Charlie Trout

{{Infobox football biography |name = Charlie Trout |image = |full_name = Charles Trout |birth_date = {{birth date and age|1985|4|20|df=y}} |birth_place = [[Nottingham]], [[England]] |height = |position = |currentclub = [[Puerto Rico national football team|Puerto Rico]] (manager) |clubnumber = | collegeyears1 = 2007–2009 | college1 = [[UIC Flames men's soccer|UIC Flames]] | collegecaps1 = | collegegoals1 = |clubs1 = [[Lincoln City F.C.|Lincoln City]] |years1 = |caps1 = 0 |goals1 = 0 |clubs2 = [[Gainsborough Trinity F.C.|Gainsborough Trinity]] |years2 = |caps2 = |manageryears1 = 2023– |managerclubs1 = [[Puerto Rico national football team|Puerto Rico]] |manageryears2 = |managerclubs2 = }}

'''Charles Trout''' (born 20 April 1985) is an English [[Association football|football]] manager and former player who currently manages the [[Puerto Rico national football team|Puerto Rico national team]].

Released from [[Lincoln City F.C.|Lincoln City]] without a first-team appearance, he played in the [[Conference North]] for [[Gainsborough Trinity F.C.|Gainsborough Trinity]], where he suffered from injury. He moved to the United States to play [[college soccer]] for the [[UIC Flames men's soccer|UIC Flames]].

Trout stayed in [[Chicago]] to coach youths, and in 2021 was hired by [[Dave Sarachan]] to oversee the [[Puerto Rico national under-20 football team|Puerto Rico under-20 team]]. When Sarachan resigned in March 2023, Trout succeeded him as manager of the senior team.

==Early life and playing career== Trout was born in [[Nottingham]] and raised in a council estate in [[Clifton, Nottinghamshire|Clifton]], and became a fan of [[Nottingham Forest F.C.|Nottingham Forest]]. When he was 11 and representing the [[Nottinghamshire County Football Association]]'s boys' team, he was scouted for Leeds United, but did not advance through the youth system.<ref name=cole>{{cite news |last1=Cole |first1=Sean |title=Fishing for success |url=https://www.magzter.com/stories/sports/World-Soccer/FISHING-FOR-SUCCESS?srsltid=AfmBOoqEU2oLvi2BMuJrGjlVmKBkZOGhSLYVvbKtn5mJ8XFwAz-vVh2l |access-date=2 March 2025 |work=[[World Soccer (magazine)|World Soccer]] |agency=[[Magzter]] |date=March 2025 |pages=72-75}}</ref>

Trout then signed for [[Lincoln City F.C.|Lincoln City]] on an apprenticeship. He was given a first-team squad number and trained with the professionals, but was released at age 19 without playing a game. He then signed for [[Gainsborough Trinity F.C.|Gainsborough Trinity]] of the sixth-tier [[Conference North]] while working in other jobs during the week. He was sidelined for eight months with a hamstring injury picked up against [[Kettering Town F.C.|Kettering Town]] in the [[FA Trophy]], and recurring injuries afterwards meant that he gave up on finding a way back into professional football in England.<ref name=cole/>

Having previously rejected the chance to play in the United States, Trout had a trial for the [[UIC Flames men's soccer|UIC Flames]] of the [[University of Illinois Chicago]]. He initially wanted to stay in England after returning during the severe winters of ''The Windy City'', but remained and completed his degree.<ref name=cole/>

==Coaching career== Trout had helped coach the youth teams at Lincoln, and became involved with inner-city youth teams in [[Chicago]], with several of his players joining the academy of [[Chicago Fire SC]]. During the [[COVID-19 pandemic]], he turned down jobs at other clubs and began his own coaching business.<ref name=cole/>

In 2021, American [[Dave Sarachan]] became manager of the [[Puerto Rico national football team]] and enlisted Trout as an assistant for the under-20 team.<ref name=cole/> Sarachan resigned with promotion from [[2022–23 CONCACAF Nations League C|League C]] of the [[CONCACAF Nations League]] already secured, and Trout was named in charge on 19 March 2023, four days ahead of the next fixture away to the [[British Virgin Islands national football team|British Virgin Islands]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Quiles |first1=Gabriel |title=La Federación Puertorriqueña de Fútbol anuncia nuevo entrenador de la selección masculina|trans-title=Puerto Rican Football Federation announces new manager of the men's team |url=https://www.elvocero.com/deportes/la-federaci-n-puertorrique-a-de-f-tbol-anuncia-nuevo-entrenador-de-la-selecci-n/article_328e300a-c677-11ed-a732-9f6ba35bf431.html |access-date=2 March 2025 |work=[[El Vocero]] |date=19 March 2023 |language=Spanish}}</ref> The side won his debut 3–1 in [[Road Town]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Selección Nacional de fútbol supera a las Islas Vírgenes Británicas|trans-title=National football team beat the British Virgin Islands|url=https://www.primerahora.com/deportes/futbol/notas/seleccion-nacional-de-futbol-supera-a-las-islas-virgenes-britanicas/ |access-date=2 March 2025 |work=Primera Hora |date=23 March 2023 |language=Spanish}}</ref>

