Rob Valentino is calling on a former MLS head coach to join his interim staff, as former Vancouver Whitecaps boss Carl Robinson was appointed to an assistant coach role on Thursday.
Robinson has already been with the team in training this week, but no official agreement between him and the club had been made until now.
The former Wales international midfielder enjoyed a professional career that lasted over a decade-and-a-half, including in the Premier League. He wrapped up his playing days in MLS with Toronto FC and the New York Red Bulls.
He was eventually named an assistant with the Caps in 2012 and was elevated to the top job in 2013, spending the better part of five seasons there before parting ways with the club. He then moved to Australia, landing a stint with the Newcastle Jets in 2020 but departing for the Western Sydney Wanderers after just a few months. In 2023, he returned stateside as an assistant on Wayne Rooney’s staff D.C. United.
As for the second vacant assistant coaching slot, academy director Matt Lawrey was helping in training earlier in the week, but it remains to be seen if he’ll be in the technical area beginning with Saturday’s match at Mercedes-Benz Stadium against the Houston Dynamo.
[…] Former Vancouver Whitecaps HC Carl Robinson hired as ATL UTD assistant coach […]
are they adding him to the list of possible future HC position?
I seriously doubt it. I think mostly it’s a case of he knows MLS as a player and a coach/manager and he was available as to why he’s here.
Seems unlikely, since he will be reporting to an interim manager, who Garth has already said is a candidate.
Glad to see an assistant added to the staff officially. Good move. Thanks for letting us know.
Nice to see that we are actively active.