Eager to win with Fire, coach Raphael Wicky realizes there’s lots of building ahead

Wicky, who had been the coach of the U.S. Under-17 team, knew what condition the roster was in and how much work needed to be done.

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Fire coach Raphael Wicky meets the media Wednesday.

Fire coach Raphael Wicky meets the media Wednesday.

Courtesy of the Fire

During his first interaction with the media as Fire coach, Raphael Wicky sounded like somebody who recognizes how much work lies ahead before the March 1 opener in Seattle. But, at the same time, he seems to understand how badly Fire fans desire a winner after spending much of the last decade in the abyss.

“We will try to build as quickly as possible a culture and a winning team,” Wicky said Wednesday. “But the reality is — and you can see that in every sport all over the world — it takes time to build something.

‘‘But that’s not an alibi. We want to win. That is the mentality the players already have, the staff, myself. But it’s not going to happen overnight.

“I can’t tell you if it’s going to be in two weeks, two months, in three months, but we’re working on that hard every day.”

Wicky, 42, was officially hired Dec. 27, taking over a team in transition after the departures of Designated Players Bastian Schweinsteiger, Nemanja Nikolic and Aleksandar Katai, captain Dax McCarty and playmaker Nicolas Gaitan. When he was approached by sporting director Georg Heitz, Wicky knew what condition the roster was in.

“But I never saw it as a negative,” Wicky said. “I saw it as a great opportunity to build something.”

The building is ongoing.

The Fire have signed striker Robert Beric as a Designated Player and added Homegrown Player and potential contributor Mauricio Pineda.

But the club is still thin and needs help in midfield, along the back line and perhaps in net. Ideally, the roster-building would have been completed by Jan. 18, when players began reporting for medical testing.

“I knew when I took the job that I’m going to need to be a little bit patient,” Wicky said. “I know that everyone in the club who’s involved works hard on that. They’re working hard, and there will be players coming in.”

The quality of those players and how well they mesh will determine whether the 2020 season is a success for Wicky and the Fire. He didn’t dismiss the team’s chances to win in 2020 but continued to stress all the building that is needed.

“I don’t say that we’re not going to win overnight,” Wicky said. “To build a team, to build something new, takes some time. That is also the experience I have [had]. We want to win, and I’m sure we’re going to win games. I’m not going to try to be somehow passive or anything. I’m just saying, and everyone who knows sports knows that it’s not going to happen overnight.”

Wicky, who had been the coach of the U.S. Under-17 men’s national team, said he saw the Fire as a great opportunity to start building something with new people. He had good conversations with Heitz and owner Joe Mansueto and acknowledged the team’s infrastructural upgrades and the big move to Soldier Field.

“There is something going on in this club,” Wicky said. “This is an exciting time for me to be the head coach.”

It’s also a challenging time.

NOTE: The Fire announced that tickets are on sale for the March 21 home opener. All single-game tickets will be available Feb. 21.

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