It isn't exactly the scenario Mo Johnston envisioned when he thought of becoming an MLS head coach. Surely his plan wasn't to take over for a dismissed head coach and friend, be given an interim tag and the incredibly difficult task of leading the MetroStars into the playoffs with just three games to do so.
Johnston knows he will be judged on the final three games, starting Wednesday at Chicago. And if the Metros don't make the playoffs -- they're three points out of the playoffs with all three games left on the road -- he knows it's likely he's gone too.
Pressure? Sure, but Johnson knows a thing or two about pressure, especially playing for Glasgow rivals Celtic and Rangers back in his native Scotland.
"As a professional soccer player I was under pressure my whole life," he said. "These next three games, listen: If I don't get results, I get fired. At the end of the day, that's just the nature of the game.
"For me, I'm not frightened of it, I'll make sure my team is aware of that. I want them to go out and try and express themselves and have fun because this is a fun time. This is playoff time and hopefully we can get results to get there."
Johnston officially took the reins Tuesday when Bob Bradley was relieved of his duties after three years as Metros head coach. Johnston has spent all three of those years as Bradley's assistant. He is the eighth coach in the tumultuous 10-year history of the MetroStars.
"It's never easy when a coach is fired and for me personally, Bob Bradley was a good friend, he worked tremendously hard," Johnston said. "Now I'm picking up the pieces and taking the team to Chicago and I'm going to give it everything I have. That's the way I was as a player and that's the way I'll be as a coach."
The overwhelming feeling among the MetroStars players is shock and some were too upset to talk Tuesday night. That's how much they loved to play for Bradley. But Johnston knows the players, too.
"I've known some of these guys for three years, I know them inside out," he said. "For me personally, I need to get the best out of them in these next three games and that will be my job."
Johnston addressed the entire team Tuesday and also specifically spoke to Michael Bradley, Bob Bradley's 18-year-old son and starting midfielder.
"I've spoken to Michael in brief," Johnston said. "He's strong minded, he's a strong character and for a kid who's 18 years old, he's performed admirably in this league."
And the players, while stunned and upset about Bradley's departure, appear to be determined to play for Johnston.
"Mo is a great coach and everyone has a lot of confidence in him," Carlos Mendes said. "The guys are confident in Mo and will play their hearts out for him."
Born in Glasgow, Scotland, Johnston, who could play either forward or midfielder, earned 30 caps with 15 goals in an international career that included the 1990 World Cup in Italy. Johnston scored six goals in eight games in helping his country qualify for Italia '90.
Following a 15-year European club career, Johnston, 40, came to America and played six seasons with the Kansas City Wizards before joining Bradley as an assistant coach.
"I believe in the managerial and the motivational abilities that Mo Johnston possesses, I believe that we have a core of players who has yet to live up to their potential and I don't think that we are a team that doesn't deserve to go to the playoffs," Metros president and general manager Alexi Lalas said. "And I truly believe that, even with the short amount of time, that Mo Johnston can take this team and can do some very, very good things and stuff that will give us the best possible chance of getting to the playoffs."
Dylan butler is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
