Atlanta United is searching for a new technical director following Garth Lagerwey’s decision last week to fire Carlos Bocanegra.
Lagerwey wants someone either with MLS experience or who has worked within MLS. It’s a logical want because of the league’s unique roster rules and acquisition labyrinths. It also narrows the field of candidates a great deal.
Because everyone else has made their suggestions who Atlanta United should hire, I thought I’d share my list of legitimate possibilities.
Chris Henderson. He is at the top of everyone else’s list because of his previous relationship with Lagerwey when both were at Seattle and his current success at Inter Miami, where he is the sporting director. I would be stunned if this happened for several reasons. First, Inter Miami still has its superstars under contract for at least one more season. It still has just the one trophy with those stars and surely wants more. It is building a stadium, one that’s been talked about and worked on for at least 10 years. For Henderson to leave all of those positive challenges to join Atlanta United would be a stunning move.
Marc Nicholls. He has been at Columbus since 2022, where they have won numerous trophies and developed a plug-and-play model with lesser-priced talent than Atlanta United has. Before he joined Columbus he was at Charlotte, where he developed its academy. Atlanta United’s academy has been very important and will be for its success. He also has worked with Lagerwey at Seattle, where he was academy director and then director of player development.
Craig Waibel. This would also likely be a long shot because of his ties to Washington, but Waibel would also be a solid candidate. He was promoted to general manager after Lagerwey resigned to come to Atlanta United. Waibel previously assisted Lagerwey in scouting and signings for the Sounders, one of the most consistent teams in MLS.
Andre Zanotta. Dallas’ sporting director, Zanotta has shown an ability to develop young talent (Bryan Reynolds, Ricardo Pepi), and an eye for spending (Alan Velasco) when necessary. It would be interesting to see what he could do at a club with bigger coffers than Dallas’.
Kyle McCarthy. Cincinnati’s director of soccer strategy, McCarthy, working with Chris Albright, has been a key reason that the Queen City club turned from Wooden Spoon winners into Supporters Shield winners. Perhaps a knock on Cincinnati is it hasn’t hit on quite a few of its “big” signings such as Brenner and Aaron Boupendza. That’s something Atlanta United doesn’t want to experience again.
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Atlanta United’s 2024 schedule
Feb. 24 Columbus 1, Atlanta United 0
March 9 Atlanta United 4, New England 1
March 17 Atlanta United 2, Orlando 0
March 23 Toronto 2, Atlanta United 0
March 31 Atlanta United 3, Chicago 0
April 6 Atlanta United 1, NYCFC 1
April 14 Atlanta United 2, Philadelphia 2
April 20 Cincinnati 2, Atlanta United 1
April 27 Atlanta United 1, Chicago 1
May 4 Minnesota 2, Atlanta United 1
May 7 Atlanta United 3, Charlotte Independence 0 in U.S. Open Cup
May 11 D.C. United 3, Atlanta United 2
May 15 Cincinnati 1, Atlanta United 0
May 18 Atlanta United 1, Nashville 1
May 21 Atlanta United 0 (5), Charleston 0 (4) in U.S. Open Cup
May 25 LAFC 1, Atlanta United 0
May 29 Atlanta United 3, Miami 1
June 2 Charlotte 3, Atlanta United 2
June 15 Atlanta United 2, Houston 2
June 19 Atlanta United 1, D.C. United 0
June 22 Atlanta United 1, St. Louis 1
June 29 Atlanta United 2, Toronto 1
July 3 New England 2, Atlanta United 1
July 6 Real Salt Lake 5, Atlanta United 2
July 9 vs. Indy Eleven 2, Atlanta United 1
July 13 Montreal 1, Atlanta United 0
July 17 Atlanta United 2, NYCFC 2
July 20 Atlanta United 2, Columbus 1
July 26 D.C. United 3 (6), Atlanta United 3 (5) in Leagues Cup
Aug. 4 Santos Laguna 0 (5), Atlanta United 0 (3) in Leagues Cup
Aug. 24 L.A. Galaxy 2, Atlanta United 0
Aug. 31 Atlanta United 1, Charlotte 0
Sept. 14 vs. Nashville, 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 18 vs. Miami, 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 21 at Red Bulls, 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 28 at Philadelphia, 7:30 p.m.
Oct. 2 vs. Montreal, 7:30 p.m.
Oct. 5 vs. Red Bulls, 7:30 p.m.
Oct. 19 at Orlando, 6 p.m.
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