Hey look, two more teams signing DP forwards: A pair of deals for Designated Player forwards just went official:Philadelphia Union acquire Mikael Uhre from Brondby and Orlando City SC sign Ercan Kara from Rapid Wien. pic.twitter.com/tjoBKnAuDC— Tom Bogert (@tombogert) January 27, 2022 So, by my count, this offseason the following teams have signed DP forwards / attackers: Orlando (they’ve signed 2!) Philadelphia Charlotte Dallas DC United Fire (while Przbylko was a PHI DP, he is under a new non DP contract) Toronto (and are rumored to also have Giovinco in training camp right now) Teams with DP forwards / attackers carrying over from last season not listed above: Seattle Portland LAFC Atlanta SKC RSL New England Columbus Vancouver LA Gals Miami Austin FC Cincy NYRB Me, to the Rapids:
Precisely. In past years, when the RFO failed to sign quality strikers (of DP caliber), we could still kinda skate and grind through the season with alternate forward arrangements because many/most other teams also didn't have across-the-board DP-caliber strikers. In the past, the big striker/attacker pursuits were more limited to the big market teams. But now... (unless Padraig pulls a rabbit out of his hat, and SOON!)... the Rapids will be in the extreme minority of teams that lack this key/elite player(s). In other words, once again, the Rapids will soon be left behind trying to play a 1998 Nintendo game when the rest of the league is playing 2022 Xbox. As much as we all like to pride ourselves on the clever RFO moneyball that got the Rapids to 1st in the West this year (a big feat for sure!), living in MLS2.0 when most other teams are living in MLS4.0 is certainly not sustainable. Equally important, let's not forget that the Rapids "successful" moneyball teams in 2020 and 2021 stunk it up in their respective first playoff matches. One of the key reasons? No goals because they couldn't finish in the box... which gets back to the glaring need for a legit striker. So the 2021 moneyball finish was cool, I get it. But it's far from what is needed to legitimately compete. But hey, I hear Jack McBean might be coming out of his early retirement and the RFO is lickin' its chops! Bet we can get THAT quality on the cheap! [Hey Padraig, all of the above frustration and cynicism can be wiped away instantaneously if Rapids fans are treated to big surprise signing or two. But until then, we won't hold our breath.]
Yeah I’m with you big time here. What we’ve built and accomplished over the last 3 years since *shudders* ….Hudson…. is nothing short of impressive. And I truly believe it’s sustainable. We will be a playoff contender this year. And next. And the year after that. I have no doubt. What I doubt? Our teams ability to stay at the top of the Western standings - and our teams ability to move beyond the first game of the playoffs. Right now, we’re a good team. And you know what? We’re on the cusp of being great. But you’re not gonna be great when your team’s leading scorers the last two years are a winger (Barrios - 2021) and then a winger and a midfielder (Bassett/Lewis - 2020). Since 2010, the Rapids have had a double digit goal scorer in 3(!) seasons. 3 times in 11 seasons, and only once in the last 7. Kei Kamara / Rubio in 2019 Deshorn Brown in 2014 Deshorn Brown in 2013 And you know what? It doesn’t even have to be a BIG MONEY DP. Imagine we sign Kamara at 31/32 years old and put him with the midfielders and wingers we have…dude would have a field day! He put up 14 goals for us in 2019 and was 35 years young! Just give us somebody please RFO. We need striker talent. Rubio just isn’t a natural striker. He plays best when there’s another forward out there it’s him, heck, his best year came when we also Kamara. Just give us someone fresh up top, please RFO?
I think the skepticism I'm reading is warranted. Rapids moneyball is really just finding young, generally American, players that are finding playing time hard to come by due to international signings or competition from other academy products. That works in positions of abundance, and CB and midfield seem to be areas of abundance, but proven goal scorers don't become surplus to need all that often (barring contract or locker room issues.) Signing a #9 that can come in and bang in goals is going to be a new trick for the Rapids and, given spending constraints and all the issues we've noted ad nauseum in this forum, I'm not all that optimistic that a signing that is going to appease this crowd (including me) is on the way.
