Inter Miami fires head coach Neville halfway through his third season

MIAMI (AP) — Phil Neville was fired Thursday halfway through his third season as coach of David Beckham's Inter Miami with the team last in Major League Soccer's Eastern Conference.

Miami also fired assistant coach Jason Kreis and promoted Javier Morales, another assistant, to interim head coach.

“I have watched him work incredibly hard and with real commitment towards the ambitions we set out for the club,” Beckham said in a statement. “Sometimes in this game we have to make the toughest decisions and sadly we feel the time is right to make a change.”

The 46-year-old Neville is a former teammate of Beckham's on Manchester United and England's national team, making 56 international appearances from 1996-2007. He coached England's women's national team from 2018 until he was hired by Miami in January 2021.

"I’m grateful to have played a part in the growth of this club," Neville said in a statement released by the team.

Miami had 12 wins, 17 losses and 10 draws in its first MLS season under Neville, finishing 11th and missing the playoffs, then finished sixth last season with 14 wins, 14 losses and six draws. Miami lost to New York City 3-0 in the first round of the postseason.

Miami has five wins and 10 losses in the league this season, opening with a pair of wins, losing six straight, winning three in a row and then losing its last four.

“Sometimes the path to growth involves difficult decisions and today is one of those moments,” managing owner Jorge Mas said in a statement. “We are grateful to Phil for the dedication and tenacity he brought to Inter Miami. His positive contributions are embedded in our team culture and he represented our club with class and dignity.”

Neville became the third MLS coach fired this season. Chicago replaced Ezra Hendrickson with Frank Klopas on May 8, the same day the New York Red Bulls' Gerhard Struber was replaced by Troy Lesesne.

Miami assistant coach Darren Powell, goalkeeper coach Sebastián Saja and assistant coach and performance analyst Alec Scott will remain in their roles.

Morales joined Miami in 2019 as an academy coach, led its under-17 team last year and became a first-team assistant this season.

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