Carl Craig (football manager)

Carl Craig is an English football manager. He is currently the manager of Minneapolis City in USL League Two. He was formerly the head coach of NASL club Minnesota United.[2]

Carl Craig
Personal information
Date of birth October 1965 (age 57–58)[1]
Place of birth Newcastle, England
Team information
Current team
 Minneapolis City (head coach)
Youth career
Years Team
Newcastle United
Managerial career
2010–2015 Minnesota United (assistant)
2015–2016 Minnesota United
2020–2021 Forward Madison
2023– Minneapolis City

Early life

Craig spent some time on the books of Newcastle United as a young footballer but fell away from the game in his mid-teens.[3][4] During the 1980s he was a member of punk bands called Reality Control and The Abductor, and toured with Chumbawamba.[5] Craig then ran a whole foods co-operative with bandmates out of a flat in Newcastle. Craig was also a vegan in this period and his first experience of football coaching was for the team of a workers co-op music club.[4]

Coaching career

Prior to moving to the United States, Craig had acquired his full English FA badge and spent some time working for the FA in the English north-east, as well as for the Newcastle United academy system along with Sheffield Wednesday. After moving to the United States in 1994, Craig progressed through the managerial ranks in the Minnesota area working in youth leagues then the Premier Development League and National Premier Soccer League before becoming assistant manager of Minnesota United in 2010.[6]

Craig was promoted to head coach of Minnesota United in December 2015.[7][3] Under Craig's guidance in the 2016 season, Minnesota finished 5th in NASL missing out on the playoffs.[8]

On 1 December 2020, Craig was announced as the head coach and technical director of USL League One club Forward Madison FC.[9][10]

Craig was appointed manager of USL League Two club Minneapolis City of 24 January 2023.[11]

Managerial record
As of Match played 30 October 2021
Team From To Record
PWDLGSGCWin %
Minnesota United 3 December 2015 30 October 2016 34 12 8 14 44 39 035.29
Forward Madison 1 December 2020 4 November 2021 28 8 12 8 32 34 028.57

References
  1. "Carl Craig: The Most Interesting Man In Minnesota Sports – WCCO | CBS Minnesota". Minnesota.cbslocal.com. 21 February 2016. Retrieved 16 December 2021.
  2. Greder, Andy. "Minnesota United FC makes Carl Craig head coach, Manny Lagos GM – Twin Cities". Twincities.com. Retrieved 16 December 2021.
  3. Greder, Andy. "Carl Craig, former vegan punk rocker, is United FC's coach". Twincities.com. Retrieved 16 December 2021.
  4. "Minnesota United FC head coach Carl Craig ready for moment in spotlight after 20 years waiting in wings". Telegraph.co.uk. 4 March 2016. Retrieved 16 December 2021.
  5. Kay, Bryan (29 June 2016). "Carl Craig: the man with the punk past leading Minnesota United into MLS". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
  6. "Coaching Staff | Minnesota United FC". Archived from the original on 3 July 2016. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  7. "Minnesota's Carl Craig Has Had 'Smooth' Transition To Head Coach". NASL. 10 March 2016. Retrieved 16 December 2021.
  8. mlssoccer. "Minnesota United coach Carl Craig hoping to stay on when team joins MLS | MLSSoccer.com". mlssoccer. Retrieved 16 December 2021.
  9. "Forward Madison names Carl Craig as new Head Coach". Forwardmadisonfc.com. Retrieved 16 December 2021.
  10. "FORWARD MADISON TO REPLACE CARL CRAIG". ForwardMadisonFC.com. Retrieved 4 November 2021.
  11. "Carl Craig joining as new head coach". MPLSCitySC.com. Minneapolis City. Retrieved 24 January 2023.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.