He still has his prime years ahead of him. I think he will eventually regain his form and once again be a dominant player for us, but it's realistically going to take time.Originally Posted by Fort York Redcoat
He still has his prime years ahead of him. I think he will eventually regain his form and once again be a dominant player for us, but it's realistically going to take time.
I bet that when the dust settles it will be revealed that he has been playing with a bunch of nagging injuries. Not the Defoe and Caldwell type that can keep popping up and getting worse but the wee ones that throw everything off.
Injuries were to be expected. Included Defoe's now end of September prediction.
As for position in the standings, some of you should define what success is about.
Many talk about the playoffs. It's a mediocre goal. We are mediocre. In the top 50% of the league. So, what's the complaining about? The team could squeak into the MLS playoffs and win the Cup if a team SKC has injuries or some other run of bad luck.
If you want a table champion caliber team, that will take time. It will take the draft. You don't buy it in this domestic quota league.
Nelsen has led this team to exactly the level that many… many… have defined as being successful. Making the playoffs.
i wonder what Carver would have accomplished with two - 6 mil players.....
Mediocre is a million times better than rank rotten - which is the story of our first 7 years. But i don't think that is what we had in mind when we splashed the cash and became the most expensive roster in MLS.
This team can't put games away once they take a lead. The motivation level doesn't seem to be there - very few of the players are playing above their level. Our goalie gambit has failed pretty badly. We need to see some character now. This team needs to get winning spree going right now.
Becoming the most expensive roster in MLS probably had another goal outside of winning. Winning obviously a goal but "A" list players and a delayed season ticket renewal process had a lot to do with it.
I'd disagree on the effort. It's there. The fellows are trying.
We are precisely where we said we wanted to be. It's the way we got the points that seem mediocre. We aren't even the only team in the league doing this right now. Not even the best example. DC is not the team that destroyed KC last weekend but one can't call their place in the table a lie. they're there.
I'd rather not simplify this buying a team as a straight exchange. There are 8 other players after 3 dp's that are ingredients that all have a different variables to make this team more than mediocre.
FORMER FULL TIME KOOL-AID DRINKER
Not to mention KC getting completely distroyed by Houston last night. Every top club has a stretch of bad games. Its how you limit that and find ways to collect points on these runs.
We've had some games where we completely didn't deserve anything and still got points and games that we deserved all 3 points and got only 1.
This run of 5 games is going to tell a lot of where we will be come October.
More fines and suspensions for freaking out about officiating I would say.
Carver would have accomplished fuck all. That goes for cummins too. Both of those teams, given the sheer talent, should have been walking the league both of those years.
I pretty much agree. In my opinion we've never had any good managers. Preki was probably the best and he wasn't great either but he did squeeze something out of a really shite squad. Nelsen is the probably the best manager we've had in our history, by default because the rest were crap but also because he has shown some growth and also understands MLS. Is he Arena or Schmidt? Not at all but then these guys weren't tearing the league apart when they first broke in either. The grew into their roles and became great MLS managers. Nelsen at least has the potential to do the same and that's more than could be said about the rest.
The problem for TFC is that they were/are in no position to take a gamble and hope that he develops into a top class manager. A year or two as an assistant manager would have been prudent. Money on a DP level inernational manager would have been well spent.
But there isn't really any precedent of any manager of significant pedigree coming here from Europe or South America. And there were no good american managers who were unsettled or looking for a new club. The club took a flyer on a dude with great leadership skills and a long ass rolodex. In some ways it hasn't worked out but in most ways it has. And as this team adds more pieces over the coming transfer windows I fail to see at what point Nelsen could regress as a manager.
International managers have largely been failures in MLS. You have to know MLS to get the MLS rules and the associated B.S that goes along with this league to succeed.
^ it's also a huge risk for an international manager, a top one, to come over here. The league is perceived as lower level. The manager would essentially be expected to win, held to winning and find his career tarnished if he didn't.
When you chalk up all the things that can go wrong in a season that are beyond anyone's control, I'm not sure many would line up for that.
No top manager would ever do it and it wouldn't be worth the money for what you can get from them being here.
Seriously, if you toss Jose, Fergie, or whoever over here do you really think the level of the squad will change significantly?
Only a raise in the salary cap and players being taught to improve their football IQs at younger ages (good academies) will help. Here you still have a lot of scrubs taking up roster spots. Some effective for MLS but all have their problems. You can only polish turds so much as they say and generally, the level of some players and the whole constrictive system will turn off many good managers after a short time.
This is just our perception as oppose to reality. Game isn't well covered here and our understanding of what a quality candidate is outside of the exceedingly obvious is not great.
I'm sure if we had someone like Professor who occasionally posts on this board volunteer a list of name with at least 5-6 realistic high-quality candidates. I might volunteer Octavio Zambrano for starters, and I'm sure Sasho Cirovski could be had for the right money / setup.
.....missed the playoffs in the last game of the season one year.....looks like 12million will squeak us through this time..
Last edited by gate7; 08-30-2014 at 01:11 PM.
I do not think you need a top manager, Mou/Ancelotti, you need a top lowere leaque teaching manager, type that takes a shite side in the Championshp/Serie B to get promoted but keeping the side organized and winning despite problems with the talent.
Van Gaal is currently doing a good demonstration that 1. a good reputation doesn't mean a thing, and/or 2. it really does take a long time to transition a football team, even if you are a top manager!
uh last night for starters...
Last edited by jazzy; 08-30-2014 at 11:39 PM.
ALL HELL'S BROKEN LOOSEhttp://gfycat.com/SharpKindArrowana
Before last night I had the general belief that Nelsen could at least get the players interested in every single game. Now I'm not so sure.
millon dollar O,millon dollar midfield(money wise anyway)50 cent D = 500 club
me too.......I'm unusually confused about the teams general state...........and I'll not at all sure about making the play-offs ,....I like the man but I am very afraid he is far too predictable . His substitution management is very uninspiring and again predictable . Nelsen may have to rise above himself and get outside of his comfort zone .
ALL HELL'S BROKEN LOOSEhttp://gfycat.com/SharpKindArrowana
van gaal hasn't even played ten league games yet, while Nelsen is coming to the end of his second season as coach. We can run down the rest of the details from here if you'd like, but I think you know where this going...
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