Canada: The Future Doesn't Look Good

When Jozy Altidore's head came in contact with the ball in the 40th minute, you knew where it was going. The ball struck the back of the net, giving the United States a 2-1 lead over their arch-rivals from Mexico. This was Altidore's first career goal at the senior level for the United States, quite the accomplishment for the 18 year old New York Red Bulls striker. As the ball hit the back of the net, the pro-Meixco crowd fell silent, except for a small contingent of American fans behind the net, who went crazy. Altidore ran over, looked at them, and kissed the American badge. This was a moment that American fans will remember for years to come, and will no doubt become accustomed to over the next 15 years.

It was hard, as a Canadian soccer fan, to not feel jealous. Watching Altidore direct the ball into the back of the net was tough, because Canada has no Altidore, a soccer prodigy. The future of Canadian soccer was put on display this summer, when Canada hosted the 2007 U-20 World Cup, a gathering of the worlds top young soccer players. As usual, the host nation had high expectations, Canada was expected to move past the group stage and advance to the knockout round of the tournament. However it was clear that the Canadian team was outmatched from the very start. In the first game, a 3-0 loss to Chile, Canada was completely dominated throughout the game. From there, Canada would go onto drop games against Austria and Congo. Canada's performance was no fluke; they were completely outmatched in every game, our so called "top players" performed poorly. It was clear that Canada had no prodigy on their team, nor did they have solid talent throughout their system. If the performance at the U-20 World Cup is not an indicator of our lack of talent at the U-20 level, then I really don't know what is.

Jozy Altidore on the other hand, was dominating the tournament along with his American teammates. Altidore was a force up front for the Americans, who opened the tournament with a 1-1 draw against Korea. From there, however, the Americans would start to play up to their potential. A 6-1 thrashing of Poland came next, where Freddy Adu netted a hat-trick. Then the Americans would go onto defeat Brazil on the back Jozy Altidore's two strikes. A win against Uraguay in the round of 16 came next, when Michael Bradley netted the winner in the 107th minute. For those who don't know anything about Bradley, well you should probably get used to hearing his name. The Heerenveen midfielder has been a hit overseas, playing an integral part of the Dutch clubs midfield. Bradley recently broke the record for most goals scored by an American in a European first division, and has received interest from many top clubs around the world.

The Americans would eventually lose to Austria; however they had let the world know that North America was no longer a laughing stock. Freddy Adu would finish the tournament as one of the top players, scoring a number of fantastic goals. The former DC United player would prove the critics wrong, and show the world why he is one of the better young players to be playing the worlds game. His performance at the U-20's would catch the eye of many top European clubs, with Benfica coming out on top in the end, signing the Real Salt Lake prodigy. Altidore would score one more goal against Austria, bringing his total to four, one more than super kid Alexandre Pato. Danny Szetela would tie Adu's three goals, showing fans that there was more to the team than Bradley, Adu, and Altidore. Chris Seitz gave the United States another top young GK to add to their arsenal, along with players like Brad Guzan and Tim Howard. The country seems to be produce top goalkeepers by the minute.

Oh yea, North Americas other entry, Mexico, made the semi finals. Wonder kid Gio Dos Santos wowed fans with his skill, leading the Mexicans throughout the tournament. Dos Santos, a key member of Spanish side Barcelona, will be one to watch in the future. It will also be fun to watch Dos Santos and Altidore face off against each other over the next 10 years, and see who can come out on top as the best player. Players like Carlos Vela and Pablo Barrera also suited up for Mexico, showing that Mexico certainly has a bright future ahead of them.

You're going to be hard pressed to find any Canadian player who has made an impact as big as the players mentioned on the Mexican and American U-20 teams, or with their clubs. There was one player who could have been Canada's Altidore/Vela/Bradley/Adu/Dos Santos, but he's playing for some team called the Oranje. Judas De Guzman could have been Canada's first true superstar in the sport of soccer; the Feyenoord midfielder is currently one of the top young players in the world, as he has consistently been one of the Eredivisie's top midfielders. Outside of De Guzman, Canada had little to look forward to, however De Guzman offered Canadian fans a flicker of hope that maybe, just maybe, we would have a new star to watch. Well that flicker is gone, and the candle hasn't been lit by anyone else.

