The Portland Timbers mutually parted ways with head coach Phil Neville on Monday as the club sits in 13th place in the Western Conference heading into the World Cup break.
The England native guided the Timbers to a at 4-8-2 record this season and a 27-31-24 record since joining the club prior to the 2024 season.
“We are appreciative of Phil’s commitment and efforts during his time with the Portland Timbers,” Timbers general manager Ned Grabavoy said in a release. “… This offseason we had pointed discussions about the areas we needed to build on and improve. Ultimately, we have not seen the progress we’ve needed to, and, most importantly, results have fallen well short of expectations.”
The Timbers will return to play in July with 20 games remaining in the regular season.
In Neville’s first season in Portland, the Timbers scored a club-record 65 goals while advancing to the playoffs for the first time since 2021. The Timbers also advanced to the playoffs last season.
“To my staff, thank you for your incredible loyalty and hard work,” Neville said in a release. “And to the most incredible bunch of players: thank you for the effort, the good times, the good results, the bad results, and all the laughs we shared together. I realize we are in a results business, and the results haven’t been to the expectation of this football club.”
Neville, 49, played for Manchester United (1994-2005) and Everton (2005-13) of the English Premier League, as well as 59 matches with England’s national team. He also has served as head coach of England’s women’s national team (2018-21) and Inter Miami (2021-23).
–Field Level Media
