Grizzly Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 Is there any more clear proof that Mo is a poor manager than his own quotes below? Mo blames bad luck for woes By LANCE HORNBY, SUN MEDIA http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Soccer/TorontoFC/2009/06/12/9775281-sun.html Bad luck, not bad management, is why Toronto FC finds itself in crisis this week, says director of soccer Mo Johnston. While his bosses at Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment Ltd. took the blame yesterday for "screwing up" details of the Real Madrid exhibition game during a state of the union meeting with the media, Johnston vigorously defended his three years on the job and still believes it's a playoff-worthy team this year. But message boards from the three main supporters' clubs the past week and some media outlets have been full of calls for his removal. After a decent start to what was seen as a breakout year for the side, TFC is on its second coach and seems it's spinning its wheels. "Things were coming along and then the last three games have been a big hiccup," Johnston agreed. "We're under-achieving. But we're looking a new avenues (of players) every day." The biggest complaints levelled against him is that his roster hasn't played to potential and he's failed to put out for a designated player, as Major League Soccer calls its stars. Nor has he produced an established centre back to organize the team's leaky defence. He was forced into a move along those lines this week when injuries to Jim Brennan, Nana Attakora and Marvell Wynne's continued absence with the U.S. national team, prompted a trade with San Jose for Nick Garcia. But Johnston claimed he was thwarted in his hunt for impact players in the off-season. "(Former coach) John Carver and I had a player from Poland lined up (possibly veteran national Jacek Bak) and another team came in and blew us out of the water," Johnston said. "I went after a Canadian (believed to be defensive midfielder Julian De Guzman) with a hell of a lot of money and he turned it down. "There's not been a major signing, but I never promised it, either. We did bring in (Torontonians) Dwayne De Rosario and Adrian Serioux. Those were big coups." But coach Chris Cummins is still looking for the right place to utilize De Rosario, while not disrupting leading scorer Amado Guevara. As for the ongoing struggles of Chad Barrett and the scoreless Pablo Vitti up front, Johnston as much as threw up his hands. "We should be scoring a lot more," Johnston said, saying that Barrett might be out of sorts in a 3-4-3 as third striker on the left rather than middle. Both Barrett and Vitti are not responding well to the heat in soccer-mad Toronto. "(Ex-Reds) Edson Buddle and Conor Casey ... the fans got on them and they went in a shell. They go to play in the U.S. and now they score goals for fun. Brian Burke once told me anyone can play for the Columbus Blue Jackets, but bring them to Toronto and (they could wilt)." But Johnston proudly pointed to the success of draft picks Sam Cronin, Stefan Frei and the potential of injured pick O'Brian White to excel up front. Most importantly, he hopes to sign Canadian forward Ali Gerba, whose rights were acquired in the Garcia deal, by next week. Also at yesterday's meeting was Tom Anselmi, executive vice-president and COO of MLSEL. He said real grass at BMO was going to be a reality by 2011 -- at his company's expense -- but it can't be put in motion until the autumn when their obligations to the city for a year-round playing surface can be settled. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpg75 Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 2 1/2 years of bad luck? Damn, this club is snake-bitten! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cheeta Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 To be honest, hey have had more than their share of hard luck. Goes like that some times. Really nothing you can do about that. But I also think they've had way more than their share of bad management. That is</u> something you can do something about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finchster Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 I think time in and time out Mo has shown he is not effective in managing a salary cap, or admitting a mistake and getting rid of a player. There is no reason why Carl Robinson should get paid 300,000 and be one of the highest paid players after De Ro and Guevara. Vitti is paid around 300,000 and he has been useless, I hope if Gerba signs Mo shows Vitti the door. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BearcatSA Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 quote:"(Ex-Reds) Edson Buddle and Conor Casey ... the fans got on them and they went in a shell. They go to play in the U.S. and now they score goals for fun. Brian Burke once told me anyone can play for the Columbus Blue Jackets, but bring them to Toronto and (they could wilt)." I think blaming supporters' expectations is a cop out in this situation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpg75 Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 quote:Originally posted by BearcatSA I think blaming supporters' expectations is a cop out in this situation. It is a cop out. The players sucked for a prolonged period of time (maybe not so much Casey, but Cunny and Barrett) which is why the fans got/get on them, not the other way around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettermirror Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 Luck would have everything to do with it and not Mo's management. Clearly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trident Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 The first sentence is hilarious: Bad luck, not bad management, is why Toronto FC finds itself in crisis this week, says director of soccer Mo Johnston. Of course someone in MANAGEMENT would say they are being managed well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VPjr Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 Poor Mo....bitten by the bad luck bug It is my view that TFC's problems are caused by 1) Mo's incompetant mangement, 2) persistently innadequate head coaching and 3) a league with the most ridiculous rules I've ever seen. By the way, his claims that he made a legit