Juan Carlos Osorio named as new Tijuana Xolos manager
Credit: Xolos
This Friday, May 24, Club Tijuana officially announced Juan Carlos Osorio as the new manager at the border city team.
Miguel Herrera was recently relieved of his duties after a disastrous 2024 Clausura campaign, and, in steps, another high-profile name at the helm.
Osorio had a brief playing career from 1982 to 1987 but really prepared himself as a head coach in England, being part of Kevin Keegan’s coaching staff at Manchester City. The Colombian coach had his first job as a head coach in 2006 in his native country with Millionarios. He has since coached 10 other teams, including some work in MLS with Chicago Fire and New York Red Bulls.
Osorio’s only other gig in Liga MX came in an unsuccessful stint with Puebla from 2011 to 2012. The Colombian manager also most notably coached the Mexico national team from 2015 to 2018, taking charge at the 2018 FIFA World Cup. Osorio received plenty of criticism in charge of Mexico, especially for his constant squad rotations and preference of physical prowess.
Una pluma de experiencia internacional ✍️🌎
¡Bienvenido a Tijuana, “Profe” Osorio! 🔥#FuerzaTijuas 🔴⚫️
— Xolos 🐕 (@Xolos) May 25, 2024
However, under Osorio, Mexico walked through the qualifiers for the World Cup and enjoyed a historic 1-0 win against Germany at the global competition. The new Club Tijuana manager led Mexico to a round of 16 exit in Russia but was definitely unfairly judged at times in his tenure with El Tri.
The 62-year-old head coach has notably won four Colombian league championships, which, in terms of competitiveness, is a similar league to Liga MX. Osorio is an extremely methodical and prepared manager who has the potential to turn this Tijuana side around if given the proper squad to compete.
As mentioned before, Osorio is known for his squad rotations, with no player having a starting role guaranteed at any given moment. The Colombian manager also demands a certain physical presence from his players, usually opting for height and strength in his backline and midfield. In terms of playing style, Osorio deployed a 4-3-3 formation with Mexico and it is a formation that he has used with previous teams.
Typically, Osorio will not opt to directly have a defensive style of play, but he is capable of switching his tactics depending on the opposition. Set-pieces are also a very important part of the Colombian’s game, both defending them and on the attack, which is an area of play that Club Tijuana did not really exploit to the full potential with Miguel Herrera.
Juaan Carlos Osorio is not a safe pick by any stretch of the imagination, but he is a very smart and prepared head coach with plenty of potential in Liga MX.
Francisco, 26, Chula Vista/Tijuana. I have been a Padres fan all my life, did most of the series previews and recaps in the Padres’ 2016 season for EVT. Now I focus more on the local soccer scene. Tijuana Xolos, San Diego Loyal, San Diego Wave.