Soccer

World Cup 2026: Mexico will sign former Barcelona star as future coach of national team

Mexico are ready to make a historic decision toward the 2026 World Cup and beyond. A former teammate of Lionel Messi will lead the famous Tri.

Rafael Marquez, former star of Barcelona
Ā© Hector Vivas/Getty ImagesRafael Marquez, former star of Barcelona

After a big failure in the Qatar 2022 World Cup, Mexico were supposed to establish a rebuilding process toward 2026, the tournament in which they’ll be hosts alongside the United States and Canada.

Instead, chaos unfolded. Diego Cocca arrived after leading Atlas to consecutive titles in Liga MX, but, he was fired after less than sixth months. Then, Jaime Lozano took over as interim and won the permanent job after conquering the 2023 Gold Cup.

However, the big challenge was Copa America 2024. Lozano chose to leave out experienced players under the argument of a generational renovation. The gamble was costly as Mexico couldn’t surpass the group stage facing Venezuela, Ecuador and Jamaica.

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Although the Mexican Federation ratified him a few days after the tournament, the pressure from million of fans was enormous. As a consequence, Lozano resigned.

Who will be the next coach of Mexico’s national team?

According to a report from TUDN, Javier Aguirre is set to become the new coach of Mexico for the 2026 World Cup. It’s a unique situation in soccer history as the famous Vasco already coached the national team in the 2002 and 2010 editions.

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Aguirre is the best Mexican coach ever with great experience in teams like Atletico Madrid and Osasuna. During the last years, he saved Mallorca from relegation in La Liga and led them to a Copa del Rey final.

Barcelona legend will coach Mexico’s national team

The big surprise is that Rafael Marquez will leave Barca Atletic to help Javier Aguirre as an assistant coach for the next two years. The key factor to convince the legendary defender is that the Mexican Federation has guaranteed him the coaching position for the 2030 World Cup.

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Last February, when Xavi announced he wouldn’t come back for Barcelona, Marquez emerged as the leading candidate to replace him. Then, Hernandez changed his mind and, when, Joan Laporta fired him after the season ended, Hansi Flick got the call.

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