Mexico Confirms Manager Osorio’s Departure
The Juan Carlos Osorio era is over, and the search for Mexico’s next senior national team manager is on.
Osorio, who managed Mexico from November 2015 until this summer’s World Cup, will not return, the Mexican federation confirmed Friday. As Goal reported July 19, the manager was offered a new contract to take control of the team for the next cycle but decided to turn down the offer.
“After a period of reflection, of deep analysis and diverse conversations between Juan Carlos Osorio and the Mexican Federation of Football, ‘profesor’ Osorio has decided not to be considered as a possible candidate for manager of the Mexican national team for the 2018-2022 cycle,” the federation said in a statement released Friday.
The manager’s contract ran through the end of the World Cup, and while the FMF looked to convince Osorio to return, the manager is ready for a new challenge.
Osorio closes out his tenure with 33 wins, 10 defeats and nine draws, good for a 63.5 percent winning percentage that places him highest among Mexico managers in the modern era. Despite that, he was heavily criticized by Mexican fans and the press for his unconventional methods and for lopsided defeats in major tournaments.
