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DPs, MLS, and You
Posted 18 Apr 2008 at 02:47 PM by Jeff Bull
Do we all have a stake in the success of the designated players Major League Soccer (MLS) brings in?
This occurred to me while watching DC United lose to the Columbus Crew, specifically, while watching DC’s designated player (DP), Marcelo Gallardo, struggle to make an impact. The team tried to play through him, but they didn’t seem like they were in the same chapter, never mind on the same page.
The question isn’t whether or not a slow start to the season makes Gallardo a bust; time will tell on that one (and I still don’t think he will be). Assuming, however, he does fail, what does that say about the DP as a species? To phrase this directly, does MLS look like a six-pack of rubes when they bring in players that bust? Do DP-busts make us all look like over-eager yokels?
I’ll close with a couple sub-questions, because I find this fascinating. Because MLS can’t afford players from the top-shelf, do the players within their reach bring enough to make the complexity and relative expense of the DP rule worth the hassle? To go the other way with this, does the struggle of some DPs improve your opinion on where the rest of MLS’s players are today?
This occurred to me while watching DC United lose to the Columbus Crew, specifically, while watching DC’s designated player (DP), Marcelo Gallardo, struggle to make an impact. The team tried to play through him, but they didn’t seem like they were in the same chapter, never mind on the same page.
The question isn’t whether or not a slow start to the season makes Gallardo a bust; time will tell on that one (and I still don’t think he will be). Assuming, however, he does fail, what does that say about the DP as a species? To phrase this directly, does MLS look like a six-pack of rubes when they bring in players that bust? Do DP-busts make us all look like over-eager yokels?
I’ll close with a couple sub-questions, because I find this fascinating. Because MLS can’t afford players from the top-shelf, do the players within their reach bring enough to make the complexity and relative expense of the DP rule worth the hassle? To go the other way with this, does the struggle of some DPs improve your opinion on where the rest of MLS’s players are today?
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YES....
I've said it before and I'll say it again, I rather win and have no superstars than lose and have a DP.
I know Houston is only a few years from their DP signing but with Dom in the Helm I know that team chemistry and work ethic will be looked at along with talent.Posted 18 Apr 2008 at 08:27 PM by 3VIL L33T 
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I don't really have answers to any of your questions, but I do have an observation to toss into the discussion, to wit:
On Thursday night we saw a high-profile foreign signing, Guillermo Barros-Schelotto, outclass everyone else on the pitch.
(Technically, he's not a DP, but he's getting over a million year after HSG gets done fudging allocations and who-knows-what and he's the kind of player we're talking about here)
The guy was brilliant, like an orchestra leader or one of those Flight Operations guys on the deck of an Aircraft Carrier. All that was missing was Maverick snapping off a salute just before they hit the launch button on Cat 4.
But it didn't start out that way last year. The clodheaded bunch of dunces he found he was playing with (which was pretty much his attitude and he didn't work too hard at hiding it) didn't get it. Forget the same page, they weren't in the same library. And the record reflects it. His arrival had very little impact on the Crew's abysmal won-lost record.
But what has happened at the Crew is what happens at big clubs with big time veteran players: they teach their teammates what they need to know.
There's stil some work to do with Robbie Rogers, who Guille doesn't look for and who - if you recall Rogers running at goal carrying two defenders while GBS jogged towards the far post with 10 yards of space all around him - returns the favor. My advice to young Mr Rogers would be "wake the hell up, junior"
But Gaven, Moreno and especially Hejduk have figured it out. What Guiile can do, where he likes to have the ball, how to make the run he wants, the whole deal.
Witness the first Crew goal, when GBS ends up with the ball about even with six or eight guys from both teams. He hesitates a second and Hejduk, who is right behind him, takes off like he's been shot in the ass, straight past his right shoulder. GBS sees him enter his periferal and just pushes the ball out front where Frankie has it in two strides and is immediately behind the defense.
It's small, but it's brilliant. And it's what good players do: they learn how to play with super-talented soccer players.
I think a lot of American coaches don't let it happen: this is his team, he'll decide what your role is and you'll all like it.
But if you watch Guille out there, he's roaming, picking his spots, going from touchline to touchline, playing his own game and everyone conforms to him.
When I see Gallardo with DC I see a lot of what I saw from GBS last summer: Nobody is quite sure what he wants or how to give it to him. If Soehn is smart - and I think he is - then he'll let the players learn from him. That's the only way, IMO, that it works.Posted 19 Apr 2008 at 11:21 AM by Bill Archer 
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YMO matches an observation I made toward the bottom of my wrap on the Columbus/DC game - down to the cast of characters: e.g. Schelotto likes Hejduk, he seems to love Moreno - can't say I caught Gaven, though. But the funny thing is, I'm seeing what you're seeing with Rogers. Hopefully, it is just a matter of time. Rogers has talent, but he could stand to snap-to.Posted 19 Apr 2008 at 12:38 PM by Jeff Bull
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