Austrian soccer coach Gerhard Struber will be the man who’ll try to get New York Red Bulls back to its winning ways. Red Bulls confirmed on Tuesday that Struber agreed to take over as the team’s new head coach, inking a multi-year contract with the organization.
Struber comes as a replacement for Chris Armas, who was fired in early September following a disappointing start of the 2020 season. Red Bulls are currently sitting seventh in the Eastern Conference and are on the brink of securing a playoff spot.
Following Armas’ dismissal, Red Bulls quickly zeroed in on Struber, seeing him as a good fit for their squad. The organization did its due diligence with other candidates but remained confident in their first choice.
“Gerhard is a bright coach, and we’re very pleased to welcome him to the club,” said Red Bulls’ head of sport Kevin Thelwell. “Gerhard’s playing style and experience in youth development align with our philosophy, and above all, as a person he fits into our culture. We look forward to him getting here and working together to achieve the goals we have set as a club.”
Gerhard Struber arrives in MLS after spending the two previous years with the English Championship side Barnsley. He helped the team avoid relegation to the third-tier last season while leaving them 21st at the start of the 2020/21 season.
Reportedly, Red Bulls agreed to pay undisclosed compensation to Barnsley in order to get Struber out of his contract with the English club.
Struber previously also spent time with Red Bull Salzburg’s youth teams and was at the helm of Austrian Bundesliga side Wolfsberger AC.
