Brazil’s Flamengo fires Argentinian coach Sampaoli with Tite in sight

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Brazil’s Flamengo fired coach Jorge Sampaoli on Thursday, less than a week after the Argentinian missed his last attempt at winning a title at the club.

Former Argentina, Sevilla and Marseille coach Sampaoli took the job in Rio de Janeiro in April. His contract was due to expire at the end of 2024.

“The board thanks the professional (Sampaoli) and wishes him well in his career,” Flamengo said on its social media channels.

Sampaoli has faced difficulty since he joined Flamengo, who on Sunday failed to defend its Brazilian Cup title after a 2-1 aggregate result loss to São Paulo. Weeks earlier Sampaoli team was knocked out by Paraguay's Olímpia in the round of 16 of the Copa Libertadores, which Flamengo won last year.

Flamengo is currently in seventh place in the Brazilian championship after 24 matches. The team is trailing leader and local Rio rival Botafogo by 11 points.

Local media has reported the club’s favorite to take the job is former Brazil coach Tite, who left the national team position after its quarterfinal elimination against Croatia in last year's World Cup.

But Tite said in various pre-World Cup interviews that he would not coach any Brazilian team in 2023, and was looking for opportunities to work abroad.

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