With speculation mounting over the identity of the next Orlando City SC head coach, comes a new report with a candidate familiar to most MLS watchers.
Paul Tenorio reported in The Athletic on Thursday that former Portland Timbers manager Caleb Porter has met with Orlando City brass in recent days about the opening, which came about after the Lions parted ways with Jason Kreis on June 15. Orlando City CEO Alex Leitão told a local reporter this week that the team is aiming to hire a coach by next week.
Porter, who won the 2015 MLS Cup with the Timbers, guided the team to playoff berths in three of the five seasons he was in charge, but parted ways with the team by mutual agreement following Portland's elimination in the 2017 Western Conference Semifinals.
Prior to his time in Portland, Porter built a powerhouse college program at the University of Akron from 2006-2012. He was also the coach of the United States Under-23 national team during their ill-fated 2012 Olympic qualifying run.
Tenorio also noted that the Lions had two other domestic coaching candidates on their radar, while big-name Brazilian coaches Dunga and Luiz Felipe Scolari have also been mooted as potential candidates to become the club's third full-time head coach.