Think he’s 21 now.Originally Posted by leedsandTFC
Think he’s 21 now.
If we do go the under 22 initiative route I’m expecting that to happen in the summer, but who knows. I agree with most who think we need another centre back and some midfield depth before then.
I’m expecting Diomande to be our nine with JJ and Akinola behind in depth but with each of those two able to play wide so I think we’re fine up front for now. Be interesting to see if Akinola can find some of his earlier form. Layrea is our second best right wing but we’re short as it is at full back so I’d hope to see Akinola or JJ there if Brunelleschi needs spelling.
I think JJ is the starter over Diomande on Feb 25. I would be shocked if it were otherwise. That would tell me JJ was truly terrible in camp, and is done here.
JJ is the far higher paid player, and you need to see what he can do with the Italians, or alternatively, you need to figure out what you have with him.
He had a bad second half, but Diomande hasn’t done anything in three years.
But yeah, 2-3 meh games, and sure, BB will go to Diomande.
“What the world needs is more geniuses with humility; there are so few of us left.”
It's possible. I had the thought last night that perhaps Diomande had been brought in as motivation, after JJ had a crisis of confidence last year.
It's equally also possible they think Diomande is fit, that play in Saudi doesn't really indicate anything (he may even have been played wide or in the midfield for all we know; they are notorious for buying more foreigners than they're allowed to field and putting them in weird spots), and that if he stays fit he scores 15-20 goals.
LAFC fans certainly seem to think so.
I agree with JJ being given a chance, at first, to start - it’d be bad manners/messaging to do otherwise. But I don’t think he’ll keep the spot and he’s valuable enough being able to play all three forward positions. At least he is in theory… in practice he wasn’t able to do much of anything with the Italians.
If Rooney's being sincere, Bono is competing for the starting job at DC.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/sport...everton-coach/
Do we know how much Diomande is on with us? But no matter, I’d be shocked if he was brought in solely as motivation for JJ. Bradley had a lot of success with him and he suits our front three better than JJ. To me he’s the more likely striker to succeed as a nine with this line up and with this manager.
No doubt if Bradley can get JJ going it’s a good thing and we paid a release for him so it’s not a good look to not try hard. Another thing in his favour is that at LAFC Bradley seemed to favour a rotation with his nines.
But too it’s not like JJ is a hot commodity in the league and at his wages he’s not likely to do better in Europe. I think he’s ours until his contract is up or, at worst, if he’s not contributing substantially we buy him out. I like him as a player but he looked lost in the second half of the season.
Rosted still considered a go by the Danish media:
https://www.tipsbladet.dk/nyhed/supe...d-fra-broendby
In case no one clicked and read the write up :
Now, I’ll be upfront and say I have a couple of concerns. In a vacuum, TAM deals for goalkeepers aren’t the best use of resources in MLS. And, by the numbers, Johnson’s shot-stopping hasn’t been elite as of late. In fact, his per-96 numbers were slightly worse than last year’s starter for Toronto, Alex Bono (now of D.C. United). Since Johnson became NYCFC’s starter in 2017, he’s only kept out goals at a higher rate than the expected goals he’s faced in one season. Statistically, he’s generally been average.
Couldn't it go the other way? The Bulgarian team rejected the offer for the 21 yr old CB - and team said not this transfer window- would they keep rosted or let him go prior to securing replacement?
Buried in there is the news that Robbo is set to return to MLS as Rooney's assistant.. [insert gif of him doing windmill goal celebration here]
“What the world needs is more geniuses with humility; there are so few of us left.”
If he’s average most game but plays to his ceiling in big games that’s good with me.
Also what stats can’t tell you is how much more confidence the D will play with knowing they have a goalie that can help them.
I said all along he is very, very overrated but compared to the poor (in all facets, not just shot blocking) our GKs have been since the defense hasn't been good enough to fully shield them, he will make a huge difference.
