I would disagree about Canouse, but agree about the others. Canouse needs someone to play the "8" who can move the ball forward. Canouse's game really is one of a destroyer who occasionally clips ankles like ABMOD in the day. Every team needs someone like that. When healthy, Canouse is one of the better "6's" in the League.
With Canouse, it's getting into the question of availability again. He only played in 21 matches this season (22 after Sunday I assume). He misses time every season. Also, Moreno is on 180k versus 500k for Russ, and has similar numbers per 90. Moreno is a more accurate passer and has a nearly identical rate of winning tackles. The eye test tells me Canouse is more active, covers more ground, but I'm not sure the numbers back that up. It doesn't matter, Canouse is locked up long term (contract through 2023), so he'll be here. It just would be nice to get more offensive production from that spot between Canouse and Moreno (2 goals, 5 assists between them). If both are going to start together, I feel like they need a little more from one of those spots. Canouse makes the money, so it kind of feels like his responsibility.
The only chance is if there is a mutual agreement to move on. If Losada sits him down and tells him he isn't a starter here, he might get the urge to play elsewhere. I'm sure both parties can make that happen.
Actually just adds to the "worst international signing by DCU" narrative. This oft-injured millstone will be around for another 3 seasons.
I'm a bit frustrated w I think we have to lean on Nyeman more. It's time for us to start trusting him. He's a probable USMNT prospect for the 2026 cycle if we hand him the keys instead of continuing to roll out Felipe. I would pair him with Canouse.
I must admit I skipped over him, as I actually liked his play. However on a result-per-dollar basis he should be on the list. There have been a few of these guys who - in another system/with another coach/without injury - would have been great. Gallardo, Boskovic, and looking like Flores, maybe. On a bang/buck basis, they all end up with the Franco Niells of DCU history.
On some level I give both Gallardo and Boskovic a pass. Gallardo was at the tail end of his career, and signing an aging small (his nickname was "the doll" in Spanish) to play in a leg breaking leg probably was a mistake. IIRC, this was a desperation play after Veron got off the plane in Argentina. Boskovic suffered a season ending knee injury and played for a coach who admitted he didn't understand his skillset. Flores was signed in his prime by a prior administration that just seemed to collect odds and ends and hope they work.
Yeah, Boskovic went down in a match I attended at Soccerplex. I think it was an exhibition against New England, and some trialist ruined Bosko's knee after he had scored two goals, the last of which was an absolute stunner.
I was there, too. It was a U.S. Open Cup match and, basically, a Revolution player butchered Boscovic while he was attempting to make a play outside the box on our side of the center line. And, yes, Boscovic played brilliantly. I recall think to myself at the game that there was no way Olsen was going to keep him out of the starting lineup for the rest of the season.
Maybe if he had played as well against the NE Revolution as he did against the NE Revolution B-team, he would have started more?
I guess he is intimating that Bosco wouldn't show up against better opponents. I barely remember my kids' and dogs' names on a daily basis - so I can't profess to remember anything about how well he played or didnt at that game or in general other than he was not the impact player everyone hoped he would be..... in tangentially-related news/discussion of former players who didn't quite pan out like all would have hoped: on Saturday my son's bottom-of-table team played the first place team in the division - coached by Luciano Emilio. So I got a nice photo with him before the game. Glad I did, because I didn't want to bother him after we handed them a 3-1 loss, their first of the season.
I'm glad the season is over. I went to one game with my full season ticket package this year. I sold a good many of them and let even more go unused. When I called my ticket rep a few months ago to tell him I wasn't renewing because the organization wasn't committed to winning, he agreed and let me know he was quitting for the same reason. Next year will be the first year ever that I won't have season tickets and I may, or may not, go to a game. Until a few years ago I had never missed a home game. Until this year I had never missed watching a game on TV, replay, or in person unless it was away with no broadcast. I was excited about Losada and I believe he will win championships for a team other than DC United. The organization won't get him the horses he needs. He needs loads of fullbacks and wingers for his system because they will get injured based on his tactics. They run a lot. I hope I'm wrong and end up having to buy high priced tickets on line, but the organization has finally killed my fandom. I visit this site once every couple of weeks now and it was a daily routine for me forever. I hope Lucy catches lightning in a bottle with acquisitions this off season, but I doubt it.
Next year will be the year that will prove the commitment. Rushton needs to get Losada the players he wants. If they don't get at least two DP-Level or high GarberBuck players then it will show the lack of commitment.
I agree. This off-season (and next year's mid-season transfer window) will show us what Levien & Company are all about. Is DCU simply an investment or do they intend to compete for championships? The frequency of my future match attendance will be dictated by what they do. I say that as someone who does acknowledge that progress has been made. While Audi Field is no palace it's a good place to watch a match and a significant step up from RFK. It's not high-end but at least they have a training facility of their own now. It seems progress at the academy is happening. But all that stuff is the bare minimum to keep pace with a rapidly changing MLS. I'm looking forward to seeing what kinds of lesser known gems Rushton can find, but at some point you also need to open your wallet. I'm hoping some of the money from all these new minor partners Levien has brought in will be spent on talent. Winning = ticket sales = more revenue (obviously).
Doesn't Kasper have a greater influence here? I mean I have faith in Rushton as GM, but the "old guard" of the organization remains the same.
I think the hiring of Lucy Rushton was intended to reduce Kasper's influence in the identification and recruitment of talented players. We have long bemoaned Kasper's influence, so the owners went out and snatched Rushton from Atlanta, where she had made an enviable reputation (added to her reputation from the English Championship). I think she can identify useful players, but the issue remains will our rather cheap owners pony up to sign them?
I'm not doubting that Rushton is the right person for the job, but I'm still not sure what she actually did at Atlanta. I just re-read this excellent Athletic article about the behind-the-scenes fights at Atlanta United from before Tata was hired to just after Rushton came here, and she's only mentioned once, in a peripheral context. The decisions about bringing in players seem to have been made by Bocanegra and Darren Eales, but she may have done a lot of work in ID-ing players that wasn't noticed as much as the fights between Tata, Boca and Eales. https://theathletic.com/2579808/2021/05/11/atlanta-united-martino-bocanegra-eales/
I think Rushton's specialty is statistical analysis and "soccer analytics." In an interview while at Atlanta she said she presented her analysis to Bocanegra who would decide whether to pursue the individual or not.