Soony Saad is backkkkkk!!! #MLS || @SoonySaad is back!!!! © @KansasCityFC #LebaneseAbroad pic.twitter.com/ESc7pHss2k— Fa Lebanon | Lebanese Football Media (@FALebanon) January 31, 2017
Soony was one of my favorite players. I really like his striking ability. I don't think he is a Vermes favorite though. I don't really know why they brought him back. I would be shocked if he plays. I hope he does though. I watched some videos of his Michigan days. Crazy good shooting.
Right. PV did not play him often and he routinely appeared to be in the dog house. Unless something really went well for Soony in Thailand and Peter likes what he saw, not sure what this is really accomplishing.
I may be wrong, frequently am, but I remember it being about Saad's workrate, and especially defensive effort. That is the sort of thing a player can fix. There is nothing about the Thai League, however, that would encourage that, at least not in my limited experience of watching the league. But it could be that after a long beach vacation, he's changed or PV has changed (hahahahahaha). I would say this, he's got a good shot, and maybe something we've lacked is someone who can come in after 75 and really change things up in the attack. But that was the case then, as well.
I'll admit to not being an Olum fan ... I would have traded him for $0 and no draft pick, with the stipulation that he MUST play against SKC. Or a couple of hotel rooms for SPR for when they travel to play Timbers2.
That deal feels like highway robbery. Larry was a class act and had some great moments with the club, wish him all the best.
That means the team is back to 28 players I think, right? Now we're looking thin at center back and center mid. Ehh.
Add in Rubio who while on IR may not take a roster spot ... so it could be 26 + 1 IR + 2 draftees. No way we sign a 4th GK to the SKC roster, so think it's silly to use the unsigned draftees as part of the equation. Unless you use ALL trialists. We're still 4 deep at CB so I don't think we're "thin" ... especially considering that Ballo and Didic could be included as depth there (if we had a rash of injuries or international callups at the same time, I think there are rules where we could call one up to use?). Central Mid depth is ... Sanchez (or Soni) and Joya ... and then you start reaching to players like Zusi, Blessing, Saad ... and thinking a 4-4-2 might need to be an option with a withdrawn striker instead of an attacking mid).
We're thin at CB if you consider that EPB should miss a good chunk of the year due to callups, Besler might miss a fair bit too, and then we're counting on Ike's health and Kevin's maturation. If the line stays looking like this, guaranteed Didic gets first team minutes. 4-4-2 is still likely a pipe dream. Even when the formation looks different on paper, it plays the same on the field every time with a Vermes team. If Saad and Zusi make midfield depth, we're finally two deep at every place, plus Joya. But that's still kinda thin.
To be honest, I'm fine with Didic as the #5 CB ... and he comes with an added bonus of not requiring a roster spot (at least at this point in time). Kind of like a "break glass when needed" sort of thing and with MLS roster rules, who knows! Agree about the 4-4-2 kinda thin and such.
The value of U call-ups, IMO, is to give a player who isn't playing some field time. They don't really have anything to do with full national callups, and they don't really benefit a player like EPB who should now be ready to play a sizeable role with SKC. I really hope this stupid camp is not the start of a long string of useless U camps. He needs and in Portugal appeared to prove himself ready for, professional games.
Remember the rules to call up players are not position based, it's based on squad availability. To call up Didic or Ballo for the first team in league play we'd have to have fewer than 15 available players. I'd expect Didic though to get call ups for the USOC.
To be fair, this one isn't AS useless as other ones, it's the pre-World Cup qualifying camp for the U20's.
I expect from this point for EPB to either be seen as a part of the USMNT pool, or left alone to develop and see if he might be. But I admit I am club over country every time.
U20 WC Qualifying and potentially WC won't be useless either (especially if SKC hopes to drive up his price for this summer's sale?).
I think U20 World Cup and U23 Olympics (as well as the Qualifying tournaments for each) are completely acceptable ... outside of that, I completely agree, if it's "in season" and he's starting for SKC ... I wouldn't really want to see him leave for a camp/tournament/friendly.
Also, I forgot to mention Medranda as a midfield depth piece. I think he could play in the 2 more advanced roles, and have Seth or Pasher take the LB spot.
True. But it's just weird having so much of the depth be only secondary to that spot. I mean, it's great to have a bunch of guys who could also play there... but it's a little bit more great to have guys who were born to play there. Should be a fun season either way.