Oh. I thought you were in the Philly area for some reason.
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American Soccer |OT2| Party Like It's 1999.
- Thread starter Cystm
- Start date
Oh. I thought you were in the Philly area for some reason.
nope, midwestern corn eating bastard
Can we include bloggers? Billy Haisley catching a two piece from Klinsmann and the latter getting fired.....
Get John Harkes by Klinsmann's wife.
That could make the upcoming college training camp a bit uncomfortable...
Jonathan Klinsmann (Cal; Newport Beach, Calif.)
Ian Harkes (Wake Forest; Fairfax, Va.)
MLS Homegrown Game live stream
MLS Homegrown Team vs Club América U-20s
Tuesday, July 28 - 7 PM MT | 9 PM ET
Dick's Sporting Goods Park - Denver, CO
MLS Homegrown Team vs Club América U-20s
Tuesday, July 28 - 7 PM MT | 9 PM ET
Dick's Sporting Goods Park - Denver, CO
Frustrated_Grunt
Member
Love those Donovan pep talks.
Andrew Wiebe ‏@andrew_wiebe 11m
#MLSAllStars dish on who they're looking forward to playing with. Besler and Omar both say each other. Hmmmmmm...
http://www.mlssoccer.com/video/2015/07/28/all-star-stars-eager-learn-experienced-teammates-mls-now
#MLSAllStars dish on who they're looking forward to playing with. Besler and Omar both say each other. Hmmmmmm...
http://www.mlssoccer.com/video/2015/07/28/all-star-stars-eager-learn-experienced-teammates-mls-now
The Chosen One
Member
I also agree with pretty much everything you said. Though I do think Thierry Henry was a worthy DP signing. He didn't always mesh well with his teammates and local media, but he brought a high level of play and scored some amazing goals. Even though the general public knew view little about him when he came into the league, he became a headliner among MLS fans for his effort and level of play. Basically he gave a damn. He didn't treat it like paid retirement.
But yeah, signing players who are on the north side of 34 always make me nervous. Drogba and Lampard really give me a Lothar Matthaus vibe. It's hard to tell how much their heart is in it and if they'll just treat it like paid retirement.
Signing overseas stars who are between the ages 29-33 I think is still okay for the league at this stage. Robbie Keane and Henry initially signed in their early 30s (31 and 32 respectively) so they still had some gas in the tank and had something to prove. Both those guys put up big numbers and helped the younger players around them. I doubt Zardes would have sniffed the national team if it wasn't for Keane. Even with Keane being a total dick.
But shelling out big money for Gerrard, Lampard, and Drogba is '70s NASL thinking. I will say at least Gerrard was still a starter at Liverpool and Drogba had some effective minutes in Chelseas championship run this year. But I can't see these guys being that productive for more than a season or two.
I really hope Dos Santos can not only be very effective for Galaxy but can also tremendously increase his value. If in a couple of years an EPL or La Liga team comes and offers up a huge transfer fee for Dos Santos, that would be a success for the league. We might actually see more players in their prime come to the MLS to increase their value. Some players the MLS will be able to keep, some of them they won't. But at least the MLS will then be truly a part of the international transfer market among the big leagues and a valid destination for top players in their prime.
Having the MLS televised in Europe I think will help with awareness, so players don't feel like they're going off to the boonies if they're playing in the MLS. I also think if we can perform better in the Concacaf Champions League and get into the Club World Cup would help raise the profile of MLS teams. The UEFA Champions League is a huge draw for a lot of top players but there are a lot of very good players who aren't on teams that are strong enough to make it. Over the next decade I think the MLS should work on luring in some of those players. Offer them more playing time, more money, and more visibility, which the player can leverage later on for a bigger move.
Some of you guys are crazy. Liverpool wanted to resign Gerrard and it would have been at a higher wage than what he's getting from LA. If these players are still good enough to play a role for teams in the Premier League, then there isn't even a question that they can be very productive here in MLS. What does it matter if they're older? The Spurs were salivating over getting Tim Duncan for another 1-2 years and he's 39 years old.
