Also, the Iraeli reporting on Gadi Kinda seems to be pretty definite, saying the deal is already made? In that, it's not unlike SI saying Chicarito is already a Gals member, while the rest of the soccer world is unsure.
Just because I have no life, i went back and looked at what we were saying on here when he was signed. Pretty, pretty, pretty skeptical. Kind of nailed the upcoming issues. I mean, me, personally, I latched on to the hype (in my defense, his highlights looked great and I'm an idiot) but overall, dead on.
I am not jealous of the Chicarito signing. I am thrilled with Pulido (AHP, BLJ) and overall I like our front line very much. But the GALs pieces on the Chicarito family got me looking at their midfield talent. Kitchen, dos Santos, Lleget, Katai, Corona and Alvarez before you get to their one past his prime option in Kljestan (that can't be spelled right) sounds overwhelming for an SKC group that I believe is as good if we only go one deep, but gets worrisome fast after Felipe G. I guess I'm saying I am disappointed that we didn't pick of Gressel, who was pricey, or at least Hayes, who was super cheap.
Seems like so, but their shape and defensive record last year was pretty comparable to ours. Katai was a hell of a snag though. Obviously our midfield is still a little thin. I do not expect to start the season with the numbers as they are. I do not even expect to start the season with only Kinda added into the mix. Or if we start the season that way, we fix it before roster compliance. Anyways. Or setup is different than LA's too. We're closer in style and structure to LAFC than LAG. Gressel was never gonna make it here. We have too many guys over the cap already to burn all that allocation money for his acquisition. Hayes we could have done. I am fully expecting an inter-league transfer or two for some middling pieces before too long. I imagine they're trying to see where their big acquisitions land first?
Chicarito is the classic poacher but SKC need more from their No.9. I'm glad we got Pulido and think he could be one of the most impactful signings from this MLS off-season. Agree the midfield still looks a bit thin, but I don't think its as bad as everyone seems to think. If they sign G.Kinda, he comes in as a No.10/No.8 and will start. I assume the starting rotation would then become: Kinda (No. 10/No.8), Felipe G (No.10/No.8/No.6), Roger (No.8) and Illie (No.6). Midfield depth, beyond these four players will ultimately depend on the development of the young ones (Busio, Kuzain and Felipe H.). I was impressed with what Felipe H. did last year at SPR and think he has a high ceiling. I have not been impressed with Kuzain. Busio looks good in spurts but often disappears. Summary of young ones, there's potential but they are stronger going forwards than defending. Which leads us to our biggest issue going into 2020.....Illie. If Illie plays like he did in 2019, that position needs to be improved. Using Felipe G. in that position is a total waste of his skill set, at least in MLS. So, what options does PV have if Illie plays like last year and not like 2018? Kuzain? The slowest man in MLS (Fontas)? Both can play the six like Illie (pivot six, not destroyer), but neither is a great option.
Puncec has played some dmid. That isn't ideal, as it leaves Barath, Besler, Fontas and Smith at CB. Question: Isn't there some way to turn Roger into a 6? He is a ball winner, it would save his legs quite a bit, and he passes well. I mean, they turned Vermes from a striker into a CB...
Looks like Kinda will be announced in the very near future. 1220108651098267648 is not a valid tweet id
According to Wikipedia, he had a recent call up for the Israeli senior national team, in a Euro qualifier. That gives a good frame of reference for his ability.
I'm completely confident he's a KC player now. My question is if the reported financials are accurate and whether or not he'd land as a DP in our system. If he's a true DP 10, then on paper this is a little disappointing. That said, he seems pretty bright and full of promise, so I'm just eager to see how he can benefit the team.
Very curious as well to the financials. I mean, does this mean there's likely no more "big" signings? I'd probably lean to yes, but does this prohibit "big" signings in the future ... that would be determined with how big his number actually is.
