A Conversation with New England Revolution assistant coach Shalrie Joseph

Shalrie Joseph is one of the legendary figures in Major League Soccer.

Drafted out of St. John’s University in Jamaica, Queens, he was a four-time MLS Best XI selection for the New England. He was a seven-time MLS All-Star and the Revolution captain signed a Designated Player contract with the club in 2012.

Joseph earned 20 caps for his native Grenada and was named head coach of the Grenada National Team in 2018 before returning to the states with the New England Revolution Academy working with the U-15’s.

On February 11, 2022, he was named a first team assistant by head coach and Sporting Director, Bruce Arena.

Joseph talks about his promotion and his intent to help develop Matt Polster and Tommy McNamara in the midfield. He also addresses the transfer of goalkeeper Matt Turner to Arsenal FC.

This conversation was originally aired on SiriusXM FC’s “The Coaching Academy” and is edited for length and clarity.

Glenn Crooks: I'd like to focus on your promotion for a moment. Obviously, Bruce Arena saw something in you. What has he and the rest of the staff observed?

Shalrie Joseph: I think the first person I’ve got to thank is Curt Onalfo. He wanted me to come back and work for the Revolution which I always wanted to do. And this was two years ago and he appointed me the U15 coach. And in my second year, I got promoted to the U17 coach. I was here every day for the beginning of training at 7 AM and all this hard work has paid off. I’ve been promoted to an assistant coach in the first team which feels great every day. And I get to do what I love. And I'm grateful for the opportunity.

GC: So, you put in your own time to soak up some of the information. What were some of the things that really stood out to you as you were observing things?

SJ: Just the attention to details. Bruce is always making sure that everything is in tip top condition, making sure that everything is ready to go - from the start of the training to early morning meetings. And then his managerial skills. No doubt, the best in the US but I will put him up there with those guys like Guardiola, Pochettino. and Zidane as some of the best soccer minds in the world. And he’s able to get the best out of players. Whether you're a Carlos Gil or someone at the bottom of the totem pole, he treats you the same way. You’ve got to be able to hold them to the same standards, from the best player to the worst player on the team.

GC: You've been on enough teams to observe that yourself and understand that it's sometimes difficult to motivate both ends of the spectrum. The top players, the elite, the world class players, and maybe those that are just entering the league are still working their way in.

SJ: Yeah. That's a skill that I haven't been able to master yet but I'm still working on it. And I'm learning what it takes. I'm learning from Richie Williams, from Dave van den Burgh and Kevin Hitchcock the goalkeeper coach. I tried to see him when he's talking to the goalkeeper just to have a different perspective of what it’s like watching the game from that angle. The biggest thing is to be around those guys and be able to absorb the information. I was lucky to have a great career so I do have a great understanding for the game and making sure that I can translate all of that information to some of our best players on our team.

GC: Do you have a specific assignment in your role as an assistant? What are some of the some of the discussions with Bruce and the rest of the staff as to what they're expecting from you here in these early stages?

SJ: The biggest thing is to be myself. I would like to think I have a great personality. I'm always smiling, I'm always happy. I’m working with the back four in particular. For defenders, I try to make sure on both sides of the ball, their positioning - just making sure that they're in the right position to cover and to defend one on one. And then I watch pretty much all our opponent's games with Dave van den Burgh and then we go over the strengths and weaknesses of our opponent. With Richie Williams, I watch our training and after every training, he goes through who had a great training and what we need to improve on. So, I pretty much put my hand in everything. That way, I can learn from either side of the ball. That's the greatest way you can learn things - just trying and learn from some of the best players and coaches around.

GC: You were primarily a holding mid but you were also box to box at the same time. It was right around when Patrick Vieira at Arsenal was kind of revolutionizing the No. 8. Was he an influence?

SJ: That's a great mention of Patrick Vieira because I saw him when I was growing up. I watched him play a lot and I realized what he was able to do from a midfield position. So he was one of my mentors even though I was just watching him. I would like to say I was more of an 8. At some point I did play more of a 6 depending on the players that were around me, I would have to sit a little bit more and give guys their freedom and creativity. I was able to free up and get forward and become more of a box-to-box player in the twilight of my career. And one of those things that allowed me to do that was my fitness. Steve Nicol needed me to sit a little bit more and be more of a conductor since I had those tools in my bag - cracking passes and breaking up more plays but I could still be a versatile 6 when they needed me to be.

