What We're Reading
Scolari in Line for Brazil Return
- AFP, Wednesday, November 28, 2012 11:31 AM
Representatives from Brazil’s soccer federation (CBF) hinted that former coach Luiz Felipe Scolari could be reappointed to the national team position following Mario Menezes’ ouster last week. Menezes coached Brazil for just two years, during which time the Selecao lost in the Copa America quarterfinals in 2011 and the 2012 Olympic Games final in London in August.
In an interview with A Folha de Sao Paulo, CBF Chairman Jose Maria Marin quashed rumors that former FC Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola was being lined up for the job, saying that he and other CBF managers preferred a Brazilian. "We won five (world) titles with them. That's why it would be very difficult to call in a foreigner," Marin said.
These comments immediately fueled speculation that 64-year-old Scolari, who was recently fired by Brazilian club Palmeiras, would return to the national team he coached to World Cup glory in 2002. Either way, Marin is expected to announce Menezes’ replacement tomorrow. Scolari also coached Portugal to a fourth-place finish that the 2006 World Cup.
