I don't mind them shopping for quality AND value. Brand name players come at a big premium and high risk. As long as the quality is there with the players they have I don't care where they come from. The players they bring in have to be as good or better than the players on the otherside of the field. Some players in the league now that were NOT brand name players: Puig, Cucho, Chicho, Joao Paulo, Buoanga, Boguzs, Pec, Paintsil. Why would we exclude players of their quality just because they are not a brand name? On the flip side Olivier Giroud is a brand name and Ponce is kicking his ass in production. Giroud has been a bust so far. I agree with the sentiment if they are only shopping for value.
they need at least one to get the fanbase hype all those players you just named are on teams with brand name players at least one Puig was definitely a big signing people were wondering why he would leave Europe
Let's not kid ourselves, hardly anybody knew who Puig was. The surprise factor was a young player moving from a club like Barcelona.
@OnceAggie has a point. For the purpose of making the Dynamo relevant within the Houston market it very well could take one, if not two, big name expensive DPs with big European fame. And not just a one off and done. Probably have to make a big acquisition every year for five years or so. I tend to think only about what is necessary to compete on the field.
Obstacles to relevancy: generally poor last decade, Apple TV deal obscurity, bizarre focus on urban hip-hop marketing, zero impact in community Action steps: sign a truly big name - spending $8 million on Ponce and whatever on Ferrera puts zero extra butts in seats and is probably only marginally less risky than spending $15 million on a more name player (yes, most big stars are even more, I know). Olsen has stabilized the franchise at the coaching level (I don't agree with everything he does, but look back at 2014-2022 for comparison); Onstad I'd probably give a B or B-minus - we don't know his full financial limitations but after a bad 2022, 23-24 generally solid. HH was not a bad signing but you paid for 2.5 season and only got about 1 full good season out of him ('22 he was eh, '23 great, '24 injured and not as effective). Injuries to some of the younger guys did hurt this season. Last relevancy comment: I think MLS really needs to change something up with the season schedule, timing, length, etc. - right now it is too long and too disinteresting for long stretches then even in the playoffs its up against baseball playoffs and football season. Just seems like 8 months for a dud ending
Yeah I should have mentioned that other things would be needed as well as create buzz with big signings. I'm just not sure that doing everything right going forward resurrects this club without some big LAFC/MIAMI/LAG type roster build that redefines the brand -- and it will require a HUGE star like Messi that the media cannot ignore. I completely agree about the weird "Hold it Down" street hip-hop focus of the branding. I don't mind it as a part of the marketing- targeting a subset of fans -- but as THE brand definition for a Houston team it just seems idiotic. It clearly is not working. On the season, I'm not sure I know any answers but I do know that the MLS season is actually fairly short compared to other leagues world wide. Especially if you miss the playoffs. Whether you keep it like now or change it like they are talking about, the playoffs need to be compressed between international breaks. This deal of taking two weeks off between rounds is nuts. I've proposed before doing the whole playoffs in the same time length as the Euros and Copa America. Two four-team groups in each conference. Seeds 1 and 2 get two home group games. Higher seed always hosts except #4 hosts #1. Top two teams advance to QF. No penalties in group play. Two games a day for just over three weeks (days off towards the end). Short intense tournament. More games for Apple than the current structure. A structure everyone in the world knows and respects.
Season is too long, not meaningful enough, then the playoffs are either over quickly or stretch out too long due to international breaks. Leagues Cup is now a factor - basically shuts the league down for a month for a competition that has limited overall appeal. Regular season should be 6 months long. Playoffs should be 5 weeks. Taking Don Juego's format, start season in March, end on Labor Day, playoffs rest of September into october, final late october (assuming the international breaks still exist). The holiday season in large part effectively kicks off this upcoming weekend. MLS hasn't even played the quarterfinals (final 8 yet)!
What are the over 100 current MLS players who are expected to play for their nations going to do for the other 6 months out of the year? Go to night school and work on their Associates Degree??? Hahaha!!! If MLS is to be an elite league, then the season has to be long enough that players of National Team caliber are able to play and stay sharp for National Team call ups.
I frankly don't care what they do the rest of the year. Think it is called "offseason training" in the other sports. Not sure I understand the notion that soccer season needs to be 10-11 months of the calendar. Yesterday was the MLS conference finals, who watched them? Was any non-super hardcore MLS fan turning into Apple TV to watch instead of Texas vs. A&M?
Pro soccer players have traditionally received just one month of down time from end of season to return to preseason training. This is when they just get as far away from the sport as possible. Eating and drinking and sitting by a pool. Thus returning to preseason training and running off all the weight that they have just gained. Both Conference Finals were behind the AppleTV Paywall. So who indeed was tuning in around the nation? But the team's coffers however...