Eckersley keen to stay at TFC
Eckersley keen to stay at TFC
Last edited by denime; 07-29-2011 at 08:34 PM. Reason: Link only
OK that is really interesting. My opinion of Winter just went up.
“What the world needs is more geniuses with humility; there are so few of us left.”
Awesome. Love this kid. It would be kind of an honor to have him stay after his loan and have him sign with us.
I hope TFC does everything in their power to assure he remains part of this team. He's a solid RB
Ecks is enjoying his first stint of regular football in one place for quite some time now. No doubt he is enjoying it and is helping him develop. It's working for both parties at this point so I would like to see it continue.
Many things can change between now and January when his loan officially ends. My guess is any talk of his future here will not pick up until the end of the season.
"Failure simply isn't an option at this stage. TFC pushed its chips to the middle of the table when it splurged on Bradley and Defoe and reinforced its bet by making savvy acquisitions elsewhere. This collection of players is capable of delivering on the promises made during the close season. There are no more excuses available for TFC. Only success will continue the process of atoning for the past and establishing a higher standard for the future." FOX Sports
I thought Winter ran horrible practices
Anyway, great to see that Ecks is keen on staying. With all the on field frustration I thought for sure he'd be too fed up to stay, but it looks like the opposite is true. He has the potential to be an anchor at the back for years to come.
The article definitely sounds encouraging from Eckersley's perspective. Hopefully, TFC will be able to negotiate a transfer when his loan deal expires, because he is unquestionably the best right back in TFC history.
Sexellent! I had a feeling he may want to stay now. I honestly think bringing in Frings and Koevermans has alot to do with it.
I think so too, the cynics may see it as a gimmick to sell more tickets but I see it as a move to improve our club and win some damn games. It shows management isn't sitting around twiddling their thumbs, but are eager to turn the fortunes of this team around for the fans who deserve it after 4 years of sub-par mediocrity, and for their own interests in turn. The massive support from the start from the fans has probably also made it financially viable for them to make these types of signings.
This man needs a chant.
The thing I want to know, and have never been able to find an answer for, is when the league negotiates these loans with an option to buy deals... is the buy price set at the time and then locked in regardless of how good the player might play? And if so, is the team who owns the player contractualy obligated to sell at the previously agreed upon price?
To be honest, I'm not sure this has a great deal to do with it.
When I talked to him for the article, I got the sense it had more to do with TFC believing him and giving him a chance to prove himself and contribute.
Considering his track record with Burnley (only a handful of appearances and being loaned over several times), I think he's just genuinely grateful to TFC for the opportunity the club has given him.
Anyway, just my two cents.
John
PS: I got the idea for doing this story from someone on this board asking me to do it - so take a bow!
Good piece.
Eckersley's shortcomings are pretty obvious now: he's hotheaded and rash on challenges sometimes. But he's still the best fullback we've ever had, and I'm including Todd Dunivant in that.
And it's definitely notable that a player of this calibre, without a contractual obligation here (Burnley would have to pick up his 18 months even if they released him), speaks highly of Winter.
He's establishing a higher standard. The ultimate question, past all the debate about his as a coach or individual, is whether that standard can survive in MLS, where there just may never be enough good players. I guess they're betting that if you teach the system early enough, the rest will take care of itself over time.
But we could be in for some leeeeeean years waiting for it to permeate the club at every level to the point where we aren't dependent on doing the way other MLS clubs could.
Says he only has 18 months left on his contract - which means it expires at the end of the 2011/12 English season. If we had to buy him in January, he'd be cheap with only 6 months remaining. I could also see extending the loan with him signing on a free after.
Also, very positive that player that spent a number of years working working with a manager with the stature of Sir Alex saying positives like that about Winter. He's bound to have a pretty high bar for managers.
It possible he didn't see eye to eye with the Burnley coach hence he was benched and out of loan deals. It's hearsay but he certainly a fullback that gets forward than most others.
Last edited by PopePouri; 07-29-2011 at 08:21 PM.
“What the world needs is more geniuses with humility; there are so few of us left.”
i love this guy. hope he stays. that would solidify a position that's been crying out for a solid all-round player since day 1. i wonder what his price would be. Shit, I'd give him 200K.
just read that bolton have signed mears and eagles from burnley. mears was the player keeping eckersley out of the burnley line-up.just saying.
I like Ecks too. The only problem I see (which is a problem with all loans) is that if Ecks plays well enough, his value increases so even if Burnely doesn't want him back themselves, they may be able to loan him out to a club willing to make a better deal than TFC unless TFC steps up with a better offer.
How much influence does a player have in this sort of situation?
MLS requires that all loan deals have to have a buy price apparently... i wonder what Ecks' is.
Some players have come over on such things and have been eventually bought. I'm thinking Fereira in Dallas, Montero in Seattle, Saborio in Salt Lake are the most notable.
he's easily worth 150-200k/yr given his talent and versatility.
A lot. They can't sell or loan him somewhere he doesn't want to go. Of course, they can choose not to sell him at a cut rate if it comes to that.
About his contract, something seems odd - he has 18 months left on his contract, which means it expires January 2013, which seems odd to have his contract expire in the middle of the English season. Regardless, as a player entering the last year of his contract, his value is going to be driven down as a result of that, so I'm not sure that playing well here will really drive his price up.
You know, from following UK football closely, usually if a player doesn't want to be there, he can find an out.
On top of that, Burnley is already in discussions for their defense and Eckersley hasn't been mentioned once. David Edgar and company are all considered better alternatives for their club.
But I'm glad he wants to stay here.
won't believe til i see it...i remember when cbc reported that he who should not be named wanted to play for canada...
they really have a way of reporting what ppl want to hear