Philadelphia Union owner Jay Sugarman knew he was getting a winner when he hired sporting director Ernst Tanner.
However, he didn’t expect the success Tanner had at previous jobs to translate right away in his first full Major League Soccer season.
The 2019 season, which Sugarman told Pro Soccer USA was supposed to be more transitional to Tanner’s system, exceeded expectations and ended with the Union earning their first-ever playoff victory.
“This was meant to be more of a transition year,” Sugarman said. “We have not fully transitioned to that style of play, but it’s a real credit to (manager Jim Curtin) and the players for what they were able to accomplish this year with a new sporting director, new players, new style of play.