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Sergio Batista
Following a disastrous Copa America campaign, Argentina National Coach, Sergio Batista was sacked from his post on Monday. In a meeting held yesterday amongst the member of Argentine Football Association, it was decided to relive the 48 years old coach from the top job.
“Batista has ceased to be the national team coach,” Ernesto Cherquis Bialo, spokesman for the Argentine Football Association, said on Monday. “We have thought about few names for his replacement and we will name him within a week time,” added Bialo.
Gerardo Martino, who took Paraguay to the Final of Copa America and former Estudiantes boss Alejandro Sabella are the names doing the round to take over the reign from Batista. Also being mentioned is former Boca Juniors and Atletico de Madrid coach Carlos Bianchi.
The decision to sacked Batista came even after AFA boss Julio Grondona’s son Humberto Grondona, sub-director of team affairs at the Argentine Football Association made a statement on behalf of the federation, just after the teams exit from Copa America saying that Batista will remain the Coach and prepare the team for 2014 Brazil World Cup.
However his lack of tactical knowledge and the failure to make the world’s greatest players play as a team hugely drew criticism from other members and talk about his ouster began.
Batista, a member of the 1986 World Cup wining Coach served as a youth coach in AFA and his meteoric rise to fame began in 2008 after guiding the Argentina U-23 team to Olympic victory in Beijing.
Argentina has been plunged to an all time low in world football after their failure to win any major trophy in 18 years. Their last World Cup triumph was in 1986. Batista was the fourth Argentine Coach in five years.
