I'm not so sure this says a whole lot. How did he look? Was he really putting effort into it and training hard? It's possible that he just got bored with riding the exercise bike every day and wants to stay in decent shape for his next club.
This is turning into a real soap opera. Random speculation: A. He got bored and decided to train. Hankinson said he couldn't until his situation was resolved. B. His agent, who seems kind of fed up with him, told him he's got no way out of the contract other than: Buying his way out, making himself attractive to a team who will buy him out. C. Nice, (the club of reputed interest) got wind of what is going on, and lost interest in a player who is old and starting to sound like a headache. I'm sure there are many others. Question is has Gilles poisoned the well, with the teams, management, and the fans to the extent that he should go anyway?
At least this fills the void created by having weeks layoff. This weeks lineup will include Gilles playing as a striker, Carrieri at right mid, and Schmidt at left back. Pundits may look at the Rapids and see a boring team. They just haven't delved far enough into the schizo nature of the team to really appreciate the nuanced excitement this team give us fans.
It's a shame it's played out like this. I can't claim to have any inside scoop here. But what makes the most sense to me is this: 1. MLS won't let him leave now that they've invested money in him, paid him, recruited him. He's not going to be "released" but sold. 2. He doesn't want to be in MLS (for whatever reason you want to believe--most likely he misses Europe and would prefer to play for a team in France but who the heck knows for sure). 3. MLS can't insist they're hanging on to him and then refuse to let him practice with a team (otherwise they look like the fallguy). 4. Grimandi has to practice to get/stay in shape to be attractive to another side. I suppose its possible he could end up playing some games for the Rapids but I'd be surprised if it's more than a handful. I think this is the equivalent of a couple ready to divorce but they can't sell the house and neither one can afford their own space--so they are forced to put up with each other until another remedy can emerge.
Going from different reports, and I can't find a single link to them, Hankinson was quoted as saying that he would be practicing on his own, separate from the team. What does this mean that he jumped in on the scrimmage and is playing full speed?
Good point. But I'm sure if he came back and was the catalyst for a 5 or 6 game win streak, all would be forgiven. It's funny how sports works like that.
Hmmmm.....on second thought, if Gilles celebrates goals like this guy does, maybe it's best that he goes back to France. http://www.sportingnews.com/soccer/articles/20030422/470015.html
"It was not against anyone. It was just a private sign of joy." That's why you should do those things in private, not while celebrating in the middle of the pitch.
Hanki... Ah-Hemmm... I did post the question of why Hanki didn't just force him to train earlier, hoping that the game would be bigger than the silly egos of Saddam, George, and , well Gilles & Tim. This works well in third grade recess, so it likely will work with the similarly mature Frenchman. This could be a good resolution of the problem. He's now got to prove his worth to ANYONE that he's a sensitive pragmatist, not a malcontent and play his cards for a January EPL transfer window (or whatever the French do..). Sorry, but I am wondering if Tim (AKA 'Yoda') has too many cracks in the coaching decisions.....last weeks starting mix-up line-up, coaxing Gilles into the fold, Musa Shannon subs, his Tampa Teams that underachieved, 'love affair' with over-the-hill #10's, failure to bring Beckerman (or others)along, failure to give Gibson (or others) a chance, blaming Dawes, Titus, etc. for loses (but not Crawford!?), and his fulltime detached style (vs. Ray Hudson type). OK, he has also made some good moves, and Carrieri seems to have been brought along (only to wither this year?). But as a long termer from year one, I want the Cup..not every year, but I need more than a 'good entertainment product' at a 'reasonable price'. RLH
Re: Hanki... Before you pat yourself on the back with too many "ahems," consider the following facts: 1. You can't exactly "force" someone to train 2. Training is defined in contracts as showing up to the facility at specified times (which Grimandi was doing) 3. Unless we hear quotes to the contrary, there's nothing to suggest any particular motivation regarding Grimandi's participation in today's scrimmage. 4. Last stated by Hankinson to both the press (at a media luncheon) and to fans (on the radio call-in show) was that the Grimandi situation was out of his hands and between the player, Rapids management and the league The only speculation at this point that I think has any validity is what someone else stated above -- that Grimandi was tired of training on machines indoors, and wanted to actually get out and train with an actual team. Whether this was to get in shape for a different team back in France or because Gilles is now realizing he won't be able to skate out of his MLS contract (and thus migth as well play), who the hell knows. What I do know is that this isn't a result of Hankinson suddenly "forcing" him to train. As for comparing Hankinson's involvement/responsibility in the Grimandi situation with his abilities as coach, these are two entirely different things. Dealing with a player's attitude and a contract is not something a technical coach is experienced in nor should be expected to deal with; similarly, a manager who makes tactical and game-day personnel decisions should not have to be worrying about training his players in the technical basics. A good friend of mine, someone who has long been associated with the league, described this recently to me as one of the greatest hurdles facing MLS clubs and in particular, coaches. For the most part they're stuck doing the job that other clubs around the world -- including those leagues with less popularity and money -- hire at least three people to do: manager, coach(es), technical director(s). So before we damn or praise Hankinson, consider that in all reality he's had little to nothing to do with the Grimandi situation. He wasn't the one who brought him here, he wasn't the one negotiating his contract, and he sure doesn't sound like the one with the responsibility of resolving the situation.
