MLS Sporting Kansas City

Quotes from Wizards press conference regarding coaching change

Published on July 19, 2006 under Major League Soccer (MLS)
Sporting Kansas City News Release


General Manager Curt Johnson

The first portion of Mr. Johnson's comments regarding the stepping down of Bob Gansler as head coach of the Kansas City Wizards was a prepared statement the quotes can be taken from the official press release on this matter.

On the decision to name assistant coach Brian Bliss the Wizards' interim head coach:

"The most important thing in making the decision to bring Brian in as the interim head coach is for the last seven years he has given himself both on and off the field to the organization, he has done everything we have asked of him. Coupled with his playing background, the last seven years made it a clear choice as to who needed to take the reigns. I know he has the respect of our players, staff, and other coaches around the league."

"[Brian] has interviewed numerous times for head coaching jobs around the league and for whatever reason has not gotten his opportunity. But I am thrilled that the Wizards organization is where he is going to get a chance to make a mark for himself as a head coach. I know he has the full support of our players, and at the end of the day that is a key part of making this decision."

"The decision as it relates to [Bob] Gansler, it was a difficult one as you can imagine after the last seven years and all of his experience. I think, quite frankly, he is doing the same things that he was doing in 2000, or 2004, 2003 whatever the case may be. He is pulling the same strings, he's got the same passion, and certainly he has the same abilities as a head coach but for whatever reasons it was not translating into wins. It is a result related this business, it's a cliché, but that is what it is and we have only won six times in our last 26 games and that is not acceptable."

"We have a very talented team and I hope that this change will help the team to regain the focus and conviction that has helped it in the past, and to help push us towards having a successful season in 2006 which means competing for championships."

Head Coach Brian Bliss

On being named the Wizards' interim head coach:

"First of all, I want to thank everybody for coming here this afternoon on such a short notice."

"I know that everybody has responsibilities that they need to take care of and we at the Wizards have one to take care of as well. As you can imagine today is somewhat bittersweet. We as assistant coaches, aspire to be head coaches. You hope to get it on your own terms, but when you inherit a job, you hope to inherit it because somebody retires or decides that they are done. Today unfortunately it went the latter. I am happy to have this opportunity. I want to thank the Hunt Family, [General Manager] Curt Johnson, and the Wizards organization for instilling the confidence in me to grab a hold of the reigns to right the ship so to speak and get us back on the right track to our winning ways."

"Many of you may not know my background but that is really irrelevant. If you are really interested as to why I have such a heavy heart today, go look at the website and read my bio and Coach Gansler's bio and you will see a connection there, a long standing connection. Like I said, it is a heavy heart for me today because he is a man that I truly respect. He gave me the opportunity as a player when he was the [U.S.] national team coach to represent our country. We lost track of each other for a few years there [while I was playing in Germany and in MLS], but he called me in 1999 and told me, "I want you to join my staff," and I dropped what I was doing immediately and took the invitation and came here [to Kansas City]. Like I said anybody that wants to get to know me more, you can go and piece together the bios yourself. I am a little bit emotional about it today but yet I am excited to get my first head coaching experience in the MLS, with the club that I spent seven years with as a coach, and one as a player."

"I know the organization and I know the players. I am just hopeful that we can get this thing turned around in the remaining games that we have and get us back to our winning ways. In closing I again want to thank the Hunt Family, they are loyal people. I want to thank Curt Johnson also for giving me that vote of confidence and extending me the opportunity to be the head coach [of the Kansas City Wizards]."

Questions From The Media

Was it Coach Gansler's idea to step down or was it a mutual agreement?

CJ: "I went to his house last night and we had a long conversation. I asked for his resignation and he stepped down."

How long will Brain Bliss remain the interim head coach?

CJ: "He is the head coach for the foreseeable future. I would anticipate knowing his talent and the talent of the group in the locker room that would certainly be until the end of the year. Like we do for all coaches at the end of the year, we evaluate things and we go on from there. For the foreseeable future [he is the head coach] and evaluate there at the appropriate time. Currently there is no search going on now [for another head coach]."

Was there a certain point where you decided that it was time for Coach Gansler to step down?

CJ: "I think that that time was over the weekend, after the game Saturday [against Houston] I certainly started to consider it. There was strong consideration prior to that. It was certainly on my mind. Over the last couple of days I conferred with our owners and Hunt Sports Group President John Wagner and we came to the consensus that this is was what we needed to do."

Are we going to see another assistant coach in the near future?

CJ: "I think the staff will stay the way it is. I don't see any need to have more people. It is the quality of the people that you have and we have great people."

Is there any chance that Mo Johnson will come on board?