In essence the very top GKs in MLS are basically average. Sure they can steal matches and have great moments but all of them have bad moments and show flaws. The great divider is how much more often the really good ones have good matches over the bad. SJ definitely has Bono moments and they aren't uncommon but he has more good matches than we've seen here in a while.
You know, I likes me some data for making decisions. I am happy the days of "well he looks good" are gone.
But when it comes to Bono's capability, there is the stark reality of the Montreal home game gaffe & the Miami away game gaffe destroying the positive mentality of a team. He's not capable of providing the confidence needed to succeed.
Every coach talks about working on mentality in preseason.
Well, mentality is situational and if the same situations that deter that mentality arise from one player consistently, then maybe stats are not the only way to judge a person.
^Stats are really quite good at measuring shot stopping (in which Bono was a B+) … and poor at capturing “commands the box” or “good distribution “… in which Bono gets a D+ and an F.
“What the world needs is more geniuses with humility; there are so few of us left.”
Uh? WTF? The Boys Are Back? When did 'Ragazzo' Fede get relegated to TFCII? I know they could use the veteran leadership but C'mon Bob?
Check out this tweet at https://twitter.com/TorontoFCII/status/1620102914097446912
#FreeKobe but really Franklin looks pretty ready for sub minutes. Hopefully he's at TC 2
I realize I am likely on an island unto myself on this situation but I believe this matter is essentially resolved in TFC's favour unless Laryea wants to go. Otherwise shouldn't TFC be trying to seriously address that probability this window? Perhaps FIFA's new Loan Regulations/Limits may have some relevance; Believe NF may be one over at the moment?
Check out this tweet at https://twitter.com/MichaelSingh94/status/1618294168723554307
My highly useless, completely non-scientific analysis of this is, from watching them both play, Johnson makes the odd mistake but is all around way cleaner than Bono.
We can say we have a competent MLS keeper. Perhaps we overpaid, but not horrifically. If the rest of the team is quality we can at least not think about the keeper position.
Bonus points for standing on his head last year and pretty much kicking Mtl out of the playoffs all by himself.
What I worry about with Akinola is the "form" we're hoping he recovers was really just 5 goals from July 13-16, 2020 in the bubble against terrible DC & MTL teams.
Some nice ones in there, but also some defensive collapses where he's tapping in Pozuelo/Piatti balls.
Outside that stretch the game log doesn't look too hot. Only 5g in 1,900 minutes since then. 5g in 1,087 minutes before the bubble. There was a lot of hype from the skewed metrics coming out of that shortened season.
Just an FYI; relevant to roster construction. And yes, certain transfers, 'out', in many association's can still happen; therefore 'in' for us/TFC/MLS. However, IIUC, for a few other associations, once their window is closed, I believe no movement of any sort 'in or out' is permitted. While still for some others the work around is the 'loan'; even though FIFA are tightening their rules and regulations concerning those such transactions for the benefit of the players.
Check out this tweet at https://twitter.com/KULA1087/status/1620218026946863104
Check out this tweet at https://twitter.com/mlsnetwork/status/1620207877305815040
Just a follow-up. Yes, I would agree with you... still in play; a consideration. Though some mixed (unclear) messaging. From... paraphrasing... 'going and looking to Bulgaria for his replacement' to just a 'rumour he is leaving'.
https://www.tipsbladet.dk/nyhed/supe...d-fra-broendby
'Brøndby IF har afløst Andreas Maxsø med Rasmus Lauritsen, men de blå-gule kan meget vel få brug for endnu en ny midtstopper inden transferdeadline. Sigurd Rosted meldes på vej til Toronto FC, og søgen på en ny midtstopper har tilsyneladende fået Brøndbys fodbolddirektør Carsten V. Jensen til at kigge i retning mod Bulgarien'.
