I don;t see how an aging forward coming of a season ending injury could be what we need..I thought it was our defense that was 6's & 7's this year. https://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=150460 They mentioned it was a "big" package so maybe there is more to it.
We have a lot of forwards, yes, but do we have anyone of Razov's type and with his pedigree in this league? For that matter, have we ever had a forward as dangerous, year after year, as Razov? Razov's game is not built on speed, nor even on lots and lots of tricky dribbles and nifty slashing, a la Moreno (whose legacy here is going to make every Metro supporter queasy about Ante until he makes it through an entire season unscathed and productive.) Razov's a straight up gunner, with a couple other tricks in the bag, and he's one of the best goalscorers this league has ever seen. Assuming he's recovering from the ankle problems, I'd bet on him having something left in the tank. And word has it that he's a total, 100% Bob guy.
If he comes, he plays three games while eating up a huge chunk of salary Three agmes is being generous. Until proven otherwis, I smell a Balboa/Moreno sitch It's just the Metrostar way. Thinking - have we ever had a high price success other than Donadoni? But at least now Kenny Arena will realize he only goes to his left.
Look Tom, just because Balboa/Moreno are pieces of siht, doesn't mean that every other player in MLS is also. I personally wouldn't mind having Razov/Marsch on the team.
I know, but after 9 years I'm conditioned to think the worst. And Razov is injury prone wouldn't mind Marsch and Armas is another name mentioned - he would be the second coming What pisses me off about Moreno is that he asked out for all intents and purposes and then flourished in DC this year.
2 bucks says henry ring is involved in this trade (since they got big zack) and walker is exposed in the expansion draft
still has a lot of potential, put him together with glenn and with some other good midfielder to pair up with guevara, then metros are looking good.
Well, I don't know how fair that Ralph comment is. He was double teamed throughout the entire season because everyone knew that our other forwards sucked. On Razov, there are a couple things worth mentioning. First, if you DO get him in a trade, you will almost definately be able to renegotiate his contract to a lower number. Second, I wouldn't call him injury prone. He picked up an injury at the end of last season(2003) and carried it with him all this year. Lastly, I am hesitant to give him up because of his consistency. Say what you will about his attitude(which BOB can handle), but Razov has been one of, if not the most consistent strikers MLS has ever seen. Not only that, but he is one of the only premier strikers in the league that won't miss games do to call ups. Razov is no where near Bruce's radar anymore. He's an everyday club forward. I imagine that would be important on a team like your's (or mine) where national team call ups take a heavy toll.
Peter Wilt has revealed he is in dire need of a Left BAck..to bad we don't really have one. Also a forward...this we do have. Since Magee is from Chicago I could see him somehow finding his way back there. That little snipit from the Post is really the only thing I have seen in print about the trade talks..
I would hope he is Mathis v. 2.0, especially his first couple of seasons. Why? This team needs some fire, and someone who will fight for his teammates. We don't have that. The real question is if he is a Moreno 2.0. In other words, an amoral POS, a whining bitch who was given a second chance to get out of DC, who was paid, and walks through the season, doing nothing. That's the question.
Check out today's NY Daily News. There are a couple of paragraphs about it. I'm almost certain that Razov will be a MetroStar. Look, most of the fans here who watched the team on a regular basis agree that one of the MetroStar weaknesses was a lack of veterans. So, now we have a chance to get a guy who is a PROVEN goalscorer and the complaints are that because he's 30 years old, he's washed up? Preki is 42 and no one was complaining about his age last year in KC. I think we need someone who is fiery like Razov and not the choirboys that the Metros have now. It was disgraceful how they allowed themselves to be bullied around this year. Ante does not take crap from anyone. Yes, he's coming off a season with an injury, but Brian Ching's ACL tear was a far more serious injury and now the guy is on the USMNT. And speaking of injured players, remember how fitting it was that the Metros season officially ended once Cornell Glen had to limp around the field the whole 2nd half once he pulled his hamstring (for the 300th time this season) and there were no more substitutions. This is not Amadou Diallo or Marcello Balboa joining the Metros. He will give the team someone who is a consistent player who added to his game after his experience in Spain. I think he will quickly become a Metro favorite and his Fire past will be long forgotten.
