One More Name To Add

Late last week one more name was added to the coaching list, Pa-Modou Kah.  Kah is former defender who is Gambian by birth but his family emigrated to Norway when he was 8 and he played for the Norwegian national team 10 times.  He played in Norway, Sweden, the Netherlands, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia before he finished his 19-year career playing for Portland and Vancouver.  He immediately moved into coaching as an assistant with both Vancouver and Cincinnati before taking over Pacific FC in the Canadian Premier League, taking them to the title in his second season there.  He was then offered the job as the coach of North Texas (aka FC Dallas 2) which he took for one season before spending 2023 as an assistant in Charlotte.

So what we have is another manager with experience as a MLS assistant and a little head coaching experience (two seasons in Victoria BC with Pacific FC).  This matches up well with Chris Little and rumored name Efrain Juarez.  With Kah, Little, and Armas supposedly on the final 4 list that means either Juarez or Jack Wilshere is not a finalist (possibly both of them aren't).  If I had to guess its Wilshere that's no longer a finalist.  He's the only one of the 5 names that doesn't have any MLS experience, and he's also the one most likely to take his name out of consideration given his current situation and the possibility of getting an offer in the future.

With the names leaking late next week I'm expecting a decision shortly.  I would not be shocked if we hear at least an unconfirmed report if not an official announcement tomorrow, and I'll be very surprised if we don't get an announcement sometime this week.

Based on the names we know, I'd prefer Juarez, followed by Kah, with Wilshere an interesting wildcard.  If its Little or Armas its a very bad sign.