Yanks Abroad Flavors of the Week: 2020/2021

And yet people say on here that him playing any minutes for the US is risking his career.

 

?

 

Some people on here saying that we are terrible people for wanting Pulusic to play this window. That it would be risking his career.

 

Yes, and Yes.

 

It's a tertiary assist.

PS: For the curious, the previous ones would be quaternary, quinary, senary, septenary, etc. The 21st touch before the actual assist would be the vicesimosecondary assist (from Latin vicesimus secundus, of course).

 

It was a quinary assist. I looked it up because I couldn't think of what comes after "quaternary".

 

Scally is 29. He makes the pass that hits the leg of Davies and even though deflected reaches Embolo, who passes it to Hofmann who sets up Bensebaini for the goal.

 

Too old for the NT debut.

 

If Pulisic can play for Chelsea, he can play for the USMNT.
I wouldn't start him. I'd roll with the starters from the Costa Rica match. If Pulisic is needed, then we use him as a substitute.

That's how I feel right now anyway. He can change my mind based on performance for Chelsea. If he goes 90 minutes for Chelsea and plays well prior to the Mexico game, then I have no qualms about starting him.

 

This whole Pulisic ruin his career conversation is silly. Chelsea has WAY more money invested in him than anyone. They are not going to risk that investment. As Clint Eastwood just said. If he can play for Chelsea then he sure as hell can play for us.

 

Ah, yes of course! I knew he was number 29 but read the "28" wrong (also the player's position corresponded with where I expected Scally to be on the play).

 

Once you figure out where he is you have to stare dead at him and then as soon as he leaves frame you have to start the puzzle all over again

— watke (@watke_) October 17, 2021

 

Oh def call him up and probably don't plan on 180 mins... I think he should play a role though.

 

Its worth noting that Pulisic's injury isn't a hamstring or some sort of muscle injury with a concern about reaggravation.

He had some pain in his ankle after that tackle against Honduras.
Nothing appears to have been broken, etc. So if he's feeling good, we should be comfortable using him.

The question for the Mexico game is really one of match fitness as opposed to health...................for me anyway. He hasn't started a game for Chelsea since August 14th.

 

Liga MX is a vastly stronger league than MLS. They’re much closer to a buying league

 

Vastly stronger eh?

 

Average LigaMx salary is estimated at about $350k. That's not going to get you 'vastly stronger' than MLS.

Liga MX: Highest Salaries in 2021 (bolavip.com)

 

Average salary is a dumb metric. Median salary is what matters in terms of league and team quality. Median MLS salary still drags behind median Ligamx — the average is just pulled up significantly due to the cash splashes for DPs in MLS.

 

I think I had several of those.

 

MLS is much more of a buying league than Liga MX.
Liga MX's academy structure is much more advanced, so they promote a lot thru their academies.

Only three MLS clubs have net positive transfer income. FCD, Atlanta, and Vancouver.
[Have made more in transfer income than they've spent.]

I mean, the worst team in MLS paid 13 million for Brenner.
That would be the record foreign player signing for every club in Liga MX other than Monterrey. Fact. Club America's record signing is 9.9 million for Darwin Quintero, who they bought from Santos Laguna. Atlanta United alone has broken Club America's transfer record three times (16 million for Pity, 13.5 million for Barco, and 12 million for Araujo).

I think people on these boards vastly under-rate the place of MLS in the global soccer market.

 

With Reyna out, he is our best attacker by a country mile. If he’s fit, he should start. Period.

 

Under Berhalter, Aaronson has been the best attacker for the US.

Not really. The money spent on the players is the money spent on players. If you're getting the bang for the buck out of Bradley, Giovinco, and Altidore then you'll roughshod over LigaMx teams.

 

In the last window, 43% of global transfer spending was by Premier League teams. Not uncommon. I think folks watch the Premier League and get their notions of the global transfer market completely out of whack.

Compared to most of the Western Hemisphere, MLS is a big-time spending league. River Plate has spent more than 5.5 million on one player in their history. And that's the top of the South American food chain. Newish MLS club Inter Miami has exceeded that three times already (Pizarro, Pelligrini, and Carranza).

 

That's not really the case anymore. See the latest MLS salary guide.

From the guide (bold mine for emphasis):
"The Average Base Salary for Senior Roster Non-Designated Players in MLS is $398,725 in 2021, more than doubling over the last five years..."

But I won't belabor the point, because at this point this discussion has pretty much nothing to do with the thread topic, which is Yanks Abroad.

 

I mean, if Otasowie isn't in the squad for this Belgian Cup game..............(and a bunch of kids younger than him are)..................then he's not gonna play this year. Something is really going on with him behind the scenes.

No Otasowie.

Oh hey, they included an '05 though! https://t.co/ZloV9fU4ss

— Daniel (@DanielSmith1022) October 29, 2021