MLS

[Flip]

ah ffs.

 

Anybody support Real Salt Lake? Guy I played with was just selected in the 4th round of the Super Draft. Got to say looking at that I wish I had kept on playing as I'd have been a first round pick without a doubt and would be playing with Kaka as the first overall pick.

 

 

 

[Deuce]

TFC's traded Kyle Bekker to FC Dallas. Player to keep an eye on, think he's got potential to be a pretty good central midfielder.

[Chris Banaloona]

Team to watch are Vancouver Whitecaps. Thriving youth Academy with 7 centres around Western Canada all feeding into a residency program at U16 plus, a manager Who isn't afraid to play the talented young players and roster that is being moulded out of some very good South Americans.

[toontownman]

Agree with babalooba. Some great things happening there, as in many MLS clubs now taking on essentially a championship club each as their b teams.

 

Not so much in agreement with Duece. I just don't get the Bekker hype. I'm glad he has moved on and will hopefully get starts/minutes with Dallas that he wasn't ever likely to get with TFC. Seemed well out of his depth, slow and ineffective every time I have seen him play. He has somewhat decent vision and technique and will work hard but I'd be shocked if he isn't on the waived list come season end.

 

I hope he turns things around to show his rumoured early potential, I haven't seen it though. Compared to the likes of osorio, tiebert and maybe even Bustos and Froese he is a long way behind imo.

[Chris Banaloona]

Kianz Frose is the real deal. Cuban born but could be Canada's first superstar just like Landon Donovan was for the USA.

[Kaizero]

Team to watch are Vancouver Whitecaps. Thriving youth Academy

 

Yet still bringing in the 34 year old Pah Moduh Kah to lead their defence He was shit even when he was still in his twenties.

[Kanj]

We may be buying some corporate box and/or club seats for Orlando City. Convincing my CEO to do so. I'll get full control over the 4 seats too. He's Dutch, massive football fan - sort of looks like Arjen Robben actually

[Deuce]

I'm coming down for a game. You can lie and tell your boss I'm someone important.

[Kanj]

This is Deuce. He's a LAD.

[Disco]

Deuce Yankee

Junior VP, Bantz Inc.

[Chris Banaloona]

Team to watch are Vancouver Whitecaps. Thriving youth Academy

 

Yet still bringing in the 34 year old Pah Moduh Kah to lead their defence He was s*** even when he was still in his twenties.

Team to watch are Vancouver Whitecaps. Thriving youth Academy

 

Yet still bringing in the 34 year old Pah Moduh Kah to lead their defence He was s*** even when he was still in his twenties.

Team to watch are Vancouver Whitecaps. Thriving youth Academy

 

Yet still bringing in the 34 year old Pah Moduh Kah to lead their defence He was s*** even when he was still in his twenties.

 

To be fair I don't think he'll start. Waston and Rodriguez will start backed up by Parker, Dean and Kah .

[Deuce]

This is Deuce. He's a LAD.

 

Oi Oi!

[Deuce]

Montreal trades Felipe Martins and the #1 spot in the allocation order to Red Bulls for Eric Alexander and Ambroise Oyongo. Good deal for both sides, MTL gets two starters and NYRB has a replacement for Cahill should he jump to the Middle East.

 

Sets up Red Bulls to pick-up Sacha Kljestan should he come back to MLS as has been rumored.

[SEMTEX]

Makes a change for a trade to go ahead in the MLS that ultimately ends up allowing a well known USMNT player to sign for one of the biggest teams in MLS.

[BillClinton]

Agudelo back to NE. Can't ever blame players for wanting to try Europe but he really made a mess of it.

[Deuce]

Agudelo back to NE. Can't ever blame players for wanting to try Europe but he really made a mess of it.

 

Should never have tried to get into the PL. Was nowhere near ready for that level. Should've gone straight to the Netherlands or Scandinavia and built his profile for a couple years or just stayed with New England and become a regular. Pretty much wasted a year and a half of his career.

[Segun Oluwaniyi]

It is a bit strange to see so many of the Americans going back to MLS.Do you consider a net positive or negative? I'm sure it will raise the profile of your league somewhat, having prime aged American players that people have seen don RWB and may mean the core of the NT can meet more often, but surely they are more likely to grow individually as players in stronger leagues?

