I always said that Manning is a coat-tail rider. He's just run out of coat-tails. I can't see him getting an extension after this season.
I always said that Manning is a coat-tail rider. He's just run out of coat-tails. I can't see him getting an extension after this season.
Thanks for sharing that article, very informative.
Interesting - especially the cost cutting thing.Originally Posted by jloome
Dwyer & Lawrence were likely paid out last year, which caught the ire of MLSE management - I note the piece specifically only mentions Altidore as still on the books.
If they were still counting on a big JMR sell off, tonight did not help.
why because he has a temper...lol
The team counting on transfer fee's for young players does reek of them hyping up big transfer numbers and hype for the Liam Frasers, JMRs and Jayden Nelson's of the world to guys like Singh and Kloke.
Sounds about right. State run media styles.
Also bleeds into something I’ve been saying for ages: these guys are fucking clueless as to how the market works and deals get done.
The only very surprising thing in the Singh article is the thinking that our young players would bring in big bucks and fill out our budget. Where did this come from? Our kids have done very little in terms of sustaining our budget -EVER. That’s astounding. JMR to Liverpool for huge money always seemed a mystery. And counting on one sale like that is bizarre.
Otherwise, hasn’t most everything been out in the open?
1) We were badly mismanaged before BB.
2) The only way anyone could do an over-the-top tear down like last season was if it was the beginning of long term idea. This was in line with giving BB the sporting directorship, a long and expensive contract and in line with the carnage. Getting rid of guys who could play well and have MLS experience and replacing them with inexperienced or previously weak kids or kids played out of position only happens when concern for winning now (ie. in the first season) is not in the forefront. Remember when Vanney was made manager? It was publicly stated that if he didn’t impress fast he was going to be gone. This was kind of shockingly the opposite. I don’t think anyone expects that sort of attitude in a big market with a big budget and pretensions to be a big (even global!) club. But it was pretty obvious, after a time, what was happening. Our roster was trash until later in the season.
3) Given how many teams make the playoffs it was not a long shot to think that we could do it after all the late season additions. We even looked like we might do it. Injuries and the other stuff mentioned in the Singh article certainly played a role. When we stumbled we really stumbled.
4) All the pre-season commentary, including many people on this board, was that if we stayed healthy we could be very good. Any injuries of real consequence would make things very tough and unlikely. It was pretty clear we were putting all our eggs in the same basket (older TAM starters).
(Personally speaking, I thought that given who our manager/sporting director is and who are players were and how new to the club or the league they were, that it was going to take a while to get it totally together. That it would take a while without injuries.)
5) Early on the club mentioned that if there was to be a third DP it would have to be a low cost DP and maybe the under 22 initiative was the way to go.
(Of course we have never before used this model and have never bought a young player with a mind to selling.)
6) We haven’t had our starting eleven even for one full match this season. It seems there hasn’t been injury studies on MLS teams, but apparently if we compare our injury status, so far, to a EUFA championship contending team (ie. a successful Euro club) we are on track to play apx 75% fewer games and have apx 220% more injuries!
As an aside, I thought the recent additions have been quite okay including the two from TFC2, Coello and Franklin. And the recent trades and signings all have been reasonably good (the only bit of speculation is Gutierrez who hasn’t been healthy enough to play a single minute… but I’ve seen him play well and Van is playing a portion of his salary so that one should have been at least okay). However, these guys were never going to carry us, nor were they intended to.
I still think a buy-out of Ayo frees up enough cap space to add 3 under 22 initiative players who, if chosen well, would give us a decent extended roster. It also fits with longer term goals and eventual sales. And too that makes the salary cap space to buy… but real dollars need to be spent on players who are actually good prospects and if MLSE won’t do it that’s an uphill battle. And there would be Ayo’s salary on the books….
Last edited by los sonadores; 05-14-2023 at 02:14 AM.
Okay... and I don't mean this rudely dude... but so what?
Any team in this league needs multiple levels of competency. They have to be able to survive if a half-dozen people go down at once.
