I never minded him; but it was clear Dom favored a whole host of middies over him last year - even starting two DMs down the center over putting him up top. That being the case, even at a 100K, that international spot was of greater value than his contribution.
IMHO, it's simple. We have options. Can Driver come into MLS and play great? If so, you consider putting out a 4-3-3 where he is forward on the left or a 4-4-2 with Davis in the center. If not, than you have Barnes or a central mid pairing of Clark/Moffatt.
We have a lot of quality guys. And there are subs. All of these guys will see plenty of playing time. Having a gaggle of starter-quality players is a good thing. I've always argued that I'd rather have two good players than spend the same budget hit on one DP. While we do have a single DP, we're generally spending budget on multiple good players, instead of one big, flashy signing. I like it. I'm still not at all confident that we have a roster that can get past a club like Santos Laguna in a home and away series. But that's more of a league-level issue.
Disagree. Easy targets exist for a reason. There is usually truth behind their being scapegoated. Say what you want about the technical abilities of Danny Cruz, he hustled every single play. You can't say the same for Watson. That's a big no-no for fans and a bigger no-no for Dom. None of this is to say that Houston is not better off with Cruz in Philly and OBG in Houston. Just that you get a little more rope if you are a good lockerroom guy and hustle with fans and Dom.
anderson I just want us to have a roster capable of getting past LA at this point. Anything else is gravy
I understand what you’re are saying, but why does your goal not including getting value? Your goal should be to get the best value out of everything? You got the I-spot yes, but we didn’t even clear that much salary? 100k? In today’s MLS that is not that much. Especially for a guy that I actually think is worth his salary (the I-Spot does hurt his value some though). I am sure we had no leverage trying to deal an international this late in the game. I don’t think it is a bad deal for us, I just think we shouldn’t just accept this by default. For Dallas I think it’s a great deal. They get a guy who can help fill out their roster who can play multiple positions at a decent salary. For us it was what we needed to do to get this other cat. Looks to be better than Watson for sure, but is he better than Watson if normalized by salary? Only time will tell. I guess it could be worse... we could be chivas and giving 2nd round picks for team to take our players...
Except you cannot hold out for value if your real NEED is to drop the player. Point being VALUE is defined by the circumstance not by a chart. Dallas gets Watson. Houston gets: I-Spot 100K Budget room Second Pick in draft ABILITY to sign Driver That is a substantial amount of value. What else do you think we should have gotten? We CANNOT take on a player; we need to clear cap space. Watson's quality does not equal a first rounder, especially since he requires an I-Spot. I think a second round pick is spot on. And I contend, we would have dropped him to pick up Driver if we had to; so even better value.
I love this quote: “It is a wrench for him,” the player’s father, David, told The Scotsman last night. “But it is a fantastic opportunity for Andrew to re-ignite his career in a league that is going places.”
I have a feeling this guy is going to do some good things. Seems like maybe he had a confidence issue when coming back from injury but looked his old self post-injury in their cup win last year.
I will start by saying - in favor of the move! My only concern is a "Koke-like" situation if we cannot get him on the pitch in a good position.
He's not a DP or near a DP based on your analysis of cap situation (even with 100K from Watson deal). Nothing close to Koke-like as he's not expected to start/contribute heavily immediately. We have OBG and Davis. He will get time if Dom wants to mix up formations and/or wants to give OBG/Davis a breather or move one of those two to central mid. Houston has so many options now it really will be fun to watch how Dom puts the pieces together.
DP has nothing to do with my concern as I doubt he is too worried about some title that exists only in MLS (nor was Koke). My only concern is he has been in a public battle with his manager about being utilized correctly, has asked for a transfer, and wants to play for Scotland (after receiving clearance has not been called up). I doubt he is going to be happy sitting the bench. So I hope he is mature enough to deal with that if Dom decides not to go 4-3-3 to get him on the field.
I see your point. But I have faith that Dom has learned from various Koke, Landin, Costly experiences with bringing people in. Not comparing Costly to Koke I just mean that Dom has had a pretty lot of experience over the past few seasons, as has Canetti. I'm hoping for a Barnes like experience,not a Koke like experience. An injured guy who may have lost some relative value in UK being given a new start with a solid club and takes advantage of the opportunity. If we get any more Scots maybe Rod Stewart will buy out the Golden Boy!