Our New Dp or Dp's

[RedsYNWA]

After all this chaos, we all know MLSE will need to bring in a big name to put "bums" in the seats. My question is who do you think has the talent and star power to put TFC back on the front page again?

I'm thinking Del Piero

[ArmenJBX]

I know not a lot of people may agree with me, but as a winger/forward, Issey Morgan Nakajima-Ferran would be an awesome pickup and a great DP. :D

However, in terms of bums in seats, Greece's Basinas or Gekas, and Portugal's Nuno Gomes could do the job.

[Wull]

I'd love to hear some of the names that were reportedly turned down by Mo when they wanted to join Toronto

[CretanBull]

After all this chaos, we all know MLSE will need to bring in a big name to put "bums" in the seats. My question is who do you think has the talent and star power to put TFC back on the front page again?

I'm thinking Del Piero

Haven't Juve already said that he has a job in their front office when he retires? It would be kind of odd if he left them, played with us, then went back to them. I think it would be far more natural for him to retire as a player and move into their front office.

Don't get me wrong, I'd LOVE to see him here but I don't really see how it makes sense for him to come here.

[TFCtoMUFC]

Del Piero, Van Nistelrooy, Rivaldo, Tomasson, Nuno Gomes.

[ArmenJBX]

I think the general consensus amongst the league is that if Del Piero comes over, he's Toronto FC's :D

[neuf]

As much as I would love it, Van Nistelrooy is not coming to Toronto. He has said that he is happy at Hamburg and will stay there as long as he is getting playing time. After that he will likely go back to PSV.

[ExiledRed]

I'd love to hear some of the names that were reportedly turned down by Mo when they wanted to join Toronto


there are a few, and the problem was cost. In season 1 mo-fo refused to get a dp even though all the new fans were SCREAMING for one. I know of one big name striker who asked for a million and was scoffed at.

The reality is, in season one we missed the playoffs by just a little bit, and that little bit was represented by a long goal drought full of wasted chances that should have been goals. One goalscorer to partner with Dichio may likely have made us the playoffs in season 1.

Part of the problem was that whenever a large name was bandied about, about 80% of the fanbase would say

"You're dreaming, this is Toronto, this is MLS, its not going to happen."

Which basically told MLSE that we didnt expect a big name and they didnt have to get one. Anselmi himself went on TV and said we didnt need one, because we were selling tickets without one, and a veritable chunk of the fanbase were actually making ridiculous assertations that a "DP wouldnt improve the team, and instead we need to focus on acquiring young players like OB White and developing them for future stardom." (Hows that going by the way poppamidnight?)

Even now, nobody seriously thinks Ljungberg, Beckham or Henry were ever likely candidates for Toronto, but seriously, why is that? Is it because of our ownership or is it because we as fans love to wallow in our mediocrity and reinforce it by scoffing at those who demand more, therefore licensing ownership to do as little as possible.

At the very MINIMUM I want someone of Michael Owen's calibre, he knows where the fucking goal is at least.

[TFC07]

After all this chaos, we all know MLSE will need to bring in a big name to put "bums" in the seats. My question is who do you think has the talent and star power to put TFC back on the front page again?

I'm thinking Del Piero

I would be surprised if TFC didn't target Del Piero. I think he's most marketable player in GTA market who is available next summer.

[flatpicker]

Hey Exiled... stop making so much sense!

[Super]

Well fucking said Exiled!!!

[CretanBull]

I know of one big name striker who asked for a million and was scoffed at.

Patrick kluivert?

[Raging Reggie]

I remember a few years ago there were Rumblings of John Arne Riise comming here and he turned it down....

[Cas87]

Here is what I think MLSE's list is for TFC:

INTERNATIONALS:
Van Nistelrooy
Nuno Gomez
Owen
Hargreaves
Del Piero
Donovan (It may happen)
Steven Fletcher

CANADIANS:
Hutchinson
Edgar
Stalteri
McKenna
Hastings

[CretanBull]

^The Canadians listed and Fletcher aren't big enough names for what TFC will want out of a new DP (they'll be looking for Henry type of splash). Hargreaves would piss off too many people - not smart given the current climate.

[ArmenJBX]

I know it would be incredible and probably impossible but we need to go after a young name DP like Tommy Mueller or Neymar... :D

[ExiledRed]

Patrick kluivert?

Fowler, he was finishing his season at Liverpool, was scoring in the champions league and cup games, and I swear by all thats holy, if he was on that first year team, we would have gotten to the semis.

People were laughing at me, they were saying 'Robbie fowler is too big a name' (seriously)

Here we are paying a million for Mista, and Robbie's in Australia.

[Brooker]

Out of favor and on the move: Tuncay Sanli :drinking:

[Nuvinho]

JPA and Seedof

Seedof would be a beast in MLS. JPA we all know what he can do with service.

[CretanBull]

Fowler, he was finishing his season at Liverpool, was scoring in the champions league and cup games, and I swear by all thats holy, if he was on that first year team, we would have gotten to the semis.

Around that time I ran into Ronnie O'Brien (he came into my work with his wife) and he mentioned Fowler, but said that it wasn't going to work out because his knees were shot and he couldn't play on the turf - kind of ironic in retrospect.

kluivert was in talks with TFC before he signed with Lille, I'm not sure which side ended the talks or why though.

[ArmenJBX]

We have three DP spots
I'd like to keep de Guzman for his final season at least..
I'd add: Vicente from Valencia (I know I'm biased :D) as well as Japan's Keisuke Matsui or Canadian "Rob Friend"

[El Diego]

I know it would be incredible and probably impossible but we need to go after a young name DP like Tommy Mueller or Neymar... :D

What is the point of this post?

[ArmenJBX]

What is the point of this post?

To bring up the fact that it would be cool if we signed a young DP.

Why so serious? :D

[Blowing Bubbles]

some of you ppl are so delusional with the names being bandied about.

JPA seems a bit more realistic and even that is a long shot.

[torontocelt]

I know it would be incredible and probably impossible but we need to go after a young name DP like Tommy Mueller or Neymar... :D

My mate was sitting next to a german guy on a bus last week and he mentioned that he knew Tommy Mueller. He said that TM was a massive fan of TFC and that he has been sitting by his phone for the past couple of years just waiting for the phone call to bring him over. He also said that he lived in Madrid for a couple of days last year and that he bumped into Ronaldo who was out buying a new tooth brush. Ronaldo blabbed to him that he is going to see out his contract at Real and then he will sign on a free for TFC. It seems that all the worlds best are eager to come and play for the reds in the MLS, we should have a great squad in a few years.

[colman1860]

To bring up the fact that it would be cool if we signed a young DP.

Why so serious? :D

It would also be cool if we signed Ronaldo or Messi. Stop wasting space on the interwebs

[ArmenJBX]

We have the same amount of money as Santos or Bayern.

Stranger things have happened okay. DP's don't always have to be 36+, you can spend that kind of money and buy them. Why can't we be a member of the world wide transfer market? We only sign the players that can't play in Europe anymore? Fuck that, I'd go after the best guys first and work my way down as opposed to working from shit inwards.

[ArmenJBX]

My mate was sitting next to a german guy on a bus last week and he mentioned that he knew Tommy Mueller. He said that TM was a massive fan of TFC and that he has been sitting by his phone for the past couple of years just waiting for the phone call to bring him over. He also said that he lived in Madrid for a couple of days last year and that he bumped into Ronaldo who was out buying a new tooth brush. Ronaldo blabbed to him that he is going to see out his contract at Real and then he will sign on a free for TFC. It seems that all the worlds best are eager to come and play for the reds in the MLS, we should have a great squad in a few years.

Urgh, you had me going for a while :D

It's going to be really funny when this actually happens in like...6-10 years :D

[rocker]

We have three DP spots
I'd like to keep de Guzman for his final season at least..
I'd add: Vicente from Valencia (I know I'm biased :D) as well as Japan's Keisuke Matsui or Canadian "Rob Friend"

Rob Friend isn't good enough to be a DP. That'd be a big waste of a spot.

[torontocelt]

We have the same amount of money as Santos or Bayern.

Stranger things have happened okay. DP's don't always have to be 36+, you can spend that kind of money and buy them. Why can't we be a member of the world wide transfer market? We only sign the players that can't play in Europe anymore? Fuck that, I'd go after the best guys first and work my way down as opposed to working from shit inwards.

TFC has the same amount of money to spend as Bayern Munich? I heard we had more than Chelsea and Barca too... combined that is.

[ArmenJBX]

Cmon, you're telling me MLSE can't afford to pay 20 million?

If we have an organization who can't pay 20 million then we need to be bought out immediately.

[ExiledRed]

Around that time I ran into Ronnie O'Brien (he came into my work with his wife) and he mentioned Fowler, but said that it wasn't going to work out because his knees were shot and he couldn't play on the turf - kind of ironic in retrospect.

kluivert was in talks with TFC before he signed with Lille, I'm not sure which side ended the talks or why though.

