On Solid Ground
The San Jose Earthquakes, MLSÆs worst team in 2000, havenÆt made the playoffs since MLSÆs inaugural season, but they have turned themselves around with a new head coach and a new lineup of exciting players.
A teamÆs style is supposed to be reflective of its head coach, but can the fluid, effervescent play of San Jose be in any way related to former Canadian international defender who spent most of his playing career in England?
In shooting down one stereotype, said coach also speaks in what seem to be contradicting terms.
ôI like good, attractive, workmanlike soccer, I guess,ö said Frank Yallop, who is a rookie head coach but played 14 seasons for Ipswich Town before joining MLS in 1996. ôIs it high-paced? Yes. Is it organized? Yes. But I think itÆs good to watch. I donÆt like humping balls forward, I never wanted to play like that as a player.ö
The Quakes are attractive and workmanlike and high-paced and organized and good to watch, not to mention successful. Pathetic in 2000 at 7-17-8, they won seven of their first 12 games while climbing atop the Western Division.
In the process, they beat Los Angeles home and away, tied defending champion Kansas City, 0-0, away, tied Chicago, 1-1, at Soldier Field with a last-second goal and knocked off the MetroStars at Spartan Stadium. They also won at Colorado and Dallas.
The common theme is all those teams reached the playoffs last year ù a season in which San Jose dropped so far out of contention that the final one-third of the season held little interest.
With all due respect to the doings in Miami, the most radical change in MLS has come amid the dot-com upheavals in Silicon Valley.
ôWhen I got here, I knew this team was ripe for something,ö said midfielder Manny Lagos, one of three starters to arrive via offseason trades. ôThey had hit bottom. There are a lot of new players, and we have a good combination of experience and youth.ö
REBUILDING THE BACK. D.C. United cast off defender Jeff Agoos, and Yallop installed him as captain and cornerstone of a rebuilt back line. Troy Dayak is the only surviving member of the inaugural San Jose team and has recovered from serious neck and knee injuries to claim a spot alongside Agoos.
Zak Ibsen arrived in a trade with the Galaxy to take the right-back spot, and tenacious returnee Wade Barrett ù sidelined by groin injuries for all but three games in 2000 ù is the left back.
ôJeff is the rock,ö said Yallop, who as an assistant at D.C. United coached Agoos last season. ôHeÆs always in the right place at the right time and he uses the ball so well. We all had a poor year at D.C., but I felt if I had a chance, I was going to take him. HeÆs been absolutely outstanding.ö
Yallop used an allocation to acquire Canadian striker Dwayne DeRosario from the A-LeagueÆs Richmond Strikers and bring Landon Donovan to MLS. Danish midfielder Ronnie Ekelund arrived via the discovery route.
One allocation remains unused. It may not be used, either.
ôWeÆre always looking,ö said Yallop. ôBut if we donÆt have to use it, we wonÆt. They donÆt expire.ö
That Yallop was able to bring in Agoos, Ibsen and Lagos for draft picks and one player ù Abdul Thompson Conteh, traded to D.C. in the Agoos deal ù as well as add DeRosario without surrendering Donovan shows the value of his MLS experience.
Of the 12 field players who started at least half of the games last year, only midfielders Richard Mulrooney and Ian Russell have kept their spots.
Mulrooney and Ekelund man the central midfield in YallopÆs 4-4-2. Although neither ventures forward much, they keep the ball moving in a flowing scheme that forces opponents to chase the ball. TheyÆre the only two starters, besides keeper Joe Cannon, that didnÆt score in the first 12 games.
ôAs compared to the past, weÆre more skillful,ö said Mulrooney, a Creighton product in his third pro season. ôBut the main thing is our work ethic. Coach doesnÆt mind if you lose the ball, but itÆs what you do after you lose it. Do you hustle your ass and try to get it back or do you stand around like some players weÆve had in the past?ö
FLAIR UP FRONT. Cerritos, whose 2000 season was marred by injuries and Salvadoran national team appearances that limited him to four goals in nine games, had asked to be traded during the offseason.
ôWe are playing a very good, compact style that creates things for the forwards that werenÆt being created before,ö said Cerritos, whose delicate touch, explosive acceleration, and prowess in the air are blossoming as never before. ôWe want to erase all the bad memories of the past three years. ThereÆs a dynamism, a happiness to this team and confidence that we can get the job done.ö
The pairing of Donovan and Cerritos up front is a defenderÆs nightmare. They check back to relieve pressure, dart into open spaces and weave touches and passes in tandem or with teammates. Off the bench, DeRosario brings a bit more aerial power and a predatorÆs instincts.
DonovanÆs meteoric improvement has drawn national attention. But local fans ù whose numbers have dwindled the past three seasons ù are seeing a steady parade of nightly heroes.
Dayak celebrated his return in a San Jose shirt with a powerful headed goal nine minutes into the opening game at Los Angeles. Lagos scored twice to rally San Jose from a 2-1 deficit to beat D.C. United at RFK Stadium. Barrett ù three goals in three previous seasons ù smacked a low shot into the corner for the winning goal against the MetroStars.
Ibsen scored in the final seconds to snag a 1-1 tie at Chicago. A long blast by Agoos that skipped under keeper David Kramer brought a 2-1 win at Colorado.
Before leaving to join the U.S. under-20 team in Argentina for the World Youth Championship, Donovan bade farewell to the home fans by scoring two excellent goals in a 3-1 win over the Galaxy. He also roared in triumph at fallen goalie Matt Reis after Russell had headed home what proved to be the winning goal.
Did that win bode a shift of power in the West?
ôI think they know now,ö Donovan said. ôGo ask them.ö
by Soccer America Senior Editor Ridge Mahoney