I'm still trying to figure out exactly what the Revs are doing to improve themselves. Because the whole "lose Dempsey, Cancela, Hernandez, and Franchino and replace them with draft picks" strategy doesn't appear to have made this team a whole lot better. So, if at this point in the season, DC United was short two players on their senior roster, had just lost one of their best players without replacing him, was $400,000 under the cap, had two unused allocations, and had only signed a couple of 18-year old players no one had ever heard of and who weren't expected to help this year's team dramatically... you think they'd be OK with that? That's inexcusable. The whole "they just don't do things the way you'd do them" argument is crap. THEY HAVEN'T DONE ANYTHING TO IMPROVE THEMSELVES THIS YEAR! If you want to improve your team, generally the way to do it is to get better players. Not to let your best players walk away to Europe or other clubs and replace them with untested rookies. This is not rocket science. The Revs have made several mistakes this year, and it's about time that people called them on it and demanded better. Every team does things their own way, does that mean no one is open to criticism? Gee, Theo... I wouldn't have signed JD Drew, but I guess you just don't do things the way I would, so you're immune to criticism. They've had the opportunity, and they've had the resources. They either don't care, or they're incompetent and can't find anyone. Take your pick, because neither explanation makes me feel all warm and fuzzy.
I understand that. But I've also heard the "successful" season comment (regarding making the playoffs) come directly from the FO. So have others here. Strange how they're willing to help out the other team in that building and make it better, improve on it's faults from last year. Apparently we had none right? A finals? We're counting the ECF as one of the success points now? You're right. So's this ... If if's and but's were candy and nuts... They didn't happen. You can If all you want. They didn't happen. Again, facts. Never once have I said they don't care. I just have repeatedly said they don't put anywhere close to enough effort in. I really like Craig and everyone I've met in the Revs FO. I consider a couple of them friends. That doesn't mean that I'm just going to ignore the crap that they're feeding the fans (and some are happily swallowing). Ding ding ding. But this is the best Revs team ever! One of the KAG said so! Addition by subtraction baby. Next year, we're going to play with a roster of 13 just to prove we can! Moot point. They'd NEVER do that. They ... I know this will come as a shock to people ... they actually try and improve their team each and every year. They might not always succeed, but they try. But what the hell do they know? It's not like they've actually won anything. Mike, this year? It's been three years, and their last addition during the offseason was Khano Smith three years ago. I said it during this offseason to all the people hyping up Cristman and Thompson, it's not fair to those kids to expect them to replace a Dempsey, or to expect them to come in and be huge contributors. Yet, that's what the Revs expect of them. But Mike, we're in second place!
I posted this on another thread that is burried but here ya go multiple choice questions for you: A well managed team who has lost a championship game would a. step back, see why they lost and address the problem b. Do nothing and wait and see how next year unfolds A well managed team that knows it is losing a star player and has cap space and money from the sale of the player would a. Scout the globe and find the best available player they could afford b. Hope that a draft pick will step up and fill his shoes A well managed team that has two open roster spots during the middle of the season would a. Try bring in as many people and try to fill those positions so that their starters are not spent come playoff time b. Bring in a 33 year old out of work defender at the end of August in hopes that he can be good enough to make the team A well managed team who has lost its second championship game would a. step back, see why they lost and address the problem b. Do nothing and wait and see how next year unfolds A well managed team who has lost its third championship game would a. step back, see why they lost and address the problem b. Do nothing and wait and see how next year unfolds A well managed team with money under that cap, allocations available, and transfer money at the begining of this season would a. Bring in veteran help and make this the best team possible and try to ensure that it makes the finals again but does not lose b. wait until the end of the season to see if it needs help and to see how its rookies are playing A well managed team with money to spend and a history of losing in the finals(any final) is offer players with very good pedigrees albeit late in their careers would a. Look closely at these players, bring them in for a trial, see how they get along with the team and possibly sign one b. Pass If you answered A to all of these, you have a well managed organization if you answered B to all of these, you have the Revs management team
MOST? Are you doing some polling we haven't heard about? That makes a lot of sense. But, its been said before and a lot of people just don't want to hear it. They'd rather believe what they want to believe. No one's every challenged your right to criticize. But you keep maintaining that they don't care/aren't trying in spite of contradictory facts (i.e., "they're not interested in improving the team", yet they just signed two new players and were about to sign a Serie A veteran). As I pointed out in another topic, you obviously disagree with what they are doing. Criticize away. But, don't keep re-stating that they aren't doing anything and don't care - because that's just clearly untrue.