CJ: "It is not anything that we have talked about. Like I said, I am very content and believe in Brain being the interim head coach, and [assistant coach] John Cone and certainly our support staff, our trainers, our equipment managers, and our front office. I think we have the right people in place to win games and function in a professional manner and provide the players with the resources that they need."

What level are you expecting the team to be playing at?

CJ: "I think we have a very talented roster. I think you can make an argument that up and down our 18-man roster and our developmental roster that we have as good a roster as anyone else in the league. Some would differ, but I think that it is of quality and I have heard a number of people who are unbiased about it, I am some what biased obviously, would say the same thing. That quality spells out to me that I want to see a team that plays with conviction that is winning games and playing entertaining soccer using the skills of the players that we have and maximizing it."

Are you going to be a different kind of coach to get these different results?

BB: "I believe so. We as coaches, we don't like to pigeon hole ourselves and call us one style of a coach, or using one method of coaching, or one method of addressing a game. I think as a coach you have to be flexible in what you do. You need to set your team up accordingly to the strengths of the players that you have whether it is technical strengths, physical strengths, or mental strengths. One thing that I mentioned to the guys in the locker room is that I don't know if we need a so-called radical change and fist and fire right now. I think we need a mentality chance in how we go about our day-to-day work. I think that is what I am going to bring to the table. Does that mean an all out offensive force or does that mean bunkering it i.? I don't think it means either. It does mean that we need to change our mentality and obviously winning is contagious, as well as losing. There is a phrase I used with the guys about defending. We have always considered ourselves a good defensive team, but we have lost our way a little bit there. We want to make sure that our defending is taking a step forward when we defend instead of taking a step back. What does that mean in laymen's terms? It means when you win the ball, you are already moving forward. Which will hopefully jump start your attack as well. It is a little bit of a philosophy change, but a psychological change as well to the way we address things."

How do you approach the rest of the season? Do you see it as an audition?

BB: "It's a two-edge sword. It is also an audition for those players. Anytime there is some kind of management change or coaching change in any sport, everybody immediately becomes on notice. Whether you have a two or three year contract or a semi-guarantee contract. Whether you were picked as a starter, first guy off the bench, or a guy that will finish off the rest of the season on the reserve squad. Players are also on an audition, and that is true for myself. We can only measure ourselves by what we do day by day, and as Curt said by wins and losses. So to answer your question, yes I am on audition, but so are those players."

Is there a record that you have in mind in order to be considered a success?

BB: "We haven't really given much thought to that other than that we need to win. We have 14 games left. Do I want to be making predictions in the media that out of these 14 I want to win 10, loss two, tie two or win eight, tie four, loss two. I don't want to get into those predicaments because then you in the media have ammunition when you step into the locker room after a game. So I am going to refrain from making any predictions other than to say that we need to change the way we do things a little bit and get us on a winning way. What's the magic number? It is hard to say. I don't want to put any added pressure on any of the players in the locker room that if we drop a game here or there, we aren't going to hit the mark that is set for us. With that being said, the players will know inside the locker room what the mark will be and that will be between our locker room and that is something that I'll expose the players to, and possibly the media too."

How did Bob Gansler handle the news?

CJ: "[He handled it] in his typical, professional way. It was about a 30-minute conversation with he and his wife Nancy Gansler. We shared a lot of our feelings and we talked about accomplishments, the future, and the present. It was an emotional conversation as you can imagine. We all have been through weddings, funerals, births, traveled all over the world together, won championships, lost excruciating games together. It has been quite a ride and we talked a lot about that. It was in his typical, professional manner."

Did you buyout of his contract?

CJ: We will honor his contract through the end of the year.

What is Bob Gansler doing now?

CJ: "I don't know. Hopefully taking a lot of vacation. He has a lot of grandchildren so hopefully he can spend some time with them, his extended family, and his wife. Past that, I am not sure."

When were the players told?

CJ: "I told the players this morning just prior to training. Coach Gansler said his farewells prior to me [speaking], and Brain addressed the team after that. I let them know of my perspective on things. Obviously, they were emotional about it. A lot of these guys have played their entire professional career with Coach Gansler. A lot of them got their opportunity because of Bob. There are strong relationships there and they are working with a heavy heart today, as we all are."

What has Bob Gansler meant to the game of soccer and Major League Soccer?

CJ: "It boggles my mind that he didn't get an opportunity sooner [to coach in Major League Soccer] and the Hunts, as well as Doug Newman are to be commended. It was obviously a fantastic hire for our organization. Doug [Newman] was the previous General Manager [before I came to the organization]. I couldn't believe it as I was sitting doing what I was doing in the late nineties that he wasn't a head coach in this league. His role in the game of American soccer is known to everybody. There is no one that has had a more significant role in the development of the game in this country than Bob Gansler."

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