BUENOS AIRES, Argentina -- Gerardo Martino has been hired as coach of Argentina, less than three months after leaving Spanish club Barcelona. The Argentine Football Association said the 51-year-old Martino will replace Alejandro Sabella, who stepped down after Argentinas loss to Germany in last months World Cup final. Martino will be officially introduced on Thursday. It will be Martinos second coaching role with a national team, having been in charge of Paraguay from 2006-11. Martino was hired until the end of qualifying for the 2018 World Cup, but the contract will be automatically extended if the team makes it to the tournament in Russia. Martino left Barcelona in May with one year left on his contract after the club failed to win a major trophy for the first time in six years. Known for offensive squads, Martino had been favoured for the job by soccer association president Julio Grondona, who passed away on July 30. One of the reasons Martino was seen as a good fit for the role is because he has good relations with Lionel Messi and midfielder Javier Mascherano, the Barcelona players who are the leaders of the Argentine national team. His first official task will be to pick the squad for a Sept. 3 friendly against Germany in Duesseldorf, a match that was scheduled before the nations made it to the World Cup final in Brazil. The squad announcement is expected next week. Martino began his career almost 16 years ago with small club Brown de Arrecifes in Argentina. After coaching other local clubs, he moved to Paraguay to manage popular clubs Libertad and Cerro Porteno. He returned to Argentina in 2005 to coach Colon, then had another stint with Libertad before taking over Paraguays national team in late 2006. He led the South American nation to the quarterfinals of the 2010 World Cup and to the final of the 2011 Copa America, won by Uruguay. He revamped Newells Old Boys after arriving in 2012, leading the Argentine club to a national title and the semifinals of the Copa Libertadores in 2013. His success with Newells helped him land the Barcelona job, but he wasnt able to live up to expectations in Spain. Argentina, coming off the 1-0 loss to Germany in the World Cup final at the Maracana Stadium, hasnt won a major title since the 1993 Copa America in Ecuador. The team won gold in the 2004 and 2008 Olympics, tournaments played mostly with under-23 players. Patrick Robinson Saints Jersey . The best round belonged to Pat Perez. Tiger Woods didnt come close to claiming either Thursday in the Farmers Insurance Open, where the seven-time champion failed to break par in the opening round for first time in his career. TreQuan Smith Saints Jersey . In question is whether 26-year-old Matt Frattin will be on it. A a€?mediocrea€? training camp, as Carlyle put it earlier this week, has Frattin lingering nervously on the bubble at the end of the exhibition season, pushed out of a likely job by Brandon Kozun, the small, but feisty winger determined to make the NHL for the first time. http://www.saintsrookiestore.com/Saints-Demario-Davis-Jersey/ . The 24-year-old Pruneau played his CIS football with the Montreal Carabins. The six-foot, 200-pound Montreal native had 41 tackles, 3. Jermon Bushrod Jersey .C. -- The Steve Smith era in Carolina is over. Kurt Coleman Saints Jersey . INJURIES - Reds RF Jay Bruce is facing knee surgery for a torn meniscus and it could cost him a month of playing time. Chris Heisey, who has shown some pop (43 home runs, .NEW YORK -- The Brooklyn Nets reached an agreement in principle Wednesday with Lionel Hollins to become their coach, moving quickly after the departure of Jason Kidd. The deal with the former Memphis Grizzlies coach comes two days after the Nets made a trade with Milwaukee to allow Kidd out of his contract so the Bucks could hire him. Nets general manager Billy King and his assistants then met with Hollins on Monday night and again Tuesday before agreeing to the deal. Terms were not disclosed. "I want to thank the Nets ownership and Billy for this opportunity," Hollins said in a statement. "It has been a long process to get back into the league, and I believe that Billy and I will have a very successful working relationship. Brooklyn has firmly established itself as a franchise that is committed to winning, and I eagerly look forward to becoming part of that culture and building on the success of the past two playoff appearances." The Nets will introduce Hollins at a press conference Monday. Hollins led Memphis to 56 victories and the 2013 Western Conference finals before he and the Grizzlies parted ways. The Nets considered him last year after firing P.J. Carlesimo before hiring Kidd. He was the only known candidate the Nets interviewed this time. King said he had reached out to one other person who chose not to pursue the job. "If you look at (his) track record and what he did in Memphis, he was able to go in there and take a team, added somme veterans and they continually got better," King said Tuesday.dddddddddddd"He developed some young guys, (Marc) Gasol, some big guys. If you look at Memphis, they got consistently got better every year. All the way to the Western Conference finals." Kidd led Brooklyn to a 44-38 record and the second round of the playoffs in his lone season but the Nets allowed him to pursue other jobs after denying his request for more power within the organization. The Bucks held Kidds welcoming press conference earlier Wednesday. Hollins is known as a strong defensive coach, with the Grizzlies holding opponents to an NBA-low 89.3 points per game in his final season. He is the franchises career leader in wins and led them to three straight playoff appearances. He takes over a veteran team in Brooklyn that could easily fit his style of play if Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce return, and Brook Lopez and Deron Williams come back healthy after surgeries. Hollins went 214-201 with the Grizzlies and improved the teams record in each of his four full seasons, from 40 wins in 2009-10 to 56-26 in his final season. Memphis upset top-seeded San Antonio in the first round of the 2011 playoffs. But the Grizzlies came under new ownership and management during his final season, and they chose not to renew Hollins contract after they were swept by the Spurs in the conference finals. He met last month with Cleveland before the Cavaliers hired David Blatt. 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