Atlanta United fires coach Gonzalo Pineda after sixth loss

Atlanta United announced in a statement Monday that it had fired head coach Gonzalo Pineda.

This announcement comes less than 24 hours after the club lost to Charlotte FC for its sixth defeat in 11 games and its fifth consecutive defeat at home.

“We are grateful to Gonzalo for his commitment and dedication to the club over the past four seasons,” Atlanta United CEO and President Garth Lagerwey said in the release. “He has been an exemplary ambassador for the organization, and we would like to thank him for his contributions to the club. We made this decision in order to take the team in a new direction.

United also sacked assistant coaches Diego de la Torre and Eugenio Villazon, but retained goalkeeping coach Liam Curran. Assistant coach Rob Valentino now takes over as interim coach while Atlanta searches for Pineda’s successor.

Curran and Valentino were both coaches under former coach Gabriel Heinze, who, like Pinda, was fired during a winless slump during the 2021 season. Valentino served as interim coach until upon Pineda’s hiring in August 2021.

Under Pineda, the team went 34-34-39, reaching the playoffs twice in both seasons. Atlanta was eliminated in the first round each time. United currently sits 13th in the Eastern Conference and 24th in the league with a 4-4-8 record. Pineda’s contract was set to expire at the end of this season.

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