Danny Cruz still ‘fond’ of Loons despite not getting head-coaching job

At two different stages in Danny Cruz s life Minnesota United represented what might have been as a competitor and a coach In the midfielder joined the Loons for their final NASL season but MNUFC did not sign him to join a list of seven lower-level players joining the club in MLS First of all I loved it Cruz noted of his time in Minnesota I was pretty gutted that I didn t get to stay when they went into MLS It was a big reason I went there in the first place hoping for that opportunity At the same time nothing but positive things to say about the organization After Cruz s playing career ended with brief stints with the NASL s San Francisco Deltas and USL s Real Monarchs in he climbed the ranks at Louisville City becoming the USL Championship side s head coach in leading to Minnesota interviewing him for its vacant head coaching position Cruz communicated the Pioneer Press he had a long involvement in the Loons hiring process that included multiple interviews as MNUFC Chief Soccer Officer Khaled El-Ahmad vetted candidates over a months-long search before Eric Ramsay won the job I have a lot of respect for Khaled and his process Cruz mentioned I think he s done a great job in his time there And that should be echoed to say the same thing about Eric On Wednesday Cruz s Louisville City will host MNUFC in the U S Open Cup s round of at p m at Lynn Family Stadium in Kentucky After that process that I went through I ve obviously followed Minnesota closely he commented I think Eric has done a tremendous job I really have enjoyed watching his teams play It s also listening to how he speaks in the press his demeanor those are all things that I followed So it is a club that I am fond of Pleasantries aside Louisville City will be a stiff test for the Loons Cruz has had huge success in his five seasons at LouCity with annual deep playoff runs in USL Championship Last season LouCity set the USLC s single-season wins record - - and this year they are the last remaining unbeaten crew - - Cruz announced the key to his success is within the players front office and the endorsement he receives from ownership Our process is pretty set he commented We don t deviate from the process The players that I get to work with every day have a clear understanding of how we want to play the expectation of the tradition at this at this club Back in Cruz prided himself on creating connections during his time in Minnesota with teammates to staff He looks forward to reconnecting with particular of the remaining staff when they are in Louisville This event and what we are fortunate to be able to do is all about creating meaningful relationships he reported The people that you re going to be around on a daily basis really trying to understand who they are as people What makes them tick What are things they enjoy What are the things that they don t enjoy I go about my business the same way with my Louisville players I genuinely care about each and every one of them I want to push them to be better I want to push them to help them get to whatever level they want to achieve that s part of my job from a growth standpoint At the same time the way to help them get there is by winning