And here’s to you, Mr. Robinson
Players take blame for coach’s exit, but payroll, stagnant results also paved way for exit
There was plenty of finger-pointing after Carl Robinson’s dismissal, but most people involved were pointing right at themselves.
“Carl was someone who brought me into this club, he believed in me, believed in how I could play, believed I could fit the system and I respect him so much as a coach,” Vancouver Whitecaps striker Kei Kamara said Tuesday.
“When I heard the news, I took it personally . ... I feel like we did that to him as players or I did that to him. If I would have been better on those crosses on the weekend and those corner kicks didn’t go in, he still would have been here. So I feel responsible for part of it.”
Robinson readily shouldered the entirety of the blame following his Major League Soccer team’s 2-1 loss to FC Dallas over the weekend, a result that poured water on the team’s already sputtering playoff hopes. Two days later, he and his three assistant coaches were fired.
“I know Robbo blamed himself when we lost (Sunday’s) game,” said centre-back Kendall Waston. “But we are the ones on the pitch. He’s not there. He’s not running, he’s not tackling, he’s not heading. It’s our responsibility as well.”
Five games remain in the regular season and the team isn’t out of the playoff hunt, trailing sixth-place Seattle by four points. But the teams they’re chasing have easier schedules and throw in the little matter of the Caps possibly missing up to six potential starters for a showdown with Sporting Kansas City and the chances of snagging that final berth seem grim.
While the players are accepting their part in Robinson’s termination, there’s plenty of blame to share.
The departed coach had a clear philosophy of the type of team he favoured: a deep squad that allowed for frequent rotation, one that played a defensively stout, counter-attacking style. But he had only one playoff victory in the four-plus seasons he was in charge and never recorded more than 16 wins in a season.
His record of player acquisition was inconsistent and seemingly without clear focus, while some issues were left unresolved, like the need for a creative, attacking midfielder since Camilo’s departure.
And imagine if Fredy Montero, on the books for $1.8 million in 2017 before his off-season departure, was paired with Kamara as a striking tandem. The Caps have the same amount of money tied up in Brek Shea, Efrain Juarez, Anthony Blondell and the now-departed Bernie
Ibini, all of whom saw limited playing time this season.
Kamara has 13 MLS goals this season, the same as Montero in 2017, the second-highest totals in team history since Camilo’s 22 in 2013.
While Robinson could have spent money better, he also didn’t have much to spend, constrained by a team salary cap that lagged far behind the quickly expanding league’s rate of inflation. In his first season in 2014, Vancouver was fifth in spending with a $5.4-million payroll. This season, they’re 16th at $8.2 million.
It’s true a massive payroll doesn’t guarantee success — Toronto FC, L.A. Galaxy and Chicago, three of the four highest-salaried teams in the league, might miss the playoffs this season — but it does make it easier over the long term.
Apart from 2015, when the Portland Timbers and their ninth-ranked payroll won the MLS Cup (Vancouver was eighth), every champion has had a vastly higher payroll than the Caps.
And in his first four seasons, Robinson was the loyal soldier, deflecting criticism of the front office’s penny-pinching ways, but his tone changed notably this year as more and more teams began shelling out for big-name players.
Robinson began to chafe under the financial restrictions, his public comments a precursor to him being pushed out as his bosses took notice.
And as the team began to hemorrhage goals at a team-record pace, leading to dropped points and making the playoffs look like an increasingly diminishing prospect, the front-office machinations of moving to a new coach began to stir.
Stagnation also played a part. While the team has scored more goals this season than it ever had under Robinson, the underlying numbers and issues are still the same.
The Caps ranked 22nd out of 23 teams this season in possession (45.9 per cent) and never matched Robinson’s first season (49.7, fifth overall) again, ranking in the bottom three every year. Without seeing the ball, they logically ranked near the bottom in passes attempted — they’re dead last this year — and in the bottom third in per game averages in both shots (12.6) and shots on target (4.5).
The new coach, whomever it may be, will likely overhaul the roster. The team will have a huge shift in player philosophy and team tactics, but it could also mean the departure of some fan favourites.