Marcelo Bielsa sensationally claimed he is leaving “nothing” for Uruguay to build from, as their World Cup exit was confirmed.
Uruguay went down to 10 men and lost 1-0 to Spain as they crashed out of Group H on Friday.
La Celeste took just two points from their three games in North America, and are now on a seven-match winless run.
The enigmatic and fiery Bielsa took charge of Uruguay in 2023, and was tasked with overseeing a rebuild as the likes of Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani bowed out.
However, Bielsa’s tenure now looks set to come to an end in crisis, and the 70-year-old pinned the blame on himself.
“I am responsible for this disappointment,” said Bielsa, who has failed to progress from the group stage in two of his three World Cup campaigns: with Argentina in 2002 and Uruguay in 2026. His only successful group-stage campaign came with Chile in 2010.
“Obviously, I don’t need to define this performance. If you ask me how my time [with the national team] will be remembered, it is a tenure that left nothing behind.
“I leave nothing to Uruguayan football, because any contribution I might make to a country where I have worked for three years fails to take root if results aren’t achieved.”
Uruguay 0-1 Spain
Unfortunately not a Uruguay side we need to see more of at this tournament.
Onto the knockouts for Spain, who haven’t been a thrilling watch but have faced three shots on target in as many matches and a tournament-low 0.54 xG. pic.twitter.com/qIVLkiG4cc
— Opta Analyst (@OptaAnalyst) June 27, 2026
Like Suarez and Cavani, veteran goalkeeper Fernando Muslera also retired, though he came back at Bielsa’s request prior to the World Cup.
Yet Muslera endured a tournament to forget, and it was his howler that resulted in Alex Baena’s winner for Spain at Estadio Guadalajara.
He became the first goalkeeper on record (since 1966) to make three errors resulting in a goal at the same edition of the World Cup, and was taken off at half-time.
“Muslera decided to come off at half-time,” explained Bielsa. “The decision I took was not to undermine Muslera’s confidence, but rather to maintain it.”
Spain were not at their best, but the European champions have topped Group H.
However, Luis de la Fuente has been rocked by potential injury setbacks for wingers Yeremy Pino and Nico Williams, who both came on as second-half substitutes.
While Williams’ issue is viewed as minor, Pino is likely to miss the rest of the tournament.
“[Williams] felt discomfort,” De la Fuente said. “It could be a strain, or it might be fatigue. But the worst thing is the huge pain we feel with Yeremy, who could miss the rest of the World Cup.”
Asked about Bielsa, De la Fuente said: “I still admire Bielsa. Players play the games. We didn’t feel very comfortable in the game, but that’s what the referee is there for. It was a game played at the limit, extremely tough.”
