New Coach Selected For National Soccer Team

Hernán Medford, coach of the Saprissa soccer team and a big name in the Tico soccer world, was named coach of the National Soccer Team, La Selección Nacional, or La Sele.

Medford, who has a reputation as one of Costa Rica’s best players, will coach La Sele as it makes a run for the World Cup in 2010 in South Africa.

In a unanimous decision, the executive committee of the Costa Rican Soccer Federation (FCF) named Medford as coach; he replaces Alexandre Guimaraes.

The federation’s president,Walter Niehaus, said Medford was chosen because he has the necessary skills to make a “substantial change to national soccer and lead Costa Rica to the next World Cup.”

La Selección this year played in the World Cup in Germany, but lost all three games (TT, June 16).

During Medford’s four years as coach of Saprissa, the team has won two national championships (2003-2004 and 2005-2006) and won third place in the world club soccer championship in Japan last year.

Medford is considered in the soccer world to be a winning coach who injects his players with motivation. However, he has also been criticized for troublesome behavior during games, which has gotten him expelled on a few occasions.

Costa Rican soccer player Carlos Watson, Colombian player Carlos Restrepo and Italians Giuseppe Docena and Giuseppe Materazzi were also in the running to coach La Selección.