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As sporting director rumors swirl, Austin FC hopes to get better in upcoming transfer window
On Wednesday, head coach Josh Wolff downplayed them while also acknowledging that the club needs to get someone in there on a permanent basis. After Claudio Reyna stepped down from the role amid controversy over his son Gio's playing time in the 2022 World Cup with United States Men's National Team coach Gregg Berhalter, Sean Rubio was named the interim sporting director. Other duties have also been split up around the front office and coaching staff, including Wolff's interim chief soccer officer title.
AUSTIN (KXAN) — With the summer transfer window opening July 5 in Major League Soccer, rumors are swirling about a potential permanent hire for Austin FC's sporting director.
On Wednesday, head coach Josh Wolff downplayed them while also acknowledging that the club needs to get someone in there on a permanent basis. After Claudio Reyna stepped down from the role amid controversy over his son Gio's playing time in the 2022 World Cup with United States Men's National Team coach Gregg Berhalter, Sean Rubio was named the interim sporting director. Other duties have also been split up around the front office and coaching staff, including Wolff's interim chief soccer officer title.
Italian soccer journalist Fabrizio Romano reported Wednesday that Rodolfo Borrell, the current assistant manager for European treble winner Manchester City, will become the next Austin FC sporting director. Romano said Borrell will sign a multiyear deal with the club, but Wolff said that information would be out "in the near future," and there are, "lots of talks with many potential candidates."
"We're always in a place where we're looking for good leadership," Wolff said. "I speak with Anthony often about the direction we're going to go as a club, but until anything is finalized I don't think that's something we'll talk about openly."
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Wolff said not having the position filled at the beginning of the season caused some issues. Reyna resigned right before the primary transfer window opened Jan. 31, but stayed with the club as an advisor. By April, his name was removed from the club's website as an advisor. Wolff said there was some level of disarray in the front office during the transition.
"It's unsettling for something to happen like that in January," he said. "We lost some players unexpectedly because communication broke down, we didn't get players in that we should have probably got in and we didn't move players on that probably could have. Without a sporting director in place and the uncertainty that provided, it put us in a challenging spot to start the season."
Wolff's main charge is of course to prepare and coach the first team, and once a permanent sporting director is named, he can turn his full attention to what he was hired to do in the first place.
At least for now, it seems as if Verde and Black have overcome the front office vacancy with 3-0 victories over Texas rivals FC Dallas and the Houston Dynamo. The wins vaulted them above the playoff line at No. 8 in the Western Conference, trending in the right direction. Another congested part of the schedule is coming up with four MLS matches plus two Leagues Cup matches in July, so getting a player like Alex Ring back on the field is of utmost importance.
"He's a pro," Wolff said. "We've used him as a center back a lot this year, and he's just a warrior. His time in Europe and NYC has exemplified that. When called upon to do just about anything, he's up for it. It'll be nice to get him fit and back on the field in some capacity, hopefully, this weekend."
Ring, like any other player, Wolff said, has the potential to be moved during the transfer window that ends Aug. 2. It wasn't a threat by any means, but more of a realistic view from the business aspect of the sport. If there's a chance to make the team better through transfers, Wolff wants to do that.
"We'd take every option to hear what's out there," Wolff said. "We have to do what's best for our club and get better right now and to set ourselves up to get better in the offseason. Transfer windows are important. We probably missed the boat in the offseason due to some of our internal issues, and we have to be forthright in dealing with what our needs are."