Santino...Tino...whatevah - he's good

[Stan Collins]

He's a great set-up guy, no doubt, but that doesn't mean he can't play up top--look at Moreno for DC. By 2010 I see us running a 3-5-2 with Quaranta and EJ up top, Donovan as an attacking mid, and Adu and Beasley on the wings...plenty of speed and offensive creativity there. I wouldn't play him as the stiker forward at this point unless some of our traditional strikers were out. But as the second forward, I could more easily see it. Main reason he'd be 'better' on the right is we have fewer candidates.

Right now he creates more for others more than he finishes.

[Stan Collins]

Nah.;) (http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showpost.php?p=4220327&postcount=550) Props to you. By the beginning of this season I thought he was going to be in the "potential zone" forever, suspecting that his injuries had probably ruined him.

That turned out to be a bad prediction, happily enough :)

[Stan Collins]

True, we can't give Bruce all the credit for finding "the diamond in the rough" but we do have to give him credit for giving Tino the chance at the Gold Cup when almost nobody thought the selection was a wise one. Now look at the drool on the floor. Yeah, that's not to say I don't remember that the Johnson/Quaranta U-17 team had some folks saying they'd outdo Donovan and Beasley. And heck, maybe they just might come pretty close.

[Cavalier]

Don't discount what having a kid did for him as well. As hard as it has to be to have a child so young, undoubtably having his little girl has probably helped Tino focus more on becoming a better soccer players as suddenly he realized that if he were to flame out of soccer (which is where it looked like he was going for a little while) he wouldn't just be putting himself in a very difficult situation, but now his wife and child as well.

Great to see him playing so well and hope to see lots more over the next decade.

[Stan Collins]

You never know. It seemed like both Johnson and Quaranta had bumpy roads between age 16 and 20. But both stuck it out, for whatever reason, and we can be thankful for that.

[luvdagame]

True, we can't give Bruce all the credit for finding "the diamond in the rough" but we do have to give him credit for giving Tino the chance at the Gold Cup when almost nobody thought the selection was a wise one. Now look at the drool on the floor.

ursula and very few others can take credit for wholeheartedly supporting bruce on q's gold cup callup. so i've got to be fair and give props where it's due.

but the anti-q thread and posters were vicious.

[DaMa]

I have to agree with the poster who said they prefer Santino as a right wing. I'm not saying we have a great option as a second forward right now. At the same time, the right flank has been a big hole for our attack for several years now. It seems to me that someone with Tino's ability to see the field and take on attackers would fit VERY well with 'dolo, we just havent been able to see it yet.

Given that he has shown a decent prediliction for playing defense as well as the requisite talent at least on the Gold Cup stage, letting him get used to the right flank not only works there, but perhaps lets Gaven revert to his original slot as a forward where his lack of defense is less of an issue. Maybe im just getting ahead of myself but a 3-5-2 with some combination of dmb/job/tino/LD/adu (dmb seems like he'd fit well as a link there given his defensive prowess) behind EJ/Gaven is a nice little dream.

Someone should link the thread with all the outraged posters following the roster for the gold cup being announced as including tino. Not trying to be a BA apologist here but...

[HartwickFan]

Yeah, that's not to say I don't remember that the Johnson/Quaranta U-17 team had some folks saying they'd outdo Donovan and Beasley. And heck, maybe they just might come pretty close.

I remember Ellinger, their U17 coach, saying, at the time, that Johnson and Quaranta were more talented than Donovan and Beasley. I'd love it if he turns out to be right about that! :)

[Tony in Quakeland]

You never know. It seemed like both Johnson and Quaranta had bumpy roads between age 16 and 20. But both stuck it out, for whatever reason, and we can be thankful for that.Maybe memories of this will encourage people to be a little more pateint with Freddy.

Back on topic: Santino has bowled me over recently. I was among the great unwashed that assumed he had blown it. Now I seek out DC games to watch him.

[DaMa]

ursula and very few others can take credit for wholeheartedly supporting bruce on q's gold cup callup. so i've got to be fair and give props where it's due.

but the anti-q thread and posters were vicious.


Bah beat me to it! Someone link it... I was on there too :)

[Dave Marino-Nachison]

I remember Ellinger, their U17 coach, saying, at the time, that Johnson and Quaranta were more talented than Donovan and Beasley. I'd love it if he turns out to be right about that! :)

Physically, Quaranta was a man among boys at the U-17 level -- especially when he played outside on the right wing, where nobody had anybody who could match up with him (particularly in CONCACAF). I've always thought that if he could put head, skill and body together he could go very far, particularly at that position. It's exciting to see that he's showing signs of doing so, even if he's already at the ripe old age of 20.

[Stan Collins]

Someone should link the thread with all the outraged posters following the roster for the gold cup being announced as including tino. Not trying to be a BA apologist here but... I think it's OK to be a BA apologist (I am, if you define "apologist" as someone who thinks we couldn't realistically do any better right now than The Bruce), but I don't think we need to single people out.

[chessplayer]

Back on topic: Santino has bowled me over recently. I was among the great unwashed that assumed he had blown it. Now I seek out DC games to watch him.

I personally would like to see Tino score some goals, then I'll be satisfied he is arriving and would want him on the Nats. Time after time I see him get into prime scoring chances and whiff, then give that disgusted look; he's gonna get a muscle tic and be doing that look when he's 50 out of sheer repetition.
True, he is handling the ball like Jaime the Lesser (and on Saturday he will be Jaime the Lesser without Jaime available to us), and is a sweet revelation this year that is protecting us from the full brunt of Alecko's backfall. But we need goals from the strikers, and so far Jaime the Real is the only one who has been providing them. With his play and Walker's flash of brilliance last night, hopefully these days are coming. All the best teams we may face in the playoffs (NE, Chicago, KC, Dallas, San Jose) have accomplished defenses and we will need to combine our possession and ball movement with finishing to win another title, which means that the folks up top have to do their jobs and "do the business" (props to Tommy Smyth). Again, if these days are coming, Tino's future and DC's is bright; if not, I can see him and us flashing out in a few months.
Make no mistake, though, nobody's complaining right now 'cept the Metros!

