The Fire Earnie Stewart Thread

Let's get a list of signings to get a clear idea.
I know this much, was Simpson even on the field today?

 

delete this.

 

That comment was largely twitter trolling but I think Curtin is the much bigger problem. We aren't getting the most out of the players we have.

 

Curtin is bad, but do we really have the players to compete. We are a slow team. Do we have the players with enough ball handling skills to compensate? We have the forwards for a 2-striker formation, but do we have the midfield for it?

 

Sorry but this goes way beyond Stewart.

Let's just call it what it is. The Union is 2nd rate. It just is. Miserly ownership, bad stadium location, non-existent scouting, piss poor media coverage in general (not referring to the great work by Kinkead and even Matt DeGeorge), fan apathy (there's a reason why the Union has the lowest social media following of any established team in MLS). Sir Alex Ferguson couldn't overcome this setup.

It's tiring as a fan to try to eek out moral victories week after week when you know the truth is your team is outclassed - oh wait excuse me, being "Philly Tough Blue Collar Underdogs".

And guess what, it ain't changing any time soon. The high school, while a cool setup, isn't going to be enough. The only chance is Sugarman selling the team. Of course, if he actually sold the team, it's most likely going to be to one of the prospective groups who couldn't score an expansion franchise and want to get into MLS another way, so I guess we're stuck.

 

Just start over. This team is synonymous with failure.

Find new owners, rebrand, move to the city and start over with a new ambitious manager and a coaching staff experienced with assembling, training, and playing a roster that competes at a high level.

I honestly don't think that until this team is completely revamped under new owners it will be anything more than a perpetual basement dweller.

 

The dude's only been there a bit over a year and he's trying to get the mess Nick Sakiewicz left behind in order. It's going to take more than a year. It might take 5 years. Especially with the team ownership being a giant anchor to the team. Stewart doesn't get to pick and choose. He has to go after gambles for value. I don't blame him for this. It's the ownership.

 

Ding, ding, ding.

We need a #SuagrmanOut thread to really complete the hat trick here.

 

We need a real coach. Until Curtin is gone and replaced with a person with true experience nothing will improve. We have talent, just don't have a person capable of organizing it.

 

I often think Philly was unlucky to come into the league when they did. The announcement of the team occurred roughly when the MLS 2.0 advancement was beginning

-Beckham coming to MLS,
-Toronto producing an amazing Euro type atmosphere in their first year,
-Big $ Red Bull buying NY,
-Seattle's huge attendance from day 1,
-Portland/Vancouver and Cascadia growing to MLS level,
-National Team beating world #1 Spain,
-Donovan's goal vs Algeria advancing the US to a respectable 2nd round performance in South Africa,
-TV money/MLS Live

-This all kept soccer fueled for near term growth and by roughly 2013 MLS 2.0 was realized and largely a big success. NYCFC and Orlando were on the way and looking ambitious. Expansion fees were skyrocketing and yet still had many prospective investors. MLS 3.0 was about to start, it remains to be seen how much of a success it will be, it probably runs until a year or two after LA2 and maybe Miami comes in. I suspect MLS 4.0 is post-Garber, post-expansion and very different then 2.0 and 3.0, built upon mass focus around WC2026. and a deep run the USMNT has at home. Pulisic maybe the US captain at 27 by then.

Philly was missing 2.0 characteristics. I’d argue they may have reached 2.0 in 2016 when they finally got a solid training complex finished, hired a legitimate sporting director, and finally put a million $ DP on the field for the first time.

Philly was kind of MLS 1.5. Big market, passionate, soccer starved hungry fanbase, and a brand spanking new stadium built for soccer. Sebastian Le Toux, Danny Califf, Roger Torres gave us early heros and faces to connect with. Le Toux really saved the Union's ass the first two years. Can't imagine what it would have been like without him keeping us in games. We managed to unexpectedly make the playoffs in year 2. But longer term, the stadium location was not ideal and would require alot of creative work to maximize, the surrounding area plan didn't have strong legs (and seems forever blown up with the 07-09 era economic melt down, if it was even ever real in the first place), the owners didn't have deep pockets (compared to other MLS and most top division pro sports owners in this country) and had just taken a beating in the real estate market. The franchise was being led by a exec who had a very questionable reputation within MLS. They didn't invest in DP's in the early going. Nowak turned out to be a lunatic as a manager (shouldn't have been a surprise, that was always a risk with him).

Philly may have been infinitely better off had it been a few more years until a team was awarded. Once it was clear MLS 2.0 was a huge step up, it attracted more potential investors, with deeper pockets. This would have left the current group in the dust, or at least Sugarman and B/P. They wouldn't have been able to compete for a franchise after a real estate meltdown. The taxpayers and Chester got burned by them not following through with the surrounding development plans. Yes, the economic meltdown period of 2007-2009 is a valid reason for it not getting started then, but we're now 8-10 years on from that period, most aspects generally speaking have recovered and yet there is nothing (don't kid me with the training complex, that does little for economic development, its a one-time bolt-on for the team). It's not theft or illegal, but it's called not following through on your end of the bargin and the public has every right to voice their disdain over the use of the tax dollars until someone makes that right again. Chester, Delco, PA won't be doing much for this team going forward, they've sacrificed.

