http://www.wusa.com/press_room/338831.html "I think the biggest thing is to become more versatile," Mitts said. "I have been going into these camps and playing on the right side. A lot of the defenders they have coming in play two positions – on the center and outside. (Charge head coach) Mark (Krikorian) has been talking about moving me into the center." HMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm Thoughts, good idea, bad idea, who knows?
At this moment, I'd leave her on the outside. A starting central defender was a need that could have been (was?) addressed during the draft. I understand the point about needing to be versatile, so I'd use parts of pre-season games to give her a look in the middle and see how things go. If it she plays well and there isn't a loss of quality with whoever takes over on the right, then go for it.
kraus is more a side defender and benson is more a man marker so mitts would be the most logical if you would move someone...i just wonder if her service abilities from the backfield would be lost here...id try mcveigh or kraus first.
Playing central defense requires less skill than playing outside. And you work in tandem with the other defender, not to mention the GK. I wouldn't delve too much into what Ape had to tell Heather. Ape should have just come out saying that her friends have jobs for life.
My impression is that Heather's more mobile than Kraus. I'd leave Heather outside & bring Kraus inside.
duh! ape sucks, and is why the US will NOT win the WWC...if we didnt need him here id say kirk for USWNT coach
...if she makes the team that is i agree there is no shortage of replacing mitts at right back...fair, alfilier, kraus...the question is is mitts the best answer at central defense...only training camp would tell i guess.
nahh that cant be it, dirtball loves players like mitts, thin tall, blonde good legs, if dirtball ran the show mitts would start every USWNT game with legs like hers unless she shot down the dirty rotten loser, good for her in that case but doesnt help your wnt chances
OK, my projected 16 Benson FAir Mitts Monroe Moore Pichon Smith Tietjen Tullock thats 9 Zhao or an other foreign player Scasna Kraus Makinen Solo Arrington Misaki +2 McVeigh and Alfiler very tight roster squeeze, although Misaki and McVeigh might be switched, and does Alfiler want to play again. Being very flexible in roles you can fullfill gives you a roster edge. The Mitts in the middle idea, might be as the 3rd central defender?
yes...anson indeed who else would it be hehe as for the team...there is some debate that they rosters will not contract to 16+2 but who knows that looks like a good roster but are you implying fair at right back? lineup wise...where does kraus fit best...id rather NOT have monroe as the main dmid but with the roster squeeze i dont want misaki as a reserve either...phew things are tight. mitts at CD i think cuts down her effectiveness in the forward rush, otherwise id give it a try...i do think kraus is more a wing defender not a central defender.
I want Mitts and Benson to play outside. They have proven ability to get forward and contribute overlapping, plus you don't want to play people in their 2nd best places. Only as a back-up would Mitts be considered a central defender. If Zhao is gone, I still maintain, the Iverson replacement would be an INTERNATIONAL defender. People cry about the draft, but i'd take the 16+2 roster and match it up against the rest of the league.
Crying is my generic term for those who want to find fault. Look hard enough at anything and you'll find a flaw. Was the draft what we expected. No. But Chargefans told us to expect the unexpected. So, think outside the box... Most people still live in caves, and when the select few who've been outside the cave return, all those in the cave think the stories to be wild fantasy.. hey, even cachundo knows what I'm referencing. And Mary McVeigh knows the entire verse.
It would almost have to be. HAVE to be a defender, since the offensive side of the ball is taken care of. Paul
I realize that this has been brought up on other threads, but it was brought up again here so... At what point did Makinen stop being Finnish. I bring this up, because I just looked at the Freedom roster. Either Makinen was one of their four internationals, or Washington played last season with only three. I think the trade for Makinen means Zhao will not be with the team this season. Back to this thread... Shifting Mitts to the center sounds like a reasonable move. As to who is better on the outside, Mitts or Kraus, is irrelevant. Defense is about chemestry. How Kraus will fit in is unknown. Mitts has played two seasons on this line, and Krikorian has a sense on how she will work in the middle. Personally, I think McViegh was drafted to fill the central defender spot. I also know that Krikorian prefers to let the rookies get their feet wet before he puts too much pressure on them. Long story short. I think Mitts starts the season in the middle and ends up back outside by seasons end. Dwight
she can play in the middle of me i gotta agree with adam here, mitts and benson both play well on the outside and add to the attack with their over-lapping runs...from the middle that would be non-existant from mitts.
FYI-Anne Mak didn't receive her green card until the post-season... there's an article about it on the Freedom's web site- nice one, about how Katy Button helped with the process- gives some insight into Anne. So, last year Anne was considered a Foreign Player- this year, not.
Another point, we need to recollect how Iverson was acquired, off another teams roster. So, let's see what happens with the waiver draft, and see if anyone else is acquired. My other point, is Zhao or not to Zhao, that's the question. If not, do we go defender or another wing player. Losing Zhao affect the wide game, I don't see any other mid who even remotely approaches what Zhao offers on the roster. In the grand scheme, I'd rather have Zhao, and work around who partners Tietjen, than live without Zhao. Finally, Sundahage was in charge of the defense, and this year the task is Markovski/Pollard/Krikorian?? With Sundhage, you know McVeigh would have a great mentor. Now, we really don't know for sure. But all teams have at least one weakness, it's all about exploiting your strengths to overcome whatever faults you may have.