SAN JOSE, Calif. – After almost 15 seasons spent as an MLS player or assistant coach, Ian Russell has this week gained a newfound appreciation of the unrelenting nature of a head-coaching position in the league.
“It’s definitely a different feeling,” Russell told reporters Friday, two days after being named the San Jose Earthquakes’ interim manager. “I can definitely see how much [former bosses] Mark [Watson], Frank [Yallop] and Dominic [Kinnear] – what their mind goes through every day. You don’t get that same feeling as an assistant. Not even close. Your mind is constantly just ticking ideas – who’s going to play, what do I need to tell every player? It’s completely different.
“Sleep’s been tough.”
The task facing Russell – who took over for Watson as a bridge until Kinnear arrives after the season ends – probably adds to the insomnia level. San Jose, winless in their last 13 MLS games, need to beat playoff-pushing Vancouver on Saturday (10:30 pm ET; MLS Live, TSN in Canada) to avoid setting a franchise record for consecutive league matches without a victory.
With the planned offseason transition pushed up after media leaks forced the Quakes’ hands, Russell doesn’t have time to make a major tactical overhaul, although he does expect some “tweaks” against the Whitecaps.
“The main thing is just get them organized, have a game plan and execute that,” Russell said. “Hopefully, the rest takes care of itself. I wouldn’t call it tough. It’s just part of the job.”
Jobs have become a major motivator for the Quakes, who will be looking at a wholly fresh landscape in 2015, playing in a brand-new stadium for a coach who last led San Jose a decade earlier. That includes Russell, who may have outlasted Watson and former fellow assistant Nick Dasovic but is not guaranteed work next year.
“We know there’s another coach coming in,” Russell said. “[The players] know that, so they’re under the microscope as well.”
That’s led to plenty of questions for team captain Chris Wondolowski, the only current Quakes to have played for Kinnear – for one season in San Jose and three-plus in Houston.
“A lot of the guys in the locker room are asking what kind of coach he’s like,” Wondolowski told MLSsoccer.com Friday. “I’ve loved playing for Dom, and I think he’s a great coach. I think he can do great things here and really turn things around. I’m excited for that. I’m excited for that fresh start. But we have to finish these two games. That’s all that we’re worrying about right now.”
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Perhaps, after those two games are in the books, there’ll be more time for Quakes players to reflect on Watson’s tenure.
“It was hard,” Wondolowski said of seeing the change made. “I have a great relationship with Watty; we’ve been with him for five years now [as an assistant and head coach]. … It’s always tough, but it’s also part of the business, and something that we have to move on from and try to make better.”
