YNT-eligible MLS players: 2017/18 offseason thread

Report: Atlanta United may have just spent some big money to potentially acquire Lucas Rodriguez https://t.co/kZr1Y9haST

— Dirty South Soccer (@DirtySouthSoc) November 10, 2017

Atlanta looking like they'll buy some random Argentina attacking player. I don't understand why so many people think they are such a great model for MLS. Tons of teams in Mexico do the same thing, buy cheap South Americans, give them tons of playing time over their own academy products, sell them off to Europe, and repeat the cycle. Where has that got LigaMX? Its not such a good league. They have had to implement rules for how many domestic players have to play, as this strategy wasn't getting their own players enough minutes, Mexico's program isn't improving, been stagnant for 30 years. Should MLS be emulating LigaMX and whats happening in Mexico?

 

I'm not sure where signing guys like Almiron or Josef Martinez has been a bad thing. If that's a bad thing, then we might as well ban all foreigners from playing in MLS.

If I'm an Atlanta fan, I'd want Martinez starting over Brandon Vasquez.

I have a much bigger problem with random career Ligue 2 player type taking away minutes.

 

MLS tells us they aspire to be one of the best leagues in the world, and plenty of people say it'll get there eventually. I don't understand the plan for that to happen. I think the whole system is out of whack. As I mentioned, its not landing on the moon by signing young South Americans. Mexico has tried that, there are leagues in Europe that load up on young South Americans. Why do the best Ukrainian teams who do well in European competitions always have a few leading Brazilians? Why does Zenit have a bunch of young Argentines leading them? This stuff has been tried before, it will take away the "retirement league" tag that the league gets, but buying cheap young South Americans doesn't do anything to become of the best leagues in the world. Almiron, Villalba, Asad, Martinez types are nobodies in the grand scheme of things, they are here because top clubs didn't buy them.

Maybe Almiron will eventually not be a nobody, but if MLS clubs aspire to be among the best in the world with the league being one of the best in the world, these are not the marquee signings that will make any sort of difference. Its distracting from the problem (and at the same time making it harder for young Americans, which creates another problem towards becoming a top league) to throw these players in our face as great signings that is moving the league forward. It does so to a minuscule extent, and creates long-term problems. If MLS wants to be a top league, they remove the salary cap, and the league competes on the world market for the top players. Thats the only way it'll be one of the best leagues in the world. Until then, it improves the quality of the league a small amount, but at the same time hurts the development of young Americans.

If MLS is going to be a top league eventually, one would presume that it also requires the level of American player to rise. All of the top leagues in the world are accomplished footballing countries with vastly superior players to us. How can we really do that when young Americans are getting fewer chances and a lot of the top young Americans don't even bother with the league, instead skipping a step and heading to Europe? How many of the best young Americans completely ditched the American system at 16-18 ten years ago? The league has to build up its credibility with young Americans, and its not. Its putting in place some basic development structure initiatives that are an improvements, but that is not enough, that should be a given as development in this country becomes better structured. The league needs results, needs a lot more young American success stories, and the trend is not promising.

 

They'll buy more too. I like it. We finally have a team embracing the buy young, develop and sell for profit model.

That doesn't mean MLS couldn't be good for young Americans if they wanted to. The Bund and Ligue 1 also buy and develop a lot of young foreigners while doing a phenomenal job at developing domestic players as well.

 

This Lucas Rodriguez "priority buying rights" deal looks like insurance for a possible Almiron sale to me.

 

Could also be insurance if Asad doesn't return.

 

Shakhtar are a massive success with their transfer policy. Kinda a weird example to use.

 

Did I say it wasn't successful?

I said it was, but successful for a team doesn't necessarily help the league or footballing country.

Nowadays, the only thing that really makes a difference is money. And at a certain point, efficiency in the transfer market does matter, but you have to spend a certain amount on players as a league, otherwise you are not going to get the top talent. You also have to hold onto that talent, be able to pay them top wages.

 

Shakhtar are the main supplier of Ukrainian players. Ukraine has a strict 6-5 rule which they can do because they aren't EU. Shakhtar basically supplement Ukrainian players with elite Brazilians.

Of course their current youth set up is kinda screwed up because the Russians blew it to smitherens.

 

This is what MLS is going to come to. Buy South American players cheap and play them as long as you can even if they suck and give zero to no chance to US homegrown players. Liga MX has this problem too. Only upside to this is that MLS will eventually have competitive teams to go against Liga MX. Good for MLS not good for the NT.

 

The difference is Liga MX has a much more defined 2nd division/3rd division/U20 league, etc. where youngsters can get loans and other opportunities. We're just building that now in the states. Part of our problem is that we also continue to expect the quality of the league to grow, challenge Liga MX in the CCL, etc.................while we're also undergoing rapid expansion, etc. The league is growing faster than the pool of quality American players can keep up with. Its also, ironically, more difficult for American clubs to acquire quality domestic talent than it is to sign foreign talent. If Minnesota United need a centerback they can't sign Tim Ream, who would have to go thru an allocation process. They can't even sign most MLSers that are out of contract. But they can sign almost any foreign player they want.

People realize that ~half of MLS (12 teams) have been founded since 2005, with LAFC joining this year? We as a group have so little patience that we actually expect these organizations to compete from a player development perspective with Pachuca (founded in 1901) and Chivas (1906).

There's nothing wrong with MLS acquiring these young South Americans. There are always going to be foreign players in the league, just like there are foreign players in every league. I'd rather that they're youngsters that can "flipped" to Europe for profit than aging Euro veterans.

Atlanta is going to make a nice profit at some point on the sale of Almiron that they can re-invest into their academy, USL team, etc.

 

Young skilled South Americans don't bother me.

