Whitecaps co-owner feels fans’ pain
Q&A PART 2: Jeff Mallett says club can win and develop talent on a budget, using FC Dallas as example Marc Weber
In Part 1 of Marc Weber’s Q and A with Whitecaps’ co-owner Jeff Mallett, the former Yahoo! president said the Caps must re-evaluate what a player’s commitment to the first team is.
In Part 2, Mallett responds to criticism of the brass and to the cries for the Caps to spend more money.
Q: You’ve seen The Province’s Whitecaps poll. It’s one online poll but clearly there’s a sense there that fans aren’t over-enthused with management. Does that concern you? What do you put it down to?
A: When I first read the poll (Saturday), what jumped out at me was 1,000 people voted. So, putting the content aside, the engagement level was super high. Six years ago, we wouldn’t have had that. People care about us. People have an opinion about us. It runs deep. So that’s the positive I get out of it.
When I look at (the answers), hey, I’m a fan, too. I’ll put my fan hat on right now: I feel the pain. I honestly feel the pain. I’m disappointed. We tried to be an MLS contender. It’s frustrating. It’s easier to do a quick poll online than to do our job now. We have to take everyone’s interests and make those 10-15 per cent of changes that are going to get it done.
Is the club’s model right?
We’re fundamentally more FC Dallas than we are Toronto FC. Whitecaps FC 2 have shown they can win and compete (in USL). Our academy teams have done well (in the USSDA). We’re going across Canada with our academies now. We will find (players), we will develop (players), it’s a model that works. I think the one area we have to keep an eye on is our model with regards to (designated players). Is our approach for those type of players right? That’s an area we’re scrubbing really hard.
Alphonso Davies (the Caps’ 15-year-old winger) has been a shining light in a tough season. Have you put a price tag on him?
No. All the things you’re hearing from Carl (Robinson), it’s the same from us: slow and steady wins the race. It’s about developing (him) from a teenager to a young man. The Freddy Adu-type stories (the young American once dubbed the next Pelé who now plays in the third-tier NASL), you can draw some parallels. So it’s about making sure he’s strong as a person, that he gets a quality level of football, and he develops. He’s got all the tools, there’s no doubt about it.
You brought up designated players, which relates to money. That was a hot topic in our poll, where 77 per cent of voters said you don’t spend enough to win an MLS Cup. Your salary budget this season was around $6.9 million. Do you think you’re spending enough?
I honestly do. We’re very clear: We’re more FC Dallas ($4.3M budget) than we are TFC ($21.8M). We’re at the bottom end of the top third (in MLS spending). Do I believe we can compete doing that? Look what Colorado ($8.5M) did this year (jumping from last in the west in 2015 to second overall). The answer is yes, I believe we can. We’re building this foundation, we’re moving forward, and we always look at opportunities across a broad range.
What’s the amount you’re willing to spend on a designated player?
We have a range. We have a plan, and we’ll look at variance outside that plan, but it has to be a good business case — thoughtful. Do we fill a white board with big names? Absolutely. But we have a model, a plan, and we have to build this to be sustainable.
Has this season made you rethink how you scout players, where you scout players, or the mix of the team?
It’s a great question. We’ve talked about it at our last couple of (management) sessions. We like our approach. We still think Central and South America is probably the best value. I think we’re finding the players but it’s that part I mentioned before: What does it mean to be a Whitecap? What are the expectations. I think that’s what we need to improve on to get the best out of that player.
We need to hit the ground running next season. We’ve got no choice. We’re playing Champions League (in February) and that’s a great opportunity for us and I think it shows our depth.
For Part 1 of this Q and A with Jeff Mallett, head to provincesports.com.