Josh Wolff is out of contract with 1860 Munich, and I got to wondering if he could add a much needed spark to our offense. What would you guys think of his return to Kansas City?
Re: Josh Wolff return? Do we need more depth up top? Sure. Is Josh Wolff the answer? I don't think so. In case any of you were wondering we don't have the rights to him so he is fair game.
Re: Josh Wolff return? this was discussed in another thread, but i'll repeat what i said there. if we can get him for less than $100k/year, i'd say do it. our front line is so thin with quality, he couldn't hurt. 'course, he's not exactly the lethal finisher we desperately need, but i think he could combine well with sealy/trujillo. as it is right now, neither sealy or trujillo are "create-their-own-goal" type of players. lopez, while listed as a forward, never compliments as a second center forward because he's always way out left or in the midfield. wolff would provide the balance and let sealy/trujillo clean up and play the finisher.
Re: Josh Wolff return? In his KC career, he puts over half his shots on net, can pass and score, scores 1 in 6, a rare 10/10 guy, and had just 2 cautions. He's also plenty capable of defending (and willing to do so) at the MLS level. All things KC needs desparately. Also, his history as a member of the Fire is one of absolutely killing KC whatever that's worth. Among the knocks on him are small stature, rumored declining talent, not in full game shape or good form, too expensive probably, missed 25% of the teams MLS games, 1 goal in 11 career playoff games, no all-star points, and KC missed the playoffs with him as a main cog. Get Wolff cheaply and maybe it's worth it. He probably isn't the answer. Regardless, KC is about 1 or 2 games away from needing a permanent player change of some sort. Onolfo strikes me as a player's coach. A good guy, close to his former playing career, that stays even keel. I think KCW has guys that could play and are not for whatever reason; maybe even because they can get away with it as there is no fear of job loss. You definitely have several underperforming players. Reports had Onolfo finally chewing tails before a better but still lacking RSL effort. It may take someone losing a job to wake everyone up and push things to a competitive level worthy of a blue jersey. If I have a choice, gimme McBride and his honest effort. Likely KC gets neither.
Re: Josh Wolff return? The only guy that's injured more often than Josh Wolff is Mike Sweeney... and that's saying something... To Josh coming back, I'd vote a big "hell no".
Re: Josh Wolff return? 10 goals /10 assists? He only did that once as a Wizard, 2005. 2004 he was 10/7, his other two seasons in KC he had a combined 7 goals 3 assists. He only scored 10 goals once for Chicago (1999) (I don't have assist history for him there).
Re: Josh Wolff return? even if he was a 5/5 guy now, that seems to be better production than what we have on offer on our frontline right now... unfortunately. the key thing, and this is why he struggled sometimes here before, is that if we were to be able to get him cheap, we should play him as a support player and not the go-to guy up top.
Re: Josh Wolff return? No question, if you pay him 100K you are almost forcing a 4-3-3 set, because Claudio is a similar, although more technically gifted and of course left footed, forward. So with Claudio laying off on the left and Wolff laying off on the right, you need a finisher in the middle. Closest we have to such a thing is Sealy. Although when I think of that scenario I picture acres, acres I say, of space to run through somewhere. The key is Wolff's speed: if he can still turn on the jets, the defense will not know if they're coming or going trying to shut down both him and Claudio. In theory, someone should be very productive in that deal. Still, I think I would rather have someone who can play intelligently through the midfield.
Re: Josh Wolff return? Yeah, Wolff is a 10/10 guy. One of just 8 men to accomplish the feat in MLS since 2002. I appreciate any view that incorporates reality and views recent production as important. In your view is that kind of thinking applicable to men like Lopez and Marinelli and others?
Re: Josh Wolff return? If you can get him cheap, fine. Not like he wouldn't be an upgrade over Pore...
Re: Josh Wolff return? Yeah, I'd love to see McBride in blue and white as well. However, I agree that it's unlikely. Let's face it. If McBride ever came back to the MLS, I'd imagine he'd go to Columbus. I'd be shocked if he went anywhere else. Give it two or three years and we'll get probably get Johnson back.....don't really wanna wait two years to make the playoffs again though. It seems like our best bet is just for Lopez and Sealy/Trujillo to start scoring goals.....either that or hope for lots of free kicks and Jimmy to average 2 goals a game...
Re: Josh Wolff return? He's from the chicago area so don't be suprised if he ends up there. It would be his hometown club technically.
Re: Josh Wolff return? Well, crap. That's just what we need. Another goal scorer in the windy city. I'd hate it if he ended up in Chicago because as someone else pointed out, he killed us when he played for them. Plus, I'm in college in Chicago, so I'd never hear the end of it from some classmates if they were doing well and killed us in points and head-to-head. Let's just hope Wolff goes to England or something then.
Re: Josh Wolff return? My apologies, I misunderstood what you were saying when you called him a 10/10 guy. When you said that I had assumed you were meaning more over his career, not just one season as the stats around that part were more career based.
Re: Josh Wolff return? He wants to go Chicago and Toronto has his rights. They have been discussing a deal that would send him to Chicago because thats where he wants to go. Columbus isnt even in the running. I would be shocked if he ended up anywhere other than Chicago.
Re: Josh Wolff return? We're not getting McBride, period. Do we need Wolff? Well, we've got Sealy, Lopez, Trujillo, and Pore up top. Lopez is really the only one who has looked like wanting to actually accomplish something this year. I agree - having Josh back wouldn't hurt if we could get him on the cheap, but we definitely shouldn't pay him USMNT-type money. Bottom line, though, I still think he could most likely be a productive player in MLS.
Re: Josh Wolff return? The point is this: the wheels are still on the car. I wouldn't mind shelling a little bit out for him. He's a creator. As somebody posted earlier, Lopez on the left, Josh on the right, Sealy in the middle, and Carlos feeding them...that's a scary bunch. Especially with wingers like Davy, Eloy, and Sasha. Some question his production, and the numbers don't lie. He did, however, put up 10/10 during the minimalist-offense Bunker Bob Era. Take off the reins and pair him with our DP...it can't be worse that what we're witnessing now. He's got lots of MLS experience. He knows the pace/physicality of the game. He's still getting nat callups. He's not opposed to Kansas City. He'll help. Hell, I was one of his biggest detractors when he played for us. Watching him and EJ not sync up was one of the most frustrating things I've seen. I'd still welcome him back with wide open arms, though. If we've got the dough, why not throw an offer on the table?
Re: Josh Wolff return? You know, you've got some good points there. I'd love to get him cheap too, but if we've got the money to spare, we could really use someone to score some goals. Even if he just scored 5 goals in 15 games, that's some good help. We need more offense. Our defense looks good enough, I think. I didn't know that. Well, if McBride goes to Chicago, then we really someone like Wolff if we want to hold our ground in our conference, let alone the whole league. Plus, Wolff didn't produce in the 2nd Bundesliga, so he'd come into the Wizards camp hungry and ready to show he's still got it in him. We could really a hard worker to fight out there with Lopez.
Re: Josh Wolff return? If he was going to come in hungry to something, wouldn't that have been the national team camp he was just called into since he was just released by 1860 Munich? He was extremely uninspiring recently with the US. And it's no guarantee he would come in hungry, he could just come in and play like he did before he left KC, which was very poorly. I will admit, though, I've changed my original thought on this. For the right price he could come in. That said I don't think his right price will work for us.