Roberto Martinez has confirmed that he will leave the his position as head Coach of Belgium, following the team’s exit from the FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
Martinez confirmed that the game against Croatia – the final group match – was his last at the helm of affairs with the Belgian team.
It seemed the Spaniard had struggled to galvanize the leaders in the team as leaked reports had suggested several senior first team members were at loggerheads and not in talking terms.
That locker room disarray proved the recipe for disaster for Belgium in the tournament as they crashed out in the group stage – where they managed just one goal in three games.
However, Martinez revealed in the post-match presser on Thursday, that the decision to walk away from the job was made before the commencement of the world cup.
“That was my last game. It was emotional, as you can imagine.” Martinez stated. “The decision was taken just before the World Cup. I always work towards long-term projects and they need to be set in advance.
“Since 2018 I have had many opportunities to leave to take jobs at club level. I always wanted to be loyal and finish the job. I don’t resign – it’s the end of my contract. That was always the plan.”
