July 27th, 2010
05:44 PM ET

Maradona out as manager of Argentine national team

Diego Maradona

Diego Maradona's contract as coach of the Argentine national soccer team will not be renewed, the spokesman for the Argentine Football Association said Tuesday.

The announcement comes after Argentina exited the World Cup in South Africa earlier this month with a 4-0 loss to Germany in the quarterfinals.

The decision was made unanimously by the association's executive committee Tuesday afternoon, after a meeting Monday night between Maradona and the association's president, Julio Grondona, said association spokesman Ernesto Cherquis Bialo.

Sergio Batista, coach of the Argentine national youth program and coach of the 2008 gold-medal winning Olympic team, will take over temporarily, Cherquis said.

Batista will coach the team for an August 11 friendly match against Ireland in Dublin.

Argentina had hoped Maradona,  who guided his country to victory at the 1986 World Cup, would lead the team to glory as manager.

After taking the job in 2008, the team struggled to qualify for the 2010 World Cup. But once there, Argentina won all three of its group-stage matches and a second-round game before falling to Germany.

 Post by:
Filed under: Argentina • Sports
soundoff (7 Responses)
  1. silvia

    good.. one junkie out of the next soccer world cup, like 1000 to go..

    July 27, 2010 at 6:00 pm | Report abuse |
  2. Nick Baldev

    Argentina have just lost a fantastic man and a good coach. Bottom line is he was learning the game. Maybe he did need a good number 2. I wish he gets another opportunity.

    July 27, 2010 at 6:07 pm | Report abuse |
  3. MK

    Whatever they said, you are the best football playter of all times. as a coach, you tried but no luck. For all who talk bad about Mara, what have you done to your country or in your life?

    July 28, 2010 at 12:48 am | Report abuse |
  4. Althea

    Happy to hear that. Argentine need a coach like del Bosque. Maradona just not good enough to be a coach. The biggest mistake of him is he wasn't called Zanetti as a great defender, Cambiasso, and Riquelme as a midfielder. Messi needs support. He's striker. And he needs a great midfielder. I don't want to see him suffered like Batistuta along time ago. Great skill but no champion.

    July 28, 2010 at 1:16 am | Report abuse |
  5. Jean

    Haha... Good. Now the broke junkie gots to find somewhere else to milk. He was a disaster and Argentina's ouster was a disaster.

    July 28, 2010 at 2:04 am | Report abuse |
  6. Grazia

    gabrielbatistuta should be the coach . he has had courses for coaching so he is more skilled than maradona in coaching.

    July 28, 2010 at 8:16 am | Report abuse |
    • Dinev

      If Argentina could have Batistuta as coach, that would be Amazing!!! There is some unfinished business to take care of and I think Batistuta would be the man to do it. Sorry Mara at least you tried...

      July 28, 2010 at 5:00 pm | Report abuse |
« Back to main