ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – When he was informed last week that he had been promoted to both interim Head Coach and General Manager of Ottawa Fury FC, it brought Julian de Guzman back to a moment early in his career, when he played for Ralf Rangnick at Hannover 96 in the German Bundesliga.

“[Rangnick] threw me into a game, starting against Borussia Dortmund, and I hardly expected that moment,” said de Guzman. “It’s kind of similar to how it is now and being put in this position. I was in the 13, not expecting to start, but Ralf pulled me aside and told me I’m starting against Borussia Dortmund. I’m a 21-year-old Canadian hearing that, and it stays with me now that I’m 36, getting the job as a head coach and a GM.”

De Guzman certainly wasn’t expecting to be told the day before Fury FC began its three-game road trip that concludes on Wednesday night against FC Cincinnati that he had been promoted to the two roles after Paul Dalglish’s resignation last week. After eight months as Dalglish’s righthand man after retiring from the competitive game this offseason, the former standout Canadian international is hoping to take what he learned from his predecessor as Fury FC pushes for a place in the USL Cup Playoffs.

The influence of the likes of Rangnick – whose effect has been felt strongly across German soccer since the turn of the century – and his former managers at Deportivo La Coruna in the Spanish La Liga will also be something de Guzman draws from as he jumps into his first head-coaching role.

“Being under [Rangnick’s] wing and trying to understand his views and values, I learned a lot just from being around him,” said de Guzman. “That’s somebody I can reach out to now that I’m in this position. Being under him, and seeing how he went about it with young players, and then being in Spain and the way that they view football, when I was under [Joaquin] Caparros and [Miguel Angel] Lotina … for me to be able to get that education from these individuals, it’s definitely highly influenced my way of thinking.”