The failure is all interconnected, and it began with MLSE treating this team as an experimental venture and taking absolutely no risks whatsoever.

My list of i told you so's is very long, and the biggest one was

'TFC are going to have to get grass eventually anyway, or the team cant grow with the league and no big player will come here while we have it.'

Basically MLSE didnt care because it figured we were a budget team with budget players, and we werent ever going to sign a DP anyway. So the issue with signing big names was moot.

The residue of the small thinking will be with us for a long time.

[ArmenJBX]

It's not that bad, a lot of teams didn't sign a DP till this season, and they've been around a lot longer than us.

Forget the past, we need to focus on the future, a Mo-less future! :D

[torontocelt]

Cmon, you're telling me MLSE can't afford to pay 20 million?

If we have an organization who can't pay 20 million then we need to be bought out immediately.

Apparently Neymar is very keen for a move to TFC, it has been reported that Chelsea actually had a 25m pound bid turned down for Neymar. That would work out at maybe $42m, I am pretty confident if TFC went in there with a $60m - $70m bid then we might get him. It is not unlike the MLSE to be thinking big especially with TFC, they got us Mista so they could probably bring us Neymar. How much would it take to get Tommy Muller, well he was one of the outstanding players in the world cup and he is with one of the biggest clubs in the world. I reckon if we offer something in the region of $50m then we might get to speak to him, it may cost even more than that though. Maybe this is why the season ticket prices went up again?

[RedsYNWA]

There are only about a couple of dozen of Big name players that would not come here now ie. Ronaldo, Messi etc...
..but $$$$ talks and for the right price that MLSE pays NHL players why not a big name...they all came for $ for the NASL

[TFCRegina]

Dwayne De Rosario

And that leaves us with one DP spot.

I'd spend it on a Latin American winger or striker, someone from Brazil or Argentina that is still fairly young. Don't go poaching a major team's player though. While the top players only make a couple hundred thousand in salary, the endorsements down there make them millionaires. You need to poach a relegation side's striker or a Serie B player.

[torontocelt]

There are only about a couple of dozen of Big name players that would not come here now ie. Ronaldo, Messi etc...
..but $$$$ talks and for the right price that MLSE pays NHL players why not a big name...they all came for $ for the NASL

You are probably right but only after they get to a certain age. I could name quite a few players who I reckon would be unattainable until they are old no matter how much they were offered (within reason - I am not talking unlimited amounts of cash).

[CretanBull]

The failure is all interconnected, and it began with MLSE treating this team as an experimental venture and taking absolutely no risks whatsoever.

My list of i told you so's is very long, and the biggest one was

'TFC are going to have to get grass eventually anyway, or the team cant grow with the league and no big player will come here while we have it.'

Basically MLSE didnt care because it figured we were a budget team with budget players, and we werent ever going to sign a DP anyway. So the issue with signing big names was moot.

The residue of the small thinking will be with us for a long time.

That sums it up perfectly.

[v00d00daddy]

I know it's a pipe dream but I would LOVE to see Andrea Pirlo here.

His addition would replace JDG and DeRo in one fell swoop. Great on dead balls. Can control the midfield and distribute on a world class level and he sits deep enough to be a contributor when it comes to winning the ball back or being an outlet for the back line.

Again..I know it's a pipe dream but a guy can dream right? lol

[shwade]

Fowler, he was finishing his season at Liverpool, was scoring in the champions league and cup games, and I swear by all thats holy, if he was on that first year team, we would have gotten to the semis.

People were laughing at me, they were saying 'Robbie fowler is too big a name' (seriously)

Here we are paying a million for Mista, and Robbie's in Australia.

pissed.

[CretanBull]

I know it's a pipe dream but I would LOVE to see Andrea Pirlo here.

If he came over he'd be the best player in the league.

[wzhxvy]

Van Nistelrooy is my guess. He plays in a physical league...fits a real need...big name...I think he would do wekk.

[ExiledRed]

pissed.

yeah well i never said hed stay sober if he came here, fat chance of it happening in Oz though.

[Mikey]

I would just like them to ditch the donkey DP's we have been saddled with first.

[TFCRegina]

I would just like them to ditch the donkey DP's we have been saddled with first.

Pointless though. We ditch JDG we're still on the hook for the cap hit. We need to wait until his contract expires (end of next year i believe).

[TFC_Central]

I know it would be incredible and probably impossible but we need to go after a young name DP like Tommy Mueller or Neymar... :D

If TFC got Neymar they would win the mls cup. We could play a 6-3-1 :canada:

[Oldtimer]

Basically MLSE didnt care because it figured we were a budget team with budget players, and we werent ever going to sign a DP anyway. So the issue with signing big names was moot.

The residue of the small thinking will be with us for a long time.

Good analysis, and quite accurate, I think.

In all fairness, MLS in 2005/2006 was a "budget" league. No DPs, $2.1 million salary cap. No teams with full stadiums. When the DP rule came out in late 2006, a lot of people thought Beckham was going to be the only new "star" player. TFC changed all of those equations, because they showed that serious interest in an MLS team was possible, much to MLS and MLSE's shock. MLSE had to change their business model on the fly.

The one thing TFC did really right was to move one of their really bright basketball guys to run the business side. Paul B. started out realizing he didn't know anything and needed to learn about supporters' culture, and cater to it. That basic realization (seemingly so untypical of MLSE's corporate suits, or MLS clubs in general) led to a lot of the off-the-field success, which is now being copied by MLS clubs throughout the league.

Serious interest in the league has led to more spending, and many MLS teams adding a DP or two. It's a completely different business model than in 2005/2006, which was a philosophy of a "budget" league with very little spending.

[Cashcleaner]

there are a few, and the problem was cost. In season 1 mo-fo refused to get a dp even though all the new fans were SCREAMING for one. I know of one big name striker who asked for a million and was scoffed at.

The reality is, in season one we missed the playoffs by just a little bit, and that little bit was represented by a long goal drought full of wasted chances that should have been goals. One goalscorer to partner with Dichio may likely have made us the playoffs in season 1.

Part of the problem was that whenever a large name was bandied about, about 80% of the fanbase would say

"You're dreaming, this is Toronto, this is MLS, its not going to happen."

Which basically told MLSE that we didnt expect a big name and they didnt have to get one. Anselmi himself went on TV and said we didnt need one, because we were selling tickets without one, and a veritable chunk of the fanbase were actually making ridiculous assertations that a "DP wouldnt improve the team, and instead we need to focus on acquiring young players like OB White and developing them for future stardom." (Hows that going by the way poppamidnight?)

Even now, nobody seriously thinks Ljungberg, Beckham or Henry were ever likely candidates for Toronto, but seriously, why is that? Is it because of our ownership or is it because we as fans love to wallow in our mediocrity and reinforce it by scoffing at those who demand more, therefore licensing ownership to do as little as possible.

At the very MINIMUM I want someone of Michael Owen's calibre, he knows where the fucking goal is at least.

One of your best posts ever, Exiled.

I remember you, myself, and a handful of others making a case for a truly world-class DP once the new rule came into effect and so many others refused to even allow themselves to dream of such a signing. Why would anyone NOT take advantage of such a rule as soon as they possibly could and exploit it to it's fullest?!

Instead, we hemed and hawed over the subject and convinced ourselves that we'd never be able to attract a player of that calibre, or perhaps most mind-boggling, believed that such a player would end up being a detriment to the club!

If we want this team to go anywhere in MLS, we need to demand the club builds the squad PROACTIVELY, instead of REACTING to what other teams are doing. That means buying the best fucking talent we can and supporting them properly.

[Dub Narcotic]

Clearly some big DP signings would be a solid strategy for the team. TFC has the money to go the Red Bull route, and big European stars would play well in Toronto. I think Michael Owen has to be the main target, a recognizable name that fills a need. RvP or Paul Scholes are also realistic targets. Del Piero would be great addition but he is playing too much right now to want to come over.

[TFC Tifoso]

Alessandro....Del....Piero........

[London]

Alessandro....Del....Piero........

hell yes, and for a second DP PIPPO!!!

two old men that would bring a title to TFC

[maninb]

Del Piero - yeah just what we need...a tiny fragile 37 year old striker...LMAO!!

Nuno Gomes - a taller, slightly younger (35) version of Del Piero who doesn't score as much, but gets hurt just as often....again quite funny....

If these guys couldn't play a full season in a leagues with MUCH LESS CONTACT, EVEN WHEN THEY WERE YOUNGER..what makes you think they'd last a month in MLS??? Give your heads a shake!!!

[jabbronies]

INTERNATIONALS:
Van Nistelrooy YES
Nuno Gomez NO
Owen YES
Hargreaves NO
Del Piero NO
Donovan (It may happen) UMMMM
Steven Fletcher ???

