Before he’d even said a word as Uruguay’s new manager, Diego Forlan allowed a giant grin to spread across his face.
Immediately, this marked out the former Atletico Madrid and Manchester United striker as different to his predecessor. Marcelo Bielsa didn’t smile much as Uruguay manager.
He didn’t have anything to smile about, certainly not at the 2026 World Cup.
Bielsa’s Uruguay tenure was a disaster. La Celeste suffered a desperately disappointing World Cup, exiting the tournament in the group stage, and that wasn’t even the start of their problems.
Forlan has inherited a broken team and a fractured national team programme. He hasn’t just been hired to improve results, but to rebuild trust between players and fans.
That Forlan is a Uruguayan football icon and a likeable character will help him, but he has taken on arguably the most challenging job in international football right now.
What is Forlan’s plan of action? How will he restore Uruguay as a force to be reckoned with?
