Rumor on Bergin's sight is that the Crew will sign Polish International Marek Kozminski - to be announced tomorrow. Listed as a defender - but plays left midfield. Here is a link on the player: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport3/worldcup2002/hi/team_pages/poland/squad/newsid_1958000/1958613.stm
i hope to god this is wrong...please let this be wrong. Why would we want, or need a 31 year old? i think we should stay out of Poland. Warzycha was ok, but he aged and thankfully retired. Then, there was the other mistake we signed.
I heard its going to be a 2 year deal. Kozminski is very good and will help Crew. He was playing in Greece in PAOK and before then in Seria A and was on Polish World Cup Squad. Solid addition Columbus. Warzycha is the mastermind behind this move.
God those words frighten me. I'm not sure what the motivation is behind this move. Perhaps to bring in some grizzled leadership? Perhaps to make team communication more challenging? The major concern that I have is roster space. Where does this guy fit on the roster and who is going to get dumped to make room? We currently have 22 full roster players according to the Crew website, 2 of which are SI's and 1 a TI. We also have 2 P-40 players. Of course this does not include the imminent announcement of the FH deal being closed. So we're talking about dropping 6 people to make room for an 18 player roster? I would guess that it'll be hard for the last 3 draft picks to remain on the team, but who else? Torres? Matteo? Dante?
The last referral was a nightmare. I can't remember his name, but he was a central defender that would have barely made a good men's open team in the local leagues. Perhaps, Zeppa? He quickly became Zippo.
Ever team has 24 spots. 18 senior sroster (US O-24s, SIs, TIs) 6 developmental players (P-40s, JIs, and US U-23). Right now, the Crew have 18 senior roster players signed(15 US, 2 SI, 1TI). 19 when Hejduk is finalized. Dante is not signed and is not coming back. The Crew only have one P-40, Nelson Akwari. Lucci Gonzalez is not a P-40 and never was. Although he fits the age for a developmental player he has a bigger contract than what a developmental contract offers. All the players the Crew drafted this year, except Walsh, are U-23 and can be offered developmental contracts. So Mike Ritch, Guy Abrahamson, Jake Traeger, can join Jeff Matteo and Akwari on the develomental roster, if they sign developmental contracts.(5 of 6 dev players) To add Kozminski would put the Crew at 20 senior roster player and the last SI spot. This would push the Crew to cut two players on the roster, probably coming from some combination of West, Torres, Leitch, even Gonzalez if he doesn't show anything in camp. They may opt to trade two players to get another P-40 from someone or a U-23 development player and a draft pick. I pick these players because I don't see Andrulis getting rid of anyone else. Clark and Mais are untouchables to Greg for some reason, although they won't contribute much except for leadership this year. I thought McCarty might be in some trouble before this latest stint with the US NAT team. However, all this speculation has come from two sentences in the Breaking Rumor Thread on ussocceruk.com. No stories from any newspaper to back it up, as with the Hejduk rumor. Just someone saying they heard from some one, who heard from someone.
Kozminski would be top 3 player on the Crew. Dont under estimate him becasue of age, hes very telented. Polish coach said he would like to still call up "Koza" (his nickname hehe) but wont if he signs in the "Retirement League" (MLS). He would help you guys alot and from what i hear on Polish sites/tv is that Warzycha has alot of say in the Crew's coaching staff.
I don't see where he fits. If he replaces Torres it might add some near term experience, but at 32 (July) he's not a long term help. If he's that good though, let's take a look.
Warzycha, when he entered the field (the last 2 years), frightened me. Warzycha, the talent scout, doesn't scare me. I don't think he has messed up yet. I thought that Rzepa was a Fitz/Andrulis brainstorm; I could be wrong. This is still very surprising. The Crew can ALWAYS use a left sided player, either in the back or in the midfield, especially someone with the resume of Kozminski.
I have now read two posts in this thread saying, essentially, that Bob Warczyca got old so we should never sign Poles. Edson Buddle will get old some day. Should we cut his lousy ass now? How about Martino? McBride is 30 for God's sake. He could go ahead and get old AT ANY MINUTE. So Rzepa (or whatever) didn't work out. Does that mean Polish players stink? Warczyca was a terrific player for the Crew. Yes, he got older, and now he doesn't play any more. If Andrulis thinks this guy can help our defense, great. Let's see. If he doesn't work out, we send himpacking. Big freakin deal. In the meantime, could some of you take a pill please?
I'm not worried about his age. Look what Stuart Pearce did for Man City. I'll give anyone the benefit of the doubt until they prove otherwise. Let's face it. We can use any player of International caliber. Especially at defense.
MLS is not the retirement league. obviously, someone's sore they have to play cincinnatti and portland. fuk off. MLS - Mathis, Beasley, Meola, Donovan, Rimando. Look for these guys in World Cup 2006. A-league? Might wanna get a second job. Maybe as a baseball player. That way, you can have a second office. Crew Stadium, opened 1999 Home Depot Stadium - opening summer 2003 Where's the a-league? Twit.
whoa, there. I'm pretty sure rhino meant that the Polish national team coach called MLS a retirement league.
You guys are acting as if 31 is the end for player's careers. Honestly, maybe this player at 31 is a much better player then JMM at 31. How old was Nowak when he came into the league? Donadoni? If he is able to fit into your salary cap structure, and be valuable on the field, get him.
he can, but personally i think it ain't gonna happen. besides, how the hell am i supposed to know who calls MLS the retirement league? Polish coach or some a-league rhino fan.
He has to play left back. Who in their right mind would move Freddy Garcia from the left side of midfield? This appears as if Andrulis is picking up an attack minded defender to make good runs into the attack, resulting in decent crosses. Not the hit or miss stuff Denton was serving up last year. If this is the case, maybe Smith/Andrulis are trying to bring the service in line with McBride's skills. And maybe they just said, "Hey, he's good, we'll take him." Service from Hedge-duck on the right and service from both Freddy and Kozminski on the left. Perez wouldn't have fit this system. Martino in the center for another angle of attack.
Until I see it signed, I do not believe it. But if this guy does have the goods, let him play. Rzepa was the worst player to ever wear a Crew uniform but there is a big difference from Polish Second division and Polish national team. These types of players are what the league should be looking for. Lifetime pros, lots of experience, but journeymen as they are considered foreigners in most leagues. No Lothar os Hernandez level salaries, probably people who can play at a high level but are tired of the spotlight. I typed Rzepa, pass the Maker's Mark.
By the way, could you link us straight to the rumor? I can't find a mention on it anywhere on the site.
Kozminski Rumor Last few posts on page 10 and on to page 11. CrewPen I think your right. If this is a fact, Andrulis is looking for a better LB to play in his 4-3-3 formation this year. Obviously Torres wasn't the answer and Denton is a good man marker with good speed, but he is kind of hit and miss with his crosses.
You guys may be missing the point here. CBus would be better served with a three man back line, allowing us to put five midfielders out there. That lets us play Hejduk up, with Clark or Dunseth behind him, and get Martino more time on the field. Maybe this guy can actually hold a mark without having to get help every other time down. Sure would be nice.