Vergara is a genius. Westerhoff was hired as technical director of Chivas, then Vergara asked him to rescue Chivas as they were strugging in the Mexican league (took the team in midseason). By the next season he implemented an attacking soccer system and took Chivas to the Mexican final. His assistant at the time (Galindo, former Chivas legend in the 90's) now is coach and kept his system and attacking soccer playing style and he has the team in the Copa Libertadores quarterfinals and the team is playing well. Can Westerhoff now rescue Chiva's little brother? With him coaching Chivas USA the goats will probably dominate MLS in the coming seasons, and all the Vergara haters will have to bow down and eat their words! MLS fans better be afraid, their worst nightmare of Chivas USA taking over MLS will come true!
That's pretty much what they should have done in the first place. Rongen will work to help Westerhoff work within the league's structure. They still need more talented players, but CD Chivas will win more games very soon. May also help with bringing fans in.
The problem is that Rongen wasn't the main problem. In coming seasons, you may be right, but right now, its hard to say they have the horses.
Sounds like this was maybe always the plan. Kick Rongen upstairs as the quid pro quo for being the fall guy for an expansion team's poor first season with the Chivas legend from Mexico then stepping in once the initial unrealistic expectations had been readjusted downwards a bit. Always found it odd that the coach would be someone with no Guadalajara connection.
I am sure. Front Office has multiple plans for leadership. This probably accurate. The light shine on expansion for Chicago. Hollander prove to be nuance to americans. I must say. This is not a bad move. Look for CDCUSA to go back to roots again after a spell.
The Westerhoff name now attached to CDUSA will only serve to increase the already absurd level of expectations for a group of players that, with two or three exceptions, are simply not playing at an MLS level. Real change won't come until Palencia, Bofo, etc. come in mid-August, and by then it may be too late. What I'm most curious about is if Westerhoff's involvement will get Chivabutts back in seats (?)
Why should I be afraid of Dutch football? I've always been an admirer of Dutch football and its total football approach. If a Dutch coached team can raise the competitive bar in the MLS, more power to them, since all win. Maybe Chivas should be renamed The Flying Dutchmen... Or, even better, Geiten USA (or Geits USA...I don't know the proper plural form of 'geit'). You've got to love the irony of all of this. Well, maybe not...but I sure do Cheers
This isn't going to change everything if they're still attacking with Martins and Taylor up front, at all. Ramon Ramirez so far for the most part has been a complete bust. Ezra Hendrickson really is the only strong link in that back line. Zuniga is god awful, lol. They're gonna need a lot of work. Coaching alone aint gonna help.
BBtB, I don't think this could quite have been the plan, in the sense that they'd have liked Chivas to play at least well enough for Rongen to finish out the season. I think in the beginning they wanted someone with enough knowledge of the American scene to put together a competent draft. I'll leave it for the rest of you to judge whether he did that, based upon the team's self-enforced roster rules.
Chivas USA: Taking over MLS from the bottom up. And man oh man, have they put a stranglehold on the basement.
4 points behind the Crapids. Not necessarily a stranglehold. Oh, they're gripping tightly and will prolly take the title of league's worst. But it ain't over yet. Check out MLSnet.com right now: they're reporting the Westerhoff LA Times story. One thing that Westerhoff brings is that he's a well-known entity to the Papa Chivas players and hence would facilitate players coming over who up until now might have been hesitant. I'm not saying they'll sign Bofo or somebody truly big, just that the likelihood is greater.
We have a winner. Would Palencia have gone to LA if Westerhoff had been there? Maybe, but it's a lot more likely now that players will be willing to play for this guy, instead of someone else. Now comes the bigger question: Will Westerhoff be another in the long line of top international coaches to completely fail in MLS?
It's a good move all round. Scapegoat - check. Recognisable name replacement - check. CHivas Legend - check. The name should help btoh with getting fans back, and getting better players (particularly from within the Chivas system, like Palencia who turned his back on the original move)...which will in turn get more fans to come out. Assuming he can stem the tide...and, as said by many, by August it may be too late. I foresee some trades before then, they simply cannot wait that long....and MLS trades are the only option available to them right now.
Well, if the team suddenly plays good looking futbol after August, there'll be interest for the following year, I think. But Chivas is going to have to lower ticket prices at some point, no matter what else they do.