A transcript of Garth Lagerwey's post-Gonzalo Pineda era press conference

Open wide for some context

Hi y’all. Your pal Sam here.

We’re not as active on social media these days. That’s especially true during press conferences and interviews. That’s intentional. In my time covering sports, I’ve seen quotes misconstrued and taken out of context far too often simply because Twitter has a character limit or because journalists were in a hurry to get the information out.

Today, Garth Lagerwey spoke to Atlanta media following the dismissal of Gonzalo Pineda. I wanted to make sure you had the full context of Lagerwey’s most important quotes without having to view them in extremely paraphrased formats. I’ve pooled those here and lightly edited them for clarity.

I’ll have more soon on my thoughts regarding some of the most interesting statements, but I wanted to make sure we were providing you (and the internet at large) with the proper context.

You could, of course, watch the video for yourself. But you’re an adult and you have things to do and you would probably just rather read the good parts anyway. Plus, this will help some of you win internet arguments. That’s why you’re here, right?

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On the impact of managers and what Lagerwey wants to change with this move…

Sam: We've talked in the past about how much managers can actually impact a game. You're probably well aware that the underlying numbers are very good for this team right now. I know the results aren't. The roster is the roster. The question for me is what are you expecting to tangibly change with the new manager in charge?

Lagerwey: Look, sometimes a new voice at the top can be a breath of fresh air. 

You know, Sam, you and I've talked and you know that in broad strokes, I think that talent is 80% of the equation and coaching is 20%. But as a pragmatic manner, the thing you can change in the middle of the season is coaching in terms of trying to affect different outcomes from the same group of players. 

Obviously, we'll continue to evaluate our entire sporting operation. But that's the reason where if you get a new guy in training every day, a new guy in the locker room every day, again, without any fault of Gonzalo's, that new voice, that new approach, that may elicit a different response. And because we believe we're talented, because we believe that group still has a lot of potential, because we believe we still have time to make it into the playoffs, we thought the change was appropriate.

On the evaluation of the club’s sporting department and the future of Carlos Bocanegra…

Felipe Cardenas, The Athletic: You mentioned that the evaluation continues regarding the the entire sporting operation. Could you go into that? What is that? What will that entail? And are there further decisions down the road in terms of how this roster gets constructed? What is the makeup of the current sporting department, particularly Carlos Bocanegra and his team who have been involved with squad construction since the very beginning of this club?

Lagerwey: I think you've seen or we believe that we've had more successful windows: Last summer, where we believe we fixed the offense of the team and then this winter where we thought we fixed the defense of the team. Again, those results have not been forthcoming as we hoped, but we really thought our arrows were pointing up as a result of those windows. And as a result, it didn't make a lot of sense, in my opinion, to change the front office structure. 

So keep in mind what goes into those transfer windows that yes, I'm here to help and support. But that's our analysts. That's our scouts. That's our talent evaluators. Those are all you know, a group of people working together to identify and sign these players. It's our it's our salary cap people, it's our contract people. And so to change any of that group or the head of that group, a couple of weeks out from a summer transfer window, where maybe we have a chance to improve our team. That didn't make a lot of sense from a pragmatic perspective.

On how injuries impacted their assessment of Pineda…

Joe: Garth on the team has dealt with significant injuries this season to significant players. I think, according to your frameworks that Pineda has only had 54 games with 9+2 or better. How did those injuries factor into evaluating whether Pineda can move forward as the coach?

Lagerwey: As you guys know by now I'm a data guy. You know, what I would say is in any coaching situation, that are almost always imperfections. Whether those are injuries or suspensions or players that aren't available or a DP spot that's not filled and, you know, one of the arts of managing is managing those imperfect lineups. 

So, you know, part of the, the analytics behind 9+2...and for those who aren't familiar, you know, our belief is basically if you have nine starting level players and you have to reserve players in that group, that you should be able to more or less replicate the results of a full strength team. And you see that there's a different points per game, usually playing nine plus two or better, and there's there's a slight drop off at 8+3 and then it gets it gets much deeper after you go with more and more reserves within a team. 

So look, it was a factor, yes. But when we evaluate Gonzalo’s body of work as a head coach, it's parts of four seasons. It's over 100 games in charge. And so we do think that we controlled for performance over time. And we didn't just take any kind of small sample that might be overly influenced by an injury record per see.

