Saralegui Resigns After Preseason Loss

The pressure became too great at the beginning of the new season that he had to step away. It didn’t help that they lost to Nacional in the opening round of the Copa Bimbo. This was seen as a long time coming especially since their last loss to their eternal rivals left them out of the running for the title although there still is not champion officially in Uruguay.

Saralegui gave his unconditional resignation and it was accepted by the club’s administrative board. The board in turn quickly acted and decided to hire Julio Ribas. Julio Ribas is among one of the most successful Uruguayan coaches in recent years. He comes back to Uruguay after coaching the Omani national team in 2008. He was among one of the most successful coaches in the past 25 years for Peñarol leading them to a domestic title. One of his biggest accomplishemnts was leading Bella Vista to their only Liguilla conquest back in 1998-99.

In his second stint as with Peñarol, Saralegui was the most successful coach in the club’s recent history. He led the club to their first title in five years by winning the Clausura 2008. Saralegui’s 71% success rate (22 wins, 7 draws, 5 losses) was among the best in team history. He also had relative success against Nacional beating them in the 2008 Clausura as well as in Liguilla.