Victor Manuel Vucetich steps down as Queretaro head coach

Victor Manuel Vucetich has stepped down as head coach of Queretaro, ending his second tenure with the team. Vucetich couldn’t reach an agreement with the club with strong rumors coming out that becuase of the COVID 19 emergency, the club couldn’t match his financial expectations. No word yet on who will take over his position at the club.

Victor Manuel Vucetich has been the most successful coach in the club as he led them to their only title, the Copa MX Apertura 2016. He also coached the team to their only Liga MX final in the Clausura 2015. Ronaldinho Gaucho’s team reached the final but lost to Santos after a 5-0 loss in the first leg and a 3-0 victory in the second leg at home. Yet a conflict between Vucetich and Ronaldinho ended the Brazilian superstar’s time at Queretaro. Queretaro never got as much press as they did with Ronaldinho, and Vucetich never came close to another final with the team. Vucetich ended his time with Queretaro but didn’t coach another team until returning to Queretaro in 2019. In the 2019 Apertura he got the team to the Liguilla but they lost in the Quarterfinals after dropping both games to Necaxa. His last season wasn’t as good as he had the team out of the playoffs when the tournament was cancelled because of the COVID 19 emergency.

Queretaro had been the first team in Liga MX to announce, coincidentally by Vucetich, that they were implementing pay cuts because of the COVID 19 emergency. The team has just been acquired by Grupo Caliente, owners of Xolos de Tijuana. The financial situation doesn’t look to be as solid and thus the departure of Vucetich might be logical. Also, the new owners might want to take the team down a different path from Vucetich, who was brought in by the old ownership. Meanwhile, Vucetich is one of the most respected managers in Liga MX but he also is known to take his time, so his next move will not be a rushed one. With no word yet on when Liga MX is expected to return, no clear candidates have emerged on his potential replacement in Queretaro.