On the team’s lack of resilience…

Baillie Burmaster, Atlanta News First  Garth, you've talked about the fact that the arrow was pointing up after last season, and the data, so to speak, as well. I'm curious. from your perspective, what do you believe has been the hardest part about this team trying to find consistency on the field?

Lagerwey: Yeah, if we had the answer I think we would have addressed it as best we could. 

You know, it's been probably the most frustrating chapter of my career. We really thought coming into the season, that we had assembled a team that was going to really be competitive and really do well and you know, we set lofty goals for ourselves, like finishing the top four in the East and advancing out of Leagues Cup and winning a playoff series and you know, those goals haven't changed. 

But now we need to hopefully go forward with some discipline and some structure and some determination and understand that nothing is going to be given to us. We have we come to work every day and this kind of Arthur Blank created paradise. It's one thing to be grateful for it, it's another to earn it. And I think that's, that's what you have to do going forward is we have to show that we're willing to be gritty, we're willing to be determined, we're willing to fight and overcome adversity. 

Too often, this season. We've seen things like when we score we immediately get scored upon. Or when we make a mistake, we're not resilient. We go and make another mistake and compound that and then things snowball. And, you know, we started off tying home games and we started losing the home games and we haven't been resilient on the road. So I think there's a number of things. But I think they go at the end of the day to the character of the team. And again, we're hopeful that with the potential of the team, with the talent on the team, that with a different voice, hopefully, we can affect a quick turnaround.

On interim manager Rob Valentino’s chance at keeping the job…

Mike Conti, 92.9 The Game: Garth, I know the press release said that you would start a global search for a new manager tomorrow. I'm wondering, is Rob Valentino a candidate for the permanent managerial job and also who will make up his technical staff?

Lagerwey: Yes, Rob, is going to be judged based on his results. And what I would tell you Mike is, we're in no hurry with the coaching search. Obviously, when you're talking about in particular candidates from Europe. We're in the summer and some of those guys will pop up here as we go. But really, we're interested in whether can we get more out of this group. And as you know, I've had some success with an interim coach in the past in Seattle. 

And so we're going to do everything we can to support Rob and give him the best possible chance to succeed. And in the meantime, we're gonna continue to prepare the club again, not only to make the playoffs this year, but to be prepared long term. So if Rob proves that he is deserving of that, certainly, that would be a great thing for us. And in the meantime, we're going to try to be prepared should that not prove the case.

On what fans can expect from the next two transfer windows and an update on Giorgos Giakoumakis…

Rob: You mentioned the previous two transfer windows. What can the fans expect from this transfer window coming up? Will the club be active and trying to overhaul the roster to try to get to the playoffs? And also can you comment on the recent reports of Giorgos Giakoumakis possibly being sold.

Lagerwey: Yeah, so, look, those things go hand in hand. To the Giakoumakis stuff, look, we're never gonna negotiate in the media. So don't believe everything you read on the internet. You know, I woke up and was told that the deal was done already. And I was like, I'm pretty sure I would know if that were the case. Long term, we're going to be committed to players that are committed to us. We have had conversations with Cruz Azul, happy to confirm that. But there is nothing that's happened at this point. 

When you say how we're gonna approach the summer transfer window. We have all three DP spots filled. We cannot change the status of any of those. We cannot buy anyone down. And so look, could you see us tinkering around the edges of the team? You could. 

Obviously it's been out in the public that you know, the possible transfer of your Giorgos, which you just asked about, you know, the possible move of Thiago Almada. We've talked about that for months. And truly, you know, I will be most concerned if we hit the point where no one has asked me about our players. The fact that we have transferred rumors about our guys is a good thing. I mean, it's that they're good players. I mean, some other teams want them and want to pay for their services. So that's part of the business. 

But the answer to your question is, if you're looking for big changes, big evolutions, the roster, you know, those are purely dependent on what happens in terms of sales of DPs, in particular. And again, our narrative, our belief, is that after the last few transfer windows, we have a number of talented players on that roster and that the potential of the roster as a whole is better than the results we've seen. I think Sam cited that the underlying numbers have some support for that. And so hopefully we can reap the benefit of that the second half of the season.

On whether Bocanegra will be a part of the coaching search…

Doug Roberson, AJC: You mentioned that Bocanegra will be part of the summer transfer window. But will he be involved in the coaching search considering that his contract is up in a season and a half?

