 His side finished sixth in the tournament, achieving important triumphs over Alianza (1–0 with a goal of Alfredo Carmona) and Universitario (2–0 with goals by Paolo de la Haza and Carmona again at Estadio Monumental).He left the club during the 2003 Torneo Descentralizado, after a player's strike.In 2004, Sampaoli was named manager of fellow top tier side Coronel Bolognesi, replacing Roberto Mosquera.