Has he lived in the US previously? If he just started when he came over last year, it's hard to believe he could have qualified already.
Maybe there was an unannounced trade to keep the international slot we got from New England for Kamara. http://www.columbuscrewsc.com/post/...des-forward-kei-kamara-new-england-revolution
Please, tell us more about all the professional locker rooms you've been a part of. Who was your favorite captain? What specifically about playing with Wil did you find least inspiring? What have you heard from the current Crew SC team that makes you know you're right and that Gregg and the players are wrong?
I once was invited into the Sixers locker room after receiving tickets from the team chaplain and received Hersey Hawkins shoes after the final game of the season. How many have you been in? Among others, John Terry is up there in soccer. I didn't love him as a player, but I respected Dunga as a captain. Baseball doesn't have captains, but Jimmy Rollins was a great leader for the Phillies. My absolute favorite is Captain from Captain and Tennille. Without Captain's leadership we probably would never have had Muskrat Love reach the heights it did. His rather meek personality. The fact that his growth as a player was stagnant last season at best, and virtually everyone with eyes to see would say he regressed. The fact that as the team blew up early in the season last year that he, like Pipa and so many others, did nothing to speak up or hold the team together and left the most productive teammate of 2015 dangling in the wind. The fact that he captained one of the most disappointing US U-23 teams to embarrassing failure and failed to qualify for the Olympics. I've heard a lot about culture. I believe when the inaugural culture power rankings come out that Wil's close ties to Columbus will land us at the top of the MLS Culture Power Rankings. I look forward to website pieces about Wil's support of local art, chefs, food trucks, and brewers. I think these are all wonderful things. I also have seen Gregg make wrong decisions, spew bullshit, and try to paint the turd that was last season all the way through September. He was wrong in all those cases. He could be wrong now as well. It happens.
That's actually a good point considering the wealth of holding/defensive midfielders we now have and Trapp's form last year. You would hope that Berhalter has the balls to drop him if his form remains as uninspired as last year.
In some cases, it's great to have strong competition between spots. See Friedel/Keller for proof. It keeps both guys fighting for the job and there's nothing wrong with that. We had a similar situation years ago with Mark Dougherty and another guy. They were both listed as jersey #1/#33 in the program (back when they actually had magazine-sized paper programs), with a notation saying the starter would wear #1 and the backup would be #33. Could this be similar, sans quality? Time will tell.
The Leadership Council should take it in turns to be a sort of executive captain for the week, but all decisions of the executive captain should be ratified at a special half time or a full time meeting, by a simple majority in the case of purely tactical affairs, but by a two thirds majority in the case of overall strategy.
Praise for our Eternal and Supreme Captain, Wil Trapp, from prominent member of the Crew Curiate, Justin Meram: I'll just say this #CrewSC fans.. @wil_trapp is the right man to lead this club. He is going to be a one hell of a captain 🙌🏼 #chise— Justin Meram (@JustinMeram) March 2, 2017
Dude has 4 league titles, 5 FA Cups, 3 League Cups, a Europa League, a Champions League, and was loved by his teammates (off all colors), and some of his teammates wives. Seems that he did a pretty good job all things considered.
I appreciate Merman's enthusiasm. I'm not sure if Trapp should be starting based on last year but someone has to wear the armband in our 4-0 pummeling of Chicago tomorrow.
I don't have a problem with Trapp thing. Wil Trapp needs to raise his game this year. Perhaps mine is a rose-colored interpretation, but I see this as being a situation where he's being challenged to step up. This feel like a make or break year for Trapp. If he returns to and builds upon the form he showed before last season, he'll become a player that starts getting called into USMNT camps and therefore deserving of being our captain. If he plays like he did last year, well, it's not like he's being named a Supreme Court Justice. Another member of the leadership team can be asked to step up. That leadership council sounds a bit new-age-y to me, but my guess is it's just an attempt to get more guys, who should be seen as leaders, invested in the club's performance beyond just how well they're doing individually. Plus, you always need someone to take the armband when the captain isn't there, and this identifies the group of players who obviously will fill that role. Mostly, though, I don't give a shit. This team needs leadership, and I don't necessarily associate that with the guy who happens to be the captain. It's not one person's job.
No, didn't you hear, you're supposed to care about the captain because the only way a team can be successful is if the captain is a 100% perfect mold of what each fan wants them to be based on their professional soccer experience and knowledge of the current team's locker room culture.