He’s got promise. It’s good that he’s training with the first team. Good for all of the youngsters actually. But we need to get them game minutes, even if it’s second team games. Go Quakesfans!! - Mark
In a podcast after the game it was mentioned that Almeyda is not really sold on Haji yet because of his transition defense. He's got some skill in the offensive end but he has to improve in the man to man marking. You can't play one way in Almeyda's system. You have to play just as hard defensively as on offense. See Fierro saving a goal in behind the keeper and getting an assist to Cowell too.
I’m fully on board with everyone playing defense, but I don’t want to see us beat the creativity out of our youngsters as we’ve done to so many in the past. I’m pretty confident that Almeyda won’t do that like Yallop and Kinnear did. Improve your defense Siad!! Go Quakesfans!! - Mark
dude needs a breakout this season. Hoping he can get it. Was hoping for a two way player that could cover a lot of ground when we drafted him.
How come so many of our promising young technical midfielders end up in some weird limbo… now both Gilbert Fuentes and Siad Haji are out for personal reasons?? Hot take: Ousseni Bouda almost already is what fans have thought Siad Haji can be.I think Siad still has a lot of upside, but Bouda is surpassing him very quickly and rising rapidly. This is a game Haji needed to play/start in, but he's out for personal reasons. #Quakes74— JMoore Quakes (@JmooreQuakes) April 20, 2022
I don’t know what’s up with these guys, but I do know the Quakes recently hired a woman to be some sort of “welfare manager”. Of course they won’t announce this kind of hire. Not sure if she is a sports psychologist or not.
Probably a good decision. In the past I have heard of foreign players going to England and being a bit lost and bewildered in their time away from games and the training ground. They now employ people to help those players adjust to a new environment and life. The more settled in they get away from he pitch, the better focused they will be on it. It's likely the same with young players. So, whether they just focus on a player's mental health, or are some type of facilitator to help with normal life issues, probably money well spent.