Some players can still be very effective even at an older age. Di Natale and Klose are still scoring double digits in Serie A at 37 -- they'd score 20 goals in MLS without blinking an eye. If someone has the quality, the league should be willing to sign him regardless of his age. It makes for a better product and that is frankly all that matters.
Some players can still be very effective even at an older age. Di Natale and Klose are still scoring double digits in Serie A at 37 -- they'd score 20 goals in MLS without blinking an eye. If someone has the quality, the league should be willing to sign him regardless of his age. It makes for a better product and that is frankly all that matters.
ActStriker
Member
Abby Wambach plans on playing in the Olympics.
I basically think the only ones who don't think they'll succeed or are expecting them to do poorly just don't follow European leagues at all. There's absolutely nothing wrong with not following the Premier League or any league other than MLS, but downplaying the importance of these signings or the players ability to succeed within the league is just plain lunacy. Lampard had a great season with Man City and there's absolutely no question that City would have had him for another season if they could have.
Koji Uehara came to the MLB at 34 and has been one of the best relievers in baseball for the past 5.5 seasons. He's still going strong and will make another $9m next year and I'd be shocked if he stopped then. Takashi Saito came to the Dodgers at 37 and was a fantastic pitcher for 5 full seasons before he tailed off at 42. These organizations are constantly looking for guys who will improve them and whether they're 25 or 35, if they can do the job well, they'll happily keep paying them.
Agree. And you know me i like my Chelsea banter but to say Drogba is a 'nothing name to anyone but eurosnobs' is ridiculous and honestly pretty disrespectful. Him and Lampard are some of the greatest players of their generation period and they will definitely help bring people in and do well in the league if they still care.
Gerrard was the Liverpool top scorer last year.
American Eskimo
Banned
Absolutely. No casual buys a ticket to see Henry, but it makes the current fans (which follow the sport) happy that they get a name they do recognize and he certainly raised the level of play for the team.
Uh, stop 500 people in the street and ask them who Drogba is. The fact that he was once a good player doesnt mean Joe Kansas and Stacy San Francisco know who he is or give a quarter of a shit.
Now, bring on that one guy who bit someone at the world cup? Yeah, thats a signing.
ActStriker
Member
What exactly do you guys want to attract right at this moment? Casuals or soccer fans that don't follow MLS?
Huh. Didn't expect that.
I'm sure every MLS team would like to sign the best striker in the world and notorious shoulderbiter but thats not quite in the cards, is it? Christ.
Drogba won the CL in a popular club in a very popular league. TBH, he's the reason Chelsea has any black or african fans at all. If you don't respect him cool, other people do. Joe Kansas and Stacy San Francisco aren't going to give a shit about soccer even if their local club signs Ronaldo or Messi. You talk a lot about Beckham but his tenure at the gals doesnt seem to have permanently turned the heads there either. I spend most of my summers in LA and nobody really gives a shit about the Gals despite them winning and being stacked season in season out.
Let me put it this way, do you think Drogba is going to drag down the Montreal Impact?
Why not both?
smokeandmirrors
Banned
Awesome.
With Ferris Bueller just coming back from injury and Benjamin Button having a mediocre season so far, we are left with Accam, who can't stop himself from catching cards along with the rest of a middling roster of garbage.
Drogba would be a very temporary albeit entertaining band-aid on a gushing wound that has been opened since 2009.
I would rather have a comparatively weaker goal scorer in Gilberto as long as we can get decent backs and add some depth to this roster.
Edit: To clarify, I am glad Drogba is in MLS and feel that he will make an... Impact in Montreal
, but we just have too much to fix to justify his costs. Which is sad as fuck to say knowing that his price tag is nothing compared to what people are making in the prem.
Drogba would be a very temporary albeit entertaining band-aid on a gushing wound that has been opened since 2009.
I would rather have a comparatively weaker goal scorer in Gilberto as long as we can get decent backs and add some depth to this roster.