offer to Deguzman (because that is precisely who he is implying he made a "big money offer" to) is mind boggling. He is being totally disingenuous. JDG was NEVER going to come to MLS at this stage of his career. I can just picture Mo and Barry McLean trying to convince Julian to choose TFC over remaining in Europe....what a joke. Does Mo really believe people will accept that crap at face value. Going after players who you have a less than 1% chance of getting is not making a legitimate effort to improve your team. The world is full of quality players who would be happy to give MLS a chance but instead they go after players who use an MLS offer as a bargaining chip. I'm not convinced that Mo could ever be a great manager, not even with a rich club in the premier league (he manages his team as though he is a fantasy league competitor) but in a league like MLS, with its stupid rules and limited budgets, his incompetance is he even more glaring. Pity TFC supporters...with Mo at the helm, the frustration will only continue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ag futbol Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 quote:Originally posted by VPjr Poor Mo....bitten by the bad luck bug It is my view that TFC's problems are caused by 1) Mo's incompetant mangement, 2) persistently innadequate head coaching and 3) a league with the most ridiculous rules I've ever seen. By the way, his claims that he made a legit offer to Deguzman (because that is precisely who he is implying he made a "big money offer" to) is mind boggling. He is being totally disingenuous. JDG was NEVER going to come to MLS at this stage of his career. I can just picture Mo and Barry McLean trying to convince Julian to choose TFC over remaining in Europe....what a joke. Does Mo really believe people will accept that crap at face value. Going after players who you have a less than 1% chance of getting is not making a legitimate effort to improve your team. The world is full of quality players who would be happy to give MLS a chance but instead they go after players who use an MLS offer as a bargaining chip. I agree completely. Look no further than Mo Johnston's trip to south america as an example. He comes back telling us he looked at potential players like dentinho. How he could ever afford that transfer fee alone blows any chance of getting him out of the water. A practical Manager who knows what he`s doing would skip directly to the smaller or regional clubs (because he knows his budget is tiny and there is talent to be found). Instead he pretends he`s scouting for a club with 10x our budget watching teams like Botafogo and Corinthians. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finchster Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 "(Ex-Reds) Edson Buddle and Conor Casey ... the fans got on them and they went in a shell. They go to play in the U.S. and now they score goals for fun. Brian Burke once told me anyone can play for the Columbus Blue Jackets, but bring them to Toronto and (they could wilt)." Conor Casey spent a total of two games and 12 days on the Toronto Roster (from when the season started until he was traded). He was traded for Canadian Riley O'Neill and allocation money. Riley had no intention of playing for TFC, he was going to Germany to play. Mo should admit that was a stupid trade not the fans fault, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BringBackTheBlizzard Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 Conor Casey never had the slightest intention of playing in Toronto. He returned to MLS to play in Colorado. That was similar to the McBride saga of last season where Chicago were concerned. TFC got him initially instead as they were first in line for returning US national team players at that point and it was a case of negotiating the trade terms after that. Mo is right about the TFC crowd giving Edson Buddle a very hard time, however, and him going in a shell because of it. Marco Reda had to be replaced at the back in starting terms so Mo traded him for Tyrone Marshall. There are plenty of reasons to criticize Mo Johnston without entering into the realm of revisionism like Lance Hornby did this week where Casey and Buddle were concerned by suggesting that Mo Johnston moved them on because he didn't rate them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grizzly Posted June 13, 2009 Author Share Posted June 13, 2009 quote:Brian Burke once told me anyone can play for the Columbus Blue Jackets, but bring them to Toronto and (they could wilt). The lack of intelligence in someone that could come up with an analogy like this is an indication of why he doesn't have the brains to be a good manager. Yes Mo, there is a lot of pressure on any HOCKEY player (or manager for that manner) when they play in Toronto or another Canadian city. There is absolutely no comparison to the amount of pressure a soccer player or manager faces in these cities to that of a HOCKEY player or manager. Indeed this lack of pressure on soccer managers is the reason why such a crap manager like Mo still has a job. Have we noticed the trend in Canadian soccer management: Frank Yallop never took responsibility for his decisions and blamed the players and we were an embarrassment in WCQ. Dale Mitchell never took responsibility for his decisions and blamed the players and we were an embarrassment in WCQ. Mo Johnston and his coaching choice John Carver never took responsibility for their decisions the former blaming lack of Canadian talent, luck and myriad of other reasons while the latter blamed the refs and the lack of DP. Result: no Voyageurs Cups, 2 years no playoffs and playoffs in doubt this year. I also don't hear NDS taking much responsibility either for poor player signings and thus he fires the most successful coach in our history prematurely. How obvious does it need to be that a good coach or manager takes responsibility for their decisions and does not blame others. Once those running our federations and clubs realize this, the Canadian game will improve immensely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grizzly Posted June 13, 2009 Author Share Posted June 13, 2009 quote:Originally posted by BringBackTheBlizzard Conor Casey never had the slightest intention of playing in Toronto. He returned to MLS to play in Colorado. That was