#INSERT type:image caption:Leon and coach Gustavo Matosas parted company after Leon failed to reach the playoffs. END#
Despite taking Leon from the second division all the way to two Mexican League titles in just over three years, the defending champion club and coach Gustavo Matosas parted ways on Monday after Leon failed to reach the Liguilla playoffs this season.
"The cycle is over and that is why I am leaving," said Matosas, who led the team to two titles, but who finished 10th and out of contention in the eight-club Liguilla playoffs. "It has been three marvelous years at Leon, I am very grateful."
The 47-year-old Uruguayan coach took over the team when it was down in the Ascenso MX and won promotion for Leon in the Clausura 2012.
Apertura 2012 was Matosas' first season with the club, which finished third with 33 points before being eliminated by Tijuana.
In Clausura 2013, however, the team finished with in a dismal 15th place with only 16 points. However, Matosas helped turn the club around in 2013 with a third-place finish with 30 points in the Apertura 2013 and then a 2013-14 Liguilla title.