FRISCO — It is hard to get Nico Estévez to speak about himself. Ask the FC Dallas manager about what he feels after getting FC Dallas back to the playoffs in his first season as head coach and he’s talking about “we,” “us,” “the coaching staff” and “the team.”
Try again. Insist a little. What about you personally? How does it feel to find success in this challenge, being a manager for the first time after taking a huge career risk and leaving the staff of the United States men’s national team before a World Cup?
“I’m a nonconformist,” he starts, and you think you’re getting somewhere. “I’m happy with what we’ve done. If we go back to the first day when I was here and signed the contract and spoke about goals, I think we all had this hope to be in the playoffs. But the way we got it and the security and consistency we had all year, it was something I really value because it’s a young team.”
Well, it’ll have to do for now.
Players say it is this collective attitude the manager has, combined with how he balances his desire for perfection and his caring spirit, that has made Estévez such a success in his first season.
“I think he’s a guy that wants everything perfect,” forward Jesus Ferreira said. “The team is excited to have him on board. He understands each player and what their abilities are and is doing a great job.”
That certainly was true in Ferreira’s case. Estévez arrived ready to make Ferreira the team’s starting forward and has been rewarded with a season in which a player deployed in a more withdrawn second-striker role last season ended this campaign with 18 goals, tying the single-season FCD record.
Other players also have taken big leaps forward. Winger Paul Arriola, moved to FCD this past January, had his best-ever MLS campaign with 10 goals and seven assists. Left back Marco Farfan profiles as a future fullback candidate for the U.S. national team after a stunningly consistent season both defensively and going forward. Longtime FCD fixtures Matt Hedges and Paxton Pomykal have been revitalized (and stayed healthy) this season. Midseason acquisition Sebastian Lletget also saw a big boost in performance when he arrived in a trade from New England.
Those are the types of tweaks needed to engineer a turnaround that saw FCD double its win total from 2021 and earn 20 more points than it did last season, securing the No. 3 spot in the Western Conference and setting up a home playoff game Monday against Minnesota United.
“I think it’s just his ideas. He’s very clear with his ideas, and the coaching staff is very clear with each individual player about how they want them to play a part in the group as a whole,” Farfan said. “He gives every player confidence — whether he’s stepping up, playing, not playing, every single player knows what’s expected and goes in with full confidence.”
That’s not to say Estévez at all fits in the mold of a typical “perfectionist” coach. The person in the locker room Estévez demands the most of is himself. During an off day in Seattle this summer, FCD players enjoyed walks along Puget Sound, dinners out and overall camaraderie. When they asked the next day what Estévez had done with his time, he told them he’d simply stayed in and watched film all day.
And far from the gruff tactics deployed by barking, cussing managers of old, Estévez dresses in a black T-shirt and joggers at every match and is far more likely to call a player over for a hug after a game than to unleash a barrage of criticism.
“I think he’s a great person, very laid back and likes to connect with you, to really get to know you as a person, not just a player,” Farfan said. “I think that’s very important to really build that bond inside the locker with the coaching staff and have that confidence to want to play for him, to want to give everything for the crest and do it together.”
Maybe that togetherness is why Estévez goes from “I” to “we” so quickly, why he views even his own personal reflection as something of a team effort. One thing he is thrilled about is that the team’s desired style of play is sticking. His players are understanding what he is asking for and often deliver.
“I think we could’ve done better at times and even gotten into the second spot [in the West], I think, but that’s a lesson that will help us in the playoffs and next season,” the manager said. “But generally, I’m happy because the team has taken on the idea, they have a clear idea, anybody who watches our matches and has been following the league, you ask about our identity and they can recognize it clearly.”
The other things outside observers who pay attention will see clearly is the effect Estévez is having on FCD. He may not want to talk about himself, but he’s giving others plenty to talk about.
The Dallas Morning News partners with The Striker Texas to bring coverage of FC Dallas and other notable Texas soccer stories to dallasnews.com. Find more soccer coverage at thestrikertexas.com.
Find more FC Dallas coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.