Our supposed top young players have failed to make strides similar to those made by their continental counterparts. In fact, you could argue that some of them have taken steps back. If people believe we are catching up, then you must be mistaken, we are indeed falling behind. Even at the senior level, it's hard to be optimistic at some points.

The state of the sport of soccer in Canada may not be at an all time low, but it is very close to it. This could obviously be argued, with the fact that we very recently were robbed at the Gold Cup, where a berth in the final was taken away by Benito Archundia and his linesman. However, the results on the pitch since that missed call have been very average. Canada came out of the Gold Cup with their first friendly against Iceland, an island of around 313,000 people. Iceland was ranked at number 117 in the FIFA World Rankings in August of 2007, and the fact that Canada could only manage a draw against the secluded island, is fascinating to me. How does a country that dwarfs Iceland only manage a draw against them? It just shows how much work really needs to be done if Canada wants to improve on the world stage, especially when you compare the situation to our neighbours to the south at the senior level. The United States is quickly becoming a force, while Canada continues to fight to stay with Costa Rica, Trinidad & Tobago, Guatemala and Honduras.

Next Canada would come home to Toronto's BMO Field (or the National Soccer Stadium), the home of Toronto FC. A sparse gathering, mostly situated in south end of the stadium, watched their national team battle the Ticos for 90 minutes. A 1-1 draw would be the final, a respectable result. After that, the Canadian team traveled to a continent rarely touched by the Canucks, Africa. A friendly was played against South Africa's B team, a sure win in most fans eyes. The match did not go as expected; the Canucks gave an absolutely terrible effort. It was hard to watch.

Most recently the Canadian Soccer Association organized the "winter camp", a gathering of Canada's rejects, well maybe that's not very nice, the Canadian B team (a few first team players were there). Canada would battle world superpowers Martinique and Danish club Vejle Boldklub, securing wins in each match. You were probably happy we did not drop either game, but to take any sense of accomplishment away from either game would be laughable. Oh and uh, just a reminder, who has the United States played over the winter? Sweden and Mexico. But that's the CSA's fault, another reason to feel terrible about the future. Oh well. Maybe the CSF will change things, maybe...

Back to our players

Canada has an outside shot at qualifying for the World Cup; it will be a tough road to South Africa for the Canucks. If we do indeed qualify, I along with every Canadian soccer fan will be over the moon. I would no doubt travel to South Africa to cheer on our boys. But who takes over from there? The United States can hand over the team to Jozy Altidore, Freddy Adu, Michael Bradley, Brad Guzan, etc. Mexico can hand it over to Gio Dos Santos, Nery Castillo, Carlos Vela, Andrés Guardado, Guillermo Ochoa, etc. Canada to... Jamie Peters? David Edgar? They just don't match up. Canada has to get their act together, or the next 20 years might end up being a tough couple of decades for Canadian soccer fans. The rest of North America is improving rapidly, but Canada isn't.

Kiki Musampa On Trial With TFC

Kiki Musampa is on trial with Toronto FC, this was confirmed by a good source. The 30 year old left sided midfielder has spent time with top teams such as Ajax, Atlético Madrid and Manchester City. Most recently he was signed by AZ Alkmaar when the Dutch side were forced to sign him after a number of injuries, he was later released by the club. The former Dutch U-21 player was also brought in by Sunderland on trial, however he failed to stick with the English club. He has recieved interest from many top Asian clubs in Korea and Japan, along with interest from North America over the past couple of months.

Musampa should fill one of Toronto's biggest holes on the left side if he indeed sticks with the club.

Interview with Asmir Begovic

Asmir Begovic recently spoke to Come On You Reds about his career overseas, his status with Canada, and the disaster that was the U-20 World Cup this summer. Begovic was a solid goalkeeper for the at the U20's on an otherwise poor team, he is now moving up the depth charts with Portsmouth and should recieve first team action very soon. He is one of Canada's brightest young players.

First of all congrats on being named Canada's under-20 soccer player of the year! What does this award mean to you?

Thanks very much, it means a lot to me, it’s always nice to be recognized for things you are doing, so its definitely a great honour.

You moved to Canada under very difficult circumstances, while you were in Bosnia was soccer a way to forget about the turmoil that was going on around you?

It was a nice way to change things up, I obviously did not play too much football there when I was younger because i was very young and because of the situation there, but it was for people who were involved in football back then and still is now.

