Discussion: Fixing the CSA

October 26th, 2009 | by: Mike |

I caught this on sportsnet.ca today and it got me thinking and I want to know what the readers thoughts are on possible ways to fix the Canadian Soccer Association?

Jim Lang, from Sportsnet reacts to this question briefly, yet vague in my opinion:
“The Canadian Soccer Association must be stopped at all costs. They have insulted the intelligence of loyal Canadian soccer fans long enough. We are tired of getting sub-standard, second-rate coaches shoved down our collective throats and having someone try to tell us that the Canadian men’s team is World Cup bound.

Who are they kidding?

Surely not any self respecting soccer fan that I know. Until the Canadian Soccer Association pulls theirs heads out of their butts and goes out and hires a world-class coach, nothing will ever change. I don’t care what country the coach comes from, I don’t care what language they speak, I only care if the man can coach and he has a proven track record. It just kills me to watch something as magnificent as the World Cup, and Canada not be part of it. Canada hasn’t been in the World Cup since 1986. It is unacceptable that a country with money and a love of soccer such as Canada has been shut out of the World Cup for that long. If the CSA comes to their senses and spends the money to hire a world-class coach, you will find all of our top soccer talent might actually want to play for our national team.

What a concept.”

I understand Jim’s argument here in hiring a coach from a more soccer-oriented nation. First, I think Stephen Hart has done a decent job as interim, with a semi-final and quarter-final appearance in recent Gold Cups. Hart has established a decent record as interim but again has failed at given opportunities such as the Gold Cups; winning friendly games should not be a factor in deciding if your job is safe. Second, I understand where Jim is going with this as our recent success in 2000 was credited to Holger Osieck, the German born coach who (along with some on-field miraculous performances) brought us the Gold Cup Title. Again, Englishman Tony Waiters was in charge in our 1985 title triumph.

However, I believe picking one coach, albeit a foreign one is only half the battle. Do we have the talent to compete? Can our best 11, whether coached by Hart or another really live up to expectations? Finding the proper coach will be useless if he is unable to enstil his own philosophy and methods into an under-average squad.

What is your take?

(Article and quote courtesy sportsnet.ca)