CANADIANS:NO NO NO
Hutchinson
Edgar
Stalteri
McKenna
Hastings[/quote]

[Roogsy]

some of you ppl are so delusional with the names being bandied about.

JPA seems a bit more realistic and even that is a long shot.


Actually not so much. Some big names were in talks with TFC at various points over the first 4 seasons, meaning at the very least they would have considered it. In some instances, it was our own front office that turned down some serious names...only to wind up with Mista.

[Roogsy]

The failure is all interconnected, and it began with MLSE treating this team as an experimental venture and taking absolutely no risks whatsoever.

My list of i told you so's is very long, and the biggest one was

'TFC are going to have to get grass eventually anyway, or the team cant grow with the league and no big player will come here while we have it.'

Basically MLSE didnt care because it figured we were a budget team with budget players, and we werent ever going to sign a DP anyway. So the issue with signing big names was moot.

The residue of the small thinking will be with us for a long time.


You said it. I was there. I was always on the fence with turf until I had to play on the garbage turf after it had been destroyed. No professional would want to play on that.

My opinion is no more Canadian DPs. We have enough with JDG and possibly DeRo depending on what TFC does or does not with his contract. We need one solid player that will be able to take on the attention of defenders. ADP has always been a favourite of mine but I first called for him in the first season and now we are 3 years older and he is looking like he might be done playing football altogether. In that case, I'd LOVE to see RVN here. Big guy, has a nose for goal and can still dominate in top leagues. Pay the man, bring him over, the Dutch community here would go nuts.

[kaos197O]

I would like to see Dero get DP money and Angel is a more likely signing than most of the others here. He would be a great addition up front playing with either Santos or Barrett Or perhaps both, if we were ever to play a 3-4-3. Still need to pick up a couple good wingers and a solid defender still so if Dero doesn't get the money we could chase someone that could fill one of those positions.

Btw that whole Muller comment is beyond ridiculous. Why would he waste himself over here in MLS when he is an up and coming star in a far superior league that can offer him even further development?

[ACSertL]

:lol: Thomas Müller. He's mentioned that he wants to spend the rest of his career at Bayern, I mean he's 20 years old so take that with a grain of salt, but surely his plans don't include TFC.

My vote is and always has been for Eidur Gudjohnsen.

[jabbronies]

Y In that case, I'd LOVE to see RVN here. Big guy, has a nose for goal and can still dominate in top leagues. Pay the man, bring him over, the Dutch community here would go nuts.

The Dutch Community, The ManU supporters, The RealM supporters and Soccer enthusiasts throughout the city would be happy IMO.

The guy is a solid player. Would love to see him here. Just wondering if he would get the service needed to get er done.

[Roogsy]

We need a winger. Not necessarily DP, but they will have to pay someone good MLS money. We've been missing a proper winger for a long time.

[Alixir]

I know not a lot of people may agree with me, but as a winger/forward, Issey Morgan Nakajima-Ferran would be an awesome pickup and a great DP. :D

Actually no he wouldn't be a great DP...There are far better players out there instead of us going and signing a guy who plays in Europe because he is Canadian. I am so sick of the sign him cause he is Canadian mentality that come with looking for DPs and now coaches for this club. Truth of the matter is...Canadian footballers just aren't really that awesome at the moment. We are taking steps in the right direction but we just are not there yet.

[Azerban]

Tommy Muller

never do this again ever, anyone

[London]

the most realistic is probably juan pablo angel,

if it is true that red bull will cut ties with him at seasons end, i would assume most MLS clubs will have a go at him

[DangerRed]

TFC has the money to go the Red Bull route...

I see this over and over again -- what evidence do we have to suggest this is true? Is this the mythical "Mo Edu Money," which has paid for everything from our grass to JDG's salary?

I would argue it's clear that TFC does NOT have all the money in the world to go the RBNY route, since we haven't signed anyone of Henry's or Rafa's caliber so far.

Sure, some of these A-list players may have turned up their noses at living in Toronto, but there must've been at least a few who were ready to come over for the right price -- a price TFC wasn't willing to pay.

[Nuvinho]

We need a winger. Not necessarily DP, but they will have to pay someone good MLS money. We've been missing a proper winger for a long time.

DeMarcus Beasley?

[prizby]

If we have learned anything, the most successful DP's are the one's that aren't aging relics

yet everyone seems convinced we need another aging relic

[jabbronies]

I see this over and over again -- what evidence do we have to suggest this is true? Is this the mythical "Mo Edu Money," which has paid for everything from our grass to JDG's salary?

I would argue it's clear that TFC does NOT have all the money in the world to go the RBNY route, since we haven't signed anyone of Henry's or Rafa's caliber so far.

Sure, some of these A-list players may have turned up their noses at living in Toronto, but there must've been at least a few who were ready to come over for the right price -- a price TFC wasn't willing to pay.


TFC can go the Red Bull route no problem.

- The team (TFC) turns a profit every year.
- They are run by one of the richest sports companies in North America.
All of the MLSE franchises turn profits, so it's not like they are running in the red.
- I'm sure MLSE can afford to pay two guys 5 million each, the question is "Do they want to spend that cash", not "can they afford it?"

[Cashcleaner]

TFC has the same amount of money to spend as Bayern Munich? I heard we had more than Chelsea and Barca too... combined that is.

Ummmm...MLSE has a LOT more cash than Bayern Munich.

According to Forbes, the club is valued at 917 million USD. MLSE has a Forbes valuation of just under 2 BILLION USD.

Sooooooo, yeah. This is what people like you need to understand - As sports and entertainment consortia go, MLSE is actually one of the largest and most wealthiest in the world. There's no excuse for us to cut corners or do anything half-assed.

[kaos197O]

DeMarcus Beasley?

I'd take him.

I wonder if they'll be giving Bas Ent another look in the off season. Mo really screwed that signing up and it could have made the difference down the stretch. Not a DP either.

As for NYRB, sure they've got the dough and are throwing it around quite freely, but more importantly, the club has developed a philosophy and it is working. We need to sign the right GM and Head Coach, preferably one that players both respect and would DIE to play under. Then, over half of the battle will have been won.

[jabbronies]

If we have learned anything, the most successful DP's are the one's that aren't aging relics

yet everyone seems convinced we need another aging relic

yup!

[Roogsy]

Why does someone experienced have to be an aging relic?

[London]

If we have learned anything, the most successful DP's are the one's that aren't aging relics

yet everyone seems convinced we need another aging relic

and the most sucessfull DP was GBS, ohh wait he was 35 and a DP???

30 something goals in 90 something games

[H Bomb]

also Blanco & Angel.

[fetajr]

MLSE should break the bank for

STRIKER

HUMBERTO "EL CHUPETE" SUAZO

http://marcos.kirsch.com.mx/blogimages/suazo.jpg


AND


ATTACKING MIDFIELDER

JORGE VALDIVIA
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_fdw2Sg7ytmw/R9VEAWclZHI/AAAAAAAAAD8/Wb6TYmg5ft8/s320/F584809_MAGO280.jpg

[CretanBull]

and the most sucessfull DP was GBS, ohh wait he was 35 and a DP???

30 something goals in 90 something games

And the average age of the league MVP is 34 years old.

[C.Ronaldo]

bruno alves or Fernando Meira

Still need to fix that position, distribution is terrible.

DP in D, JDG in mid, Dero and a DP striker


voila

[jloome]

How long did Trezeguet sign with Hercules for? We probably could've had him.

There are a lot of players below the Angel/Henry level of fame who are still 10 steps above MLS level. Focussing on DP issues right now is the last thing the team should do. We need to rebuild the fucking team, first.

We need two wingers, two fullbacks, a strong central playmaker. Then we need a DP. Obvious if a great one became available, they should take the chance, but it shouldn't be the primary focus.

[torontocelt]

Ummmm...MLSE has a LOT more cash than Bayern Munich.

According to Forbes, the club is valued at 917 million USD. MLSE has a Forbes valuation of just under 2 BILLION USD.

Sooooooo, yeah. This is what people like you need to understand - As sports and entertainment consortia go, MLSE is actually one of the largest and most wealthiest in the world. There's no excuse for us to cut corners or do anything half-assed.

Well I guess what people like you have to understand is that they may have the money in MLSE but TFC the club will never match Bayern Munich in terms of spending power in football, so in essence TFC the club does not have the same amount of money to spend as Bayern Munich indeed far from it.

[ACSertL]

How long did Trezeguet sign with Hercules for? We probably could've had him.

There are a lot of players below the Angel/Henry level of fame who are still 10 steps above MLS level. Focussing on DP issues right now is the last thing the team should do. We need to rebuild the fucking team, first.

We need two wingers, two fullbacks, a strong central playmaker. Then we need a DP. Obvious if a great one became available, they should take the chance, but it shouldn't be the primary focus.

Agreed with you on all of the points; we need a decent core of good MLS players to compete in this league. I would add that the central playmaker could be a Designated Player...hence my spamming of the name Eidur Gudjohnsen :)

[Blizzard]

I'd take him.