[Deuce]

It is a bit strange to see so many of the Americans going back to MLS.Do you consider a net positive or negative? I'm sure it will raise the profile of your league somewhat, having prime aged American players that people have seen don RWB and may mean the core of the NT can meet more often, but surely they are more likely to grow individually as players in stronger leagues?

 

As I've said before, it's a mixed bag. Personally, I like that Dempsey came back. His European career was winding down but he still has plenty to contribute at this level. It's definitely good for the league to have someone of his caliber playing here. And he's played long enough at the highest level that his own game won't be hurt by playing against inferior competition.

 

Bradley came back for money at the peak of his career; Toronto was willing to pay him far more than he'd have gotten from any European club. And I think he's regressed as a player (doesn't help that Toronto is garbage). Arguably our weakest performer in Brazil when he should've been our strongest (which does have a lot to do with him being played at the top of a midfield diamond where his best attributes are negated). In CONCACAF and in a lesser league, he's a capable of pulling strings and putting in balls over the top as deep-lying playmaker. But in a better league, he's a pure defensive midfielder and shouldn't be given much license other than snuffing out attacks through the middle. He had an excellent season for Chievo in Serie A a couple years ago, but was pretty subpar for Roma. I definitely think he's still capable of playing in France and Italy or even Germany or England for a lower mid-table team as a DM and should be looking to mix it up with players better than what MLS has to offer.

 

Altidore needed to make the move back. He'll score goals in MLS and get his confidence back. He's capable of better than MLS, as he proved in the Eredivisie, but this is about his level right now. Should never have left MLS when he did the first time, he was far too raw and certainly not good enough to play in La Liga. And he shouldn't have gone from the Eredivisie to England, and particularly not to Sunderland. I don't think he'll ever play in England again, and that's understandable from both sides.

 

Brek Shea and Juan Agudelo are pretty much in the same boat as Altidore, they left too soon and ended up in leagues well above their ability.

 

The situation with Mix was weird. Again, I think it was mostly a money move. It's arguably a step-up from Norway in terms of quality of competition, but I think he could've found work in a European league that's a step-up from both Norway and MLS. However, he couldn't have picked a better team in MLS to join in terms of marketability and future career options. If he puts in a couple seasons of really solid play, doors will open for him in Europe.

 

 

All in all, I guess having all these American players in MLS helps market the league to the casual American fan. Personally, I'd rather the league not throw money at American players simply because they're American.

[SEMTEX]

SHOCKING NEWS

 

http://i.imgur.com/BdaZLgT.jpg

[Toon Hoser]

Things are getting all existential like in Tronno.

 

 

Giovinco signing masks the existential dread of TFC’s next season

 

Cathal Kelly

TORONTO — The Globe and Mail

 

It started getting weird around the time Andrea D’Amico, the agent for Toronto FC’s newest signing, Sebastian Giovinco, began filibustering his client’s news conference.

 

Waving his arms delightedly and discoursing in Italian so rapid and unceasing the translator was rendered pointless, D’Amico lustily informed us about … well, I’m not sure what. All I can say for certain is it went on a long time.

 

Toronto FC officially introduced their latest signing, Sebastian Giovinco, Friday. The Italian playmaker says he hopes to repay the warm welcome from fans with his performance on the field.   

 

Toronto FC coach Greg Vanney says signing Italian star Sebastian Giovinco is part of a plan to build an "intelligent team." General manager Tim Bezbatchenko says the deal is big news for the team and for Major League Soccer.   

 

“He’s more excited than I am,” Giovinco declared when it ended, in much slower Italian.

 

The pair seemed buoyant and who can blame them? They’ve just managed what amounts to a bank heist and they didn’t need guns.

 

Until last week an out-of-favour sub on a good Juventus team, Giovinco is being paid $7-million (U.S.) a year by Toronto FC, with some add-ons. That makes him the top earner in Major League Soccer. Ever.

 

He’s also now the highest-paid Italian soccer player in the world. Unlike Giovinco, many of those other Italians actually play for clubs in Italy.

