Jonatan Giraldez, the head coach of the NWSL’s Washington Spirit, is reportedly preparing to leave the club this June to take the helm at France’s OL Lyonnes, which is also owned by the American millionaire Michele Kang.

Gonzalez is anticipated to take over the Spirit’s coaching responsibilities, following Giraldez’s exit expected during the beginning of the NWSL’s summer break on June 23. This decision may come as a surprise, given Giraldez just transitioned to the Spirit after resigning from his role at Barcelona in December 2023, citing lucrative offers beyond his current deal. According to reports, the Spirit was ready to quadruple his salary to convince him to join.

Despite Gonzalez’s interim coaching capability, Giraldez’s departure raises eyebrows as he directed the Spirit to the NWSL Championship last year, where they ultimately fell to Orlando Pride.

Gonzalez will succeed Giraldez, taking a position that the Spirit turned down requests for from other NWSL teams, seeing Giraldez’s possible return to Europe in the near future. Now, he’ll be heading back to Europe but under the same ownership, Kang.

Under Giraldez’s leadership, the Spirit had high aspirations, further solidified by Kang’s ownership portfolio, which includes acquiring several notable clubs aimed at elevating women’s soccer on the world stage. Giraldez aims to replace Joe Montemurro at OL Lyonnes, who is likely moving on to coach Australia’s national team.