I wonder if they'll be giving Bas Ent another look in the off season. Mo really screwed that signing up and it could have made the difference down the stretch. Not a DP either.

I'd love see Ent back here.

[jloome]

I'd love see Ent back here.

The book on him is raw but very talented, smart and aggressive.

[CretanBull]

^ I thought he was great too - he was tenacious in chasing down balls and he fought through tackles to stay on his feet when he could have gone down - I'll take those qualities in a player any day!

[C.Ronaldo]

^ that will get us an expensive DP that will get injured quickly in a league of shin kickers

[DangerRed]

^ that will get us an expensive DP that will get injured quickly in a league of shin kickers

You realize Bas Ent plays for the Dayton Dutch Lions of the PDL, right? No one is thinking of signing him as a DP.

[nascarguy]

MLSE should break the bank for

STRIKER

HUMBERTO "EL CHUPETE" SUAZO

http://marcos.kirsch.com.mx/blogimages/suazo.jpg


AND


ATTACKING MIDFIELDER

JORGE VALDIVIA
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_fdw2Sg7ytmw/R9VEAWclZHI/AAAAAAAAAD8/Wb6TYmg5ft8/s320/F584809_MAGO280.jpg

who is that. Big name DP big season ticket cost

[nascarguy]

the most realistic is probably juan pablo angel,

if it is true that red bull will cut ties with him at seasons end, i would assume most MLS clubs will have a go at him
that would be good

[Blowing Bubbles]

How long did Trezeguet sign with Hercules for? We probably could've had him.


How the hell can you say this with such certainty?

Fact - Hercules plays in his wife's home town

Please provide links that had legit stories linking him to MLS. In the words of Sir Charles "that's turrrrrrrrrible" :facepalm:

[Ossington Mental Youth]

Could have suggests a potential, a possibility...
definitely would have suggests certainty

[Jeffro]

How the hell can you say this with such certainty?

Fact - Hercules plays in his wife's home town

Please provide links that had legit stories linking him to MLS. In the words of Sir Charles "that's turrrrrrrrrible" :facepalm:

Everything in this thread is speculation, why would you pick this one to jump on?

[fetajr]

who is that. Big name DP big season ticket cost

season ticket costs are already high..its about time they justified it with high priced quality players

[J .]

What we need most are two wingers. I think Santos and Barrett will pair up nicely next season with DeRo creating in the mid. Get rid of JDG, get a lower priced DM.

With two wingers (who I personally would drop DP on either side), in a physical individual league like MLS will do wonders to stretch the field, give DeRo the room to operate, allow Barrett to make diagonal runs or run onto passes. Also, it would do wonders for the fullbacks we do have who constantly, game in and out are getting run at because opposing teams width players never have to track back. They can push forward.

Its been three seasons, same problem. When Ricketts and Andy Welsh can be counted as some of your best wing players in four years your attack will be lacking and thus teams will run at you in waves on the flanks.

[brad]

Focussing on DP issues right now is the last thing the team should do. We need to rebuild the fucking team, first.

We need two wingers, two fullbacks, a strong central playmaker. Then we need a DP. Obvious if a great one became available, they should take the chance, but it shouldn't be the primary focus.

This - 100%. Even if we did manage to sign a quality goal poacher as a DP, who is going to get the ball to him?

[RedsYNWA]

season ticket costs are already high..its about time they justified it with high priced quality players

QFFT

[King Tut]

After all this chaos, we all know MLSE will need to bring in a big name to put "bums" in the seats. My question is who do you think has the talent and star power to put TFC back on the front page again?

I'm thinking Del Piero

Where do I start?

1) Del Piero
2) Ruud Van Nistelrooy
3) Raul
4) Brazilian Ronaldo
5) Rivaldo
6) Luca Toni
7) Trezeguet (He was a free agent for a few hours, before signing for Hercules)
8) Gennaro Gattuso
9) Juan Riquelme
10)Eiður Guðjohnsen
11)Mohamed Abotrika
12)Ahmed Hassan
13)Andriy Shevchenko
14)Ryan Giggs (would be amazing but don't see him ever leaving United)
15)Clarence Seedorf
16)Filippo Inzaghi
17)Martin Palermo
18)Salvador Cabañas
19)Yossi Benayoun (when his time comes I guess)
20)Mohamed Kallon
21)Claude Makélelé
22)Ludovic Giuly
23)Diego Forlán (highly unlikely but would be fucking amazing if it ever happened)
24)Guti (should definitely end up in MLS down the road)
25)Nolberto Solano
26)Craig Bellamy
27)John Carew
28)Mancini
29)Stephen Appiah
30)Hernán Crespo
31)Ariel Ortega
32)Juan Sebastián Verón
33)Michael Ballack
34)Mark van Bommel
35)Javier Saviola
36)Youssouf Hadji
37)Mohammadou Idrissou (This guy would shred this league with his size, mobility and aerial skills)
38) Nihat Kahveci (This one's for you Deniz..LOL..Jk..He'd actually be a hit too)
39)Nuno Gomez
40)Roberto Carlos
41)Frédéric Oumar Kanouté
42)Bakari Koné
43)Yasser Al-Qahtani
44)Zé Roberto
45)Yasuhito Endō
46)Harry Kewell
47)Tim Cahill
48)Christian Wilhelmsson
49)Francileudo Santos
50)Bobby Zamora
51)Peter Odemwingie
52)Milan Baroš
53)John Chukwudi Utaka
54)Aruna Dindane
55)Mamadou Niang
56)Robbie Keane
57)Roque Santa Cruz
58)Julio Ricardo Cruz (FREE FUCKING AGENT RIGHT NOW)
59)Álvaro Recoba
60)Santiago Solari
61)Mido
62)Angelos Charisteas
63)Jon Dahl Tomasson
64)Torsten Frings
65)Daniel Güiza
66)Paul Scholes
67)Benni McCarthy
68)Michael Owen
69)Owen Hargreaves (a little controversial)
70)Lomana LuaLua
71)Émile Mpenza
72)Elano
73)Gilberto Silva
74)Patrick Vieira
75)Adrian Mutu
76)Ali Karimi
77)Giovanni van Bronckhorst
78)Wesley Sonck
79)Sylvain Wiltord
80)Alexander Frei (the Frei connection) ;)


That's enough for now...I excluded defenders/goalkeepers, since I prefer designated players who are effective in the final third as well. I think in goalkeepers and the backline, we don't need to dish out DP money. Defensive mid is as far back I'd go with DP contracts, but that's just my opinion. If I included some goalkeepers and defenders, I could probably hit the hundreds with that list. ;)

Some are more realistic than others, but at the end of the day MONEY TALKS. Dish out a nice offer and anything can happen.

[ArmenJBX]

Guily! :D

[Cashcleaner]

Well I guess what people like you have to understand is that they may have the money in MLSE but TFC the club will never match Bayern Munich in terms of spending power in football, so in essence TFC the club does not have the same amount of money to spend as Bayern Munich indeed far from it.

Gotcha. The Maple Leafs can spend $58 million on talent for the 2010-2011 season (btw, Bayern Munich had a payroll of about $45 million), but we shouldn't expect them to spend a fraction of that on two or three soccer players.

Makes loads of sense. :facepalm:

[DoubleUp]

)Andriy Shevchenko
Eiður Guðjohnsen
Zé Roberto


These are my picks for Dp/dp's
Sheva and Gudjonsen one two punch.

[ArmenJBX]

Michael Ballack would be awesome from that list.

[jvanpeebles]

how amazing would this be!!!!!!

[King Tut]

I don't buy the "they wouldn't come to Toronto (the city)" excuse one bit. If the right offer is there, anything is possible.

[torontocelt]

Gotcha. The Maple Leafs can spend $58 million on talent for the 2010-2011 season (btw, Bayern Munich had a payroll of about $45 million), but we shouldn't expect them to spend a fraction of that on two or three soccer players.

Makes loads of sense. :facepalm:

Tell you what come back and have this discussion when TFC drops anywhere near the amount of money Bayern Munich does, I guarantee we will not be having this discussion any time soon. What has possibly convinced you that the MLSE are going to spend anywhere near as much as Bayern Munich, please tell because I would love to know? Could it be all the great players we have signed so far? Well lets wait a minute there we actually dont have any great players. Could it be our big signing DeGuzman? Well he is certainly not in the same standard as Beckam or Henry so it cannot even be that. I am seriously at a loss to see what evidence you seem to have accumulated that would make you think TFC are going to spend as big as the biggest team in Germany?

[king dave]

I don't buy the "they wouldn't come to Toronto (the city)" excuse one bit. If the right offer is there, anything is possible.
I wouldn't come here if I was me.
This fucking club will be re-building for as long as I can drink beer.
KD.

[shwade]

I wouldn't come here if I was me.
This fucking club will be re-building for as long as I can drink beer.
KD.

he means not coming because of the city not being LA or NY.

