Potential candidates to replace Caleb Porter as the Columbus Crew begin a coaching search
As he begins his first coaching search in Columbus, Crew general manager Tim Bezbatchenko plans to conduct a wide search that includes both domestic and international candidates.
Bezbatchenko fired Caleb Porter on Monday after four seasons. Porter compiled a 45-43-37 record and won MLS Cup in 2020, but missing the playoffs in each of the last two seasons was a disappointment that cost Porter his job.
The criteria for the new coach was still under discussion Tuesday, but Bezbatchenko's initial thoughts shed light on what the Crew will be looking for in their next manager.
"First and foremost, it starts with the person," Bezbatchenko said. "Making sure that they have the shared values of our club. We’re an ambitious club. We want to consistently contend for championships. We want to take care of our supporters. We want to give back to the community. We want to make sure that that person has values that are aligned with our leadership team and our ownership.
"The second is this idea that they are a part of a club and our club model, in that there’s a first team, Crew 2 now and our academy, the Crew youth and the community. Understanding their role in the broader sense of the club is very important. ... In order for the Columbus Crew to remain competitive, we need to find competitive advantages. In Columbus, that’s going to require us to be aligned from top to bottom."
Here are some potential candidates to be the next Crew coach.
Jason Bent, LA Galaxy assistant
Bezbatchenko was the general manager of Toronto FC from 2013 until he joined the Crew in 2019. Bent led the Toronto FC Academy 2008-11, was an assistant coach with the first team 2011-14, led Toronto FC II 2014-18, then rejoined the first team as an assistant under Greg Vanney in 2018. Bent is one of Vanney's assistants with the LA Galaxy.
With his combination of first-team experience as an assistant and experience leading both an academy and a second team, Bent has a deep familiarity with working within a club's structure. Bezbatchenko emphasized top-to-bottom alignment, and his ties to Bent from their time in Toronto make Bent an intriguing option.
Laurent Courtois, Crew 2
Courtois led Crew 2 to the best regular season record in MLS Next Pro, won MLS Next Pro Cup and was named Coach of the Year in his first full professional coaching season, while coaching a first-year team in a brand-new league. He also coached the U17 team in the Crew Academy 2017-19 and coached the U19 team 2019-21.
Bezbatchenko confirmed Tuesday that Courtois will be a candidate. Courtois' success with Crew 2 is undeniable, and it's hard to overlook a championship-winning coach already in the organization, but it is worth noting that Courtois has no experience coaching at the MLS level. The level of competition within Next Pro also varied widely, as few teams had the same level of dedicated resources that Crew 2 did.
Landon Donovan, San Diego (USL)
Donovan's history as a player needs no introduction. As a coach, he's been at the helm of the USL Championship's San Diego Loyal, a team he also co-founded, for the past three years. In his three seasons, he has a 39-27-17 record and a plus-25 goal differential. Though Donovan lacks first-team managerial experience, he spent 15 seasons as an MLS player and is deeply familiar with the league. He was reportedly in consideration for the Real Salt Lake opening last fall.
Carlos Llamosa, Portland Timbers assistant
If MLS experience is high on Bezbatchenko's list of criteria, there may not be a more qualified MLS assistant than Llamosa. After spending one year as an assistant coach of the New England Revolution, Llamosa has been an assistant on Giovanni Savarese's staff in Portland since 2018. The Timbers have qualified for MLS Cup twice in that span, 2018 and 2021, though they lost both appearances.
Robin Fraser, Colorado Rapids
Fraser signed a three-year extension in Colorado this March, keeping him under contract with the Rapids through 2025. But if he were to depart for a different MLS job, the Crew are a desirable option. The modern facilities, ownership support and solid roster make Columbus one of the more appealing destinations in this hiring cycle — and a clear step up from what Fraser has in Colorado. Though the Rapids missed the playoffs this year, they were the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference last season. Fraser also has ties to Toronto and Bezbatchenko, after working as a Toronto FC assistant 2015-19.
Tata Martino, Mexican national team
Martino is expected to be available after the World Cup, which could threaten Bezbatchenko's ideal timeline of mid-December depending on how far Mexico goes. But Bezbatchenko also said the timeline depends on when they're able to speak with certain candidates, which opens the door to both playff-bound MLS coaches and, possibly, coaches leaving their national team after the World Cup.
The Argentinian coach was Atlanta United's first coach and led them to win MLS Cup in 2018 before leaving to coach El Tri. With Atlanta, Martino played a highly offensive style built around speed — a style that could work well for a Crew team that was its most dangerous when playing with pace.
Pellegrino Matarazzo
Matarazzo, who was fired from Stuttgart in the Bundesliga earlier this month after leading them to promotion in 2020, is a long shot. Though he's American, he's lived in Germany since 2000 and has never coached in his home country. But with his track record of working between the academy and professional levels and his success with Stuttgart, if Matarazzo is interested, he would be a top candidate for the Crew.
Wilfried Nancy, CF Montreal
Nancy, like Matarazzo, is a long shot. Terms of his contract in Montreal are unclear, but it's believed he has a team option for the 2023 season, and thus may not be available. But if Nancy is available, or if he's looking to depart, he could be Bezbatchenko's first call. Nancy is a candidate for MLS Coach of the Year after leading Montreal to a 20-9-5 record and second place in the Eastern Conference. Last season, Montreal finished 10th in the East at 12-12-10.
Dome Torrent
The Crew can't hire Pep Guardiola, so maybe his longtime assistant is the next best thing. Torrent joined Guardiola's staff at FC Barcelona B in 2007 and stayed alongside him through moves to Barcelona's senior team, Bayern Munich and Manchester City before departing for New York City FC in 2018. In his two years at NYCFC, Torrent went 29-16-15 and led his team to a franchise-record 64-point season in 2019. After being let go by Galatasaray in June, Torrent is available and is an intriguing option if he's open to a return to MLS.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus Crew coaching search: Candidates to replace Caleb Porter