We're not the only people this happens to. Until this weekend, we haven't had the league's longest injury list ONCE this season. It's always been one or two guys out at the same time, three at most.
That's normal in MLS.
Our roster is, I would argue, somewhat irrelevant to our real problem right now, which is that the team's play is a shambles.
Again I'll note that we matched or beat Montreal in just about every statistical category yesterday, except shots and shots on net.
They had 19(6)
We had 2 (0)
The Italians are not designed for this type of football. They are used to precision, support, intelligent movement. We need to simplify to a system in which they're all comfortable.
Until that happens this will NEVER work, no matter who we put out there. Our strongest team will solo-effort its way to a few wins over the Charlottes and Salt Lakes of the league, but it won't win consistently.
Round pegs, square holes, manager who can't change.
(And the 343 yesterday, while a change, was desperation. They still had no offensive fluidity as it was totally new and foreign. So you would think, at least, he would just be instructing everyone to go to dangerous spots in the box, to attack the posts, and to put in crosses. The basics. No. Instead, we had the same death by a thousand looks for something good. Put the ball into dangerous areas, let secondary work provide most of the goals if necessary. It's way less fucking complicated than Bradley is making it.)
In no way am I letting Bob off the hook in making this comment but I think it should be said Berna-LI is a bit of an odd mix for two DP’s and combined the fit for Bob’s system is not great.
Manning really threw a wrench into any new coaches plans by making these signings and then basically walking away.
I would be okay with either Berna or LI individually (both great players to be clear). But as a 1-2 combo it doesn’t make much sense because they are both of fairly average pace and like to cut inside.
Normally when you’re playing 3 up top you have a skilled guy on one side and someone with quite a bit of pace on the other side because it helps keep the defence honest and balance the field.
Otherwise, we should really be abandoning this 4-3-3 setup because it doesn’t get the most out of our best players. I’m shocked how few touches LI gets some games. Feels very flawed.
I am not that interested in understanding who proposed or recommended signing Insigne.
I would like to understand who authorized it, and on what basis.
"There are some people who might have better technique than me, and some may be fitter than me, but the main thing is tactics. With most players, tactics are missing. You can divide tactics into insight, trust, and daring." - Johan Cruyff
To me, the obvious solution to this is to play them on the same side. Fede has extensive experience as both a striker and a left winger. He can play above Insigne in a 4-4-2/4-4-1-1.
As they both are far better at reading movement and possibilities than the rest of our roster, they'll be able to produce close interplay. We still have Richie on the other side, and can push him up as the wide player. He's not the hottest defender anyway. Have him coming from a wide flat 442 position, and he's already play from the middle anyway, so he has the extra space needed to run at defenders.
I think it can work with these DPs but not the way we're approaching it now. We need the entire team to get back to simplicity and basics, let the ball and space do the work, challenge for it in dangerous areas.
We spend so much time trying to control possession and it produces nothing. Go direct. I'd rather play route one ball with Sapong up there than the shit we're trying.
I mean, if they're only now telling him they can't get a third DP, it sounds a lot like nobody did. But I highly doubt he has that sort of initiative.
MLSE might as well be lighting money on fire with that contract. What is there like 3 more years left on the deal?
https://www.mlssoccer.com/news/unlik...first-mls-goal
I swear, I fell into a coma two years ago and this is all some sort of football nightmare.
Every guy I think they made a mistake getting rid of is turning good. Every one of them.
How is it possible that a team full of ex-pros an experienced coaches is so FUCKING ABYSMAL at recognizing talent?
Gutierrez and Romero loaned to TFC2 for today. Looks like Guti is finally healthy
He will probably be the best one we dumped in the end. Still not happy about that move Bob & Co. did.
Ask yourself this question:
According to Singh's piece, they were expecting to sell young talent to finance this season. But they turned out not to be as prized as expected.
But... Bob's been here for an entire season already.
So presumably he told the front office they were the real deal BEFORE THIS SEASON.
I'm telling you, at this point, all available evidence suggests he can't really judge young talent. I know he's had some odd successes, like a season-and-a-half of MAK playing well, and Opoku.