[Hitcho]

Tell you what come back and have this discussion when TFC drops anywhere near the amount of money Bayern Munich does, I guarantee we will not be having this discussion any time soon. What has possibly convinced you that the MLSE are going to spend anywhere near as much as Bayern Munich, please tell because I would love to know? Could it be all the great players we have signed so far? Well lets wait a minute there we actually dont have any great players. Could it be our big signing DeGuzman? Well he is certainly not in the same standard as Beckam or Henry so it cannot even be that. I am seriously at a loss to see what evidence you seem to have accumulated that would make you think TFC are going to spend as big as the biggest team in Germany?

I'm not sure if you're being deliberately obtuse, but clearly the point he was making is that ML$E COULD spend the money, because they have it to spend, which means all the arguments as to "we could never afford X" are baseless, because we could afford them if everything fell into place. He's not saying that ML$E WILL spend the money. But the message is "aim big, because the cash is there to back it up if necessary", not "they've ear-marked the cash and will definitely be spending it every season from now on until they have eclipsed Bayern (or whoever)".

[ArmenJBX]

Thank you!

[andyc]

We need a winger. Not necessarily DP, but they will have to pay someone good MLS money. We've been missing a proper winger for a long time.

Just one?? A couple of wingers and a couple of full backs to bring balance to the team...

[King Tut]

I wouldn't come here if I was me.
This fucking club will be re-building for as long as I can drink beer.
KD.

If I threw a $10 million contract at you, you would come here and release a statement along the lines of "It was always my childhood dream to play for Toronto FC." (Sounds familiar?) :D

By the way, I added another 20 possibilities to the list. It's gone from 60-80.

[King Tut]

We need a winger. Not necessarily DP, but they will have to pay someone good MLS money. We've been missing a proper winger for a long time.

There was a great free agent just a few weeks ago (Gilberto from the Angolan NT). He's a great left winger, great free kick shooter, has dazzling dribbles and highly experienced. Sadly that part of the world is inexistent on our radar. He wouldn't be a DP of course. He'd be a 200k type. He's at SK Lierse in Belgium now.

There's plenty of players out there. The people scouting just need to keep their eyes wide open.

[king dave]

If I threw a $10 million contract at you, you would come here and release a statement along the lines of "It was always my childhood dream to play for Toronto FC." (Sounds familiar?) :D

By the way, I added another 20 possibilities to the list. It's gone from 60-80.
No. I was an only child and had no friends.
Single female parent so none of these scenarios fit what I know.
My earliest dream was to marry Loni Anderson.
And I am stil on it bucko.
KD.

[king dave]

If I threw a $10 million contract at you.

I would throw it back.
Because that is how the Br_____le rolls you fuck!
KD.

[King Tut]

No. I was an only child and had no friends.
Single female parent so none of these scenarios fit what I know.
My earliest dream was to marry Loni Anderson.
And I am stil on it bucko.
KD.

Did you think Cannavaro's childhood dream of playing/living in the UAE made any sense when he said that upon signing? If he said that recently he dreamed of living in Dubai, I can understand and totally see no problem. Saying it was a childhood is a total lie, because during his childhood, Dubai wasn't on many people's radars. lol :D

Money talks. The right offer will have you some of these guys on the list and they might even say things that are total crazy and out of this world. lol


I would throw it back.
Because that is how the Br_____le rolls you fuck!
KD.


Gotcha! :D
You would take the Beckerman package.

[king dave]

Did you think Cannavaro's childhood dream of playing/living in the UAE made any sense when he said that upon signing? If he said that recently he dreamed of living in Dubai, I can understand and totally see no problem. Saying it was a childhood is a total lie, because during his childhood, Dubai wasn't on many people's radars. lol :D

Money talks. The right offer will have you some of these guys on the list and they might even say things that are total crazy and out of this world. lol



Gotcha! :D
You would take the Beckerman package.
Yes.
Money sure does talk.
It got TFC and the Teachers Pension Plan to where they are today boy.
KD.

[king dave]

^I think I just zinged Omar??:scarf:
KD.

[king dave]

I love zinging Omar!
KD.

cue - BM - COPA

[King Tut]

Yes.
Money sure does talk.
It got TFC and the Teachers Pension Plan to where they are today boy.
KD.

You're obviously not getting my point. No you did not Zing me. You just went off road with a completely different train of thought. Money is the reason the likes of Romario, Bebeto, Stoichkov, Denílson, Ronald de Boer, Frank de Boer, Fernando Hierro, Émile Mpenza, Juninho Pernambucano, Marcel Desailly, Abdul Kader Keïta, Gabriel Batistuta, Lomana LuaLua, Stefan Effenberg and Fabio Cannavaro were once plying their trade in places (Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE) where no one ever thought players of that caliber would end up.

Having money and not know how to use it or where to spend it is obviously not going to get you anywhere. ML$E didn't spend. JDG? Give me a fucking break. Mista? LOL. The people on that list I posted are on a different level. I'd like to see a player of Henry's caliber here, or Del Piero's. That's where the money talks.

[torontocelt]

I'm not sure if you're being deliberately obtuse, but clearly the point he was making is that ML$E COULD spend the money, because they have it to spend, which means all the arguments as to "we could never afford X" are baseless, because we could afford them if everything fell into place. He's not saying that ML$E WILL spend the money. But the message is "aim big, because the cash is there to back it up if necessary", not "they've ear-marked the cash and will definitely be spending it every season from now on until they have eclipsed Bayern (or whoever)".

MLSE could spend the money yes, but will they I would say no. The argument that we could not afford top players like Bayern is not baseless if the MLSE refuse to put the money into TFC. TFC is not the leafs, they will never drop the same amount of money into TFC as they would the leafs, to think that they will is crazy. Football is no where near as popular as hockey in canada, football isn't even that popular in north america. What does MLSE have to gain by spending as much money as a Bayern Munich? There is no real money in the league for MLSE to be spending $50m - $100m on TFC, how would they get their money back on that investment? If the MLSE is all about making money then dropping that money on a MLSE football team from Toronto is not going to be a good investment. All this talk of TFC having the funds to match the big clubs is just rubbish because that money is not going to be made readily available so what is the point in thinking that it will?

In Scotland Celtic's majority shareholder is called Dermot Desmond. Desmond is estimated to be worth 1.5 billion pounds. Celtic fans do not talk about how potentially we could be outspending other football clubs for big players because we are never going to see any of that money. Desmond like the MLSE is a businessman and he is not going to make money from Celtic so there is no point in him ploughing tons of money into it. The premiership has some owners who do that but the MLSE in the MLS will not be one of those owners.

Besides the original argument was that we should be looking at players like Naymar and Tommy Muiller as the MLSE has more than enough cash to buy these guys. Lets try and have some grip on reality, those kind of deals are fantasy land.

[Menelaos]

Where do I start?

1) Del Piero
2) Ruud Van Nistelrooy
3) Raul
4) Brazilian Ronaldo
5) Rivaldo
6) Luca Toni
7) Trezeguet (He was a free agent for a few hours, before signing for Hercules)
8) Gennaro Gattuso
9) Juan Riquelme
10)Eiður Guðjohnsen
11)Mohamed Abotrika
12)Ahmed Hassan
13)Andriy Shevchenko
14)Ryan Giggs (would be amazing but don't see him ever leaving United)
15)Clarence Seedorf
16)Filippo Inzaghi
17)Martin Palermo
18)Salvador Cabañas
19)Yossi Benayoun (when his time comes I guess)
20)Mohamed Kallon
21)Claude Makélelé
22)Ludovic Giuly
23)Diego Forlán (highly unlikely but would be fucking amazing if it ever happened)
24)Guti (should definitely end up in MLS down the road)
25)Nolberto Solano
26)Craig Bellamy
27)John Carew
28)Mancini
29)Stephen Appiah
30)Hernán Crespo
31)Ariel Ortega
32)Juan Sebastián Verón
33)Michael Ballack
34)Mark van Bommel
35)Javier Saviola
36)Youssouf Hadji
37)Mohammadou Idrissou (This guy would shred this league with his size, mobility and aerial skills)
38) Nihat Kahveci (This one's for you Deniz..LOL..Jk..He'd actually be a hit too)
39)Nuno Gomez
40)Roberto Carlos
41)Frédéric Oumar Kanouté
42)Bakari Koné
43)Yasser Al-Qahtani
44)Zé Roberto
45)Yasuhito Endō
46)Harry Kewell
47)Tim Cahill
48)Christian Wilhelmsson
49)Francileudo Santos
50)Bobby Zamora
51)Peter Odemwingie
52)Milan Baroš
53)John Chukwudi Utaka
54)Aruna Dindane
55)Mamadou Niang
56)Robbie Keane
57)Roque Santa Cruz
58)Julio Ricardo Cruz (FREE FUCKING AGENT RIGHT NOW)
59)Álvaro Recoba
60)Santiago Solari
61)Mido
62)Angelos Charisteas
63)Jon Dahl Tomasson
64)Torsten Frings
65)Daniel Güiza
66)Paul Scholes
67)Benni McCarthy
68)Michael Owen
69)Owen Hargreaves (a little controversial)
70)Lomana LuaLua
71)Émile Mpenza
72)Elano
73)Gilberto Silva
74)Patrick Vieira
75)Adrian Mutu
76)Ali Karimi
77)Giovanni van Bronckhorst
78)Wesley Sonck
79)Sylvain Wiltord
80)Alexander Frei (the Frei connection) ;)


That's enough for now...I excluded defenders/goalkeepers, since I prefer designated players who are effective in the final third as well. I think in goalkeepers and the backline, we don't need to dish out DP money. Defensive mid is as far back I'd go with DP contracts, but that's just my opinion. If I included some goalkeepers and defenders, I could probably hit the hundreds with that list. ;)

Some are more realistic than others, but at the end of the day MONEY TALKS. Dish out a nice offer and anything can happen.

