New York Red Bulls have parted ways with interim head coach Troy Lesesne following their exit in MLS Cup playoffs.
Lesense took over on an interim basis back in May and led New York to an eighth place finish in the Eastern Conference, a miracle considering how their season unraveled in the early stages. Lesesne's guidance also saw the team qualify for the postseason for the 13th straight time, a record for the longest active streak in professional sports in North America.
In New York's final five games of the regular season, they picked up four wins against the likes of FC Cincinnati, Nashville SC, DC United and Toronto FC to earn a spot in the playoffs. Red Bulls were able to navigate the Wild Card phase past Charlotte FC, but ran out of answers in the first round at the hands of FC Cincinnati. Lesense finished with a 10-9-4 record as interim boss.
Red Bulls parted ways with Gerhard Struber in May due to the team's poor form and gave Lesesne the keys to the team for the rest of the 2023 campaign. Struber did at least remain in the Red Bull family by returning to his native Austria to coach Red Bull Salzburg, where he previously held a position with the U19 side from 2017-2019.
"The New York Red Bulls have opted not to renew the contract of Troy Lesesne," a club statement read. "We would like to thank Troy for his professionalism while navigating the team through challenging times and we know he has a bright future ahead.
"Zach Prince has also been relieved of his duties as assistant coach. We wish both Troy and Zach much success going forward. The selection process for the next head coach of the New York Red Bulls is actively underway."
Along with Lesesne and Prince, Denis Hamlett is set to leave his role as sporting director as he and the club have mutually agreed to go their separate ways.
"On behalf of the club, we would like to thank Denis for his many contributions to the club since 2015, both as Sporting Director and Assistant Coach," said Red Bulls head of sport Jochen Schneider. "It has been an honor to work closely with Denis on all sporting matters pertaining to the club. His insights and perspective were always important when making key decisions for the success of the organization. We wish Denis and his family all the best."
Red Bulls now have a busy offseason ahead of them, with Schneider and Co. tasked with finding a new permanent head coach and sporting director to build on their first round playoffs appearance.
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This article was originally published on 90min as New York Red Bulls part ways with interim head coach Troy Lesesne.
