Yes, our midfield is really sub par and In Beom needs a better group around him or he is going to be ineffective. Cavellini is a significant change for how Kerfoot has run things, so perhaps the lightbulb has finally gone on thanks to all the season ticket cancellations. If he signs another player at that level of higher then there may be hope again.
The report is out \ THe Caps summary in their press release email was highly self serving and "we didnt do anything bad but we made mistakes and learned from them" is your standard corporate thing. It indicated they had become leaders but somehow didn't address their response from the February blog post until the meeting in person with Greg Kerfoot and the women involved. That was not industry leading anything. One of the things that stood out to me is the Caps are trying to sell all the women who came forward as having years of built up animosity due to miscommunication in 2008 and not because they were victims of anything. It was the classic finger pointing at the victim and shaming them for daring to complain. I have been reading around online and Ciara took it pretty hard yesterday from a lot of people. Not favorable on the Southsiders forum and some of her media interviews (especially one with Matt Sekeres at 1040) were bordering on predatory. Some could even say he was being a misogynist in that interview. It also seems the Caps and Mallett lied (shocking) about when they gave the report to the women involved as CIara apparently got it from a media person yesterday. An ugly state of affairs, very sad. I respect the women who came forward and it has spawned awareness and other groups to be better. The Caps are just the usual "nothing to see here" type of thing but that is who they are. The media, for the most part, are soft on it our out right in the Caps camp on this so it will be out of the news now and that is that. For those that actually care about what happened back then, getting a pound of flesh from the Caps isn't happening; but groups that are promoting safe sport for women are a good place to consider sending your money and support. Its a widespread issue (we just lost our greatest of all time bobsledder over this internal sports culture of the old boys network), and attention is more important than ever
on another note- and incase you didnt see it-- alphonsie's amazing assist this past week https://streamja.com/q2vy he is turning heads and was named euro defender for november and UEFA all-star team for the opening round 0fthe Champions League WOW-- what a year for the KID!!
Combine that with his defensive workrate like this video shows and you see why Bayern was willing to pay for him. 1204877999771918336 is not a valid tweet id
Davies has really come on this year. The first match I watched with him this season he appeared not confident with the ball and his movement. So much that I was wondering if a loan might be in his future. Not anymore! Improvement has been spectacular. Additionally, he looks to me like he may have gotten a little taller/bigger. He was always strong but he just shrugs off opponents like they aren’t there. Of course his speed is superior. Watching him now against Wolfsburg and announcers are full of praise for him including his tactical play.
such power, speed and grace -- an amazing talent at barely 19 years of age- he surely will be a target for a top 5 euro team like barcelona ,real madrrid, liverpool or man city... which would mean more cash for the Caps what i have noticed recently is that the bayern players now have a growing belief in Phonsie and getting him the ball is not a fleeting decision, but a part of the coach's game plan- turning into a world class LB, but he can also transition into an AMF and a winger
Transfermarkt have him now listed at over $28 mill USD, but its definitely going to go up - his salary is over $1 mill USD
Imagine when he fully matures physically around 21....... Clubs like Real Madrid and Barcelona will come calling. He is getting that good. John Herdmann has this guy and David. There is no excuse, even with the stupid backdoor format of the new WCQ, to miss Qatar 2022
I can honestly say that this squad we currently have is the best midfield and forwards I've seen dating back to when I started watching in my teens (mid 70s). As you say, there are no excuses for not making it.
unless coach herdman messes it up with his confusing mind-game tactics and player selections, such as the last game vs USA-- he takes a simple decision and makes it difficult and confuses the players there was no good or sensible reason for him to dicker with his starting team - its the proverbial... DONT FIX IT WHEN IT AINT BROKEN
Hm... So this year we have Bobby OUT Furlong OUT An actual footballing director hired A 2 million per year salaried player just signed Are the Caps actually on a path to change?