When you moved to Canada, how long did it take for you to feel truly Canadian? Did you ever have any thoughts of playing for Bosnia instead of Canada internationally?

It didn’t take long to be honest, the Canadian people were very welcoming and I made friends very soon and so did my family so it was easy to settle in quick and feel at home. Well it was an option I had and still have really until I am 21 I believe but I enjoy playing for Canada, hopefully we can keep improving and become a better footballing nation, on the pitch and up with the directors and things as well.

You played for Canada at the U-20's this summer, did you feel that the coaches prepared the team well for such a large tournament? Can you compare the preparation that Canadian coaches gave you compared to the coaches you have had overseas?

I think it was always going to be very difficult to prepare for the tournament and it obviously didn't work out to be the best, we had games all over the place to draw attention so it took up a lot of the time, and for us European players it was very difficult coming of a long hard season to go basically into 6 weeks of intense preparation again without a break to recover from the season. That then lead to injuries and fatigue which never allowed us to put out our strongest team in friendlies to prepare, and that showed in the tournament. I believe the team that played against Chile never played together in the whole preparation so it could have been better for sure. You can’t really compare the preparations for what it would be like for Portsmouth because here there is a lot more money and resources to get the best of everything to get the best for players, and give everything possible to get the best performances from the players.

What is your situation with the Canada right now? Have you been asked to represent Canada at the Olympic qualifiers? If so, have you accepted?

I have been asked to participate, I have said yes, but the club have not made a decision yet on the release, so I will have to wait a little while longer to see what will, but I would love to go for sure.

Jonathon De Guzman recently chose to represent Holland instead of Canada at the international level. What are you feelings on his decision?

It is difficult for me to comment on his situation, I don’t know what feeling he went through and what the deciding factors for his decision were. It’s a shame that he didn’t choose us but then again nobody wants to have a player playing for Canada who doesn’t want to be there.

You were loaned out from Portsmouth to Bournemouth, where you ran into adversity as well as success. What have you learned from this experience?

The loan to Bournemouth was ok, it was good in terms of getting experience of playing, but once you don’t get paid properly and the club has problems it doesn’t become so nice to be a part of, but I enjoyed the games there and it helped my development.

Do you consider daily training with international-level talent to be more beneficial to your long-term development than first-team game action at a lower level?

The training with Portsmouth is fantastic, and when you are not playing regularly in the first team it’s the next best things. I obviously want to go on loan and get more games but the club need me at the club so its difficulty to go but maybe something can be sorted out.

What has David James meant to your development as a GK? Are there any other players on Portsmouth or with Canada that have had significant impacts on your career?

David James is very good to work along with, I take bits of things he does and ask him for advice so it’s very good to work alongside him. Player’s don’t really have too much impact on things, in Portsmouth of course we have some very experience players and it makes it easier to play with them, but the cant help you on decisions and other important parts of your career.

When do you see yourself getting a start for the first team (Portsmouth)?

Only time will tell on that, I have played in many pre season games which was a good experience, as for league or cup matches time will tell, but hopefully it will happen at some point.

And finally, if Toronto FC was an established club in 2004, with a functioning academy, would you have had second thoughts about moving overseas?

Of course and I think it would have been the same for any player, it would have been a nice option too, to play professionally in your own country is something fantastic and it would have been worth a thought. But things worked out differently and I am enjoying my footballing career in Europe right now, but who knows what will happen in the future maybe one day I can play for a team in Canada in a great league with some fantastic fans which Toronto already has plenty of.

David Monsalve Interview

Goalkeeper David Monsalve came to Toronto FC last season and played two games for the club.... One against Aston Villa, and one against Chicago. Monsalve talks to Come On You Reds! about these two games, and much more in the following interview.

First of all, you’ve probably been asked this a lot, but you come into the team and your first game is against Aston Villa! What was that experience like for you?

It was a great experience. I mean any young keeper playing their first pro game would be excited, but to have the privilege to play my first game against Aston Villa of the EPL was a great start. I couldn’t begin to tell you how nerve racking it was at first, but as soon as it started I was focused and excited more then anything.

What was it like playing soccer as a youth at a high level in Canada? When did you start playing and when did you decide that soccer was what you wanted to pursue?

