Welcome Frank de Boer!

Discussion in 'Atlanta United FC' started by GunnerJacket, Dec 23, 2018.

  1. GunnerJacket

    GunnerJacket Moderator
    Staff Member

    Sep 18, 2003
    Gainesville, GA
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    On phone so not chasing links right now but the team is announcing the news. Certainly a quality candidate who brings big time European cachet, albeit with slightly less obvious managerial pedigree than Tata. However much of that comes from having kicked the tires of many teams. Overall I'm on board.
     
  2. Guardien

    Guardien Member

    Oct 7, 2013
    Alpharetta, Georgia
    Club:
    Union Berlin
    Happy about this. Tata had a great reputation, earned mostly at the national team level. Frank's experience is focused much more at the club level, and when he was at a big club in a middling league he dominated. I think that experience is far more relevant than his time at Crystal Palace or Inter, which makes me hopeful.

    Really excited about the future of this team, and what de Boer is going to bring to the touchline.
     
  3. Orange14

    Orange14 Moderator
    Staff Member

    Apr 27, 2007
    Bethesda, MD
    Club:
    AFC Ajax
    Nat'l Team:
    Netherlands
    Good luck and get ready for some very boring U-Turn soccer (lots of back passing between the defenders and the goalkeeper). de Boer did win four straight Dutch league championships but his tactics put most of us to sleep during matches. His Ajax teams were not all that dominating as one would think and his last two years were poor giving up the championship on the last match day. It will be interesting to see how he does over here.
     
  4. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    Not happy at all. We're not big enough to draw on our name alone. Tata could get talent from his country to come here on the way to Europe. Nobody is coming here from Europe to play for Frank DeBoer.
     
  5. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    Also, FDB was at a big club in his own country. Now, he'll have to figure out who's who in the places he's never had to look before. Hoping this doesn't turn real sour, real quick. If he can win with Tata's players, maybe he can keep something open in terms of the pipeline...
     
  6. VFish

    VFish Member+

    Jan 7, 2001
    Atlanta, GA
    Club:
    Atlanta
    What are you talking about? Do you have any idea of Frank de Boer's history?
     
  7. VFish

    VFish Member+

    Jan 7, 2001
    Atlanta, GA
    Club:
    Atlanta
    I think this guy is a perfect fit. He has experience developing young players, his tactics are similar to Tata's, and unlike when he was briefly at Crystal Palace he has the full backing of the front office. If we are truly trying to build a strong youth academy as well as attract promising young internationals then there is no better model to mimic than Ajax.
     
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  8. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    Atlanta isn't going to stay ahead of the MLS pack developing American players. Development can be done by lesser clubs that don't win anything.

    We once had a pipeline to one of the two largest nations outside Europe. We had that pipeline because the manager was Argentine. Lol..
     
  9. VFish

    VFish Member+

    Jan 7, 2001
    Atlanta, GA
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Bless your heart.
     
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  10. GunnerJacket

    GunnerJacket Moderator
    Staff Member

    Sep 18, 2003
    Gainesville, GA
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    A) Frank de Boer has extensive knowledge and contacts about football at the top level. ie: European Champions League teams. Any agent worth their salt, even from Argentina, will see his reputation and contacts as worth the consideration for any player wanting to progress from Latin America to the richest stage going.

    B) At Ajax he had to deal with a situation similar to that at Atlanta - Knowing your league is often seen as a stepping stone and that your best young talent may be on the move at any minute. He may not have won every year but he did win trophies. His insight on managing the club and development academies at that level will prove very helpful.

    C) Tata is gone and undoubtedly any candidate realistic for Atlanta was going to feel a step down. Even GBS. If there was a more perfect match I find it hard to believe Bocanegra and company, the ones who've given us a championship team thus far, have so glaringly missed the mark.

    I'm not saying FdB will vault us to a global super club but his pedigree isn't negligible and he's not some MLS retread like Sigi Schmid. Considering some pundits were actually nominating David Moyes...
     
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  11. Guardien

    Guardien Member

    Oct 7, 2013
    Alpharetta, Georgia
    Club:
    Union Berlin
    I don't think anything about this is correct. That pipeline was established before Tata was the coach with Villalba. That pipeline had continued after Tata signaled he wouldn't be returning with Pity.

