No menu items!

COSTA RICA'S LEADING ENGLISH LANGUAGE NEWSPAPER

HomeJorge Luis PintoAfter 5 months and 3 friendlies, UAE fires coach Pinto

After 5 months and 3 friendlies, UAE fires coach Pinto

The United Arab Emirates on Monday dismissed Colombian Jorge Luis Pinto as coach, five months after his appointment and before the resumption of qualifying for the 2022 World Cup and 2023 Asian Cup.

Pinto, a 67-year-old Colombian who led Costa Rica to the quarter-finals of the 2014 World Cup, was the UAE’s fourth coach since January 2019.

He was hired in June on a contract until 2022.

“After long meetings with coach Pinto, we agreed that it was difficult to continue our relationship and we decided to terminate the contract,” said the head of the Emirates national teams committee, Youssef Hussein.

“The replacement coach will be announced soon,” Hussein told a press conference, adding that the new coach will be chosen from three people who have worked in the local league.

Under Pinto, the Emirates played three friendlies, beating Tajikistan with difficulty (3-2) and losing to Uzbekistan (2-1) and, most recently, Bahrain (3-1).

“It was difficult to carry out my mission with the national team for several reasons, including a difference of views,” said Pinto.

He added that the Covid-19 pandemic complicated his work.

“I had big dreams of reaching the World Cup with the Emirates, and I hope it will happen with another coach,” said Pinto.

Pinto succeeded the Serbian Ivan Jovanovic, who was in the job from December 2019 to April 2020, before being dismissed without having played any matches.

Alberto Zaccheroni, who led AC Milan to a Serie A title in 1999 and won the Asian Cup with Japan, quit in January 2019 after leading UAE to the semi-finals of the Asian Cup.

The Italian was followed by former Dutch national coach Bert van Marwijk who lasted from March 2019 until that December when he was fired following a 4-2 loss to Qatar in the Arabian Gulf Cup.

After parting ways with La Sele following the 2014 World Cup, Pinto has coached in Honduras and Colombia in addition to the UAE.

Trending Now

In Costa Rica, Rare White-Lipped Peccaries Still Survive

Today we meet the white-lipped peccary, a large animal that travels in large groups that has disappeared from a large part of its historical...

Mexico Battles Wildfire Damage with Drone-Based Reforestation

Authorities in the state of Michoacán, in western Mexico, are using drones to scatter seeds from the air in an effort to reforest hundreds...

Nicaragua Hosts Historic 2025 AmeriCup Basketball Tournament

The 2025 AmeriCup, the men’s basketball Copa América, tips off this Friday in Nicaragua, marking the most significant international sporting event in the country’s...

Former Costa Rican President Miguel Ángel Rodríguez Faces Trial

Miguel Ángel Rodríguez, who served as Costa Rica’s president from 1998 to 2002, returned to court on today, to face charges in the so-called...

US Cracks Down on Costa Rica’s Narco Network with New Sanctions

The US Treasury Department moved against a Costa Rican drug trafficking ring today sanctioning four individuals and two entities tied to cocaine smuggling and...

Costa Rica National Parks to Measure Tourism Impact

Costa Rica will now be able to measure the impact of tourism in its national parks, thanks to innovative environmental technology from The NeverRest...
spot_img
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Travel Insurance
Costa Rica Rocking Chait
Costa Rica Travel

Latest News from Costa Rica