U.S. Soccer Names Initial Members of U.S. MNT Technical Staff
Josh Wolff, B.J. Callaghan, Steve Tashjian and Darcy Norman join Gregg Berhalter's U.S. Men's National Team Technical Staff
CHICAGO (Jan. 16, 2019) – U.S. Soccer announced the newest appointments to the U.S. Men’s National Team technical staff, fulfilling the goals of finding coaches who bring a wealth and variety of experience both domestically and abroad.
Former U.S. international Josh Wolff joins as an assistant coach, B.J. Callaghan as Strategy Analyst and Assistant Coach, Steve Tashjian as Head Performance Expert and Darcy Norman as Movement and Conditioning Coach.
Wolff and Tashjian previously worked under MNT head coach Gregg Berhalter in the same roles with Columbus Crew SC. Callaghan joins the MNT staff after serving as an assistant coach with the Philadelphia Union, while Norman most recently worked as the Performance Data Analyst and Fitness Rehab Coach with the German Men’s National Team.
“In putting together the staff, we looked for coaches with considerable backgrounds in four different areas: World Cups, Concacaf, MLS and Europe,” Berhalter said. “This group checks those boxes, and we are confident their wealth of experiences will be beneficial to the players and for the development of our program.”
“From the outset, we searched for coaches that have complimentary skillsets and varied career paths,” U.S. MNT general manager Earnie Stewart added. “Starting with Gregg and with these additions to the staff, we have assembled a strong group that can now begin to implement the culture, style of play and identity we envision for the National Team moving forward.”
In addition, Nico Estevez, who worked closely with Berhalter at Columbus Crew SC, will join the MNT staff as an assistant coach pending approval of his U.S. work permit. A native of Spain, he holds a UEFA Pro License and has more than 15 years of experience coaching at the highest professional levels in Spain and the United States, including stints at Columbus and La Liga’s Valencia.
Oregon State University Men’s head coach Terry Boss is currently serving as goalkeeper coach for Berhalter during the January Camp.
Josh Wolff – Assistant Coach
A teammate of Berhalter’s with the U.S. Men’s National Team and German club 1860 Munich, Wolff returns to the MNT after working seven seasons as an assistant coach in Major League Soccer the past five of which came under Berhalter at Columbus Crew SC. There, Wolff helped the club to an appearance in the 2015 MLS Cup Final and playoff berths in four out of five seasons. Prior to joining Columbus, Wolff served as an assistant coach from 2012-2013 with D.C. United. He is a holder of U.S. Soccer’s “PRO” and “A” coaching licenses.
The Stone Mountain, Ga., product scored nine goals in 52 caps for the MNT from 1999-2008, an international career which saw the striker take part in the 2002 and 2006 FIFA World Cups, help the USA to the 2002 and 2005 Concacaf Gold Cup and a fourth-place finish at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. During 15-year professional career, Wolff featured for Chicago Fire, Kansas City Wizards and D.C. United, as well as German side 1860 Munich. During that time, Wolff won three trophies with Chicago – the 1998 MLS Cup and 1998 and 2000 U.S. Open Cups – as well as the 2004 U.S. Open Cup title with Kansas City.
B.J. Callaghan – Strategy Analyst / Assistant Coach
Callaghan comes to the U.S. Men’s National Team after spending the last seven years with the Philadelphia Union. For the past five seasons, Callaghan worked as an assistant coach under Jim Curtin, focusing on team defending, opponent analysis, set-piece design, player development and scouting. During this time, he helped the Union to appearances in the 2014, 2015 and 2018 Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Finals as well as postseason berths in 2016 and 2018. Prior to his involvement with the first team, he spent the previous two years working with the Philadelphia Union/YSC Academy.
Callaghan spent six years with Villanova University, rising to the level of Associate Head Coach and previously held many coaching positions with Philadelphia-area clubs FC Delco, Montgomery Soccer Club and the EPYSA/Region I ODP program. He holds the U.S. Soccer “PRO” and “A” coaching licenses.
Steve Tashjian – Head Performance Expert
Steve Tashjian joins the U.S. Men’s National Team staff after spending the past five years with Columbus Crew SC, where he worked alongside Gregg Berhalter as the club’s High Performance Director. A licensed physical therapist and respected performance specialist, Tashjian is renowned for being the lone American in the same role in the English Premier League for half a decade. With Columbus, Tashjian was tasked with continuing to develop data driven performance platforms in the areas of health and wellness, sports medicine, sport science, strength and conditioning and recovery.
Tashjian joined Crew SC from English Premier League side Everton, where he served for five years as the Head of Sports Science and Conditioning and Director of End Stage Rehabilitation. During his time at Everton, Tashjian became well known for his innovative approach to player monitoring and performance development.
From 2007 to 2009, Tashjian served as Assistant Coach and Head of Fitness, Director of End Stage Rehabilitation and Reconditioning with Columbus. He was a part of the late Sigi Schmid’s staff that led the Black & Gold to the 2008 MLS Cup, and was a part of back-to-back Supporters’ Shield wins in 2008 and 2009. As an Assistant Coach, Head of Fitness and later a consultant for Azusa Pacific University from 2006-2008, he helped the university to a 2007 NAIA Men’s Soccer National Championship as well as runner-up honors with the women in 2007 and the men in 2006.
Darcy Norman – Movement & Conditioning Coach
Darcy Norman brings 20 years of experience in the human performance industry to the U.S. Men’s National Team. For the past 10 years, his work has primarily focused on creating and implementing methodologies, applied data and building strategic relations, as well as managing medical, rehab, fitness, nutrition, psychology and sport science staff at the highest level. Norman’s soccer-specific experience includes time as Performance Data Analyst and Fitness Rehab Coach with the German Men’s National Team from 2012-2018, helping Die Mannschaft to the 2014 FIFA World Cup title and third-place finish at Euro 2016. From 2015-2018, Norman also worked as the Director of Performance with Italian club AS Roma, helping the side to a semifinal appearance in 2017-18 UEFA Champions League. Prior to those positions, he worked as the Strength Coach and Rehab Specialist for Bayern Munich, helping the German club to the 2009-10 Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal Championship and the Final of that season’s UEFA Champions League.
A licensed therapist and certified strength and conditioning specialist, Norman also served as the Director of Performance Innovation at EXOS and as a Physical Therapist and Performance Coach at Athletes’ Performance.