A new era could be here for the Houston Dynamo, as the Western Conference side has reportedly hired Tab Ramos to be their next head coach.
Veteran soccer writer Kristian Dyer is reporting that Ramos will take over after the 2019 season saw Wilmer Cabrera fired in August and Davy Arnaud take over on an interim basis. Cabrera was quickly hired as the Montreal Impact’s head coach, while Houston dragged to a 10th-placed finish in the Western Conference (40 points) after a fervent start to the campaign.
Mark Berman, the sports director for the Houston-area FOX station, The Athletic's Paul Tenorio and ESPN's Jeff Carlisle later confirmed the report.
This would be Ramos’ first head coaching job in MLS, though he’s been with the US U-20 national team since the 2013 U-20 World Cup cycle. He’s led the team to three straight quarterfinal appearances, cementing the US as the only nation to accomplish that.
Ramos, 53, has long been rumored around various MLS coaching vacancies, but has stayed on the international side. Aside from captaining the USMNT, Ramos made 121 appearances for the New York/New Jersey MetroStars from 1996-2002. His playing career also featured stops in Spain and Mexico.
Houston enters a pivotal offseason, as left back DaMarcus Beasley has retired and transfer speculation continues to surround attackers like Mauro Manotas and Alberth Elis.
The two-time MLS Cup champions (2006, ‘07) last made the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs in 2017, and you have to go back to 2013 for their second-latest appearance. The Dynamo, however, did win the U.S. Open Cup in 2018.
