So what you're saying is that because he was probably expecting to be benched, the Wizards best action would have been to say, "Surprise!!! You're playing!" ??? Yeah, that really sends the right message.
What message are you sending by giving them the week off anyway? There already was a double standard and Eddie and the rest of the team knew it. The whole hour and a half thing to me is what does it. I honestly didn't know it was that late at first. If he had shown up in the morning or on Friday he comes off the bench for me. He wouldn't have been ready to play so I make that decision for the field as much as for the locker room. I've known enough athletes - especially the not showing up to practice, not calling your team, thinking your hot **** athletes that I deal with in basketball (many of whom are playing in leagues beneath their perceived talent level) to know he and the team didn't learn a damn thing last night. Believe me or not. Can you explain how sitting someone from a game is punishment at all to the player?
What double-standard? Giving the guys the option of a week off after coming in from the biggest sporting event in their lives that was no doubt both physically and emotionally draining? That's not a double standard by any definition of the term. Do I agree with doing it? No... but that certainly doesn't excuse Eddie from taking two extra days. I agree somewhat. But the point remains that he didn't. So again: No way does Eddie play last night. I saw the looks on the other players' faces in the locker room last night. Letting Eddie play (even coming off the bench) would have been the worst idea possible for team chemistry. Believe me or not.
You're kidding right? We've already gone over this. Eddie came in acting like he was going to play - I still think he was expecting to play. I guarantee he wanted to play (maybe not more than whatever he was doing that kept him from getting in town in time, but he definitely wanted to play). So you sit him. He doesn't get what he wants/expects. He doesn't get a confirmation of his apparent self-impression that he's above everybody else on the roster (whether he actually is or not). Simple as that.
On a different note, did anyone go to watch the Reserve Game today? I'm curious to know if Johnson really played with the Reserves......and if so, how did he do.
I believe the players were mad at Eddie, but in the context that it added to them losing to the worst team in the league at home. I wonder if team chemistry might have been better served with a win tonight, a sincere apology, and team Rolexes taken from Eddie's fine.
I would also assume that Eddie is embarrassed about the suspension. He's a guy who seems to like the spotlight on him, and now it is for somehting negative. All of his peers on the USNT know, even if the press coverage in the US means that not much of the public does.
That's the common logic. One that I hardly see played out for real in star athlete's minds. They're much more pragmatic about their situations. The only thing I'm guessing that got validated in Eddie's mind was this team needs him more than he needs them. He knows he screwed up, but I doubt his teammates scorn is going to teach him a lesson. He knows he can walk into any team in the league if it doesn't work out here, and still make his 800k. Hell he probably is already planning on where he's going to be next season. What it usually ends up doing is further distancing the star from the rest of the team. Josh's negative publicity did this, and I'm guessing this will have the same callousing effect on Eddie towards KC in the end. It's his own fault, but these benchings rarely if ever seem to help a team in the long run. Eddie, from all reports though, seems like a genuinely nice kid. Maybe he'll handle it right. Most players who would've made this decision in the first place don't.
Every player in KC put in as much work and training as the guys at the World Cup. A full week is excessive, and tells the players they are above the team by giving them a choice to play or not play. That tells them, "you tell us when you feel ready to do the job all these other guys do." It should've been plainly stated, be back for Wednesday because our games are important and we pay you a ****ton of money. There's also a double standard that says EJ is worth 10 times what you are. That seems to hit home more than anything else.
He already got the impression that he was above the roster before he came here. EJ is a paid professional. This is work to him. Yes he enjoys it, but resting probably isn't so bad either. It's just a MLS regular season game. There's plenty more, so what. He's much more pissed about the coming fine probably. Punish him by making him do stuff he doesn't want to do. You shouldn't have to lose more productivity because of it. Make him run hills for an extra hour every day after practice and he might not do it again. I just think you're overrating the impact that missing a relatively meaningless game has on a professional - especially if he's still getting paid well. I doubt he cares in the way or to the degree you think he does.
So punish him on top of last night (which they're going to do). Still, no way he's playing last night. Not for me. And not for any coach I know.
