There will be a lot of free agents available this year and I think Nagbe won’t be the only one. Anyone got a list for all the players in MLS yet ?
I always wondered if it was the style of play that Greg was bringing. Chad is a great defender but I'm not sure he is comfortable with the ball at his feet.
I wonder if it may actually be possible that players of Santos ilk (TAM level guys) may increasingly fill roles as subs / bench guys, especially with the new CBA. When we think of Santos 864k salary, we think, no way is he not a starter....but we have no idea what the salary cap, allocation allowances, etc will be going forward. I doubt there will be huge, radical changes....but it might be enough to change alot of what we think we might know about how a roster should be assembled. A player of Mokhtars profile may easily be considered a reasonable costing attacking depth piece at 533k in 2020 and 2021s MLS. I wouldn't be shocked to see us with.... Santos - 864k Mokhtar - 533k Diaz - 333k In addition to maybe like another winger on a TAM level salary, AND, a true DP #10 making 3 or 4 million a year. I know that sounds like overkill for our roster but I dont think we know what those parameters even look like. I'm not saying I see this happening specifically.....but I do think were going to see even more TAM level guys, in our quest to get on Liga MXs level.
i agree but also likely to see intl spots increase and maybe even roster size increase as well . Also possible rule changes to transfer fees associated to making ppl DP although this is just me speculating possibilities
If anyone is interested and/or suffering from soccer withdrawal, ESPNews is airing Hartford/Birmingham. JJ William's started for Birmingham. Opoku is on the bench at the moment.
We can take heart from the ease with which Sweet Dee threw in an extra 70 mil for amenities at the new digs. Suggests she won't swallow hard if the tab for 2 or 3 difference makers next season is 15-20 mil to acquire and 5-10 to pay.
Nobody asked about a timeline on roster movement considering Porters comments before the last gm how they knew what players were staying and going ( not his exact words )
Nagbe makes Opta best XI team: https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/so...ic-headlines-opta-mls-best-xi-2019/ar-AAIxsOb
I’m not big on his scoring ability anymore but he is so much better then what we have he should help Artur become better by taking his job
Colorado is serious about Lalas https://www.prosoccerusa.com/mls/co...bakar-colorado-rapids-transfer-columbus-crew/
Over 1 million is a heck of a haul. Interesting that other teams want him too. I can’t see us not taking that unless we are losing Mensah.
If it does end up being over 1 million, I believe that would be a record in league transfer for a defender. I really really like Lalas, far more than any defender on our roster besides Mensah. But taking the money here is a no brainer. His value will never be higher than it is right now.
On the one hand we probably have quite a bit of AM already, on the other hand selling players from your bench for 1 mil is good business. I'd imagine he's with the Rapids next year.
I like Abubakar's potential, but he seemed mistake prone when he was here. Maybe he grew in Colorado under Fraser (good hire!). But $1 mil for the Crew player I remember seems like stealin'. If we cash in, I would assume we use the TAM to help buy down guys like Mensah (and maybe Pipa/Santos/Zardes). If we could open up multiple DP slots, that is a huge boon. On the other hand, if we really like Lalas & want him back, I can live with that, too. Especially if he could play RCB alongside Keita.
This. If we think Colorado’s evaluation of him is warranted, why sell him? We could have Bouba x2 for 10 years.
The reason to sell Abubukar is quite simple. He won’t be nearly as good under Caleb Porter as he was this season in Colorado, and specifically under Robin Fraser. He’s just in a MUCH MUCH better situation for a defender over the next few years under Fraser than in Columbus. He’d regress under Caleb Porter next season and need to be built back up again. Take the money and reinforce other areas.
Setting aside your Porter hatred, are you arguing that we should be shopping for finished products in the back rather than trusting any to develop? That seems pessimistic regarding Keita, Valenzuela, and Cadden. Bez once said good centerbacks are the hardest position to find. I'm not sure that's true, imo it would be efficient strikers. But he runs the team so maybe he wants to go with Mensa and Abubakar as the starters, Keita on loan, and Crognale plus a rookie or Josh Williams as the backups. I just don't want to see Williams as a first choice CB.
While Hang’s Porter bias is undeniable, I think what he really meant was that the way Porter wants to play doesn’t suit Lalas. He does better the deeper he plays. Playing in a high line, like Porter wants to try and do at times, lead directly to some of the mistakes by Lalas. I like Lalas and would love Porter to actually, ya know, coach Lalas up and make him better. However, if Porter (and Bez I’d imagine) don’t feel like Lalas will adjust, sell him.