similar to the McBride saga of last season where Chicago were concerned. TFC got him initially instead as they were first in line for returning US national team players at that point and it was a case of negotiating the trade terms after that. Mo is right about the TFC crowd giving Edson Buddle a very hard time, however, and him going in a shell because of it. Marco Reda had to be replaced at the back in starting terms so Mo traded him for Tyrone Marshall. There are plenty of reasons to criticize Mo Johnston without entering into the realm of revisionism like Lance Hornby did this week where Casey and Buddle were concerned by suggesting that Mo Johnston moved them on because he didn't rate them. You can't get much more revisionist than this: Conor Casey ... the fans got on them and they went in a shell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BringBackTheBlizzard Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 quote:Originally posted by Grizzly The lack of intelligence in someone that could come up with an analogy like this is an indication of why he doesn't have the brains to be a good manager. Yes Mo, there is a lot of pressure on any HOCKEY player (or manager for that manner) when they play in Toronto or another Canadian city. There is absolutely no comparison to the amount of pressure a soccer player or manager faces in these cities to that of a HOCKEY player or manager. With all due respect if you were actually a TFC fan and had actually been at the games where Buddle was given abuse by the crowd for his perceived lack of effort you might have some idea what you are talking about. Are you going to try to suggest there is no extra pressure on Chad Barrett to produce right now in a way there wouldn't be in a city like Columbus where MLS crowds are slanted towards the youth soccer minivan crowd and there are acres of empty seats? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BringBackTheBlizzard Posted June 13, 2009 Share Posted June 13, 2009 quote:Originally posted by Grizzly True but is Mo Johnston to blame for that or Lance Hornby? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grizzly Posted June 14, 2009 Author Share Posted June 14, 2009 quote:Originally posted by BringBackTheBlizzard Unless Hornby misquoted him, it is pretty clear that Mo is to blame for that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finchster Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 Pressure is an excuse for losers anyway. All these players are professionals; if they want to go play in front of an empty stadium then they should go play semi pro somewhere Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpg75 Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 quote:Originally posted by BringBackTheBlizzard With all due respect if you were actually a TFC fan and had actually been at the games where Buddle was given abuse by the crowd for his perceived lack of effort you might have some idea what you are talking about. Are you going to try to suggest there is no extra pressure on Chad Barrett to produce right now in a way there wouldn't be in a city like Columbus where MLS crowds are slanted towards the youth soccer minivan crowd and there are acres of empty seats? Larry. Murphy. What Buddle and (probably moreso) Cunningham went through is nothing compared to what some Leaf scapegoats have had to go through. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BringBackTheBlizzard Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 Yes let's all bow down at the great altar of hockey on a soccer messageboard and act as if our sport doesn't get taken seriously in a Canadian context. It's 2009 and it is TFC we are talking about. You guys are acting as if Bruno Hartrell had made a comment like that about players at the Lynx. Times have changed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpg75 Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 Please come back to reality after you're done worshipping Mo. Yes, it's 2009 and the 3 year old franchise known as TFC is an absolute pressure cooker that eats up weak-minded American strikers. (This is where the rolls eyes icon comes in handy). It's not like Buddle or Cunny were booed every time they touched the ball, every home game for dozens of games. The Leafs have to put up with articles on the front page of the Sports section ripping on the latest goat. There are dedicated shows on RSN, TSN and numerous radio outlets ready to jump on the fresh roadkill. There's no comparison. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cheeta Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 ^These are not the droids you're looking for... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BringBackTheBlizzard Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 quote:Originally posted by jpg75 Please come back to reality after you're done worshipping Mo. At no point have I worshiped Mo in this thread and a team that draws 20,000 spectators per game and has 16,000 season tickets sold is big time sports. You are the one who needs the reality check not me. If people were on the ball enough on here to actually want to go after Mo for valid and informed reasons they might want to focus on this snippet:- "(Former coach) John Carver and I had a player from Poland lined up (possibly veteran national Jacek Bak) and another team came in and blew us out of the water," Johnston said. Would be interesting to know if they were blown out the water just after the Tyrone Marshall trade? Not sure about the Jacek Bak bit as I think that was pre-Carver. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trillium Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 Mo... and the River Plate game.. interesting link to Mo's rationale for bringing in River Plate, and covering all expenses, did he get influenced by the this ? http://www.riverplate.com/chicas/Pictures/?show=new Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
analyst Posted June 14, 2009 Share Posted June 14, 2009 Mo's player choices are very poor. I watched Seattle play yesterday and it had 4 quick attacking players who tried hard. They could run fast and were a constant threat. In addition they had Ljungberg. Mo selected slow players. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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