If 3 of those names are willing to come to Toronto I would be surprised.
Ballack? Forlan? Come on...lets at least try to be realistic.

This DP talk is pointless.
This team is not in any position to attract any interest from anyone worth the DP money. Until they show they can get their act together on the coaching side first, real players won't be interested.

[Cashcleaner]

Tell you what come back and have this discussion when TFC drops anywhere near the amount of money Bayern Munich does, I guarantee we will not be having this discussion any time soon. What has possibly convinced you that the MLSE are going to spend anywhere near as much as Bayern Munich, please tell because I would love to know? Could it be all the great players we have signed so far? Well lets wait a minute there we actually dont have any great players. Could it be our big signing DeGuzman? Well he is certainly not in the same standard as Beckam or Henry so it cannot even be that. I am seriously at a loss to see what evidence you seem to have accumulated that would make you think TFC are going to spend as big as the biggest team in Germany?

I like how you've totally tried to turn your position completely around in an attempt to save face. Great effort and all, but hard to pull off when people can just go back a few pages to see what you actually wrote. Here's a quick refresh:

JimmyBaldX mentions that MLSE has the same amount of money as Bayern Munich (with which to pick up new talent). You questioned the accuracy of his post. I then confirmed that actually Toronto has MORE financial resources with which to draw from and remarked that we should be utilizing more of those resources to acquire players for TFC.

Now you're trying to say: "Well yes we HAVE the money, but that doesn't mean we can use all of it". That's great and all, but doesn't detract from the fact that we still have the capability to outspend Bayern Munich.

I suspect you already knew that, though, and that's why your last post was an obvious attempt to steer the discussion from the initial points Jimmy and I made.

[torontocelt]

I like how you've totally tried to turn your position completely around in an attempt to save face. Great effort and all, but hard to pull off when people can just go back a few pages to see what you actually wrote. Here's a quick refresh:

JimmyBaldX mentions that MLSE has the same amount of money as Bayern Munich (with which to pick up new talent). You questioned the accuracy of his post. I then confirmed that actually Toronto has MORE financial resources with which to draw from and remarked that we should be utilizing more of those resources to acquire players for TFC.

Now you're trying to say: "Well yes we HAVE the money, but that doesn't mean we can use all of it". That's great and all, but doesn't detract from the fact that we still have the capability to outspend Bayern Munich.

I suspect you already knew that, though, and that's why your last post was an obvious attempt to steer the discussion from the initial points Jimmy and I made.

I am not trying ot retract anything actually. The MLSE might have the money but they are not going to spend it on TFC. Does that mean that TFC has more money to spend than Bayern? If you think that TFC the club has just as much money readily available to spend as Bayern Munich then hey good for you, I do not agree.

[menefreghista]

The TFC v Bayern debate is meaningless.

But we sure as hell could be spending like NYRB did.

I think we will only have 1 extra DP spot next season though. De Guzman will still be around and I bet De Rosario gets bumped up.

But considering the money us fans have pumped into this team I don't think its unreasonable to expect a quality DP for the 3rd spot that would rival some of the better DP signings in this league.

[Fort York Redcoat]

This team is not in any position to attract any interest from anyone worth the DP money. Until they show they can get their act together on the coaching side first, real players won't be interested.

Agreed that IF we were to go for any of these names right now we would have to break the bank. Once we get a manager that has some clout on the world stage then getting a DP will be a hell of a lot easier.

[Oldtimer]

ML$E might not spend as much on TFC as the Leafs (it wouldn't make much business sense), but they could certainly drop a few million on the right DPs. It would make a lot of business sense to get a winner, so that they can reclaim what has been lost by Mo's mismanagement, and build long-term franchise value.

[Menelaos]

^did you just use "sense" when refering to ML$E?

Tisk tisk Oldtimer...you should know better by now...

[Blowing Bubbles]

Would you guys if you had the choice have someone

a) That is a mega name, huge hype, former Euro superstar who will sell a bunch of shirts but either spend the season injured or only score a couple of goals .... lets say Michael Owen, Del Piero, Ruud, etc.

Well maybe not Ruud b/c I think is still a beast, but for the purposes of this question lets assume if he came here he'd be a surprising flop

b) Some dude 90% of this board and 99.9% of the general soccer population never heard of, a guy who has been a career producer in a South American league - Argentina, Columbia, or whatever

Who has no cache, no shirt sales, etc but comes in and scores us 15 goals?

i guess what I'm getting at is why do ppl want most in a DP? The hype, the nostalgia about what the player did in 2001 Champions League, or is beasting on the field #1 priority and if a DP comes in here and flops you'll be boooo'ng the piss out of him?

[Blowing Bubbles]

I'll go even more extreme in my example.

The table leaders in the J-League have a 6'4" Aussy I never heard of who has scored 12 goals in 16 games this year. He seems to be a journeyman, although his career did start at Wolfsburg.

Now I'm not suggesting we go spend 1 million $ on Joshua Kennedy :) ...... but there are dozens of players in world football who we probably have never heard of unless we're Football Manager geeks who could probably come in here as a 1 million $ DP and do a job.

edit - sorry 14 goals in 23 appearance. 2 of the goals are PK

[Blowing Bubbles]

Then there are all the Brazilians in the J-League ..... Marquinhos has 43 in the last 3 years but he is 34 yrs old and he's going from 21 to 13 to 9 this season so not cool with that.

[Alixir]

Then there are all the Brazilians in the J-League ..... Marquinhos has 43 in the last 3 years but he is 34 yrs old and he's going from 21 to 13 to 9 this season so not cool with that.Stupid Marquinhos...He will probably get a statue of himself built next to Zico outside Kashima Stadium :p

[scooter]

If 3 of those names are willing to come to Toronto I would be surprised.
Ballack? Forlan? Come on...lets at least try to be realistic.

This DP talk is pointless.
This team is not in any position to attract any interest from anyone worth the DP money. Until they show they can get their act together on the coaching side first, real players won't be interested.

thats the point that is being missed here

how do we attract the kind of players we need

with a good gm ---manager --- who has contact with players who can help us

[fetajr]

Would you guys if you had the choice have someone

a) That is a mega name, huge hype, former Euro superstar who will sell a bunch of shirts but either spend the season injured or only score a couple of goals .... lets say Michael Owen, Del Piero, Ruud, etc.

Well maybe not Ruud b/c I think is still a beast, but for the purposes of this question lets assume if he came here he'd be a surprising flop

b) Some dude 90% of this board and 99.9% of the general soccer population never heard of, a guy who has been a career producer in a South American league - Argentina, Columbia, or whatever

Who has no cache, no shirt sales, etc but comes in and scores us 15 goals?

i guess what I'm getting at is why do ppl want most in a DP? The hype, the nostalgia about what the player did in 2001 Champions League, or is beasting on the field #1 priority and if a DP comes in here and flops you'll be boooo'ng the piss out of him?


i'll take option option B) way before a washed up euro star.

Guillermo Barros Schelotto turned out well and all the Columbus Crew manager had to do was subscribe to Fox Sports en Espanol and TYC Sports on Directv to scout him and see who good he was.

[torontocelt]

i'll take option option B) way before a washed up euro star.

Guillermo Barros Schelotto turned out well and all the Columbus Crew manager had to do was subscribe to Fox Sports en Espanol and TYC Sports on Directv to scout him and see who good he was.

Definitely not someone who is injury prone like Owen or Hargreaves. It is possible for both of these guys to come back and still be very good players but they have spent more time injured than fit in recent years and it would be a massive risk to take players on who have such consistant injury problems.

I think the best signing TFC could make this summer would be an excellent manager, who that could be I have no idea but I would be worrying about getting an excellent manager first and foremost. I guess the same would go for a good GM although to be honest I do not like that concept and I prefer that the manager has more control.