To be able to say I play for team Canada at such a young age was something I was and still am very proud of. It was a lot of fun to be able to travel and play international games in countries I never thought I'd get to see. The experiences I had over the years with the youth national teams have helped me mature as both a person and as a keeper. I started playing soccer when I was 4. I decided I wanted to pursue soccer when I realized I was decent at it. When you’re a kid you always dream big and as I got older the dream started to become a reality, so that’s when I decided I was going to put everything into this.

You then went on to face Chicago in your next game, where you made some fantastic stops in a losing effort. How was this experience different to the Villa game?

The game against Chicago was my second pro game, so I used what I learned in the Aston Villa game in the Chicago game. I already knew what it was to play in front of 20,000 people, so I could concentrate less on the little things and more on the bigger picture (trying to get a positive result).

How did the players treat you when you came into the team?

Was there anyone who really helped you and made you feel comfortable with the situation you were in?

By that time I had been training daily with the guys and built relationships with everyone, so it was like any other day on the pitch. All the guys were very supportive and willing to guide me in a positive way in order to help me. I remember an incident where Carl Robinson was very helpful. Although he yelled at me a couple times, it helped me realize exactly what i was doing wrong and what i should be doing instead.

You were an MLS pool keeper, what was it like knowing that at any moment you could be signed by anyone in the league, sometimes for just one game?

I wasn't worried at all about going to another team. I knew that TFC was unfortunate to lose Gregg Sutton to a season ending injury therefore assuring me a permanent spot with TFC for the remainder of the season.

What was Mo Johnston like as a coach? We seldom get to see him work with the players.

Mo is a tough coach that demands a lot from each of his players. He keeps you working hard daily throughout the entire season. He always demanded more out of me which taught me to play hard every day because there is always someone else there fighting for your spot.

As for next season, do you know if you will be back with the club?

I am not sure if I will be back with TFC. I most definitely would like to be apart of a club that I like to call HOME. It’s a special place to me and I love the guys but one never knows where you'll end up.

You were selected as a goalkeeper for the U-20’s in the summer, what did this mean to you?

Forming part of the U20's was a proud moment for me. I mean every time I put on the jersey I get a sense of pride to play for your country, but to represent your country in a World Cup is a dream come true.

You obviously knew many of the players on the team before hand, and have seen many of our youth players come up through the system. Who are three players that we should really keep an eye on in the near future?

Jaime Peters

David Edgar

Andrea Lombardo

Three players that have played at the international level many times and played regularly for their clubs. They have shown that they can handle the professional level and be affective while doing so.+ David Monslave (and look out for me) haha

What do you feel is your greatest attribute when it comes to your goalkeeping?

I think I bring to a team what a lot of goalkeepers don’t have. I feel like I’m good with my feet coming out the back and I’m often in the right position at the right time. These two things help me to be a great leader to my back line and give me the confidence to play to the best of my ability.

Growing up, did you have any players that you looked up to? Was there a team that you followed overseas or in South America?

I followed and still follow Colombian soccer and like any kid growing up I admired a lot of players. In the end my favourite player is the player I imagine myself to be in a few years time

Finally, if you could sum up your experience last year with Toronto FC, and Canada in one word, what would it be?

Start (just the start of a great career)

An Interview with Todd Dunivant

I recently spoke with Toronto defender Todd Dunivant about the upcoming season, and his views on the league.

Last year was a disappointing year for the club, going into this season how are you feeling yourself, and how are you feeling about the club?

The biggest difference this year compared to last year will be expectations and that is a very good thing. We don't have the excuse of being an expansion team any more and that will only push us to be better as a team. it was all to easy to just brush off losses because we weren't 'supposed' to win last year anyway. As a group, we have our sights set on the playoffs and it will be important to get off to a good start since our schedule will be pretty hectic at the end of the year with the new Champions Cup tournament. As for me personally, I'm very excited about the upcoming year. I was in training camp with the US Natl Team for all of January and there is no better way to prepare for the season than training in that environment day in and day out. It's a higher level as guys are competing for spots every day. I felt as though I had a good camp and that will hopefully carry over to TFC and serve as a good foundation for the rest of the year.

Are you aware that for the opening game in Columbus, over 1000 Toronto FC fans will be making the trip down to see the game?

We've heard about the fans road tripping to Columbus and couldn't be more excited. I remember playing in Columbus last year and our fans made a dramatic and very pronounced entrance during warmups. The entire stadium took notice and it was obvious that our fans took that place over. Can't wait for it again...it's a huge boost for us and we are anxious to reward the fans.

