Don't we need some offense?

Seconded. Last year the team was one decent striker from making the playoffs, as bad as we were. And decent is just an 8 or 9 goal per season type of player. If we can possibly get Tyson Nunez, we have at least 15 goals more, and that turns this team into a potential conference winner, even with McKinley starting in midfield.

 

We need a defender and a striker. If I had to chose one from the other, I would chose Defender.

I think we should use the allocation to get a striker, but get something here in the US to add to our definsive depth.

 

Dmid is now as big a need as Forward

Well we did need offense, now we need offense and defense. While Pope may be replacable, he was able to add a big target in the box far better than any other defender we had--including Nelsen. Petke cannot really replace this, despite being two inches taller. And, very few defenders are as good defensively as Pope is, thus defensively we're going to have more breakdowns. I'm not dissing the trade, just stating that we lost some defending and some offensive aerial prowess in that trade.

But even more problematic for United is losing Richie Williams (whom I saw in Fairfax yesterday btw), because like him or not, he was an excellent Dmid. He destroys a lot of offensive opportunities way before they become noticable to most fans. So, they think our back line is great and fail to give Richie the credit he deserves defensively. Thus far we have not filled that void, and when Carey Talley manned that spot in 2001, well, I think we all saw how exposed a back line can look without a quality Dmid. Make no mistake, Dema can not man that spot. United's biggest hole now actually becomes Dmid.

So yeah, we definitely need some firepower, but now we also need a Dmid. While we do have some cap space, we now actually have more holes to fill with it as well, so we don't have as much money as most think to pursue new offensive power.

-Tron

 

I concur, Tron. I feel ok about it right now because, if Ray holds true to his position last August, the player behind Etch is his first priority.

And I'm not really buying into Reyes and Convey behind Etch, though it might be worth a try in Reyes' case. But there is no other player in the league that gives you 90 minutes of speed threat from the back line, like Milton. I hope we use him offensively more often this year (are you following this, Etch?).

GM

 

Hello; its me again. Don't forget that Santino was a big part of that "Donkey Poop Offense". Let's not be dreaming of teaming up with him since our new "soon to be named, larger than life" striker just might end up slipping on whatever residue ends up on the field!

 

i am gonna have to jump on the dmid bandwagon myself. unless we can get someone who can not only win balls and disrupt the opponent, but also control large portions of space and bea able move into the attack. while williams was at one time a good ball winner and did a nice job in disrupting runs, we couldn't really control the space in the midfield and he was a liability on offense. we improved at the end of the season in part because ray stuck ivan back there to try and create some kind of service and attack out of the back.

i absolutely agree our forwards sucked last year but our service was pretty damn nasty too. too much dancing around the 18 line and moving side to side in front of the box.

 

Didn't Santino miss a large chunk of last season due to injury. And when he was healthy early in the season, Moreno wasn't fit (he was teamed up with ATC). A big part of last year's problem was the lack of personnel (having to play Thompson-Conteh, Curtis, Lassiter, Quintanilla and Zambrano because Moreno and Quaranta were not playing). With Moreno off the roster, last year's offensive problems have only grown worse.

 

CHIVAS' continous knocking of SANTINO's play last year is beginning to upset me. I don't know what season you were watching last year, but Tino missed 14 games due to a hernia that required surgery, and despite that FACT he still remained the team's leading goal scorer and assits leader until the last week of the season.

GET A CLUE!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Easy. Everyone wants Tino to succeed, and we all know he has the potential to be a great player. Yes, Tino had the best individual numbers among a terrible offensive squad: that's not all that impressive. Yes, there were many things that affected his production, and others', beyond his control: no service, injury, etc.

I hope Q1 has a break out year, but I'm not willing to bet that it happens. He's coming off a bad injury: remember that Convey indicated it wasn't until late in the 2002 season that he felt comfortable ripping into the ball because of his own hernia from a year earlier. Tino loses focus and disappears for stretches of the game, a fault common in players his age, and older. Although he is creative on the ball, he doesn't necessarily create chances for others. Indeed, sometimes he seems to simply wait for service rather than pushing an attack that would set up another player. Therefore, pairing him with a pure striker isn't necessarily going to drive his own numbers up. Considering his height, it's strange that he displays so little of an aerial game.

None of these are killer problems, but United has been relying on this kid to carry the offensive torch, and, frankly, he's not there yet.

Having said all that, clearly, he has much to contribute. With better service (Convey, Olsen, Kovalenko), he'll get his chances. He needs to keep his head in the game for the full ninety, working to stretch the defense and push his way into the box. He can be a very dangerous player when he wants, and we need him to be dangerous for longer stretches.

 

i think the expectation is that he has to produce next season. he will be a third-year pro, stronger with a better understanding of the game. if we can get a solid guy to partner with him up front the expectation should be that Santino plays consistently and steadily for us. i think the team's offseason moves also show some confidence that Santino can step up and be a solid, everyday MLS forward. He doesn't have to set the world on fire, but he needs to show consistent play up front, an improved workrate and learn to pass and read plays a bit better.

i expect that he will improve steadily through the course of the season and be a force by the playoffs.

 

I agree with the assesment that RW is a good Dmid, but his faults (and what apparently drives Ray crazy) is when he turns the play to offense. He generally just turns the ball over or makes a not quite so decisive pass.....more often than not, giving the ball only to Etch or the defense.

