She expressed her disappointment with the official body's President, Rafael Louzan, who had earlier informed her that she would be in charge of the role if the side performs well in Euro 2025. Tome said even if the board wanted to go in a new direction, it had given an unclear message to her
Montse Tome (Pic: AFP)
Montse Tome was expecting to keep her job as the coach of Spain's women's national team after leading it to the European Championship final last month. But despite helping the side seal the final berth, she doesn't know why her contract was not extended.
"Things happen in soccer that you don't expect," Tome said in an interview with a Spanish radio channel.
The country's soccer federation had announced that it is not going to extend her contract and she will be replaced by former player Sonia Bermudez. The official body's announcement came after Spain suffered a loss in the Euro 2025 final against England in a penalty shootout.
After Spain won the 2023 World Cup, Tome was appointed to the role. Later, she led the side to the title of the inaugural Women's Nations League last year.
The coach also expressed disappointment with the official body's President, Rafael Louzan, who had earlier informed her that she would be in charge of the role if the side performs well in the Euro 2025.
"He has always shown a lot of confidence in me, but I'm a little disappointed about how everything was handled. He didn't keep his word about the continuity. I felt that he was happy with my work," she said.
The Oviedo-born former football player then said even if the board wanted to go in a new direction, it had given an unclear message to her.
"It was hard to understand everything that happened since the final. It's understandable that the federation wants to go into a new direction, but that message wasn't really clear for me. They had given me a different impression," said the 43-year-old.
Following the announcement, Montse Tome said she felt very respected after receiving goodbye messages from the players.
"I received many messages from them. I felt very respected by everyone. I'm not concerned about whether they posted them online or not," she said.
The decision to replace Tome, the first woman to coach the senior women's team in Spain, was made by the federation's board members. She had been criticised by some for not including Jenni Hermoso in recent call-ups, but she always maintained it was a decision based on sporting performances.
(With AP Inputs)
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