We need a new owner who's willing to follow through with that original plan, prepared with MLS 3.0/4.0 level thinking, ambition, and resources. It’s not Sugarman – 100%. I have yet to hear a persuasive defense that it is. He’s just trying to ride the MLS growth wave and not fall off the surf board – no realistic thought of winning the competition. We're stuck with the stadium location for a few more decades, so best to make the most of that original plan and bring back some confidence and trust that the ownership can accomplish what they say they set out to do.

 

Need a "Force Sugarman to sell" thread.

 

The thing is, I just don't even want to care whether Stewart could be good or not. I just... don't care anymore. With stingy owners and a coaching staff that looks like it just got done with the local high school jv match, what does it even matter?

Need I remind you we still don't have talent scouts?

 

I've made a similar argument before--I don't think it was a matter of being "unlucky," I think they just pushed in before they were ready. We often talk about the Union/SOB origin story as a plucky heroic triumph, but it may have been a real mistake. Can you imagine if we were building on a platform like Atlanta right now?

That being said I think the worst way to build infrastructure is to continually tear down infrastructure. So staying in Chester, sticking with Earnie, going full speed on the youth movement...those are our best shots, imo.

 

Exactly. This team has already had 3 reboots!!!! Nowak rebooted after 2011......at the time everyone was up in arms and rightfully so, but that 2011 team was more lucky then good (and dreadful to watch when they weren't playing Chivas, the Revs, or TFC) and likely needed to be freshened up. Hackworth purged the Nowak era(ror), and then yet again when Earnie arrived and purged the Sak out of the roster.

This Team needs stability. Earnie had to rebuild the soccer side from the rubble that was the Sak er(a)ror. It finally has a solid foundation (academy, training facility, young players). Still think Curtin needs to be replaced, and Earnie needs to be bring in someone with more tactical sense, and better man management skills.

 

Not sure, I do think Simpson could be a very effective forward in this league but I don't think Curtin is the guy to get the best out of his players. That said, the majority of our midfield is old and slow. We need additions in the midfield and at back, along with a new manager. Until then, we will continue to be mediocre. On the bright side, we've always been mediocre so no one should be disappointed.

 

I'm in the camp that is convinced that the true problem with this club is the ownership group. They are short on money and short on ideas to produce a top MLS first team. Until something dramatically changes there with more resources becoming available in terms of finances and personnel, this club will continue in its holding pattern of being an occasional playoff team at its best. Quality is not being brought in enough to keep up with the Jones, and when there has been some they don't retain it and fail to replace it.

I'm not happy with Earnie's signings so far, but I also think he's hampered by the situation that the Union are in from a financial resource standpoint, and that goes far beyond merely not being able to make too many "splash" DP signings.

 

Of all the pieces I still don't think he's the main problem here.

 

I think ownership is the real issue. But seeing as how they aren't about to go anywhere I'll take a change in Curtin and/or Earnie.

 

I think we are deep into chicken or egg territory here. But I just can't believe a more seasoned manager wouldn't do better , shit Ben has been doing it for years. Continuing to play Bedoya at 10, starting Simpson over Sapong this match when clearly Sapong is the hot hand, NEVER altering formation, etc. These are manager decisions.

With that said, I hoped for a lot better from Earnie.

Ive been around since the beginning and I'm still bitterly disappointed.

At this point I'll settle for a change in formation

 

Earnie will struggle to find South American talent when we don't seem to have scouts there. It's not surprising that he's relying on guys from memory who came through Holland. Yeah, Alberg hasn't fit in and Il$inho seems to be only occasionally dangerous. Both guys had pedigrees. Not sure there's really a budget to go and watch guys overseas. He seems to have done ok with Medunjanin. Wijnaldum hasn't broken the lineup, but he found a left footed cheap LB. So if the issue here is misspent dollars, he only "bought" Bedoya and I think that's tough to lay completely at his feet. Sugar was already sold on that buy and Jim and Albright banged that drum. Add in he took a look at the roster, losing Nogs and Barnetta saying he'd leave, I don't even fault him tremendously for a rush buy. Honestly, it's way too soon to can Earnie, but he does need to up his game. Simpson can't be that much and he's already got a goal (plus the added competition seems to have sparked CJ).

Where he's falling down, he hasn't convinced Sugarman to open the checkbook for more FO staff. Who gives a shit if there are training fields and academies if the best our scouting department is Earnie doing the "I knew a guy once The Hague, lemme call him". Get a decent scout in the Low Countries and one in Argentina (especially with how garbage their economy is) and look for talent who would want to come here and be coached by a moron. Got to be some players out there.