Father-son assistant coach duo on opposite sides of Rapids-Earthquakes match

For Ian and Dave Sarachan family time now comes with a final whistle When Ian got his first MLS assistant coaching job with the Colorado Rapids ahead of the season his father Dave was finishing up a stint as an assistant in the Israeli Premier League Dave a longtime right-hand man of Bruce Arena and former coach of Chris Armas when he played for the Chicago Fire visited Commerce City a meager times after leaving Israel last June It was mostly for the grandkids though he enjoyed watching Ian coach too There s a circle of trust between Armas and the Sarachans and it was clear to Dave why the Rapids coach a relationship-driven leader brought Ian onto this project last year Ian has this uncanny ability to reach players and communicate on a depth that a lot of young people don t ever acquire Dave narrated The Denver Post He had that ability to speak to older players with my Fire He had that ability to lead for his college group and in the role he has now So much of it when you re young is finding the moments and picking your spots to have a voice and to not have a voice Ian has a tremendous sense of when his voice necessities to be heard and when it doesn t Sharing a sideline wasn t much on the family s radar but then Arena got the San Jose Earthquakes head coaching job after the club finished dead last in the league in Dave was revealed as an assistant the following month The Sarachans circled the dates on the calendar right away In March Ian got the better of his elder in a - Rapids win at San Jose Even better that week just happened to be Ian s turn in the rotation to lead the club s scouting It s not necessarily a position you ever think you re going to find yourself in but it was very surreal That s the best word I can use to describe it Ian recounted The Post The fact we get to do it again in pretty quick succession to the first time it s really a great experience The Sarachan Derby returns Saturday night at Dick s Sporting Goods Park and this time Dave s not just in town for the grandkids The two regularly chat about soccer and their teams specifically but there s not much place for it days before the teams face off Ian teased his father about the Earthquakes lineup for Wednesday s Open Cup win over Sacramento Republic but Dave called the soccer talk a strange dance this week in particular We kind of broke the ice the first time but it s still going to be a wonderful experience declared Dave who s spent years in coaching Especially going to Colorado because I ve spent a lot of time there since Ian moved there It ll be a familiar building I know the players I know Chris Armas and their staff It s kind of a reunion in a way from the soccer side of things They re a good band and we think we re playing well I m excited about the matchup The Rapids eighth Western Conference are coming off two disappointing results and need to regain momentum A recurring issue conceding goals near halftime haunted them again last week in a - loss at D C United where both D C goals came in first-half stoppage time Related Articles Colorado Rapids come from behind draw Seattle Sounders to move unbeaten streak to three Ond ej Lingr s stoppage-time goal in MLS debut helps Dynamo tie Rapids - Rapids transfer winger Omir Fern ndez to Portland Three points Rapids may have revealed new rival in San Diego FC Rapids aim to bring a little bit more to the table in first-ever San Diego FC matchup San Jose th in the West is one of the most of volatile teams in the league the only one to points and concede at least goals In this matchup a lot rides on Ian s unit the central and defensive midfield Cole Bassett Josh Atencio and Oliver Larraz will carry much of the weight of disrupting San Jose s deadly attack early while picking moments to spark quick counterattacks a Rapids hallmark While both Sarachans are in it for the three points they re not pretending it s just another encounter I ve been to thousands of his games and to be able now to do it from this vantage point is so surreal Ian stated And I think for both of us it s just really special Want more sports news Sign up for the Sports Omelette to get all our analysis on Denver s teams