http://rockymountainnews.com/drmn/rapids/article/0,1299,DRMN_51_1771682,00.html http://www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,1413,36%7E94%7E1204716%7E,00.html
Carrieri is having a great pre-season. Zizi is signed (but not showing particularly well yet) and Spenny is Spenny. And now we have this young chap Casey Schmidt scoring 6 goals in 3 games (pre-season, I know). When it rains, it pours. What a great problem!!
I am very excited about Zizi's signing. He's a young, big target forward, with a huge amount of potential. And not only is he not costing the Rapids that much at the moment, but he may soon not count as an international.
First, I'd just like to say that it's about bloody fooking time we got SOME mention in the local press. I was beginning to think that one of the Rapids would have to overdose on Ephedra to make the news. Of the four training scrimmages I witnessed, only once did Zizi look anything less than dangerous and solid. Also I don't think we have a "problem" with forward selection -- 4 forwards is really an optimal number to work with in a league the size of MLS. As much as coaches may use the phrase "it's a problem I like to have," the reality is that it's a "problem" that any well-constructed team should always be facing. I think our greatest (and best) "problem" lies in the midfield, especially with what appears to be the coming of age for Beckerman. Just think, even with a fully healthy roster we could see guys like Roberts, Hart, Kotschau and Kingsley on the bench. That's not a problem... that's a solution!
http://www.mlsnet.com/content/03/col0226zizi.html I liked this quote from the article: "In 2001 he joined Athens powerhouse Olympiakos where he scored five goals in his first eight games. Zizi became a regular in the starting lineup of the Greek side during their stint in the 2001-2002 Champions League tournament." Very good signing. Now you guys need to bring in some good defenders and you got a championship team.
3-4-3 just curious as to if ya'll think that you might switch to a 3-4-3 formation with the new signing? With the ex arsenal player and pablo not being exactly a AMID and with Carrieri becoming a legit forward it seems like Hankinson would want to keep Spencer on the field as well as play his new forward. Just a thought. You could line up something like this: -------Carrieri---------Zizi --------------Spencer Chung--------------------Henderson ---------Pablo-------Ex Arsenal -----Frasier----_____-----_____ --------------Garlick Looks nice to me...I just wish the Burn would give EJ some damn minutes
Re: 3-4-3 There's a good and current discussion on potential formations/lineups in the following thread: https://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=34555&perpage=15&pagenumber=2
Could not say it any better. With 4 guys competing for two spots, every game will matter and whoever is on the field will be playing not only to win, but to keep his starting position. That kind of pressure can only make our front line better. This is a problem I don't think the Rapids have ever had and I'm looking forward to see how it pays dividends. Glad to see the Post finally picked up the slack and listed the Rapids next to all of the other teams in their online listing...
ZIZI and Da Greeks Gotta say I am impressed with the the Rapids offseason acquistions and I know for a fact that Zizi is one helluva player, I am greek hence I am a huge follower of the Greek A Division and Olympiakos, and in Zizi's breakout season he was a huge success scoring some key goals against AEK and Panathinaikos I believe....good, solid, large taget man who is isnt afraid to get involved in the mix up top The Rapids should be one helluva talented team this upcoming year...
If the season started tomorrow I would think the Rapids would line up something like this... -----------------Roberts------------------ -------Carrieri-----------Spencer------ Henderson---------------------Chung -----Mastroeni--------Grimandi------ Kotschau----Fraser----Herdsman -----------------Garlick-------------------