Hey look Arsenal just dropped $7mil on Turner. Not that he needs it, but a source confirms Taylor's report regarding Matt Turner to Arsenal. Details:✔️Base fee slightly under $7 million✔️Add-ons could reasonably add a couple million✔️Revs retain a sell-on %✔️Exact timing of move not determined, but won't be til summer https://t.co/MSGc3kPNn4— Sam Stejskal (@samstejskal) January 27, 2022 Big money for a goalkeeper - who may just end up being their backup. Maybe Uncle Stan is open to spendi….. Oh wait. That’s his cash cow in England. Right. I forgot. We’re not that high on the list just yet. … I stand by original meme from earlier.
Question: With the transfer window in most global football markets closing on Jan. 31, is it safe to say that if legit rumors or formal announcements don't arise in the next 3 days, the Rapids will be more S.O.L. on bringing in a quality DP-quality striker for about the 8th consecutive window? Or are there ways to navigate around the 1/31 deadline? As with every window, the RFO silence is killing me and I'm about to throw in the towel on my hopes. Regardless of what Padraig said about pursuing multiple strikers a week or two ago, this is playing out exactly how it has played out in past windows. It's the KSE-RFO way. They start with a list of targets (and the fanbase blindly gets its hopes up). Then they float low offers to the bigger names/quality (only to be rejected over time). Then they are left with the crumbs that they sign at the 11th hour and try to spin it into a great signing. Is this our fate YET AGAIN?
No. We go over this every offseason. The window only matters for the league a player is going to. The window for the league the player is leaving is meaningless. In fact, all the transfers you've heard about across the rest of the league haven't actually happened, because MLS's window hasn't even opened yet. They're all pre-deals that will become official once the window opens sometime next month. Now there is an argument to be made that teams are going to be less likely to sell a player if their window is closed, because they can't bring in a replacement, but the reality is that for the type of player the Rapids are looking for that shouldn't matter. We are unlikely to be bidding enough for a big team to lose a big piece, and a big name from a small team is likely not what we should be looking for. The Rapids are likely looking for a player who's surplus to requirements for a team and/or out of favor, which means a team would be likely to sell without needing a replacement.
Thanks! That helps! [Update: Let's hope that the formal Mezquida announcement this morning is just the first in another flurry of contract/signing announcements (a la their announcement roll-out day last week).]
Lucas Esteves (who had to have private training sessions with Palmeiras reps in addition to the Rapids to make sure he’s in tip top shape while on loan) has now tweeted out more pictures from training camp than the Rapids Foco, força e fé é o lema dos vencedores !! 🤩 pic.twitter.com/6wYqzZsdOf— Lucas Esteves (@LucasEsteves66) January 28, 2022 *translation from google: “Focus, strength, and faith is the motto of the winners” I think Esteves is gonna have a breakout year this year and turn a lot of heads around the league.
A day in the life of @colebassett19 as he joined @Feyenoord on loan from boyhood club @ColoradoRapids 🎥 pic.twitter.com/qvRDO4h8Xg— B/R Football (@brfootball) January 28, 2022
His loan ends in June, correct? I assume that the Rapids have a prearranged agreement to buy him. It would be tough to lose him in the middle of the season. I concur that he could be difference maker this season. He looks like he can play left back and wing back.
Yes, it’s a club option to buy. https://www.coloradorapids.com/news/rapids-sign-brazilian-defender-lucas-estevesfrom-palmeiras Don’t know how expensive, but I imagine he’s worth every penny they already negotiated.
