If Acosta isn't doing the job as a defensive midfielder then trade/sell him for someone that can pair with Price to create a twin pivot in front of the back line. As for the destroyer d-mid role, how many teams in the MLS these day deploy one - in the classic sense - like Mastroeni? There is no doubt that the Rapids get exposed on the counter too often. Part of this is due to the use of the high press which requires everyone to do their part and can push the back line up to and beyond midfield. So when the press is broken there is a lot of space for the attack by the opposition, a not a lot of numbers defending and thus a lot of pressure on the back line. Is the resolution to this a destroyer or a change in tactics? Regardless, I doubt Jack Price is going anywhere soon. He's a solid a distributor and obviously a huge threat setting his teammates up on set pieces.
Some other thoughts on the #9 situation: • What primary role does Fraser see for Shinyashiki going forward? A wing in the 4-2-3-1? OR as a #9? Whatever the team needs at the moment? • Is Yapi going to sign a first team contract sometime before January? I realize neither of the above are options to replace Rubio and be big scorers in 2021, the thinking of Fraser, etc., here might give us a clue about a potential big signing.
Great, but who sits? 5 man midfield. New DM, Price, Bassett, Namli, Shinyashiki/Galvan, Lewis/Benezet. That's 6 players.
Rapids want to sign Yarbrough. Nothing else in the article that most here couldn’t have guessed. The Colorado Rapids ended their four-year playoff drought in 2020. The efforts of a young core signaled bright times ahead after a long rebuild.via @Shapalicious #Rapids96 https://t.co/d70r59wnOh— Denver Post Rapids (@rapidsnews) November 30, 2020
From Article, Out of Contract: Clint Irwin Drew Moore Club Options: Andre Shinyashiki Jeremy Kelly Danny Wilson Collen Warner Steven Beitashour
Bassett, Vines, and Acosta all called up for the USMNT game vs El Salvador POWER SQUADDDDDDD 🇺🇸@KellynAcosta, @colebassett19 and Sam Vines have been called up to the @USMNT!— Colorado Rapids (@ColoradoRapids) November 30, 2020
Pick up the options on Kelly and Shinyashiki, buy Yarbrough, offer Moor a new contract. Let the rest walk and/or battle for a new contract in training camp.
Spot on. I agree 100%. Start cleaning house now with these guys. The sooner the better. We need start thinking about losing Bassett It’s going to happen sooner than later. Europe beckoning. That discussion is for another time, though. As for Moor....offer him a new deal. A deal that includes some player/coach role. More coach than player, to be fair. I would love to see him start getting involved with Academy. Oh.... since I haven’t heard anything in months, what’s the deal with Kortne Ford?
If the Rapids are able to make the deal for the transfer of Yarbrough and don't sign Irwin, who becomes the backup? Andre Rawls? Abraham Rodriguez? Or would they sign someone new as the backup?
Totally agree! Kelly has been much better than I expected and he looks to be a solid backup to Rosenberry as well as an option in the midfield. Shinyashiki really came on the last four matches or so of the season. Hope he can keep it up next season regardless of his role.
He tweeted recently that he is back on the practice field with the team. I believe it was in the week leading up to the playoff match.
Those thinking a Rapid player transfer to Europe is in the works let me bring up most clubs in Europe had to get their players to take a wage cut due to reduced club revenues. https://www.skysports.com/football/...arcelona-players-agree-to-pay-cuts-worth-110m This is on Top of a 70% wage reduction in late spring. This is not the time to be selling a player, maybe next summer if things turn around in spring.
Robin Fraser’s next assistant coach? https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2020...share_button&utm_campaign=social_share_button “Greg Vanney steps down as Toronto FC coach”
Time to own up to my season predictions. (I actually did better than usual this year) http://view-from-the-couch.blogspot.com/2020/12/prediction-recap-2020.html
Didn't know you could end a four year drought with a loss in a play-in match. But in fairness after four years of not even that at least there was something. To me the reality is we are not one or two players from a second MLS Cup but at least we have a good group of young players to build around and we don't need to bring in 10 or 11 new/better players (we have been there before).
Is Dom Dwyer done? Does he have the capability to put up 12+ goals and 5+ assists per season anymore? He’s hitting the free agent market. Could Dom be finisher the Rapids need? I have my doubts more so than a Aron Johansson. Elbow Dom sure as shit won’t get his current wages especially coming off another knee injury. I just thought he was interesting name.
Hard pass. Wrong side of 30, coming off a serious knee injury, and an attitude that isn't great. He needs to go somewhere else first to wash off the OCSC stink too. Also hard, hard pass on BWP. Two years older than Kamara when he got here is not the striker we need.
Agreed on both. Despite being a decent finisher, never bought into the Dom hype even with him banging in 20 goals for SKC. And yeah.... that attitude reeks. He’ll go somewhere that has a NWSL side since he and wife, Sydney Leroux, are a package deal. BWP is expendable with Vela fully back next year. But he’s not a long term solution for any club.
Ok, time to start talking expansion draft. Presuming the rules are the same as last year, all homegrown players 25 years old or younger are automatically protected. Teams can protect 12 players and can't lose more than 1 player. Automatically protected: Acosta (HG with Dallas transfers), Anderson, Bassett, Ford, Hundley, Rodriguez, Vines, Vint So, once those 8(!) are automatically protected, who's your other 12. Here's mine: Yarbrough, Rosenberry, Abubakar, Trusty, Price, Namli, Galvan, Shinyashiki, Lewis, Rubio Those are the somewhat obvious 10. The last two I'm going with are tough but I think I'd go with Benezet and Mezquida, but I could make cases for Irwin, Moor, and Kelly. I don't think Moor and Kelly are as likely to be picked as Benezet and Mezquida though, and while Irwin could be picked he's out of contract here and I expect we're going to let him walk anyway. Unprotected: Beitashour, Jackson, Rawls, Rwatubaye, Warner, Wilson, Wynne, plus 3 of the 5 from that last group above
We would only need to protect Yarbrough if his transfer goes through before draft, I would think RFO would make sure this occurred after the draft. Edit: since Moor is a FA would he even be "selectable"?
We own Yarbrough's rights though, which I believe are still selectable in the expansion draft. So I think we have to protect him either way. Similarly with Moor, even as a FA we have the right to make the first offer to him I believe, which we would lose to Austin if they selected him. I don't think that's likely but there's a chance they could see value in his veteran leadership.