Former Serbian U-20 Coach hoping to help “hurt lion” unleash its power
Article courtesy of Dan Gaichas and Windy City Soccer
BRIDGEVEW, IL–Nelson Rodriguez has presented himself as a person who thinks outside the box, and it follows that he selects someone outside the usual suspects to become the new head coach of the Chicago Fire. Rodriguez announced that Veljko Paunovic will take the position after coaching the Serbian Under-20 National Team to the FIFA Under-20 World Cup title earlier this year.
“In the face of stiff competition from other global soccer clubs, we are extremely fortunate to have secured our first choice, Veljko Paunovic, as our head coach,” said Fire general manager Nelson Rodríguez. “We conducted a thorough search process and, over its course, Pauno consistently graded highest across all of our desired characteristics. He is a champion, teacher of the game and man of great principle and integrity.”
Rodriguez explained the process which led to what he himself admittedly was “not an obvious choice.”
“We were very disciplined in our process. We were very detailed in how we set it up in the 11 characteristics that we were going to rank higher than others, and we were very deliberate in ensuring that we had an expansive candidate pool,” said Rodriguez.
“Paunovic did distinguish himself and, over the course of the process, we found ourselves grading other candidates against Pauno. He consistently kept scoring highest on our board, if you will,” he added. “All signs just kept coming back to him. In the end, we felt that we had the right man at the right time under the right circumstances.”
Paunovic, 38, played for clubs in five different countries, most notably with Atletico Madrid and finished in 2011 with the Philadelphia Union. He holds a UEFA PRO coaching license as well as a Sporting Director degree from the Royal Spanish Football Federation. He speaks six languages, including: English, Spanish, Serbian, Macedonian, Russian and German. Paunovic also spent nine months as a UEFA Champions League analyst for TVE in Spain.
“I want to thank Andrew Hauptman, Nelson Rodríguez and the whole executive team of the Chicago Fire, for choosing me, among other great candidates, for the coaching position,” said Paunovic. “I am very excited and enthusiastic to start working with the team, to meet the people and fans, who I know are very passionate and loyal to the club. This is the opportunity that I was looking for, to work with the right people, in the right time and the right place.”
“I have a huge amount of energy, knowledge and experience to deliver to our team and our community,” he added. “Soccer is a lifestyle that I live and preach my whole life. I love this kind of challenge, where you have to build a champion by giving your best in every moment. I see the Chicago Fire as a hurt lion ready to unleash all its power.”
Paunovic is expected to be unveiled to the Chicago public next week, and will immediately begin the task of assembling a roster capable of challenging in MLS. Rodriguez also spoke about creating a “business plan” for every player and giving Paunovic the resources to get the players he needs to implement his plan and tactics on the field.
“I have zero doubts about his ability to adapt [to MLS],” Rodriguez concluded. “I feel not only good about our present with Pauno, but with his approach to learning, and his open mindedness, I believe that we are set up for a nice long run.”
THOUGHTS: This is definitely an outside-the-box hire, but Nelson Rodriguez has set of principles that he wants to apply to the club and it is his belief that Paunovic ticks all the boxes for his head coach. The one year in Philadelphia does give him MLS experience which should set him apart from other foreign coaches (who have no experience with North American soccer).
The fact that he turned down an offer from Panathinaikos to come here does say something that he first wants to help restore this club to glory. He will have a #1-pick in the MLS SuperDraft and an open Designated Player slot to start with as well as opportunity to fill various gaps in defense.
IN OTHER NEWS: The Chicago Red Stars signed defender Casey Short from Norwegian side Avaldsnes. Short was selected by Boston in 2013, but missed the entire season with a knee injury and then missed the 2014 season with a torn ACL after being picked up by the Red Stars.
“I have waited three years to be able to have Casey in the squad,” said head coach Rory Dames. “She just finished a great year in Norway and now she can finally return home and become a Red Star. She will slide straight into one of our outside back spots and give us the attributes we look for in those spaces.”
–Also, former Fire player and current New York Red Bulls head coach Jesse Marsch was named MLS Coach of the Year. Marsch led the Red Bulls to the Supporters’ Shield this season.
