Read 3 minutes20 Jul 2026 02:10 PM IST
Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni was overcome with emotion and broke down in tears following Sunday’s 1-0 extra-time defeat to Spain in the FIFA World Cup final.
Scaloni’s men were on course to become the first team since Brazil in 1962 to win back-to-back World Cups, but Luis de la Fuente’s Spain proved too much for La Albiceleste, with Ferran Torres’ extra-time strike stunning Scaloni’s men.
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The 48-year-old’s contract with the Argentine Football Association (AFA) runs until December, and when asked about his future with the team during a press conference, Scaloni said: “I will talk to the president. I have an idea of what I want to do. I will look at my contract and I felt the need… I don’t know if something big can be done. We need to talk through it.”
“I am grateful to the president for giving me this opportunity to be where I am at this moment. It was a dream place for everyone. We tried until the last moment to give our staff and players the best. I believe I can take this time for myself to think about it,” added a grateful Scaloni.
Scaloni was on course to become the second manager to retain the trophy after Vittorio Pozzo (who led Italy to World Cup titles in 1934 and 1938) after overseeing Argentina’s victory in Qatar in 2022 but the odds were in Spain’s favor.
“Stay with me, I don’t know if I can go on. This place is amazing, it’s a dream place. With my staff, we never imagined we’d be here,” an emotional Scaloni said through tears.
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“You need a lot of things to keep going, especially resetting your mind, rebooting, regrouping like that. It’s very hard to rebuild.”
He stood up and apologized to the media before leaving the room as he explained how difficult it was to hire him as manager.
“It’s really painful, I’m sorry,” were the words of the Argentine manager before leaving.