The Chattanooga Red Wolves prioritized bringing captain Jose Carrera-Garcia back for 2022.
Although this is Jimmy Obleda’s third season as head coach of the USL League One team, the Red Wolves wanted the stability of another strong link to last year’s team, which went 11-6-11 in the regular season to earn a No. 3 seed in the playoffs before losing in the semifinals.
Some of the players from last season are no longer on the roster and others are battling injuries, so having a familiar face on the field is welcomed – and especially when it’s a trustworthy midfielder with as much responsibility as Carrera-Garcia.
“He is essentially the quarterback of our team,” Red Wolves general manager Sean McDaniel said recently. “He takes it from a defensive position and gets it into an attacking position, and for him to be the commander in chief in the middle of the field, to keep him on the pitch for us was priority No. 1 and critically, critically important.”
The Red Wolves needed someone who, well, can handle Obleda. To understand what Obleda wants on the field and how to deal with his passion. One who realizes that when it comes to that passion towards his players, the passion he coaches with, the intention is usually good.