COMMERCE CITY, Colo. – Pablo Mastroeni is many things to the Colorado Rapids, not just their head coach.
As a player, he was a fixture as the team’s longtime captain and representative on the international stage with the US national team. Today, he serves as a living, breathing reminder of the Rapids’ 2010 MLS Cup championship run.
Mastroeni isn’t the most nostalgic guy you’ll find – he doesn’t flaunt his championship ring – but he will tell you that the goal remains the same as it was back then.
“I think it’s the drive to be great at whatever you’re doing,” he told MLSsoccer.com this week. “My biggest driving force is to be the best version of myself that I can be at whatever I’m trying to achieve.
“As a player, the ultimate achievement is to win the [MLS Cup]. Now it’s to lead a bunch of fantastic players, and help them achieve the same thing. I think we as a staff try to help put the players in a position to achieve their personal goals. Without players, coaches are nothing. So it’s a whole different type of drive.”
Things are a lot different now than they were back then. In 2010, Colorado were a lowly fifth out of eight Western Conference teams, punching their playoff ticket as a wild card. This time around, Colorado have asserted themselves as one of the best in the West, clinching a Knockout Round bye while remaining in Supporters' Shield contention heading into this weekend’s Decision Day match with the Houston Dynamo (4 pm ET; MLS LIVE).
Nevertheless, Mastroeni sees a lot of parallels between his current group and the one that competed for a title six years ago.
“One of the biggest comparisons is the willingness to compete and the camaraderie, the belief in each other,” he explained. “The leadership group is synonymous to what we had [in 2010]. It was a good combination of youthfulness and experienced, national-team players. It’s the same type of synergy experienced when you walk in the locker room.”
In terms of talent and statistics, the current Rapids squad is arguably better. Colorado’s longest stretch without a win has been four games this season (vs. seven in 2010), setting a club record for points in a season along the way.
Led by the likes of Tim Howard and Jermaine Jones, who is hopeful of making his first appearance in over three months, Colorado will be aiming for another milestone on Sunday: the club’s first ever undefeated season at home.
“This season, we’ve maintained a level of consistency from that perspective, one that I’ve never seen being a part of this league,” Mastroeni said. “It’s very common to go on huge dips in this league, but we were always bouncing back from bad performances. Our home form has been fantastic. What we’ve done is set some goals that seemed lofty, but we’ve basically hit every single one of those goals.”
Colorado were unable to parlay their 2010 cup run into long-term success. But building a winning culture at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park remains a key objective for Mastroeni, and he hopes to use the team’s 2016 success as a launching point.
“I think the plan was to come in and have an impactful 2016 so that we have something to build on,” he emphasized. “Building a culture and identity takes time, because you have to prove it every day. You have to prove every day, every year, that this is who you are.”
The next step is to prove it in the playoffs. Mastroeni is eager for the challenge.
“We’re in the playoffs, we want to win the MLS Cup,” he said. “It’s not too big of an opportunity, it’s a fantastic opportunity. It’s an opportunity to be able to do what we’ve done over the course of the season, which was find ways to win in difficult circumstances and difficult games, to overcome and persevere. It’s no different in the playoffs.”
