On his first official day as a member of Toronto FC's staff, Nick Dasovic looked more like a player than an assistant coach. Dasovic spent most of Tuesday's training session on the field, mixing it up with his new charges in a scrimmage.
"Some guys are missing, they've got away for a bit and we've got a couple of guys [nursing injuries]," Dasovic said. "We've got a game in two weeks so giving them a rest now is the right time. It's a good way [for me] to stay fit as well."
Dasovic will need to keep his energy up in preparation for a full year of both domestic and international duties. Dasovic was hired Tuesday as Toronto FC's assistant coach and official head coach of the team's youth academy. He had been attending training sessions for the past several days with TFC while contract details were finalized.
The 39-year-old Vancouver native joins the TFC staff on the heels of five years with the Canadian Soccer Association as an assistant coach for the full Canadian national team and the under-20 team. Dasovic most recently led Canada's under-23 team to a third-place finish in the CONCACAF Olympic qualifying tournament last March.
It was after Canada was eliminated in this tournament that Dasovic heard of some interest from TFC.
"After the Olympic qualifiers I spoke to a few people and heard there might be an opportunity to come to Toronto," Dasovic said. "I was all over it. I flew in here for a meeting and talked to [Reds head coach] John Carver and the rest of the staff and they said we wanted to make it a go.
"This is, in Canada, the flagship franchise right now. They play in the top league and they brought in some top coaches, and you want to be around those people on a daily basis to get better."
Dasovic moved into coaching after a 15-year professional career spent mostly in Europe, including six years with St. Johnstone of the Scottish First Division. He also spent time in his native land, including a season with the USL's Montreal Impact and three years with the Vancouver Whitecaps. It was in Vancouver that Dasovic first moved to the sidelines, acting as both a player and assistant coach in his three years with the club.
He is also no stranger to Toronto, having started his pro career with the old North York Rockets of the Canadian Soccer League in 1991. Dasovic said things at BMO Field are markedly different from his past experiences.
"This place oozes professionalism," Dasovic said. "When I came in I was smiling because everything from the dressing rooms to the stadium. ... I mean, the atmosphere here is amazing. I couldn't believe it was Toronto. I used to play here against the [CSL's Toronto] Blizzard and there was only 1,000 people in the stands and no one came. Now it's fantastic."
Dasovic's day-to-day duties with TFC will be to serve as the second assistant coach, behind Carver and fellow assistant Chris Cummins. Dasovic will also act as Cummins' assistant during reserve team games.
Perhaps the largest part of Dasovic's new responsibilities begins this week, as the Toronto FC Academy is beginning its full-time training schedule. Dasovic and assistant coaches Jason Bent and Stuart Neely will oversee the academy's under-16 and under-18 teams in the hopes of creating the next generation of talent for both TFC and maybe even for Team Canada.
"I'll be in there organizing with [Bent and Neely] and hopefully running some sessions and monitoring the kids and seeing who can eventually one day step up," Dasovic said. "We're going to invite the best kids. If the kid is going a great job we'll keep him, if he starts to fall by the wayside we'll let him go. It'll be that kind of competitive environment."
Though Dasovic is directing all of his energy towards the Reds for the time being, he won't be leaving the national team behind. He will again serve as assistant to head coach Dale Mitchell as Canada begins the long road towards qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Dasovic wanted to continue to serve the country that he represented 62 times as a player, and said that Carver and TFC management had given their blessing towards his continued involvement with Team Canada.
"[Carver] is in full support of me being with the national program still," Dasovic said. "I've got the best of both worlds right now."
And, who knows, perhaps Dasovic's national team connections might lead to some more Canadian talent appearing at BMO Field in the near future. Dasovic said he isn't adverse to talking up his new club, but he knows it will take more than words to pry big-name players away from established teams.
"A lot of our best players, unfortunately, are in Europe and if we want to bring them back from Europe it's going to cost millions," Dasovic said. "So we're looking to produce the players and if there's a few players on the World Cup team I can have a chat with, see what they're doing, you never know, maybe entice them to TFC. We'd love to have Canadian content but at the same time we've got to be realistic and we have to put a product on the field that's going to be competitive."
It will be a busy summer for Dasovic, but for a man who aspires to be a head coach himself some day, he couldn't ask for a better trial by fire.
"It's going to be hectic but again, if you can put yourself in a [good] environment you'll learn a lot," Dasovic said. "I've already learned from these two gentlemen here, Chris and John, and Paul [fitness coach Paul Winsper] in three days has already taught me a lot. You want to learn amongst the best people and right now I feel I am."
Mark Polishuk is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
