TORONTO – What a long, strange trip it’s been for Greg Vanney at the helm of Toronto FC – from managerial novice to coach of the year in Major League Soccer in the span of three years.
On Aug. 31, 2014, TFC fired coach Ryan Nelsen following a 3-0 loss at home to the New England Revolution. Although sitting in fourth place in the Eastern Conference, the Reds, with a 9-9-6 record, were trending in the wrong direction with 10 games remaining in the MLS season. TFC was mired in a dreadful run of defensive form (26 goals against in 13 matches) and Nelsen had lost the room, so general manager Tim Bezbatchenko and former president and CEO of MLSE Tim Leiweke decided to make a change.
Less than 24 hours after the loss to New England, Nelsen was gone, and Vanney, at the time an assistant GM and director of the team’s youth academy, was hired as his replacement. Vanney became the ninth Toronto coach in eight seasons, and you had to question why he would even want the job. No TFC coach ever made it past two years, and considering the team’s history of managerial turnover, and Vanney’s inexperience — this was his first head coaching gig, having only previously served as an assistant coach at Chivas USA — the odds were pretty good that he wasn’t going to last long, either.
But Vanney has not only endured, he has thrived.
Three years after his appointment, Toronto FC has never been in better shape, thanks in large part to Vanney. In 2017, Toronto repeated as Canadian club championship winners, qualified for the CONCACAF Champions League, won the Supporters’ Shield (the honour awarded to the team that finishes the regular season in first place), and set a new MLS record for most points in a single campaign, with 69. The Reds, who went 20-5-9 during the season, are also 90 minutes away from qualifying for a second consecutive MLS Cup, needing a win in Wednesday’s Eastern Conference final second leg against the Columbus Crew at BMO Field.
So, it hardly came a surprise when Vanney was named MLS coach of the year on Monday, becoming the first manager of a Canadian club in the league to claim the honour. Vanney beat out Gerardo Martino of Atlanta United FC, and the Chicago Fire’s Veljko Paunovic.
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Known for his soft spoken and modest demeanour, Vanney, a 43-year-old father of four, called winning this individual award a team win.
“I’m proud, but I honestly think it’s an honour that is bestowed on me because of the quality of our team, the quality of our staff, the support of our management. When I say ‘team,’ for me, this whole club is a team,” Vanney said.
“This particular award goes to all of us who have been involved this year. It really came because of the success we’ve had as a team this year, and having the best regular season in [MLS] history.”
This has been a pretty good year for Vanney, TFC’s success on the field aside. Earlier this summer, he signed a new deal, becoming the first Toronto coach to earn a second contract. He also celebrated his three-year anniversary in charge, another franchise-first.
The current TFC team is a lot different than the one Vanney inherited three years ago. There’s also been a number of changes behind the scenes, including the arrival of club president Bill Manning, and the organization has undergone a major culture change. Vanney has come a long way as a coach since he replaced Nelsen, mirroring the growth made by the club in that same time.
“When I first took this job, I was an unproven coach who worked a lot with young players. … I’ve changed a lot. That’s what evolution is about. I have a great group of people here, and learning is my process every single day, so I’ve changed. I’ve changed in terms of my management of the [players], and my conversations with them. I’ve changed in terms of the things we do in training; we’ve evolved with the addition of sports science stuff,” Vanney said.
Vanney considered himself a student of the game during a successful playing career that saw him establish himself as one of the best defenders in MLS. His thirst for knowledge, to learn, and to improve as a coach are what drives him forward.
“There’s a lot of things I learn on a daily basis. As you get more experience, you gain more confidence and more insight into the things you’re doing and all of those things have helped me to mature as a coach, and I still think there’s a long way for me to go. My goal is to always to be the best version of a coach that I can be, and that’s what I ask of the players,” Vanney offered.
Vanney played for some marquee coaches during his MLS career, including Bruce Arena and Sigi Schmid. But he counts TFC assistant coach and former LA Galaxy teammate Robin Fraser, who he served under as an assistant at Chivas USA, as the biggest influence on his coaching career.
“When I met him in ’96 as a player to today, there hasn’t been many days that have gone by where we haven’t discussed the game in one shape or form. Not to say that either of us has all the answers, but the two us have always been seeking and learning, and discussing and evolving,” Vanney said.
Critics will point out that Toronto has the highest payroll in MLS, and that its roster includes players the calibre of Sebastian Giovinco, Jozy Altidore and Michael Bradley so, of course, TFC should have finished in first place and dominated the way it did in 2017. If only it were as simple as that. Money doesn’t guarantee success in sports, although it sure makes things easier.
Still, it takes an astute coach to bring an entire team together, and Vanney did that this season, making the most of his bench depth and instilling into TFC a level of tactical flexibility that is the envy of most other clubs in MLS. Vanney also showed great faith in young players, incorporating Marky Delgado into his lineup, and going with two-year pro Alex Bono as his starting goalkeeper over the more experienced Clint Irwin.
Martino did a great job at Atlanta United in 2017, building the expansion franchise into one of the best teams in the league. A year ago, Chicago finished dead last in MLS. This term, the Fire enjoyed a 24-point improvement under Paunovic to finish third in the East and qualify for the playoffs for the first time in five years. Either one of them would have made worthy winners of the coach of the year award.
But considering the historic nature of TFC’s season, it was difficult to look past Vanney.
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