Re: Re: Hanki... I don't claim any great inside knowledge, but the fact that Hankinson travelled to London to meet with Grimandi indicates to me that he was involved in bringing him here. Hankinson didn't negotiate the contract that is certain. I don't believe that Hankinson can resolve the situation on his own, though he is in a position to to make things better or worse. Hankinson had said that Grimandi would be training on his own until the situation was resolved. I believe that he has the authority to make that decision, and so it probably isn't a matter of Gilles getting bored. The fact that Grimandi is training may indicate one of three things, given the statement by Hankinson: 1) Grimandi has decided to make nice and stay, 2) all parties have agreed that he's out of here (situation settled), and the air being cleared he's being allowed to train with the team, 3) Hankinson has changed his mind about allowing him to train with the team. Most of the recent damning of Hankinson has only a minor relationship to Gilles. Complaints about Hankinson have more to do with the team he fielded against the Quakes. We've all read the reports from preseason, and know who was playing where. We are all familiar with Carrieri and Herdsman. We know next to nothing about Crawford. We have limited knowledge but high expectations of Zizi since he is an SI. With this in mind it is very frustrating to learn that Herdsman was a central defender, Carrieri a midfielder, and an unknown rookie was at right back. That's seems to me to be the complaint levelled at Hankinson.
Little or Nothing!? Points are well taken, Greenie (or is it now Blu-ie ), the league/GM etc. has some authority, but clearly Hankinson has been quite active in player personnel chices and decisions in draft, allocations, discovery etc. Can we agree he had "something" to do with the ID, signing, of Gilles? This one went wrong, and I believe that there is plenty of blame to spread on all parties. Pehaps more unfortunate turn of events than flat out screwing up. Still, I disagree that in the end it's not the coach's job to take the players (whoever they are, where ever they came from, like'em or not) and be responsible to mold them into a team. Gilles started out that way, as one of the boys, but became a lost soul....That's a coach's job to prevent in my book, as is one of the yardsticks that we use to judge coaching (vs. GM, technical skills, etc.) competence. Richard
I don't have an ax to grind on this score. I did however read accounts that had Hankinson spending time with Grimandi on several occasions, talking with Arsene Wenger, Grimandi showing Hankinson to an Arsenal match. It sure sounded like Hankinson was pretty heavily involved in "romancing" Grimandi to bring him here. That said, stuff like this happens. Nearly every team in MLS has at least 1 really bad story involving an expensive acquisition where the player changed their mind or didn't want to be here. If this had happened in "96 or "97, the league would have just dumped the player. But in this case, money is tighter, the league is more frugal and Grimandi was a special case (not affiliated with a team and MLS took a bit of a chance with him).
Stop screwing around with Grimandi. Let his arse rot here. Don't let him practice with the team. Keep him separated from everyone. He might as well get ready for Division 3 in France in a year or two. MLS and the Rapids can break his Frenchy back easily enough by letting him rot on the sidelines. Not the bench or practice fields, but in the stands.
Gilles' involvement in the scrimmage yesterday will be better understood tomorrow at training. If he is involved in non-scrimmage drills and training, then he may have faced facts and resolved himself to playing this season. If he isn't, his involvement yesterday can probably be chalked up to using him with the reserves to help field a full side. I saw the scrimmage yesterday and Gilles was less than involved in the game. He made some plays but it was more of a case of if the ball was near him, he made a move or play. But he certainly wasn't running is arse off to get involved in the overall play. The big question is why would he want to leave MLS now to join a team in France when their season is almost over. It would be better for him to play the season and join a new team later, once the other team's season is ready to start or already begun. His motivation is the big question and since he won't talk anymore to the press and isn't talking to the Rapids' PR folks, we may never know.
