Brazil close to appointing new manager, says official
RIO DE JANEIRO: The Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) aims to name a new men's national team manager by next week, sporting director Rodrigo Caetano said on Monday.
The position has been vacant since March 28, when Dorival Junior was sacked following a 4-1 World Cup qualifying defeat to Argentina in Buenos Aires.
Caetano said he continued assessing potential candidates with CBF president Ednaldo Rodrigues and technical coordinator Juan Santos.
"We are constantly in internal meetings ... and we are trying to confirm this name as quickly as possible," Caetano told Sportv.
"Due to the confidential nature of our negotiations, it is practically impossible for us to talk about probabilities. We know that it is a national issue and that the choice of the head coach for the Brazilian national team is an extremely important one. We hope to be able to confirm the new manager next week at the latest."
Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti is understood to remain the CBF's preferred choice, with Jorge Jesus and Abel Ferreira also contenders.
The CBF previously said it intended to appoint a new manager in time for Brazil's World Cup qualifiers against Ecuador and Paraguay in June.
"We are working with a very small number of names ... and we have our targets," Caetano said. "But it's very difficult to talk about any specific name right now because it could be counterproductive."
Brazil is currently fourth in the 10-team South American qualifying group, 10 points behind leader Argentina with four matchdays remaining.
The top six teams will earn an automatic place at football's showpiece tournament in the United States, Mexico and Canada next year. The seventh-ranked side will advance to an intercontinental playoff.
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