Cifuentes lined up for Portland Timbers job six months after Leicester exit

Former Leicester City manager Marti Cifuentes is set to take charge of MLS side Portland Timbers, according to a talkSPORT report. The Spanish coach has been out of work since Leicester dismissed him in January.

Cifuentes was sacked by Leicester after around six months in the job, having won 11 of his 31 matches in charge. Announcing the decision, Foxes chairman Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha said it had been "a difficult decision" and thanked the coach for his "total commitment", adding that the club believed the change was the right step to improve performances and results.

Portland's vacancy

Portland have been without a permanent head coach since parting ways with Phil Neville in May. Neville spent just over two-and-a-half years at the Oregon club and led the Timbers to the MLS Cup playoffs in both 2024 and 2025, but departed after back-to-back defeats to Inter Miami and the San Jose Earthquakes, shortly before the league paused for six weeks for the World Cup.

Jack Cassidy has overseen the team in the interim. Portland returned from the break with a 5-1 away win over rivals Seattle Sounders last Friday.

• Cifuentes was sacked by Leicester in January after roughly six months in charge
• Portland have been managerless since Phil Neville left in May
• Neville took the Timbers to the MLS playoffs in 2024 and 2025
• An appointment would be Cifuentes' 10th managerial job
• Portland's next fixture is at home to FC Dallas on Thursday

A well-travelled coach

Cifuentes, 44, has worked across several countries. After spells in the youth setups at Millwall and Ajax, he coached lower-league clubs in his native Catalonia before taking roles in Norway, Denmark and Sweden. He was appointed by QPR in October 2023 and kept the west London club in the Championship in 2023/24, later being placed on gardening leave and leaving Loftus Road in June 2025 before joining Leicester the following month.

At Leicester, his successor Gary Rowett has since been replaced in the dugout by Russell Martin. The club has dropped into League One after last season's relegation and a six-point deduction for breaching EFL financial rules. Leicester begin their first third-tier campaign since 2008/09 away to newly promoted Notts County on August 15.

Should the move go through, Cifuentes' first match in charge of Portland could come at home to FC Dallas on Thursday, with the Timbers looking to build on their derby victory over Seattle.