Don't know where to put this...Tottenham Hotspur and DC United played last night, DC won 1-0 off an own goal. Anyways in the Washington Post's article about it, I found this passage interesting: here is the link to the whole article
How does Hoddle know that Convey has a real will to improve? Does he use this phrase for all young players?
My guess is that 5 days ago Hoddle wouldn't have recognized player one from DCU. Then his scouts said: "Keep on eye on these 2 19 year olds -- Convey & Quaranta." Later, when asked for an opinion on the meaningless game, he went with the one name he could pronounce.
Perhaps it's because he noticed an improvement in Bobby's game since DC and Tottenham played their match in London last fall. Remember, this was the second leg of a home-and-home spread out over six months.
Yeah, I'm sure Hoddle wasn't getting a pie when Convey was tearing it up in London last fall. He knew who to look for last night.
i don't actually remember convey making the field to play at white heart lane. could be mistaken though.
That's my impression too. Even if he had been in that match, I doubt it very much that Hoddle would have remembered him.
Quaranta is 18 Is it so hard to believe that an EPL coach may be aware of a 19 year old player who; Is in his 4th professional season Played on the 4th place U-17 team with Landon and DMB Captained the U-17 team Captains the U-20 team Is on the U-23 squad and has been capped, what, 7 times now One might think there would be a problem if Hoddle WASN'T familiar with Convey, given this is the 2nd meeting between Spurs and DCU
Spurs' site did have a bunch of praise for Convey's play yesterday ("lively and a threat"). If Convey wanted to play well and maybe open an eye or two, it appears he succeeded. Again, the work permit is an issue.
Yes Convey played in the first DC-Spurs match. He made several spectacular runs. Afterwards, Spurs coaches made statements almost identical to the quotes given above. Maybe Hoddle did indeed forget all that. For all I know, he forgets his own name at regular intervals. More likely, this is just another example of posters speculating on things they know nothing whatever about, and judging others by their own limitations.
Not to confuse the debate with the facts, but Convey started for DCU in the match at WHL and went the full 90. Many United fans thought that Convey was one of the better players on the field that day. Also, according to DC staff and London papers, he was singled out by the Spurs coaches for his play and potential. This is what D.C. Assistant Coach John Trask said after the game:
Having been @ WHL when DCU were there, I can vouch for Convey being there and also being one of the best players on the field. Spurs have a lot of young talent on the wing (Davies and Etherington spring to mind) so I'd doubt if Convey would go there. Then again, he could play in the middle where Spurs need A LOT of help. WP might be a problem but maybe not if he plays in the rest of the friendlies and in the Confed Cup.
Hoddle and his scouts look at tons of players every year. If it was your job to find young, relatively affordable, talented players for your squad, you're going to remember anyone who piques your interest even a little bit. You might even take notes. For Hoddle to fail to put thought into evalutating every single player on the field during a friendly would make it a complete waste of time. I'm sure he and his staff has much more detailed thoughts on Convey and everyone else on the field than the complimentary comments he made to a reporter. If its your job to find players, you're paying even more attention than internet message board writers when you're watching a game.
well he will be playing in friendlies and the Confed Cup (BA has already said so) .... but regardless - the MOTM this time was Convey - and 19 years old or not - Hoddle saw him rip through his midfield and defense time and time again - how can you not notice? regardless if the last time out he scored or was attracting splinters. Regardless of Davies and Etherington - Convey certainly got their attention - maybe Davies and Etherington could play elsewhere.
Can I use this thread to back up the thread I started about Convey when MLS coaches, GMs and Scouts decided to forget about him? Isn't there a button that let's you do that? If there isn't shouldn't there be one?
It's a joke. Lighten up. Some folks found it funny b/c there are elements of truth to it: 1) Hoddle's only interest in DCU is as a potential source of young players with an upside who might be had on the cheap. I forgot the earlier friendly at WHL -- but I'm sure the scouts sat down with Glenn before the game and went over the players to watch. And I'd bet Messrs. Convey and Quaranta were top of the list. 2) I've got no reason to think he can't really pronounce "Quaranta" or remember El Diablo's given name, but Hoddle's certainly shown he's not the brightest bulb. Bad trait + exageration = humor. SNL's been doing if for 25+ years now. Does someone want to start a debate on how smart a manager Hoddle is? Or have I insulted DCU, MLS, and the whole United States of America by implying Hoddle doesn't know or care who Mike Petke is?
Hey, Hod may not know how to pronounce santino's name, but in a past life... Before the injury, Convey looked the real deal. I haven't seen enough of him since, but it sounds as if he might be back. That's great, because we need him for the nats in the coming years.