Last season how were the coaching duties split between Bob Gansler and Mo Johnston?

The coaching duties were split like most teams. Bob Gansler and Mike Matkovich would generally take the first half of training, which usually included warmup, possession, etc. Mo would observe and put his two cents in when needed. Then Mo would take the last half of practice which usually involved games to goal. But all the coaches were always involved in the practice and added little bits here and there.

When you heard that John Carver was the new coach, what were your first thoughts?

We had heard rumors that Mo might be taking on more of a GM type role so it wasn't a huge shock when I heard that John Carver was taking over as head coach. Moving forward, I think it will be a huge boost to the club because we are beefing up our staff and allowing Mo to specialize in player acquisitions. He will still be heavily involved in the makeup of our team and will be in the locker room every day, so from that standpoint, things won't change much. John will bring a wealth of experience and knowledge and I have only heard good things about him. We also brought in Paul Winsper from Newcastle as our strength and conditioning. These moves just go to show how committed our organization is to winning and putting a good product on the field. These little details go a long way, especially over the course of a 8 month season. John and Paul are fantastic additions and now we just have to secure George and Ringo, and we'll be all set.

What are your impressions of John Carver now that you have seen him coach?

I am meeting up with the team tomorrow in Florida. I have not yet met John Carver since I have been away with the US team.Major League Soccer has seen a move towards more liberal rules on the roster restrictions of many clubs, including Toronto FC.

Do you feel that these more liberal rules are a good thing going forward?

The roster rule changes will be a great benefit to our club and to our league as a whole. More international slots are necessary in order to keep the talent pool strong during all of these expansion years. The league is adding teams at a rate of about 1 per year and the domestic pool is being thinned a bit. On the flip side, most teams are not going to be able to afford 8 international players due to the low salary cap. For TFC, last year was a bit of an experiment regarding our player rules. And after evaluating how it went, the league felt we were at a competitive disadvantage by not having access to more domestic (American) based players. While it is still very important to have Canadian players on this team, the league recognized that denying us access to the much larger pool of American players was unfair. Take the superdraft for instance...the vast majority of those players are Americans and we should have as much right to those players as everybody else.

The salary cap is currently set at around 2.3 million if I am not mistaken. Do you feel that this is an issue that needs to be addressed in the near future?

The 2.3 million dollar salary cap is obviously too low right now. The salary cap has not kept pace with the growth of the league and with the growth of revenues league wide. The financial landscape in MLS is a lot different than it was 3 or 4 years ago. The league signed a $150 endorsement deal with Adidas, expansion teams are going for $30 million compared to $10 million just a few years ago, major tv contracts with ESPN, FSC, HDnet, Univision, CBC, and others have further bolstered the league's bottom line. Soccer specific stadiums are popping up all over the country and that is fueling higher profits. Jersey sponsors are another major revenue source. The league has done quite well in the past few years and is clearly here to stay. All of that growth and revenue should be reflected in a higher salary cap, which will only increase the viability and quality of the league. It is certainly something that will be addressed at the next collective bargaining agreement after the 2009 season.

In your mind, does the new Champions League carry the same importance as the League Cup?

The new Champions League is very exciting for us players. It is a chance, first and foremost, to compete against Montreal and Vancouver which will be great for the fans. Those games will have incredible atmospheres and will take on a different level of intensity. We can't wait for that. It's difficult to compare it to the League Cup, which is our number one priority. We will definitely be amped for it though...bragging rights are at stake.

Growing up in the United States, what was your youth development like as a soccer player?

Growing up, I played for the Colorado Rush Soccer Club in Denver, Colorado. I played 7 years with Conor Casey, who was here last year. In addition to club soccer, I played ODP (olympic development program) which started out at the state level. Once you make your state team, you compete against all of the other states in your region (there are four regions). From that tournament, a Regional team is chosen. If you make the regional team, you then compete against the three other regions in hopes of making the National team. My birthday fell at the end of the year so i was always essentially playing up a year in ODP which made it difficult. But it definitely challenged me to be a better player. It was at regional camp where Bobby Clark saw me and recruited me to Stanford.