Translation:
'Sigurd Rosted is reported to be on his way to Toronto FC, and the search for a new centre-back has apparently caused Brøndby's football director Carsten V. Jensen to look in the direction of Bulgaria'
https://www.tipsbladet.dk/nyhed/la-l...ek-fra-sevilla
'Mangler Brøndby IF endnu en centerback, efter klubben har købt Rasmus Lauritsen, sagt farvel til Andreas Maxsø og formentlig også snart kan sige favel til Sigurd Rosted? Hvis svaret er ja, kan fodbolddirektør Carsten V. Jensen måske igen forsøge sig på spanske Kike Salas, 20 år'.
Translation:
'Does Brøndby IF need another centre-back, after the club has bought Rasmus Lauritsen, said goodbye to Andreas Maxsø and will probably also soon say goodbye to Sigurd Rosted? If the answer is yes, football director Carsten V. Jensen may again try for Spanish Kike Salas, 20 years old'.
https://www.tipsbladet.dk/nyhed/supe...t-paa-broendby
'Brøndby IF har denne vinter sagt farvel til midtstopper Andreas Maxsø, der er skiftet til MLS, mens Sigurd Rosted også har været rygtet til den amerikanske liga'.
Translation:
'This winter, Brøndby IF has said goodbye to centre-back Andreas Maxsø, who has switched to MLS, while Sigurd Rosted has also been rumored for the American league'.
Last edited by Mr. Inbetween; 01-31-2023 at 12:48 PM.
I think its JJ. I was following all the Instagram posts of them in the camp, and JJ was all smiles. Him and Vasquez seem to have hit it off with a connection too. He seemed really happy, different vibes then last summer.
Arango from LAFC is apparently going to Pachuca so strike him off the potential list
Maybe. I'm not convinced Bob's convinced. More to the point, he can play all three front positions. If I'm Bradley, I want a guy on the bench who's that convincing as a late option.
A lot depends on how Diomande's playing. People can look at his recent history and age all they want, but he was considered a blue-chip striker four years ago. JJ is a discovery whose best years were in Poland. There are degrees of difference between them, between how they play. One is a winger converted to striker who is an exceptional finisher from the right positions. The other is a powerful striker who has scored goals at higher levels than this.
I could be wrong, but I think a fondess for JJ may be having people overlook the reality of what Bradley wants. His sytem is not designed to provide player-specific service on a slide rule; it's designed to put the ball into the most dangerous areas, and for players to find the space to attack the ball. That fits Diomande more than JJ. He's more athletic, he has a better pedigree and he has history finishing multiple types of goals.
Or...maybe he's 32 and crocked. But I don't think they'd have signed him if that were the case. They got a look at the guy and wanted him. If JJ has expanded his game and now knows how to find space in the box, then he'll probably start just because his finishing is so clinical. But he's a 28-year-old footballer; there's an argument to be made that guys don't turn into a fox in the box that late in their career.
He would've been a perfect DP, as he's only on $600K now. They could've got him for a low DP, high TAM deal.
But LAFC wanted $6.5M for him, and I don't think there's any internal method in MLS yet to allow that to happen.
Fulham's Josh Onomah has just become available on a free transfer. Very good mid at the CHampionship level who hasn't seen playing time in the Prem and wants to find a new club. Nearly 100 games in the championship and he's 25.
I'm sure there will be suitors galore, but maybe he'd like an adventure.
https://twitter.com/arilasos/status/...lCnhAXrUA&s=19
Rosted is joining!
Done dealio. Hope he is good lol
Yay!
Translation: 'Brøndby and Toronto FC have on Tuesday reached an agreement on a transfer for the Norwegian centre-back Sigurd Rosted (28), according to TV 2's information. He will travel to Los Angeles, where Bob Bradley's team is in training camp, in the next few days'.
Also...
Translation: 'TV 2 learns: Sigurd Rosted ready for MLS club'.
Check out this tweet at https://twitter.com/tv2sport/status/1620471526993575936
Last edited by Mr. Inbetween; 01-31-2023 at 12:57 PM.
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