 

He seems like a pleasant young man. He doesn’t speak a word of English. Until Thursday, he’d never been in Canada. On Friday, he happily admitted to never having watched an MLS game.

 

The equivalent in your life might be if you were offered a job as a crane operator in Djibouti at five times your current salary, starting tomorrow.

 

Where’s Djibouti? Not sure.

 

What language do they speak there? No idea.

 

How do I work a crane, because …? You should stop asking questions and hail a cab. Your plane leaves in 15 minutes.

 

We’ve seen how this ends before. On a loop.

 

Toronto FC lures them into the trap with a pile of cash. It bags them and tags them. After a few weeks of indoctrination, it frees them into the wild. After a year, they’ve run off home.

 

It’s easy to be cynical. Until there’s tangible evidence to the contrary, it’s also sensible. The new guy didn’t help much in that regard.

 

Asked to explain why he came, if not just for the money, Giovinco revealed a nobler purpose – he hates Italy.

 

“In Italy, I had many problems. They were all talking about me as a player who couldn’t play at a high level, but I always demonstrated with facts that was not correct. I wanted to find a city, a team, that from the beginning welcomed me.”

 

Toronto is Giovinco’s rebound girlfriend. Wait? She’s rich, too?!

 

He hadn’t noticed. Honest. Give Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment this much – it will pay anything to make this club a winner. It will pay stupid money for the chance to lose an even stupider amount.

 

MLSE didn’t pay its previous disaster, Jermain Defoe, this much. However, it did fork over $100,000 in rent for his two Toronto homes. A hundred thousand a month. It wasn’t even in his contract. They just paid it to be … I don’t know, agreeable.

 

Giovinco isn’t Defoe. If he were, Juventus wouldn’t have let him go. He is talented, in a tricksy way. Put it like this – there are no mopes on the Italian national team. He’s also knee-high to a grasshopper.

 

It remains to be seen if his finesse game and elfin frame translate to the muscular physical environs of MLS. He seemed unconcerned – “If you can’t get there by strength, you can get there by other means.”

 

However, to recap – he’s never watched a full game.

 

There is nothing here to suggest this won’t work out, except history.

 

If Giovinco, still only 28, lights this league on fire, he’ll try to leverage that increased profile for a starting job in Europe. If he’s middling to terrible, he’ll stick around to fill his boots. That’s not cynical. It’s common sense.

 

It’s not a reason to avoid signing him. Though they all talk a lot of nonsense about finding a home and building something, every athlete is first-and-foremost a mercenary. Being paid to fight doesn’t preclude you from being good at it.

 

As Toronto FC general manager Tim Bezbatchenko put it, rather too perfectly: “This isn’t an adventure. It’s a crusade.”

 

In the end, Giovinco’s primary motivation won’t be the millions, since he has them now. It’ll be bitterness at the way he was treated back home and the chance to return there on his own terms. There’s nothing wrong with that, either. Anger is a more reliable spur to performance than getting all misty over a bused-in crowd cheering you through the airport.

 

What Toronto FC needs from him isn’t a long, highlight-filled career (though that’d be nice).

 

It needs one good year. Just one year, a playoff berth and no public meltdowns. If Giovinco can give TFC that, it’ll be money well spent.

 

This is the spot where we talk about last chances. This isn’t that. If Giovinco fails or gives up or flees in terror, they’ll go out and overpay another Giovinco. The world’s full of them and they’re all greedy.

 

The more ominous question is, have they already wasted their last chance? Was Defoe the bust that killed this club’s opportunity to become a citywide concern, rather than a cult favourite?

 

Underneath the shrill hype attending this lesser signing, that’s the real theme of the coming season: existential dread.

 

[Deuce]

Must be nice to be buoyed by all that Leafs money.

[Deuce]

3rd-tier USL Pro rebrands as "USL", plans to apply for 2nd-tier status.

 

http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/2015/02/10/usl-unveils-new-name-and-logo-ahead-2015-season-announces-intent-pursue-seco

[Village Idiot]

Villa has scored his first goal for New York City in a friendly against St Mirren. This made me think that he should have done a Lampard, Manchester City could've used him, imho.

