One wait over for Ramos, Dynamo in return to training
The day before the Dynamo took to the field for the first training session of the 2020 season, coach Tab Ramos was excited. And anxious.
He has been named the new coach of the team in October, which meant that on that mid-January afternoon, he and his staff had been working for three months but had not yet seen his team on the pitch.
“At the end of the day, we’re coaches,” Ramos said. “We like to be on the field. We like to be out in the grass and out in the sun. We can’t wait until that happens.”
After his squad finally took the field, just as the season got going, everything came to a halt.
The Dynamo played to a draw in their season opener against the Galaxy, then lost 4-0 at Kansas City. Following that game, Ramos had the standard coaching cliché about not looking back, but looking ahead.
“We’ll put this one away tomorrow,” he said that night.
Well, Ramos is still waiting for tomorrow.
Before the Dynamo played their next match, MLS followed every major sports league in the country, postponing practices and games in the wake of the novel coronavirus pandemic.
“I tell some of my colleagues, ‘I gotta live with a 4-0 loss every day for two months now,’” Ramos said Thursday. “You hope that the next Saturday, you just make it better and you forget about that one. The
next Saturday is just not coming.”
Ramos said that with a smile and laugh because at least one wait is over.
MLS allowed teams to open their practice facilities for individual workouts Thursday, eight weeks after shutting down all on-field operations.
The Dynamo took advantage of the opportunity and the beautiful weather to take to the fields at Houston Sports Park.
Players entered wearing masks and then spread far and wide for individual practice sessions. It wasn’t soccer, but it is the first step in the eventual return to the season and ranks high on the short list of good sports news we have had in the last couple months.
“It was great to be on the field, finally,” Ramos said in a Zoom call after the team’s workout. “It’s been difficult for everyone, but to be able to get on the field, even smelling the grass is great. So we were really excited about that.”
As with most soccer lifers, Ramos has put in significant time with the game. From his days in youth soccer in his native
Uruguay, where his father was a professional player, and in New Jersey, where his family moved when he was 11.
Ramos scored a state record number of goals in high school before becoming a three-time All-American at North Carolina State.
He then made 81 appearances for the U.S. national team, playing in three World Cups (1990, ’94 and ’98) and the 1988 Olympics.
He spent 11 years coaching the U-20 squad, the last nine as head coach, leading the team to four FIFA U-20 World Cups (2013, ’15, ’17 and ’19). He was an assistant on the U.S. men’s national team that advanced to the round of 16 in the 2014 World Cup.
None of that experience has been specifically helpful in dealing with this situation.
“That’s one thing we mentioned to the players in the beginning (of the coronavirus postponement) was that we’re all new at this,” said Ramos, the 1990 U.S. Soccer Athlete of the Year.
Ramos can handle it. It might be tougher on his squad, which will not have the depth of some teams they will face. That could be a major issue, with the
MLS likely to shorten rest time between games.
A probable SaturdayWednesday schedule will stress a roster. Ramos said as he is forced to go deeper into his reserves, they will have to learn under fire.
“I’m always confident and optimistic,” Ramos said. “If some of the guys don’t have experience, they’ll get it. They’ll get it; that’s why they’re here.
“They signed a professional contract to do the best they can, and I’m sure they will.”
You can hear Ramos’ experience with the U.S. U-20 team in that response. He is as equipped as anyone to help develop players in the Dynamo organization.
He hopes to fashion an aggressive club; “proactive” is how he describes it.
“A team that likes to have the ball that’s not afraid of go forward all the time,” he said.
It will take some time for him to implement his style and for the Dynamo to bring in players that best suit it.
If the franchise is committed to winning, it will do that.
First, we have to get to the 2020 season. It’s coming. One of these days.
The MLS doesn’t have television revenues comparable to the NBA, MLB and NFL. Attendance is very important.
Before the MLS postponement announcement, which was two days before the Dynamo were slated to host the Seattle Sounders at BBVA Stadium, the team announced that it would take unprecedented precautions to protect fans.
It included increased the frequency of cleaning patrols, wiping down all public surfaces with alcohol before the game, and high-traffic areas such as concession stands and restrooms being wiped down throughout the game.
Players were even told to avoid handshakes and high fives.
Other measures are sure to be taken, now that we know more about the coronavirus.
“The one thing I would say to the fans is that we can’t wait to play for you,” Ramos said. “The players are anxious to come out on the field and put on the orange jerseys. And, you know, whether the fans can be in the stadium or not, we will be playing as hard as we can to deliver good results and make the fans happy.”