Major League Soccer side Atlanta United are in advanced talks with Paulo Fonseca over becoming their new manager.
Fonseca left Serie A club AS Roma at the end of the 2020/21 season and was replaced by Jose Mourinho. He was then expected to take over as the new head coach of Tottenham Hotspur before talks broke down at the last minute.
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The Athletic report that Fonseca has held extended talks with Atlanta United over a move Stateside, and has already been given a tour of the club’s facilities by president Darren Eales and sporting director Carlos Bocanegra.
Fonseca has also been pictured having lunch with Eales and club owner Arthur Blank, and it looks like he is closing in on becoming the new manager at Atlanta United.
He would replace Gabriel Heinze, who was sacked in July after just 17 matches in charge amid a host of reports claiming he overworked Atlanta United’s players. They currently sit 11th in the MLS Eastern Conference, eight points adrift of a playoff place and winless in 11 games.
Former manager Frank de Boer has also been linked with a return to Georgia following his dismissal as the manager of the Netherlands national team, though nothing concrete has been reported on that front recently.
Fonseca left Roma after two seasons in charge at the Stadio Olimpico, failing to return them to the Champions League but leading them to the semi-finals of the Europa League last campaign. They were eventually knocked out by Manchester United 8-5 on aggregate.
He had enjoyed success as the manager of Shakhtar Donetsk prior to that, winning a Ukrainian league and cup double in three straight seasons. Fonseca helped oversee the club’s temporary move to Kharkiv due to the ongoing unrest in Donetsk.