[dfb547490]

I wouldn't play him as the stiker forward at this point unless some of our traditional strikers were out. But as the second forward, I could more easily see it. Main reason he'd be 'better' on the right is we have fewer candidates.

Right now he creates more for others more than he finishes.

I agree, I have a tendency to use "striker" and "forward" interchangeably even though that's not really correct, don't take anything from it.

I have to agree with the poster who said they prefer Santino as a right wing. I'm not saying we have a great option as a second forward right now. At the same time, the right flank has been a big hole for our attack for several years now. It seems to me that someone with Tino's ability to see the field and take on attackers would fit VERY well with 'dolo, we just havent been able to see it yet.

I agree that his best position RIGHT NOW for the US is RM, but I think he'll move up top after the WC, as McBride is put out to pasture and Adu earns a place on the team.

Given that he has shown a decent prediliction for playing defense as well as the requisite talent at least on the Gold Cup stage, letting him get used to the right flank not only works there, but perhaps lets Gaven revert to his original slot as a forward where his lack of defense is less of an issue. Maybe im just getting ahead of myself but a 3-5-2 with some combination of dmb/job/tino/LD/adu (dmb seems like he'd fit well as a link there given his defensive prowess) behind EJ/Gaven is a nice little dream.

As I said earlier, in South Africa I see us going with EJ and Quaranta up top; DMB and Adu on the flanks; and Donovan at attacking mid playing in front of a "destroyer" DMF (Clark, Spector, O'Rourke) and a 2-way guy (JOB, Dempsey, Feilhaber, Szetela). Throw in 3 big, athletic CBs (Gooch, Gibbs, Marshall, Boca, Spector, Wynne) and a GK and you're set.

[JohnR]

ISomeone should link the thread with all the outraged posters following the roster for the gold cup being announced as including tino.

And these outraged posters are wrong because ... Santino is looking good in MLS?

I like Santino too but first things first, like let's see Santino actually kick some butt for USMNT before declaring victory. Clint Dempsey looked even better than Quaranta in MLS and he didn't exactly prove that he owns the international game this past spring.

[D-Wall]

And these outraged posters are wrong because ... Santino is looking good in MLS?

I like Santino too but first things first, like let's see Santino actually kick some butt for USMNT before declaring victory. Clint Dempsey looked even better than Quaranta in MLS and he didn't exactly prove that he owns the international game this past spring.

Santino played extremely well in his games in the Gold Cup, granted Cuba is no giant. But against Panama, he really tore up their outside backs.

I think they have different games. Dempsey is an excellent player. But I am seeing Santino hold the ball better than Dempsey, who has a tendency to lose it or get knocked down hard in his Nats games. I didn't see that with Santino when he played in his games. Not only did he attack and beat players off the dribble, but he held the ball and connected extremely well with JOB, LD and Mastro.

Put both on the field in the future, and I would be happy.

[Sandon Mibut]

I don't think Tino has demonstrated anything as a pro or any national team level above U17 to show that his finishing is good enough to think he'll be a forward for the nats.

The guy is a great passer. He's fast. He's big. He can take guys on 1-v-1. He's a right mid. Let's just embrace that. Besides, EJ's partner after Germany is gonna be Freddy so playing Tino at RM just leaves that spot up-top for Adu.

[bofahey]

ursula and very few others can take credit for wholeheartedly supporting bruce on q's gold cup callup. so i've got to be fair and give props where it's due.

but the anti-q thread and posters were vicious.
I wasn't really reading this particular board much at that time, but if you take a look at the DCU post-match threads from the 3 matches preceding the Gold Cup, you'll see that many in-person attendees were praising him to no end. Starting with the game at the Swamp, he's been playing virtually flawless in a DCU uniform every outing (well... with the exception of his finishing).

It's also one of those things where his recent play doesn't necessarily fully translate to TV. If you see it in person, you appreciate his vision much more because you see how well he reads the field. I would say that he's DCU's best passer... and that's saying something with Moreno and Gomez on the pitch as well.

Barring injury, I really think he's not only going to make Germany. I think he's going to come on the scene like Beasley and actually start quite a bit (on the right side most likely). His upside is just tremendous.

[Stan Collins]

I agree that his best position RIGHT NOW for the US is RM, but I think he'll move up top after the WC, as McBride is put out to pasture and Adu earns a place on the team. I'll give that a 'maybe.' He crosses well, he's fast, and he's a good two way player. All of these are qualities you like to see in a winger.

As I said earlier, in South Africa I see us going with EJ and Quaranta up top; DMB and Adu on the flanks; These guys are both mainly left-footed, tho. Not that this makes it impossible (DMB doesn't cross much for a winger, anyway), but assuming Adu does mature to that level, pairing DMB on the left with Quaranta on the right and EJ as the striker with Adu as the second forward arguably puts each the closest to his natural position.

[Sandon Mibut]

pairing DMB on the left with Quaranta on the right and EJ as the striker with Adu as the second forward arguably puts each the closest to his natural position.Amen. Put Landon in center mid, a seasoned JOB or a hitting his prime Rico Clark or Danny Szetela behind him with a back line of Spector, Gooch, Marshall and Wynne and Timmy Howard in goal and it's hard not to get, well, hard.

That's a damn good team!