There have been some pretty bad teams in Major League Soccer. Which was the worst ever? Who’s to say, but the argument usually boils down to two possibilities: the 2001 Mutiny and the 1999 MetroStars. Seems to me today there’s a third team vying for the title of worst MLS team ever.

Counting shootout wins as draws, the 1999 MetroStars currently hold the MLS winless streak record at 19 games. Real Salt Lake hasn’t won a league match since August 6, 2005. In the 17 games they’ve played since then they’ve amassed a grand total of two points. That’s right, in 17 games they’ve gotten two draws, the rest were losses.

Now, I know it’s not nice to laugh and point, but I will admit it’s fun. However, along with laughing and pointing I’m going to offer an observation. It is unconscionable and irresponsible to retain John Ellinger as coach after 17 games without a win. It makes the team (and the league) appear less than serious.

I can hear it now. “But, but, but … the COACH isn’t the problem!” Or how about my favorite canard: “Coaches don’t win games, players do.”

Yup, I’ve heard those confused cackles before. As a DC United supporter I heard them about Thomas Rongen. And then I heard them about Ray Hudson. It turns out, in both instances, the coach was the ultimate problem. The coach is the problem in Salt Lake too.

I watch an unfortunate number of Real Salt Lake games. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a team take the field that looked fully prepared to meet the challenge at hand. They’ve gotten lucky here and there; a few times they played a team even worse off than them. But they haven’t won a game in a very long time, and there’s no sense that they’ll win a game anytime soon.

This morning I read the following John Ellinger quotes in the Salt Lake Tribune:

“People have to show up to play. And it’s disappointing and frustrating - I’m sure for the fans, I’m sure for the coaching staff and the teammates - when players don’t show up to play.”

“There’s no sense putting guys on the field who aren’t going to work. We’re not going to get through this if we don’t work. We need an honest effort every game - especially at home. It’s criminal that we didn’t get that kind of effort at home.”

John Ellinger is absolutely right. But he clearly doesn’t understand that in those statements he has condemned himself.

If a coach truly and consistently prepares his team to play then it really is “disappointing and frustrating” on those rare weekends “when players don’t show up to play.” Real Salt Lake, however, has never been truly and consistently prepared. Only Ellinger can be blamed for that consistent lack of preparation.

It’s true that it’s “criminal” not to put in an “honest effort in every game - especially at home.” But to put in an honest effort you have to have a solid mix of players and you have to be prepared for the game. By that standard Real Salt Lake has made dishonesty a habit. Ellinger fields “guys on the field who aren’t going to work” week after week after week.

Of course a coach doesn’t win the game on the field. He wins the game off the field. His two most important duties are player selection and player preparation. It’s his duty to select guys who can get the job done and it’s his duty to prepare those guys to do that job every single weekend. John Ellinger has absolutely failed in both regards. His team has shown neither ability nor improvement. Indeed, this year’s team is arguably worse than the one he fielded last year.

It is time to make a coaching change in Salt Lake City. The credibility of the team and the league is at stake.