MLS interview with GBS http://www.mlssoccer.com/espanol/ne...-está-en-conversaciones-con-un-club-de-la-mls And finally a MLS reporter asks a juicy question: Cuando saliste de Columbus Crew se argumentó que tu salida y la de otros compañeros se debía a que van a armar un equipo más joven para el 2011, pero en el draft seleccionaron a Jeff Cunningham, de 34 años. ¿Qué opinión te merece? -Bueno, una contradicción total. Habría que preguntarle a Warzycha y al manager que apoyó al técnico. -Una vez que te fuiste de Ohio, ¿no volviste a hablar más con la gente de Columbus? -No… Translation Jeff Cunningham was picked up by the Crew at age 34 when the whole reason u left the club was because the team is getting younger what opinion do u have of this? GBS: Well its a total contradiction. You would have to ask Warzycha and the manger, who sided with the coach. - Did you speak again to anyone from the Crew organization after you left ohio? GBS: No.
In my opinion, the Crew has gotten a lot less likable since the end of the season. The people who are running the club come off as jerks. Being a fan of soccer in general I certainly can find other ways to enjoy the game apart from the Crew. Not saying I won't go to any games, but it will be less as a Crew fan and more of a fan of MLS in general. What a disappointment this group is. There ineptitude has stained the badge.
It's looking more and more like Don Garber did not misspeak in 2008 when he referred to us as the Columbus Screw.
And I get exclusively/selectively scolded by not being quite a Warzycha apologist for some reason. Case in point, the proper development (well, willing to put in the work to do so) of younger players. There will be a price to pay for unchecked myopia.
The comments by Bliss stating "They’re free to do whatever they want,” he said. “We’re not looking to sign those guys.” really grinds my gears. While in fact the statement itself is true, it does feel like its a middle finger to the former players. TrueCrew
I'll still go to games, but in the same manner I have watched Browns games the last decade. Safe to say my "Hope" meter is pegged on "Empty." Crew Cat
Barros Schelotto está en conversaciones con un club de la MLS is the title of the article, so some team out there wants him. Here's more from the article: Además, tomó con tranquilidad el no haber sido seleccionado en el draft de la MLS y lo más importante: admitió tener la propuesta de un equipo para continuar su carrera en la liga estadounidense. In addition, he was calm with not being selected in the MLS draft and most importantly: he admitted to having an offer to continue his career in the U.S. league.
In my opinion, this is where many sports "businesses" get it all wrong. They want to treat everything as "just business". "No offense Guille, Frankie, Duncan just business!" While fans generally understand this reality there is also a lot of passion and emotion that many fans invest in their club. It is as if the clubs fail to use their best marketing asset in thinking that it is only about winning and making money. If these buffoons had any intelligence they would understand their club's fans better and think "Okay, we really need to make these moves but we know this could cause some problems with our fans. How can we do this so that we don't look like idiots." PR, PR, PR! What would be wrong with saying, "guys we are sorry to have to let you go, we thank you for your service, but we have to move on. When we announce that we are letting you go we would also like to arrange for a sendoff for you and the fans so they can express their appreciation. If you would like to participate we know your fans would appreciate that." Not very difficult to do. Instead it is dropping the bomb on fans and trying to clean up the mess afterwords. This is especially stupid in a market like Columbus where your fan base is limited. It isn't like the bigger cities where fans in the seats can be easily replaced. The Crew depends on the loyalty of it's fans and they have been terrible at earning this loyalty. We are used to players moving on because it happens all the time with college athletics (OSU), but it is expected so it isn't a problem. In this market the fans must be informed each step of the way when major decisions are made. Bliss and Warzycha can be as big of jerks as they want, but they should keep it to themselves. Otherwise, this franchise will eventually fade away. If winning were the key to success in this market then the stadium would have been nearly full each game last season.
I understand the point, but what is the alternative? Let them retire when they want to and taking a roster spot and salary space, when they're not seeing a whole lot of playing time? I can't really blame the FO for NOT wanting to run the risk of having several highly paid, aged veterans sitting on the bench, either injured, or waiting for that small chance of seeing playing time. I CAN blame the FO for not letting them retire properly. Those guys, especially Duncan and Frankie, deserve a press release announcing their retirement.
That's a great sentiment...if the player wants to retire. But what if the club wants to part ways and the player thinks he has playing options available?
Exactly, ask Jaime Moreno how that turned out for him - with DC United announcing his retirement - when in reality the dude didn't want to retire and still wanted/wants to play another season in MLS or Bolivia.
Maybe you didn't read my whole post, but what I said in the second part was that the FO should have talked to the players they were letting go, explained this to the fans and offered to hold a going away party of sorts where, if the players wanted to participate, the fans could have expressed their appreciation. That way there is an opportunity for closure and the former players are allowed a proper sendoff. I am not saying this should be done for every player, but ones of the stature of Frankie, GBS. At least then it looks like the club is trying. It is a lot better than just finding out one day that all of the clubs most revered players have been cut and then trying woefully after the fact to explain what the heck is going on.
