Atlanta United part ways with VP Carlos Bocanegra after nine years at the helm

Atlanta have made a significant front office change with just two months remaining in the MLS regular season. Bocanegra, who was intrumental in the expansion franchise's early success, has been removed from his position with immediate effect, the club announced on Wednesday.

The move comes just weeks after a busy summer window in which Atlanta spent heavily on former Atalanta attacking midfielder Aleksei Miranchuk. Bocanegra also directed a number of high profile departures, generating big fees for Caleb Wiley and Thiago Almada.

The move comes at an interesting time for the MLS side. Atlanta is currently clinging on to the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, and face a tricky slate to round off the season as they hope to secure a playoff spot.

It has been a turbulent year for the team, which has won the 2018 MLS Cup and the 2019 U.S. Open Cup. They parted ways with head coach Gonzalo Pineda in early June, and appointed Assistant Coach Rob Valentino as interim boss for the remainder of the season. The club promised in June that a search for a new permanent head coach would begin immediately, but there have been no further updates since that announcement.

In an official statement, Club CEO Garth Lagerwey spoke on the decision to part ways with Bocanegra: "We are deeply appreciative of Carlos’s dedication and success over the last nine years with Atlanta United. However, I believe it’s time for our club to move in a new direction. While we will continue to fight for a playoff spot down the final stretch of the season, this gives us a clean slate and a runway to properly assess all vacancies in our sporting operation ahead of what will be an extremely important offseason for our club."

Bocanegra's first iteration of Atlanta United was one of the most successful expansion franchises in MLS history. In 2017, they became the first ever expansion side to qualify for the playoffs, and 12 months later lifted MLS Cup on the back of an immensely talented squad, highlighted by MVP winner Josef Martinez.

Bocanegra also is one of the most successful and capped U.S. men's national team players, having made 110 caps and winning two Gold Cups.

Things get tricky from here. Atlanta has seven games remaining in its MLS slate, including clashes with Inter Miami, New York Red Bulls and Orlando City - all of which are ahead of them in the Eastern Conference. MLS playoffs start at the end of October.