RSL Technical Director Dane Murphy looks to have left the team for DC United

Real Salt Lake Technical Director Dane Murphy has taken a job with D.C. United, per his LinkedIn account.

Murphy, 32, spent his playing career as a midfielder before retiring to become a scout. Murphy first joined Real Salt Lake as a scout in January of 2017. He worked closely with Andy Williams, RSL’s head scout, and was then promoted to the role of Technical Director in January of 2018. Prior to his time at RSL, he was the New York Cosmos Head Scout from 2015 to 2017. Murphy had been a player for the Cosmos from 2013 to 2015 as well.

His move to D.C. United comes very quickly after the close of Real Salt Lake’s season. Murphy is from the east coast and played for D.C. from 2008 to 2009. He made 15 appearances in that time and went on to play in Europe. It appears he will have the same title at United as he did with Real.

Rumors of a falling out between Murphy and head coach Mike Petke have circulated, but the nature of their disagreement is unclear. It would be guesswork to assume what happened and if that played a role in Dane leaving RSL, but it is worth noting.

D.C. United is one of ten founding MLS teams, and while highly successful early on, they have struggled to find success in recent years. The team famously signed England International Wayne Rooney midway through this season, and the team saw a spike in form. Murphy has been a part of some of RSL’s better signings in the past two years, and it will be a benefit to D.C. to have such a talented scout in that role.