http://www.unitedmania.com/episode-139-mean-ol-bitch-11000 Finally some good news to talk about - the draw with Chicago and the win over the Revs plus some National Team talk to boot.. Enjoy..
The problem with EJ not going to the World Cup is that he can "prove himself" to Olsen and the club by producing here, sure, but he loses 50% of his value to us regardless of how he performs here. He loses his entire celebrity (whatever it amounted to). There's no 'proving' that back this year or maybe next. We could have chosen other options at goalscorers capable of getting roughly 10 goals a season (hell Kenny Cooper) and it would have cost half as much.
This is absurd. 50% of EJs value is not in his celebrity status. I don't think his "celebrity" has much value at all. Certainly not "celebrity" that will derive from this years World Cup. I know you've seen attendance this year. Do you think it is going to drop further if EJ doesn't make the World Cup? Nope. Conversely do you think it will suddenly spike if he makes the squad? Most likely not. In the rare scenario where EJ makes the squad, he beats out Josie/Wondo/ArJo etc for playing time AND the US play well enough to advanced AND he is an integral part (i.e. he is the US star of the cup) then MAYBE we see a spike. The biggest worry in my opinion (and was expressed on the podcast) is that EJ goes into a prolonged funk if he doesn't make the national team. I think the likelihood of even that is less than many people expect. DC United has already paid him, he seems happy here. I don't think he would hold it against the club if he didn't make the World Cup squad. In fact, if he doesn't make the squad he is just as likely to get pissed of and show the USMNT how the screwed up by not taking him to Brazil.
So explain to me how EJ arrives at a 600,000 salary + perhaps as much as 400-600,000 allocation fee for being a 10 goal a year locker-room-destroyer if not for his status as a USMNT player- specifically a USMNT World Cup player. We could literally have plugged in any number of players at half that salary for similar effect alongside Doyle and Espindola. The team presumably feels he has value as a marketable face and that is supposed to grow this World Cup. If he doesn't, we lose out big time, unless he has a big time 14+ goal year. Strike that, he doesn't just need to score goals, because even Salihi was headed toward a 12 goal season- he needs to win games, to produce actual results for us.
So who are these players that are/were available to United at half the price of EJ with more production?
I feel you, but it's not a good time to ask that question when you could plug Chad Barrett in as the answer based on production.
EJ routinely occupies 2 defenders. That should free up teammates for runs into space. That isn't happening consistently enough now, but any cheaper and less physical player wouldn't be able to do that. Forwards are paid to score, and so far EJ hasn't or has gotten hosed by the Refs. But he is contributing in other ways that help the team.
And scoring goals regularly. Pajoy is scoring too for that matter, in a Cali whorehouse sure, but just saying you keep comparing apples to oranges and you'll get a runny fruit salad if you lean the wrong way. EJ does help the team, it's dimwitted to think otherwise. He has been snakebit so far, but he will score in bunches when it comes. He's always been the epitome of streaky scorers. When it comes it pours down goals for guys like him. As far as I can see, it just hasn't quite clicked yet. He's doing the right things at times and then the team isn't perfect for him. Conversely, the team is perfect for him and he's just off enough himself to not capitalize. It's all timing and understanding. They will figure it out. As for the could we have done better with a cheaper player argument, well perhaps. If we had hit the magee or wondolowski lightning in a bottle lottery or hit the current underpaid flavor of the month like Justin Meram, or Qunicy Amarikwa, sure EJ is over paid, but how many people predicted their breakout seasons? Not so easy is it. If we'd have gone the over the top DP like the Deuce, Henry or Di Viao, maybe that would have worked too, but then again Emilio and Gomez 2.0 didn't work nor did Gallardo or Davies, if frogs had wings they wouldn't bump their tails when they jump. Those guys all had warts they have overcome or are trying to overcome. Pick your poison. It's easy to cherry pick across mls one way or another. It's all relative.
Except Johnson has never been a streaky goal scorer (when he was scoring) and is a model of consistency in the league among scorers. In 2012 he scored in 7 different months- matches 5, 6, 7, 11, 14, 16, 17, 18, 24, 27, 31 and then in 2013 with 7 fewer matches played he scored across 5 months- matches 2, 7, 10, 20, 21, 23, 24, 28, 30. Recall that he only played 28 games in 2012 and 21 games in 2013. When he helps the team in a definable way- a way that can be expressed in terms of statistics (assists, goals) or by some series of plays that open up goals and assists, it will continue to be reasonable to say that maybe we'd have been better off doing something else (hindsight is 20/20 of course). He was a huge expense for this club and he needs to pay dividends- particularly since he (likely) won't be playing a full season and we're already on game 7. We need to ask what reasonable expectations we have of the highest paid player in some time (factoring in allocation). Is one or two goals across 10 games good enough?
Oh dear God, Mike, you've just joined the, "Adu will lead the 2010 World Cup team . . . ," "Gomez will be a great bench player . . . ," "Otero will be considered one of the greatest attacking midfielders . . . ," "Stokes is a gifted talent that will lead DC United's defense for the next decade . . . ," club. His job is to score! As far as I've been able to tell, he's barely participated. Right here, right now . . . . He doesn't score more than 7 goals for the entire year!
Bogus off-side calls and getting pulled down from behind may have something to do with it. just saying