FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Brad Friedel said goodbye to one of his most trusted confidantes on Tuesday morning, but immediately welcomed another to his New England Revolution coaching staff.
Rubén Garcia, who served as an assistant on Friedel’s staff for the past 18 months – working primarily with the goalkeepers – has departed the Revolution to take a position as Sporting Director for Spanish side SD Huesca, currently battling relegation in La Liga.
Garcia, who hails from Spain, was well-respected and well-liked both inside and outside the Revolution locker room, and when this opportunity presented itself, New England didn’t want to stand in the way.
“Rubén and I have been working together for probably five years now,” said Friedel, whose relationship with Garcia dates back to their time coaching at the U.S. Under-19 level. “It’s a big miss. He’s a trusted worker, no doubt, but more importantly, he’s a friend.
“It was an opportunity for him to go into a sporting director role that we as a club couldn’t stop him from going and doing. It’s a big opportunity for him, and a big loss for the club just as the person that Rubén is.”
Those sentiments were shared throughout the Revolution locker room, and particularly by the goalkeepers, who worked with Garcia on a daily basis.
“He’s done a fantastic job,” said Cody Cropper. “He’s worked with the goalkeepers day-in and day-out, and we all have that relationship with him. We’ll continue to watch how his progress goes overseas and wish him the best.”
The man hired to fill Garcia’s shoes, Kevin Hitchcock, also has a longstanding relationship with Friedel from their time working together at the highest levels of the game. In fact, Hitchcock was Friedel’s goalkeeping coach for four years at Blackburn Rovers from 2004 to 2008.
Hitchcock, who also had an 18-year playing career – mainly at Chelsea – followed Blackburn manager Mark Hughes to Manchester City in 2008, before subsequent coaching stints at West Ham United and Queens Park Rangers. More recently he was with Chennaiyin FC in the Indian Super League.
It’s that wealth of experience that has Friedel excited for what Hitchcock can bring to his staff, particularly with regards to his history of developing goalkeepers at any stage of their careers.
“He’s vastly experienced,” Friedel said of Hitchcock, who has worked with goalkeepers like Kasper Schmeichel, Joe Hart, Shay Given, and Júlio César. “He’s been in charge of developing senior goalkeepers, helping them develop in their career, and he’s also been in charge of the younger goalkeepers, making that transition up through the ranks.
“He’s seen pretty much everything. We’re getting a good one.”
Hitchcock has an appointment to obtain his visa later this week, and Friedel is hopeful that his newest staff member will arrive in time to travel with the Revs for next Wednesday’s visit to the Chicago Fire, but “if not, it’ll be shortly after that.”
In the meantime Friedel is working with the goalkeepers, and while he knows a thing or two about the position, he’s looking forward to Hitchcock’s arrival in New England.
“He is outstanding,” Friedel said of Hitchcock. “Very, very sad to see Rubén go. Very, very happy to see Kevin come in.”
