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It's quiet in Frisco.... too quiet. Oscar Pareja took a trip down towards Mexico and said Asta Luego to the Toyota Stadium, taking the job down the Mexican Border and into Tijuana with the Xoloitzcuintlis (Xolos for short) of Tijuana. His legacy transcends far further than his 2016 U.S Open Cup and 2016 Supporters Shield honors, he transformed FC Dallas into a force to be reckoned with.
Arguably his biggest accomplishment, however, was the evolution of FC Dallas Youth Academy which produced tremendously talented young players such as; Reggie Cannon, Victor Ulloa, Richard Sanchez and Weston McKennzie (who is at the time of writing currently a starter for Bundesliga club Schakle 04). Did I mention he's in FC Dallas record books for the most wins with a remarkable 103 wins overseen (MLS)?
His time at FC Dallas never grabbed headlines for the SuperStar calibre teams they acquired. But his ability to blend youth players desperate to make a name for themselves and unknown gems down in South America and morphed them into a playoff contending teams. Astute signings such as Maxi Urruti, Roland Lamah, Michael Barrios, Reto Ziegler, Anton Nedyalkov, Carlos Gruezo and Maynor Figueroa ,among others, all managed to become staples in the first team starting lineup. Acheving success on the shoe-string budget MLS allows teams to spend plus the limited amount of money the Hunt brothers allowed Oscar Pareja to spend is truly remarkable.
It's a tough loss for the FC Dallas to endure and making this transition run smoothly as possible is going to be a tough task in itself. Luckily for FC Dallas the transfer market has no shortages of qualified candidates for EL PAPI. Here are five candidates FC Dallas should be calling if they don't want to go from a playoff certain team towards a playoff chasing team.
Jason Kreis
Nobody can deny the fact Jason Kreis was a success at Real Salt Lake. His 2009 MLS Cup victory against the LA Galaxy made him the youngest coach to have ever won the MLS Cup. They came close again under his reign in 2013 but came just short on penalties against the Sporting Kansas City. In that same year they came just short of a coveted U.S Open cup but fell against DC United. And nobody can forget Real Salt Lake's run to the Concacaf Champions League Final where they came across the powerful Monterey led by the legend Victor Manuel Vucetich.
Lately however; his ambition's might have caught up to him. In 2013 he left Real Salt Lake after their MLS Cup loss and headed towards the Big Apple. He took charge of newly expansion team New York City FC, who are owned my Manchester CIty FC group. He led to the team to a 10W 17L 7D record and was ultimately sacked. In Orlando the same story, failing to satisfy honors lofety expectations.
On paper Jason Kreis represents the perfect candiate, he has a MLS Cup to his name and will be eager to put his past two projects behind him. If FC Dallas wanted a candiate with a proven track record and a knowledge of how the league runs, Jason Kreis is their man.
Bruce Arena
Terrible, absolutely terrible. October 10, 2017 a day that will forever live in infamy. Bruce Arena failure to lead the United States towards the 2018 World Cup will forever tarnish his reputation. So much can be said about what happened in the build-up to the game and what happened during the game, but all that is in the past..... unless you have a time machine. I mean the guy had Kellyn Acosta and Michael Bradley (two defensive holding midfielders) on at the same time!!! WHEN WE WERE CHASING THE GAME !!!
Bruce Arena is, however, the pinnacle of U.S Coaching. An argument can be made for Bob Bradley, who coached an unforgettable 85 days in the Premier League, but Arena led the U.S to its greatest World Cup finish in the modern era. Many may add that his tactics are outdated but his knowledge in the MLS transfer market is second to none. Possessing a track record of building Cup winning teams.
Bruce Arena represents what's good and bad in U.S soccer. And his negligence in giving youth players a chance might not go well with the FC Dallas staff, but if there looking to stay competitive they might want to give Arena a phone before the Galaxy get there first....
Tab Ramos
Tab Ramos is one of the most coveted jugadores de futbol that the U.S has had to offer, without achieving much of the praise most do. He is also the Major League's Soccer first signing when he joined the New Jersey MetroStars. His remarkable work with the U.S youth teams is certainly going to catch the eye of FC Dallas and their lavish Youth Academy. He has led the the Youth Team to a quarterfinal finish in both previous U-20 World Cups in 2015 and 2017. And just recently led the U.S U-20 team towards a perfect Concacaf Youth campaign.
Tab Ramos will certainly need time adjusting towards the rigors that come with coaching any first team but definitely the capabilities and knowledge to adjust towards any challenge. It'd be great to see Tab Ramos taking a first-team coaching job, and further solidify himself as a top contender for the USMNT job in the near future.
Antonio Mohamed
Tremendous coach, tremendous ego. But two Liga MX honors, a Copa MX honor, a Copa Sudamericana (South America's Europa League equivalent) honor and a coaching stint up in Spain will certainly do that to a man. Antonio Mohamed is a proven coach with a proven track record of winning. Always lavish on the sideline and never held-back when expressing his emotions he's the perfect fit to give FC Dallas that extra push.
Great things can be said about Oscar Pareja but he always came short on the grandest occasion which is the MLS playoffs. His team's always making strong impressions early on but tending to lose momentum and energy when it mattered the most. Antonio Mohamed has won two titles which required a playoff journey. Certainly will demand money during the transfer market but this is a candidate with a more than credible resume to lead the FC Dallas.
It's a shame too see his Celta de Vigo stint cut so short, but an argument can be made that he was making great strides towards forming the club the way he wanted them to play. You know what they say; one's man trash is another man's treasure.
