Instant Reaction: Nico Estevez and Zanotta out of contract?
Tom Bogert dropped a bomb in his wrap-up report that has FC Dallas fans... nervous?
It’s time for postmortems for MLS soccer teams, and FC Dallas got their treatment today from a sort of sparse write-up from the Athletic’s Tom Bogert.
A lackluster 2023 season saw FCD slip down to seventh in the Western Conference thanks to an insipid attack, several key injuries and regression from their top players. The sporting infrastructure is in flux, with technical director Andre Zanotta and head coach Nico Estevez both out of contract at the end of the year. Key players on the roster are in an unsure place as well, with injuries and potential transfer speculation.
The overall take is that FC Dallas needs to find a partner for Jesus up top, especially as Jesus Jimenez flamed out and Alan Velasco will be out for a long stretch.
Oh, and Tafari is an above-average center back (with room for growth) who needs a legit partner.
But the big news was what I led with.
Here’s some instant reaction:
Maybe Nico was right to sign a two year deal, to test the water and see what other options are out there. No doubt, he could garner the interest from some teams in the league who are looking for a similar play style and have more resources to invest in the squad. Wouldn’t Nico love to work with Minnesota United FC’s roster? Could Charlotte FC seek a coach who wants to develop young players?
Andre Zanotta is going to have his pick of teams. He’s a savvy and well-qualified technical director. I think he has been constrained by FC Dallas’ budget, but he has improved the roster. I think Alan Velasco and Geovane Jesus point to that, as well as getting more value from intra-league trades. FC Dallas should keep him, but does Zanotta want to stay?
This adds a lot of healthy speculation on FC Dallas’ front office. They have an easy out if they want to move in a new direction, but it would seem pretty harsh not to keep Nico and Andre around after a strange year. If they see 2024 as a rebuilding year, then maybe it is a decent time to reset the front office, sell Jesus Ferreira, move on from other players, and build around a new core of young players. That would be kind of weird though.
What do you think about this news?