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View Full Version : Most overrated/underrated players in MLS



Yohan
04-26-2013, 08:51 PM
Because I'm bored

Overrated
-Juan Agudelo (Chivas USA): mainly because all the USMNT hype he received, while a good player but nothing that special
-Joel Lindpere (Chicago): if he's suppose to add that extra special to Chicago offence, I've yet to see it.
-Drew Moor (Colorado): ironman and steady defender and all that, but never felt he was anything that great. Colorado's record after 2010 says all.
-Federico Higuain (Columbus): only based upon his recent form. I don't know whether he's been found out, but he hasn't been very influential for Colorado IMO. Then again, it's hard to live up to heir to Barros Schelotto label.
-Dejan Jakovic (DC United): because he's rare among CBs that he can make a decent pass, but prone to way too many boneheaded mistakes.
-Fabian Castillo (Dallas): the DP label kinda jades me against Castillo, but even taking into account that he's a youngster doesn't deliver enough goods. Needs to show more consistency.
-Will Bruin (Houston): had a breakout year last season, but then again, if you get fed the kind of quality service from Davis and Garcia, you'd have to be worse than Chad Barrett to not to put some of them in the net. Deffo isn't playing the way he's suppose to lead the line for Houston.
-Carlo Cudicini (LA): mainly due to his resume, but I haven't seen him singlehandedly steal the show the way his resume would kinda say.
-Marco di Vaio (Montreal): yes, he's scoring 1 goal 2 games rate right now, but wait until road travels and the heavy schedule catches up to his legs and his goals dries up. also perennial lives on offside. those kind of players annoy me for some reason.
-Juan Toja (New England): somehow I expected more from a guy who used to be so good for Dallas before moving to Dallas. he's shown nothing for New England so far.
-Jamison Olave (New York): as big of a monster he used to be for RSL, too many injuries affecting him, causing him to make mistakes not typical of him.
-Sebastien Le Toux (Philadelphia): after his 2 good seasons with Philly, been a drifter last 2 seasons, not quite sticking with either Caps or NY. and it's not like he's got a monster salary. you gotta wonder why. not producing the goods back with Philly this season either.
-Darlington Nagbe (Portland): amazing talent. haven't put it together yet. gotta do more than occasional wonder goals to succeed in MLS.
-Robbie Findley (RSL): the guy who was good enough to play for US in WC2010 is nowhere to be found. then again, his goals have deserted him a long time ago and looks like same with RSL now.
-Alan Gordon (San Jose): gotta love a late bloomer, but plays like a gladiator and is paying the price. seems too often injured to be reliable for a coach to count on him.
-Mauro Rosales (Seattle): years may have finally caught upon him. too slow to play on wing and his passing and crossing have been garbage too. just not as influential as he used to be.
-Benny Feilhaber (Kansas City): just haven't been the playmaker people expected him to be when he signed with MLS.
-Ashtone Morgan (Toronto): thought among many who follow TFC as next starter for CMNT, but has regress a bit. positionally gets caught off guard, not so good 1v1 and his dribbling isn't that good either.
-Darren Mattocks (Vancouver): said he was going to score 20 goals this season. but the one dimensional speedster pony got found out.

Underrated
-Bobby Burling (Chivas USA): adds grit to Chivas USA backline, making Dan Kennedy work a little less
-Jalil Anibaba (Chicago): makes his share of mistakes, but versatile and brings a lot of defence IMO
-Tony Cascio (Colorado): still learning the game, but I think he's pretty steady in otherwise chaotic Rapids midfield
-Josh Williams (Columbus): unsung hero of Columbus IMO. not flashy on defence, but a threat on set piece too.
-Perry Kitchen (DC United): probably the only guy on DC United that you can rely on to not to ******** up majorly every game.
-Michel (Dallas): so far my vote for Newcomer of the year. Totally owns Dallas midfield as a DM and delivers a killer set piece. I bet you Dallas will fall apart if Michel is out injured for any length of time.
-Warren Creavalle (Houston): does everything Dom asks of him with all heart and balls. versatility is a bonus.
-AJ DeLaGarza (LA): only because Gonzo steals all the spotlight. Not quite USMNT material yet, but if you play CB in MLS and hold up pretty well as a 5'10" guy, you're pretty good. Ability to play RB is a bonus.
-Matteo Ferrari (Montreal): Di Vaio and Nesta steals all the headlines, but Ferrari has been the steady reliable CB for Montreal.
-Kelyn Rowe (New England): it sucks to play for a disorganized offensively team like New England for Rowe to fully show off his skills.
-Dax McCarty (New York): Just as irreplaceable as Henry for NYRB. dude runs his balls off every game and does the job on the offensive end too, as his 2 goals so far says. good box to box mid
-Michael Farfan (Philadelphia): ok MLS player. skill blown out of proportion to what he brings. only looked good because Adu stunk so much at philly.
-Michael Harrington (Portland): versatile FB who does the job for Portland. and nobody notices him, like nobody did when he did the job for SKC too.
-Ned Grabavoy (RSL): jack of all trades guy who always seems to be available for whatever job Kreis needs him to do for years.
-Sam Cronin (San Jose): quietly cleans up the mess in the middle of SJ midfield while Wondo and the Goonies get all the glory.
-Michael Gspurning (Seattle): a bit of stretch to say underrated, but he's been the only guy to show up every game for Seattle so far this season.
-Seth Sinovic (Kansas City): once a cast off from New England, now a mainstay of stingy SKC backline. game as evolved to get involved offensively too.
-Luis Silva (Toronto): dude can pass the ball. put him on a pure AM/playmaker role and let him control the game.
-Kenny Miller (Vancouver): hard to say a DP is under rated, but considering how badly a lot of people thought him as garbage after last season, Miller has proved to be a good player for Caps and his presence is missed right now

