Chris Petrucelli stepped off the plane and headed straight to training Monday, his first full day as the new coach of the Chicago Red Stars.
With the National Women’s Soccer League’s Challenge Cup beginning in less than a month, there isn’t much time for Petrucelli to put his stamp on things — or maybe not entirely put his stamp on things.
“My thought process here is maybe for the first week of training or so, I’ll just evaluate,” Petrucelli said Tuesday during an introductory conference call. “I’ll sit back and watch what the players have, what the assistant coaches are doing. And then I’ll start to jump in and put my stamp on it.
“But I will tell you I don’t know that I need to put much of a stamp on it. I think they’re in a really good place. My first thought is I don’t want to screw it up because this group and the assistant coaches have done a good job, so I’m going to just roll along with that.”
Regardless of what Petrucelli’s vision is for the Red Stars, there is no denying the Rory Dames scandal still casts a long shadow over the club that last season reached the NWSL final. What impact it has on the players won’t be fully determined until at least March 20, when they step on the pitch against the Houston Dash.
More Top Picks Best Handheld Back Massagers For Seniors Pain Relief
The Red Stars’ handling of the situation — including allowing Dames to resign — brought criticism over the club’s apparent lack of accountability and transparency.
The team waited more than 80 days before addressing specific questions regarding abuse allegations against Dames, and majority owner Arnim Whisler told the Tribune the club “didn’t have any reason to believe that there was a safety issue in our environment.”
In that time, Vicky Lynch assumed a larger role beyond being the club’s chief business officer, essentially running the “day-to-day” operations, and former player Michelle Lomnicki became the associate general manager.
“Ultimately it is my responsibility to make sure that this is a club that’s moving in the right direction and is a positive environment for everyone,” Lynch said of her role. “I am more than confident in saying that on my watch there will be no reason for anybody to doubt this club.”
Still, Lynch acknowledged the Red Stars’ protracted silence was not the best course of action.
“We would all agree in hindsight we probably should have spoken up and been more public with what we were working on and what our vision was going forward,” she said. “That is something that I wish that we had done differently, but we can’t go back and change how we handled things as far as being more public-facing.
“Going forward, I will always be available. Michelle will always be available. Chris will be available. We are here and we want to be as forthright and as available as possible.”
Since Dames’ resignation in November, Lynch said the Red Stars have implemented a better system of checks and balances, including the implementation of an annual third-party assessment and an improved structure for players to report their concerns to herself, Lomnicki or a full-time human resources representative.
“Being a presence here has really helped when making decisions and being able to make sure the players feel safe and comfortable at all times,” Lomnicki said. “That’s the most important piece. I think that we’ve done a lot in the process to make sure those things happen.”
The coaching search included ownership, front-office staff, nine current players, the team’s three assistant coaches and a sports psychologist. Petrucelli called the interview process “very intensive, very thorough,” while Lynch said the search committee’s decision to hire Petrucelli was “truly a consensus.”
How the Red Stars fare under Petrucelli will be determined in the coming months — as will the long-term effects the Dames allegations could have on a roster that has seen far more players depart than join.
But for now, Petrucelli is focused on building trust and giving players freedom to operate.
“I view my role as a support role. I don’t view my role as a person in a position of power,” he said. “I view my role as trying to help players reach their goals, trying to help the team reach its goals. I work with the players, players don’t work for me. I try to work in conjunction with them.
“And certainly within the whole organization, I try to create a positive, supportive environment where players can feel safe and feel free to play and take chances, take risks, not be afraid to make mistakes. We’re all in it together and we’ll work together on those things.”