And I think you and most coaches are a little idealistic about how the top paid athletes view their job and what additional message gets sent by deactivating a guy over taking away a start. I do agree that an hour and a half is just too late. Bob probably didn't have a choice in this case, but I'm sure his reasoning was the same as yours. He didn't deserve to play, and so you're punishing him by not letting him. Sometimes yes. Most times no. Hopefully EJ is the type that does think it matters, because we paid a price for it. Most athletes we represent who are on a similar level of compensation to EJ (relative to their league) would not get this message at all.
KC wins Reserve game 2-0 - Yura scored both goals - EJ started http://kc.wizards.mlsnet.com/MLS/ne...ntent_id=64478&vkey=pr_kcw&fext=.jsp&team=kcw
Since I'm a fan, and not a coach, manager or someone within the organization who has ANY opinion WHATSOEVER; I want to win. Thus, I want all of our best players on the field. Punish or fine him, whatever, but we need to get the freaking result. What do I care if he missed practice? They're all professional athletes. They wanna win too. I've never believed in that whole "he's setting a bad example for younger players" or "he's hurting the dynamic in the locker room." They're grown-ass men . Play him. Especially, when the biggest ego in the league is suiting up for the other team.
It's an interesting argument on whether sitting EJ last night punished him or at least made the point about what is expected from him, or if it punished the team. One point I haven't seen is how well you could honestly expect EJ to play with a group of guys he has not spent one minute with the past two months (ok, except for Wolff). It's not like EJ was tearing it up for KC before he left for the WC, so it seems far from a foregone conclusion that if he had played he would have made a difference. Just a thought.... Thanks for the link on the Reserve game, so EJ played for about 60 minutes. Would love to hear an eyewitness report from anyone who saw the game, as to what his attitude was and whether he looked good on the field.
Sure, but at least he has ownership in the loss and he can still take the blame either way. He can see that his poor preparation led to failure on the field. Right now, the message is, we aren't talented enough to beat a team with 2 wins at home without EJ. If your team wins, it's an okay gamble because you don't piss off whatever scrub on the bench that would've lost their spot, but we looked inept last night. EJ is an automatic starter for us. By bringing him off the bench you have punished him in the eyes of his teammates, but not punished the team by not having your best players available to do their job...assuming he's on time on gameday. I don't want to extend this debate too far because an hour and a half is just stupid.
Eddie not showing up also shows a lack of respect for the organization and more importantly his coaches. Call it an ego thing if you want (it probably is), but that definitely plays into a coach's decision there.
Sure. I absolutely agree. It's a slap in the face. I can see why someone would want to bench him entirely, just don't think it's an effective solution.
Wizards Respond to Johnson's Absence GM: Striker's absence is "unacceptable" http://kc.matchnight.com/kcdefault.cfm?page=ARTICLE&show=19389
This inevitably brings us back to the playoff format and single table argument: "We can suck and still make the playoffs in this system; the regular season games barely even matter because there is no relegation." I don't know the answer to this problem, but the league isn't big enough to consider relegation options. Far from it. Those of you who are baseball fans are probably not as worked up about this. Pitchers have to sit out a huge number of games just waiting for their slot in the rotation, and the sheer number of games makes a single game nearly meaningless. No doubt the players make more of an effort toward the end of the season when it's obvious what you have to accompish to make it into the pennant race. ...And there's the fact that EJ will always be EJ the kid. Lots of talent, and no common sense.
You may be right. After all, the yellow and red card rules force players to miss games all the time, and injuries do the same thing. So do call-ups, and so on. I live in Dallas, and know that Charles Haley only practiced one day a week during one of their championship years, ostensibly because of his back problem. Question is, if it was really that bad, how did the doctors clear him to play week after week? Because Jimmy Johnson was notorious for playing favorites. What Eddie needs is a rapport with his coach, and I wonder if Gansler has done anything to create that. Brian Haynes was his mentor in Dallas, and probably the only reason that Eddie ever became productive. Is Gansler prepared to really look after this kid? Many coaches wouldn't have the patience it's going to take.
The best answer? Talk to him. Explain you're going to have to fine him, and get him a damn mentor to help him grow up. He's just a kid in grown up clothes.