Paulo Nagamura has officially been hired as the Tacoma Defiance head coach with former Seattle Sounders midfielder João Paulo serving as his top assistant, the team announced. Sounder at Heart had previously reported the move on Jan. 17. Nagamura had most recently been an assistant coach with the Chicago Fire, but previously had been the head coach of the Houston Dynamo and Swope Park Rangers, the Sporting KC affiliate.
“We believe [Nagamura] is the right person to add to our current environment on the development side of the club,” Sounders Technical Director Henry Brauner said in a team statement. “Through his new role, he can accelerate and continue developing young talent within our organization. He has a strong understanding of what our players need at this stage of their careers and how to give them the competencies they require to be able to take next steps within our club. His experience as a player and coach aligns closely with the way we want to develop players across the club.
“Adding João Paulo to his staff only strengthens that process. His experience and understanding of our environment will be invaluable for our younger players as they move through the pathway.”
This will be João Paulo’s first coaching stint after spending six seasons with the Sounders as a player before announcing his retirement a couple of weeks ago.