Rapids have finally released a camp roster. However the only unsigned players are our draft picks and Academy kids who are joining the camp for experience. And just because a player is listed doesn't mean he's actually in camp yet (Max). https://www.coloradorapids.com/news/colorado-rapids-roster-update-from-preseason-camp-in-tucson
This is...not good Accusations from #SportingKC captain Johnny Russell after the match accusing #Rapids96 defender Lucas Esteves of spitting blood at Khiry Shelton. 😳😳😳 pic.twitter.com/ToQqpBvfS2— Daniel Sperry (@sperrydaniel94) January 30, 2022
I didn't get to watch this afternoon. Any one want to give their take? Here's one from Joseph Samelson - 1487601627670319112 is not a valid tweet id
just about to post this. I didn’t watch the match just read the recaps. Not good if true. Not good at all. I wonder if there’s video evidence. Russell has no reason to fib so I’m just curious to know what exactly happened.
To be clear, if true this is unacceptable. I'll need to see/hear exactly what happened before I decide if this is "terminate the loan and send him home" unacceptable or just "heavy fine/suspension" unacceptable, but either way I don't think we should expect Esteves in the lineup for a while (again, if true). Which means the Acosta trade hurts a little more, given that he was the most likely player to fill that hole.
"After reviewing footage of the incident from various angles, we have found no evidence to the contrary." 3/ #Rapids96— Brendan Ploen (@BrendanPloen) January 30, 2022
Apparently here’s the incident in question…. I can’t really see anything so who knows: So here is the incident under scrutiny. Thanks to @BrendanPloen for helping find these time stamps. Khiry catches Esteves on the ball in. Near goal, lots of replays, then we come back live to an angry Johnny. Seconds later Russell and Esteves have a dust-up and get yellows. pic.twitter.com/Z6u1f55F1G— Daniel Sperry (@sperrydaniel94) January 30, 2022
Yeah I couldn’t see much there either. It’s clear he’s clipped by Khiry. It’s not clear he ever spat on anyone. I can’t imagine that Khiry - who’s had a history of hotheadedry himself would let that slide, nor ANY other player on the field. No one saw anything that warranted any reaction whatsoever - except Russell. Russell wears his emotions on his sleeve - and from what I’ve read about the game (unable to watch thanks to geo locking) him and Esteves had been having a fairly physical go all game up until that point. Esteves also wears his emotions on his sleeve. I think this is a case where a hothead is pissed at another hothead - sees him do something and interprets it as something else - and reacts to it. Now obviously, if Esteves spat at or on anyone - that’s it. He’s done. Don’t want to see him in a Rapids jersey again. But I find it EXTREMELY hard to believe based on the video (there’s what, 10 seconds in between when the camera crew cuts to replays and the Russell screaming and hollering?), and also given every single other persons reaction on the pitch. So, only Russell saw something and all 20 other players on the pitch, the ref crew, and both benches missed something as serious as spitting at/on another player? I gotta believe that someone was watching Esteves who was clearly trying to show injury immediately after the collision with Khiry. It’s just all so over the top to me and that no one said or did anything other than Russell who wasn’t even directly involved in the situation. I’ll reserve full judgement until an official investigation is finished - and I’ll gladly eat crow if they find Esteves guilty - but I just don’t see how to fit it all in during that brief brief interchange when the cameras weren’t on them.
To continue - the only thing I can think of that makes it all make sense is the following. Khiry clips Esteves during the free kick. Esteves is bleeding and not happy about it. After the kick goes out of play and the players start resetting their formations Khiry starts heading back to his normal spot - and Esteves makes sure to talk to him on the way back. Esteves says something to the effect of “Hey man, you clipped me good, what then !%## - I’m !##_%^# bleeding here” and then spits down on the ground to show that Khiry drew blood. Khiry’s shrugs it off and says “sorry dude” and keeps moving on to get back to position before the goalkick. Russell - already annoyed from Esteves’s aggressive defending - sees from a distance the Esteves spit. Russell throws a fit to the ref and now throws Esteves under the bus during the post game presser. Now we’re here. That’s the only logical turn of events I can come up with given both the Rapids official statement - and the reactions (or lack thereof) from literally every other grown human being out there on the field tonight. Again, I’ll eat crow if wrong - but this feels like a mountain being made out of a molehill.