Overview:
So, New York City FC is looking for a new coach in the wake of the Nick Cushing firing earlier today.
Giovanni Savarese coaching the Portland Timbers in 2023. (Anne-Marie Sorvin-Imagn Images)
By Michael Lewis
FrontRowSoccer.com Editor
So, New York City FC is looking for a new coach in the wake of the Nick Cushing firing earlier today.
Well, do I have a prime candidate for them.
Gio.
That would Gio, as in Giovanni Savarese.
He would be perfect for the job.
You might remember Savarese.
He might not be New York-bred, but he is New York through and through.
He has been successful as coach and a player, can speak multiple languages, has demonstrated he can handle stars and their egos (he coached the great Raul), and has a unique personal and personable touch.
OK, about the New York connection.
Let’s start with his time as a player. Make that an impact player.
A native of Venezuela, Savarese attended and starred at Long Island University, finishing as one of the top all-time goal-scorers for the Blackbirds. While at college, he played for the legendary semi-pro team in the Cosmopolitan Soccer League, N.Y. Greek-American Atlas.
He went on to perform for two seasons for the Long Island Rough Riders, earning MVP honors in a monster 1995 season in which he scored the game-winning goal in the U.S. Interregional Soccer League championship game against the Minnesota Thunder.
He was taken on the ninth round of the inaugural MLS player draft by the NY/NJ MetroStars. Not only did he score the team’s first goal, but he tallied a team-high 13 goals in that 1996 inaugural season. When Savarese left the team in 1999, he found the net a team-record 41 times in 85 appearances for what was a rather underachieving side. Domestically, he also played for the New England Revolution and San Jose Earthquakes. Overseas, he scored goals for Caracas, Deportivo Táchira F.C. and Deportivo Miranda F.C. (all Venezuela), Swansea City (Wales, England), Millwall (England), among other clubs.
And oh, before I forget, Savarese also made 30 appearances for the Venezuelan national team, connecting 10 times in 30 appearances at a time when the team wasn’t very good.
Now, his coaching resume.
He entered the coaching ranks as the head of the MetroStars’ youth development program in 2005 and coached the Met Oval Academy until the New York Cosmos came calling in late 2012.
He directed the Cosmos to three championships in the 21st century version of the North American Soccer League, in 2013, 2015 and 2016.
He went west to coach the Portland Timbers, guiding the team to the 2018 MLS Cup, losing at Atlanta United. Three years later, he coached the Timbers to the MLS final, this time losing via penalty kicks in the rain to NYCFC in Portland.
Not too shabby of a record.
Despite his success, the Timbers fired Savarese in August 2023. In case you were wondering, the Timbers barely made the MLS Cup Playoffs this year, finishing in ninth place in the Western Conference with a rather mediocre 12-11-11 mark.
If you don’t think that is a winning resume, let’s talk about intangibles, what Savarese can bring to a team.
I’ll let someone who knows New York soccer through and through, Jim Vogt, state the case for Gio. Vogt, who has long resume in New York soccer in the Cosmopolitan Soccer League and the major force behind saving the Metropolitan Oval, is a Football international consultant for Global Football.
“He gets a v-o-t-e from a guy named V-o-g-t,” he said. “He’s a New York guy. He understands New York soccer. Yes, he may have been on the West Coast. He’s learned a lot tremendously over the years. It’s about time NYCFC recognizes a real New York guy for a New York team. If they’re going to take a chance on all these guys that have taken a chance on, he’s the right guy to take a chance on. I think he can deliver it. I think he’s the right guy for the job.
“He relates well to New York. He’s a guy that has a ton of respect in New York. And I think it’s about time that NYFC figures out that if you want home grown, you’ve got to have a home grown at the helm. He’s got the pedigree of New York behind him. I just feel like it makes all so much sense. It’s almost like it’s happening for a reason, because he’s a guy in waiting that can be the perfect guy.”
So, to the powers that be in the City Football Group and NYCFC, heed my and Vogt’s advice. Hire Gio Savarese
You could do a lot worse.
He is what New York soccer is all about and he is a winner.
Gio Savarese is New York soccer.
Gio Savarese should be NYCFC head coach.
Let’s get it done and bring Gio home.
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