On This Day in 2009: Sven-Goran Eriksson is sacked as Mexico head coach

Former England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson was sacked as head coach of Mexico on this day in 2009.

The Swede had replaced Hugo Sanchez 10 months earlier but lost his job after a damaging 3-1 loss to Honduras which put Mexico’s World Cup qualification hopes in jeopardy.

It was Mexico’s second defeat in three qualifying matches and left them fourth in their six-team group, with the prospect of facing a fifth-placed South American team in a play-off not an enticing one.

Just one win in previous qualification matches had put Eriksson – criticised for not being able to communicate his strategy to the players and never really understanding Mexican football – under pressure and losing to Honduras forced the Mexican Football Federation to act, with the national team not having won away from home for more than two years.

“We could not take risks with qualification for the World Cup. We cannot allow qualification to depend on winning all our home games,” said president Justino Compean.

Eriksson took his sacking with his customary sangfroid.

“I would have liked to have been on the bench in South Africa but that’s football,” said Eriksson in his newly learned Spanish.

The Swede went on to become director of football at Notts County and management jobs with the Ivory Coast, Leicester, a couple of clubs in China and the Philippines national team followed.