New York Red Bulls fire head coach Mike Petke, hire Jesse Marsch
The New York Red Bulls fired manager Mike Petke after two seasons and hired Jesse Marsch to replace him, the team announced Wednesday.
In his first season, Petke led the team to a league-best 17–9–8 record and the club's first Supporters' Shield, before losing in the semifinals of the MLS Cup playoffs. This season, the Red Bulls had a 13–10–11 mark and lost in the Eastern Conference finals to the New England Revolution.
Petke also played for the club as a center back from 1998-2002 and again from 2009-2010 and was a fan favorite on the field and on the sidelines.
"On behalf of the New York Red Bulls, I want to thank Mike for his service to the club these past two seasons as head coach," new Red Bulls sporting director Ali Curtis said. "Mike will always be an important member of the Red Bull family."
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Petke took to Twitter to release a statement following the announcement, thanking the club and its fans:
The team then announced that former Montreal Impact head coach and U.S. men's national team assistant Marsch would be its new head coach. The news was first reported by Empireofsoccer.com.
The Red Bulls begin the 2015 season against Sporting Kansas City on March 8.
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