Rapids future?

I dunno man. Everyone is so high on "Latin" soccer right now, I'd say that's probably where the powers that be would want to take it. I would love to see exciting, creative play, so I could get on board, but it would definitely take a while (like 2-3 seasons IMO) and require an overhaul of our roster to make it work.

Unfortunately that style of play comes with its own baggage. The day that I see my Rapids tripping over blades of grass, hitting the turf anytime a defender gets within 3 feet of them and then rolling around on the ground like a dachsund being skinned alive is the day I turn in my season tix. Basically, if they turn into Metapan (or Seattle) I'm on down the road.

 

Word. I'm so tired of the calls for Latin "beautiful play" like its the second coming of the game. Guess what, soccer is a physical game, if you don't like it you can go play baseball. I much prefer a hard-fought match over the theatrics of the "beautiful game".

 

Wow. I guess I missed the Moses stone table of soccer rules.

Playing a quick moving possession game doesn't require diving nor does it mean the game can't have physical play. Sometimes I think we get the game (see last night) we deserve.

 

Uh, it is possible to play soccer with more skill than the current Rapids and not descend into the most cynical tactics.

And it's not as if the Rapids are completely free of this stuff as it is. One of the best in the league at embellishment is our very own Drew Moor.

As for the o.p., I don't think it's time to lose our heads just yet. It was a tough year, but it wasn't that long ago that we couldn't make the playoffs.

 

I agree with that, but that's not what the proponents of the "Latin-style"/"beautiful game" are really supporting. Admittedly the theatrics aren't a part of their support, I threw that in, but on BigSoccer its pretty much true that when somebody says they want to see more beautiful play/Latin-style/etc. what they mean is that they don't want to see hard tackles and shoulder charges.

 

I'm really tired of soccer people slagging baseball. Baseball isn't the one to take it out on. Meatheads use pretty much the same epithets and complaints for both sports.

 

I don't have an issue with baseball, but its probably the biggest sport with minimal contact between players, as a counter-example to soccer which allows player contact. I could have used tennis or golf just as easily but they aren't team sports.

 

I guess I'm the exception that makes the rule

Although I don't think I've used the terms "latin" and "beautiful game".

 

This team is set up pretty well for the next few seasons. There is no need to go and hit the reset button. This is my biggest post GS fear. If the reamining powers that be hit that reset button I'll be pissed off. There's a good core here I see no reason why losing two or three players means that we have to go all TFC and dismantle.

 

Obviously, whoever is heading up the reins controls a lot in terms of style / tactics. If a new coach takes the team in a vastly different direction than Gary Smith's, then the next year or two might be rough. But I think we're in better shape than you think. Assuming Moor and Koz come back from injury, our starting line of Koz / Moor / Wynne / Comminges is solid and not too old. Casey and Cummings will be 31 and 30, respectively, so that's a little bit of an issue, but we have *sigh* Folan, Kandji, Nyassi, and possibly Akpan as suitable backups (I personally rate Akpan higher than Q).

It's our midfield that's in huge trouble, and frankly, IMO, it's been our weakest point. Mullen will be 34 next year, Mastro 36, Big Red 29, and Smith is simply too unreliable. Maybe Emory and Labeaux are good enough to play at the next level, maybe not. Nane at times is decent, other times not so great. No matter who is the next coach, I think he needs to make some serious changes at midfield.

As for "where is our Brek Shea or Agudelo"? Beats me. I haven't heard much about the Rapids homegrown system, but given how the Rapids FO has worked in the past, I have my doubts about how that development is going. We're much more likely to find players through the draft, but in the past, the team has struggled to find success in terms of finding players who really end up as some of the best as MLS through that method. With other teams building their HG systems, the top players are less likely to go into the draft and it'll be harder to find the gems, so that'll be more difficult too. Also, the draft has been a bit of a crapshoot, so that doesn't help matters, either.

 

True, possession oriented, creative ball doesn't have to mean cynical tactics. Like I said, I could get on board with a change in that direction. However, in practice, it often does descend into those kind of tactics. It's the reason I don't watch FMF and the reason that the home game against Metapan, in spite of the Rapids coming from behind to win, was the most boring game I've been to all year. If, for whatever reason (nomenclature aside), the Rapids start playing that way, I won't waste my money going to the game to see 20 mintues of injury stoppage per half.

 

I'll take what I can get I guess. I like athleticism, physicality, and I like skill.

What I won't take is a bunch of "skill" guys who shy away from the physical side of the game. I'd rather have a hard working thug than a lazy skill guy.

As for the fakers, yeah I don't like them either, though I have to admit that I've cheered a few times for Colin Clark and Omar Cummings when they lost their feet in the box.

 

The U16 and U18 teams are designed to generate homegrown players like Davy Armstrong for the Rapids first-team.

Midfielder Dillon Serna of the Rapids U-18 team was part of this year's U.S. U-17 World Cup team.

 

Have you seen the Rapids website? They have a menu option labeled Youth which takes you to all kinds of things related to the Rapids work with kids.

 

First teamer Davy Armstrong who got a little bit of non-league play this year and Dillon Serna who was a US youth nat.

Speaking of Serna, anyone know if he's being considered for the first team? I mean, the Revs have Diego Fagundez and the Galaxy have Jack McBean and they're both 16 right? I admit ignorance about the quality of play from the Rapids youth program.

 

Also James Rogers who starts for the undefeated University of New Mexico team is a Rapids Academy product.

 

The Rapids still have first rights to him when he leaves college.

 

There are lazy thugs, too--they'd rather push or hold a guy then get position and tackle with their feet. Another problem with all this sort of stuff--"Latin play", "physicality," etc.--is what do we mean. There's a lot of variation in how people use the terms. One person's physicality is another person's thuggery/cynical play.

Seems like all leagues allow a fair amount of shoulder-to-shoulder stuff. Less than MLS, but if two players are side by side, you see it. Other leagues are far more strict about contact at the legs, studs up slides, studs hitting the ankle and knee--that sort of stuff. The latter is in the name of safety, but by still allowing the shoulder stuff, the stronger player still has an advantage in close quarters.

FWIW I would prefer to see Omar play then constantly held, and would rather see Wynne defend with his feet than with his shoulder. When Wynne comes shooting in like a missile I'd rather see him dispossess the player rather than knocking him off his line. It would make him a better player.

It's a matter of degree but I prefer the standard of other leagues I watch (such as EPL, Serie A, and most international play) to MLS. As for the drawbacks, you get some dives but I guess I'm not any more put off by dives than by the sort of ugliness we saw in Sunday's game, or in the MLS Cup. On the plus side, MLS seems more sensitive to the diving issue and would police it more. (And even Serie A and EPL refs card for dives in the box.)

 

Yeah, kinda like the blond guy here.

 

He only played ten matches for us, it doesn't count.