Just thought I would toss out some names that we could toss around...seems to me there is a lot of options out there for Ray and company. Here's a few guys that would seem like a nice fit in a Utd kit... : Chris Armstrong - F England.. not on anyone's roster at the time, played for Spurs, Bolton,Palace Dele Adebola - F Nigeria... Brmt-City, Palace..also I'm thinking this might b the boy Ray is lookin' at Richard Witschge -F Holland...Ajax veteran is available on a free,only33 and can still play verywell Keith Gillespe LW/F -N Ire- Released by Blackburn..once came over to the MLS on a tryout Kevin Twaddle L/Rw,F-Eng..Was w/ Hearts, versatile veteran similar to Olsen with a better eye for the goal..could play up top or the middle firmly Fabrizio Ravenelli -- hey the White Dove is available on a free..be lovely to see him play a few years Branko Stupar F- Belg. -- Veteran may want to join friends Powell and Kinkladze.. leathal finisher Youri Petrov F- Russian- was with RKC in Holland..still has age on his side and very clever forward...was a star for the u-21 team mbemba Sylla F- Guinea -- Quick striker with a nice touch..played with Mons in Belgium..avail on a free Craig Burley M/F- Scot. -- Scottish veteran also available from the mass exodus of Derby Cnty. Junior Agogo F - Eng./Ghana ... Peterborough walked away after financial problems at the club..why not ask him back to the MLS. Youseef Chipo F- Morocoo ... Former Coventry striker wants out of Middle Eastern league Giles De Bilde F- Belg. available on the cheap from Anderlecht who want to free up space by unloading the former Premiership sniper Greg Sharland F-Aussie... U-23 striker who impressed Curbishley at Charlton but is now avail on the cheap as the Attics have a ton of Forwards Andreas Herzog M-Austrian... Austrian midfielding legend is available on a free...he's a bit older then you'd like but the boy still has tons of skill and is fit as a fiddle..could replace Marco for 2/3 years. Chris Llewellyn M/F-Welsh...Norwich fan favorite is transfered listed ..could be purchased on the cheap..has good pace and a strong leg. ....Just a few ideas...hope it sturs a thought or two...
The idea of Ravanelli playing here is so crazy it just might work. It would be cool to see. i don't know if Twaddle is any good, but with a name like that, someone simply must pick him up. "Twaddle leads United's waddle to fourth straight win" I can see it now!
First thought it stirs is - Is the Metroscum fan trying to make our team worse? Second is - How many of those guys will play for $30,000 a year and perhaps a free Budweiser or two...
I'd say bring in Ravanelli and Chippo. The others are pretty ordinary; either English type of forwards (big, strong, good in air but no ball skills) or washed up int'ls (Witsche). What about Sebastian 'Loco' Abreu ? He's formerly of San Lorenzo, Deportivo La Coruna, UAG, Cruz Azul and now Nacional (Uruguay). This guy is a tall lanky, target type of forward but with amazing individual skill and very good finisher. Think of him like a poor man's Viduka or Vieri. He was with Cruz Azul last season before they fired their entire team and re-offered performance-based contracts. He went on loan to Nacional instead of coming back.
He played great in the Copa Libertadores. He makes things happen in front of the goal mouth. Would be a great fit....
