CF Montreal Wednesday named Hernan Losada as head coach.
He succeeds Wilfried Nancy, who left the club after a two-year tenure.
Losada, 40, served as head coach of D.C. United during the 2021 and 2022 Major League Soccer seasons.
“We were looking for a coach who could continue the sporting project we have been building since my arrival in 2020 and we are convinced that Hernán checks all the boxes at this level,” CF Montreal vice president and chief sporting officer Olivier Renard said in a statement. “With the philosophy put forward at the club over the past few years, both on and off the field, we are very pleased with our choice.”
Before moving to this side of the Atlantic, he coached Belgian club Beerschot V.A., beginning with the U21 team in 2018-19 before taking over the first team in October 2020. With Losada at the helm, the club won the Belgian second division championship, earning a promotion to the Belgian top flight the following season. In 2020, he was also a finalist for the league’s Coach of the Year award. Losada obtained his UEFA Pro coaching license in 2019.
“It is with great excitement, motivation and gratitude that I approach this new opportunity,” Losada said in a statement. “I am eager to put all my energy, enthusiasm, and abilities into this great project. It is even more special to be able to join a group composed of people with extensive experience like Olivier [Renard], Gabriel [Gervais] and Vassili [Cremanzidis], who have built, with the participation of the entire Club, an identity and a work philosophy focused on youth development, offering them opportunities for growth both on and off the field. My mission is to continue in this same direction, offering an offensive and positive style of play while creating an energizing work environment to continue growing together and reach our goals.”
During his professional playing career from 2003-2018, the attacking midfielder scored 101 goals and 55 assists in 370 games. He made his professional debut with Club Atlético Independiente of Argentina in 2003. He then had a brief stint with Chilean club U. de Chile in 2005 before making the leap to Europe, mainly in Belgium, where he spent the next 15 years, with a short spell in the Dutch Eredivise in 2009-10.
Losada has participated in international competitions such as the Copa Libertadores, the Copa Sudamericana, the Europa League, as well as the UEFA Champions League qualifying matches.