GC: Have you seen the No.6 here in the states become more of a quarterback role than just a destroyer role?

SJ: Yeah, I think it's evolving even more now when I see guys like Matt Polster and Tommy McNamara. They do a great job defensively trying to win every tackle but now they have become more of a conductor - more of a connector to Carlos Gil. It's no longer a position where you can just be a destroyer you have to be able to do a multitude of things, not just in the Revolution, not just in MLS, but especially in Europe you need your 6 to be everything - you need your six to be the best player sometimes on the field. 

You can look at Man City where Rodri doesn’t just break things up, he literally conducts the orchestra. So we have players like Matt (Polster) and Tommy (McNamara) who are doing that. 

GC: I want to take you back to your college days at St. John's and your coach there, Dave Masur. His quote to me about you: “He is an awesome person and player, has a great mind and feel for the game, played any position and never complained about anything. A natural leader.” 

SJ: He honestly is one of the best influences and the best person in my life - especially at that point in my life, coming to America, going into college, not knowing what I wanted to do, other than be a pro. He showed me how to become a man. But one of the things that he taught me is hard work. As a young man, we would wake up at around 6, and then go for runs around the track and everyone is sleeping and I’m like, “let’s go train.” I always had a love for soccer but he made me fall in love with it even more because of the hard work I kept developing, I kept getting better. And then he was kind enough to let me explore different positions. I never played one position during the game, I would start somewhere and have a different place - maybe a third different position within the same 90 minutes. So that kind of helped me explore the game of soccer. 

GC: And always with a smile. How important is that in the team structure - to have that kind of figure around?

SJ: There's no doubt that you need someone not just to make the guys loose but you need someone to just have a smile since we get to do the things we love. And I always said that I can be in the office, I can be working construction, I can be doing bus driving. I'm doing the thing that I love the most right now - coaching professionals and then influencing kids on how to become great soccer players.

GC: How can you best help this next generation of players? 

SJ: The good thing is, I started coaching at the academy level. And even though I would love to have started with the first team, I thought the best thing for me - and Curt (Onalfo) understood - was that the Revolution Academy needed help. And two years ago when he hired me, he said he needed my influence, my persona and my big ego to push this academy along the road - to be one of the top academies - to become a Dallas, to become a Seattle. Within two years you can see the changes toward the Academy. We hold players to a higher standard. 

GC: Can you remember something you’ve taught that has had a big impact on the program?

SJ: I've been talking to Tommy and Matt. I always just tell them “just be aware.” And when you see them checking their shoulders and you see it translate on the field, you understand that they're listening to you and they get it. Now, I’m forming a bond with Carles (Gil), the language barrier was a little difficult because he is learning English. And I haven't learned enough Spanish yet to talk to him. And during the preseason, I started talking to him a little bit more because his English is becoming better and my Spanish is improving. So now I can see why he's so special. 

I don't understand what a creative player like that has inside of him. I know I’ve got to figure out how I can help him by giving me a better understanding of what it's like to be a No. 10. So those are the things as a coach. You try to have a feel for it day to day, trying to understand different positions. Now I have to understand what it's like playing a No. 7? Trying to get an understanding for different positions is what's going to make me into a great coach one day.

GC: I want to ask you about Matt Turner who is moving to Arsenal FC in the summer. Tell me a little bit about Matt. 

SJ: Yeah, it's remarkable what Matt has been able to achieve so far in this career, especially starting from where he came from. But the first time I met Matt Turner was on the seaport in Boston. And I didn't know him. He and one of his friends came up and said hi to me. They were hanging out and going to dinner. And then he came over and he said, “hey, Shalrie Joseph!” And he got so excited. I was like, “who is this kid?” And then I was like, “oh, this is Matt Turner.” I couldn't believe how excited he was just to meet me. He'll have an argument for being the best Revolution goalkeeper of all time. He's going to a great club. He's going to a great organization. I know they will push him to get to the point where he becomes one of the best goalkeepers in the entire world. It's great to see such a remarkable person getting the opportunity to play and live out his dreams.