37 days. Just 37 days. That’s how long it took for John Carver to tell the MLS where it can stick his job.

37 days into his second season with Toronto FC, the fiery Englishman tendered his resignation as head coach of the Canadian side. Shocking? Yes. Really? No. 

Is it a league record? Not sure. However, I’ll bet you that the fiery Englishman is the first coach in MLS history to quit his job not because of his record, health or family reasons, but rather his perceived notion that the league had it in for him.

I’ll admit I was a bit surprised by the announcement. Talking to him back in January at the MLS draft in St. Louis and Toronto’s preseason camp in Bradenton, it was obvious Carver was thrilled to be a part of the league and the having the chance to guide the Reds to a first ever playoff appearance. 

You could see it in his eyes and by the way he talked.

Always with passion. 

Unfortunately, that same passion was at times too much for Major League Soccer to bear.

I’ll be honest I loved Carver’s tantrums on the sidelines.  Give me a passionate player or coach anytime. Whether it was Ray Hudson with the Miami Fusion back in the day, or  Juan Carlos Osorio and Preki manning the current MLS sidelines, I love it when cameras catch a coach going loco with passion during a match or postgame interview. It adds to the excitement.  Its bonus entertainment in an entertainment industry.  Did someone say, Jose Mourinho?

Now, did Carver go overboard at times? Sure, but don’t most coaches?  And that’s why the MLS rightfully fined the 44 year old coach for calling the referees, “a disgrace” following last weeks 3-2 loss to FC Dallas.  The MLS did what all the top leagues in the world would’ve done, protect the men who interpret their rules on the pitch.  The league had no other choice. To ignore such actions would undermine the integrity of the game. 

Carver also had an issue with the league telling him he could no longer manage the team from a private box like he did a week ago against Chivas USA. The Newcastle native said he did it for tactical reasons, so that he could “see the game from a different angle.”  Say what you want, it worked.  The Reds snapped a 4-match winless streak with a 1-0 decision over the previously undefeated goats.  I for one don’t care where a coach sits or stands during a match. They do it in the NFL and college football all the time.  In my opinion, if a coach wants to guide his team from a pub with a pint in his hand while playing darts, no problem, as long as the team wins.  Obviously the MLS sees it differently and it’s their right, it’s their league.  So for that reason, Carver is now heading back home to England.

In the end Carver believed that the MLS didn’t feel he was the “right image for the league.” True or not, one is left with the impressive that both parties should’ve done more to find a solution to the problem.  Carver does share some of the blame for, at times, not taking into account that everything he did and said were as a representative of a league and a MLS franchise. However, the MLS should also realize that “total” control of its players and coaches isn’t always good business.  Take the English Premier League for example.  Is it me or didn’t the EPL seem a bit a more interesting when a certain loose-lipped Portuguese coach managed Chelsea, before quitting 40 days into his final season at Stamford Bridge?

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