Who is this "Serie A veteran" you are talking about? Petrovic? or the Italian pinup boy that the wimming were drooling over in another thread? Talk about spinning things to suit your purpose! If it was the latter, I don't think they were ever really "almost" going to sign him. It was just a rumor being floated around. If you're referring to the 33-year-old out-of-contract, looking-for-a-club guy who they declined to sign when he was 2 years younger, well, that's a bit of a stretch. And besides, that reeked of a desperation move...it's probably just as well we didn't sign him, although I was willing to give hima chance if we did. My question to you and the other KADs is why were they not persuing these and other suitable players in the off-season? Why if you bring him into camp or even in May, then you have a whole season. You know, kind of like what DC did with Fred and Emilio and Columbus did with Schiletto.... Bringing in the young Gambians is fine, I have no problem with that. I look forward to seeing them better integrate with the team and make a really solid contribution--NEXT SEASON. They are a totally separate issue from bringing in an established player (or two--we can afford it!) in the $200,000 range, something that many of us have been calling for the Revs to do ever since Tony Lochhead flew the coop. When it comes to bringing in non-draft players, the Revs front office is the Alberto Gonzalez prinicple: Either you are lying through your teeth (we've tried hard to find the right player, but it's soooo hard) or you are totally incompetent. Pick whatever option you want, but either way it ain't good.
I was wondering the same thing actually. Petkovic never played in Italy I don't believe, so that can't be it. And the stuff about Coco was just rumors that even people here realized were probably just being floated around by his agent. So ... rkupp ... you really are stretching on that one.
One more prickly caveat to consider: don't one or more of the Revolution's remaining allocations "expire" during the offseason under the league's new rules?
Wolf.. Even if we win a trophy and then sit and do nothing..and hope that LA, Chicago, and FCD add another DP to their roster to boost our attendance those 3 games..there's gonna be some nasty talk.. especially when the only quote we get is...Well, we're just going to wait and see how the DP works out..and we can't say much about the SSS because we basically have never had a plan..cept for the 12year old's etch a sketch of a playground that looks like it could work....Anonynous quote by the Revs FO. I heard it from a guy who's wife owns a florist shop where Adam Cristman's mother bumped into a lady who's daughter once had a trist with..oh never mind...someone probably said it, one time, one day this year at some unofficial meeting of the scatterbrains....
Actually I did hear from a guy that represents a player who was offered to the revs back in may/june....Revs never called him back. The player has a handful of Caps for a Major Soccer Power. The player is 33......That is all I am saying
May 15, 2008. And my gut feeling says that at least one of the two allocations will be completely wasted.
I am sure there is a good reason why they will not use the allocation......New rookies crop from Wake Forest might be shy to bring in a few Vets, no other player on earth quite fits with the team, no other MLS team needed cap relief.......something like that
Do you really think one $200,000 player or two $100,000 players will really make a difference? As I've said before, when a team gets a close as the Revs do every year, it just comes down to a bounce of the ball. And just because an allocation exists doesn't mean the team, which we can all agree is cheap, can afford it. Might they not be better spending the money, if they have it, on retaining players like Joseph or Dorman? Or would just doing something, anything, meet with your approval? What if thety spent the money and did worse?
Yes. Would have been nice waaaaay at the beginning of the season, too. Why, even back then we had Space and $$$. Might actually, like, _control_ the game and it's bounces more. See: Emilio, Fred, Schelotto, heck, even Marinelli Kevin D.
