PHOTO: ISI Photos
By Dan Mazin
The San Jose Earthquakes have pulled 9 points from 12 matches, which by any metric, is a tire fire in a dumpster fire covered in fresh elephant manure. Were this any other league and sacking the manager would unquestionably be on the table. The lack of promotion and relegation in MLS removes this from the argument (and I am not sure Joel would like me turning QE into a minefield). Supporter ire is at Mark Watson-era levels already and understandably so.
Are we dead yet? Maybe.
Should we be dead by now? This is MLS, so no. What is reasonable for us as fans to expect through the remainder of the year? Allow me to ramble incoherently. (If you want stats and data, Colin, Jamon, and Asher have you covered. I am here to emote, hard.)
First, I must come clean with you. I have been a Jesse Fioranelli apologist at nearly every turn since his introduction. I have carried water for this new regime on Twitter and still stand by many of their decisions. Regardless of how the season ends, I will have immense respect for Fioranelli and his willingness to face fan interrogation in a direct forum. That’s highly unusual in sports and should be appreciated regardless of your view of the man’s work.
Remember how I said I have been a Fioranelli apologist? You thought I was going to turn the tables with some reverse declaration, but no. I’m here to carry the ocean for him. The man needs time. We should give it to him. This fanbase suffered through John Doyle’s mismanagement since the re-start in 2008. I am leaving Dave Kaval out of the discussion because he had limited involvement in the soccer side of things. (But he is responsible for Avaya, which I will tear to shreds the next time I put pen to paper. The honeymoon is over.)
Fioranelli had a monumental task to set this team back on a positive path. There was a need to re-build the roster, shed bad contracts, shed bad players, and eliminate toxic attitudes (of which there was definitely a glaring one, I will let you guess who). No project of this degree can be completed overnight, or, in just the space of one season. It’s also hard to re-state just how bad Doyle did through the years.
This doesn’t absolve Fioranelli of blame some of the moves (or lack thereof) made this recent off-season. Left-back remains a massive weakness, we are in desperate need of an immediate lock-down center-back , our midfield is crying for a creative playmaker who can handle the rigors of MLS, and there remains a question mark on our head coach. By question mark, I mean quite literally, nobody has any idea what this guy is doing.
Mikael Stahre has clearly not won the hearts and minds of the fans or this roster. He is continuing to tinker with the line-up game in and game out. The formation changes coupled with an unclear game plan led to several players seemingly giving up. That’s bad! If you want stats, my xS level is currently at 0.91 (xS being Expected Sadness. See, I am here to be dramatic.)
I am speaking as a dedicated fan right now. If there is anything that Quake’s fans demand, it’s commitment and hard-work from the team. That’s it. We have made folk-heroes of productive players like Wondo and Lenny because of their unwillingness to quit, but also of players who grind their hearts out: Quincy, Andres Imperiale, Mike Fucito, etc. That is what makes recent performances from guys like Anibal Godoy, the supposed heartbeat of this team, and Vako, the DP we are meant to be building around, extremely troubling. Matters such as this demand that a coach find a way to get results and a change of attitude-for now Stahre is not showing that he is up to the task.
Allow me to go back in time a bit. Before the season started I got the idea in my head to form a Quake fan supporter union. The idea being that it would be a body for fans to have direct access to the front office, encouraging open dialogue, and hopefully encouraging more fans to feel personally involved with the club. I had tacit approval from the FO, I had plans in place for funding (myself), and I had a lot of positive energy ready to dedicate to the club. Then, we played 12 matches and only earned 9 points. Members of the team phoned in performances. I thought to myself, “Why should I care when the team doesn’t care?”
So let’s talk about Stahre some more. I can say that it seems fairly clear that he will be the manager through the remainder of the season. This, of course, is barring some sort of unprecedented catastrophe such as a summer-long losing streak. Fans are already checking out and a lengthy losing streak could be a death knell. I don’t believe this will be the case because I think Fioranelli will stick by his man well into next season even. However, if Stahre were to be ousted, who would be next in line? Chris Leitch? No, that is very unlikely if for no reason other than Leitch not wanting to always be looked at as a second choice.
No, the next coach of the San Jose Earthquakes will likely be Ian Russell. Russell has done a noteworthy job at our USL affiliate Reno 1868, guiding them to a 3rd place finish in their inaugural season. Several men from that roster signed deals with Quakes this off-season and the team’s continue to successfully share players, getting minutes for Paul Marie, Mo Thiaw, and Joel Qwiberg last weekend.
Would Ian Russell be a good move? I actually think it could be a great move. Russell is of the mold of many successful MLS coaches like Gregg Berhalter, Greg Vanney, and Peter Vermes. To succeed in a league like MLS, you have to understand the weirdness, the nuance, and the quirks. Stahre came in at a disadvantage having never played or coached here previously.
So what is my point?
Well, there is none. There is just no way I could fit this all in a tweet.
But one feeling I can convey is tweet-length-I am so tired. I am tired of losing. I am tired of seeing the league grow so far beyond us. I’m just tired. Please Jesse, fix things.
