MLS.com on JMR:
“One week after opening his 2024 account in a losing cause at New York City FC, Marshall-Rutty was arguably even better in the Reds’ 2-0 beating of Atlanta United, despite not making it onto the score sheet. Working as a right wingback, the homegrown played two key passes, distributing at an 84% overall clip, connected on all three of the crosses he attempted, completed 4/5 dribbles and five defensive actions, won 8/10 ground duels and drew three fouls over his 90 minutes.”
he did look excellent tbf.Originally Posted by los sonadores
hopefully his potential starts to shine through this season.
I think it’s possibly the best he’s looked since joining the first team. Maybe it’s just my bias, but all the youngsters that came up under Bradley and Armas still don’t seem like they really know where they’re supposed to be during the run of play. Like they were infected with a virus and haven’t been able to fully shake it. Especially in contrast to Spicer. It’s definitely improved since last year, but Kerr and Kosi looked a little lost at times.
I find JMR generally looks good with the ball. It’s defensively where he needs to catch up. I would also say the level of intensity needs to be taken up a notch.
But last game was really encouraging.
it's looking like major disaster is averted if Insigne is at least dressed, even if he's not with the team
Insigne news: I have been the biggest Herdman backer, and still am… but his playing Insigne last weekend was a catastrophic and predictable mistake.
Given Insigne's history, and the investment in him, you just cannot put him out there when it is minus 2. Period. Only exception is playoff games.
Of course, Herdman shouldn’t be in this box. This whole goddamn Apple thing is really affecting how I feel about being a serious fan of the team.
“What the world needs is more geniuses with humility; there are so few of us left.”
It's easier to train a new player correctly than to retrain someone who was incorrectly trained. For the latter all of the instincts will be wrong, and it takes a while to reprogram those instinctive moves.
Makes sense. It’s nice to see JMR catching on so quickly!
It seems to be, partly, at least, that Herdman has identified his best position, has told him that wingback is where he’ll be playing, and has assigned him a coach dedicated to showing him what exactly is needed. Sort of like all the players have more clarity about what is expected of them them, except one or two levels more of that, as was desperately needed.
Given Layrea and Petretta are out and, as others have surmised, Bernie might be played with Oso behind a striker, I’d not be surprised if JMR, Spicer and Kobe all get minutes at wingback. Not sure if Spicer can/should go 90 yet.
I love my club, but increasingly dislike MLS. More and more, they are exemplifying -- and forcing it, despite their fans' objections -- what I don't want football to be. If the single entity system died, I'd be happier for it; based on the Chief of Soccer Operations poll in The Athletic, so would most front offices.
Things clear from that survey:
-- most CSOs think the US Open Cup is essential to the culture in America and valued.
-- most CSOs think transfers between teams should be possible without trades or equal value
-- most CSOs think teams should be able to operate without continual MLS front office interference
If USL were a little more competent and aggressive, they could turn this into a competitive playing field. There's nothing that says the first league is the one that has to win out, and the current gross over-valuation of MLS based on revenue just reinforces that. Bill Foley was straight-up offered a franchise in Las Vegas and turned it down to buy Bournemouth, already in the Premier League, for half the price.
The price of admission is unhinged from reality, and the direction is disconnected from the customer base, frequently.
^I have mostly been OK with the wonky rules. I think they need to start peeling them off one by one over the next few years, and yeah, the intraleague transfer thing is a bit of an embarassing joke.
But this Saturday 730pm start time for 30 out of 34 games, or whatever it is…I think it is just wrong on 15 levels. Bad for players, bad for fans.
Newsflash: you aren't the NFL.This is just festering, for me. That slot has NEVER worked well for me personally. I am watching games on Sunday mornings. It's getting old.
“What the world needs is more geniuses with humility; there are so few of us left.”
It seems outdated and reductive to assume that "Saturday primetime viewing" is still really a thing in the age of on-demand streaming. Maybe they have numbers that show most people watching a sports even stay on the same channel or something. But the only jusitification for the dumb scheduling I've seen that seems to make sense is that they want a lead-in to other Apple shows.
Many of them are the NFL and that is their model.
I can't even see it being that people stay on the same streaming platform. I have had apple TV for the last year and with how easy it is to hit one button and be on any other streaming service...I just can't see that being their reasoning. But yeah it's getting tires some. However this year I find im watching far more games than last year, just streaming them after the Toronto games.
