Former Liga MX-Winning Coach Surfaces At Inter Toronto

To say the Inter Toronto coaching staff has seen a fair chunk of change lately is an understatement.

The assortment of staff surrounding Mauro Eustaquio has endured no shortage of shuffling over the summer, with assistant coaches Marco Bonofiglio, Mateus Lima, and Jose Petinga all parting ways through the summer months.

Last week saw the club confirm the return of Camilo Benzi, a club original who had been ousted by Inter Toronto just five months ago. At the club’s latest home match, yet another new face appears to have joined the Inter Toronto technical staff – albeit not officially, as of yet.

We spotted former Atlante coach Jose Guadalupe Cruz mingling with the technical staff pre-game whilst dressed in team gear, though he went into the field side seats opposite of the technical area and shouted instructions at players from there.

Officially, he is not on the club’s technical staff roster, but he’s certainly integrating himself into proceedings.

Cruz won Liga MX with Atlante both as a player and a coach, boasting a resume that spans many Mexican clubs: he’s coached Chiapas, Monterrey, Puebla, Atlas, and Necexa, amongst others, most recently managing abroad with Guatemalan side CD Malacateco.

He also helped Atlante win the 2008-2009 Concacaf Champions Cup as a coach, taking them right to the FIFA World Club World Cup in Abu Dhabi.

Northern Tribune has learned that the Mexican coach was introduced to the team two games ago, just before the club’s away draw against Pacific. He’s been present and active in training sessions – though due to a language barrier, this comes through some translation for the English-only speaking players.

The arrival of Jose Guadalupe Cruz – known as Profe Cruz – does have a strong connection through Inter Toronto general manager Jorge Villalpando. In fact, the duo go back quite a ways: when Villalpando was still playing as a goalkeeper, Cruz brought him in to the Jaguares de Chiapas squad in 2010.

Villalpando would go on to make 28 appearances under Cruz, and would later state that he had learned plenty from Cruz en route to obtaining his master’s degree in sports management.

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Many years later, the duo have now reunited on Canadian soil. Since Cruz’s arrival, the club has secured a draw and a win, so things do seem to be trending upwards at the moment.

The Toronto-based club currently has a 4-5-6 record in Eustaquio’s second year at the helm, resting second from the bottom. Sitting ten points outside of playoffs with thirteen games to go isn’t an insurmountable task, but it is an uphill one.

Whether Jose is there to aid Mauro Eustaquio through Inter Toronto’s troublesome patch – or potentially replace him should it continue – remains to be seen. At face value, a coach with his pedigree seems quite a lofty hire solely to assist within the relatively young league.

Header Image Photo Credit: John Jacques