Lagerwey: In terms of coaching committee, obviously at the end of the day, the decision will be made by Arthur Blank and you know, I will be leading the coaching search. And we will ultimately have a leadership group from Atlanta united with some input and advice from AMBSE. We'll make a recommendation to Arthur and then, you know, we'll go from there in terms of the coach. 

And again, I want to stress there is no timetable for that. We don't view that as screamingly urgent. We view again, a little bit more stability. We're going to take our time, we're going to talk to a lot of people. We're gonna be very thorough in our evaluation of the next coach

On how Valentino can provide a “new voice” for the team…

Roberson: Is promoting an assistant who's already on staff, how do you describe that as a new voice where he is a voice that's been in the locker room and with the players for many seasons now?

Lagerwey: In terms of a new voice, we know different coaches have different, I would say tactical ideas and different approaches. When Gonzalo was here, he brought in two assistants with him Diego [de la Torre] and Eugenio [Villazón]. We've parted ways with them as well. Two other just exemplary human beings. Great stewards of the club. Upheld our core values. Really, hard workers. Really good folks. But we parted with them in an effort to get exactly what you asked about. To get that new voice. Because whether it was reality or perception, I think there was a perception that Diego and Eugenio were in the boat with Gonzalo. And certainly, Rob was supportive and part of that team. But we're going to continue now with Rob, who maybe will have a little bit different viewpoint on some things along with [goalkeeping coach] Liam [Curran], along with Jose [Martinez] our video analyst. And so we do have a number of staff members that are being retained. We do think they're going to take a new approach. And it could be that we're going to look at, do we need to hire an additional assistant coach to try and replace the hole left with Diego and Eugenio's departures?

On what he’ll look for in the next coach and whether there’s an ideal game model for MLS…

Sam: You talked about dealing with some of the imperfections that come when a team is injured or dealing with issues or just absences in general. I wanted to get your thoughts on what you kind of view as an ideal game model for MLS. Because MLS inherently kind of has these issues that pop up where you aren't perfect from time to time. Was Gonzalo’s maybe too predicated on possession and would you look for a game model in the next coach that allows the team to play a ball against the ball a little more often?

Lagerwey: What I would say, Sam, is those are technical questions that I think we need to ask prospective coaching candidates, right? I don't think there's one way to play that is superior to all others. You know, when I say that the path to success is 80% talent, 20% coaching, that isn't really a knock at coaching. What I mean is, in a salary cap world, you have to constantly find value. And so your game model, actually one of the biggest things about it, is it needs to be pragmatic. Because you can have the absolute perfect player profile of everyone who would be the best at that thing. And it might be utterly impractical in terms of trying to implement it within a salary cap system, particularly one with guaranteed contracts where we have to be really thoughtful about moving players in and out so we're not incurring long-term costs of the club. 

 I think when we talked about tactics, we talked about approach, I think you have to have some flexibility. I think it's it's perfectly fine to have a desire to play with the ball. Certainly, Columbus Crew would have made that look very attractive. And I think that you can be successful as well playing against the ball. When you look at some of the teams that they press around our league and have had consistent success with it. So I think it's a long-winded way to say I think you need to be able to do both. I think the players on this team are capable of doing both. 

And I think really what it comes down to now is, can we simplify things a little bit. Put everyone in the role that maybe maximizes their skill set. And hopefully, he was that to have a pragmatic approach that allows us to fight for a playoff spot this season.

Alison Mastrangelo, WSB: Garth, this might be kind of a general question, but what are you just looking for now like qualities when it comes to looking for a new head coach and what do you truly believe it takes for a head coach to be able to lead his team to a championship?

Lagerwey: I think they have to be a leader of men. I think they have to elicit the best performances from their best players. I think there's a huge element again in MLS of being able to demand manage and to understand to meet all the players where they are and to be able to communicate effectively with them. Both good news and bad news. So I think that's a really important quality going forward. I think someone that has at least some familiarity with MLS is important in a coach going forward. 

I think it's still a very special league in terms of the salary cap is the most restrictive here. And I don't mean just in dollars, but in terms of regulation. So you really have to cope. We don't need a coach that understands that. But we need to acknowledge that reality in terms of team building and what we're able to do short term and long term. 

So we'll weigh all those things. You know, I don't think there is one way to coach that's better than the others. You know, I've had five coaches. In my career. I've made the playoffs with all of them, won titles with two of them. 

