Sitting Down with DiCicco

The new Breakers coach dishes on the U.S., his new team and his plans for his old club

September 24, 2007

By Nick Williams

Soccer New England recently caught up with Tony DiCicco, who was named head coach of the new Boston Breakers last Friday.

The former U.S. Women’s National Team coach has been working as a commentator for ESPN’s broadcasts of the Women’s World Cup and plans to join the Breakers at the conclusion of the tournament to start building the soccer operations department in anticipation of the April 2009 start date of the new women’s pro soccer league – temporarily titled the Women’s Soccer LLC.

DiCicco was head coach of the U.S. women from 1994-99, winning an Olympic Gold Medal in 1996 and the Women’s World Cup in 1999. During that time, he put together an astounding 103-8-8 record, making him the all-time wins leader in U.S. national soccer history.

The Wethersfield Connecticut native talked about his plans for the Breakers, his opinion on the current U.S. National Team and how he plans to use his old team, the SoccerPlus Connecticut Reds, as a farm club for his new team.

Soccer New England: Joe Cummings, the General Manager and President of the Breakers, mentioned you had been talking about coaching the new Breakers for a couple of months. How did this come to fruition?
Tony DiCicco: I think the first go-round with the WUSA, we talked about it before they hired Jay Hoffman. But I was in the league office and we thought I probably could help the league more by being in the office. So there was some history there when this opportunity came up. It was too important to me personally to not let this slip by again.

SNE: Why were the Breakers so appealing? Because of the history? Because of the local angle?
DiCicco: Well, Joe runs a great operation. He was League Executive of the Year in 2003, the last year of WUSA. I mean, you get a chance to coach elite players that are highly motivated. Plus to coach in New England, it’s just pretty special.

SNE: Do you feel this new league will be more successful than the WUSA?
DiCicco: I guess the goals of the new league will be to be better in the business side of things and while trying to replicate the competitive side of the WUSA. It was a great competitive league the first go-round. I’m not even sure what the new league is gonna be called, but if we can improve the business side while duplicating that competitiveness, we’ll really have something.

SNE: You had an unfathomable amount of success with the U.S. team. Are you worried about the expectations of a Tony DiCicco-coached team?
DiCicco: No, not really. The expectations I put on myself are pretty high. Our goal will be to win the championship. That has to be our goal. That’s what Joe wants. It’s what the fans in Boston and New England want. And what I want.

SNE: When you join the Breakers at the end of the World Cup, what will your day-to-day operations be like starting out?
DiCicco: We’re not sure. My goals would be to have something for next spring and summer, even though the league will be a year away. We want to get some players involved in the team. Even if they aren’t with the team when we start, just getting them out in the community so people know the Breakers and the league are coming back. Even if it’s just a friendly or exhibition schedule next spring.

SNE: Speaking of the World Cup, how do you feel about this U.S. team after its win over England? DiCicco: I feel a lot better about them today rather than in their pervious matches. I still think there’s a collective lack of confidence when they are with the ball, but [Saturday] we saw a little bit of flair. There were still too many unforced errors, but I thought this easily was their best game. They were still very solid defensively, but they showed another side of their game [Saturday]. I think their formula now is to be very good defensively and play for set pieces and free up Abby Wambach. I think they can add to that with more possession. Iit will help in a lot of different ways: the other team will have to chase, you’ll get more chances near the box and it will help Kristin Lilly get more involved.

SNE: So can we have a prediction from you?
DiCicco: Brazil will beat Australia. Brazil has been incredibly impressive, but I think the U.S. will beat them in the Semis, then, like I’ve said before, see Germany in the final.

SNE: What happens to SoccerPlus CT, the team you coached this summer?
DiCicco: The team will still be in place in the WPSL. Someone else will be coaching them, probably Lisa Cole, my assistant last year. We need to defend our U23 championship. I want to get some of [SoccerPlus CT’s] post-college players to me with the Breakers and make the Reds an in-college amateur team. We haven’t worked out all those decisions yet, but what I want the Reds to be is a feeder system to the Breakers. If a player can’t make the Breakers, then maybe they can make the Reds and be one step away from paying professionally.