Montevideo, July 1 : Marcelo Bielsa said he would step down as Uruguay manager after his team's group-stage elimination from the FIFA World Cup 2026.

Two-time World Cup winner Uruguay finished third in Group H after draws against Cabo Verde and Saudi Arabia and a defeat to Spain.

"For me, this farewell is very painful because of the hopes I had when I took on this project, because of the way it ended, and because of the efforts of so many people, especially the players," the 70-year-old Argentine told a news conference, according to Xinhua. "As for my responsibility for what happened, I think it is very clear that I cannot justify the position we finished in. In short, the way I managed the resources available to me, considering the quality of players I had, was not enough."

Bielsa led Uruguay to 16 wins, 12 draws and eight losses following his appointment in May 2023. He denied widespread media reports that his relationship with the players had broken down.

"They showed enormous commitment. Whether I come out of this looking good or bad depends entirely on my relationship with the players. They did nothing that prevented me from leading them or from giving them every tool I had at my disposal to achieve the results they deserved."

"Whether I come out of this looking good or bad, or whatever speculation may exist, is beyond my control and not something I can comment on."

The former Argentina and Chile national team manager singled out goalkeeper Fernando Muslera for praise. The 40-year-old asked to be substituted at halftime of the last group match against Spain after his error led to Alex Baena's 42nd-minute goal.

"It says something about Muslera's character," Bielsa said. "I've never had a player ask to be substituted because of the emotional impact of their own mistakes ... and he didn't feel he was in the right frame of mind to face the second half. I thought it was an extraordinary display of generosity, something that's rare in today's football."

He also defended his decision to take off Real Madrid midfielder Federico Valverde in the second half, with Uruguay needing an equaliser to stay alive in the tournament.

"You tell me that by taking a player off in the 60th minute I exposed him, but I don't agree with that," Bielsa said. "Managers substitute players because it's part of the job. I don't believe I exposed him in any way.

"I've never had any issues with Valverde, and I don't think I've ever made more concessions for any other player than I have for him, because he deserves it."

/IANS