Atlanta United is hiring Chris Henderson as its technical director, according to a person with knowledge of the negotiations.
Henderson, recently at Inter Miami, and Atlanta United President Garth Lagerwey worked together at Seattle from 2015-21. The duo led the club to two MLS Cup titles.
An Atlanta United spokesman declined to comment. Inter Miami hasn’t confirmed that Henderson is leaving.
Lagerwey fired Atlanta United’s previous technical director, Carlos Bocanegra, in September.
Because of their history working together, Henderson was the first name to be speculated as Lagerwey’s target to become the team’s technical director.
Lagerwey said in September that he wanted a technical director who understands the nuances of MLS. Henderson, who was able to help Miami sign not only Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez, but also Jordi Alba, Sergio Busquets, Julian Gressel and several promising young stars from South America, meets those criteria.
Henderson’s immediate task with Atlanta United is to target and sign two Designated Players, and to build depth on a roster that advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Henderson’s spending won’t be limited. Lagerwey said in November that the next technical director can have more than $50 million the team earned in transfer fees generated from last summer’s sales of Thiago Almada, Giorgos Giakoumakis and Caleb Wiley. Some of that money was spent to acquire attacking midfielder Alexey Miranchuk, one of the team’s building blocks.
Examining the types of players and spends Lagerwey and Henderson made at Seattle may provide a glimpse of what they will do with Atlanta United.
Among the players they brought in were Jordan Morris as a Homegrown and Nelson Valdez on a free transfer in 2016, Nicolas Lodeiro for $5.7 million during the 2016 season, Alex Roldan through the draft in 2017, Kee-hee Kim on a free, Raul Ruidiaz for $6.7 million in 2018, Brad Smith on a loan in 2018 and Joao Paulo for $2.4 million during the 2020 season.
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