Why leave a good situation?
Gerardo “Tata” Martino ended his tenure with Atlanta United on top, winning the 2018 MLS Cup. While Martino had already announced his departure weeks before the final game, many wondered why exactly the Argentine manager was ready to leave after just two years in charge, with one of the most exciting teams in the league playing at their best.
But in a new Q&A with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Doug Roberson on Monday, Martino explained the primary motivation for departing: homesickness.
“As I’ve said over the past few weeks, this past year, since I arrive in early January, I haven’t had chance to go back to Argentina once to visit family,” he said in the interview. “This coming year, I couldn’t be able to stand another year like that, especially with all of the tournaments. You have to be here every day. It’s the labor of the job. I didn’t think I could do another year.”
Martino also noted that the daily grind wasn’t as strenuous when managing national teams, something he’s done already with Paraguay and Argentina, and when asked if he will be taking the Mexico national team job next, which he’s been linked to for several weeks, Martino responded, “It’s possible. Not 100 percent.”
You can read more about those topics, what Martino would advise other head coaches new to the league, and more over at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
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