    The front office made a huge investment in expanding our South American scouting network just this year, and most of the South American recruits have admitted that Tata had no contact with them during their recruitment.

    I'm sure that we were able to recruit better talent thanks to Tata, but that's because he's a famous and successful coach not because he's Argentinian! Do you really think that professional athletes whose careers are very short would care even a little about the nationality of the coach, or do you think they want to play for someone who's going to advance their career?

    I think that FdB's track record of success as a player and coach compares well with Tata's, and I expect young South American players will see that as well. I'm excited and hopeful about this hire, and believe that Eales has earned our trust in his decision making.
     
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  12. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    I have no qualms about his tactics or his ability to manage the club. I'm not sure he or any available European manager can continue to get us what Tata did or what GBS or Sampaoli might have gotten us out of Argentina, tho. My fingers are crossed.

    Villalba is one guy. The pipeline was established with LGP, Escobar, Barco, Asad, Hernandez and Remedi. I thought about Pity before I posted and you're right that he came for AUFC and not for Tata. But he's the only one who's done that so far.

    He doesn't have to pay them a visit; they knew he was going to be there. Or are you talking about since he announced he was leaving?

    I think Tata and GBS have more pull within Argentina than FdB will, yes. And Argentina's one of the two biggest non-UEFA providers of talent.

    Well, we know he's 1 for 1 with Tata. I think GBS didn't want us, for whatever reason. de Boer wasn't Eales' first choice. And we don't have a South American pipeline- we had an Argentine one. Josef was in Europe and Carmona was one guy.
     
  13. GunnerJacket

    GunnerJacket Moderator
    Staff Member

    Sep 18, 2003
    Gainesville, GA
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    Fortunately for FdB and Atlanta we now have the product worth attracting talent thanks to the foundation that Tata and the whole club have built. Now the team, the fans, and the community have a reputation. Now we have the facilities and the word of players who've come that can be used to showcase to recruits that we're more than Tata or an Argentine connection. If the only hope for this team was a head coach with direct Argentine roots then we're limiting ourselves.
     
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  14. VFish

    VFish Member+

    Jan 7, 2001
    Atlanta, GA
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Forgive me, but do you really think an Argentine has never heard of a Barcelona legend like Frank de Boer? And I doubt GBS was ever a serious contender. Eales said that they had a list of 50 candidates, which they quickly whittled down to 20, and then held 7 interviews. GBS said he had been initially been contacted by Atlanta, but they hadn't talked in weeks.

    Eales also said they had a number of criteria for the new coach with playing style, youth development. philosophy, and culture being the keys. I am not sure how many of those boxes GBS checked, but apparently Frank checked them all.
     
  15. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    The bolded: I don't think we're there yet (and it may be why GBS isn't our manager)- we need more success to get totally clear of the flash-in-a-pan label everyone not a fan seems to want to put on us. If FdB can win us a second title in one of these next three seasons (He's signed for four, right?), it'll go a long way toward reinforcing that foundation.

    Absolutely nobody here has said an Argentine manager is the only hope- but I sorta thought they'd go in the Argentine direction for the first after Tata, and they were doing just that until one day they weren't. Do you think FdB was Eales' first choice?
     
  16. VFish

    VFish Member+

    Jan 7, 2001
    Atlanta, GA
    Club:
    Atlanta
    I have to be honest, I don't understand this infatuation with Schelotto. I get that he is an Argentine, but he has only been a manager for 2 seasons and he was sacked. "But, but, but... he speaks Spanish". Yeah, well so does FdB.
     
  17. VFish

    VFish Member+

    Jan 7, 2001
    Atlanta, GA
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Yes, by far.
     
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  18. GunnerJacket

    GunnerJacket Moderator
    Staff Member

    Sep 18, 2003
    Gainesville, GA
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    Well now turn that lens toward MLS as a whole. There are no other teams in this league that are positioned to dominate Atlanta in the coming years unless City Football Group decide to go all in with their New York satellite franchise. Atlanta's facilities are at the very least on par with the best in the league. Ownership and admin support? Same. Our revenues and fan support? Same thing. Within this league, the one in which MLS is competing and therefore the one that matters, there is no team set up such that a coach would turn down Atlanta simply for fear of not being able to compete with the best. Yep, DCU and The Galaxy have more Cups to their name but given the young age of this league and the salary structures encouraging parity there is no reason someone rejects Atlanta for fear of not being able to win.