[Deuce]

MLS may have its own Yaya Touré in New York FC's Kwadwo Poku

 

Stood in front of the camera, his sizeable frame taking up most of the shot, Kwadwo Poku looked nervous. There was a wry smile etched upon his face as his eyes danced from left to right.

 

“I really like Yaya Touré who plays for Manchester City,” he said smiling, before adding: “He is like my role model.”

 

Standing at over 6ft tall, it’s easy to see why comparisons between the Ghanaian born Poku and Touré have been made by both former team-mates and opponents alike.

 

Donning the sky blue kit of New York City FC for the first time on Tuesday night during his side’s comfortable 2-0 win over St Mirren, his unique blend of power and technique was certainly evident during a 45 minute run out.

 

Introduced in the second half, the 22-year-old was tasked with sitting deeper and anchoring the midfield in the centre – like a certain Mr Touré of Manchester. If those comparisons were strong before Tuesday, they will only increase now he is a representative of Manchester City’s cousin in New York.

 

A product of the Asante Kotoko academy, which has previously produced such Ghanaian talents as Leeds striker Tony Yeboah and Bayern Munich’s Samuel Kuffour, Poku moved to the United States in 2010. Initially plying his trade in the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) with the Georgia Revolution, a strong showing in the US Open Cup against the nearby Atlanta Silverbacks afforded him the chance to play on a bigger stage.

 

The Silverbacks were forced to wait for their man, however. “We didn’t want to get the word out too much about him,” the Silverbacks general manager and president, Andy Smith, explained. In the process of acquiring a green card, Poku’s discovery late in the season proved poor timing for the team.

 

Eventually acquired ahead of the 2014 season, it was then that his true position became evident. “With the Georgia Revolution he was playing as a forward,” Smith explains. “That’s what we initially thought he was, but in a conversation it came up he was originally a holding midfielder and that he tries to model himself on Yaya Touré.”

 

It would also seem that is where Poku fits into the plans of Jason Kreis. Against St Mirren he confidently sprayed the ball from left to right before engaging in some driving runs in the final third, leaving both the commentators and viewers alike enthusiastic at what they had seen.

 

Thus it should come as little surprise that a quartet of MLS sides including the Chicago Fire and Real Salt Lake courted Poku during 2014, as he once again shone in the US Open Cup – netting the deciding goal in a win over RSL. Again besting MLS opposition in the the next round, Poku grabbed the headlines as he was harshly sent off for attempting to break up a fight late in the game against the Colorado Rapids.

 

It was also around this time that teams in MLS began to take notice. As Smith explains the eventual trade between New York and Seattle was the product of a “crazy” race to file a Discovery Claim: “It was who got that piece of paper in first,” he said.

 

The piece of paper in question is part of a league rule in which teams can claim they have discovered a player. Perhaps more interesting is Smith’s revelation that Seattle took the Ghanian on trial last year, but as he bluntly explains: “They offered us nothing for him, it was silly. They didn’t see it [his talent].”

 

That had further consequences. With Seattle’s offer of zero dollars up front with incentives still being considered a valid bid, it locked Poku in. For New York to procure him, not only would they have to deal with Atlanta put they would also have to satisfy Seattle’s demands - eventually sending a conditional draft pick in 2017 for the 22-year-old’s rights.

 

Smith is still surprised by the Sounders’ decision to allow New York to sign Poku. The Silverbacks GM is a considerable fan of his former midfielder, a player he describes as “raw” but also “a huge talent”.

 

Off the pitch, it would seem he is a positive influence too: “No one has a bad thing to say about him,” Smith explains. “He’s incredibly respectful. A gentle giant is a great way of putting it.”

 

Poku is far from the finished product and could still benefit from adding goals to his game – he scored just twice last season. If he can score more often, New York may have picked up one of NASL’s brightest talents in years.

 

Poku is currently at Manchester City’s extravagant training complex, and there is every chance the two men may train side by side this week as Touré returns from international duty at the same time as New York begin their pre-season schedule.

 

Manchester City have won just once this season in the league without the influential Touré, a sign of the importance of the Ivorian’s commanding presence in a team full of star turns. If New York City can utilise Poku to his optimum, they could reap the rewards of their own version of Touré.

[Mike]

Ghana or USA?