Edit: To clarify, I am glad Drogba is in MLS and feel that he will make an... Impact in Montreal
I am so sorry
ActStriker
Member
That's what you guys are arguing about right now though
American Eskimo
Banned
Backham enormously raised the profile of MLS in every single city with a team. He changed the game from "theres a soccer league?" to "yeah we have a team".
And Im not saying I dont respect Drogba, Im just saying hed be a better attraction at a soccer legends celebrity match along with Pele, Cuaotemoc and Fat Ronaldo.
Is Drogba going to drag down Montreal? No probably not, but theyre the second best team on the continent and they did that with a shoestring budget. Blowing all your cash on Drogba is the equivalent to getting Arnold Shwarzenegger to cameo in your Rom Com. He wont hurt, but maybe that budget could have had more of an impact elsewhere.
No they aren't, putting together a cup run is a good achievement but it means zip. Wigan weren't the best team in England the year they won the FA Cup.
SI: The Birth of a League
A 10-team organization with zero soccer-specific stadiums at the start, Major League Soccer now has 20 franchises, 13 of them playing in homes of their own, with payrolls that have tripled. As the league plays its 20th season, key figures recall the kickoff campaign
A 10-team organization with zero soccer-specific stadiums at the start, Major League Soccer now has 20 franchises, 13 of them playing in homes of their own, with payrolls that have tripled. As the league plays its 20th season, key figures recall the kickoff campaign
smokeandmirrors
Banned
Pretty huge signing.
(Warning, long post ahead)
I just think right now, some people have a very different perception than reality about the level of players that MLS can sign. MLS has done a very good job at identifying and signing young players from South America in recent years -- they fit in well here and usually have a few teammates who speak Spanish already so it's an easy transition for them. But they're never going to sign the best prospects because those players want to move to Europe or MLS won't meet their parent club's valuation (something like $5m at least). The best players are going to move to England and be loaned out or move to Spain or Portugal and play due to lesser visa/work permit restrictions. If you're a very good Brazilian prospect, you might move to Ukraine as well.
If you move to Porto or Benfica, you're immediately in the shop window because these teams exist as they do only by selling multiple players every summer. They make absolutely nothing from their TV deal and their stadiums are tiny with many teams in the league in stadiums that hold less than 10,000 people. If you succeed in Portugal, you move elsewhere in a few years and make a lot of money, but in the meantime you're playing in the Champions League potentially. If you do well here in MLS, you might move TO Portugal in a few years (a la Fredy Montero) and then hope for the best, but you're already 27 or so and your window to get a move to a big league is waning and it'll only happen if a big club will pay your exorbitant release clause.
So maybe MLS signs the third tier products from some of these teams in South America. Guys that can be acquired on a free or for very minimal amounts of money. Very good quality players, but players that don't necessarily have delusions of superstardom. They're probably better than the average American player, so it raises the quality of the league as a whole, adds some flair that might not exist otherwise, but it doesn't improve the perception of the league. People outside of America (and certainly not those in America) don't take notice because you've signed Bryan Rochez or Carlos Rivas.
On the other hand, Drogba is by far the most decorated African player of all time. If you ask any African soccer fan, regardless of nationality, in the United States or abroad -- they'll know him immediately. He's played in a European competition (Champions or Europa League) in every season since 2003 -- even in 2012 when he spent a half season he spent in China, he went to Gala in January and scored for them versus Madrid. He's certainly past the peak of his abilities, but on the other hand, he's still considerably better than most any younger player who is within the realm of possibility for MLS to sign and he's a major name for a French speaking populous in Montreal.
So in conclusion, people need to understand that MLS is a 3rd tier league particularly when it comes to talent being discovered and rewarded by higher tiered leagues -- if you do well in the Dutch or Portuguese leagues (let alone the variety of others), you'll earn a move elsewhere in a season or two. That doesn't happen in MLS. Maybe one or two players a season get a move to a bigger league from here -- this is effectively a "final destination" for most players.
It will be a decade or two before we move to the 2nd tier. Maybe by that point there's something akin to the Champions League but it's worldwide and not just Europe and all of the sudden a league outside of Europe can attain similar prestige. As it stands now, it's far better to accept MLS for what it is, appreciate that these older players are better than the alternatives even despite their age and just enjoy getting to see legends play here in America.
