Past job gives RSL coach edge

John Ellinger may be a rookie head coach in Major League Soccer, but his hiring by Real Salt Lake has been referred to as "brilliant" by several executives around the league.

Not only does Ellinger have a unique eye for the game, but when it comes to the youth players in this country, he is the foremost expert, having spent the last decade as head coach of the Under-17 U.S. National Team. During that tenure, he groomed future stars like DeMarcus Beasley, Landon Donovan and Freddy Adu. He was also an assistant coach on the 2000 Olympic team.

His first-hand experience with the youth players in this country will only help Salt Lake down the road as MLS teams continue putting more emphasis on younger and younger players, like the rest of the world.

More than anything, however, Ellinger is a player's coach.

That's why Real Salt Lake was able to acquire U.S. National teamer Clint Mathis, who made a promise to Ellinger five years ago that if Ellinger ever became a head coach somewhere, he'd love to play for him.

That's why Brian Dunseth is in Salt Lake. The captain of the 2000 Olympic team was playing in Sweden when he heard about Ellinger's hiring, and the news gave him extra incentive to return to the MLS.

"It's never about playing head games with me," said Ellinger. "Whether it's being straightforward or blunt, I always let my players know what the problem is and how to deal with it."

And the players love that honesty.

Many of the players will also love his attack-oriented approach. For as long as Ellinger's been coaching, he's prescribed to the philosophy of going forward — assuming his defenders were organized in the back.

It doesn't hurt to have a strong goalie either. That's why Ellinger wasted no time in asking Peter Mellor to be his top assistant. A former professional goalie in England for 17 years, Mellor has been Ellinger's right-hand man at the U-17 Residency Program in Bradenton, Fla., for nearly a decade. They've been coaching together since 1992.

"He has the experience of working with young goalkeepers, but he still hasn't forgot what it's like to manage older players," said Ellinger.

During his tenure with U.S. youth national teams and Olympic teams in the past decade and a half, Mellor coached future standout keepers Brad Friedel, Kasey Keller and Tim Howard, amongst many more.

His task with Salt Lake is to mold D.J. Countess, 22, into the team's goalie of the future.

In addition to assisting Ellinger, Mellor will also be the head coach of RSL's reserve team.