[jloome]

Definitely not someone who is injury prone like Owen or Hargreaves. It is possible for both of these guys to come back and still be very good players but they have spent more time injured than fit in recent years and it would be a massive risk to take players on who have such consistant injury problems.

I think the best signing TFC could make this summer would be an excellent manager, who that could be I have no idea but I would be worrying about getting an excellent manager first and foremost. I guess the same would go for a good GM although to be honest I do not like that concept and I prefer that the manager has more control.

QFAUFT

As someone has noted, Hans Backe has brought in 19 new players in new york this year. They were a well-stronger team than us even BEFORE Henry and Marquez.

Getting someone who can both pick and work with talent has to be the priority , as we've too much team to rebuild to concentrate primarily on the DP issue.

[Bloor West FC]

I don't think we need a DP at all. We should however get rid of the DP or DP's we have. There were plaenty of teams this year and the previous years without a DP and they played great season's.

We just need people who can work together and shoot on target when they have the chance.

[Menelaos]

I don't think we need a DP at all. We should however get rid of the DP or DP's we have. There were plaenty of teams this year and the previous years without a DP and they played great season's.

We just need people who can work together and shoot on target when they have the chance.

That was before you could have multiple DP's, now with that option out there and the skill that teams could potentially aquire, will make "what happend in the past" no longer relevant.

The equation has changed, so you can use the same numbers and expect the same result.

[King Tut]

If 3 of those names are willing to come to Toronto I would be surprised.
Ballack? Forlan? Come on...lets at least try to be realistic.

This DP talk is pointless.
This team is not in any position to attract any interest from anyone worth the DP money. Until they show they can get their act together on the coaching side first, real players won't be interested.

Forlan was a wild one thrown out there. I agree. But there's a handful of players on that list that fit the category quiet well.

And yes everything is possible. Who would've imagined that a guy like Beckham would end up in LA so early? People knew he'd come to America eventually, but not that soon (2007). Sure you're going to tell me he has an Academy there, house, businesses, whatever. At the end of the day, he's still a star player that was still in demand for several G14 clubs and ended up joining the mediocre league known as MLS. Did his links to LA/USA play a major role? Ofcourse! But did the money play an even bigger role? HELL YEAH!

Ljungberg to Seattle? Sure he's not the same "name" or near the same "form" as Becks and Henry, but Seattle is not LA or NYC. I am sure if someone suggested Ljungberg as DP days before he joined Seattle, people here would've been saying "Not a chance".

ML$E has plenty of money. With the prices of tickets right now in BMO (next season), there should be marquee players like we're seeing in a few other teams in this league. Sure Toronto is no LA or NYC, but if you're putting out ticket prices like that, then the team on the pitch better justify that. That team should include a real DP, not JDG (who is a fucking joke) or Mista (who was only brought over because someone is too lazy to scout worldwide and decided to bring JDG's buddy).

I wouldn't say Ballack is impossible. Before you know it, there will be some teams in this league bidding for some of the players on this list (even Ballack) and possibly bringing them over.

Who remembers Paul B. when he interviewed Canadian Bhoy on the second deck in 2007? I remember him clearly telling Mike "When we go out and sign a DP, it will be a marquee former FIFA XI type of guy who would make the team improve significantly and if he' getting paid 10x more than everyone else, then he'll be 10x better."


JDG/Mista were never world xi, not even close.

If the fans were demanding of real star DPs, this organization would listen. But people's expectations are so low and they're satisfied with garbage, so it leaves the organization not having to worry, since they can bring a nobody, sign him to a DP contract and everyone will eat the shit.

I want to see money dished out. If a $10 million contract is what it will take to get Del Pierro's signature, then so be it. Why do people care anyway? Most of the money wouldn't be a cap hit.

[ArmenJBX]

I see no reason why we can't sign any player in the world. We have the capacity of signing even Cristiano Ronaldo.

There willingness to play for us is a whole other story. But, we shouldn't go in with the mentality that everyone's going to say no, so lets move from crap upwards, we should start at C.Ronaldo and move down until someone says yes :D

Look at Kaka...out of favour at Real Madrid, there is no reason we can't quadruple his current salary and attract him to a world class city like Toronto. I know he's not a money guy but if the right offer came along, he MIGHT be willing. And what's the worst that will happen? He'll say no? That's fine! We move on to the next guy :D

We're the biggest sporting business in north america, so whereas the likes of AC Milan and the rest may have debt, we don't. We can throw money around like the big boys.

[King Tut]

But we sure as hell could be spending like NYRB did.

I think we will only have 1 extra DP spot next season though. De Guzman will still be around and I bet De Rosario gets bumped up.

But considering the money us fans have pumped into this team I don't think its unreasonable to expect a quality DP for the 3rd spot that would rival some of the better DP signings in this league.

Exactly.

In fact, personally, I'd like to see us dish out real money and snatch up a player who's actually worth a spot, not a JDG-type. With the constant unjustified price increases, lack of success on the pitch, etc, this team should be making a few splashes in the pond.

People's expectations of DP signings is so low, that it is so easy for the organization to sign shit players at over priced contracts. They know the vast majority will eat the shit and say "thank you".

At this point (after seeing how other teams in the league have spent), It's not too much to expect first rate signings just like them, plain and simple.

There's plenty of people on that list I posted who should be targeted. Why aren't we viciously going after a guy like Ronaldo? or Julio Cruz (former Inter player)? People need to stop giving ML$E a reason to feed us shit. Raise your expectations people!!

[King Tut]

Agreed that IF we were to go for any of these names right now we would have to break the bank. Once we get a manager that has some clout on the world stage then getting a DP will be a hell of a lot easier.

So break the bank!!

That's the least this organization can do for the fans after the shit we've been seeing for the last 4 years!


they could certainly drop a few million on the right DPs. It would make a lot of business sense to get a winner, so that they can reclaim what has been lost by Mo's mismanagement, and build long-term franchise value.

Exactly.

[King Tut]

Would you guys if you had the choice have someone

a) That is a mega name, huge hype, former Euro superstar who will sell a bunch of shirts but either spend the season injured or only score a couple of goals .... lets say Michael Owen, Del Piero, Ruud, etc.

Well maybe not Ruud b/c I think is still a beast, but for the purposes of this question lets assume if he came here he'd be a surprising flop

b) Some dude 90% of this board and 99.9% of the general soccer population never heard of, a guy who has been a career producer in a South American league - Argentina, Columbia, or whatever

Who has no cache, no shirt sales, etc but comes in and scores us 15 goals?

i guess what I'm getting at is why do ppl want most in a DP? The hype, the nostalgia about what the player did in 2001 Champions League, or is beasting on the field #1 priority and if a DP comes in here and flops you'll be boooo'ng the piss out of him?

I'll take Option A.

Your question is unfairly worded. You make it seem like all the guys I posted will be 100% bust.

I'm fairly confident a guy like Del Piero would prosper in this league, just like I'm fairly confident Juninho (now in Qatar) would do wonders.

If we go by your same token, some of those no namers could flop here as well.

If every team used your same logic and feared signing a big star, Henry would not be in NYC, Beckham would not be in LA, Marquez would not be in NYC, etc.

And finally, what the fuck has JDG done for this team? He's the biggest example of a bust. :rolleyes:

So yeah, Option A please and thanks. :)

[King Tut]

I don't think we need a DP at all. We should however get rid of the DP or DP's we have. There were plaenty of teams this year and the previous years without a DP and they played great season's.

We just need people who can work together and shoot on target when they have the chance.

Why not both? Why not build a good team and use the DP rules to our advantage?

[Dave67]

^ Tut - How did Said do this year? You were big on him when he trialed in the Spring. Where did he end up playing / is he playing again?

[King Tut]

^ Tut - How did Said do this year? You were big on him when he trialed in the Spring. Where did he end up playing?

He ended up in the Egyptian League with an Alexandria-based club called "Ittihad El Sakandary". Sadly, he didn't last long before going at it with the coach and terminating his contract. The coach didn't get along with him, even though that same coach loved him when they were both at Zamalek a few years earlier. He benched him for a few games, played him a few more (pressure from the fans), before Hema finally said "Fuck it" and terminated his contract with Ittihad.

With that said, I always made it clear that Ibrahim Said makes Joey Barton look like a tame cat, even though when he's focused (Egypt 2006, Ghana 2008), he can be one of the best defenders in all of Africa. After all, he proved it against some of the World's finest strikers. The problem is once any incident takes place, it's hard to mend bridges with this guy. He's hotheaded and a handful of trouble.

In his interviews, he speaks very highly of Toronto FC and mentions that his deal collapsed because of financial issues, rather than performance on the pitch. I have no doubts he's right about that as his game is unquestionable, and it's his attitude/behavior that is the problem.

He's a free agent right now.

