International Talent Watch

So how many Argentines do you want in the team? It would be nice if RSL spent some cash on 2 things this winter 1) a good solid replacement for Pope 2) use that DP slot and get a nice forward to replace Harris. I think we should go South American but the nice thing about SLC is that there are people from everywhere here (shh! That's a secret though)

 

I think if we could find ARG players like the ones we have now, it wouldn't hurt to add a few more to the team.

Gotta go with the talent regardless of where it comes from.
Maybe its time to hire Poqui Moqui as Dir of Player Personnel or atleast a scout????

 

I would hope that a player's nationality is one of the last considerations. RSL needs the best talent available no matter where it's from. But, the question is where to look first. I agree 100% that RSL should use their dp slot on a forward, barring some kind of spectacular opportunity for an attacking mid (like if say Riquelme wanted to come to MLS or something). I think RSL needs a forward who is really sort of a playmaking forward (i.e. a Shevchenko, Ibrahimovich, Ronaldo type. In MLS terms a Jaime Moreno, Angel, Cunningham style player, who controls the ball up top). I don't want a goalpoacher because RSL doesn't create enough good chances. A goalpoacher makes a good team great but doesn't help a bad team.

I think the first place to look is the rosters in the big European leagues. The top halves of these leagues really collect young creative players because it is very hard to predict the future with these guys. And in general, creative attacking players are the quickest to become unhappy with playing time. Traditionally these players get loaned or transfered to weaker teams after a few years, where they remain unhappy because even though they are playing they now are not winning. The DP rule now gives MLS teams a chance at some of these guys. RSL's connection with Real Madrid would be a logical place to start, and Spanish soccer overall likes the kind of player that RSL needs at the moment. The Serie A also likes this type so that would be the next place IMO.

Of course it might seem more realistic to find somebody in South America or in a lower Euro league. But here's the thing, those leagues do not go unnoticed by the big leagues. There is almost nobody that RSL could look at that the big Euro leagues haven't already scouted and evaluated. The fact is, those guys know talent better than RSL. Of course players fall through the cracks, and MLS has found a few great players that way. But until now that was their only chance since they couldn't pay the same as Europe. If you are playing the percentages, RSL is better off giving one of the players that a good Euro club thought had potential (and subsequently brought in to compete with a few other similar players, waiting to see who would win out before they have to pay big bucks, and keeping them from their opponents) than a player that those big clubs just didn't want. I think it's also very risky to try and beat the Euro leagues to the punch and offer a lot of money to a young player. Young players are just so unpredictable (which is why the big clubs buy so many of them). Going for a player who has spent some time competing for a spot at a very big club is the smartest thing to do because you have a lot more to assess them on. You can look at why they didn't make it and use that information in the decision, while with a young player you are taking a much bigger gamble since you have less info.

 

Mr Kamler took off before the crash of Ellinger

 

That is correct. I assume that the short time the Ellinger stayed with the team he was considered Dir of Players.

Hopefully with all the shake up with SCP and RSL, the FO might see it necessary to appoint a person Dir of Player Personnel

 

Who better than POPE...

 

Must be cautious, however. Remember, Facundo Erpen is Argentine too (thanks again Facundo for losing track of Findley on Saturday ).