Now that Chicago has traded away both Kovalenko and Nowak they don't really have any central attacking mid. I think they are the only team in the league to not have a starting player for this position. There is talk that Chicago still has one more big trade coming. Bradley doesn't want Andy Williams, so will we trade him to Chicago for something?
No one wants Andy Williams and his well over six-figure contract and Senior International status. He is untradeable and unless he takes a significant paycut (a la Wolde Harris) will be playing in the A-League this season. Thank you and goodbye.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but Andy Williams is going to get a green card, is he not? And he makes about $110k, now well over $100k, does he not?
We've been hearing that for ages now. I think his green card will be going out in the same batch of mail as Mullah Omar's.
Put it this way, I've heard he will make more than the minimum MLS salary and then some above $110. He's gone, to be replaced by an allocation... If anyone had wanted him, he'd have been traded by now. Metro, with a top heavy roster of Timmy Howard, Eddie Pope, Clint Mathis, Jaime Moreno and Al Location, are not going to be able to keep Andy Williams...bye, bye.
Dallas don't want him either. Why do you guys want him? I heard some of his assists were accidental and he tends to hold the ball to long, killing potential counter attacks. Ive heard he has wonderful individual skill, but his creativity as the "midfield chief" doesnt really exist.
Heard from whom? Newspaper sources have said he makes slightly over $100K, around the $105-$110K range. Where are your links?
considering the orignal post, Metros trading the Williams brothers to Chicago for Armas would likely be something Chicago would consider. AW plays OMid and holds down that spot while Mapp and Capano mature, and Williams takes over Armas' spot. And between them, they wouldn't earn as much as Armas. Bradley may love Armas, but I doubt he'll be wearing a Metros jersey this season. There isn't any reason to make that trade if you have R. Williams who is basically the same player and makes less money. Having said that, the Metros will now make me eat my words.
And where are your links? In any case, since MLS salaries are never public, I doubt you can believe ANY newspaper sources.
Here's one: http://www.nj.com/sports/ledger/index.ssf?/base/sports-0/1041319848125730.xml There have been others. I'll see if I can dig them up. It's not perfect but I tend to believe that these reports are more accurate than people who say that they "heard from someone, who knows someone, who's neighbor works for the Metros, who says 'blah, blah, blah'". Anyone can make that stuff up, if you want people to believe you have access to real inside information you have to have a good track record of knowing Metro-only info before it hits the papers.
You'll be able to judge my track record in a day or two, when AW is no longer listed on the Metro roster...and will only appear on another MLS roster when he re-works his contract to a lower figure.
All I know is Williams is a quick skillful player. We want to get rid of players like that? Are we going to get someone just as good in exchange? Don't think so.
Hey Metros, send AW to DC. This way they don't make the playoffs again. Has anyone noticed that AW has not been in the playoffs since 1999 with Columbus??? He has only been there twice in 1998 and 1999. Losing is contagious. Why would we want to keep him? He can be the best player on another bad team next year!!!
When has anyone stepped up and said that Bradley doesn't want Andy Williams ? ...same go's for Dallas, Chicago and the other clubs in MLS. These ideas and possibilities are all dreamed up on this site by people who have nothing better to do with their time. The media has been as resourceful as most people here on BS in that they are just following what seems to be the fasionable thing to say. Bottom line is that Bradley hasn't even had a months work of practice to see what his squad has. We haven't played one match or even one scrimmage. Saying Andy doesn't fit in to a system that hasn't even been developed is pretty funny. Why doesn't everyone relax and let the Metros actually get some time in together. Andy was the best player on our squad last year and removing him would be setting us back, yet again.
Maddog, until you can replace some of those "I heards" with a few "based on what I've seens" you can't really judge. For whatever reason, Vistula and a few others just seem to hate Andy Williams. He was one of the bright points last season from where I was sitting. As for the point of the entire thread, I highly doubt we'll be trading him to Chicago. The Fire has handled their cap problems by trading the salaries of Kovalenko and Nowak and only picking up draft picks and a p-40 player. They are also rumored to move bothe Wolff (to KC) and Stoichkov (to DC) in the coming days. They have no reason to move Armas. I wouldn't be surprised if Sarachan got somebody via discovery to run the offense or even handed to keys of the team to Capano (a BIG reason to keep an experienced leader like Armas right next to him in the middle of that pitch.) The rest of the Chicago midfield (Beasley, Armas and Whitfield) is good enough to allow Capano some growing pains. Andy Williams may or may not be here. If he's not, It's no indication on his play while he was here.
I have nothing against Andy Williams and I do not deny he was a bright spot on a bad Metro team. All I'm saying is he won't be on the 2003 squad and the club has not been able to find any team interested in trading for him. So, in a nutshell, since the club holds the option on Andy's contract, look for Metro to deny the option. They'll use his salary slot (close to $150k) on their allocation. It will all be clear in a few days...or by Draft Day, at the latest. It's nothing against AW, it's just that no one in MLS wants him at his current salary. If he resurfaces in the league, it will be at a drastically reduced salary...maybe half of what he was due to make. Still, even at 75k, Metro will have better use for that money, especially after they use the allocation on a center mid.
The Andy Williams fellate love fest is getting a little ridiculous. Williams has some nice skills, and he's going to be a damn fine midfield tandem with Lenin Steenkamp in Rochester. Thanks for that beautiful first month of being a Metro Andy, all those secondary assists will be sorely missed.
Tim Howard doesn't "run" the offense and go to teams advertised as it's "offensive savior." Andy Williams is the best player on teams that do not make the playoffs. Did you notice that New England and Miami got better after getting rid of him? By the way, Mamadou Diallo hasn't won a palyoff series either, but Mike Ammann, Billy Walsh, Orlando Perez, and Daniel Hernandez have. What do these guys have in common? I hardly post anymore, but I am always reading the boards. I just feel that I have to speak up about this. We are so used to losing, that we don't see how bad our team was last year. The Metros have gone backwards for two seasons after a memorable run in 2000. We have a chance to see some good soccer now, but some of you want to cling to a shady past.
and Richie Williams has won three MLS Cup rings and one Open Cup. What do we have? Even Brian Kamler has won a ring or two. Do you remember what happened with him this year?
Andy Williams played well with us last year, there is no arguing that, and if they all played like him the metros would have made the playoffs. Last year everyone was singing his praise now all of a sudden cause there is a chance he may be gone we say he is terrible. He played well with us, all of a sudden speculation is supposed to diminish his performance?
Why is that funny? Considering the cap postion that Chicago is in, I think it's realistic. I never said it was the ideal situation. The ideal situation would be Bradley still coaching and the salary cap being raised so the Fire could keep most the team together.