Sampaoli leaves Marseille before Champions League return

Sampaoli, 62, arrived at the Stade Velodrome in March 2021 and took Marseille to a second-placed finish in Ligue 1 last season. "After 16 months of collaboration, this work has allowed the club to take the next step in their new sporting project and qualify directly for the Champions League," the club said in a statement. "We are happy with the path taken and emotions shared but after a lot of consideration, the two parties, who are reacting in the interest of Marseille, agreed to bring this relationship to an end."

In May, colourful former Argentina and Sevilla boss Sampaoli, who also led Chile to the 2015 Copa America title, said he needed further funds to make the most of featuring in Europe's top tournament. "Do we want the Champions League for the money or to be competitive?," he told reporters earlier this year.