Cesar Luis Menotti, who led Argentina to the World Cup in 1978, has died aged 85, the local football federation announced.
Menotti, born in 1938 in Rosario, Argentina, had 11 caps with the country's national team in the 1960s and has since coached 11 clubs - some more than once - and two representative teams during a coaching career that spanned 37 years. His most memorable achievement was in 1978, when he led the Albiceleste to the world title. A year later, he made the under-20s champions and his philosophy of football was romantic at a time when Argentina had built a reputation for a cynical approach that more than once turned violent.
In the 1978 final, hosts Argentina beat the Netherlands 3-1 after extra time. Mario Kempes scored two of the goals against the Tulips, who were without legend Johan Cruyff, who refused to play in the tournament. In 1979, with Diego Armando Maradona in the squad that had not been selected for the World Cup the year before, the Argentines became the under-20 world champions, beating the Soviet Union 3:1. Menotti parted ways with the national team after the 1982 World Cup in Spain. Argentina crashed out of the competition after defeat by Brazil in the second round - a game in which Maradona was sent off. In charge of Barcelona at club level, he won two cups in two seasons, which were also the last of his coaching career.
As a footballer, Menotti played as a forward and his career began at Rosario Central. Subsequently, he moved to Boca Juniors, where he became the champion of the country, then played for the New York Generals, as well as for Santos, where he was a teammate of the Brazilian icon Pele. /BGNES