And finally, if you could pick one word to describe your experience with the club, city, and fans last year, what would it be?

eye-opening (it has a hyphen so i'm counting it as one word)

I would like to thank Todd for doing this interview, and I hope to speak to him again very soon!

Upcoming....

Interviews with Julius James, David Monsalve, and Todd Dunivant.

Watch for them in the coming days...

John Carver Named Head Coach

Toronto FC announced today that Mo Johnston has handed over coaching duties to John Carver, Carver will take over as head coach and Johnston will move upstairs where he will function as a full time general manager. This ends Mo Johnston’s short reign as head coach of Toronto FC, where he only spent a year.

Without knowing too much about Carver, it is hard to know exactly what he will bring to the table as head coach. It is also unknown how much Johnston’s role has actually changed with Toronto FC, as it was believed that Bob Gansler was in charge of a large majority of the on field tactics and strategy. However there is no doubt that Mo had his focus on both, and now with the insertion of Carver has head coach, Johnston will be able to turn his attention to building this team through transfers, youth development, and the draft. On the surface, this is nothing but good news for Toronto FC, and its fans, as both Carver and Johnston now have their set roles with the club. Johnston had hinted before that a move upstairs was in the mix, but the rumour never truly evolved until today, as there were no hints anywhere in the media that Johnston would be on the way out as coach. However Johnston has obviously been searching, and finally found his man in John Carver.

Carver comes to Toronto FC having worked overseas in England for Newcastle United, Leeds, and Luton. He started his coaching career working as an assistant manager to Sir Bobby Robson at Newcastle, where he would later take over as a caretaker manager after Robson was sacked in September 2004. Carver would guide Newcastle to a 3-0 win over Blackburn, his only game in charge of the club. After the game Carver dedicated the win to Robson, "I want to dedicate this win to Bobby Robson because it was the hard work he put in to this club that came out today". Graeme Souness would then come in and take over as manager, and Carver was sacked as Souness opted to bring in his own staff. 10 months later Carver was again back in the world of football, taking over as head coach again, this time with Leeds United following the departure of Adrian Boothroyd to Watford. As Carver took over, speculation would grow about his quick departure as job openings popped up with Scottish side Hearts, and Carlisle United. However, Carver would stay loyal to Leeds, and stay on as head coach. Leeds rewarded his decision, and promoted him to assistant manager behind Kevin Blackwell. His position as assistant manager was short lived, as Blackwell was sacked soon after Carvers promotion. He would again take over as a caretaker manager, guiding the team to a 3-2 win over Birmingham City in his first game as manager. However, Carver was again let go after a series of crushing defeats that would follow the clubs promising first win. He was then brought in as head coach with Luton Town, where Carver’s roller coaster career would just get worse. After joining the financially troubled club, Carver had no real control over the anything as trouble was on the horizon. He described his experience as “hell”, as the club faced countless charges from the FA. He and manager Kevin Blackwell would lose all control over the club, as decisions were out of their hands. Transfers were made without their control, and the club sunk to an all time low. Carver and the rest of the staff were simply puppets, and nothing more. Carver was again sacked at Luton, even though it is clear that he did nothing wrong. It is easy to simply look at the stats, and call Carver a bad coach. However, John Carver has been through more than most managers. Some people have called him one of the top up and coming coaches in England, with him being rumoured to take over as Irish national team coach and was as a candidate for a return to Newcastle before Kevin Keegan was named manager.

From what I have read, Carver is an attacking minded coach, he has been described as gung-ho, and he does not shy away from attacking formations. This is very good news for Toronto FC, who seemed to play under a sometimes cautious system under Johnston. Expect a different style of play next season under Carver. He is also a fiery man as well, who won’t take shi*t from anyone. He recently admitted to throwing punches at troubled striker Craig Bellamy, and I know you never want to see this in the world of football, but in this instance, I applaud Carver for his actions. I mean c’mon, it’s Craig Bellamy! Players who continually slack, or show no interest (you know who I’m referring to), will be dealt with.

John Carver should be a welcome addition to Toronto FC, and I don’t think anyone should be complaining about this move. It was needed, and it will benefit Toronto FC in the long run. Who knows if his style will fit Toronto FC, time will tell, but on the surface, this move gets an A+ from me. I trust Mo Johnston as a talent evaluator, as you probably know, and he will now be able to focus on one thing, building this team, and I feel 100% comfortable with him at the helm.