(Montreal) Columbus Crew head coach Wilfried Nancy is once again a finalist for the Sigi Schmid Trophy, awarded annually to the MLS head coach par excellence, the Garber circuit announced Thursday.
Nancy, who is in her first season at the helm of the Crew, helped the Ohio team finish third in the Eastern Conference, with a record of 16-9-9, for a total of 57 points.
FC Cincinnati head coach Pat Noonan and St. Louis City head coach Bradley Carnell are also in the running for the prestigious award.
Last year, Nancy, who led CF Montreal, was also a finalist for the title of head coach par excellence. However, he finished second in the voting, just behind Jim Curtin of the Philadelphia Union.
Nancy was then replaced by Hernan Losada at CF Montreal. This season, the Montreal eleven narrowly missed the MLS playoffs, after being beaten 2-1 by the Crew last Saturday on the last day of the regular season.
In addition, Argentinian Lionel Messi of Inter Miami CF is one of the finalists for the Newcomer of the Year honor.
This appointment is not surprising if we consider that Messi, who is perceived by many observers as the best player in the world, caused a sensation upon his arrival with the Florida team in July.
Messi finished the season with 11 goals and eight assists, including appearances in the League Cup and US Cup matches.
Giorgos Giakoumakis of Atlanta United and Eduard Löwen of St Louis City SC are the other finalists for the honor, which is given to a player with professional experience who made his MLS debut in 2023.
The finalists for MVP are Luciano Acosta of FC Cincinnati, Thiago Almada of Atlanta United and Denis Bouanga of Los Angeles FC.