Argentina sack coach Bauza, line up Sevilla's Sampaoli
Send a link to a friend
[April 11, 2017]
By Rex Gowar
BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - Twice World
Cup winners Argentina sacked coach Edgardo Bauza on Monday after a
string of poor results in South American qualifying left them
struggling to reach the 2018 finals in Russia.
Media reports suggest Sevilla's Argentine coach Jorge Sampaoli, who
has never disguised his ambition to take charge of the national team
and steered neighboring Chile to the Copa America title in 2015,
will step into the vacancy.
"We've reached an agreement, we've told Bauza he's ceased to be the
national team coach," the Argentine FA's recently elected president
Claudio Tapia told reporters after a meeting at the organization's
Buenos Aires headquarters.
Argentina, whose captain Lionel Messi has been banned for four
matches for insulting a match official, are fifth in the South
American group with four qualifiers remaining.
The top four in the 10-nation group go through to the 2018 finals in
Russia, while the fifth-placed country qualifies for a playoff
against a team from Oceania.
Bauza presided over eight matches, all 2018 World Cup qualifiers,
with three wins, two draws and three defeats.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2017/Apr/11/images/ads/current/Monsanto_sda_SFARM_2017.png)
If the AFA can successfully prize Sampaoli away from Sevilla at the
end of the season, he would have until August 31 to prepare for
Argentina's next qualifier, a tricky trip to play Uruguay in
Montevideo.
Tapia has announced a news conference for Tuesday to give details of
Bauza's departure and his possible successor.
The new AFA leadership made the decision to dispense with Bauza
after Argentina were lucky to beat Chile 1-0 at home with a Messi
penalty then lost 2-0 away to Bolivia at high altitude in La Paz
last month.
Argentina, who had Messi suspended before the Bolivia game, could be
without their talisman in Uruguay and at home to Peru and Venezuela
later this year unless they manage to get the ban reduced on appeal.
[to top of second column] |
![](../images/041117pics/sports51.jpg)
Argentina's coach Edgardo Bauza is seen as he walks. REUTERS/Daniel
Rodrigo
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2017/Apr/11/images/ads/current/humphrey_daily_quarter_030314.png)
If the appeal fails, Messi would only come back for
the final, potentially decisive qualifier away to Ecuador at high
altitude in Quito in October.
Bauza was appointed last July by Armando Perez, who headed a FIFA
committee that administered the AFA and prepared it for the
presidential election that Tapia won last month.
Messi had quit international soccer after Argentina’s second
successive Copa America final defeat on penalties by Chile in the
United States in June, having missed the opening spot kick in the
shootout.
Bauza persuaded Messi to return in August and the captain responded
with a goal in a 1-0 home win over Uruguay on Sept. 1.
The 59-year-old's team were unconvincing, though, with draws away to
Venezuela and Peru, losses to Paraguay and Brazil and a win over
Colombia between September and November.
Messi missed all but the Brazil and Colombia matches through injury.
Sampaoli quit as Chile coach after lifting the 2015 Copa America but
had just taken charge at Sevilla when the Argentina job became
vacant last July after Gerardo Martino resigned.
The AFA would have to pay a buyout clause to trigger Sampaoli's
release from Sevilla.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2016/Aug/26/images/ads/current/ldn_medical_directory_small_2016.png)
(Additional reporting by Miguel Lobianco and Luis Ampuero; Editing
by Ken Ferris and Nick Mulvenney) [© 2017 Thomson Reuters. All
rights reserved.]
Copyright 2017 Reuters. All rights
reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten
or redistributed. |