Former Inter Miami and Monterrey manager; Diego Alonso has been named the new coach of Uruguay, the country’s football association announce.

The 46-year-old replaces Oscar Tabarez, who was sacked last month after 15 years on the job.

Tabárez led Uruguay to a fourth-place finish at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. He has also won the 2011 Copa America. His departure came after a string of poor results that left the two-time World Cup winners seventh in South America’s qualifying group for Qatar 2022.

The top four qualify automatically for the finals and the fifth-placed side goes into an inter-regional playoff.

Alonso has a wealth of experience at the club level having coached Penarol and Bella Vista in his native Uruguay as well as Paraguayan sides Olimpia and Guarani.

His longest coaching spell was at Mexican side Pachuca, who he led to the Mexican championship in 2016. He also won the CONCACAF Champions League with both Pachuca and Monterrey.

The Uruguayan Football Association did not provide details about his contract but local media said Alonso had signed a deal at least until the end of the South American qualifiers.

The Uruguay job was reportedly first offered to River Plate coach Marcelo Gallardo, but the Argentinian coach rejected it to extend his club contract. Uruguay is in seventh place in the 10-team South American qualifying group.

Uruguay are only one point outside the top four, with their four final qualifiers coming at home to Venezuela and Peru, and away at Paraguay and Chile.

Alonso’s debut as Uruguay coach will be on January 27 in a key match against ninth-place Paraguay, who are only three points behind on the standings. The 74-year-old Tabarez coached Uruguay for 15 years in his second stint in the job and was at the helm at the last three FIFA World Cups.