DJ: you notice in the article one of the first things mentioned is the renovated locker room. like this is high on the list of things prospects consider or fans care about. prospects want salary. they may not see the facilities until they arrive to put pen to paper. you don't want it so junky word spreads, but it's a side issue. it's thinking a little bit of paint fixes the team. fwiw, i remember getting a post deleted by the mods on here when the new stadium was coming out, because it blew my mind people thought the players would care if we installed those fancy soft recliner type bench chairs a la EPL. lot of discussion of "what the fans want" or outreach. my experience, what we want is a competitive roster and field success. i agree with wanting winners but in my experience it's more the ability to sign the best players off a winner. the article talks about us pursuing more offense. olsen accidentally agrees with me when he points out plenty of other teams in the league are trying to up their offense. it's not a novel approach, you are competing with other teams to execute a common strategy, and miami hints you have to spend money to succeed. in reality, our history shows you need defense for playoffs. the difference of success or failure in the elis years was, whether the defense was even halfway competent. we might put up 57 goals. whether we advanced depended if we allowed 45 or an equal 57 GA. i do think this is much more scrappy than the covid era mess, it tries, but there's a foot speed issue in the back, and the pivotal question will be can we get the GA down.
to make a distinction. i go sign a top player from a winning team, eg, HH, he gets me 15 or so assists and the offense takes off -- plus he understands the "milk a win" or "fight for a win" details winners do. i go sign a veteran mediocrity from a winner like AJ delagarza, he may be serviceable with a bunch of talent picked in addition to him, but by himself, he sucks or blows out his knee. the 2017 defense ages into crappiness. he doesn't win you games, though if someone else does, he knows how to kill clock and get a W. if the surrounding talent isn't top notch, he can't carry you and you don't make the playoffs. eg on the 23-24 LAFC teams, bogusz was actually 3rd or 4th fiddle behind bouagna, vela, and sometimes tillman. he has some talent, but i am not sure about the energy level, and we don't have the same spending or talent level where he can produce in part because the defense has to take bouanga, vela, and others super serious and at some point you run out of defenders who can mark the weapons out of games.
Question is....when do they spend it?? WE feel a sense of urgency but does the FO? Are they wasting time..errrr...looking for best available or for some over 30 guy that one time was on a team that won a trophy 10 years ago because "winning mentality"?
There is a substack blog called Footy Analytics Musings. He writes often on roster composition in MLS and cap space compliance issues. He recently wrote a piece about these GAM numbers, focusing on teams that have little GAM left. It seems his view is that if you put yourself in that position, having spent all your GAM, that you are betting on that season and will either not be able to compete soon, or be forced to sell valuable players. I think he would argue that spending all your GAM is not a path to consistent success. Interesting perspective has me thinking about what it takes to succeed in MLS. I think Dom Kinnear would say "you never know what tomorrow looks like. Spend now, be as good as you can now, worry about tomorrow when you get there." I'm not really sure what is right.
Ibrahim Aliyu is back in orange according to social posts by Tom Bogert. Deal is for $250k GAM + $500k GAM add-ons. Last years sale to CLB was for $450k cash + $750k cash add-ons. Given that GAM is more valuable to a team then cash (opposite for owners) I don't consider this a bargain. I assume the Dynamo are looking at fitness issues in the wingback positions and felt they had to make this move. Just saying, if we wind up using him and paying add-ons then the profit from Dorsey is gone ....
My take? This needed to be for cash, not GAM. Giving up a chunk of the Dorsey profit seems like a step backwards in the end.
