National coach since 2014
According to a media report, the Portuguese Football Association is parting ways with national coach Fernando Santos after the disappointing quarter-finals at the World Cup in Qatar. Both sides had agreed on this, reports the Portuguese newspaper “A bola“. As a possible successor candidate, the newspaper brings a quartet around José Mourinho into play.
Santos took over the team around captain Cristiano Ronaldo from predecessor Paulo Bento in 2014 and led to the European Championship title in 2016 and the Nations League triumph in 2019. The 68-year-old has coached the “Seleção” in 109 games to date, which is the highest in the history of the Portuguese national team. The current 3,003-day tenure is bettered only by Cândido de Oliveira, who served on the sidelines between 1935 and 1945. After the 0-1 draw against Morocco in the quarter-finals, Santos announced that he wanted to talk to the association about his future. He had ruled out resigning. That is “not part of our vocabulary,” said the trainer. His contract runs until 2024.
Leão, Mendes & Co.: The most valuable Portuguese
The coach was criticized in his home country, especially after the Morocco game, when Portugal did not make enough of its superiority and was eliminated after conceding an unfortunate goal against the supposed outsider. Santos was also in focus for his dealings with Ronaldo. After weak preliminary round performances, he had put his superstar on the bench twice at the beginning of the knockout phase. After losing the World Cup, Santos said he had no regrets. Now, after more than eight years in office, his time in office is about to come to an end. Marcel de Almeida, Area Manager Portugal at Transfermarkt, says: “It’s time for a change, time for new ideas and new impetus. Portugal will always be grateful to Fernando Santos for the two titles, but now the time has come to prepare for Euro 2024 with another coach.”
In Portugal, there has already been speculation about coaching icon Mourinho as a possible successor to Santos. The 59-year-old Portuguese has been with AS Roma since 2021, with whom he celebrated the UEFA Europa Conference League title in his first season. Mourinho, who previously worked exclusively at club level, is under contract in the Italian capital until 2024. “A Bola” named other candidates as U21 national coach Rui Jorge, the clubless ex-Wolverhampton coach Bruno Lage or Jorge Jesus from Fenerbahce. Portugal expert de Almeida would like “a younger, more modern coach” such as Abel Ferreira from Palmeiras or Bruno Lage for the national team. “Both come from the emotional side and can win the players over and get the most out of them,” he says.
To home page