Bielsa reveals Muslera asked to be substituted after his fourth World Cup error cost Uruguay in 1-0 loss to Spain | OneFootball

Uruguay goalkeeper Fernando Muslera made a massive error that cost his side, as they lost 1-0 to Spain and crashed out of the 2026 World Cup in North America.

The South Americans needed a draw to advance to the next round, but Alexis Baena’s first-half strike ended those dreams.

Muslera should have dealt with the shot better. It was a nice swivel-and-hit, but he could have kept it out.

The 40-year-old has cost his side points at the World Cup. He spilt a header in the opener against Saudi Arabia, and Abdulelah Al-Amri scored the rebound.

Muslera should have saved Kevin Pina’s long-range free-kick as Cape Verde held Uruguay to a draw in their second group game.

Uruguay made it 2-1, but the former Galatasaray man made yet another error, veering off his line to leave an empty net for Cape Verde’s equaliser.

Why Uruguay manager Marcelo Bielsa persisted with him after the string of errors is a mystery.

The former Leeds United boss eventually took him off at half-time in favour of Sergio Rochet against Spain.

Bielsa revealed that Muslera had requested the substitution, a sad end to what should have been a respected international career on the world stage.

Uruguay need to head back to the drawing board, possibly without Bielsa, whose overly tactical approach is not suited to tournaments like this.

Many players in the camp reportedly downed tools and wanted to adapt to a different tactical approach.

Besides Maxi Araujo and Mathias Olivera, not many players can leave this tournament with their heads held high.

Captain Federico Valverde also needs to be checked.

He reportedly led the rebellion against Bielsa’s tactics, the same thing the Spanish media accused him of at Real Madrid.

Uruguay need to make some tough decisions regarding Muslera and Bielsa as they look to bounce back from another painful World Cup group-stage exit.