Here's an outsider's perspective. 1. Razov is a finisher--something SGR was supposed to be. Won't make his own goals. But he'll likely flourish with a good A-mid (ie: Guevara) much like Lassiter had his best years with Valderamma and Etcheverry. 2. Chicago is in a weird dilemma. They didn't make the playoffs when almost everyone else did--thus showing their team almost across the board under performed. In particular their rookie class was underwhelming. Yet unlike most MLS teams (who have a lot of players the don't mind letting go or have contracts expiring and teams will let go to clear cap room). But in Chicago's case, it would mean exposing guys like Scott Buete (who was unimpressive this year but is cheap and has potential, is American and young). So I suspect that Chicago is willing to part with some potential talent simply b/c if they can't trade it for something, it will likely be taken in the expansion draft. So there could be a number of players on the Chicago roster (Buete, Gray, etc.) who didn't impress this year but are cheap, young and should get better who Metro could be getting in this deal. 3. It would make sense that Chicago is seeking to move a keeper. I haven't heard if Countess lost his P-40 status. If so, they'd have 3 keepers they might expose in the expansion draft. And they'd probably prefer to trade one (though I don't know if Metro is the destination). 4. Meanwhile, Metro has talent in midfield and some of it really ends up out of position (Vaca and Lisi don't bring much to the plate defensively). The last month of the season showed that teams would gang up on your midfield, try to force Gaven and Guevara to defend and let the other midfielders show they could beat them. Getting another good 2-way mid or defensive mid would make a huge difference. And Chicago might be seeking more creative help in midfield so they might welcome a Vaca or Lisi. Finally, you've got a lot of bodies who can potentially play up top (and become less valuable if Razov recovers and plays his typical 27 games a season). I wouldn't be shocked if Glen, Taylor, Wolyniec, or Magee is in the package (I don't mention SGR b/c I think he's untradable). And while all of those guys has an upside, does that really hurt your team to give up one of those 4?
Our defence does need work but if we have mids and forwards who make it so the defence don't have to do much then that works well too. I think they were also looking for more leadership on the team because they are so young and Razov would be a good addition to the team I think, I wouldn't complain if he was wearing a metro uniform next year as long as he scores some goals. He may be getting kinda old but the team needs more older guys who don't get frustrated as easily and can provide a real leadership role for the team. I think Woly did it this year and he did a good job but with a team this young you need some thirty something year old player in there with the 21 year olds.
Taylor is on loan and I dont think can be traded. If the Fire want him they dont need to give anyone up. He will also be Senior International. Did he do enough to warrant an SI spot on an MLS roster? You are better off with Heron. Everyone seems to agree the Metro have many young players and need experience. Personally I like the way the Metro give young players a chance especially Americans. I believe the biggest problem they have is size. Guevara is small and you know he will be on the field. Vaca is small, supposedly gives you offensive flair and definitely very little defense. Magee is not big and surprised me at what he brought to the midfield. Brenes is small and not a defender. Even with the fire Guevara and Magee bring to the game that is too many players physically overmatched. We need some size and toughness. I am emphasing the midfield.
NO! Can we please have consecutive seasons where we DON'T trade for a rival player? Come on. Razov is one of our least favorite players. Do you guys seriously want to root for him? Get rid of SGR and see if you can get a British or German-styled player. Bob's got until next April to find a guy who can play the game simple and tough and not depend on trickery. There's gotta be a player that could be drafted. How about Vaca for a 1st round draft pick? Sorry guys, but I just don't want to see Razov wearing the Black and Red.
The Fire supports have a strong feeling that Marsch may also be involved in this trade. Go to their boards if you wish to see. Marsch is really under-rated and would likely add some grit to our premadonna midfield.
Joe, The most likely trade candidate here is Magee. A lot of people, including me have soured on the kid. The problem with the midfield is two-fold. The first is that we don't spread the ball wide. We still, even though we had the same problem all last season, try to bust it down the middle. This is a result of the personel up top, and in the midfield, and the way they are implemented. In other words, Gaven and Brenes should be pushed more to the wings to open up the midfield. The other problem is that they aren't defensively conscious. Even though Clark played incredibly against DC, the team was still prone to defensive lapses that resulted in many counter-attacking chances. The solution to this has been the common and simple addition of a defensive mid to slot next to Clark in a 5 man midfield. A veteran guy who won't be fazed by a team like DC that can make big plays, but lets be honest hacks a ton (nothing wrong with it, but the characterization of DC as an offensive dynamo is wrong). The other problem has been up top. Ever since midway last season, when mathis went on an unexplainable slump (don't forget he had 9 or 10 goals in the first half...and was still amongst the league leaders by the end of the year, he had by all accounts a superb 1st half, second half it fell apart) we haven't had a forward. SGR isn't that player. Is Razov it? I would be more than willing to take that gamble. The one player i wouldn't be willing to give up is Glen. He has tons of potential, and his combination of size, speed, and skill is killer. We shouldn't forget that at the start of the season, Glen and Taylor ripped apart opposing defenses. Taylor is on loan, but the Metros have a buy option on him. A lot of people, including Stoner and Wynalda, have put the blame squarely on the shoulders of the defense. A fair amount is their fault, but I put most of the blame on the midfield, who let everybody run by them, Eddie Pope specifically (who was very bad playing and provided no leadership whatsoever), and finally Walker (who had an alright season, he was left to dry most of the times, but he wasn't decisive enough in the box and didn't lead us well enough when we needed him...). I seriously doubt anybody expected Pope and Walker, to of the "veteran" guys to be that bad. Pope was probably only the third or fourth best defender on the team, even Kenny was stronger than him in central defense for most of the year (Pope was good in the playoffs, but that's about it...). Walker was also dissapointing. A lot of people have naievely put most of the blame on him, but that is ridiculous. A couple of goals are his fault, otherwise, people would end up with free shots on him, no way you can realistically expect him to save every single one of those shots.
I really wish and hope Bob won't start cleaning house and doing crazy things, then later in the year to say he has a new team and we need to be patient. We need to ad a defender and a striker, its all we need without giving up our top players.