The Canadian Soccer Association implied that this appointment is a ‘horrendous’ job fit for a Canadian.
THE CSA also said they wanted a Canadian Coach
Quote:
“The board was very adamant that they really felt that Canada needed a Canadian coach, for one of many reasons: they felt that it [needed to be] someone who resided in this country permanently,” Linford said. “They felt that given the record of some previous coaches in many countries, they were seen as rather mercenary. The phone rings, and a better offer appears, off they go.”
I think there is some merit in that belief ... unless of course the employment contract is for 4 year period to next worl cup.
Here is the article from the National Post
A ‘horrendous’ job fit for a Canadian
NEW SOCCER COACH NAMED World Cup veteran Dale Mitchell won’t beg for more cash
BY ERIC KOREENNational Post ekoreen@nationalpost.com
TORONTO • It should have been a joyous occasion for Dale Mitchell, the incoming coach of Canada’s national soccer team.
Instead, it sounded a little like an apology for the perception people have of the national program.
“At this point,” Colin Linford, president of the Canadian Soccer Association, said yesterday at BMO Field, “I’d like to introduce you to Dale, and thank him and [assistant] Steve [Hart] for taking on this horrendous job, as some people might see it.”
While Mitchell, the 49-year-old coach who will take over the men’s team after he coaches the under-20 team in this summer’s FIFA Under-20 World Cup, had nothing but positive things to say about his new gig, it surely isn’t a job without its headaches, as Linford alluded to.
The biggest problem, as is often the case with sports in Canada that are not hockey, is money — specifically, the lack of it.
Frank Yallop, the team’s last full-time head coach who left the position in June of last year, cited money to play matches as one of the reasons he departed for the Los Angeles Galaxy of Major League Soccer. Hart had been the interim coach since Yallop’s exit.
Mitchell made it clear that he would not use funding as a crutch if the team fails.
And he stressed it was everybody’s job to make sure the team is well-prepared. “It’s not only a matter of having money, it’s a matter of using the money smartly. It’s being clever with it.”
Linford, however, was sending assurances that Mitchell would have a sizable budget to work with.
“We’ve said that we must play more games,” Linford said. “In order to do that, we have to generate revenue. If it’s not sponsorship, then it has to be games.”
By selecting Mitchell, the Association has gone with its second straight Canadian coach to head the men’s team, after the failed experiment that was Holger Osiek’s four-year tenure at the helm.
But it wasn’t for a lack of trying. Brazilian Rene Simoes and Argentine Osvaldo Ardiles were both interviewed, with negotiations with Simoes only falling through last month when the CSA’s board of directors balked at approving a contract.
Linford indicated that after the experience with Osiek, it was important to go with a Canadian. Mitchell’s new assistant, Stephen Hart, was the other finalist for the job.
“The board was very adamant that they really felt that Canada needed a Canadian coach, for one of many reasons: they felt that it [needed to be] someone who resided in this country permanently,” Linford said. “They felt that given the record of some previous coaches in many countries, they were seen as rather mercenary. The phone rings, and a better offer appears, off they go.”
“If you look at the top five teams in the world, you look at Brazil, Argentina, Italy, France, teams like that, they always hire their own people,” Mitchell added. “I think when you hire your own people, you keep your identity.”
It is Mitchell’s identity that made him the eventual choice for the CSA.
Like Yallop, he was a member of the 1986 World Cup team. With 19 goals as a Canadian senior, the Vancouver native is tied for the team’s all-time record.
More importantly, he has led the last two under-20 teams to World Youth Championships, and will again head the team as Canada hosts the now-renamed tournament this summer — Hart will guide the senior team in the CONCACAF Gold Cup in the United States in June.