How do you know this didn't happen? I was watching CrewXtra shortly after all this hit the fan, and one of the panelists (I don't remember who it was) said flat-out, that certain players had actually asked to have the decision made quickly, because they had families and they wanted to get started on making alternative plans if Columbus wasn't in their future anymore. And for the whole "classy, public send-off" idea -- get freakin' over it already. For starters, these players' careers aren't over yet. I'm guessing players aren't big on the idea of being dismissed, and then walking to the podium where the guys who just cut them sing "for he's a jolly good fellow" for the cameras, while they hum along and fake smile. Especially when they still have playing options elsewhere. Again... what would have been acceptable to you? Making an announcement a month before the season ended, to give the fans time to savor it? Meanwhile, a dark cloud hangs over the team during the playoff run? Seriously... you're making it seem as though the fans are entitled to something they're not. The club has the right to make business decisions that are in its own best interests. They don't need your permission.
This is NOT a contradiction. I don't understand why this is so goddamned difficult for people to grasp. First of all, deciding to get younger overall (which we still did, by the way, even WITH this move) doesn't exclude the possibility of bringing in another veteran player to fill a different spot. Secondly, the financial implications are a lot different than the ones we would have faced by re-signing Schelotto. That matters, whether we like it or not. Third, Cunningham isn't going to be playing 2,600 minutes for us at age 34 the way Schelotto has been, so age isn't quite as much of a factor. And fourth, THIS WAS THE FREAKIN' RE-ENTRY DRAFT!!! What did you people think we were going to get out of this -- Generation Adidas players? We had two choices: Sit back and do nothing while a bunch of MLS vets went by the boards, or grab one or two of them. We grabbed one of them. We had the opportunity to get one of the better goal-scorers in league history, who's proven to be effective in the super-sub role (which is exactly what we'll be using him for), and who happens to have ties to the Crew. We took advantage of that opportunity. The club's no worse off for having made the move, and would have been no better off for NOT making the move. We'll have plenty of time to pick up younger players when the transfer window opens (remember that little detail?) and during the draft. And we've apparently filed claims on a handful of discovery players. I love how everyone around here can look at one tree and think they've got a full view of the whole forest.
You really don't get it, nor would I expect you to. I did not say that this has to take place but that it should at least be attempted on the part of the organization, not so much for the players, they know the business side of things, but for the fans. It is just good PR. If a player declines to participate in a "sendoff" then the club should make that clear so that fans see that at least an honest effort was made. They do the autograph thing in the tent after each game so how hard could it be to arrange something similar to this? This whole situation became a debacle more because of how it was handled rather than for the actual decisions. Also, it is so stupid to actually say that they don't need my permission. (What fan of any team thinks that to be the case? That is truly a stupid argument. I don't need their permission to express my opinion either, what is your point?) My point is that in a small market like this the team better wise up and think proactively about keeping the fans they do have informed and happy. When you are talking about a second or third tier league with a small fan base to begin with you don't have a lot of room for screwing up. The way this team is run, from a PR perspective, costs it more money than not. They are not going to increase ticket sales with their current approach. Fewer ticket sales and less revenue will end up in the Crew no longer existing in Columbus.
KCBus FTW. It's good to see that some people around here can rationally think about the current situation.
But again... how do you *KNOW* this didn't happen? We don't know all the details. For all you know, the Crew could have tried to put something like this together and the players told them to eff off because they didn't feel like being patronized. I'm not saying that's the case, but I don't know, and neither do you. And at the end of the day, I guess I just don't see the big deal. Jon Busch didn't get a big ceremony. Brian Maissonneuve didn't get one. Mike Clark didn't get one. Mais and Clarkie, if I'm not mistaken, were honored down the road at a pre-match or halftime ceremony or something, but they didn't get a big PR party. You didn't come out and say that specifically, but you weren't far off. You said "the fans MUST BE INFORMED each step of the way when major decisions are made." Well, that's laughable. These guys are businessmen, making business decisions. They don't need to run everything up the flagpole to get a fan reaction first. I'd rather they stick to their decisions, make them and move on, than hint at it in the press, get torched by irrational and emotional fans and buckle under the pressure and change their minds. Dude... do you think I'm HAPPY about all this? Do you think I enjoy the fact that Frankie Hejduk, Gino Padula, Guillermo Barros Schelotto, and Duncan Oughton are no longer here? Guys I've cheered for for freakin' ever? Guys I saw on the podium at the HDC in 2008? Guys who truly loved playing here? Do you think I'm looking forward to trying to figure out where the hell our new players are going to come from? Memorizing the names and numbers of half a roster? Do you think I wouldn't love to see a big kumbaya moment where we could sing their praises, wish them luck and send them off? I'm not enjoying this any more than you are. But this is sports. Guys don't play forever. And if all this didn't happen this year, it would have happened next year. My main concern is getting the team on the field into shape again, and being a viable contender again. PR can wait. The Crew brass have better things to do with their time right now than planning parties. These players will all be honored at some point, in due time. And frankly, all this little "sendoff" would be is mommy kissing a boo-boo after you bang your head on the coffee table. People aren't going to be any happier about the fact that these players have been jettisoned just because they have some ceremony in December. So stop acting like you would be. Just let things happen naturally. These guys will be at midfield receiving framed jerseys soon enough.
The way people treat each other around here is the exact reason why I barely bother with Big Soccer anymore. You guys are acting like dicks towards each other when at the end of the day we ALL want the same thing - a successful team. We all love this club and while our opinions on subjects may differ you never should treat another Crew fan with the disdain some of you people show around here. Last time I checked we are all adults and should be capable of having adult conversations. Jackasses.
I think some are just sick of the pity party that every post has to turn into about the players that are gone. We aren't going to change what has happened, we have what we have and lets move on.
Get over yourself buddy. You are not superior to anyone else on these boards. Neither are the people you are arguing with.