    I thought similarly that they'd pick a manager who would be attractive to, and familiar with, South American talent. FdB may be shy on the latter but is certainly credible on the former. More importantly, none of us have been privy to the real proceedings, and what we saw in the press was most likely the same generalized connecting of dots we use in this age of technology: Atlanta is looking for a manager like this, here are some names that on the surface fit the profile, ergo Atlanta must be choosing one of them! It's possible GBS may have been the best fit and Atlanta whiffed, but it's equally possible there's more to the reasoning and thus far the signs indicate that at the least Eales and Bocanegra didn't find GBS to be a slam dunk. If he didn't want to come here then forcing it wouldn't improve the matter anymore than telling an unhappy worker to simply try harder.

    There's a reason people date before getting married. FdB may not have been their first choice when this started but I trust that after speaking with candidates Eales and Bocanegra attained the best option available. Time will tell who's right.
     
  19. VFish

    VFish Member+

    Jan 7, 2001
    Atlanta, GA
    Club:
    Atlanta
    If GBS wants to manage in the MLS it seems like Columbus would be the best fit. I imagine both club and coach were waiting on Atlanta's decision.
     
  20. Eleven Bravo

    Eleven Bravo Member+

    Atlanta United
    United States
    Jul 3, 2004
    SC
    Club:
    Atlanta Silverbacks
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I’m very happy with de Boer. Granted, this takes our club in a slightly different direction but I have hopes for Frank.
     
  21. Gunner

    Gunner Member

    Apr 19, 1999
    Marietta, Ga USA
    I thought GBS was the Galaxy's top choice?
     
  22. VFish

    VFish Member+

    Jan 7, 2001
    Atlanta, GA
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Could be, I just thought since GBS played for Columbus and has ties to Ohio that would be a logical place for him. Pure speculation on my part. I imagine the bright lights of LA would be attractive to him also.
     
  23. Guardien

    Guardien Member

    Oct 7, 2013
    Alpharetta, Georgia
    Club:
    Union Berlin
    Columbus have already pulled the trigger on Caleb Porter to the tune of a five year contract. I also feel like that was a big missed opportunity for the Crew to really turn the page and go with a big relaunch by bringing GBS "home".
     
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  24. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    I agree with all that. But I don't yet think we're ready to attract our usual level of player... from Europe or from a lot of different nations. The sheer number of Argentines we have/had that are at or above the average MLS level pretty clearly shows Tata's failiarity with his own countrymen. His time as the NT manager built those relationships. I really thought Sampaio, but I guess he settled for Santos.

    And this is why I keep saying what I do about development. There isn't an MLS franchise in existence that's capable of developing a lineup like we've had since about ten games or so into the 2017 season. Not one. I'm not averse to playing guys who've shown they can compete on the 2017-2018 AUFC level, but if we can afford to buy without losing a step, that's what we should do, and allow the younger talent to get their time in when they can. There aren't any extra points added to the table for building if you can afford to buy, and not buying when you can is a waste of competitive investment.

    There it is.

    It certainly would have made a lot of sense going forward, given what we have on the roster ATM.

    This, too. It'll take a lot for him to keep that going.

    He's a big hire, and I've never implied otherwise. If he and Eales can stay ahead of the other teams in terms of scouting and willingness to spend, we may be okay. We'll see.

    Agreed here.

    Actually, it won't. There's no way for any of us to know what would have happened if... life doesn't work that way.
     
  25. Auriaprottu

    Auriaprottu Member+

    Atlanta Damn United
    Apr 1, 2002
    The back of the bus
    Club:
    Atlanta
    Nat'l Team:
    --other--
    I see when you're saying. No, I don't think GBS would pull out for fear of not having everything at his disposal to win. I just don't think maybe we're as big/historical as he might have liked.
     

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