Ray would like to upgrade RW with someone with some offensive ability.

 

Why can't Kovalenko play holding mid or d-mid? He is evil, intense, and fiery which is why Ray traded for him. Kovalenko can be a destroyer and then has the skills and orientation to properly restart an attack, as opposed to Back-Pass Williams. I don't like Kovalenko because he strikes me as a hothead who would injure his own teammate in a practice session (a la Beasley in the all-star game), but I think Ray likes the intensity, and that is the attitude one needs to play a central defensive position in midfield. Any thoughts?

 

Re: Dmid is now as big a need as Forward

Part of the reason Richie is gone is the switch to a 352. Kovalenko and ________ may be able to replace what Richie did alone in the 442, and add more offensive ability as well. It all depends on who fills that blank. Could McKinley make a good partner for Kovalenko? They have a couple complimentary attributes (Kovalenko is the fast one, McKinley is the one to win the headers, etc.) and the combination of McKinley's 30-40 yd. passing ability with Dema's darting forward from deep could (emphasis on that...could) be trouble for other teams. The one most obvious drawback is the sheer volume of fouls we'd give up.

All that said, we do have to pursue someone to be the non-glamour midfielder. Etcheverry, Convey, Olsen, and Kovalenko will get the points...we need the guy who will have coaches tearing their hair out. I don't think McKinley is that man...maybe he can be a stopgap when that player is out, but not as a starter.

I still think our primary need is a forward, though. Yes, as of right now the team's strong point is weakened, but not as much as it might seem. Reyes-Nelsen-Petke would be welcomed as a backline almost anywhere in the league, and we have Prideaux too. We need depth in defense, but we need a starting, best-on-the-team level striker. MLS success does not mandate an iron curtain for a backline (Heaps at NE, Denton in Columbus, Marshall at LA...), but it does demand either one dominant striker or a rotation of guys that can get 8-10 goals each. We currently have one player that might fit the second template (Quaranta), and Eskandarian won't add to that number. So, we should be looking to follow the lead of LA or the Revs and pursue a striker that can get us over 15 goals on his own. Nunez can do this, I doubt any of us knows enough on Kucharsky to say either way what he would do.

As has been said plenty of times by other posters, whatever move happens first will dictate the rest. If we can get an all-star quality defensive midfielder then I would expect trades for equal salary players to bring in a couple other strikers at the Dante Washington level. Nothing wrong with that. If we get Nunez, though, I doubt we can pursue anyone making more than $75K if we want to have room for draft picks.

 

Any 3-5-2 alignment that has Marco and Ivan in two of the three central midfield slots will have many problems -- on offense and defense. I doubt that any midfielder could make up for their deficiencies. Marco plays no defense and has becoming increasingly static on offense -- waiting and waiting for the ideal long pass. Ivan is remarkably slow and his offensive game, too, consistents mainly of looking for the long pass forward.

If you replaced Marco with someone who was closer to a two-way player and replaced Ivan with Dema, you might be able to find another midfielder who could help the team. He no longer would have to be Superman.

Who knows why Ray turned on Richie, but I would have said that the biggest flaw in Richie's game over the past three years was his general lack of pace and quickness. Midfielders were forever blowing by him and he found himself chasing them down the field. Richie was never much of an offensive threat, but, in his prime, he could be counted on to neutralize someone in the opposing midfield. That has not been true recently. Of course, it didn't help Richie that Marco's commitment to defense decreased dramatically. There were that many more midfielders headed Richie's way.

Improving DC's scoring needs to go beyond finding another forward. DC needs to be able to push more players forward and to retain the ball longer. Too often last year DC forwards were on their own with no real support from midfield. Again, Superman may be able to score by himself, but the average forward needs some support. Again, part of the solution is replacing Marco and Ivan with players who have both defensive and offensive abilities.

Another part is installing a consistent teamwide approach to offense. Last year, Marco and Jaime were of the hold the ball and look for the killer pass school. Ben and Bobby were more the one-touch and let's go forward school. Marco thought every attack needed to go through him. The younger guys seemed more comfortable attacking from anywhere. Somehow everyone needs to be on the same page.

A worrying aspect of this situation is last year the defense improved because Ray was willing to sacrifice offense in the interest of keeping balls out of the net. With Pope gone, DC's defense will be somewhat less talented. Will Ray be willing to push more players forward and risk giving up goals? Seems out of character. And, if Marco and Ivan are in the mid-field, the third midfielder has to be devoted almost entirely to defense. That leaves the two forwards as the only full-fledged attacking players, since the outside midfielders have important defense responsibilities in a 3-5-2. Ben and Bobbie can go forward well, but they will be responsible for the other team's wing players as well.

 

Re: Re: Dmid is now as big a need as Forward

kucharsky's stats for the world cup and polish first division play are right here. i am also trying to get a summary of his play in warsaw from my cousin who is a big soccer fan and who lives right outside of warsaw. from what i have been told and seen poland is not the richest country (i have been there 6 times because of my heritage) and therefore hopefully kucharsky would not be very expensive

 

you can tell how much sleep i have gotten here are the links:http://www.soccerage.com/en/04/07004.html
http://www.soccerage.com/en/04/07004.html

 

one more thing how about earnie where could he go, up front with Quaranta in the center replacing etch there are a lot of possibilities if he comes