Top Sporting KC assistants sign new deals; club hires new goalkeeper coach

A day after one Sporting Kansas City assistant coach departed for another job, the club announced the remainder of Peter Vermes’ staff will remain intact.

Sporting KC assistant coaches Kerry Zavagnin and Zoran Savic signed contract extensions, following in the footsteps of Vermes, who extended his deal in November.

The team also announced that Alec Dufty will replace John Pascarella as the goalkeeper coach. Pascarella was announced Thursday as the new head coach for the Des Moines Menace in the Premier Development League.

Dufty received a promotion after serving as the goalkeeper coach for the Swope Park Rangers inaugural season in 2016. The Rangers are Sporting Kansas City’s USL affiliate.

Zavagnin and Savic has served as assistant coaches under Vermes since 2009. Together, they are the longest active coaching trio in Major League Soccer, a tenure that has included the 2013 MLS Cup championship and six straight league playoff appearances.

“Much of the success of Sporting Kansas City has been because of the incredible staff that we have,” Vermes said. “I am a strong believer that having a consistent staff is important to any club, and the fact that we are able to keep the majority of our people together is important to the future success of Sporting KC.”

Zavagnin, who also played for the Kansas City Wizards, was inducted into the Sporting Legends hall of honor last August. Zavagnin, 42, has spent the past 17 years working for the franchise and remains the all-time leader in games played.

Savic, 57, coached for the Kansas City Attack and Kansas City Comets before joining Sporting KC in 2009.

Dufty, 29, joined the Rangers last January after serving as the goalkeeper coach for Toronto FC II in 2015.

This story was originally published January 6, 2017 at 3:14 PM with the headline "Top Sporting KC assistants sign new deals; club hires new goalkeeper coach."