Vlatko Andonovski has resigned from his post as United States women’s national team manager. He was, in many ways, extremely unlucky, but his downfall was also very much of his own making.
Andonovski was a popular hire whose tenure started spectacularly before poor performances at the Tokyo Olympics led to his competence being called into question. What followed felt like a slow but steady two-year decline of the former best team in the world, culminating in an early World Cup exit. He couldn’t handle the team’s numerous injury issues, and eventually, his decisions stopped making sense entirely.
U.S. Soccer sporting director Matt Crocker is now tasked with finding Andonovski’s replacement. His timeline for that is short, with the 2024 Paris Olympics less than a year away. But before he starts interviewing candidates, it’s important that he reaches some sound conclusions about why Andonovski’s tenure went sour.
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Andonovski was supposed to be a slam-dunk hire
The USWNT players asked for Vlatko Andonovski. During the hiring process, general manager Kate Markgraf consulted several players about who they thought should take over from Jill Ellis, and Grant Wahl reported that…
