Plenty of names were thrown around when discussing the possibility of managing Inter Miami CF. However, one that did not appear until late on in the process is Diego Alonso. However, in the Uruguayan, the club feels it has found its man. So what is Alonso’s background?
As a player, Alonso was a striker who played in his native Uruguay before departing for Argentina, Spain, Mexico and China. In his time in Europe, he was a key player on the 2001-2002 Atletico Madrid side that saw Los Colchoneros return to La Liga, scoring 22 goals in 38 games. Alonso was a bit of a nomad, never making more than 40 appearances for any club before his final stop as a player. With Uruguay’s Peñarol, he appeared 43 times in three years, scoring 17 goals.
He also made a total of eight appearances for the Uruguayan National Team between 1999 and 2004.
Management history
He quickly took to managing after retiring from active play, guiding Club Atlético Bella Vista of Montevideo in 2011. Within the conclusion of the next three years, he would also lead Paraguay’s Club Guaraní, the aforementioned Peñarol and Club Olimpia of Paraguay.
At the conclusion of 2014 he would take over Mexico’s C.F. Pachuca. It was with Los Tuzos that Diego Alonso found the most stability and success of his career. In 2016 he won the club’s first Clausura in nearly a decade He used that success to catapult the club to the CONCACAF Champions League title and a third-place finish in the FIFA Club World Cup in 2017.
In May of this year, he made Mexican soccer history when he guided Monterrey (which he took over in June 2018) to a CONCACAF Champions League title. Alonso became the first coach to lead two different Mexican sides to the top of the continent’s most significant competition.
Inter Miami CF, in the statement announcing his hire, cites an “attractive attacking-style” from Alonso.
“In Diego we found a manager that fits our culture and has a strong desire to build a winning club for our fans. He brings a lot of experience and championship-winning mentality as we begin our drive to be among the best clubs in the Americas,” Inter Miami CF Sporting Director Paul McDonough said in the statement. “We have big aspirations for our club and believe Diego has the right drive, passion and leadership to accomplish our goals.”