Old washed up veteran signings are much more troublesome. That said I'd much rather have the league at the highest level possible for Americans to break into than a stagnate terrible league where they are pampered just for their passports.

The only equivalent I can think of is the NHL. 30 years ago there were no Americans in the NHL. But rather than mandate some quota the NHL invested along with USA hockey in development schemes to get kids to play. Now Americans have been drafted in the top 5 picks in almost every draft and many of those kids are coming from places like Florida and Texas.

Mls obviously isn't perfect and specifically I think they need to focus on generating a u19 or u20 league of some sort to combine with the USL as a full blown second division. If guys like Carleton aren't ready at 16 thats fine but they need a place to play.

 

The league needs to change the incentive for selling Home Grown Players and MLS and USL need to keep strengthening the partnership to provide more opportunities for young players.

If their is an incentive to develop players by being able to recoup 100% of their transfer fee and and a way shepherd a player into an appropriately challenging situations either in USL or MLS then the players who are quality enough will succeed and the rest will find their place whether it is MLS, USL or going pro in something other than sports.

 

There is a real dichotomy between wanting young American players to get lots of time and then also wanting those same players to have to "earn it" like they do in Europe. I don't have a problem with them having to earn it but I'm guessing that I like most of us here don't necessarily "trust" the coach to play a kid who actually has earned it. If I completely trusted every coach in this regard then it would make the players better. I've seen a lot of examples that don't fit that though so these young SA players coming to teams with good young players are troubling.

 

Part of the issue also is that its very easy to be successful in MLS without playing youngsters. How many combined minutes to thread eligible players were provided by the three US-based teams vying for MLS Cup (Houston, Seattle, and Columbus.....................)? It would have been really nice if FCD or NYRB had won the title over the last three seasons, but they didn't.

I look at the Bundesliga model. They acquire lots of quality foreign talent, but they also don't need to mandate a certain number of minutes, etc. to domestic youngsters. They've made the investment in the youth setup, and the coaching staffs aren't afraid to use the youngsters that prove they've earned an opportunity. Its not a forced thing.........................its a mindset.

I would add that we're not asking for MLS clubs to provide playing time to waves of youngsters. A starting point would be ONE thread-eligible youngster at every team getting playing time. We're not even there yet.

 

Buying foreign youth doesn't negate domestic development. Bund clubs buy foreign youth all the time yet remain development factories.

The problem is MLS' structure and system doesn't provide the incentive to develop, play and then sell American youth. And that's the business of development MLS doesn't want to participate in.

I'd add that "investment" might be the most misused term. It largely means nothing on its own. If we had smarter people with more incentive and less "investment" we'd be a fair amount further than we are.

That doesn't matter much to me. Seems MLS just doesn't do well with the younger talent we have. And it used to do better a decade ago with it. The problem isn't time when MLS as a league and the system it employs is anti-development.

When someone has a poor business plan, the answer isn't giving that poor plan more time. The answer is to change the plan. MLS has a good plan to make profit for a few owners and SUM. It has a horrible plan when it comes to the American player.

We have more 14-16 yr olds than ever before with some quality to them, largely because of the sport's increasing popularity and high level soccer being all over tv. But MLS doesn't know what to do with them. Neither does the USSF or our system at large. That's why we're seeing more and more breaking thru overseas at a young age. They're being put into a system which does know what to do with them and has the incentive to do it.

If anything as time goes by MLS is becoming even more anti-American. The priority goes to foreigners thru DP/TAM and they exist under looser restrictions than the American player.

 

I believe we had a post that at least MLS was somewhat loosening these restriction.s

 

Anyhoo......
Brandon Vasquez looking at more minutes next season. Atlanta United announce they've dropped Jones and Otoo.

Ditto Miles Robinson. Walkes has returned to Spurs, Lloyd, Mears, Boswell and Bloom are out.

https://www.atlutd.com/post/2017/11/20/atlanta-united-announce-year-end-roster-moves

 

Possibly, but there's still a lot of offseason left and many signings to be made.

 

All signs in Atlanta point to more Andrew Carleton in 2018
https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2017...referral&utm_content=news&utm_campaign=unpaid

“Obviously everybody wants to see Andrew Carleton get some time,” captain Michael Parkhurst said during the team’s end-of-season media day this week, when asked who he thinks could be more impactful in 2018.

“He’s an exciting, young player. It’s difficult in those positions right now with the talent we have on the team, so hopefully he has a good offseason and a very good preseason and keeps pushing. He’s got some skills that you want to see how it translates to the pro level. I think that he can be successful, so it’s a matter of time with him. We don’t know how soon that will be.”

 

Well not hard to go above zero

 

There was another quote in that article from his main competition for playing time, Julian Gressel. He also singled out Carleton.

They probably see what everyone here does that Carleton needs to play more, hopefully Martino obliges.

 

What's going to help is Andrew being with the squad full-time including pre-season. He missed a lot of time with them last season with the U17s.

Its worth noting that Yamil Asad was on loan to Atlanta last season. I haven't seen any announcement regarding his return. Apparently Atlanta has a 2 million dollar transfer option that we'll hear about shortly.

https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2017...acker-yamil-asad-waiting-decision-loan-option

 

Goff says Marcinkowski is signing with San Jose

Georgetown Hoyas goalkeeper leaving early to sign with MLS club https://t.co/oynAK7QH7K

— Steven Goff (@SoccerInsider) December 6, 2017

 

They got rid of Bingham, so maybe he'll be Tarbell's back up. And its even possible he could start, as Tarbell hasn't been a starter that many games. I don't think he has that spot on lock. I can't think Marcinkowski is signing with them (with access to a Euro passport or another year at Georgetown) if they are signing him to be their third keeper.