So, you know, hopefully, Rob can join us, and be the sixth on that list. And in the meantime, we'll look around and try to identify other people that uphold the core values of AMBSE and who we think can be effective coaching, not just any MLS team, but the team here in Atlanta, where we have the biggest fan base. We are blessed and lucky to have the resources of Mercedes Benz Stadium and the Children's Healthcare of Atlanta Training Ground. So we have this incredible infrastructure. 

It's gonna be very easy to recruit. We will be inundated with candidates for this job. And I think this is a job that we'll be pretty good at. We'll use some data, some analytics and some interviews and really sift through what will be an avalanche of candidates I have no doubt.

On whether a timeline for a coaching search exists and allowing time for Valentino to make an impact…

Joe: I know you're not going to give me a deadline and you've said that the team is not going to rush a coach in, but you know the team is at a state far enough down the table where you know, there's some urgency to try to get somebody in I would imagine to try to get the tape from the team back into the competitive range where it wants to be. Is there any sort of timetable that where fans can expect this this move to happen?

Lagerwey: No, I'm not gonna put anything out it at all, Joe. 

So just doing some math. We played, I believe 16 games. So 16 points, 16 games, a point per game. That's not good enough. That's not a playoff pace. In terms of sustained periods of play, the most you're able to do really over an extended period is two points per game. So you say we have 18 games left, that gives you 36 points. 36 plus 16 is 52. That's more points that we had last year where we were able to host at least one playoff game. I think that we've done this with enough time where we believe that we can have an impact. 

So again, our thesis is we believe we've had a couple of good transfer windows, we believe we could be pointed in the right direction. Even at the start of the season I think we thought we were pointed in the right direction. And then we've had this little spiral where we've had one of the worst stretches in franchise history with one win and 11 games. It's been a bummer. And it's really been a wake-up call. And again, I think it's it's a siren to all of us that again that we unfortunately needed to make a change. 

But now we need to go prove it. Now we need to go prove and say, ‘Hey, are we as good as we think we are?’ Do we have this ability to make the playoffs here? 

We believe we've affected a change with enough time to do that. And as a result, we're going to give Rob a chance to succeed. We're going to support him and we are going to lean into our thesis that we believe we have talent in that locker room and that this group is capable of more. We don't want to change coaches every six months, or every year or two. We want to have stability because that is the only way to consistently build things. And you know the way I've said it internally is we want to fix this in a way where it stays fixed.

On Bocanegra’s involvement in the coaching search and evaluation of the training staff…

Roberson: Just as a follow-up Garth, when I asked about if Bocanegra was going to be part of the coaching search. You mentioned a whole lot of different people in things but not him. So I just tried to clarify, will he be a part of this coaching search? And secondly, the team's experienced a lot of injuries going back to play his first full season 2021. What responsibilities the club taking for those injuries on the results? And are there going to be any changes to medical staff training staff practices, to try to minimize these going forward for Valentino, and whomever the next coach might be?

Lagerwey:  Yeah, what I would say is that we're evaluating all aspects of our sporting operation, and certainly our performance staff or medical staff as part of that again, I think we actually did a very good job last year from an injury rate perspective. And you have to be very careful, I think about taking injury samples over you know, less than half a season. So I think you have to look at the body of work. And over the limited time I've been here again, I thought that that group did a good job last year and yes, we've had some bad injury luck this year. But again, I think that we are capable of overcoming it. Maybe in a little bit more efficient manner than we had. And I apologize Doug, I know you had a second one besides the injury one I want to make sure I get to it.

Roberson: You mentioned when I asked about Boc--

Lagerwey: The coaching search, right?

Roberson: Yes.

Lagerwey: Yeah. Yeah. So look, you know, again, we're gonna have a bunch of folks internally that are involved with that. But I think it's important to say that I'm gonna lead it personally. I will be in there I will be in the interviews. I'll be doing the research. And we will ultimately make a recommendation to Arthur Blank and we'll see what direction he wants to go. 

But part of the reason I say that Doug is, again, I had some success in Seattle by supporting an interim coach. And we do want to give Rob a chance to be successful here. He was successful in his last interim stint in charge. And so when I do things like refuse to put a timetable when I do things to say, it's not seeming urgent, you know, that's why I present the math and say this is achievable.

 If you believe we have a good team, then with a new voice and a new start, that team should start accruing points at a higher level. And again, if it doesn't, then we need to spend more time really evaluating. What are the root causes of that? You know, that maybe we haven't been as successful as we had hoped over the last year. And then we have to maybe make deeper changes.