USWNT coach candidates to replace Andonovski after World Cup - ESPN

Editors' note: This story has been updated on Aug. 16 after sources confirmed to ESPN that Vlatko Andonovski has stepped down as manager of the U.S. women's national team.

AUCKLAND, New Zealand — Step one for the U.S. Soccer Federation will be to move on from Vlatko Andonovski, who led the U.S. women's national team to a worst-ever round-of-16 exit at the Women's World Cup.

An announcement confirming Andonovski's exit is expected on Thursday, with sources telling ESPN that assistant Twila Kilgore is likely to be appointed as interim coach for two friendlies against South Africa on Sept. 21 and Sept. 24.

But step two is the hard part: selecting a permanent replacement for Andonovski. There is a very limited number of coaches in the world with the experience and track record to take a job as high-profile and as challenging as coaching the No. 1-ranked USWNT. (Arguably, that's where U.S. Soccer went wrong with Andonovski, who may not have been qualified in the first place.)

— Women's World Cup: Landing page | Schedule | Rosters | News — Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.)

While the pool of qualified candidates is small, it's made even smaller by the fact that not every coach U.S. Soccer wants will be available. Good coaches tend to be employed more often than they aren't, and they aren't always willing to abandon projects they've started just because a new team comes calling.

With that in mind, ESPN's Caitlin Murray, Jeff Carlisle and Sophie Lawson take a look at some of the potential managers U.S. Soccer could consider.

The U.S. Soccer coaching search ought to start here.

After years of assistant roles with the Netherlands, Wiegman took the helm of the Dutch team in 2017 and quickly transformed them, winning