New York City FC will return from the international break later this week with a new head coach, as the team announced Monday that Ronny Deila has resigned to take over as manager of Belgian club Standard Liege.
Assistant coach Nick Cushing will take over as interim head coach for NYCFC, who will receive “compensation in the low-seven figures” from Standard Liege for allowing Deila’s exit, per MLSSoccer.com’s Tom Bogart.
Deila was 46-29-15 across all competitions with City, and led them to the MLS Cup last season. City is 8-2-3 in 13 matches this year, their win total and 26 points both second in MLS, and they have won six straight matches and are unbeaten in 11 in a row since losing to Seattle 3-1 in Leg 1 of the CONCACAF Champions League semifinals on April 6.
“Everyone at the club would like to thank Ronny for the fantastic job he has done here," NYCFC sporting director David Lee said in a release. "With Ronny at the helm, we have developed an even stronger culture of winning and togetherness and have accomplished our number-one goal of bringing silverware to this club, to this city and to our fans. “We know this was not a decision Ronny took lightly, but we understand his desire to return to Europe and be closer to home. He has been a true leader since joining the club and we wish him well for the next challenge in his career.”
Bogart also reports that assistant Efrain Juarez will follow Deila to Standard Liege, but City has signed assistants Rob Vartughian and Mehdi Ballouchy to new extensions.
Deila, 46, returns to Europe, where he spent 19 years playing professionally in his native Norway and managed three teams there, as well as Scottish club Celtic, before coming stateside to take over as NYCFC boss in 2020. He takes over a Standard Liege side that has won 10 First Division titles but finished 14th last season.
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"This was certainly not an easy decision for me and my family," Deila said in a release. "However, I feel this is the right time to take on this new challenge and return to Europe. I would like to thank New York City Football Club and City Football Group. This is an incredible organization with extremely talented players, an amazing sporting department and fantastic leadership across the club including Ferran Soriano, Marty Edelman, David Lee and Brad Sims. Thank you to the fans, the passion you have for the club has fueled us on the field, and we couldn’t have accomplished what we did last season without you."
Cushing, 37, spent seven seasons as the manager of Manchester City Women’s before joining Deila with NYCFC in 2020, and now becomes the fifth head coach in NYCFC history.
“While it is never ideal to have a change of head coach midseason, we are excited for Nick Cushing to have this opportunity and have the utmost confidence in him given his previous experience as one of the most decorated coaches in the women’s game," Lee said.
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