But this is a coach who either thinks Jayden Nelsen, DeAndre Kerr and Kosi Thomson are better than Jacob Shaffelburg, Jaycen Russel-Rowe and Paul Rothrock, or is so following the pattern of what he thinks the front office wants to hear as to be absolutely valueless in decision making.
Don't forget: until Michael and Oso went down injured, he wasn't playing Coello. He had him for the entire of preseason and still did not realize his quality.
Even after he came in for a game, with one of the others back (Oso I think) he was right back on the bench. He is, clearly and without a doubt, the best midfield passer of the ball we have. He is more prepared to receive the ball, he has a useful first touch to create space just about whenever he needs it.
He's not fast, I think. He sort of looks like he lumbers a little. But WHO CARES??! He's a fucking good midfielder, and BOb had his ass stapled to the bench.
Last edited by jloome; 05-14-2023 at 04:41 PM.
Well out of those I would say Jayden Nelsen has a higher ceiling than Jacob and its why he was promptly scouted/bought by an EU team.
But your point is valid. I think you can add Priso to this list in about year.
The why is fascinating to me. nobody, outside a Messi Ronaldo level player, can return 14m a year. I assumed there was some master plan I somehow didn't see. But it's more like a parent gave a kid a budget to spend while they were away for two weeks, they threw a fuck off rager the first weekend and are now living off noodles. Was there any plan at all? How can 14m a year in MLS make financial sense?
No way to know. How many extra advertising deals or increased rates happened after he signed? Probably not $14M a year worth but something.
how manning sold that bill of goods to those clowns is unbelievable,i want bladley out, but i want manning out x 1000
I would say they think he is at least in part because he's 19 and Shaffelburg's 23. But Shaff has done nothing but play well, pretty much. Jayden never did, really, at this level.
And I will still be quite surprised if Nelsen makes it. I won't be if Shaff has a decent MLS career.
Also, Rosenborg paid us one-fifth of Nelsen's alleged valuation. That says something about their valuations. Meanwhile, Shaff, who we gave away for a pittance, is rated at €2.5M by transfermarkt.
Last edited by jloome; 05-14-2023 at 06:00 PM.
These valuations are whack. If you went back to Nashville and gave them one million in GAM I’m sure they’d move Shaf (as much as he’s played well)
Fair points. Shaff was always going to be valued more because he can deliver consistently now at the MLS level.
Jayden improved game by game when Insigne joined, well see if that was a mirage or not, and probably explains why Rosenborg didn't pay much. Really curious to see what happens with him.
I’m not. He’s starting there and he has sprinter speed, which is both uncoachable and hard to acquire.
Sarri's Napoli:
if we want to get the most out of our DP's Bradley should be studying this and instilling it in the team. Currently our whole midfield just passes the ball to Insigne and Berna and then stands still and watches them.
I also feel strongly this formation could work for us, with MAK and Coello / MB as the back two. Insigne - Osorio - Berna as the top 3 with Sapong on top. The back two provides coverage for Richie to make bombing runs up the field (as Maggio did).
Bruce Arena is using this type of formation this year to NER with great success.
Last edited by SenorDingDong; 05-15-2023 at 12:29 PM.
We’ve tried that formation several times this season. It hasn’t been all 433.Sarri's Napoli:
if we want to get the most out of our DP's Bradley should be studying this and instilling it in the team. Currently our whole midfield just passes the ball to Insigne and Berna and then stands still and watches them.
I also feel strongly this formation could work for us, with MAK and Coello / MB as the back two. Insigne - Osorio - Berna as the top 3 with Sapong on top. The back two provides coverage for Richie to make bombing runs up the field (as Maggio did).
Bruce Arena is using this type of formation this year to NER with great success.
The problem to me is less the shape and more the fact that theyre accustomed to an entirely different style of team interplay, where runners around them know exactly where to go.
It’s the only reason I want a two-striker set: to get Fede and Insigne on the same side of the pitch. where they can read and play off each other properly, with LI also ideal to provide service to Sapong.
Last week. He's head of scouting, really, isn't he?
Posting Permissions
