New Galaxy coach Greg Vanney gets to work as preseason training begins

The Galaxy went back to the past for its new coach, hiring Greg Vanney in January.

Monday, Vanney and the Galaxy kicked off the 2021 preseason, with hopes that it is the first step out of the darkness that has surrounded the franchise in recent years. The new MLS season will begin April 17.

“It’s exciting, it’s nice to be back home in a club that’s obviously so familiar with over the years,” Vanney said. “It’s also different now, because I feel like as a player, you’re out there and you’re giving everything and you can impact the game and the play just by your own performance, now I’m here as the leader of many people and a leader of a group of men, who are trying to be successful, both individually and collectively and it’s a wonderful feeling.”

Vanney, who played with the Galaxy from 1996-2001, has spent the past seven seasons as coach of Toronto FC. He replaces Guillermo Barros Schelotto who was fired last season.

Since Bruce Arena’s final season (2016), the Galaxy has posted 11th, seventh, fifth and 10th-place finishes in the Western Conference. Its last MLS Cup appearance came in 2014.

Another factor in the decline has been a lack of consistency on the sideline. Vanney is the Galaxy’s fourth coach since 2016.

“It’s like a breath of fresh air,” Galaxy midfielder Sebastian Lletget said of Vanney taking over. “He’s definitely trying to shift the culture of this club and instill his philosophy, and create an identity for this club. I’m excited to keep working with him and everybody else involved.”

The off-season has been a busy one as the club has acquired left back Jorge Villafana, signed defender Oniel Fisher, along with goalkeeper Jonathan Bond. The Galaxy has also added teenagers Marcus Ferkranus (17), Jalen Neal (17) and Adam Saldana (19) as Homegrown Players, but Vanney added that he would like to see them continue to get their games with Galaxy II.

“As far as where we are in need, we have a lot of opportunity to continue to add to our group,” he said. “When I look at our group now we have some really veteran players and we have some really young players and we need to fill this space in the middle.

“We want to build that side of things out as well so we’re pushing forward and hopefully some things can get done here soon and announced. They’re right on the edge where we just need to tip them over the edge, whatever that last piece is. Nothing is really easy in this moment, to get players signed, visas, all these kinds of things are happening, everything is slow.”

Vanney added that the club is “between 6-8 players left to continue to add to this group.”

“We still want to add to that veteran core that’s kind of in their 20s, probably mid-20s, with 3,4,5,6,7 years (of experience) so we can build some longevity with this group,” Vanney said “And once we lay down the foundation we have a group of guys that hopefully can be here for a while.”

One key question is whether or not the Galaxy will finalize a deal with Boca Juniors regarding Cristian Pavon.

Pavon, who played the last two seasons with the Galaxy on loan from the Argentine club, had his loan deal expire and returned. However, both Pavon and Boca Juniors have been at odds since he returned. He recently underwent surgery on his ankle and to complicate matters, he’s now facing sexual abuse allegations in Argentina.

“I don’t know the facts of the situation so I don’t have an opinion,” Vanney said. “It’s a situation that, you know, whoever’s involved or as they figure out what went on or what the accusations are, they’ll drive. I don’t have any opinion until I actually know facts and where we’re at. I’ve heard nothing but wonderful things about the young man so I don’t have any opinion on the situation, we’ll see where it goes.”

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