Gerardo Martino

Gerardo Daniel "Tata" Martino (born 20 November 1962) is an Argentine professional football coach and former player who is the head coach of Major League Soccer club Atlanta United.

Martino played mostly for Newell's Old Boys in his native Rosario. He holds the record of appearances with the team, playing a total of 505 matches in all official competitions. He was also selected in a fans' poll as Newell's best player throughout the club's history.

Martino was chosen to replace Tito Vilanova as head coach of Barcelona at the start of the 2013–14 season, but announced his resignation on 17 May 2014, though his side finished runner-up in both the Copa del Rey and La Liga that season. In 2015, he led Argentina to the Copa América Final, only to be defeated by hosts Chile on penalties. His team also finished as runners-up in the Copa América Centenario, again losing to the defending champion Chile on penalties. On 5 July 2016, Martino resigned from the Argentina national team.

He was named the head coach of Atlanta United, a MLS expansion team that began play in 2017. Martino led the team to an MLS Cup victory in their second season and was named the MLS Coach of the Year before departing for the Mexico national team. He spent three years leading the side and left Mexico after being knocked out in the group stage in the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

In 2023, Martino returned to MLS, being appointed as head coach of Inter Miami, where he joined former Barcelona players Lionel Messi, Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets, as well as former Atlanta United player Josef Martínez. He left after the 2024 season to tend to a personal matter in his native Argentina.

On 6 November 2025, Martino returned to Atlanta United as its head coach on a two-year contract.

Playing career

Gerardo Martino played professionally from 1980 to 1996, mainly as an attacking midfielder. In his hometown of Rosario, he is most closely linked to Newell's Old Boys, where he is renowned for having made the most official appearances in the club's history with 505 games. He played a significant role in winning three Argentine Primera América titles in the 1987–88, 1990–91, and 1992 Clausura seasons during his several stints with Newell's 1980–1990, 1991–1994, and 1995 seasons. His influence was so great that he was subsequently named the greatest player in the club's history in a fan vote.

On 15 February 1981, Martino debuted with the Argentina national youth football team in a 3-0 friendly victory against Chile. Ten years later, on 19 February 1991, he received his first call-up by new coach Alfio Basile to the senior squad for a friendly match against Hungary national football team. Martino came on in the second half as Argentina won 2–0 on home soil.

Martino briefly played European football outside of Argentina when he moved to Spain in 1991 to play for CD Tenerife, where he made 15 appearances and scored one goal. Between 1994 and 1995, he also played domestically for Lanús, making 30 appearances and scoring three goals. Before formally retiring from professional play in 1996, he played for O'Higgins in Chile and Barcelona SC in Ecuador as his career came to an end.

Martino represented Argentina at several levels on the international scene. He participated in the 1981 FIFA World Youth Championship squad and made his U20 national team debut in February of that same year. His senior international career was brief; under coach Alfio Basile, he only received one cap for the Argentina national team in a friendly match against Hungary in February 1991.

Coaching career

Paraguay national team

Martino was assigned as head coach of the Paraguay national football team in February 2007, replacing Uruguayan Anibal "Maño" Ruiz. His knowledge and success while coaching Paraguayan clubs were the parameters that positioned him as the best option for the job (other candidates were Nery Pumpido and Miguel Ángel Russo). Previously, Martino had won the Paraguayan league four times from 2002 to 2006.

In 2008, Martino was linked for vacant managerial position of Iran Pro League side Steel Azin, but the deal was cancelled for personal reasons. On 5 July 2010, Martino announced that he would be stepping down as Paraguay coach on their return from the 2010 FIFA World Cup, in which he led Paraguay to quarter-finals. Martino confirmed that with his four-year contract expiring, he would not be extending his spell in charge of the national side. However, on 10 July 2010, Martino agreed to stay on as Paraguay coach until after the 2011 Copa America, in which Paraguay were runners-up after losing to Uruguay in the final.

