New York City FC head coach Nick Cushing will leave the club effective immediately according to the team, following their 2-0 loss to the New York Red Bulls in the MLS Cup Playoff semi-final. Cushing, who took over for Ronny Deila in 2022, led the team to one Eastern Conference Final and this year’s semi-final. During that time me amassed a record of 36-31-38.
“Whilst we are appreciative for all he has done for the club, at the current time, we believe it’s best to move the team in a new direction,” said Sporting Director David Lee. “Nick built a collaborative, high-performance, environment at the training facility that allowed us to continue to evolve as an organization.”
Rumors of Cushing’s departure go back to the beginning of the 2024 season. The team didn’t start strong and much hinged on his ability to get the best out of a very young but very talented group. The season turned around as the English coach managed to transform winger Alonso Martinez into the team’s leading striker. Along the way, the team won the double over New York Red Bulls in the regular season and nearly finished in fourth place on Decision Day.
Cushing will leave with a few blemishes. One of which is being only the second NYCFC coach to not make the playoffs in 2023 and having the distinction of coaching the first playoff Hudson River Derby loss.
Where City goes from here is unclear. They have moved in a rather different direction than expected when they started a decade ago. Then it was a team built on star power such as David Villa, Andrea Pirlo and Frank Lampard. Now they are one of the youngest teams in the league with talent that is raw and developing at an accelerated pace.
photo by Jordan Bank