SAN JOSE, Calif. — The numbers clearly and concisely write the story: it’s been 536 days since the San Jose Earthquakes last defeated someone other than Minnesota United or FC Dallas and 203 days since they last tasted victory.
Granted Matias Almeyda has only been at the helm of the Quakes for three regular season games, but positive results have yet to appear. If anything, the only thing looming over the Argentine’s side are shadows from the past.
“Among all, we need to push forward,” Almeyda admitted on Wednesday. “It’s not easy when a team has won very little in a year. It’s almost like the ghost appears again. I do notice that in performance aspects we have improved, but, in terms of results, we are doing worst than last season’s start.”
Anyone familiar with the institution will admit nothing will come close to 2018, a year filled with poor results, internal chaos and more lackluster results. 2019, though, has been on an identical trend thus far – at least when it pertains to results.
After three games, San Jose has yet to warrant a point and has conceded nine goals during the losing streak. On an ethos level, it is onerous to distinguish a difference from last year, where the player’s mental fortitude was nowhere to be found in the later stages of tightly-contested games. Evident of that were San Jose’s final 45 minutes against the New York Red Bulls, conceding four unanswered goals after being up at halftime.
It has been more of the same for the Black-and-Blue and as patience thins out, there is enough blame to go around.
To the person who is trying to implement system-wide changes, however, it’s impossible to single out an individual for what seems like a never-ending nightmare.
“In a team, it’s very difficult to find the responsible [person behind the team’s failure] because when you win, it’s also difficult to find the responsible [person],” said Almeyda. “This is a team and soccer teams are composed of players, a coaching staff, a front office, who elect the coaching staff, and then a general staff.”
“When everyone puts in their grain of sand, the results will have to come, sooner rather than later,” he added. “What’s important is our autocriticism on what is done well and what is done poorly. We can’t say everything is going well when the results have been adverse.”
Th first three weeks have been eye-opening for the Argentine, — who labeled the current FIFA international break as “harmful” to his team given their situation — admitting newcomers like Marcos Lopez have yet to “adapt” to the rigors of the league and that he’s still in the search for his ideal starting lineup.
That said, the only notion that breathes within Almeyda’s camp is hard work, mostly due to the fact that a new way of soccer is far from bearing fruit, a first victory is still the ultimate objective and no player is assured another minute otherwise earned.
Those are the internal struggles for the Argentine, who is attempting to transform a fourth institution in less than a decade. By now, nothing is catching the former midfielder by surprise.
“I was always conscious of where I was coming, the amount work that needs to be done and that it’s not going to get solved in a month,” the Concacaf coach of the year said. “This is much deeper. First and foremost, we are changing a methodology of work and a style of play. In any part of the world, that takes time.”
As the days go by and the results don’t fall into place, troubles and pressure continue to accumulate at Earthquakes Way.
In the past, Almeyda was preaching “projects” and “patience.” And even though those words still remain synonymous and relevant with the Quakes, the Argentine acknowledges that after 203 days of distress, words like “changes” can’t be overlooked any longer.
“Since I arrived, the results have been adverse, but I see the players that are going to play and those who aren’t,” he said. “That’s where changes start.”