prizby
04-26-2013, 08:58 PM
sounds like a fun exercise; if I have time, i'll make my own list

AlanO
04-27-2013, 06:59 AM
Overrated:
- Freddy Montero (recently left Seattle): scored a lot of goals against weak teams, ineffective against better teams and totally disappeared in the playoffs.
- Sebastien Le Toux (Philly): same reasons Yohan listed.
- Bill Hamid (DC): wildly inconsistent, prone to stupid mistakes, gets rattled easily.


Underrated:
- Paolo Nagamura (KC): always puts in a solid shift in the midfield, good tackling and distribution, pops up everywhere.
- Adam Moffat (Houston): same reasons as Nagamura.
- Danny Koevermans: Toronto knows how good he is, but supporters and media in other cities rarely mention him when discussing the best strikers/DPs in the league.
- David Ferreira (Dallas): yeah everyone knows he's talented but FCD completely disintegrates when he's out of the lineup. His impact is massive.

Ultra & Proud
04-27-2013, 09:13 AM
Overrated:

Landon Donovan (LA) - Past few seasons his impact has been on a steady decline. Whether it's lack of focus/disinterest in the game or his mind and body showing signs of wear for playing so many matches, for so many years for LA, the USMNT, and for those EPL loans. His best days are gone.

Dejan Jakovic (DCU) - Overrated up in our parts were flags sometimes blind supporters but he has never been steady and most likely never will be.

Carlo Cudicini (LA) - Been fairly horrible. Brought in as an upgrade but you could pick up a domestic GK for less cash and flash and probably get more.

Darren Mattocks (Van) - Only because nearly everyone had him pegged as the next big thing, including himself. He's been alright but his me first attitude lead him to being publicly called out by team captain Reo-Coaker after blowing a chance to take the lead last week when he had two unmarked options in the box. He will probably become great but he is no where nearly the player people think he is right now.

Underrated:

Jeremy Hall/Terry Dunfield - Not that either is great but from what gets said about them, it's as if they were picked up from an indoor beer league. Both can play a part and for their reasonable salaries, are what you need to have on MLS rosters.

Nat Borchers (RSL) - Lived in Olave's shadow in RSL forever and never got his due but 'The White Rhino' is a solid MLS defender and he puts in the minutes on what has consistently been one of MLS' most reliable teams. Always manages to chip in a few goals per season too.

Abou Sky
04-27-2013, 10:03 AM
Waiting for my son Sky to meet Yohan, Sky watches all MLS games (many twice) and knows the league pretty well for an 8 year old.

Would love to see him sit down with Yohan and sponge up knowledge.

MartinUtd
04-27-2013, 10:14 AM
Good thread, we need to extract more league wide knowledge from Yohan.

Also, does anyone have a link for the Reo-Coker calling out Mattocks story? Sounds like some good gossip!

Ajax TFC
04-27-2013, 10:15 AM
Underrated:
Eric Avila - Brilliant in the center, but coaches keep playing him out of position out wide because of his speed. still pisses me off that we released him

Ultra & Proud
04-27-2013, 10:19 AM
Good thread, we need to extract more league wide knowledge from Yohan.

Also, does anyone have a link for the Reo-Coker calling out Mattocks story? Sounds like some good gossip!

http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/2013/03/24/pass-or-shoot-darren-mattocks-miss-draws-ire-nigel-reo-coker-after-vancouver