Oh yeah, without question. When I first saw Davies play I thought one day he would be in the top 25 players in the world. But if he solidifies at LB on the path he is taking, he could be the top LB in the world at some point. (I am not in agreement he should play there, but what the hell, if he is good at it and it gets him world class playing time). Its mind boggling that this guy plays for Canada!
I said years ago it would probably take massive season ticket cancellations for them to make meaningful change. Looks like that is what it took when thousands of paid holders didnt show up for games for most of the 2nd half of the season. I am sure some went for their Jan 30th buy it and refund it challenge, but a lot didnt. Well, its more meaningful change than they have done in a decade. Getting Furlong out of being an advisor is a big one (he was a big part of advising them on their embarassing handling of the Ciara M issue this year and the bright idea of turning away thousands of people and keeping down the tarps thinking that would force more season ticket buys - it didnt) , Bobby was in over his head; but most importantly was centralizing the player movement into one actual person/director and not rookie head coaches in over their head (rennie and robinson and MDS) and spending money on salaries for better players (they have done this once now with LC!). Its encouraging but I don't trust them so I am cautious to say the least. I am close to being a ticket buyer again pending what happens in Jan and Feb. I wont get back the level of pleasure I got from the NASL 86er to the Caps USL days; and its been a long road in MLS following this club that was often a clown show. But, it will be nice if I can be at peace with showing up to games in 2020.
I'm curious to see how well they do with player acquisition. If they shell out more significant money for key players, then I think the next guy who will come under the microscope will be MDS because he'll need his side to be in the playoff hunt in the last week or two of the regular season. Bigger money being spent usually equals a shorter time line of expectation for success so I don't think we'll see the same level of patience with the coaching staff. In some off season interviews on local podcasts MDS spent most of his time talking up excuses (no scouting staff, too long an off season, etc.) but I don't think he'll have that firewall available after this season if this team is seen by ownership to be underachieving.
i give MDS until june - improve results or walk the plank- i do think we will see 2 significant signings (MF and striker-winger) and 3 adequate signings prior to season beginning (defender, MF and striker) like chirinos, i am not convinced that godoy is anything more than an average MLS-quality player- eric will cost a +$1 mill transfer fee and a salary in the +$450 K range- i think the Caps can get a bigger bang for the buck i think the Caps will keep both erice and montero as a buy-out is just too costly with nothing to show for it, outside of more salary room- keep them as subs
there is some hnt from GC that atlanta MF, julian gressel, might be traded - 6 Goals, 11 Assists, low salary of $112K, 1 year left on his contract- obviously gressel wansts a substantial salary upgrade and Atlanta is balking- he would be a big help to the Caps- why Atlanta would let him go is beyond me as his stats are impressive and he is worth a big salary upgrade; but HEH, if the Caps do land him for $$$$$$$ or trade, julian would be a definite upgrade-- his 11 assists is impressive and he could work well with cavallini
Is he a winger in 4-3-3 or a mid? Is he a Justin Meram type of attacker? Are his numbers the product of others around him? I've only watched him a few times and he's looked pretty good but if they have to throw a lot of cap hit at him, then they have to move a couple of contracts out of town.
Gressel is a right winger. I was always impressed with the quality of his crosses. I believe he is certainly better quality than Meeram but no doubt he benefited from Atlanta’s attack. His new salary should at least triple if not more.
he's listed as a MF with an attacking shift down the right side - i just cant figure why atlanta would let him go with 1 year on his contract
https://www.whitecapsfc.com/post/2020/01/07/whitecaps-fc-appoint-mark-pannes-ceo Maybe they are finally moving away from being a mom and pop operation? There always seemed to be an amateurish quality within this FO. Some might see the hire as smoke and mirrors but I think getting someone with his background might improve their overall operation, from signing smarter contracts for players (what do we do with Giles Barnes?) to handling bad situations (i.e. Birada affair). I felt that this club needed a real leader in this front office, with substantial cred, and the organization might finally have one.