March 31, 2008
Hugo Sanchez was fired as coach of Mexico on Monday, two weeks after El Tri was eliminated from Olympic qualifying.The Mexican soccer federation dismissed Sanchez after 16 months on the job for his failure to deliver on promises of regional titles and an Olympic medal.
The decision was taken by the committee comprised of directors of the first-division clubs.
The failure to qualify for Beijing was particularly disappointing. Mexico's Under-23 team was based on players who won the Under-17 World Cup in Peru in 2005 and reached the quarterfinals at the Under-20 World Cup in Canada last year.
Jesus Ramirez, who guided the Mexico Under-17s to the 2005 title, was installed as the interim manager.
Also tarnishing Sanchez's 33-game coaching tenure was Mexico's loss last year to the United States in the Gold Cup final.
Sanchez, a former star for Real Madrid, struggled as manager of El Tri, suffering losses to regional minnows such as Honduras with the full national team and Guatemala with the under-23s. Sanchez acknowledged his Olympic program failed, but refused to resign.
Despite all said Mexico finished third in the Copa America, causing the wave of criticism to subside. However, in a series of friendlies over the past few months, Mexico managed only one victory - over Panama, while settling for draws against Nigeria and the United States, and losing to Brazil and Guatemala.
The results invited criticism that the Mexican side was underperforming offensively, a charge that resurfaced during Olympic qualifying.
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