<
        >

          Christian Martinoli: The man who brought down Miguel Herrera

          • Andrea CanalesJul 29, 2015, 06:55 PM ET
            Close
              Andrea Canales covers Liga MX and Mexico National Team for ESPNFC.com.

          When Miguel Herrera released his statement responding to his firing by the Mexican federation, he never mentioned commentator Christian Martinoli by name, but there was a specific reference to the TV Azteca personality.

          "I understand that this is not an attitude becoming of a Mexico national team coach, despite all the criticism and taunts against myself and my family."

          Indeed, though others have criticized Herrera for different things, Martinoli may now claim to be the one who ended Herrera's stint as coach of Mexico. While he may not have expected Herrera to attack him at a public airport, Martinoli had no problem airing his views on what were Herrera's shortcomings.

          It's part of Martinoli's fiery persona on the air. The half-Argentine, half-Mexican commentator, instantly recognizable with his trademark slicked-back hairstyle, has never gone lightly on the national team, even before Herrera's arrival.

          There is the 2013 video clip in which he absolutely eviscerates El Tri players for failing to get a result against Costa Rica to secure a World Cup playoff spot, instead needing the United States to score against Panama in order to gain the slot.

          For those who don't understand Martinoli's excited Spanish, he fervently thanks the U.S. for the favor, then rants on Mexico's players, saying, "Those in green didn't do it. They (the U.S.) did! Remember this your whole lives! You didn't do anything for the shirt! You didn't push this team along. You didn't put us in the Cup. You didn't let us live. It's the US. Not you! Not you!"

          He then went on to call for the resignation of then-coach Victor Manuel Vucetich, who was in fact replaced immediately by the FMF, who then installed Herrera as coach.

          Basically, it's not as if Herrera came along and suddenly Martinoli became a harsh critic of El Tri and the coach. He's always been a pundit whose tone, for some, is abrasive. Others, however, feel the national team should be held to a high standard and find in Martinoli the reflection of the passionate frustration they often feel when the squad falls short of expectations.

          Things got very sour between Martinoli and Herrera partly because of the new freedom people have to communicate directly and publicly on social media. Herrera's daughter, Mishelle, engaged with Martinoli via tweets after the team was bounced from the Copa America in group play.

          Yet one of the biggest criticisms Martinoli had of Herrera was a simple one in terms of different approaches to a task. Martinoli thought the coach of the national team should focus on actually coaching the players, and he disparaged the ad campaigns Herrera had with different companies, calling the coach a "marketer".

          However, there is generally quite a bit of downtime with the national team, with long stretches between games. Most wouldn't begrudge Herrera shooting a commercial or two, but some began to agree with Martinoli when Herrera used his Twitter account, which many followed for national team news, to boost a political party in Mexico. That crossed a line for many, but Herrera was unapologetic.

          Others didn't care about the political tweets, because they so loved Herrera's emotionally exuberant coaching style.

          Those who miss Herrera will no doubt blame Martinoli, even if the relationship with El Tri players and the media in general has become so strained that none of the players spoke to any reporters even after the Gold Cup victory.

          In the end, though, the internet being what it is, the whole dust-up between Martinoli and Herrera was framed by the imagination of fans.