Damn right I do. I have no idea if you're a Pats fan or not, but if you are, you'd know that the Pats use players 52 and 53 on their roster because they're important parts. We basically use 14 players ... because we really don't have a 15 and 16 that the coaching staff trusts. Do you believe it's just coincidence that the bounce of the ball always seems to go against the Revs when they get to the most important games? The Revs would be paying 1/13 of the salary for any player. That's it. If he's too cheap to be able to pay 1/13 of $200K or $100K ... we've got more problems than I can even begin to think of. That's fine ... would spending $200K this year necessarily have precluded money being spent to retain players next year? Wow ... what a terrible argument. Nothing personal, and I apologize if you take it that way ... but wow. Maybe they shouldn't draft anyone next year, because they might make the team worse.
By the way ... let's think about this. In regards to our second allocation, the one we got from Columbus ... this is what we gave them. So if we don't use that allocation by May, we will have given up the first pick in the second round (hmmm ... Altidore anyone?) and a pick in this year's third round. For nothing.
The Crew acquired Jay Zayner from Indiana with the pick. According to MLSNet, we acquired that pick originally from Chivas. Altidore was picked 17. Sims was 23. Dyachenco was 31. Bornstein was 37. Jeff Carrol was 39. Zayner suffered an ACL tear last April, ended his season. Oh yeah, he is a Generation Adidas player, so he doesn't count against their cap.
I would rather not take my chances that the ball happens to bounce our way this time. No, I am talking about the fact that, by all accounts, they could have brought in not one, but two players, each of whom makes over $200,000 a year. Not a "Beckham" signing, but you can not argue that there aren't some pretty good players out there who can be had for that kind of money. Even if the Revs could have signed two guys at that level and only signed one, I could at least have lived with that. The fact that they signed zero, count 'em, zero players of that magnitude tells me a lot about what this organization stands for. Well, they DID give Noonan a huge raise and renegotiated Twellman's contract as well. It would have been a nice gesture to give Joseph something if they weren't going to let him go to Celtic, but if you notice, they didn't do that. Insted, they decided to do nothing with the extra cap space. There's a very likely chance that he'll walk and the Revs will get nothing when his contract expires. And the way Dorman has played this year, I don't care if he did walk. If they brought in a Fred/Emilio/Gomez/Toja level player and he turned out to be a bust, I could live with that. DC brought in Erpen last year and he was average at best. At least they would be attempting to improve the team. If the Revs got an "average" guy, it would mean more options and depth, at the very minimum, something they don't have now. The money that they save under the cap does not do anything. If you aren't going to buy a player you might as well re-stock the toilet paper in the mens' room with dollar bills (not $50s -- they gotta last all season) because the money is gone. Just like the money they got from selling their best player last year. Just like the allocation money that will expire May 15 2008 unless they use it. The really sad thing is that this is all so predictable. Both the front office and their staunchest defenders.
Hilly, you're so damn negative. They actually traded some of that cap space to Dallas so they could get Denilson. We even got back a SUPPLEMENTARY draft pick for it! See, we did use the cap space!
just a quick look at what player could be had in MLS for around 100k: Klejstan Mendoza Chad Marshall Virtuoso Beckerman Toja Cooper Eddie Robinson Arnaud Burciaga Jazic Altidore IF 200k could get me two of these guys, lets sign them tomorrow!!!! Any two of these guys could give the Revs much needed depth. 100k gets you a decent player in MLS
Not to pile on, but let's be honest: the Revs could have used allocation money for cap relief, have scads of Dempsey money left over, and 75% of MLS teams in the league are overtly over the cap. The availability of cash is not the question. What is lacking is the desire to do what is necessary to use it and/or the willingness to spend it. The Revs could easily have swung a 300K - 400K player without anyone blinking an eye. I have a feeling the list of players making 400K in MLS (including, BTW, Twellman and Joseph) is even more impressive.