The Chicago Fire have added former Austin FC head coach Nicolás "Nico" Estévez as an assistant, effectively replacing Filipe Çelikkaya on the coaching staff following his departure to a head coaching position at Hungarian side ZTE FC.
In Estévez, the Fire have gained a highly-regarded manager with head coaching experience to the roster. Dating from his time as an academy manager in his native Spain, Estévez has developed a reputation as a strong developer of youth talent, a particular point emphasis with the Fire, and a smart tactical mind.
The move reunites Estévez with Fire head coach Gregg Berhalter, with the history dating back to the former's tenure as head coach of the Columbus Crew. The Spaniard to leave his native Valencia to join the Crew, initially as Director of Methodology in 2014, Berhalter's second year in Columbus.
"When he was done working with Valencia, he gave me a call and he came over to the states as director of methodology with the Columbus Crew with basically a one-year contract and basically gambled on himself," Berhalter told MLS in 2021. "Through the quality of his work, he was able to get promoted to assistant coach and then he comes to the national team and does outstanding work there."
In a statement released to media, Berhalter was quoted as saying that Estévez "brings a wealth of experience at the international and MLS levels, along with a deep understanding of player development and team dynamics. Just as importantly, he is an outstanding person whose values align with what we’re building at Chicago Fire. His knowledge, work ethic and collaborative approach will make our staff even stronger."
Ahead of the 2017 season, Estévez was named as an assistant coach with the Crew. When Berhalter was named head coach of the US Men's National team, he again hired Estévez with him as an assistant.
Ahead of the 2022 MLS season, Estévez left the national team to become head coach of FC Dallas and led the team to a 20 point improvement in his first year with the club, returning the club to the postseason. That season, he coached USMNT (and current Seattle Sounder) striker Jesús Ferreira to a career-high 18 goal performance.
Following a disappointing start to his third season with FC Dallas, he was dismissed in June 2024 and briefly returned as an assistant with the USMSNT.
Just four months after his dismissal from Dallas, he was hired by Dallas's Copa Tejas rivals Austin FC as the team's second-ever head coach ahead of the 2025 season, when Estévez once again returned his squad to the playoffs.
His tenure in the Texan capital ended earlier this year, when both he and Sporting Director Rodolfo Borrell were dismissed in May, ahead of Austin's last game before the World Cup break, making the 48-year-old Estévez available to reunite with Berhalter and join the Chicago Fire.
