BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) _ Outgoing Mexico World Cup coach Ricardo Lavolpe said Monday he had turned down an offer to become manager of 22-time Argentine league champion Boca Juniors.

Argentine native Lavolpe said his 26 years working in Mexican soccer meant he lacked the necessary knowledge of the current Argentine game.

``At this moment I don't believe that I could be the coach of Boca because you need a little more knowledge of Argentine soccer,'' he told the news media following a meeting with club president Mauricio Macri.

``I have been away for 26 years and the tournament starts in a week, in a medium I do not know,'' he said.

Lavolpe, 54, was widely considered to be the first choice to replace coach Alfio Basile, who has been chosen to coach the Argentine national team.

Macri, meanwhile, said that with Lavolpe out of the picture, he will ask the Argentine soccer federation to let Basile continue until December.