Monday is the day. As per Steven Goff's October 27th article Monday November 4th is cutdown day. Teams may begin cutting players and making other roster moves (aside from the Metros/Fire trade of Bob Bradley for Faria and a 2003 Pick). Lets try to keep this thread more about moves that actually occur and their impact as we see it. Rather than speculation about possible moves or moves we would like to see. To start off here is DC United's end of season roster per MLSNet.com. Now we all understand that several players are likely to change status (i.e. Chino, Tino) so don't get all ruffled up by Jr. Int. or Trans. Int. it is just an end of season status. Remember no rumors please. We have other threads that have and are still covering those. Just what has happened and what effects we believe those moves might have. So let the fun begin. D.C. United (Updated July 22, 2002) Lazo Alavanja (M) Chino Alegria (M) [Jr.Int.] Mike Ammann (GK) Bobby Convey (M) Ali Curtis (F) Marco Etcheverry (M) [Green Card] Roy Lassiter (F) Justin Mapp (M) [Project-40] Mike McGinty (GK) Ivan McKinley (M/D) [Green Card] Jaime Moreno (F) [Sr.Int.] Bryan Namoff (M/D) Ryan Nelsen (M/D) [Sr.Int.] Ben Olsen (M/F) Eddie Pope (D) Brandon Prideaux (D) Santino Quaranta (F) [Project-40] Eliseo Quintanilla (F/M) [Trans.Int] Milton Reyes (D) [Green Card] Nick Rimando (GK) Petter Villegas (M/F) Richie Williams (M) Henry Zambrano (F) [Sr.Int.]
Well there's not much we can say or analyze until it happens otherwise it is just a rumor or prediction.
That's the idea. Here we can talk without wading through peoples ideas, mine included. Just like everyone I have ideas on what to do but we already have threads for those.
I'm pretty sure that Ammann has retired so that will clear up salary for raises for certain players. It's also clear that Mckinley salary will be doubled to $100k because of the deal he and Hudson made. That's about the most concrete stuff that I've heard so far.
Not "officially." There was one report that he made his decision because his progress is not going as planned. However, as pointed out to me at a practice, Ammann will be only 32 at the beginning of next season - could easily play in some role for 3 or 4 more years. At the same time I was told that he was possibly looking into getting another surgery. It would keep him out of the 2003 season. Finally, there is no doubt that he is an excellent goalkeeper. With the possible expansion of the league, if he manages to hang on for a couple of more seasons he would probably find a home. All that being said, his injury is serious and I think he will retire. Without a doubt it is unlikely that DCUnited would hold on to him.
Guter gone. According to the Washington Post (print version) today, Rick Guter has been fired as physio. He's not a player, but it is a confirmed move. Guter was quoted saying: "They ... want to go in another direction. I guess they wanted me to do more, to get the players to play better. This was a surprise to me." I wonder if, like insurance rates rise for those frequently hurt yet not at fault, he wasn't a victim of the team's poor health record over the past two years? GM
Re: Guter gone. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A54749-2002Nov1.html In with the Reyna brief
Re: Guter gone. Fair or unfair, right or wrong someone had to take a hit for all the injurys that United has suffered over the past 3 years. With the exception of Olsen all the other came on Rick's watch. While I don't think he is to blame, obviously the case was made for the move and it was made.
Re: Re: Guter gone. It will be interesting if we can note any change in player's fitness or stamina next season with this change
Re: Re: Guter gone. Using Guter as a scapegoat for injuries is pretty weak.. (and I'm not blaming you specifically shawn) After all, he was the trainer for all 7 seasons for United and nobody really complained before that.. Besides, how on Earth does a trainer get blamed for two players specifically who end up out of the lineup for hernias? (Santino and Bobby) If Hudson simply wants to go in another direction that is fine and dandy, but to lay any amount of blame on Guter is silly.. He has been the trainer for the National Team since Arena has been there but nobody blamed him for all those injuries that occured during qualifying...
A potential scenario regarding Guter: Petrosian comes in as a strength trainer and Guter starts feeling like his turf is being invaded. Political sniping ensues... Hudson feels strongly about strength training and decides to solve the problem by backing his new muscle-guy and Guter is free to focus full time on the National team. Just a possible scenario...
I'm pretty sure Petrosian has been on the books with United for a few seasons now, he just hasn't been heard from until now..
Couldn't find it on the DCU website, but Petrosian is in the team picture as far back as '99, so he has been with the team a while. However, I don't think this discounts Lowecifer's theory.
That's right, but there's more to it also. Petrosian was volunteering one day a week to United in the past while still working at AU. Now Petrosian is becoming a full time employee 5-7 days a week. So while he isn't new, his role is different now, so he could be viewed as a new addition. Sorry to nit pick. I think the reason he was brought in full time was to address the lack of fitness, particularly in the offseason. Hudson and the staff thinks that played a large part in the lack of health and recovery time (as well as offensive production) over the past few seasons. Notice that many of the players that Hudson let go had fitness issues (i.e. Talley, Albright, Lisi, Watson, Conteh, etc.). It wasn't so much an injury/non-injury thing, but when healthy some of them just couldn't finish a game strong. Many believe that was a significant contributor to why Rongen's teams let in so many soft goals late in games. Hudson wanted to make sure that United is "sharpening their swords" in preseason, not wasting time gaining endurance or recovering on the training table. He wants a stable dependable lineup, and with the roster size he needs the fitness and health issues fully squared away in the offseason. Personally, I can't fault Hudson's reasoning. Let's hope it works. -Tron
If we'd been in better shape, there would've been a lot less of those muscle aches and strains that kept us out of so many games. Looks like Etcheverry got what he wanted afther the 1-0 loss to the Metros in the swamp.
I'm not sure it is actually an off season move, but from the sounds of it the league will be starting in April next season. Not sure how many of us knew that. The article also explains that the Galaxy will not have a home game for the first two months of the season until June when the Home Depot NTC opens. http://espn.go.com/soccer/news/2002/1101/1454415.html -Tron
Dtron. With the league accelerating the start of so many things (practice is supposed to start sooner, the Sdraft is over a month sooner), it makes sense the season would start sooner, they'd take a month off for Confed Cup, Gold Cup, and also get a chance to see how the idea of a split schedule (which had been bandied around but not formally approved yet) would work.
Tron posted this link in another thread but it has lots of interesting information. http://www.washtimes.com/sports/20021102-65487574.htm
"American World Cup striker Joe-Max Moore looks set to return to the New England Revolution, once his contract and work permit run out with Premier League club Everton next month." Off topic, but why would the Revs get Moore? Did they not receive an allocation of some sort after his departure?
Big US Stars still command a little pull. Reyna, Moore, Berhalter, O'Brien could all name their destination. New England would still have to fit him under the cap though.
Well, OK, I meant are there any reasons under the "rules" that he'd go there. If "no" is the answer, then you'd think he'd get assigned some other way and New England would have to "work out a deal" as has been done in the past. Of course, he's getting old and hasn't played in awhile, so maybe (a la Lalas), he'd be a "Discovery Player"!