What, Andy Williams is not good enough? With a middle-level salary slot open, Sakiewicz said he is looking to obtain "a major central attacking midfield player" to roam behind forwards Clint Mathis and Jaime Moreno. "I got three calls from Europe today," Sakiewicz said yesterday. "Clubs are willing to work with us, whether it's a loan deal, a partial loan or no transfer fee. The prices are reasonable. It's a good time to buy." http://www.nj.com/sports/ledger/index.ssf?/base/sports-0/1043134402241270.xml
I really will miss Williams dribbling through four opposition players, putting his head down, and promptly losing the ball instead of distributing it.... Well, thanks to Bradley and the draft and this new allocations, everything smells nice and rosey, everything is coming up roses.
One is where WE pay his salary or some of it. The other, the OTHER team pays for his salary and we just get him for free.
This "Andy Williams rules/ sucks" debate has been going on all through out the off-season. For some reason, no one had anything bad to say during the 2002 season. Lets look at why: There's alot more numbers here: http://www.metrostars.com/yourteam/andy_williams.htm
Re: Re: Nick looking for central attacking midfield Amazing how some people only remember what they want to.
Re: Re: Re: Nick looking for central attacking midfield Yes, I remember Williams disappearing for the end of July to the final match of the season with barely a peep from those ever so talented feet....... Williams is like ferris wheel, he's bright and shiny and a terriffic trip, but in the end, you get off right where you get on.....is anything really accomplished? He made Clint look like a workhorse out there at times last season. I know everyone likes to remember how he chased down a ball at least once a match and how he constantly was chipping the ball into the eighteen with no one around to finish, but was Andy "second hand assist" Williams ever a game breaker? I'm sure whoever Bradley brings in will be someone with promise and talent and is a comsumate professional.
So let's debunk this now shall we: 15 Assists- we have already seen posted on this board Ad Nausem, that almost 13 of those were secondary. What that means is that he was the guy that passed to the guy that passed to the guy that scored. By that logic I have 2 assists last season as I threw back a ball from the stands to Howard who kicked a goal kick to Diallo and he scored. Fouls Suffered- can mean he was holding the ball too long and tried to dribble through multiple players on too many occasions. Andy Williams holding the ball too long? Surely you jest. People were complaining about him last year, just that there was so much else wrong that he flew under the radar. Now that we are fixing this team, and most of the other shite has been let go, he is next.
Really, I was expecting my relatives in Ireland to call me but they must have dialled the wrong number (201 as opposed to 203 in CT !)
If Andy Williams had ever learned to play the early ball, I'd imagine Bradley would be keeping him around. But MLS "assists" or not, there's no way he's going to be sticking around the Metros. If you like him, hold on to your memories.
For the record, Williams was tied for second in the league with 8 primary assists and tied for second in the league with 7 secondary assists last season. He was also the second most fouled player in the league with 86, right up there with Twellman and Beasley. Salary cap issues aside, any player should be replaced if that replacement is an upgrade. In the case of Williams this may not be as easy as some are suggesting.
Honestly, all Guppy jokes aside, you don't think that there are better players in this league then Andy Williams? Why are no other teams pouncing on him then?
Sure there's better players than Williams but it isn't as though he's useless the way some posters make him out to be. When you're getting fouled as much as Twellman and Beasley, two pretty good players, it shows defenses respect what you can do with the ball. Like I said, if the Metro can upgrade they should, but it isn't going to be as easy as some people think.
No one is saying he is useless. But at the price he costs the team, he is useless. They get fouled because they are in dangerous positions with the ball. Williams gets fouled because he holds the ball forever. I think we'll know soon enough just how "done" this is already.
You could easily draw the conclusion a primary attacking mid is useless or easily replaced if 13 of his 15 assists were secondary. But we know that simply because a "fact" is stated on this board ad naseum doesn't make it true.
Aha. So more than half his assists were bogus, but that's okay with you. You are not Guppy, you are Andy Williams Agent. Or maybe your both. Sorry, a guy like Williams who pops in 7 or 8 assists a year, adds nothing else to the team, especially since we have no real creative midflielder is a WASTE at $110K-$140K. I'll take that at half of what he is making now. I would rather spend the rest of the money on a real creative midflielder. I don't have to draw conclusions, I saw Andy play live and up close last year while you were getting the Jag washed.
Obvious eric d makes up his own stats to fit whoever he wants to criticize, which is every post almost ad naseaum. Get a life.
I didn't get into this to defend Williams. Like I said if the Metro can upgrade they should. I was worried about old number 7, Mickey Mantle, turning over in his grave, when he heard people calling 7 "almost 13". Ladies and gentlemen, now batting for the Yankees number "almost 13".......
MLS as a league, opposes any loans to teams (MLS teams may loan out players--like McBride--but cannot have players loaned to them). This would be a major way of circumventing the salary cap and would make most player allocations almost meaningless. And, whether you buy any of that or not, the league says it won't allow loans. So than Bayer Leverkusen refused to sell Landon Donovan. So the league worked out an arrangement it refuses to this day to call a "loan" (even though Bayer owns most of Donovan's rights). I'm guessing that a partial loan is some kind of an arrangement that allows a team to avoid the claim of a "loan" yet still provides some financial support for many of the strapped teams in Europe. Maybe it's a "rent with an option to buy" deal (where the loan payments would count as part of a transfer payment if the team decides to acquire the player)? As for Andy William's merits, I take no stand on the issue other than to say that it seems pretty clear he's not Bob Bradley's kind of A-mid. I think it's likely that Williams will be dumped and then with the combination of allocation plus the cap space you free up by removing Andy Williams, you can afford the new A-mid (whomever he is).
The whinnging of the stupid. You should copyright it and use it as your theme song. Fool. You dig up more posts for me harping on stats. Stats are almost useless in soccer. You would know that if you knew the first thing about this sport, which obviously you don't. The only people harping on stats are the people that think Andy Williams is the next Pele. You know dolts like you.