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Santos Laguna manager Robert Siboldi resigns after staff-player dustup

Robert Dante Siboldi resigned as Santos coach on Wednesday after an altercation between a player and a member of the coaching staff, according to a club statement.

Three months after leading the club to the Liga MX title, Siboldi suddenly ended his relationship with Santos just three weeks into the new season.

"It has recently come to our attention a number of differences between the current coaching staff, which ultimately resulted in a conflict with a player," Santos said in a statement. "These differences have broken a code of ethics within the club, generating an environment not conducive to a positive team performance.

"For this reason and after acknowledging the seriousness of these actions, the coaching staff has decided to resign, effective immediately."

After the announcement of Siboldi's resignation, veteran defender Gerardo Alcoba revealed he was the player involved in the conflict mentioned in the club's statement.

"I was the player affected by the recent problems with the coaching staff. I overreacted by believing that certain actions were unfair. I assume my responsibility," Alcoba said in a news conference.

Santos vice president Jose Riestra said the club will sanction Alcoba because of the incident.

"The statement is clear and also he recognized the existence of an incident. It wasn't a situation that we as executives can control. The player was notified about our decision and now we must work together to leave this behind," Riestra said.

Under Siboldi's management, Santos won its first Liga MX title in three years. The team also has made a good start as defending champions after winning two of the first three games, despite losing several starting players like Djaniny Tavares, Nestor Araujo, and Carlos Izquierdoz in the last market.

Santos named Salvador Reyes Jr, who had led the team's youth sides, as the interim manager. The team's next match will come Sunday on the road against Chivas.

As for a more-permanent replacement, Argentine Matias Almeyda is a potential candidate, according to ESPN sources.

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