I would think it is in the Rapid's best interests to move him and the only reason he hasn't been given an outright release is b/c he has received pay and MLS did spend money romancing him to come here. Absent those factors, the big encentive the Rapids would have is: the salary cap. I would think that he's on your cap and counts as such until/unless you cut him outright. So to have him and not play him may make sense from a teamwork/atmosphere perspective but it is also the equivalent of saying the rest of the league gets a $1.7million cap and Colorado gets a $1.45 million cap.
To clarify, hopefully once and for all: BY CONTRACT, GRIMANDI HAS TO TRAIN WITH THE TEAM If he doesn't, then he loses his money. Simple. This only means he needs to show up for training, it doesn't dictate what specifically he needs to do. And there's no way that Hankinson or anyone else can "force" him into more active training. BY CONTRACT, THE RAPIDS MUST ALLOW GRIMANDI TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES If they don't, then MLS loses whatever they've already paid Grimandi and likely doesn't give the Rapids another allocation. NEITHER THE RAPIDS NOR MLS SOUGHT OUT GRIMANDI. Grimandi and his agent approached the Rapids out of the blue in mid-2002. He was interested in playing in America, and Colorado was one of the two cities he was willing to move to. Grimandi then came out to Colorado for a long visit to review the Rapids organization, their training facilities, and Invesco Field. He was pleased and impressed, and those who have followed his journal at icons.com know that he was talking about the move long before any mention was made by MLS or the Rapids. By the time Hankinson traveled to England, Grimandi was already signed to a contract with MLS and the Rapids. Finally, with regards to Hankinson "agreeing" that Grimandi would work well for the Rapids, can you blame him? A player with excellent skills, massive EPL and European experience, and some good years left in his legs -- and one whom until recently, was very excited about playing in MLS. I've certainly got a lot of issues with Hankinson and where' he's taken this team over the years (or hasn't taken), but I find it increasingly difficult to find fault with the coach for anything that's happened with Grimandi. One thing has been made very clear in the preseason and this very young MLS season: Hankinson hasn't changed the way he runs this team. It's no different than what it was when Grimandi visited. Even the roster hasn't changed very much. All in all, it seems pretty clear that for whatever reason(s), Grimandi has simply changed his mind and does not want to play here. Whether psychologically or contractually, there is no way that Hankinson could be the one that fixes this. The coach needs to be 100% focused on preparing the team that he knows will be taking the field during the MLS season; he can't spend hours coddling someone in the hopes that they'll change their mind and attitude and suddenly produce for the team. I can guarantee you this whole thing has been spinning around with lawyers and agents for weeks, and as Hankinson has said it's entirely out of his hands. I can think of no better word at this moment to describe Grimandi than "jackass."
Greenie, one small point--I was under the impression that Colorado used a "discovery" on Grimandi, not an allocation. The only way Colorado would get a discovery for Grimandi would be if he was sold and brought in a substantial amount of money. For instance, Metros sold Diallo and got an allocation. SJ returned Graziani to the league (where he'll eventually be sold to Barcelona of Ecuador) but won't get an allocation. That's the distinction as I understand it.
Correct, and your undertsanding is in line with the rules. I use the word "allocation" generally -- a "discovery pick" is still a type of allocation. Classifying a player as such does make their contract follow separate rules than an "allocated player." Ultiamtely there are really just two types of players in this league: those that MLS must spend money to obtain (whether in transfers or signing bonuses), and those that are available at no cost. Regardless of what name you slap on them, if MLS needs to spend money to bring in a player then I see that as being an "allocation" to a team. With regards to Grimandi, if the Rapids blow the contract then MLS won't give anything to the Rapids -- not an allocated player, not a discovery player, not any single sort of selection that requires that MLS spend money. Although a player like Daryl Powell would be available on a free transfer, given the salary cap structure of MLS and the current cap restrictions facing Colorado (going by rules previously printed by MLS, as a "discovery" Grimandi can't be making a ton) it's unlikely he or a similar player would come to Colorado and MLS unless there were a signing bonus attached. That means allocation money from MLS of some sort. Of course, I've never understood why Colorado can't find more creative ways to stretch this rule. You know, hire Powell as a consultant for ohhh, Qwest or something.