aspect. My assistant was Chris Cummings and I told him that if we win, he could do the Press conference and if we lose I will do it.

"We won and Chris did the Press conference which got the MLS's backs up because it's all about image. So I said I liked what I did and said to them I planned to do the game from the stands again, when we played Kansas.

"They ruled out that I could work it that way, and they demanded I went back to the technical area.

"So I resigned because of that. I am a manager and I should be able to manage the way I want to do it. I am nobody's puppet and I won't be controlled.

"I want to do it my way and that was to sit in the stand."