I think we are going to see Gilberto with 15 goals by the end of the season. Not only Is he adjusting to a new league he has the language problem also.
I think we are going to see Gilberto with 15 goals by the end of the season. Not only Is he adjusting to a new league he has the language problem also.
I don't think there's much that can be done except keep playing him and hope things turn around. Then, when the season is over, reassess and make a change if needed. He needs to improve, no question, but so does most of the team. If we had better service to our strikers then Gilberto would probably have a couple of goals by now and Defoe would probably have 7 or 8!
My opinion only, I think the thread is good discussion, but I think Gilberto just can't buy a goal. He has had at least 7 almosts, and one crossbar with a beautiful strike, 1 goal and I think the bubble will burst and will be producing, and as others have said Service is key.
This bubble is mythical. Strikers either have a killer instinct or they dont. Gilberto doesnt seem to.
He hesitates and he makes bad decisions in front of goal, service is not the issue. In the Colorado game, the players were bending over backwards to give him his opportunity, he messed every chance and it cost us the game.
Pookie, this is a DP, not some kid from the academy. We should not have to teach him how to maintain confidence and score goals.
He might me a good player, and he might be a worthy MLS player, but he is not DP material and that is the bottom line.
The thing is, TFC have always been a high priced bottom feeder. They have constant player turnover... many, many players with less than a year with the club over our history. They rely on DPs to make up for not having homegrown or drafted talent.
We could keep doing the same thing or maybe try a little patience and invest some money in player development to you know, actually help the guys develop and come out of slumps.
Part 2
What's the harm in Gilberto not finding form this year? A playoff miss and a subsequent high draft pick?
Sure beats playoffs misses an no draft picks.
Last edited by Pookie; 05-19-2014 at 02:49 PM.
He's a flop as a striker at the money we're paying him. But that said, I wouldn't cut him, he's better than starting Wiedemann for all of the other stuff that he does. But we cannot simply ignore his total lack of finishing. He's whiffed on a couple of good chances. That's not due to acclamation issues, it's an inability to pull the trigger. In other words, criticism has been warranted but we shouldn't overreact.
This is a good thread, and it is healthy to be asking these questions. I'd give him more time. He has too much going for him to be cutting him loose now. It would be premature to call him a flop now. Look how long it has taken others to adjust to MLS.
10 games and he is a flop?? Jesus Christ....
The guy is clearly an excellent footballer and he has scored goals in competitions that are at levels above MLS (Brasilero, Copa Lib), he will score.
Speaking of asking questions, why can't the coaches get more out of this guy given his proven history?
Could it be related to this:
Nelsen - no prior coaching experience before TFC
Brennan - no prior coaching experience before TFC
Bent - no prior coaching experience before TFC
O'Leary - NCAA coaching experience
Oughton - retired player in 2010. 3 years experience as assistant techical director/coach with the Crew before coming to TFC
?
Note, I am not saying sack the lot of them. Simply saying they all need time, including Gilberto.
Last edited by Pookie; 05-19-2014 at 05:32 PM.
TFC have about 7 games until the summer window opens.
He needs 5 goals from those games.
“What the world needs is more geniuses with humility; there are so few of us left.”
If a dp striker has no goals after 10 games....then yeah....he's a flop.
I question why they decided two DP strikers was the way to go in the first place. Games are won and lost in the midfield - that's where I would tend to put them. Team feels unbalanced to me in the way they spent the money.
Also Gilberto really is an unknown. One good year. We've paid a lot for a guy that isn't proven. Laba on the other hand proved himself in MLS right away. I'd like to think he comes back but I highly doubt it.
I don't think I agree with this. I wouldn't say games are won or lost anywhere - all part of the whole - but if I had to pick one it would be forward. Think of how awful we were last year, and then consider we'd still manage to create one or two legitimate scoring chances per game. I think if you inserted Defoe into last year's team, we get more points than we do if you'd insert Bradley instead. Just imagine where Montreal would have been last year without Di Vaio.
^ so if 2 strikers was the goal all along, makes you wonder about the necessity to move Urutti last year. There was room for one more striker with Laba and Urutti in the mix.
Bradley wasn't on the map at that point given all the talk about it coming together in the span of a week. Lots of bad PR for what seems to be very little gain.
I would have signed Defoe and probably another striker from within the league. I always thought we were taking a bit of a flyer on Gilberto. Not giving up on him as I agree with others who have said he does some good things out there.
As for games being won in the mid, well that's a philosophical question. That's how I learned the game through years of playing. Feel free to disagree but i believe it's true.
Last edited by Canary10; 05-19-2014 at 06:14 PM.
Tim Cahill; first 12 games, 1 goal
Clint Dempsey; first 10 games back, 1 goal
Marco di Vaio; first 10 games, 1 goal
lets cut them all
Hagglund looking like a good draft pick; Lovitz looking like a good pick out of the 2nd round; Nelsen using the same developmental model on Bekker that was used on him
Bullshit. Defoe once went 22 consecutive appearances without scoring. Diego Forlan went 23 games without a goal in England, left, and suddenly found his touch again in Spain. Yet the rest of their careers indicate that they are at least decent at being strikers, with these barren spells obviously being largely anomalies. I'm sure there are plenty of other examples though those are the only two I could come up with off the top of my head.
I'd be more concerned if Gilberto had a goal or two, but otherwise looked out of place on an MLS pitch, because it would indicate he's not adjusting well to the league.
On the contrary, Gilberto is doing pretty much everything well, except getting a few goals. Maybe he will be a bust, but we are hardly at the point where that can be fairly judged. He has talent, and has shown no difficulties playing the MLS-style game - I still think he will be fine.
“Heroism breaks its heart, and idealism its back, on the intransigence of the credulous and the mediocre, manipulated by the cynical and the corrupt.” ~Christopher Hitchens
I'm a big fan of Gilberto personally.
I think he has done everything right so far, with the exception of putting a few of his chances away.
He does more than enough as a team player to justify his spot in the starting 11. Once he pops a few goals his confidence will be better.
Is the team better with him on the pitch? Yes.
He hasn't scored the goals yet but it's only been 7 games and he's had a lot of adjusting to do.
Just looking t his wikipedia page - he never really tore it up on any of the other teams he's been on.
Average numbers on every team he's been on with really only 1 decent season under his belt, but IMO it was not a DP type season though.
Makes me wonder why TFC would DP money on him.
Again - I think this was a gamble pick. We will see if it pays off. I only see him as a service man for Defoe. Or a decoy that allows Defoe to get open.
really hoping Gilberto can net one soon for the haters. It's just a mental thing like the longer you go with out scoring the more it's in your head I thing. But yeah obviously he's not the most incredibly clinical like Defoe, but the role he's playing is actually pretty good when he's playing with Defoe.
not a huge fan of the two D.P strikers though personally, and they might have paid too much for Gilberto but but whatever.
Last edited by defensor; 05-19-2014 at 07:32 PM.
And if he is a decoy is that so bad ?
People will agrue that you shouldn't use a DP slot on a decoy but really if it was Weideman ect up top they would still concentrate on Defoe. But Gilberto has shown quality and is dangerous. He's just snake bitten I think even the opposition can see that.
Eh, if we had held on to Urruti, we'd have said the same thing after 10 games. At least now he seems to finally be starting to come into his own a little bit. While I agree Gilberto's lack of goals is becoming a bit concerning, I wouldn't give up on him just yet.