Spain head coach Roberto Martinez has announced that he will not be extending his contract, which expires at the end of Qatar 2022.
Martinez made the announcement in the wake of a 0-0 draw with Croatia that ended his team’s involvement at Qatar 2022.
“That was my last game with the national team and it’s emotional, as you can imagine,” he said in a tearful press conference. “It has been amazing.
“In six years, everything you want to do in a club, we have been able to do it in a national team. It makes me extremely proud. This team have given everyone incredible joy. But now it’s time to accept that this is my last game.”
Belgium finished third in Group F, behind winners Morocco and Croatia, having previously beaten Canada 1-0 before losing 2-0 to the North Africans.
When explaining what had gone wrong in Qatar, Martinez said: “I think it’s very clear. You come to the World Cup and you have to play three games and we only played one.
“The first games we were fearful, not the team that we are. We listened to the outside noise, we were feeling the responsibility. We played thinking if we lose a game we could be out and that’s what cost us.
“Today was a performance and I felt we were the better team. We created better chances. Croatia are a great side and I felt today, had we gone through, you would have seen the real Belgium.”