I doubt we'd have the cap space or xAM to sign a big money guy... but more importantly, where would we put him? CDM or left wing, I guess? We've got something like $3MM in salary tied up in the center back position (none of them DPs), cheaper on the fullbacks but I think Vermes likes the crew he has. Pulido and Russell are locks, and the crew of Gerso plus Salloi, Shelton, Hurtado, and the kids is pretty full up. That leaves the midfield, where we do need bodies the most, but Kinda is signing at starter money and Gutierrez is so locked. I think just with that, we already have a fourth midfielder, be it Espinoza or Ilie, who is sitting on the bench making xAM money. Do we want to relegate both of those guys to rotation? Can we afford to? I expect a few depth pieces max after this signing. I think we've seen our day 1 starting lineup by now--questions aside about whether it's Ilie or Espinoza who loses his spot, or which two CBs are currently favored.
Don't disagree ... I would still like a depth guy to mix into the midfield, maybe at the #6 spot. I'd love for it to be someone who is young that could be a year away from becoming "the guy" in the spot. We do need to transition away from some of the aging guys this year. Kinda allows that to happen with Espinoza ... hoping Lindsay can help with Zusi's spot.
This absolutely is the question for 2020. As crazy as it sounds, I lean toward PV instituting a four man rotation in the midfield. When Illie sits, Gutierrez starts as the 6. When Espinoza sits, Kinda or Gutierrez start at the No. 8. When Kinda sites, FG is the 10. When FG sits its Kinda at the 10 and Roger and Illie in their usual spots. Busio and Felipe H make spot starts. If Kinda is good, the midfield could be a strong group for the team.
We've got a young depth guy with potential in Busio. Kuzain didn't step up last year, but his first year showed some promise. If one of the deep issues we had last year was CCL hangover/exhaustion/whatever, then maybe there is more hope for this roster. Ilie was odd last year. I got the sense that part of that was that we didn't have a consistently good CB pairing and Roger wasn't around and then wasn't up to what he once was, so too much was being asked of him. But with Felipe G, Kinda, Ilie, Roger, Busio, Kuzain, Felipe H, some as locks and some as at least solid occassional options, we should be okay. Not great, but okay. We could use another lock starter.
https://www.kansascity.com/sports/mls/sporting-kc/article239573373.html Whoa, loan deal came out of left field. Nice!
TAM deal for the loan season. Wonder what the economics look like for permanent transfer. Nice to have that option to bail if he's not a fit! Peter is also calling him an "8".
Yeah, we'll see if he's deployed any further forward than Roger or Felipe. If he's being added to the lineup as a direct competitor to Roger instead of fighting for the 10, that throws a lot of our suppositions out of the water. All that said, I think if Vermes could field a team of entirely 8s, he would.
Side note, among Vermes's quotes about Kinda, there was this bit: Does make it sound like we're done seeing any significant personnel additions for the rest of the offseason?
“Gadi is a central midfielder who plays box to box and has a great engine,” Sporting KC manager Peter Vermes said in a release. “He has good attacking qualities in the final third and his defensive responsibilities are very well-engrained in him. We think Gadi will fit well into the way that we play and look forward to welcoming him to the team.” Reads like a No.8.
Sounds like we're "done". IMO regarding the 8's and 10's ... I think we're seeing that he likes to have a right 8 and a left 8 and they go forward and back based on situation. I'd be shocked if there were any sort of consistency with Felipe or Kinda being further forward or not. I saw it with Roger and Felipe, but I think even more so with Kinda, because it seems just based on stats that he has a little bit more to offer going forward. I still think Busio and Roger provide enough depth between the spaces if you think Felipe is the true "backup 6". 5 deep is solid. I wouldn't be suprised to see us pick up a cheap MLS retread to add to the group. We have 3 open spots, and won't be shocked to see 1 or 2 left open, but 3 seems excessive ... but without CCL we might.
Well, we're still without an actual backup 6. Felipe can play there if he has to, as can a few other random players from around the field, but none of them are actually defensively-wired center midfielders. We've lost more than one season by our starting 6 having a nightmare year (or being from the get go crappy, like in our post-Uri doldrums), and last year might even have been an example of that. I wish we'd sign a hungry, athletic defensive mid to break things up and drag our offense back a bit, haha. It's okay to have a less cultured option for that position... I won't be very comfortable till we have another midfielder signed. We have our top five now, which is great, plus some degree of the trio of Duke, Wan Kuzain, and Hernandez. But I'm not sold on the defensive capabilities of literally a single person in that entire group past Espinoza...