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Vancouver Whitecaps FC has named Marc Dos Santos to be their next manager, the organization announced on Wednesday. Dos Santos, 41, joins the Whitecaps after spending the last season serving as an assistant under Bob Bradley at LAFC. He replaces Carl Robinson, who was dismissed with a little over one month left in the season. Craig Dalrymple took over on an interim basis, but it wasn't enough to secure a playoff spot for the Whitecaps. Dalrymple will return to his previous role as the technical director of the club's academy, with Dos Santos reporting to vice president of soccer operations Greg Anderson. Dos Santos has signed a three-year contract. "We are excited to welcome Marc Dos Santos to our club," said Whitecaps president Bob Lenarduzzi. "It's not often that you find a coach who seeks out the unique learning opportunities and challenges that Marc has accumulated around the world. We believe that having Marc now in place as head coach, combined with the additional resources that we are putting into our scouting and recruitment department, will set up the club for consistent success." Dos Santos has steadily accumulated managerial experience over the course of his career, working in Portugal, Brazil, Canada and the U.S. He won a league title with the Montreal Impact back in 2009 when it was competing in the USL First Division, and later led the San Francisco Deltas to the 2017 NASL championship. He has also served as an assistant with Sporting Kansas City, overseeing the club's USL side, Swope Park Rangers, in 2016. Dos Santos takes over a Whitecaps side that, in the words of several players, has deep divisions in its locker room, though opinions vary on that topic. Stalwart defender Kendall Waston has stated that he wants out of the club, providing an immediate challenge for Dos Santos, though the Montreal native is eager to get started. "Whitecaps FC are a club with a rich history, from the NASL days, to CSL, USL and now in MLS," said Dos Santos. "It's a club with an incredible potential to grow and become an example for others. I believe in the structure the club has and in the passion of the people involved. "I look forward to meeting with our supporters and listening to them, sharing in their dreams and ambitions. They are a very big part of what this club is all about, and together we will meet the challenge of becoming a championship [caliber] club."
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