It will be a Dutch managerial delight Thursday morning when first-year FC Cincinnati manager Jaap Stam squares off with compatriot and counterpart Frank de Boer and Atlanta United in their second Group E match of the MLS Is Back tournament in Orlando.
Stam, whose coaching stops included Reading, PEC Zwolle, and Feyenoord before taking over FC Cincinnati (0-3-0) in May, was teammates with de Boer on the Dutch national team from 1996-2004. The pair helped the Netherlands to a fourth-place finish in the 1998 World Cup and semifinal appearances in the 2000 and 2004 Euros.
Additionally, while de Boer coached the senior Ajax side last decade, Stam was in charge of the youth team - Jong Ajax.
The reunion for Stam, however, will take a back seat to trying to solve the issues his team had throughout its opening match in Orlando. FCC were overrun 4-0 by the Columbus Crew on Sunday, giving up all four goals in a 33-minute span bridging the halves. Defense has been a sore spot for the second-year club, shipping nine goals in the three defeats.
"The message is that we need to keep on going and that's a simple thing," Stam said at a Monday media session. "I think if you're working in preseason then it takes time to get everything right at the first game. This tournament, it looks like everything is positive and we go into a tournament and play easy games but that's not the case because it's a preseason.
"It's step by step. Of course you want to do things very quick, very fast but that's not going to happen most of the time."
De Boer's coaching pedigree, which took a hit with his ill-fated stint at Crystal Palace before arriving in England, has been revived after winning the U.S. Open Cup and Campeones Cup with the Five Stripes last season. Still seeking consistency without injured top striker Josef Martinez, Atlanta United (2-1-0) is also looking to right itself after opening group play with a 1-0 defeat to the New York Red Bulls on Sunday.
Atlanta opted for a 3-4-3 formation, which did result in offensive chances, but there was a lack of sharpness in tems of creating gilt-edged opportunities to score. The Five Stripes pumped in 20 crosses but finished with just four shots on target.
"The crosses have to be better, but the occupation in the box itself has to of course be better. I think the finishing as well," de Boer noted. I think we have the best players to play the 3-4-3 system. I want the initiative to come from the center backs and the wing backs.
"We have a lot of offensive players. I want to see an attacking side, that's what Atlanta expects, that's what our fans expect."
De Boer has said he will rotate his side with the 9 a.m. local time start but did not offer details on which personnel changes he will make.
Atlanta recorded a 2-1 victory over FC Cincinnati in March, with Ezequiel Barco scoring in the first half and setting up Emerson Hyndman's goal in the second. FCC pulled one back just after the hour through Yuya Kubo but failed to notch an equalizer.