Newell's Old Boys

After Hernán Darío Gómez's departure from the Colombia national team, Martino received a proposition to coach the team but turned it down, opting instead to coach Newell's Old Boys, one of his former clubs as a player, and a club which at the time was dangerously close to relegation to the Primera B Nacional, the second tier of Argentine football. However, a series of impressive results under Martino secured top-flight status for Newell's, and Martino's reputation as a coach increased quite significantly.

Following his excellent first season at Newell's, Martino won the 2013 Torneo Final, the second and final stage of the Argentine Primera División season and reached the semi-finals of the 2013 Copa Libertadores. As a result, Martino won further plaudits as a coach, having transformed Newell's from a team facing relegation on his arrival to a title-winning side, in addition to the arguably more impressive feat of reaching the 2013 Copa Libertadores semi-final, the pinnacle club competition organized by CONMEBOL. It was this startling turnaround that further increased Martino's stock as a coach, and his achievements at Newell's soon caught the attention of various clubs in Europe, including Barcelona.

Barcelona

On 7 July 2013, Martino was confirmed as head coach of Spanish club Barcelona to replace Tito Vilanova, who resigned three days earlier due to health issues. He signed a two-year deal at Barcelona.

His first competitive game in charge of Barça was on 18 August 2013 against Levante, a game which Barcelona won 7–0 on the opening weekend of the 2013–14 La Liga season. On 26 October 2013, Martino won 2–1 against rivals Real Madrid at the Camp Nou, winning his first Clásico as a Barcelona coach. Three days later, Barcelona went on to win 0–3 at Celta Vigo, and Martino became the first coach in Barcelona history to not lose a game in his first 16 matches. On 20 November, Martino's unbeaten start as Barcelona coach came to an end after his 21st game in charge, as Barcelona lost 2–1 away at Ajax in the 2013–14 UEFA Champions League. After conceding the 2013–14 La Liga title on the last day of the season to Atlético Madrid, Martino announced he was to leave his role after just one year in charge, during which he did not manage to win any major trophy except the Spanish Super Cup.

Argentina national team

On 12 August 2014, Martino was introduced as the new head coach for the Argentina national team, succeeding Alejandro Sabella, who took the side into the final against Germany at the World Cup in Brazil. In the 2015 Copa América, he reached the final, in which Argentina were runners-up after losing to hosts Chile on penalties. They also finished as runners-up in the Copa América Centenario Final on 26 June 2016 against Chile, again losing on penalties. On 5 July 2016, Martino resigned.

Atlanta United

After departing from Argentina, Martino was announced as Major League Soccer expansion team Atlanta United's inaugural season head coach on 27 September 2016. On 23 October 2018, Martino announced that he would not renew his contract with Atlanta United following the conclusion of the 2018 MLS season, citing personal reasons. He was expected to sign with the Mexico national team. Atlanta defeated the Portland Timbers in the MLS Cup, winning their first league title in Martino's last match with the club.

Mexico national team

On 7 January 2019, Martino was announced as head coach of the Mexico national team in his return to international management since leaving Argentina in May 2016. On 22 March, Martino won his first match with Mexico with a 3–1 win over Chile in a friendly. Later in the same year, Martino and Mexico won the CONCACAF Gold Cup over rivals the United States in a 1–0 victory, his first national title.

But in 2021, Martino saw a steep drop in form, losing both the inaugural CONCACAF Nations League final and CONCACAF Gold Cup to the United States. This was further compounded with a 2–0 loss to the United States in World Cup qualifying in November, marking the first time in the rivalry since 1934 that one side had swept three matches against the other in a calendar year.

In the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Martino led Mexico to their biggest failure in 44 years, since Mexico finished third in their group behind Poland on goal difference, resulting in their first exit from the group stage since 1978. Following their last group match against Saudi Arabia, Martino fulfilled his contract as head coach of Mexico, as reports were coming out that he would be let go even if Mexico made a deep run in the World Cup, due to his unpopularity and combative persona.