OFFICIAL - Union: 2012 Roster Thread

What's your source for unremarkable? He played in 30+ games in Ligue 1 in 09/10 then 30+ games in Ligue 2 in 10/11, then 16 games in Ligue 2 in 11/12 before he was loaned to a 2. Bundesliga team (due to financial problems at his club) where he was injured after 7 games. Seems to me that if he was unremarkable he would have been struggling for playing time, no?

Good players get relegated all of the time. It happens.

I know you have a thing against him for some reason, but you need to use facts in your arguments. Personally I'm pretty excited to have a guy for next year who has both MLS and high level European experience.

 

Feel free to point out where anything I've posted is categorically untrue. I don't struggle with the facts. You don't agree with my analysis, which is fine. I simply stated that his overseas career was unremarkable, and I find nothing in your reply that convinces me otherwise.

Here are some other fun facts. You can draw your own conclusions.
1. Soumare was nominated in 2008 for MLS Defender of the Year. The award went to Chad Marshall.
2. Soumare was fined in August 2009 for fighting with his manager during the half-time of a game. Was quickly transferred to US Bolougne in the same month following the incident. US Bolougne was in Ligue 1 at the time.
3. US Bolougne was relegated twice while Soumare was on the roster.
4. Karlsuher SC was relegated to 3. Liga while Soumare was on loan with the club.
5. In 2009-10 Ligue 1, Bolougne allowed the most goals of any team.
6. In 2011-12 Ligue 2, Bolougne was 6th out of 20 teams in most goals allowed.
7. In 2011-12 2. Bundesliga, Karlsruher finished second out of 18 teams in most goals allowed.
8. The Union allowed 5 goals in a reserve game while Soumare was on the field.
9. The Union allowed 3 goals in a first team match while Soumare was on the field.
10. Kai Herdling joined the Union on loan from 1899 Hoffenheim II. In six appearances, he did not register a single goal or assist.

 

FYP.
still trying to figure out how #10 has to do with Soumare.

 

I mean, it's fallacious to attempt to pin 3-9 on Soumare. Are you going to ignore the other three defenders and the keeper?

 

Or the other TEN field players, and the coaches tactics as well?

 

You all drew your own conclusions.

 

It's better than a Jump to Conclusions Mat, is it not?

 

No, I never stated nor implied that he was solely responsible for those goals. How would I have any way of knowing which ones he was unless I watched all the games he played?

There's a trend here. The teams he's played for since his move overseas have been poor and leaked goals like crazy. And he's played in those games. In both games he's played for the Union, the team has leaked goals like crazy. But I'm sure it was everyone else's fault, right? Shades of Freddy Adu and Rafa Marquez.

Would you rather have Chad Marshall in central defense with Valdes? Or is it possible that his form is worse now than it was four years ago? How about Chad Marshall coming off of two knee surgeries?

Soumare is a solution to a problem that doesn't exist. Height alone is not going to stop set piece goals. And, for the most part, our defense has been pretty good at not allowing goals in the run of play. He was brought in because, at the time, the coaching staff saw no options in central defense (prior to the emergence of Okugo). You bought into the FO's propaganda about this guy, but he's shown us nothing while he's been here. The fealty shown for him is even stranger than that shown for Adu. At least Adu has produced something on the field for us.

 

Fealty? It seems to me that people are taking the eminently reasonable position that we should see if a player the Union gave up significant resources to acquire can actually recover from an injury and contribute to the team before cutting him. At very least, you'd have to think that the front office would seek to trade Soumare to another MLS team before releasing him outright.

Nobody really knows how well Soumare might play in MLS over the next few years. He may turn out to be a terrible acquisition but he may still be useful.