Keane says he can't be Becks http://www.irishcentral.com/sport/R...-him-becoming-the-next-Beckham-190008801.html
Unless something changes in the next two weeks, he's probably our starting captain. Very glad he was vice-captain last year, should be a smooth transition. Question is what happens to the armband when LD's back.
i struggle with this one too. part of me thinks that the longer LD sits out, the stronger the case becomes for Robbie to become our captain. at the same time, this core has been together for a couple of seasons. if the players are ok with LD missing part of the season voluntarily, then it probably wont be a big deal to come back and reclaim the arm band.
I think if Donovan is not back in the next week or so, it makes sense to make Keane the permanent captain.
The Captain's armband seemed pretty fluid last year between the two of them. Wonder what will happen this year. Both (theoretically) will miss games to qualifiers as well, so there will need to be a third (Dunivant?).
Todd was the captain last season when Donovan and Keane weren't around, so I would assume it's him... Unless Bruce gives it to Gonzilla as a way to try to trick him to stay with us --- "Oh captain, my captain!!"
Morrissey who attended LA Galaxy vs Club Tijuana speaks highly of his Relative Robbie Keane "He is a gentleman of the highest caliber (or, if you must, calibre), and to watch him on the pitch - pacing like a lion, as weightless as an astronaut, is pure therapy. Robbie, the pleasure, the privilege is mine" Source Mega tribute from Moz to Robbie Keane! Incredible! All the greats MUST be from Captains Road. Eh, @lyndsey_fay? http://t.co/AYZSSHZ4Ft— Eoin O'Callaghan (@EoinOCallaghan) February 21, 2013 Astonishing: *Morrissey* writes a tribute to his relative *Robbie Keane* after watching LA Galaxy. http://t.co/ad2Prl80GL (via @kenearlys)— Jack Pitt-Brooke (@JackPittBrooke) February 21, 2013
Great quote from Dunivant about Robbie Keane becoming captain: "He's a guy who easily leads by example and tends to use his mouth as well. ... Usually when he gets overly fired up, you tend to not understand a word he says, so you can kind of just nod and get away with it.”
MLS on track to be among the world’s best leagues, Robbie Keane says "Keane told Sporting News that it’s time to raise the number of DPs to five per team. They don’t have to necessarily be foreign players, he added, pointing out that Galaxy teammates like Omar Gonzalez or Mike Magee could “easily” be DPs." “In 10 years’ time, this league would be massive if you extend it to five players." SportingNews "Los Angeles Galaxy player Robbie Keane poses for a photograph during a game between the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center on February 28, 2013 in Los Angeles, California."
Poor Robbie. He has never had to work for the Krafts or Hunts. Even if the league expanded the DP rule to five players, does anyone think those guys would spend that kind of money? And one or two strong teams does not make a strong league.
Tell that to fans of La Liga The funny thing is the Krafts/Hunts are now the aberration. Most of the league has passionate, if not wholly competent, owners. I think the old guard influence of being content with low risk, no reward ownership is on the wane. Most teams have embraced the designated player, I’d say the top third of teams are chomping at the bit to add more.
Nah.... But I do think a few teams would sign players on contracts around $500k-$800k which would make a significant quality difference. Still in that case I prefer finding a way to double the cap so that max contracts are around $700k-$800k, and clubs wouldn't have to come out of pocket.
The best strategy would be whatever strategy boosts TV ratings the most and the quickest. TV contracts are where the real money is and so are what determine how big this league will grow. Assume every team suddenly were given an extra 2 mil to spend on payroll per season. Would adding another name player to each team or spreading the wealth around to increasing overall quality of play be most beneficial for long term TV ratings. I don't know. But I do know that TV dollars will ultimately be the engine behind the leagues growth. The hope is to start a vicious cycle - in a good way. Get ratings up a bit then the next round of TV deals are more lucrative by 10's of millions which provides more money for teams to spend on even better players, which leads to even more viewers tuning in, so the next TV contract ... Well, you get the picture.
Right now I'm at the point were I think we shouldn't add anymore DP's, maybe a more expansive young DP system, 3 + 2 young DP's. I'm more focused on what needs to happen so we can increase the cap. I like Keane's enthusiasm about the league but he should be lobbying his fellow players not the media. He's probably not in a good position to speak on the matter because he's a DP. When the next CBA negotiations come up the players have to come out on top, or should I say the fans. I'd like to see the cap take a $1m-$2m jump also with more progressive raises per season, like 10% If the cap doubled with how the MLS roster rules work the goal Garber set of being one of the world's top leagues would be obtainable shy heavy inflation with leagues outside of England the next 10 years. At that point max contracts would be around were 700K-800k the quality would undoubtedly increase. I've used this example before but I follow Italian football a club like Catania is a good well run club. They scout very well in South America, half their team was Argentinean at one stage. They play good creative entertaining football. They have players like Lodi who's one of the most underrated registas in the world. Catanias wage bill is around $11m, highest earners around $780k. The best part about the MLS is if the cap was doubled, every club would have the ability to compete financially with clubs in that situation, every single one. The cap only accounts for 20 players on the roster and you can still spend on DP's. Whether the money would be enough to attract them is another story. The average MLS side could with a bit of investment could absorb mid-table clubs in leagues outside of England, and do it without fear of debt or have to scrape up the money like Spain. Some would argue that the depth of American talent doesn't justify the higher salaries. There's still restrictive rules on internationals, so it would lead to American players earning more than some are worth (not all). Still that would be temporary, with the academies taking off the pool of talent will increase, our prospects for keeping talent will improve as well. I really don't think the goal Garber set of being a top league in the world by 2022 is unrealistic. By 2022 we could definitely be Top 5 which I would consider a top league. The cap will be $2.95m in 2013, so call it $3m, also $368k max contracts. If we can get up to $6m in 5-ish years we'd be in good shape. The fact every club would have that free to spend and the ability to buy DP's would give us balance, on that alone we'd be better than many leagues were two clubs dominate. It's going to be very interesting what happens at the end of next season with the new CBA, hopefully a push towards becoming a top 5 league.
Considering the demographic of MLS viewers TV might be a lost cause. I’m probably on the older end of the spectrum, but I watched all of two matches on television last season, everything else was online.
Good point. I'm signed up for MLS Live though, maybe that will take off if it's a good enough service for the price.
Keane named Galaxy captain http://www.independent.ie/sport/soccer/robbie-keane-named-new-la-galaxy-captain-29103201.html http://sportsnewsireland.com/soccer/soccer_irish/robbie-keane-named-la-galaxy-captain-2013-03-01/