Come on. Dont buy into the M. MONT propaganda! The guy is bought and sold one hollow article at a time. Dont believe me? Go write something half way negative about the club. Your account will get flagged. Do it 2 times and you will have your RSL soapbox account removed. Stats nothing! Rusnak is not in the game for LONG stretches. He disappears for 80 of the 90 minutes. He scores great goals and is dangerous on the counter but he doesnt CONTROL the game. We BYPASS the center of the pitch on most plays because he doesnt play anywhere near the same role. He floats out of the midfield frequently in such a manner that we typically have a giant hole in the center mid position and we become two groups of 5 instead of a moving shape. Everything we did with Javi on the field connected through Beckerman and on to Javi. Creativity, touch, tiki taca soccer. Javi couldnt touch Rusnaks counter attack game, but Rusnak couldnt polish Javi's center mid boots. Terrible comp. Terrible interpretation of stats. Terrible author.
So, the data, as presented, is valid. The author used the available mlssoccer.com data as best as it can be used. He is not at fault. But it should be acknowledged that the data is limited in scope. I would be interested to see the number of touches, or the total time at the feet of the player. Other interesting stats: Rusnak has had almost twice as many shots as did Javi in his first 3 years. So, it’s no surprise that he had more goals. The interesting outlier is 2009. Javi had 1 goal. Yes, ONE. I don’t know why. Maybe Javi didn’t take as many PKs. That single season really skews the comparison in Rusnak’s favor. Yet... in 2009 Javi made the MLS All -Star Team. Obviously in 2009 the number of goals was not why he was voted an All-Star. In JK’s Diamond everything went through Javi. Everything. He never disappeared for long stretches of the game, as opposed to Rusnak. It isn’t from mere sentimentality that we recognize Javi as The Best.
Notice how I mentioned stats, not the way they played? I agree that they play different styles, but that is also due to our formation change. We don't play with a true AM like we did with Javi. Our formation and style bypass Rusnak which makes him disappear. I'd wager that he would play similar to Javi and take more control of the game if we were playing the diamond or with a true AM.
same in fact, the negative comments made here are made multiple times in that articles comment section
I'm glad to see that Baird just signed an extension with the club. Unpopular prediction: he's been very underrated by the fans and will have a breakout season.
This isn't quite SIlva territory (I think we announced that signing three separate times over several months), but I am pretty sure we announced the Baird deal last month. Or was it just rumored?
Taking a page from Ryan Howard's Dunder Mifflin Infinity strategy model we are announcing each move two times to make the off season appear more successful and productive.
I’m told Real Salt Lake is in advanced discussions regarding the sale of star midfielder Jefferson Savarino, with Brazilian club Atletico Mineiro making a strong bid for the Venezuelan. #RSL #MLS— Ives Galarcep (@SoccerByIves) January 25, 2020 Rumor that RSL is in talks with Athletico Mineiro for Sava. With our current roster, if Sava leaves, our attack is dead.
His contract expires on 12/31. Maybe this is an opportunity to get something for him? But, yeah, he would take a large part of RSL’s attack with him.
I can't imagine the purchase price from a Brazilian club is in the heights we meant when we talked about selling Savarino if the price was right.
Wikipedia sez that Atletico Mineiro was worth 143 Million Euros in 2015, which was the eighth most valuable in Brazil. But, like many other soccer clubs around the world, it has lots of debt, so take that for what it's worth. The team finished 13th out of 20 teams in last year's Brazilian Serie A. Although you won't get EPL prices, I would think that RSL could get a good chunk of cash for him. 3 mill?
I don't fully understand this sentiment. Sava had 8 goals, 5 assists last year. Decent numbers, but something that seems quite replaceable. Bofo had about half the minutes but would project to similar stats (fewer goals, more assists) if given the opportunity. He also brings grit, and more defensive effort to the table. However, the sentiment with him was "good riddance". IMO, Sava definitively under-performed last year. He's both selfish when taking on multiple defenders unnecessarily, and also often shy to get shots off when the situation is begging him to do so. At 23, Sava definitely has potential, but Bofo is actually a couple of months younger. If you had to ask me, I'd agree that Sava has slightly more potential than Bofo, but I don't get the polar opposite reaction to these two players. I've always felt some fans have always fallen in love with fancy footwork, hence the love affair with non-MLS quality players in the past such as Sebastian Velasquez and even David Viana. Is that what's at play here, or am I missing something?
We traded the Homegrown rights to Bryce Duke (academy from 2016-18) to LAFC for $50k in GAM plus future considerations.
I think its 6s. Stay or go, no big deal. For one reason only I lean toward hoping he stays, I have no faith in actually finding a replacement. How much money are we sitting on now??? Are we going to make any significant moves???
I am perhaps unreasonably interested in seeing Iloski get some significant minutes. But we have a slew of promising-seeming young forwards in Iloski, Martinez, and Vazquez. Whether they're at a point where we're ready to play them and see what we need or don't from the transfer market, I don't know. But all of those players are on the roster for something. Iloski is 20. Vazquez is 18. Martinez is 22. {Schmitt is 22 also, but I am . . . less intrigued, let's say} That's an awful lot of serious youth at the forward position. I just don't know how good they are, but if there's talent, maybe together they net ~7 goals this season?
Bofo shot a lot of terrible shots. His goals were often off the same move and at the same place on the field and he missed a lot of shots. His first goal in mexico was from the same spot. I liked bofo but he was a touch predictable and a bit of a black hole. Savarino was dynamic, creative, and unpredictable. I think Savarino would have done incredible things with the team if we had more creativity surrounding him but we just tried to bypass the midfield and isolate him which limited his creativity. I hope he stays. If he doesnt, I do fear the attack is lethargic at best.
Our 2nd half of the season run to the playoffs last year was fueled by Savarino (after he returned from playing with his national team) on offense and Justen Glad stepping up big time on defense. Yes, Savarino irritates all of us when he takes on too many defenders. I think most of that is due to the other players not making runs or otherwise working into positions he can pass to. Not all of the time, but most of the time.
I think this is a large part of the reason he fell out of favor with the coaches. Not sure of the personal dynamics, but when Freddy took over it was clear he preferred Plata over Bofo.
Yes, I get that Sava is the better of the two, I just don't get the polar opposite reactions to the two player.