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The Philadelphia Union will be selecting its first players in just two weeks when Major League Soccer holds the Expansion Draft and Union head coach Peter Nowak will have his lead assistant coach in place for the draft.
The Union will announce the hire of former U.S. national team assistant John Hackworth today, sources told SBI on Monday. Hackworth was in Chester, Pa. working with Nowak and fellow assistant Josh Gros as recently as last week.
Hackworth and Nowak worked as assistant coaches under U.S. head coach Bob Bradley and Hackworth is expected to play a key role in the establishment of Philadelphia's youth academy set-up, having been the head coach of the Under-17 national team.
The U.S. national team has yet to hire Hackworth's replacement, but former D.C. United head coach Tom Soehn and Chivas USA head coach Preki are two candidates to join Bradley's staff.
What do you think of Hackworth's hire? Excited for the upcoming Expansion Draft? Who do you see Philadelphia landing?
Share your thoughts below.
It’s called opportunity. These coaches know that after the World Cup, they are for the most part unemployed. When they see a chance to coach on a full time basis, they do what’s best for them and their family. As we all know, a steady paycheck is nice.
I just hope the Union spend decent time in Africa and bring back some excellent cheap talent
RLW, I get what you are saying, but remember who the owner of the Revs are. A DP ain’t happenin’.
why not spend some money on a DP? that team plays the scrappiest soccer i have ever seen, yet they still win somehow. if they had a legit addition to the midfield or forwards they could be a very good team.
of course i don’t know the financial situation of the revs but overall that franchise needs a kick in the butt and someone needs to help joseph do it.
rumor going around is that Robbie Rogers will be open to the expansion draft if he isn’t linked to a european club. that would be a good cornerstone for a new club!
Glad it wasn’t Rongen, sorry it wasn’t Obrien.
I really don’t understand what an assistant would leave the USMNT right before a world cup just to become an assistant.
Oh no not that sheett!!!
A couple of points….
1. The USMNT just got better.
2. Hackworthless is a boob.
3. Anyone who thinks the Revs would spend money on a DP is smoking something illegal.
Dilly Duka is rumored to have given an ultimatum to go to NYRB or not sign with MLS. We’ll see if that’s on target or not in the next two weeks.
No i do not see Fatnaldo fitting into Piotr Nowak’s hard work system. I do think he would enjoy all the great Philly cheese steaks
Anyone think it’s some how possible for Philly/MLS to land Ronaldo, the chance seems ideal to mean, he is/will be done with world cups, is past prime yet still very talented, contract at Coninthians is over after this year,it seems like he would bring huge fan appeal, and I don’t think he would break the bank. I think he could fill a very similiar role that Blanco does for the fire.
Preki is a better no.2 than an actual coach. He is a limited head coach. He lost the Chivas USA locker room in the summer and never got it back. He can’t really coach international players, he can only coach washed-up Americans (and Sacha).
No young player has ever flourished under his tenure. Justin Braun may be an exception. Preki has no eye for talent.
Rumor has it that he stubbornly discriminates against aquiring Mexican players because he wanted to build Chivas as a team made up of washed up MLS veterans.
Not at all a team player with Guadalajara.
Good luck to him with the US NATS or KC Wizards.
i have heard that Jeff Larentowicz might be let go by the revs. he would be a good local cornerstone for the union. and force the revs to use a dp in the mid to help joseph
Same question I had Kanu. Why, and why now?
Bradley has now “lost” 2 assistant coaches to the Union. He did not fill the Nowak departure, but he must fill this one. Preki would be a good fit IMO. But Preki likely has a few suitors. He has done a remarkable job with Chivas, melding and building some talent.
I like his temperament to balance Bradley’s stoicism.
Will James Riley keep his streak alive and be selected in a 3rd straight expansion draft? Funny thing is he was a starting RB but left unprotected by NE and SJ. Wonder if SEA will deem him worthy…
rumor has it that Dilly Duka signed with MLS. he would be a nice pick-up for the Union
He’s just blah. I don’t think he would bring anything to the program, it would be a poor move. Meanwhile, Preki has built an interesting team, sure they have not won a Cup but they are at least fun to watch.
Sad, Very sad.
why would hackworth give up the opportunity to coach in the world cup to be an assistant coach in MLS? i get the allure of building a team from scratch, but abandoning the national team in a world cup year doesn’t make a ton of sense to me.
IVES, the news is interesting, one question. “to officially announce…” What’s the latest on split infinitives??
Ives, any idea how the expansion draft is going to work as far as how many can be protected?
Preki as an assistant would be awesome!
BTW, what the hell was up with that Dema Kovalenko and Preki battle last night? A little Eastern European/former Soviet rivalry? I’m a Galaxy fan, and I admit Dema is a thug. He’s broken like what? 2 guys legs?
“F–k Soehn”
Why? He is a young coach with a huge upside, is liked by not only the league but the federation, and any program he has been with as an assistant with has been successful. Let’s not sacrifice the guy because of a run of bad luck.
He is a very good coach who will be successful again. So relax , dude!!! I’m guessing you would like Harkes to coach DC, too. Sad, very sad.
Predrag Radosavljevic > Bob Bradley
The real question, Ives; when do you start the Preki Sacking Countdown Watch. Or do you think Dema will rip his head off first?
Who should Philly target?
I’m starting the official “Bring Shefki Kuqi to Philly” campaign. He’s got Kenzo written all over him.
Great selection…Hackworth is a fine coach. I predict Philly makes playoffs in their inaugural season.
F–k Soehn, Preki as assistant WOULD BE AMAZING!
I’m not Hackworth’s biggest fan, but he’s probably a decent Assistant Coach selection for Philly. He knows the US player pool well and has experience in developing younger/academy-level players. Nowak has the European connections; Hackworth can be his “in” with the next generation of players.
Really excited for the expansion draft. It will trigger a lot of the off season moves for clubs looking to make vast improvements.
I don’t think Tommy Soehn is ready for the NT yet. Even though I’m interested in having Preki take over the DC job, joining the NT may be best for him.