St. Louis CITY SC Fire Head Coach Olof Mellberg

OLOF MELLBERG SACKED!

The snowman has melted: Olof Mellberg has been relieved of his coaching duties effective immediately, the club announced at 6:54 pm CST on Tuesday, May 27th. This means his contract, the details of which were unknown, will have to be bought out. Judging by other MLS coaching contracts over the years, I would assume this was not exactly cheap for a new hire, and it was probably a 2-3 year deal, with Mellberg only reaching a few months in. This only matters in limiting the budget for the upcoming summer transfer window, which opens on July 24th.

Who Takes Over?

As a result, St. Louis CITY SC's affiliate MLS NEXT Pro team, CITY2's head coach David Critchley will serve as "caretaker manager," which is a strange way to say "interim head coach" or "interim manager." Critchley has been with the organization since 2021. His success with the feeder system as well as his success as head coach of CITY2, leading them to a 6-4-1 record in 2025, resembles the credentials of one John Hackworth, who served interim after Bradley Carnell was relieved of his duties in 2024. Hackworth will replace Critchley as the CITY2 head coach, joining his son who is rostered to the team. Assistant coach Baggio Hušidić will also join Critchley from CITY2.

Strange Timing

The most biazarre thing about this is that Olof Mellberg was present for training and held a press conference for media availability just hours before his firing was announced. This is quite the strange situation for both the players and the fans, and perhaps even Olof himself, as it seemed to me like he had no idea of what was coming.

Speculation based on Lutz Pfannenstiel's conversation with KMOX on Sunday begs the idea that the decision was likely made over the weekend, but delayed until this evening for some reason--though there are no confirming details. I would also speculate that the search for a new head coach began before his firing, similarly to what is believed to have occurred after Bradley Carnell's firing last year.

Was Mellberg Fully to Blame?

My brain says no.

Mellberg was dealing with an injury riddled roster. This is not an excuse, this is a reality. Firing him will not make the starters healthy or the depth players perform better, though it may appear that day as CITY are set to take on San Jose Earthquakes with a healthier roster than they have had since March. That match will likely result in a CITY win with the healthier players and the new manager bounce, and will likely lead to fans being willing to toss all the blame on Mellberg and move on. For the general fan, that will suffice, but for those of us who want to see between the lines, a greater diagnosis is necessary.

Mellberg's tactics were certainly... questionable, at times. His low-block defending was said to not be what he wanted to do, but more what the team had been forced to do due to lack of execution in matches. It was a slow, unattractive style of the game that resulted in little goal scoring and left fans itching for something different. They loved Bradley Carnell's energy drink soccer, with its exciting high press, despite its many risks and flaws. More than anything, St. Louisans love blue-collar teams and players who work their tails off and play with their bodies on the line. That resonates with them. For more recent examples, think about Craig Berube's Blues, or Nolan Arenado tossing himself into the stands every other day, or Jim Montgomery's Blues, or even Bradley Carnell's CITY as I mentioned--the list goes on.

That energy is what the fans wanted, and it is also what management promised with this "CITY 2.0" system as dubbed by Sporting Director Lutz Pfannenstiel. Whether fully or partially his fault, Olof Mellberg was falling very, very short of delivering on that mark.

What Will Change?

In the short term, it is likely that St. Louis CITY SC will get that new manager bounce as mentioned. The fans might be happy with that. Critch may end up being that guy, and the team may make the playoffs under him and he may earn the job. After all, he has been devoted to this team and worked with many of the current players on CITY2 (Akil Watts, Célio Pompeu, Michael Wentzel, Jayden Reid, etc.) before they joined the senior team. Saturday's match will be an absolute must-watch for CITY fans--and the CITY Hub post-match show with Matthew Rocchio and myself (Will Bratton) will be a must-watch to get a deeper look at the future of this team, be it optimistic or fearful.

In the long term, this almost generates more questions than it does answers.

Will a top quality manager want to come to a new club that may appear to prematurely fire coaches and has had 4 in just over 2 years, and 5 if a new one is hired? One where the fans turn against a new coach dealing with injuries enough to pressure the front office into firing him? I'm not at all saying that is what happened, because I do not believe that is what happened, but will a potential candidate and his agent who are unfamiliar with the situation see it that way?

What about the players--do they want to sign new contracts with a team that flips managers as many times as you flip the patties on the grill? What about Roman Bürki, who has no contract options and was bought down from Designated Player status? Do they offer him a new DP contract? Would he take it? What about more long term implications--does this send a bad message to the soccer world? Are Lutz Pfannenstiel and/or Diego Gigliani's jobs in jeopardy?

So many questions.

What we do know is that St. Louis CITY SC have one goal that is still alive: make the playoffs. Ownership made it very clear that was the goal, and the firing of Olof Mellberg so early is another indication that that is still the case. They expected the same thing from John Hackworth last season, despite having less time to achieve that goal, and made a push until the very end, just falling short. Will David Critchley's story have a different ending? MLS has a very generous playoff format. Any club can make the playoffs with an end of season run, as we see every year. A great example that hits real close to home is Sporting KC's run in 2023, which resulted in CITY's season coming to an end in the first round of the playoffs. CITY are very much still in the hunt, with 19 matches to go and what smells like three points (knock on wood) in the oven for this weekend.

Was It The Right Call?

The million dollar question.

For me, the answer is simple: it was too soon.

I believe we needed to see Olof Mellberg with at least 9/11 preferred starters available for 90 minutes--a feat that has occurred just ONE time in 2025, resulting in a win on the road with 10/11 starters--before he was fired. That last-chance-match might have been this weekend's rumble with the Earthquakes. Had he coached that match with 9, 10, or 11 starters, at home at Energizer Park, and not secured all three points, I would have 100% been on the "Olof Out" train.

But I wasn't when I woke up this morning. I won't be when I go to bed tonight.

He has not had that full opportunity.

What do you think? Join the conversation on SportsHubSTL everywhere you consume podcasts to talk to us live, or mention us on social media. Regardless of what any of us think, what is done is done and the only time will tell whether or not the decision made was the correct one.