Either that or, like Chiellini last year, this is his best chance of starting and winning something and too living in LA. He’s slower than he once was, missed the end of last season injured, stripped of his captaincy, third string for Spurs… probably also less expensive than Crepeau. Even with the sports car in the duffle bag. It’s a one year contract (with club options) so probably his last shot to be assured to start.
edit: There was Bale also for one (winning) season… LAFC seems to be specializing in adding this kind of player.
Last edited by los sonadores; 12-30-2023 at 04:28 PM.
Check out this tweet at https://twitter.com/tombogert/status/1741260455539057077?s=20
Well…
Check out this tweet at [URL]https://twitter.com/dreyesceron/status/1742149661463367918[/URL]
Check out this tweet at [URL]https://twitter.com/FabrizioRomano/status/1742139546815365192[/URL]
Check out this tweet at https://twitter.com/tombogert/status/1742569670761205903?s=20
Zac Steffen returns as the latest "Oh my Gawd, he's ex MLS now at an EPL powerhouse" washout.
Given his work this weekend, I'd give Turner about 12 months until he returns somewhere.
Yeh, I was being overly critical there, and more of the industrial MLS complex then of him.
I think his issue was who was in front of him all the time & a certain amount of anti-Americanism.
He's a non-DP going to Colorado of all places who seem to be collecting 1 keeper a year - its a strange way to come back.
On Robinson, hard to believe how Cinci keep adding… we have our work cut out for the next while. With that said Vazquez will be a loss but still… good business
Check out this tweet at [COLOR=#FFFFFF]https://twitter.com/PaulTenorio/status/1742666862612357299?s=20[/COLOR]
Last edited by Bushmancan; 01-04-2024 at 01:18 AM.
Our roster right now compared to them is like comparing Rotherham to Man City. We're that far behind them.
I think their roster could compete in Liga MX and the Championship. It's ridiculous how much better some teams are handling salary construction than even three, four years ago.
Almost like we had one of these forward thinking minds ahead of the rest of the mls curve, who knew how to be resourceful with the cap, and bring in good value players and use league contacts to find proper solutions vs. Patchwork ideas… and we pissed it all away for we wouldn’t promote the young ambitious mind into a sporting/prez role where his culture and norms could be spread out over the entire organization to build on… feels like a faded memory/dream now lol, maybe I should be checked for onset dementia lol. Someone like that in this modern era surely would have taken their club to an MLS cup or two… /s lol
I trust the Crew to last longer as a force (as long as they keep Nancy) then Cinci - there was something brittle about that blue & orange team last year.
"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
My impression from talking to a certain front office dude is that this league is quite the self-love fest. The general feeling from most GMs for years has been to hire local, get guys you know, on a recommendation.
The idea of scouting in other leagues has been largely ignored. It's still mostly farmed out to freelance scouts, and they get most of their information from pro databases.
As I've mentioned before, our foreign scouts seem woefully under-equipped to the task. In at least one case, I can see no reason why they have the job. In others, it's for tangential reasons to being a good scout, such as the former club president in Argentina who seems to have had no non-executive style roles, things that would equip him to judge ability.
I think I mentioned last year, there are numerous MLSE staff and contractors who seem to be in their jobs for largely nepotistic or tribal reasons; they know somebody who knows somebody, or they're related to someone else in the biz.
It's one of the reasons I'm so concerned about this offseason; our getting any improvement before about 2027 basically depends on Jason Hernandez and John Herdman getting it right.
Our league is a dinosaur in terms of the requirements and pressures placed on front offices. If you don't have the right GM and manager, you're basically entirely fucked.
Perhaps, and at the very least, target their feeder ecosystem for TFC academy coaching staff and youth prospects…
Check out this tweet at [URL]https://twitter.com/sebth/status/1742421385245573627[/URL]
^^Yup that sounds right.
btw LAG already signed Yoshida in the summer window (he has been captain and the face of the Japan MNT for the last 5 years), so they are on it - there is a stronger marketing angle for any Pacific coastal team of course…
"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
I don’t know if the soccer system is the same as the baseball system, but if it is… most people in North America don’t know and would not believe how seriously high school baseball is taken over there. Something like 2000 teams compete like the devil to make into into this tournament, which sells out the main stadium in Osaka for two solid weeks every year.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japa...l_Championship
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uaKUT2sLQz8
Last edited by ensco; 01-07-2024 at 06:56 PM.
"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
Isn't that where whitecaps got their keeper from? Takaoka. I didn't really follow whitecaps too much this past year to know how he's been but seemed to be top keeper over there
The ball and player movement in that video are truly impressive. Hard to believe that’s high school soccer.
I always find this shocking but then, in a low budget, franchising way, not allowing the individual teams proper scouting departments was how the league was founded and grew.
Not sure how much longer this will continue especially with Euro sporting directors and executives arriving in the league. The scouting situation must seem bizarre and inefficient to them.
This is an interesting quote from Austin after Rubio was let go and restructuring begun:
“An entirely new scouting and recruitment department consisting of five (5) new full-time scouts at the First Team level who are stationed throughout Europe and South America have been added to Austin FC’s sporting department with immediate effect. Austin FC has also announced that Manuel Junco, who served as Chief Scout since 2020, has left the Club. In addition, Sean Rubio, who most recently served as Senior Vice President of Player Personnel, has accepted a move to join another MLS club.
“Identifying global and national talent is an essential ingredient to achieving long-term success within MLS as it is anywhere else and it is important for Austin FC to view player signings through an entirely new lens as we must improve our rate of success on roster construction,” said Austin FC Sporting Director Rodolfo Borrell. “I believe Josh and his staff deserve increased levels of support from our scouting network, and we intend to deliver that support immediately. Josh is a very good young head coach, and although results this year are disappointing, we are fortunate to have a coach with his level of commitment and knowledge. I am confident he is the right leader for this team.”
Borrell, who was hired as Sporting Director in July 2023 following time at Manchester City FC, Liverpool FC, and FC Barcelona, will directly oversee scouting and player personnel for Austin FC.”
If Deybi Flores signs I think we can point to Herdman and his staff for that one.
^
Could that possibly be Manuel Junco in the TFC Tyrese Spicer draft selection video; seated to the image right of Hernandez, across Rubio and the other individual?
EDIT - Upon further visual comparison, likely not.
Last edited by Mr. Inbetween; 01-08-2024 at 01:07 PM.
Vanney is still looking for his winger.
Check out this tweet at https://twitter.com/tombogert/status/1744412348561985732?s=20
And it seems he also wants an old TFC target of his...
Check out this tweet at https://twitter.com/FabrizioRomano/status/1744406885317361787?s=20
Not sure if there is anything behind it but I see rumours of Coutinho to Inter Miami.
Ibarra loaned by Atlanta to Rosario Central...
poor guy getting messed around because somebody at ATL couldn't count to 4.