Spain part ways with coach after World Cup flop
Fernando Hierro is out as coach of Spain’s national team after less than a month in charge and a disappointing four-game run at the World Cup. The Spanish federation said yesterday that it wanted “to thank Fernando Hierro for his commitment and for assuming the responsibility of being in charge of the national team during some extraordinary situations”.
Hierro was promoted from sporting director to the top job two days before Spain opened the tournament against Portugal. New federation president Luis Rubiales was incensed that previous coach Julen Lopetegui had agreed to take charge at Real Madrid after the World Cup without giving the federation sufficient notice. Lopetegui was summarily fired on June 13 despite a 20-game unbeaten streak that had made Spain one of the favourites coming into the tournament.
ENOUGH SCORING CHANCES
Spain drew with Portugal and Morocco and beat Iran 1-0 to win their group, then lost to Russia on penalties after a 1-1 draw in the round of 16, a match in which the Spanish were criticised for completing more than 1,000 passes without producing enough scoring chances.
The federation’s statement didn’t indicate whether Hierro left voluntarily but said he had declined to return to his previous role as sporting director. It called him “an extraordinary sportsman” and said the national team “would always be his home”.
Hierro, 50, is a former national team player and Real Madrid captain. He served as sporting director when Spain won the 2008 European Championship and the 2010 World Cup, what the federation called “the national team’s greatest period”. But he had never held a major coaching job.
“I couldn’t have said no. I wouldn’t forgive myself,” Hierro said at the news conference introducing him as coach two days before the match against European champions Portugal. “We still have a great opportunity in front of us. We have to remain positive and move forward.”
Later in the tournament, Hierro suggested he had stayed in contact with Lopetegui but said they didn’t discuss strategy.