FC Dallas has announced its new manager, hiring Nico Estévez to be the eighth coach in the club's history.
Estévez leaves his current role as an assistant coach with the United States senior men's national team to take the head coaching job at FC Dallas.
Before his stint with the national team, Estévez worked under current U.S. manager Gregg Berhalter as an assistant with the Columbus Crew and, prior to that, spent several years coaching youth and development sides.
The Striker Texas reported the news Tuesday, with sources also telling us that Luchi Gonzalez, whom Estévez replaces, will in turn join Berhalter's staff as a replacement for Estévez.
“This is a phenomenal opportunity to lead FC Dallas,” Estévez said in a news release. “The club is globally recognized for developing talent and I’m looking forward to working with these players. I’d like to thank the Hunt family for their trust and commitment. I expect my team to work hard and play an attractive style of soccer that will make FC Dallas fans proud.”
Welcome to New Era Nico. pic.twitter.com/e9x8CswaoL
— FC Dallas (@FCDallas) December 2, 2021
The 41-year-old briefly served as interim manager of Valencia in 2013 and also managed Valencia B, the La Liga club's reserve side. He also managed Huracán Valencia, a separate senior club in the region, for a pair of campaigns.
The FCD job, however, will be his first head coaching job in the first division.
“Nico is a seasoned coach with experience at the highest levels of our game, both in the United States and in Europe,” FC Dallas Chairman and CEO Clark Hunt said in a news release. “He has the drive, the knowledge, and the vision to succeed, and he has a proven track record as a great teacher and communicator. We are excited about the future of FC Dallas under his leadership.”
Estévez will be presented at a Friday afternoon news conference but he won't join FCD until later in December "pending immigration approval," according to the FCD news release. Sources told The Striker Texas that he will participate in the U.S. national team's December camp, which culminates in a Dec. 18 friendly match against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
He will look to get FCD back into the playoff positions but face the same challenges Gonzalez and his predecessor, Oscar Pareja, faced. While FCD has become famous nationally and internationally for its player production, that means managers often are forced to figure out a way to plug holes left by players being sold to top teams in Europe.
The club also finds itself at an interesting moment in the life of its roster construction. Many players return from the 2021 squad that won just seven of its 34 matches en route to finishing 11th in the 13-team Western Conference. Yet, some of those players will need to show individual improvement in the offseason to win a job in Estévez's starting XI after difficult campaigns this year.
After the club declined to pick up the contract option on midfielder Bryan Acosta, there also are two open slots for Designated Players, signings that can exceed MLS' maximum salary.
The 2021 MLS season closes with MLS Cup on Dec. 11 with 2022 preseason set to begin in mid-January. The season is set for a Feb. 26 kickoff, earlier than usual thanks to the World Cup in Qatar taking place in November and December 2022.