Marcelo Bielsa declaration and rare snap as ex-Leeds United boss sees Uruguay side crash out of World Cup

Marcelo Bielsa made a frank admission after a rare outburst upon seeing his Uruguay team crash out of the 2026 World Cup in the early hours of Saturday morning.

Bielsa’s Uruguay side went into Saturday morning’s Group H finale against Spain sat on just two points and a 1-0 defeat condemned his team to a Group stage exit as Cape Verde sealed the runners-up spot.

In a rare outburst, a clearly frustrated Bielsa snapped at a reporter in an attempt to hurry up with a post match pitch side interview, Bielsa then declaring that he had brought “nothing” to the team in his three years in charge. Bielsa’s Uruguay contract expires this summer after the World Cup.

“What do I leave for Uruguayan football? Nothing,” said Bielsa, as per the Independent.

“Because any contribution that a coach might make to football in a country after three years of work never truly takes hold if results aren’t achieved. Fourth place in the qualifiers didn’t count for much, and a third-place finish in the Copa America didn’t, either. And there is obviously no need to spell it out after what happened now. A tenure that left nothing behind.

“I think we deserved to win seven points from the three matches, but we leave with only two points.

“I do not leave anything to this country. I couldn’t improve the players. I am sad.”