CF Montreal assistant sporting director Vassili Cremanzidis leaves organization

MONTREAL — CF Montreal assistant sporting director Vassili Cremanzidis is stepping down.

Cremanzidis's departure from the Major League Soccer club comes three weeks after Montreal and sporting director Olivier Renard parted ways.

Montreal announced that Cremanzidis informed the team of his decision Thursday morning.

Cremanzidis was in his second stint with Montreal, having returned in November 2018. He was previously a performance analyst with the team between 2013 and 2015.

Montreal is 13th in the Eastern Conference with a 4-4-7 record this season under first-year head coach Laurent Courtois.

Courtois's squad earned a 4-2 victory over D.C. United on Wednesday night at Saputo Stadium and will next visit the Philadelphia Union on Saturday.

"CF Montréal would like to thank Vassili for his contribution to the Club and wish him the best of luck in his future projects," the club wrote in a brief statement.

Since Renard's departure, Montreal president and chief executive officer Gabriel Gervais has been temporarily overseeing the sporting side of the organization.

Renard was hired as sporting director on September 28, 2019. He was then promoted to vice president and chief sporting officer in June 2022, when he signed an indefinite contract extension.

"Thank you to Olivier Renard. I am proud of what we were able to do together in Montreal," Cremanzidis wrote in a statement on X platform, formerly known as Twitter, on Thursday. "We started together as co-workers in 2019, and now that this journey has come to an end for each of us, you have become family."

Cremanzidis added he was "beyond excited" for his next opportunity and would share details later.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 30, 2024.

The Canadian Press