Football
ESPN staff 10y

Pep Guardiola backs Del Bosque

Pep Guardiola has urged Spain to stick with coach Vicente del Bosque after their disastrous World Cup campaign, saying he is "the right man" for the job.

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Defending champions Spain crashed out after a 5-1 drubbing by the Netherlands and a 2-0 reverse to Chile, and Bayern Munich coach Guardiola said he was "sad" at their fall from grace.

But he backed Del Bosque, who has been in charge since 2008, to take the necessary steps to revitalise the team's fortunes.

"Del Bosque is the best coach Spain could have, and I hope he stays because he is the right man to make the changes the team needs," he told a conference in Buenos Aires.

"Spain made me very sad. Football owes these players so much as they have done so much for the sport, which means they deserved to be able to compete in the final stages."

Earlier this week, Del Bosque said stability was crucial as reports indicated that he would remain in charge.

The 63-year-old has so far refused to publicly confirm his intentions, but stressed he would leave if the Spanish FA told him he was no longer required.

But sources close to the governing body have told AS that the current coaching team will remain in place until the Euro 2016 finals in France.

Del Bosque, speaking to ABC, said: "I will speak with the federation president [Angel Maria Villar] and the secretary general [Jorge Perez].

"As I have said, we will look for what is best for Spanish football, that there is no break and that all works well.

"We want the stability required in the whole business and, as I said, the future is secure no matter who [is the national coach]. We have a good base and we must be relaxed to make decisions."

Information from the Press Association was used in this report.

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