Originally posted by JRedknapp11 Just thought I would toss out some names that we could toss around...seems to me there is a lot of options out there for Ray and company. Here's a few guys that would seem like a nice fit in a Utd kit... : Chris Armstrong - F England.. not on anyone's roster at the time, played for Spurs, Bolton,Palace There's a reason for that. He couldn't score in whorehouse with a fistfull of $50's Dele Adebola - F Nigeria... Brmt-City, Palace..also I'm thinking this might b the boy Ray is lookin' at You might right on this one, but if there is any kind of transfer fee involved it's too rich for our blood. Richard Witschge -F Holland...Ajax veteran is available on a free,only33 and can still play verywell This wouldn't be a bad pickup. Only 33 translates as "my god he's 33" but he keeps himself fit and could beplaying at 40 ala Preki. Keith Gillespe LW/F -N Ire- Released by Blackburn..once came over to the MLS on a tryout As with everyone on your list do we even have a spot for an SI left on our roster? Unless Hristo gets a green card tomorrow this ain't happening. Fabrizio Ravenelli -- hey the White Dove is available on a free..be lovely to see him play a few years Actually the White Feather. He hasn't produced since he left Middlesboro and that's not saying much. He would fit in with our no scoring forwards. Branko Stupar F- Belg. -- Veteran may want to join friends Powell and Kinkladze.. leathal finisher Not a bad choice. He did score some great goals, but has a serious injury bug. Also no SI spot. Junior Agogo F - Eng./Ghana ... Peterborough walked away after financial problems at the club..why not ask him back to the MLS. You're kidding right. The only reason for him to come back is to continue his quest of being on the roster of every MLS team. He can't score, but a big lad. Youseef Chipo F- Morocoo ... Former Coventry striker wants out of Middle Eastern league IF only it was his countryman Hadji who wanted out. . . Giles De Bilde F- Belg. available on the cheap from Anderlecht who want to free up space by unloading the former Premiership sniper Wouldn't be a bad choice either. If I remember him correctly some good speed but needs a lot of chances to score. Also no SI spot. Andreas Herzog M-Austrian... Austrian midfielding legend is available on a free...he's a bit older then you'd like but the boy still has tons of skill and is fit as a fiddle..could replace Marco for 2/3 years.[b/] Again not a bad choice, but why delay the inevitable of Convey playing in the middle. If he can play d-mid then maybe. Chris Llewellyn M/F-Welsh...Norwich fan favorite is transfered listed ..could be purchased on the cheap..has good pace and a strong leg. If we only had a Welshman on the team. . . We can't afford a transfer fee that's more than a used set of tires or Punky. Unfortunately by the time any of these guys are available (remember their contract usually go to July 1st when the euro window opens up so we're aren't getting someone before that) it will be way too late. No one, outside of Jaime Moreno, has joined a team midway through the season and made an impact.
I've heard that the Fire might sign another SI which means that Rodgrigo Faria might be released. I'd love to see him in the red and black. But the question is, which SI do we sacrifice?
For those that want to fish, soccernet has a comprehensive list of folks in the EPL and on down through the leagues that are no longer in contract, thus available http://soccernet.espn.go.com/feature?id=268959&cc=5901 If we want to consider a international, there are a few that could be looked at. Hey, Paul Dalgleish is available! Surprise!
What a great list. Here are a few that stick out but will likely find a new club. Jesper Blomqvist Alen Boksic Steffen Freund Paolo di Canio Chukwunyeaka Eribenne (just a great name!!)
European guys are pricey and shopped through Why not check out Central American players. Ruiz, Guevera, Diaz-Arce, Cienfuegos, Reyes, etc etc........great players who may come cheap and hungry. Imagine another Diaz-Arce putting in garbage goals-what that would do to the team. We can create room by trading Stewart or Kovalenko. I don't think many here are gonna miss either one. And who's gonna cry if we drop any of 10 other guys on our team to create more room. Who's gonna miss Stoitchkov-we can bring in somebody else to coach the offense. Great moves can be done, and must be done, but this time it has to be done RIGHT.
Budwiser is correct about the bargain that the right Central American player can be. I think Guevara (sad to say as he's a Metro) may go down as the best foreign player acquisition of the year. However, it's unclear to me what happens with the allocation. For instance, if we trade Earnie Stewart, what comes off the cap (my understanding was that he counted as $125K on the cap this year b/c of the allocation).
What happened to Hudson's offseason trips to the Americas? What did he accomplish other than getting beach sand in his shoes? If he made connections and found prospects, now more than ever is the time to check 'em again.
Everyone other then the dutchman was playing for MLS type wages.... I really don't see anyone not being obtainable. You figure if Ray is going to pull the trigger on signing a new player, most likely it's going to involve trading away an SI from the squad...which wouldn't be too bad becuase you know you are going to get quality in return.