The Fire Earnie Stewart Thread

We've gone from Sak loading us up with pricy goalkeepers to Earnie loading us up with defensive/holding midfielders - none of whom is a complete player.

 

I pleaded with him to buy the team when he was here for open cup final. He just laughed and said "no thanks"

 

That's like asking a guy with Porsche if he wants to buy your used Chevy Vega

 

I've been slow to this thread but I think what's warranted is criticism for Earnie. No, not because some of the signings haven't paid off, but his apparent (perceived?) lack of understanding of us. This area. The pathos. The negativity. The reality. The hope.

If his plan is to keep us challenging for a playoff spot, look to MLS teams with savvy vets. Atlanta brought in those fast Latins but one of their best signings was Larentowicz. Or Carroll from five years ago. They're out there. Would you rather "spend"$500k on Ilsinho or Dax?

If the long term plan is academy kids, what're the short and mid term plans? Call me for tickets in 2022? Or maybe like 2010 add journeymen around young stars. We're stocked on journeymen, short on young stars. Jones' ceiling is what? BC? Come up with a plan. Communicate the plan. Implement the plan. Don't trade draft picks for has been strikers who can't score in USL.

There's no trust the process stuff. MLS formula doesn't require or even allow long term planning. Portland won a cup coming into the league after us.

Spend on the right roles. Overpriced non attacking mids is a criminal use of resources. That's shit NYC can pull, we can't afford it.

We're 42 matches into the Stewart regime. The honeymoon is over.

 

Yeah, at this point I just want to know what the plan is... the way they are "staying the course" right now tells me they have no interest in qualifying for the playoffs in 2017... if they wanted that to even be a possibility they should be playing with a lot more desperation than what I saw last night... if playoffs is the goal, with their current positioning in the table anything short of three points should be considered a total failure because it just diminishes their chances of qualifying that much more. They were playing for the draw last night...that's a huge red flag.

Is the plan just to get young guys minutes and experience so they are more prepared in 5 years? Because that plan doesn't seem to be happening either outside of a handful of players each game. Honestly if they said "******** it" and rolled out nothing but prospects and lost every game I'd be more okay with that than Dealing with the facade they are putting on now.

enough with the half measures, we are 8 games in and dead last... they need to decide what they want this team to do... for 2017 it's either a team trying compete for the playoffs and in desperation mode to qualify, or it's proving ground for young players without much regard for the results... it can't be both... not with this point deficit.

 

Starting lineup average age last night was 27 year 4 months. Which tells you we suck and there's no youth pipeline to play who is coming to make it better.

 

Scariest thing to think about is what will happen in like a year when earnie quits or gets fired

 

Worldwide management search?

 

I think Jay is so allergic to paying out a contract, Earnie would have to slap him while having a go at the missus to get a written warning in his file. Why would ES quit? Cause one big soccer guy gave him the business? When the check bounces will be when a Earnie bounces.

 

He would quit because this is ruining all of his future cred as a front office genius. Unless he plans on being here forever, a franchise in a tailspin isn't a good look on the old resume

 

Maybe, but Nowak and Hack got jobs. Sakashitz is running a whole league down now. He can always go home to Hollandetherlands and say he tried it but what do Americans know about soccer? His Union gig is the ultimate low risk high reward. Everyone knows we suck and have no money. We made the playoffs in his first season . If we win a few in spite of Sugarmans alligator arms, he's a legend. If we don't, Jay failed to give him anything and he was forced to sign shitty strikers from the fourth tier of Engerland.

 

I imagine that's an allocation order owners meeting

 

Exchange between myself and Earnie Stewart regarding the Union's commitment to the 4-2-3-1: pic.twitter.com/ugMNoME1F2

— Kevin Kinkead (@Kevin_Kinkead) May 3, 2017

It's not "Change for the sake of changing" it's Change for the sake of WINNING.

 

It's also readily apparent if you take a look at the standings!

 

That is some... pretty terrible explanations Earnie is giving.

So his argument is that, the system they play doesn't really work but they can't ask the players to do anything else because what they're doing now is already difficult enough for them. As if a change in formation will overload their mental capabilities?

Either Stewart comes off as incredibly condescending here or his faith in this squad is really, really low. I just don't see any confidence coming from his reply. "Yeah we suck, but we'll suck more if we did anything differently"? What?

 

Here's a good site to help us make Earnie understand.
http://www.heardutchhere.net/sayings.html

Alle gekheid op een stokje (Let's stop joking and get down to business)

't Is allemaal onzin! (It's pure nonsense)

Ik ga liever gewoon dood (I'd rather die in the regular way [a comment on something you don't like])

Zonde van 't geld (A waste of money)

Aan de slag! (Let's get working)

Ik ben het beu (I can't stand it anymore)

Ik baal als een stier (I am deeply annoyed)

Ik ben helemaal gaar (I've had it)

Een druppel op een gloeiende plaat (a totally ineffective remedy)

Het is boter aan de galg (a useless effort)

Knollen voor citroenen verkopen ("Selling onions as lemons" Making false promises)

 

At least Earnie and I both agree on one thing....the group of players we have are incompetent.

 

so he is saying the players don't have the mental capability to do their job as professionals that they are? these are not 5 y/o you try to convince to stay in formation.

 

Yet further evidence that you may need better players, Earnie.

Last year you made the playoffs with a couple of midfielders who possessed skill which helped the attack. I include Nogs helping the team make the playoffs because while he was on the team the Union climbed to first place in the conference, an achievement that clearly helped the club reach the playoffs given how poorly they finished after his departure. The club has yet to truly replace the abilities of these guys on the pitch, so why should we believe they can still make the playoffs based on what they did last year with important players who are no longer here?

 

What's ironic here is that Barnetta and Nogs, probably the two most impactful players this team has had, were both Curtin creatures.

Heck, Nogs was actually Hack's guy originally.

So far Stewart has given us a straight string of turkeys.

 

While I agree with your ultimate point, and I'd take him back in a heartbeat, the contribution of Nogueira to the 2016 "success" was questionable. He played in 8 games before leaving, and missed almost as many. The team's record with and without him in that period was similar.
http://www.phillyvoice.com/vincent-nogueiras-departure-and-philadelphia-union-collapse/

So Stewart's thinking may be that the only major loss to the squad is Barnetta, while he's added Medunjanin and Simpson. I'd still not agree with him that that makes the squad 'better'.