Inter Miami's new coach played with Messi, Maradona and Pochettino - but who is Kily Gonzalez?

Analysis

Tom Weber | Writer

Inter Miami have announced Cristian "Kily" Gonzalez as their new coach. It is a surprising choice - but his ties to Lionel Messi explain everything.

The Argentine will officially replace interim head coach Guillermo Hoyos once he and his staff receive their required work permits. Hoyos will remain in charge for the time being, though he will not be on the sideline this weekend, as he has been suspended for repeatedly violating MLS's late kickoff policy.

Hoyos, Messi's "footballing father" and former Barcelona academy manager, assumed his role as interim Miami coach in April following the surprising resignation of Javier Mascherano, who won MLS Cup with the Herons last year.

Miami came out of the World Cup break firing on all cylinders, beating Chicago and Montreal. However, things have turned sour this month, with the Florida franchise winning just one of their seven games in August.

Amid this poor run of results, captain Messi has had to navigate the passing of his father, which he says has plunged his future into doubt. The 39-year-old is under contract through 2028, but there seems to be no guarantee at this stage that he will fulfil his deal.

Who is Kily Gonzalez?

With the squad struggling to win games, Miami have turned to Gonzalez, who is a relatively obscure and surprising appointment. The 52-year-old has had three senior coaching roles to date, all of them in his native Argentina.

Gonzalez began his coaching career at his hometown club Rosario Central, with whom he had three separate stints during his playing days. After spending time with the team's youth setup, he was put in charge of the first team in 2020.

He failed to achieve any kind of consistent results and was sacked after 68 games in 2022, with his final match in charge being a home loss to city rivals - and Messi's boyhood club - Newell's Old Boys.

After almost a year without a job, Union Santa Fe took a chance on him, and he initially enjoyed more success, losing just twice in his first 14 matches in charge. However, the 52-year-old also oversaw just three wins in that timeframe.

He left Union last year, with a mixed record of 25 wins, 25 draws and 27 defeats in 77 games. A sojourn to surprise 2025 Apertura winners Platense proved short-lived, with Kily resigning after just two wins from 14 games, with the side finishing bottom of Zone B in the Clausura.

Given his fairly uninspiring coaching record, it is clear that, like Mascherano and Hoyos, this is a Messi hire from Inter Miami. Tata Martino also had ties with the megastar, though he was appointed a couple of weeks before the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner arrived.

Gonzalez has no prior coaching links with Messi, but the two go way back. Kily briefly played alongside Messi during his impressive playing career. In fact, he played alongside many an Argentine great - Diego Maradona, Mauricio Pochettino, Juan Sebastian Veron, to name but a few.

The former winger was part of the Argentina setup for a decade and played a significant part in Messi's infamous Albiceleste debut against Hungary in the run-up to the 2006 World Cup, which lasted just a minute and a half, as he received a controversial red card.

"It was a very tough moment for me because my debut meant so much," Messi recalled in June 2024. "I came into the changing room crying. I couldn’t hold back the tears, but I remember Kily saying to me, 'Don’t worry, the same thing happened to me, and I carried on playing for the national team.'

"And that’s exactly how it went - I’m still playing a million games later. Kily was really supportive in that moment; he stuck by me and looked after me. Everyone else did too, but I remember his words in particular."

21 years on, the two are now reunited at Inter Miami. It is easy to say that this is cronyism, but there is also perhaps some merit in appointing Gonzalez if we look at his stint at Santa Fe.

The first thing he did when he took that job was make the team hard to beat. As mentioned, he only lost two of his first 14 matches, which included a run of five consecutive clean sheets.

Miami desperately need a coach who can figure out a way of making the team more defensively solid. Scoring goals is not an issue for Messi and friends - preventing them is where the Herons fall short.

If Kily can concoct a system that stops Miami from leaking goals, chances are he'll go on to have success with this team. The first order of business is to set the team up in a way so that Dayne St. Clair - one of MLS's best shot-stoppers - no longer has to play as a sweeper-keeper.

There is ample evidence that he can't do it, and with Rocco Rios Novo repeatedly making costly errors, Miami don't have any viable alternatives. They need to maximise the talent of the reigning MLS Goalkeeper of the Year.

Miami have the players to be better defensively; they just need a coach with a more sophisticated tactical approach. Time will tell if Kily Gonzalez is the right man for the job.

Written by

Tom Weber | Writer

Tom Weber is an experienced, multilingual sports writer who specialises in European football and American soccer as part of his freelance work for FootballTransfers.

View full bio