[David_Oliveira]

Another European (albeit via Brazil) seems to be available. Liedson (playing for sporting and the Portuguese National Team) seems to be on his way out. Rumors are that Brazilian clubs are going to make a push for him in the winter transfer market

[/URL][URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Li%C3%A9dson"]Here is his Wiki (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Li%C3%A9dson)

[UltraSuperMegaMo]

Liedson would be interesting. I don't watch a huge amount of Portuguese league games, but I seem to remember that he looked a little light weight. I wonder if he would be physical enough?

[King Tut]

Another European (albeit via Brazil) seems to be available. Liedson (playing for sporting and the Portuguese National Team) seems to be on his way out. Rumors are that Brazilian clubs are going to make a push for him in the winter transfer market

[/URL][URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Li%C3%A9dson"]Here is his Wiki (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Li%C3%A9dson)

Give me, Give me!

Liedson would be fucking amazing!

[dupont]

I think we should go after Park Ji-Sung. I doubt he would consider it now but maybe in 2 or 3 years.
He might be a little small for the rough MLS play though.

[flambe]

Liedson would be interesting. I don't watch a huge amount of Portuguese league games, but I seem to remember that he looked a little light weight. I wonder if he would be physical enough?

from his wiki:

Nicknamed (http://redpatchboys.ca/wiki/Nickname) Levezinho ("Little light one") due to his light frame (only 63 kg (http://redpatchboys.ca/wiki/Kilogram)[1] (http://redpatchboys.ca/forums/#cite_note-LIEDSON-0)), he spent the bulk of his career in Portugal (http://redpatchboys.ca/wiki/Portugal), even representing its national team (http://redpatchboys.ca/wiki/Portugal_national_football_team).

[Blowing Bubbles]

I think we should go after Park Ji-Sung. I doubt he would consider it now but maybe in 2 or 3 years.
He might be a little small for the rough MLS play though.

he'd make more money in the J or K league

[jloome]

How the hell can you say this with such certainty?

Fact - Hercules plays in his wife's home town

Please provide links that had legit stories linking him to MLS. In the words of Sir Charles "that's turrrrrrrrrible" :facepalm:

Uh, premature facepalmer, where do you get certainty out of the word "probably."

His wife's hometown; yeah, that would trump $5 million a season. This is exactly the kind of attitude people on here are talking about. Before Ljungberg signed in Seattle, no one thought that level of player was realistic for anyone other than New York or LA. Now he's playing in Chicago.

[jloome]

I am not trying ot retract anything actually. The MLSE might have the money but they are not going to spend it on TFC. Does that mean that TFC has more money to spend than Bayern? If you think that TFC the club has just as much money readily available to spend as Bayern Munich then hey good for you, I do not agree.

The argument wasn't whether it was "readily available," just whether they had it.

Really dude, have some humility. Agree you were wrong, then point out that having money your company won't let you use is pretty useless. Everybody wins, nobody insults anyone's intelligence.

[jloome]

He ended up in the Egyptian League with an Alexandria-based club called "Ittihad El Sakandary". Sadly, he didn't last long before going at it with the coach and terminating his contract. The coach didn't get along with him, even though that same coach loved him when they were both at Zamalek a few years earlier. He benched him for a few games, played him a few more (pressure from the fans), before Hema finally said "Fuck it" and terminated his contract with Ittihad.

With that said, I always made it clear that Ibrahim Said makes Joey Barton look like a tame cat, even though when he's focused (Egypt 2006, Ghana 2008), he can be one of the best defenders in all of Africa. After all, he proved it against some of the World's finest strikers. The problem is once any incident takes place, it's hard to mend bridges with this guy. He's hotheaded and a handful of trouble.

In his interviews, he speaks very highly of Toronto FC and mentions that his deal collapsed because of financial issues, rather than performance on the pitch. I have no doubts he's right about that as his game is unquestionable, and it's his attitude/behavior that is the problem.

He's a free agent right now.

Spectacular player, total nutcase once provoked.

[dupont]

Before Ljungberg signed in Seattle, no one thought that level of player was realistic for anyone other than New York or LA. Now he's playing in Chicago.

I keep saying this too. Every time I hear that Toronto can't compare to NY or LA. Yeah fine that may be true but Seattle was able to attract a big name (which in this case didn't work out but that is besides the point) and Seattle is like half the size of Toronto and a much less important city.
I think people need to realize Toronto is a big city with tons of cash and any failure to sign good or big name DPs falls squarely on the owners and not on the city.

[torontocelt]

The argument wasn't whether it was "readily available," just whether they had it.

Really dude, have some humility. Agree you were wrong, then point out that having money your company won't let you use is pretty useless. Everybody wins, nobody insults anyone's intelligence.

Yeah you are probably right, no point in going round in circles. Apologies all round. I was wrong to think that potentially TFC does not have the resources of Bayern, as I was corrected they do although it is indeed pointless if they are never going to be used. Hopefully my good reputation is restored.

[Blowing Bubbles]

Hah, that list on the previous page 80 names deep with the likes of Giggs, Scholes and Forlan (are you for real?)

Anyway maybe add #81 to the list. Oh and he's going to be out of contract.

From Athetico Madrid - Simao

[Blowing Bubbles]

hahaha lets get the hype machine rolling.

If we added JPA and Simao the ppl who feel they've been aggrieved with some awful footy the last few years might have something to smile about

[TFC/Everton]

also Blanco & Angel.

I would give my right foot, and thats my strike foot, to sign both Blanco and Angel...... PLEASE GOD LET IT HAPPEN!!!!!

I can see it now, BLANCO to Angel.....GOALLLLLLL!!!!!!!!!

[King Tut]

Spectacular player, total nutcase once provoked.

Yep. Same thing with a guy called Shikabala now. Amazing player, and I mean amazing. He's a winger/forward and is the Egyptian version of Cristiano Ronaldo. Dazzling speed, dribbles, freekicks, tricks, right/left foot, good on headers, etc. The downside? Tons of attitude. Anderlecht and Standard Liege are trying to sign him. If he ever ends up in Europe on a permanent contract, he will climb his way up to the best teams in the world. Zamalek wont let him go for under €4.5 million though. Standard offered €2.5 and Anderlecht offered €2.


Uh, premature facepalmer, where do you get certainty out of the word "probably."

His wife's hometown; yeah, that would trump $5 million a season. This is exactly the kind of attitude people on here are talking about. Before Ljungberg signed in Seattle, no one thought that level of player was realistic for anyone other than New York or LA. Now he's playing in Chicago.

Exactly. Time to raise the bar people.

[King Tut]

Hah, that list on the previous page 80 names deep with the likes of Giggs, Scholes and Forlan (are you for real?)

Anyway maybe add #81 to the list. Oh and he's going to be out of contract.

From Athetico Madrid - Simao

Yeah I'm for real.

I explained a million times and so I'll leave it at just that. I'm not going to repeat myself over and over because a select few don't see it the same way.

[TFC Tifoso]

one advatage that Toronto has is that there is a population of nearly every culture in the world here, so if you can't sell the team, then you sell the city....make a player feel like they will be playing at home....sure you can say the same about other cities in MLS, but there are also some who definitely do not have the ability to say that....

[TFC_Central]

We need a winger. Not necessarily DP, but they will have to pay someone good MLS money. We've been missing a proper winger for a long time.

Josh Simpson. /end of.

[Blowing Bubbles]

Ljunberg signed for 1.2 Fng Million a season, not 5 million.

It's not like Seattle went out and blew everyone out of the water. In fact the market for his services was pretty small.

[tfc2008]

ML$E laugh his ass of when they see al this names on the site.
There never come here a really big name as wat you guys hope and write, and the reason is THEY DONT CARE.

[Baggio2TFC]

http://www.goal.com/en/news/10/italy/2010/10/09/2157746/juventus-alessandro-del-piero-to-part-company-at-the-end-of


Hmmmm.......maybe??? Would be F**cking amazing!!!

[Chevy]

Let the rumours start.....

[sully]

ML$E laugh his ass of when they see al this names on the site.
There never come here a really big name as wat you guys hope and write, and the reason is THEY DONT CARE.

You're probably right. But really, they owe us a really big name. Now's watershed moment for this league...they can either watch LA and NY move to the next level and stay behind or not, (i.e. "value-pack" DPs). Or has the moment already passed? Am I at the next level of disappointment with this club..i.e. confusion/dispondency?

[ExiledRed]

ML$E laugh his ass of when they see al this names on the site.
There never come here a really big name as wat you guys hope and write, and the reason is THEY DONT CARE.

So whats the point of this post?
Just to reiterate that ownership doesnt care and we should all accept getting nickel and dimed despite paying more for our tickets than anyone else, and belonging to one of the largerst sporting empires in the world?

Do you think the reason they dont care, is because the fans openly admit that they dont expect them to care?

[sampace]

The next DP will be Dwayne write me a cheque DeRosario. No ball leaves his foot unless it is 10 feet high and wide.

"AND HE SHOOTS FROM THERE!" To borrow a line from PES!