Why are Almada and Herrera the ideal candidates for El Tri?
2:07
(CNN Spanish) -
The architect, as technical director, of the historic two-time championship of the Atlas Fútbol Club, which conquered the first division of Mexican soccer after 70 years, the Argentine Diego Cocca (Buenos Aires, 1972) is the name that sounds the most to establish himself in DT of the Mexican team after the disappointing performance of El Tri in the Qatar 2022 World Cup.
The sports press, such as the Spanish newspaper Marca, among others, places the name of Cocca as the first option to replace Gerardo 'Tata' Martino as the new technical director of the team.
The Mexican Football Federation has not made an official announcement, but the name that is mentioned in all the pools is that of Cocca.
(Manuel Velasquez/Getty Images)
The 50-year-old Argentine has been the technical director of the Tigres Club of the Autonomous University of Nuevo León (UANL) since November 2022, in the Mexican first division.
Cocca has developed his career as a player and as a coach between Argentina, Spain and Mexico.
He made his debut in the first division in Argentina with River Plate in 1991, a team with which he participated in 25 games.
From there he went to Deportivo Español, was traded to Ferrocarril Oeste and also wore the Banfield and Argentinos Juniors jerseys, with which he retired as a professional player in 2006.
His relationship with Mexico dates back to 1999, when he was part of the Atlas de Guadalajara squad.
Cocca also played for Veracruz and Querétaro.
His record as a footballer is discreet: he played in 460 games and scored four goals.
In 2007 he made the leap to coaching in Argentina, in the second division, with the CAI (Children's Activities Commission), in the city of Comodoro Rivadavia.
He debuted first with the Godoy Cruz Club in 2008 and over the years he will take charge of more recognized teams: Racing Club and Rosario Central (Argentina);
Millonarios (Colombia) and Club Tijuana (Mexico).
advertising
But Cocca's figure is consecrated in 2021 and 2022, when he leads Atlas with the Mexican first division championship in two consecutive years.
This achievement is what the Mexican Football Federation is looking for.
The Tricolor team was eliminated in the group stage at the Qatar 2022 World Cup, which had not happened to the Tri since the 1978 World Cup Argentina. In the eight previous World Cups, Mexico had played in the round of 16.
Analysis |
Why Mexico did not reach the round of 16 in the World Cup in Qatar 2022
In Qatar 2022, the Mexican team drew with Poland (0-0), was defeated by Argentina (2-0) and beat Saudi Arabia (2-1).