I just think right now, some people have a very different perception than reality about the level of players that MLS can sign. MLS has done a very good job at identifying and signing young players from South America in recent years -- they fit in well here and usually have a few teammates who speak Spanish already so it's an easy transition for them. But they're never going to sign the best prospects because those players want to move to Europe or MLS won't meet their parent club's valuation (something like $5m at least). The best players are going to move to England and be loaned out or move to Spain or Portugal and play due to lesser visa/work permit restrictions. If you're a very good Brazilian prospect, you might move to Ukraine as well.
If you move to Porto or Benfica, you're immediately in the shop window because these teams exist as they do only by selling multiple players every summer. They make absolutely nothing from their TV deal and their stadiums are tiny with many teams in the league in stadiums that hold less than 10,000 people. If you succeed in Portugal, you move elsewhere in a few years and make a lot of money, but in the meantime you're playing in the Champions League potentially. If you do well here in MLS, you might move TO Portugal in a few years (a la Fredy Montero) and then hope for the best, but you're already 27 or so and your window to get a move to a big league is waning and it'll only happen if a big club will pay your exorbitant release clause.
So maybe MLS signs the third tier products from some of these teams in South America. Guys that can be acquired on a free or for very minimal amounts of money. Very good quality players, but players that don't necessarily have delusions of superstardom. They're probably better than the average American player, so it raises the quality of the league as a whole, adds some flair that might not exist otherwise, but it doesn't improve the perception of the league. People outside of America (and certainly not those in America) don't take notice because you've signed Bryan Rochez or Carlos Rivas.
On the other hand, Drogba is by far the most decorated African player of all time. If you ask any African soccer fan, regardless of nationality, in the United States or abroad -- they'll know him immediately. He's played in a European competition (Champions or Europa League) in every season since 2003 -- even in 2012 when he spent a half season he spent in China, he went to Gala in January and scored for them versus Madrid. He's certainly past the peak of his abilities, but on the other hand, he's still considerably better than most any younger player who is within the realm of possibility for MLS to sign and he's a major name for a French speaking populous in Montreal.
So in conclusion, people need to understand that MLS is a 3rd tier league particularly when it comes to talent being discovered and rewarded by higher tiered leagues -- if you do well in the Dutch or Portuguese leagues (let alone the variety of others), you'll earn a move elsewhere in a season or two. That doesn't happen in MLS. Maybe one or two players a season get a move to a bigger league from here -- this is effectively a "final destination" for most players.
It will be a decade or two before we move to the 2nd tier. Maybe by that point there's something akin to the Champions League but it's worldwide and not just Europe and all of the sudden a league outside of Europe can attain similar prestige. As it stands now, it's far better to accept MLS for what it is, appreciate that these older players are better than the alternatives even despite their age and just enjoy getting to see legends play here in America.
Rumor is we agreed to a transfer fee of 2.2 million dollars for San Lorenzo winger/forward Gonzalo Veron according to TyC sports.
Nice to see us scouring for South America rather than the lower divisions of France, but where's the defensive reinforcements? Especially considering Zubar is a 320k waste.
edit: seems all but confirmed. I think we're a solid RB away from being a team that will do damage in the playoffs.
Nice to see us scouring for South America rather than the lower divisions of France, but where's the defensive reinforcements? Especially considering Zubar is a 320k waste.
edit: seems all but confirmed. I think we're a solid RB away from being a team that will do damage in the playoffs.
SWP played wing back for a bit in the past, maybe that's what we got him for?
Imagine we replace Lade with a guy who is 5'5"? Hahaha
Shit, I dunno but it seems like we've got a lot of wide players now. Makes little sense to keep getting attacking players when we need defenders.
This is a good post, but I'm going to be nit-picky and say that claiming Drogba as by far the most decorated African player ever is flat out wrong IMO. He'd sneak into the top 5 by my measure but he falls far short of the achievements of players like Weah and Eto'o.
