The Uruguayan Football Association (AUF) is advancing in the restructuring of its teams after the departure of Marcelo Bielsa and has Diego Forlán as the main protagonist of the immediate new project. The former La Celeste forward is in talks with the leaders to join the work of the national teams, initially at the head of the U-20 team and with the possibility of provisionally directing the senior team.

The change comes after a World Cup in which Uruguay did not meet sporting expectations, a result that marked the end of Bielsa's cycle at the head of the national team.

As confirmed by the president of the AUF, Ignacio Alonso, there have already been several contacts with the historic Uruguayan goalscorer and the objective is to integrate him into the sports structure of the federation as soon as possible.

The proposal contemplates Forlán directing the U-20 team during the next youth World Cup, which will be held in Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan, in addition to assuming the commitments of the senior team until March 2027.

"We have the opportunity to incorporate him, in this case, to the U-20 National Team. Having Diego inside the complex, with the background he has, having played in the best teams in the world, having been exposed to all types of methodology, having his own, being a National Team player and with experience as a First Division coach... I think it was a nice opportunity. He is excited," Alonso explained in statements to the Teledoce channel.

The leader clarified that there are still conceptual and economic aspects to be resolved before definitively closing the agreement.

The AUF keeps the search open for the definitive coach

Although the immediate plan aims for Forlán to assume functions in both the U-20 and the senior team on a temporary basis, the AUF does not rule out that his continuity depends on the performance obtained during that period.

"We are hiring a U-20, who will play the major league matches. Then reality will tell where the evaluations come from," Alonso said.

Meanwhile, in Uruguay they maintain that Marcelo Broli continues to be the main candidate to definitively assume the technical direction of the senior team. The coach, U20 world champion in 2023, has already held talks with the AUF, although the first negotiations did not reach an agreement.

The situation is reminiscent of the process experienced by Lionel Scaloni in Argentina after the 2018 World Cup in Russia. At that time he began as interim coach, directed a youth tournament in La Alcudia and later took charge of the first friendlies of the senior team alongside Pablo Aimar and Walter Samuel, until establishing himself as permanent coach.

In the case of Forlán, his coaching experience began in 2020 with Peñarol. For eight months he directed eleven matches between the Apertura Tournament and the Copa Libertadores, with a balance of four wins, three draws and four losses. His team scored 12 goals and conceded the same amount.

At that stage he worked with footballers who are currently part of or have been linked to the Uruguayan national team, among them Facundo Pellistri, Joaquín Piquerez, Facundo Torres and Agustín Álvarez Martínez.

He later moved to Atenas de San Carlos, where he remained between March and September 2021. There he directed twelve games, with four wins, five draws and three losses, in addition to registering 16 goals for and eight against. His cycle ended due to differences with the group that managed the club's sports corporation.

Since then he has not directed again at a professional level. In 2022 he presented a project to take over Durazno Fútbol Club, an institution that was later refounded as DFC before recovering its original name in 2026 to compete again in the First Amateur Division.