ORLANDO, Fla. (Oct. 3, 2018) - Orlando City B has appointed Fernando Jose De Argila Irurita as head coach of the Club’s USL League One affiliate set to begin play in 2019.
“With his vast experience in the youth systems of FC Barcelona and as a head coach of various professional teams in Italy, Spain, and Greece, Fernando is the perfect fit for what we are striving to accomplish,” OCB general manager Mike Potempa said. “His passion for football and extensive knowledge of our current methods of development at Montverde Academy will be extremely beneficial as we transition to USL League One.”
De Argila joins OCB after serving three years as head coach and director of methodology at the Soccer Institute at Montverde Academy (S.I.M.A.). Under De Argila’s guidance, the S.I.M.A. program has developed 29 professional players currently in MLS, USL, and European top flights after graduation from Montverde Academy.
De Argila brings tremendous experience to OCB as he has worked at every level of the game in Europe. In the 1990s, De Argila served as head coach and technical director of FC Barcelona’s youth academy and professional futsal program. His work with the national team of Catalogne, Girona FC, and CD Gava in Spain eventually led De Argila to Serie A in Italy and the Superliga of Greece where he served as head coach of AC Cesena and Misano FC (Italy), and Pas Ioannina, Atromitos de Atenas, and CF Aris de Salonika (Greece).
De Argila holds a UEFA “A” coaching license, a professional coaching license from the Argentine Football Association (AFA/CONMEBOL) and a goalkeeping instructional degree from the Royal Spanish Football Federation.
De Argila graduated from Camilo Jose Cela University in Spain in 2007 and speaks fluent Spanish, Catalan, French, Italian and Portuguese, with soccer-proficient levels in English and Greek.
