Charlotte FC fired manager Miguel Angel Ramirez on Tuesday just 14 games into the expansion club's first MLS season.
The team is just two points out of a playoff position, yet Ramirez has been dismissed midway through the campaign.
Why was that decision made, and what has Charlotte said about its job search? GOAL takes a look.
Why did Charlotte fire Ramirez after 14 MLS games?
The team released two statements from organizational leadership on Tuesday, however neither one gave a direct explanation for what happened.
While Ramirez was unusually critical of the club before the season, saying he was "screwed" with the roster he was given, things have run smoothly since then, at least in public.
Assistant coach Christian Lattanzio will serve as interim boss for the rest of the campaign.
"This is a difficult decision, but one we feel is best for the team at this time," owner David Tepper said in a statement. "I want to thank Miguel and his staff for their hard work during our first season and wish them the best in their future endeavors."
Sporting director Zoran Krneta, meanwhile, opted not to go too deep into details with regards to Ramirez's firing, saying that he did not want to give in to "speculation" while adding that he maintained a good relationship with the coach throughout his tenure.
"What happened today is another decision that was made to the benefit of the club," Krneta said. "Some of these decisions might be more or less difficult, and this one this morning was very difficult for all of us and we lost sleep over it.
"But at the end of the day, we had no choice and we had to do it... Nothing has changed [with our expectations]. We hope that things will improve."
Sources confirmed to GOAL, however, that the decision to move on Ramirez, who was overwhelmingly popular with the fans, was made due to a variety of factors and that it had been one that the club feels had been coming for some time.
Ramirez's public comments didn't help matters, with the coach often playing down the quality of his squad amid the expansion roster-building process, but those comments were not the sole reason behind his dismissal.
Rumors of a disconnect between the coach and the front office were also not the primary factor in the decision to make a change, nor was any specific locker room issue.
Rather, the club opted to move on from Ramirez due to a series of factors both on and off the field.
While many outside of the club see Charlotte FC as overachieving given their expansion status, sources tell GOAL that the club feels it is underachieving given the current squad.
While Ramirez was left frustrated by certain missing pieces in the squad, the club has brought in two Polish internationals, Karol Swiderski and Kamil Jozwiak, as well Premier League winner Christian Fuchs and several MLS veterans.
And, while Charlotte may be hanging around the playoff picture, the club believes several points have been squandered that could very well have had the team in a more comfortable position to start the season.
But the club wasn't just concerned with those on-field results, as Ramirez's downplaying of the squad did begin to cause a disconnect.
So, by the time Charlotte was defeated by the Seattle Sounders this weekend, the decision was made to move on with the club finally pulling the trigger after several weeks of mulling over their coach's future.
Ramirez's background as head coach
The 37-year-old was initially hired as an up-and-coming candidate who carried experience coaching youth academies in Europe.
Ramirez arrived to Charlotte having spent time with Panathinaikos, Olympiacos and Las Palmas before moving on to senior team positions in Ecuador and Brazil.
His interim replacement, Lattanzio, has never been a top-flight head coach before, though he served as an assistant for several clubs before Charlotte, having worked under Patrick VIeira, Fabio Capello, Gianfranco Zola and Roberto Mancini throughout his career.
“I feel privileged to join Charlotte FC’s coaching staff, it is the right moment to experience again the MLS culture as the Club’s ambitions match my goals,” said Lattanzio in a statement. “I am committed to working with Miguel and the entire team to play a competitive, entertaining game. It is impressive to see the growth of soccer in the United States and the passion of the fans inspires me to do my best.”