Mariano Soso is no longer Defensa y Justicia manager | OneFootball

In a press conference, the head coach announced that he will step down despite still having six months left on his contract.

After being eliminated in the group stage of the Torneo Apertura, Mariano Soso, head coach of Defensa y Justicia, called a press conference in which he publicly resigned from his position after failing to meet the goals he had set for himself one year after his arrival.

“I appreciate the recognition of our work. Defensa came to me at a time that was not very prosperous in my career, and the experience was not that valuable. That speaks of an institution that values the coach’s profile more than the results,” were the coach’s first words.

He then added, explaining why he resigned: “I want to be clear about how we arrived at this moment. When the first year of the contract was completed, I formally proposed an evaluation process, which I consider a responsible exercise. To review what was achieved and decide together whether the conditions were in place to continue the project. Defensa wanted to extend my contract, but I felt that since I had not achieved some of the objectives we set, I had to make room for another coaching staff.”

Throughout this Apertura, Defensa y Justicia went from good to bad. So much so that it was the last team to lose its unbeaten record, and for much of the tournament it remained among the top eight, fighting for a place in the round of 16.

After that, a poor run left the team out of everything. In total, it piled up five straight defeats, dropping from the top spots to 10th place, thus missing out on the round of 16 and ending up far from the international cup qualification spots.

In addition, during the second half of 2025, Soso was also unable to impose his style on El Halcón de Varela, which saw a positive streak come to an end, as after 11 consecutive years it failed to qualify for a tournament organized by Conmebol. In this way, he brought his second spell at the club to an end.

He managed a total of 33 matches between the Torneo Clausura, Apertura, and Copa Argentina. His record ended with 10 wins, 11 draws, and 12 defeats, giving him 41.41% of the points at stake, and he was unable to get the team into either the playoff zone or the international cup spots.

The coaches who left their positions in the Torneo Apertura

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