A look back at Vojvoda’s top jobs, new Santos boss in the spotlight | OneFootball

Santos acted quickly in the market following the dismissal of Cleber Xavier and already has a new coach. Last Thursday, the Alvinegro Praiano finalized the signing of coach Juan Pablo Vojvoda, formerly of Fortaleza. Free in the market, he is expected to sign a contract valid until the end of 2026.

After giving up on Jorge Sampaoli, Santos shifted its focus and managed to convince Vojvoda to take over the team. The Argentine, who initially wanted to return to work only in 2026, evaluated the proposal after talking with the board and accepted the offer from Alvinegro Praiano.

Therefore, Gazeta Esportiva provides a general overview to show Santos fans how Vojvoda's main jobs have been, the new commander of Peixe after Cleber Xavier's departure.

Juan Pablo Vojvoda spent the last five years in Brazilian football, in charge of Fortaleza. The coach, however, also had longer stints at two other clubs: Talleres, from Argentina, and Unión La Calera, from Chile.

Fortaleza (2021-2025)

Juan Pablo Vojvoda's work at the helm of Fortaleza was the biggest 'success case' of the coach's career. In total, he spent five seasons in charge of Leão do Pici, with 309 games on the sidelines. In total, he accumulated 144 wins, 77 draws, and 88 losses, totaling a 54.9% success rate.

Vojvoda arrived at Fortaleza in May 2021 to replace Enderson Moreira. Right in his first season with the club, he achieved some impressive results. He won the Cearense Championship and reached the semi-finals of the Copa do Brasil, as well as finishing fourth in the Brasileirão and securing a direct spot in the Libertadores for the first time in the club's history.

In 2022, Leão do Pici competed in five competitions: Cearense, Copa do Nordeste, Libertadores, Brasileirão, and Copa do Brasil. The coach lifted the first two titles mentioned, but fell in the round of 16 of the continental tournament and in the quarterfinals of the national knockout competition. The start in Serie A had some slips, and Fortaleza even made it into the Z4, but they recovered, finished in eighth place, and went to the Libertadores playoffs.

In 2023, Fortaleza ended up falling in the third phase of the Libertadores and went to the Copa Sudamericana. The Ceará team reached the competition's final for the first time, but suffered from bad luck and ended up only with the runner-up after losing to LDU-EQU on penalties. Despite this, it was another year when the fans were proud of winning the Cearense Championship and finishing the Brasileirão in tenth place.

Last year, Vojvoda's Fortaleza also collected impressive feats in Serie A: it finished again in fourth place, secured a spot in the Libertadores, and ended its campaign undefeated at home. In addition, they also lifted the Copa do Nordeste, but lost the Cearense on penalties. In the Sula, they fell in the quarterfinals, as well as in the Copa do Brasil.

Finally, Vojvoda ended his stint at Fortaleza in 2025. The Argentine was fired in July of this year after a negative streak of six consecutive losses. Despite the good previous years, the coach could no longer extract good football from the team. The team was runner-up in the Cearense Championship and was in the Z4 of the Brasileirão.

Unión La Calera (2020)

At Unión La Calera, Vojvoda also did outstanding work. The coach led the team in two competitions: Chilean Championship and Sudamericana. Under his command, the team finished the national competition in second place and took the club to the Libertadores for the first time. In the continental tournament, they fell in the round of 16.

In total, the coach was on the sidelines for 40 matches of Unión La Calera, with 18 victories, ten draws, and 12 losses. He left the club in 2021 after not renewing the contract, taking over Fortaleza three months later.

Talleres (2018-2019)

Between 2018 and 2019, Vojvoda led Talleres, from Argentina, but generally fell short. In total, there were 36 matches, with 14 victories, nine draws, and 13 losses.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.