I will say they have done well at that, you don't have to record any of the games and you can just go select one to watch through full or the highlights. Unlike fubo where you have to select the games you want to record ahead of time, or you miss it.
Every sport except the NFL operates on the concept that appointment viewing doesn’t work. The NFL itself is continually adding non Sunday afternoon games. Older people here grew up with the Leafs games on Wednesdays and Saturdays- gone (Saturdays now less than half the games). The European leagues all long ago moved off Saturday afternoon, which was alltime appointment viewing strategy - that was the only slot for games for 100+ years.
The whole point of streaming is that you don’t have appointment viewing in life anymore.
Plus it is insane with Messi in the house - it is beyond belief that these brainiacs have his games on when Europe is asleep.
Make no mistake. Apple/MLS is just us, fans and players, being used as guinea pigs in a data collection exercise. Just so they can figure out what and how to bid for NBA and NFL contracts that are coming up that are worth 50x the MLS deal. We are nothing to them. Nothing.
“What the world needs is more geniuses with humility; there are so few of us left.”
FWIW
Apple is attempting appointment viewing with Friday night baseball.
I can't stand this apple deal. The biggest disgrace is I can't even take my kids anymore with every game a 7:30pm start time.
But that is totally different. That is experimentation with a fraction of the schedule. Who could object? Could there be a role for some kind of appointment schedule? I thinking maybe yes. But as a supporter/SSH of an MLB team, you are still being treated with consideration - you are not being asked to be OK with having 130 out of 162 games on Friday night (I know - there is a math problem there! - but you see the point)
In MLS, our whole season, all of it, is the experiment. It causes injuries to stars? Makes games inaccessible to half the fans? Who cares? It's fringe content… and just helps us have mountains of data to show the NBA when we bid on that deal…
“What the world needs is more geniuses with humility; there are so few of us left.”
I don't think most people realize just how rich the data set you get about the customer is in streaming, as compared to TV, and how that changes everything. It is mindboggling.
With streaming, you, the league, know exactly who is watching, how old they are, what they make, how long they have been taking the games, how long they watch for, how often they switch away, when they switch away if they do, what they switch to …
Traditional sports TV is dead. It just happened in film/TV first, but it's happening now. It's just a question of how fast.
MLS' role in this is the test lab for the big boys on figuring this world out. If it wrecks MLS' product, well… who cares?
“What the world needs is more geniuses with humility; there are so few of us left.”
The start times suck in winter, though I'm fine with an evening kick off in summer. Definitely agree there, also surprised they're doing it since it cuts off so much of the market that would sign up for Messi games, so I suspect it won't last.
But wrecking MLS product? Sorry, I have to disagree emphatically here. The Apple deal, for all it's flaws, is *by far* the best thing to happen the leagues health overall in a long time. MLS was a failed TV product watched by less people than the average poker rerun, they now have a streaming service with 2 million+ subscribed in year 2 of a 10 year initial deal. This deal is what may/should (if they're smart) allow them to release the shackles and press the standard of the league onwards. I'd change the start times, and basically nothing else, about this deal.
Put simply, with no Apple there's no Messi. Absolutely no chance whatsoever. And any changes to salary rules going forward will be the result of Apple putting money no TV provider in the world would have given to the league.
Last edited by JoesphNdo; 03-31-2024 at 11:06 AM.
I think the Apple deal isn't bad but they need flexibility with game times.
For teams like Toronto, Montreal, Minnesota etc every home game before May 1st and after Sept 15th should be in the afternoon.
This is the player thread, please get back on topic. Someone feel free to discuss the Apple deal in the general thread.
Diomande is training with Staebek
Hahaha, seriously?
Yup lol
Check out this tweet at https://twitter.com/endrelub/status/1775484783897743703
Bob is lazy as eff.
Well then, I wish him the best, and Godspeed!
The story I heard from LA people is that Diomande was a devout Muslim when he moved there but the stress of playing in MLS (which I now read as 'for Bob') led to addiction issues, which is part of why he left and moved to Saudi, to be away from drugs and alcohol.
It's within Bob's world view, I imagine, to feel somewhat responsible for that. He's probably going to give him as many chance as his employers will allow.
At the same time, he's clearly crocked and it would be insane for them to sign him; but he didn't exactly make sound decisions here, either.
If so, even if they don't hire Diomande, this is flawed behaviour by BB as an employer & flawed assistance by BB as a mentor and flawed feelings by BB as a friend.
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