Sportsnet is reporting that TFC has found its latest Saviour.
This time the cape is being fitted on Garth Lagerwey, the man behind the scenes in Salt Lake City during that small club's rise to glory (well, MLS glory anyway). Although head coach Jason Kreis got the headlines those in the know always felt that Lagerway was at least equally responsible for the success.
Kreis left last year, blinded by the bright lights of NYC and the money of MCFC. Lagerwey is out of contract in December and many in Utah think that he is about to follow his former manager out of town.
RSL has succeed in MLS despite being in the smallest market. It's been frugal and has mostly avoided signing DPs. Even when it did go that route – and it's clear now that a successful MLS team is going to need at least one DP. The days of DPs can't win titles are done – it was the low end, non-flashy kind of players. In other words, players that fit a specific role and that were carefully selected by the RSL staff.
If there is an anti-TFC in MLS it's RSL. They, and Lagerwey, have done pretty much the opposite of what TFC has done. That includes winning.
So, on the surface it would seem like a very good move to bring in a guy that helped create that success. If TFC has learned anything over the last eight years it should be that its instincts are generally wrong.
So, TFC fans should be hoping this happens, right?
Maybe.
There is little doubt that Lagerwey checks off a lot of boxes that TFC fans have been screaming to have checked off. Most notably he's actually experienced at his job and has actually had recent success. However, if you examine the actual rumoured move it still has a faint scent of TFC on it.
For instance, TFC already has a GM in Tim Bezbatchenko. Even if Lagerwey came in as a President you'd have to think that Bez would be threatened. Most TFC fans would want Lagerwey to be the guy picking the team and if he isn't then what is there to get excited about? Legerwey may want to take more of a business role, but few TFC fans are going to get excited if he's coming to sell tickets and market re-build number nine.
Firing Bez may excite some in the fan base but it does nothing to change the perception around MLS that MLSE is a disaster to work or play for.
And not firing him creates yet another TFC power struggle, or at least the perception of one.
All of this is without any guarantee that it would work. We don't know how much of RSL's success was on him. We don't know if he can replicate something that worked in 2008 in 2014 in a league that is much different now than it was then – there is already evidence that RSL isn't the same now as it was a couple years ago.
Toronto sports fans have a bit of an obsession with management. Maybe it's because MLSE has been so poor for so long, but there seems to be a belief that there is a miracle worker out there that's going to fix everything.
It's unclear whether that person exists. So, as much as Lagerwey might be sexier than the status quo, he might not be better. In fact, the environment that would be created by bringing in yet another new voice, yet again, might be another disaster just waiting to happen.