Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread that post had nothing to do with who has more potential talent, it was a comment regarding why Oliver will be in the core for next cycle even though he is out of the limelight at the moment. Some people just love to compare prospects greatness for no reason. before the big tournament on who make the final roster? acceptable........... but, at the beginning of the cycle? seriously?
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread That is a whole lot of random speculation. The only real piece of news he brought was that Salgado got a Spanish passport.
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread Speculation? That Spanish passport is a game changer as far as Salgado, the Whitecaps, MLS, and prospective Euro clubs are concerned.
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread He needs to be worried about how to improve where he's at now, not where he's going to play next.
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread Isn't that the case with every player, whether they're moving on or not? Being able to utilize an EU passport is always predicated on a player reaching a good level.
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread I have no problem with the fact he got it, just the emphasis on how it affects his European aspirations. He will have no aspirations if he doesn't improve in his present situation. Just don't think we need to put the cart before the horse.
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread Vancouver obviously knew about spanish passport before the draft and i would bet money it was a significant factor in their selection for future return. He was #1 on my draft board based on his talent and EU passport. Vancouver already had experience with this scenario with their residency system before joining MLS.
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread Why does Ives think he will try to go to Europe asap, instead of just getting the passport to build his stock and for the future.
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread Plus, I can't see Vancouver looking to ship off the #1 overall pick so quickly after drafting him unless there's too good of an offer.
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread We hasn't really proved anything yet, in the professional ranks. Maybe in 2-3 years when he break-out i.e. Brek Shea then we will see big clubs come a calling
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread You used the words "Ives" and "think" in the same sentence. Mistake.
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread So true. He titled one of his "stories", "Salgado eyes Europe" or something like that. Basically he inferred that Omar's about to make a move for Europe because he has a European passport now. He ended up stretching 1 tiny story into a whole feature article. The whole time I read his fluff piece, I kept thinking to myself, "this kid has only scored once, doesn't get to see much of the field these days, and oh yea, doesn't he have a contract that he has to fulfill with Vancouver. He's not going anywhere for a LONG time". I really wish we had better soccer writers in this country aside from just the 3 or 4.
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread Here's a reminder of someone who could possibly strengthen the LB position: http://usa10kit.com/2011/09/26/ocegueda-notes/#more-11644
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread The left back position actually looks really good for this team. Potts, Ocegueda and Cunningham are three of the best left back prospects in my memory. It's the central defense that's a bit more concerning.
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread I think it's too soon to make judgments on the relative strengths and weaknesses of this U-20 team. We still have a long way to go before we'll have a solid grasp on what this cycle looks like. Right now we have a list of guys in professional environments, most of whom nobody has ever seen play, the old U-17s, the U-18 regulars, and various other amateurs who will be popping up in the NCAA. The pro names stand out because they're in the pros, but we've seen time and time again that when the smoke clears at the end of the U-20 cycle, many of them aren't as good as the top amateurs who go pro a little later. Ocegueda, Cunningham, and Potts all have two things going for them: (a) they've made good progress relative to their age and (b) their clubs seem to like them, indicating they are more than just generic academy players. In my book, that's enough to have real reason for optimism, but I'd hesitate to call them bona fide top prospects until they start showing well for the first team or lights-out scouting reports start rolling in. As far as LB vs. CB goes, LB has the early edge in name recognition. CB just has Brooks and some U17 names like Fehr whose hype may or may not be justified. Early-cycle name recognition doesn't mean anything though -- see Bernardo, Vincenzo (imagine if we had 1000s of posts on Conor Shanosky or someone like that, and Shanosky is probably a far better player).
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread They are bona fide top prospects for the 2013 U-20 team. I don't think there is a question about that. We can certainly hope that Cunningham doesn't make a habit out of his team conceding 6 goals everytime he plays. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OO2bT-DjSQ&feature=youtu.be
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread Sure, but I don't think that's very interesting. A lot of U-20 players aren't really NT prospects. By that standard, Greg Garza was a bona fide LB prospect for the last U-20 team. When we saw him play, it quickly became clear that he was a U-20 contender, but that he was not a prospect for the senior team. The current LB trio are certainly frontrunners for the current U-20 team, but so what? Being an early U-20 frontrunner does not automatically make you a bona fide prospect.
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread I'm not projecting them to the full national team. I'm saying that our left back slot for the U-20s is the deepest and most talented it has been, well as far as I can tell ever. Obviously a long way to go before they even get a thought for the full team.
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread I should add that I am excited to see these guys with the U-20s and how they progress with their clubs over the next 12-24 months. We are disagreeing mainly about how we should apply an arbitrary label. I've become cautious about youth players until I've seen a larger body of evidence that shows they are for real.
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread I think we're all excited, and obviously it would help if we all took a breathe sometimes and did as you suggest, "become cautious about youth players until I've seen a larger body of evidence that shows they are for real." But part of this board is educated (or not, including me) speculation about projections and future stock. I'm laying my (limited) reputation on the line. This is the best left back pool our U-20s have ever had. BOOM
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread If the Next gen site is to be believed he is number 25 [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgDnQzoHezY&feature=player_embedded"]NextGen Series: Molde 0 - 4 Liverpool - YouTube[/ame] He seems to be playing a central midfield role but It's hard to tell from just the highlights.
Re: 2013 U-20 World Cup Roster Thread From Yanks Abroad about Anthony Isom at Empoli. I'm assuming it's the first team but trying to find info on the game now. It may be a Cup match? or a friendly? Regardless, it seems he's progressing at the club.