Revs need middle man to contend: Producing offense key to another title run MLS Preview/by Gus Martins
Funny, when Nicol was asked about Moller at MTC he gave the impression that it was highly unlikely, if at all being considered. He suggested that there wasn't a great deal of cap space left to use, and spoke of how any number of higher profile overseas players (specifically mentioning Matthaus) just didn't cut it. We'll see though. The Magpie
Nicol doesn't want an attacking midfielder period. The position does not exist in the team as constructed and adding one would unbalance the present team with detrimental results. He would love to upgrade his central midfield with a player from the Renya/Obrien mold, but he has no use for a primary attacking midfielder. Nicol wants his central midfield to defend first, hold the ball second, and distribute third. Creative attacking runs that trap a player forward are a No/No, as is hanging behind the forwards as the primary attacking outlet. Daniel Ortega could easily ride the bench with this team (and sad to say the present team might do better without him). Nicol is not trying to play pretty soccer. He wants to win the way he knows how. That is with coldly efficent defense and low risk offense. When we score first it will be fun, fall behind and we are in trouble, play a similar team and it will be a snooze. End of the season we will come out ahead but need luck to beat a better attacking team. So what else is new?
Oops....I meant Ariel not Daniel Ortega......although the idea of a Sandinista on the Revs might open some doors for Franchino's post playing career.
I'm not so sure that this is true. Every quote that you heard from Nicol during the post-Nowak auditions has been that the players are good, but they don't push into the attack well enough. He's even said that the players that he's looked at played a game similar to Leo and DH but that's not what he's looking for.
1. Forget Moeller. Not gonna happen - at least not for the Revs. 2. If Nicol wasn't interested in having an attacking midfielder, he never would have traded for Peter Nowak this winter.
Nowak is/was a very capable two way player, who was also mature enough to adapt to any system Nicol wanted. He certainly would have brought more attacking punch even while playing a conservative style of central midfield. His minutes probably would have been limited (particularly if we had a lead). From what I've seen it appears the Revs never had a strong expectation he would play for them. Rather they swapped draft picks to take advantage of Chicago's need for salary cap space. Regardless, given the right players ( say Real Madrid's roster) Nicol might very well opt for a more attacking style. My point is that to do that successfully he needs more than just an attacking midfielder. At very least he would also need a more dominant defensive midfielder (Hernandez failed in this role at NY and although he may have the ability his heart often doesn't seem to be committed to defensive play) and a more dependable "stand alone" left back (and probably also more speed centrally). Without those other parts Nicol probably believes the current system offers the best chance of success and is unlikely to change it no matter how good an attacking midfielder becomes available (hence the lack of interest in A. Williams, personality issues aside).
For all the talk about the Revs knowing all along that Nowak wasn't going to play for them, I'm skeptical. There were a lot of quotes by Nicol and the players about how much of a difference Nowak would make for them. Also, since Nowak announced his retirement, we've tried out 4 or 5 central midfielders. Before Nowak's announcement, I didn't here about any such players coming in.
So who's going to get the blame if this team falls flat on its face? To all the Nicol-backers, if you're with him now you'd better be sticking with him through thick or thin because this season could easily go either way.
the only really creative player he has for mid is JMM. Some how I don't think we will see it happen though. Wolde, from what I have read, has had a good preseason. If JMM is up to it why not have him play behind Taylor and Wolde? sounds reasonable to me. However I do think we will see a midfield of Ralston, DH, LC and either Kamler or Noonan. I would love to see .........................brown ......pierce.......Kante...marshal....Franchino ...Ralston..... JMM........DH............Noonan ..............Twellman.......Wolde Like to see what marshall can do to, maybe push Franchino out of a job?
At once puzzling and cryptic, while at the same time non-commital and fairly obvious... Couldn't every season "go either way" (actually, last season went both ways at different times)? Are you putting you're neck out to say it's going to be a bad season - an assertion with which you are willing to stick through thin or thick? Well I think that's fairly obvious also isn't it: first the coach, then Tony Frias.
I will also offer this up though. This team does appear to have the weakest scouting system in the entire MLS.
I was a Nicol supporter last year, even when we sucked, because I thought the problem was the players available and not the coach. I'll stick with Nicol this year... unless I don't like the decisions he makes. This is basically the same treatment FC got, although he probably got a longer free ride for a .500 season and a playoff victory (a game, not a series) than Nicol will get after almost winning the Cup.
It would be great if Leonard or someone could push Joey out of a job. I think Joey and DH would be more effective than Leo and DH, both in pushing forward and in Joey's agressive ballwinning. With Leo still in the mix, we'd have decent depth in the middle.
my issue joey in midfield is his distribution. - it is his weak spot. he covers a lot of ground, and is a bigtime ball winner, but he's not great at holding or opening attacks. i think nicol is looking for a mid who can do both, and joey can't... he has the heart of a midfielder, but the skills of a left back... ( and i don't meam roberto carlos). what abou Shalrie Joseph?