Marcelo Bielsa’s Uruguay is on the verge of implosion

What if the love story between Marcelo Bielsa and Uruguay turned into a nightmare? Arriving on the Celeste bench in May 2023, El Loco must, in fact, manage a context that is, to say the least, heavy in the last few hours. Friday evening, after the defeat (1-0) of his team against a Peru until then at the bottom of the South American qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, the native of Rosario had also expressed his current fears … “My authority has been affected. It’s me who is blamed”recognized the person concerned, visibly touched. A remarkable exit, coming a few hours after Luis Suárez’s shock declarations.

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Luis Suarez charges Bielsa!

In an interview with the media DSports and broadcast on October 3, the former Uruguayan international (143 caps, 69 goals) did not hesitate to publicly criticize the 69-year-old manager. “A lot of players had a meeting to ask the coach to at least say hello, he didn’t even greet us. During the Copa América, there were things that touched me, that hurt me a lot. But I had to keep quiet out of respect for the selection”admitted, in this capacity, the Inter Miami scorer, pointing out Bielsa’s attitude towards the players and staff of the Uruguayan Football Association.

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Uruguay: Bielsa’s reaction to Luis Suarez’s attacks

A speech that did not fail to provoke a reaction from the various followers of Celeste. “It was not an opportune time to make these kinds of statements. Uruguay plays again on Tuesday and it is important that the team performs well. It’s a selection that has exceptional players and we must be able to take advantage of them, for the good of Uruguayan football.”regretted with this in mind Ignacio Ruglio, president of the Atlético Peñarol club. If the unease therefore continues to swell, at a time when Uruguay occupies 3rd place in the rankings in the South America zone, Marcelo Bielsa, himself, has also decided to react to the gunslinger’s words.

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Less convincing results…

“Luis Suárez’s words had no influence, the team’s commitment seemed generous to me, regardless of how we played. What happened during the week doesn’t explain the way we played and I don’t think it had any effect. It was a week with a lot of excitement. I am aware of everything that has happened and I know that my authority is somewhat affected. I prepared for the match with the utmost seriousness and the response from the players was what I always found”tempered the Argentinian after his team’s defeat against Peru. An attempt at appeasement which cannot, however, make us forget the less positive dynamic of Celeste.

From then on, if Bielsa was quick to get everyone to agree by offering Brazil – a first in 22 years – then Argentina – reigning world champion – the results since the last Copa América leave room for doubts. Third in the Continental Cup, Uruguay has since had three consecutive draws and a defeat this Friday against Peru. A meeting which did not fail to frustrate the fans, who were very critical of Celeste’s collective proposal and the attitude of certain players. In this deleterious climate, the locker room still seems united. In any case, this is the tone given to recent media releases.

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Will El Loco see the sortie?

“Everything that comes out of Bielsa’s mouth is good for learning”declared Federico Valverde in particular while several meetings were organized to try to ease the pressure. “We believe that Marcelo Bielsa is the ideal person to lead this new stage of our selection”for his part assured Ignacio Alonso, the president of the AUF. Support does not, however, completely chase away the concerns expressed with regard to the future of Marcelo Bielsa at the head of Celeste. While some are already talking about a power struggle which could lead the Argentinian to the exit, Uruguay is preparing to face Ecuador in Montevideo. A victory seems imperative, at the risk of seeing the situation completely explode…