This move has all the markings of a FO with no plan. They gave up Dorsey and then took the first thing available to replace him, with speed being the biggest consideration. This whole thing just feels like a "f^ck it, lets see what happens" approach. And that's IF Aliyu takes the right back spot. I mean, he has to, right? RIGHT???? PS At least I get to dust off the ol donkey dos reference
I'm guessing, and it is just guessing, that Aliyu is viewed as depth at LB, and perhaps 3rd string RB.
when last year's finalists would be nos. 2 and 3 on your theorist's "bad" list, and the worst team in MLS is the best GAM hoarder, the argument is self-refuting. dragging this towards reality, the appearance is teams with resources use GAM to endrun the DP limits. if you're bringing in expensive name brand players, you're using every tool you can think of to legally roster people. when miami brings in another name spanish league player, we all ask, "how is this legal?" we're not really spending, we're even selling guys for tools, then we hoard the tools. because we're not actually spending to need to burn the tools. which is the real reason SKC is both near bottom on payroll but also top on GAM.
HH has yet to play and didn't start again tonight. aliyu wasn't run out immediately. it comes across to me like a GM lacking in ideas, under pressure to make it back to the playoffs, who defaults back to prior roster elements because they got it done a few years ago. it conveys we are trying to barely squeak in, as the adds are low risk but also low reward. it also tends to ignore the guys left for a reason. they were sufficient at a point. the next year they weren't. you moved on. it's then dubious they are playoff fodder. it also says to me olsen and onstad aren't on a page because the GM hands the HC guys who he then sits. GM signs HH and aliyu. HC dresses then sits them. the HC conversely says in at least one instance i didn't vote for a starter to go. this doesn't sound like GM and HC sitting down and building something. it sounds like the GM making himself look busy and half the time HC would disagree with the tools given him to work with. i half expect olsen to walk into onstad's office with the printed email announcing one of these signings, wipe his tookus with it, then tell pat, "that's what i think of you signing him."
all due respect, dude, but i think we've had this convo before. a middling team needs impact starters, not depth players. we used to do this during the lousy years. to me you should be signing people who even if initially brought in for development or as cover, are also seen as competition and potential upside. if it's a little too obvious a guy is there as 3rd string filler, no grander hopes, what's the point. eg, raines was initially bench, but that wasn't the long term hope. holden initially was bench, but........cameron initially was bench, but.........cavan sullivan in philly isn't a regular starter "yet," but.....
What the Actual F? Your entire reply, referencing me, has NOTHING to do with my comment. NOTHING. This is why you are so hated. You twist and misrepresent everyone else then present us as wrong. All I did was guess how they are planning on using Aliyu. Happens to be EXACTLY how they used him tonight. I did not say the trade was good, nor did I say it was bad. If you read carefully the thread you would have picked up that I find the move overall a "step backwards" and that it seems "desperate." You owe everyone in this thread an apology.
Adios Quinoes. Waived yesterday. If it's because of his injury then what a sad end to a promising career. He's only 23 so hopefully he can still have time to get well and get back out there and this is just a long pause. International spot now open
If I remember correctly, @juvechelsea called for the Dynamo to go after Sam Vines. I may be incorrect on who called for it.... https://www.houstondynamofc.com/news/houston-dynamo-fc-sign-u-s-national-team-defender-sam-vines
Agustin Resch has won promotion from Dynamo Dos .... https://www.houstondynamofc.com/new...ydBRbHLULKx7aQA6ZM_aem_LBcabBXI_PaisHIR07ficg
Still looking for that permanent right wing back to replace the sudden Dorsey dismissal. I guess that's a priority but who knows with this FO. The Vines signing is a good one in that he's a good player & adds depth to that side of the field. Would like to see some movement on getting a true RWB and a striker that can score sitters, win headers, not be taken out at half time and have more goals than yellow cards.
If the club wanted to really make a huge leap - take Santiago Gimenez off of Milan's hands. They want to offload him becuase he has lost confidence and he can get it back in Houston as a franchise player. He has very good qualities and plays for the Mexican National team. It can be done, they would need to line up local / national sponsorship and he would help sell out the stadium with some hype. We missed out on Carlos Vela. Fortune favors the bold. Come on Club! He would be great to watch - I might even come back and by season tickets again.