Trout led Puerto Rico in [[2023 CONCACAF Gold Cup qualification]] in [[Florida]], defeating [[Suriname national football team|Suriname]] on penalties in the first round before falling 2–0 to [[Martinique national football team|Martinique]] in the final.<ref>{{cite news |title=Martinique brush off spirited Puerto Rico challenge to head into Gold Cup group stages |url=https://www.insideworldfootball.com/2023/06/21/martinque-brush-off-spirited-puerto-rico-challenge-head-gold-cup-group-stages/ |access-date=2 March 2025 |work=Inside World Football |date=21 June 2023}}</ref> In the [[2023–24 CONCACAF Nations League B]], his team came second of four, behind [[Guyana national football team|Guyana]],<ref>{{cite news |title=Goleada de Puerto Rico a Bahamas con hat-trick de Ricardo Rivera |trans-title=Puerto Rico rout Bahamas with hat-trick from Ricardo Rivera|url=https://www.infobae.com/noticias/2023/11/21/puerto-rico-y-bahamas-se-encuentran-en-la-fecha-6-del-grupo-d/ |access-date=2 March 2025 |publisher=[[Infobae]] |date=20 November 2023}}</ref> while the [[2023–24 CONCACAF Nations League B|following season]] saw the same result behind a [[Haiti national football team|Haiti]] team with a 100% record; Puerto Rico did not finish as one of the best runners-up to advance to the next [[2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup qualification|CONCACAF Gold Cup qualification]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Puerto Rico sucumbe ante Haití 3-0 y no avanza a la Copa de Oro de la Concacaf|trans-title=Puerto Rico succumb to Haiti 3-0 and do not advance to the CONCACAF Gold Cup|url=https://www.swissinfo.ch/spa/puerto-rico-sucumbe-ante-hait%C3%AD-3-0-y-no-avanza-a-la-copa-de-oro-de-la-concacaf/88234592 |access-date=2 March 2025 |agency=[[EFE]] |publisher=[[SWI swissinfo]] |date=19 November 2024 |language=Spanish}}</ref> In [[2026 FIFA World Cup qualification (CONCACAF)|qualification]] for the [[2026 FIFA World Cup]], Puerto Rico advanced to the second round and remained in contention to go further, but a draw between Suriname and [[El Salvador national football team|El Salvador]] on the final day meant those two teams advanced.<ref>{{cite news |title=2-1. Puerto Rico no avanza más en la Concacaf por el empate entre Surinam y El Salvador |url=https://www.swissinfo.ch/spa/2-1.-puerto-rico-no-avanza-m%C3%A1s-en-la-concacaf-por-el-empate-entre-surinam-y-el-salvador/89494235 |access-date=14 June 2025 |publisher=[[SWI swissinfo]] |date=11 June 2025}}</ref>

As manager of Puerto Rico, Trout has fielded young players including those still in [[college soccer]] in the United States, as it is common for players in their mid-20s to leave football for a more stable or well-paying profession. He commented that some of his opponents such as Suriname could call upon professionals from the Dutch [[Eredivisie]] or Spain's [[La Liga]].<ref name=cole/>

==References== {{reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Trout, Charlie}} [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:1985 births]] [[Category:Footballers from Nottingham]] [[Category:English men's footballers]] [[Category:Leeds United F.C. players]] [[Category:Lincoln City F.C. players]] [[Category:Gainsborough Trinity F.C. players]] [[Category:National League (English football) players]] [[Category:UIC Flames men's soccer players]] [[Category:University of Illinois Chicago alumni]] [[Category:English expatriate men's footballers]] [[Category:English expatriate sportspeople in the United States]] [[Category:Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States]] [[Category:English football managers]] [[Category:English expatriate sportspeople in Puerto Rico]] [[Category:Expatriate football managers in Puerto Rico]] [[Category:Puerto Rico national football team managers]]