Local Atlanta coach joins El Salvador national team staff

Ricardo Montoya, a long-time coach in the Atlanta area, will be joining the national team staff of El Salvador ahead of the UNCAF tournament. Eduardo Lara, recently promoted from the youth national teams, is bringing Montoya to his staff in the area of Performance Analysis.

Montoya told Dirty South Soccer:

“Eduardo Lara is a top personality in the game of football, known for his success developing one of the best generations of Colombian players for the world. Having his trust and expectations for this task is an enormous responsibility and a new challenge that we have been looking forward to for quite a while.”

Montoya first came to prominence in the Atlanta area as a Program Director for Soccer in the Streets, developing community soccer programs for at-risk youth. He was a founder of the NPSL club Atlanta FC, which later became the Atlanta Silverbacks Reserves and continues on in the NPSL as the senior Silverbacks team. He was part of Eric Wynalda’s coaching staff with the Silverbacks professional team in 2014.

During his time in the NPSL and NASL, Montoya was involved in the development of many players who went on to play at higher levels. Chris Klute, Chris Duvall, Kwadwo Poku, and Junior Sandoval are four players who benefited from Montoya’s work.

Video analysis and scouting will be a key component of Montoya’s work in El Salvador, something that helped set him apart in his work in Atlanta. He works with Interplay Sports to analyze upcoming opponents and his own team’s matches and training sessions.

Montoya said:

“I feel ready for this challenge due to the diverse experiences and multiple tasks I’ve performed at all levels and with people from different backgrounds in the game.”