Cesar Luis Menotti, the charismatic coach who led Argentina to its first World Cup title in 1978, has died, the Argentine Football Association said Sunday. He was 85. (More Football News)
바카라Goodbye, dear Flaco!바카라 the association바카라s statement added, using Menotti바카라s nickname which means 바카라the thin one.바카라
The association did not give a cause of death. Local media reports said Menotti was admitted to a clinic in March with severe anemia. He reportedly underwent surgery for phlebitis in April and subsequently returned home.
Passion for football and a sharp ability to explain its mechanics were Menotti바카라s hallmark characteristics as a trainer, and he was considered one of the most emblematic and influential coaches in Argentine football.
Menotti was a political activist and an affiliate member of the Argentine Communist Party, a boxing fan and an admirer of the works of Latin American writers Mario Benedetti, Gabriel García Márquez, Jorge Luis Borges, Mario Sábato and Joan Manuel Serrat, among others.
바카라Once I was interviewed by Borges, and when I asked him if it bothered him that I smoked, he told me: 바카라What intoxicates me is not the cigarette, but the stupid conversations,바카라바카라 Menotti recalled in one of his last interviews.
바카라So, I asked about everything ... but not about soccer, because I know about football!바카라 he added.
He launched his career as a player for Rosario Central (1960-1963 and 1967), then went to Racing Club (1964) and Boca Juniors (1965-1966), all Argentine clubs. Menotti played for the New York Generals in the U.S. (1967), followed by Brazil바카라s Santos (1968) and Italy바카라s Juventus (1969-1970).
At Santos, he played alongside Pelé, whom he never hesitated to qualify as the best player among legends.
Menotti coached Argentina바카라s national team between 1974 and 1983. He was convinced the side did not get the recognition it deserved when it won the World Cup in 1978 because the country was ruled by a military junta responsible for widespread human rights violations. His detractors would often recall a photo in which Menotti, after the World Cup victory, shook hands with Jorge Rafael Videla, head of the military junta.
On the eve of the World Cup, Menotti left a 17-year-old Maradona off the squad 바카라 a decision the coach later said soured their relations for years.
Menotti coached Mexico바카라s national team in 1991-1992. He also led Barcelona (1983-1984), where he had Maradona on his squad; Atletico Madrid (1987-88); Uruguay바카라s Penarol (1990-91); Italy바카라s Sampdoria (1997) and Mexico바카라s Tecos (2007) 바카라 his last coaching job.
For years, Menotti often had a cigarette hanging between his lips, but he mostly quit the habit in 2011 following a three-day hospitalization stemming from his tobacco addiction.
He also was known for wearing hair long but neat. He said he didn바카라t rely on hairdressers. 바카라I cut my own hair. I take the scissors, I cut the ends.바카라
Menotti began leaving his hair long in the early 1970s. 바카라One day I said to myself: 바카라I won바카라t cut my hair until we lose바카라. And we went 10 games undefeated, so it all started as a joke,바카라 he said.
In his later years, Menotti said he didn바카라t fear death. 바카라It바카라s the only thing I바카라m sure of. I don바카라t know anyone who hasn바카라t died at some point,바카라 he said in 2014.
