Marcelo Bielsa said he had left nothing to Uruguayan football after overseeing their elimination from the World Cup.
Uruguay failed to win a game in a group that included Cape Verde and Saudi Arabia and their exit was confirmed with a 1-0 defeat by Spain in Guadalajara during which the 40-year-old goalkeeper Fernando Muslera was withdrawn at half-time after his error handed Spain the only goal of the game. The 70-year-old Argentinian, who took over in 2023 and whose relationship with the players was poor, to the point of describing himself as "toxic", will not continue in the post.
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Uruguay drew 1-1 with Saudi Arabia and 2-2 with Cape Verde , and came into the final game knowing they would need a point from Spain but did not manage a shot on target until the 83rd minute. Bielsa said Muslera had asked to be taken off. He also replaced Federico Valverde, who departed angrily with his shirt covering his mouth. Defeat takes Uruguay's run to seven games without a win, including a 5-1 hammering by the USA.
"I have not left anything to Uruguayan football," Bielsa said. "A coach who has been in a country for three years and not got results cannot say he has made a contribution. Fourth place in the qualifiers has no value and nor does third at the Copa América and there is no need to even define this performance [at the World Cup]. My time doesn't say anything."
Bielsa added: "We could have seven points but we have two. This is the result of my management. It was my job to manage a group of players that I did not manage to turn into a force. If you want explanations – which I don't think you want – I would say that of the seven points we deserved, we got two.
"I am responsible for what Uruguay did at this World Cup. [Your] questions do not seek answers but a chance to attack me. I am responsible for all the disappointment because of the job I did. But if I have to analyse what happened, I also have to include the errors. Muslera was the one that decided to depart and I took Valverde off because I wanted to strengthen the attack."
Spain's joy at having qualified in first place, meanwhile, was sullied by the probability that Yéremy Pino will not play again this summer and the concern over the fitness of Nico Williams.
Pino suffered a suspected broken collar bone in a fall, leaving in a sling, and Williams departed the stadium limping. "The worst thing is the tremendous pain we have because of what happens to Yéremy, who could miss the rest of the World Cup," Luis de la Fuente, Spain's coach, said.
