TORONTO — After scouring resumes from home and abroad, York United FC opted to promote from within by elevating assistant coach Mauro Eustaquio to head coach.
The 31-year-old Eustaquio, the older brother of Canadian international Stephen Eustaquio, is the first former Canadian Premier League player to become a head coach in the league.
"Even though we talked to many people here in Canada and internationally, Mauro was always at the top of our list," said York president Ricardo Pasquel. "We knew sooner or later we wanted to give Mauro a chance. And fairly quickly in the interview process, (we decided) he was the guy."
Pasquel said Eustaquio has shown in his three seasons with the club that he has the passion, character and attention to detail that they want in a coach.
"Mauro has a good feeling now of what we want, what we're trying to build here moving forward," he added. "It's not just a matter of winning or losing some games. It's much bigger than that."
Eustaquio succeeds Benjamin Mora, who left York earlier this month after five months and 22 matches at the helm. The charismatic Mexican, a finalist for Canadian Premier League coach of the year, said he had been unable to reach an agreement on a new contract.
The coaching change came one day after Cavalry FC's 2-1 win over Forge FC in the CPL championship game in Calgary.
York's new Mexican ownership group fired former Canadian international Martin Nash as coach May 21 with the club sitting fifth at 2-3-1. Eustaquio served as interim coach until Mora, who made his debut on the sidelines June 9 in a 2-2 tie with visiting Vancouver FC, was put in charge.
Mora led York to fourth place in the standings at 11-11-6. York's 39 points were a franchise record, surpassing the previous best of 38 set in 2023.
Pasquel said ownership had been reviewing coaching candidates for months in case Mora did not want to return next season.
York clinched a playoff spot with three weeks to spare this season, defeating Pacific FC 2-0 in the fourth-versus-fifth playoff — its first ever post-season victory — before falling to No. 3 Atletico Ottawa in a penalty shootout in the Oct. 27 quarterfinal.
Eustaquio, who served as a guest coach under Jesse Marsch for Canada's September friendlies against the U.S. and Mexico, has had to endure highs and lows on and off the pitch over the last 19 months.
His mother Esmeralda died of brain cancer in April 2023. Father Armando died unexpectedly of a heart attack in May this year, just days before Mauro was named interim York coach.
The birth of Stephen's daughter, Benedita, in early April gave brothers something to celebrate amid the pain of family loss.
"For me the biggest thing was you've got to continue moving forward," said Mauro. "That was always the approach that my family had … If we stay back and kind of sit on the sofa, the days will pass and you'll just be miserable. That's the last thing I want to be. I want to be someone that has a clear path, has beliefs, has something to work for on a daily basis.
"And this club has given me that."
Born in Portugal, Eustaquio was two when his parents moved to Canada in search of a better life. Stephen was born two years later.
Their father was a fisherman, working on nearby Lake Erie, while their mother worked at a fish factory.
The brothers started playing soccer in Leamington, Ont., continuing with the game when, after some 10 years in Canada, the family returned to Portugal to be back with friends and family.
Mauro, a defensive midfielder, drew the attention of both the Portugal under-20 team and Canada Soccer. He was called into a Canada under-20 camp in Mexico.
Eustaquio joined the Ottawa Fury in 2014 and went on to play for FC Edmonton in the now-defunct North American Soccer League and Penn FC, a USL team based in Harrisburg, Pa., where he tore his anterior cruciate ligament playing.
Calgary's Cavalry FC invited him to be part of the CPL's inaugural 2019 season. Two weeks before the playoffs, he tore the ACL in his other knee on the last play of a training session.
After a stint with Portuguese side Caldas FC in 2020, Eustaquio retired as a player in 2021. He started taking his coaching badges and returned to Canada to oversee the boys' program for the Calgary Foothills.
Nash, whom he worked with in Ottawa and Calgary, brought him to York in early 2022 as an assistant coach.
---
Follow @NeilMDavidson on X platform
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 21, 2024
Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press