George Weah: 1x FIFA world player of the year, 1x Ballon d'Or, 3x African player of the year
Samuel Eto'o: 4x African player of the year, 3x Champions League
Yaya Toure: 4x African player of the year, 1x Champions League
Abedi Pele: 3x African player of the year, 1x Champions League
Didier Drogba: 2x African player of the year, 1x Champions League
Maybe there's a trade coming up? A winger for a defender?
Perhaps Grella's recent performances has raised his trade value.
That could be it, who do you think we could get? If this is it we're basically replacing the entire left wing.
Between:
Grella
Zizzo
SWP
Veron
Sam
I'm sure some front office is calling up Ali Curtis for a trade. I doubt these deals are being made for a mid-season tactical change. We're just beginning to click on offense. And getting away from two D-Mids considering our depth at the back? No thanks.
The crowd at that came to greet Drogba at the airport was pretty impressive...
https://twitter.com/nicksabetti/status/626501252810084353
https://twitter.com/nicksabetti/status/626502700914470913
https://twitter.com/sebasouellet/status/626502591451561984
https://twitter.com/didierdrogba/status/626505081874202624
Didier Drogba @didierdrogba
First steps on Canadian soil,
What a welcome @impactmontreal
https://twitter.com/nicksabetti/status/626501252810084353
https://twitter.com/nicksabetti/status/626502700914470913
https://twitter.com/sebasouellet/status/626502591451561984
https://twitter.com/didierdrogba/status/626505081874202624
Didier Drogba @didierdrogba
First steps on Canadian soil,
What a welcome @impactmontreal
You've got me on George Weah.
I think the others are all pretty comparable but Drogba is definitely the king of the Ivory Coast even over Yaya (maybe a little closer now that they won another AFCON minus Drogba) in terms of fan support. Either way, point stands that he is an absolute legend!Weah also the only one from that list with a son who plays for the US.
Washington Revolution, that just sounds so wrong...
Brian Straus @BrianStraus
Finally, Kevin Payne again on picking a team name that was laughed at 20 years ago:
Is that the same Peter Moore?
Looks like Bradley has always loved loopholes (eg Eddie Gaven)...
For the NY fans:
Brian Straus @BrianStraus
Finally, Kevin Payne again on picking a team name that was laughed at 20 years ago:
Is that the same Peter Moore?
Looks like Bradley has always loved loopholes (eg Eddie Gaven)...
Kevin Payne on 'Loophole United' and signing Steve Rammel, who scored 16 goals in '96:
For the NY fans:
Speaking of Metro Mayhem, Meola on the club's draft day war room:
Cornballer
Member
This, and Straus' excerpts are a great read. Amazing that the league is still around and how far it's come.
The Chosen One
Member
And how many of those were PKs?
More than half, surely.
The Chosen One
Member
Don't get me wrong. I'm a HUGE Drogba fan. I had him on my fantasy starting lineup pretty much the whole year the past season even though he was primarily an occasional sub. And I did cartwheels when I heard he was coming to the MLS because I'll get to see him in person. For my own selfish reasons, I'm happy he's here.
But taking a look at the bigger picture, I just don't think it's the best strategy for the league to spend a lot of money on a player like that who might just have one or two productive seasons, which I'm sure one will be marred by injuries.
IMO, they should save the big bucks for players who can give at least 3-5 productive seasons. Robbie Keane and Henry were fantastic investments. The raised the quality of the league and they were productive long enough to become the face(es) of their franchises and introduced more fans.
I just get nervous when we sign 37-38 year-olds because we might only get one or two decent seasons out of them and they're out the door before they establish a MLS identity. If Drogba and Lampard prove me wrong then I'll be very happy and be glad to eat my words.
But yes, I want our league to become a 2nd tier league. A stepping stone to the big euro leagues or a quality destination for relatively young veteran players. But I don't want the MLS to be known as a retirement community for the 35 and older euro stars. To me there is a big difference between signing Keane and Henry at 31 & 32 and signing Drogba and Lampard at 37. The former really help to grow and improve the league, the latter are mostly swan songs that give the league just a temporary boost at a pretty big expense.