Charlotte FC has hired its first head coach. Here’s what you should know about him
Miguel Ángel Ramírez will be Charlotte FC’s head coach, according to a source familiar with the hire. The 36-year-old joins Charlotte from Spain and just like the expansion team, he’ll be new to Major League Soccer in 2022.
A formal announcement from Charlotte FC is expected Wednesday.
International background for Charlotte FC coach
Ramírez was formerly a manager at Independiente del Valle, a club in Ecuador’s top Serie A league. He helped guide the team to its first international championship in 2019 by winning the Copa Sudamericana, which is South America’s second-tier soccer tournament. The victory came in his first season as a manager, not just for the club, but for Ramírez in any first-team capacity.
He spent most of his career as a youth academy coach, first for Las Palmas (which is the same Spanish club Charlotte FC midfielder Sergio Ruiz is playing for ahead of the MLS season) and then between multiple Greek clubs on the youth side in 2011. Ramírez briefly returned to Spain before settling in as a coach for Aspire Academy in Qatar, where he completed his longest tenure outside of Las Palmas and honed his coaching philosophy over six years through 2018.
After a distinguished two-year stint with Independiente Del Valle, Ramírez joined Internacional in Brazil’s first division in March, but didn’t achieve the same success. He was let go a few months into the job, along with three other members of the staff. He parted with Inter in June after a loss to Vitória in a lower-tier division.
Possession-based soccer
Ramírez has cited Real Sociedad director of football Roberto Olabe as being an important influence in his coaching philosophy. They overlapped while at Aspire Academy. Ramírez told The Athletic in December that Olabe helped him see the game in a “totally different manner,” and he described how he prefers to play possession-based soccer with emphasis on winning the ball back.
“Having control of the game means having the ball,” he said. “That’s the foundation on which I can build everything else.”
He also mentioned in the interview that he likes to play close to the opposing goal, and compared the spacing of players to a chess game.
“The opponent might leave a gap, or not,” he said. “And there are certain spaces I want to win. I play with the opponent to win control of certain areas where I think I can do damage.”
“Attractive football” in Charlotte’s future
Another striking comment from Ramírez was his description of Independiente del Valle as playing “attractive football for people who like a spectacle.” That matches what Charlotte FC special advisor Steve Walsh and sporting director Zoran Krneta told The Observer last month they were aiming to bring to the club.
“I’ve never been involved with a club that doesn’t want to win games and play attractive football,” Walsh said. “That’s the utopia, and we’re no different.”
“If you’ve spoken to our owner David Tepper he’s not one that wants to come second,” he added. “He wants to win the league.”
Now it’s up to Ramírez and company to help Charlotte FC do that.
