César Luis Menotti is a name that holds a lot of weight in the circles of South American soccer and the Argentine national team. Known for his tactical yet fluid approach to the game, Menotti went on to inspire coaches such as Marcelo Bielsa.
Menotti coached a who ‘s who of clubs throughout his career from Newell’s Old Boys, Barcelona, Boca Juniors, Atlético Madrid, River Plate, Peñarol, Independiente, and Rosario Central among others. At the national team level, he managed Argentina from 1974–1983 winning the 1978 World Cup with the Albiceleste, as well as a two-year run with Mexico in 1991-1992.
Known as a “rebel” of this time due to his leftist political views during a dictatorship in Argentina, while coaching the national team, and his chain smoking habits, Menotti never backed down from his opinion and he had a rather harsh one for Louis van Gaal.
César Luis Menotti on Louis van Gaal
Menotti told Radio Mitre in Argentina after he was asked about the statements Van Gaal had made before and post-match against Argentina, “Van Gaal said stupid things, he messed with the players, he’s lost his mind, he said a lot of stupid things.”
César Luis Menotti (Getty Images)
Before that Menotti had mentioned that the Argentine players did not make fun of Van Gaal post-match but rather “stopped with all the nonsense”, “You cannot comment on the value and intensity of the adversary, this from the man who plays the atomic wise man” Menotti finished.
Argentina will play the winner of France – Morocco in the World Cup final on Sunday a match that will be seen by an estimated 2 billion people.
