Tony Sanneh for Allocation?

Firstly, it was reported during the Crew game over the weekend that Sanneh was looking to go to the Crew, so that may put a damper on him coming here. While Sanneh is experienced he's also getting on in years and who knows how his surgically repaired back will feel after a long stretch of play. I would think Sanneh wants a max salary, isn't taht one of teh reasons we got rid of Pope? At max salary who would you rather have Sanneh or Pope? I would think the answer is Pope. Also I don't think Sanneh has a future anymore on the USMNT, at least not much past some qualifiers. With Pope, Bocanegra, Gibbs, Califf and Berhalter available to play in the center of the defense Sanneh doesn't beat those guys out. On the right he would be up against Cherundolo and maybe even Albright, both younger and Cherundolo has definitely proven himself with Hannover. If Sanneh's salary is really low like Moreno's, than it's a good deal, but anything over $75K is too much. I do agree that we need a defender first and foremost. We can score goals as we have proven in several games but we can't have a chance to win if we are giving away too many goals.

 

i was under the impression that Sanneh played in front of the 3man backline or on the right side. I could be (probably am) wrong, but thats how i remember it. Its been along time since he's played tho.

There are two main questions in my mind
#1) can he play? this includes skill and fitness as well as how well his injury has healed.
#2) how much will he cost? other than the allocation that we lose, how much salary will he eat up since that may prevent us from filling other holes that desperately need filling. Its also directly tied to #1 cuz if he goes down after we sign him, we have less money and no more allocation

If he requires an allocation, I doubt he'd be cheap. I dont think the league is in the practice of using allocations on a $50k a year defender. He'd probably be much closer to max.

If he is healthy and cheap (the only way we make this move, IMHO) then he would be a great addition. He can help out along the whole backline and in midfield and maybe even striker. lets not forget he started out as a striker and he's well over 6ft (6'3"?)...

 

Since we're talking about the Crew.

What about Akwari? If the Crew does get Sanneh..they can't keep all this young talent on the bench. Akwari, Wingert..even if he's not truly ready..


and How many careers are we gonna place in Andrulis's hands!!!

 

When United pounded the Crew a little while ago at RFK, the worst player on the field was by far Akwari. Right now, he'd only be an upgrade over Stokes, which sure isn't saying much.

 

Let's see, blow an allocation on an old, recently seriously injured player. No thanks. Don't waste an allocation on a stop-gap replacement for Nelsen. If he is gone (surgery and free agency), then use the allocation on a long-term replacement in the back. (And to think we cut Reyes to keep Cerritos -- how frickin' dumb must Kasper feel now?) In the meantime, if Nelsen can't go, put EZ and Stokes!!??!! in the middle, Namoff & Prideaux outside and bunker down boys and girls because it will get very ugly.

 

See..I don't expect Young defenders to be very good. Akwari is what 20 - 21?

 

Jeff Parke is doing alright this season.

Carlos Bocanegra and Nick Garcia both had pretty decent rookie seasons.

Chad Marshall isn't doing that badly at all.

Todd Dunivant was pretty fricking good last year.

Chris Albright has sucked for all his pro career and in what is basically a rookie season (or worse because he had NEVER played there before) he's not only playing solid defense but among the league leaders in assists.

Jim Curtin did well when he started playing for the Fire.

I could go on and on here, but maybe it's useless for two reasons. First, defenders, even young ones, can come into this league and have very successful seasons. It's been proven many a time.

Secondly, the point could be moot if you're trying to bring in another long term project in the back, but I think we've got more than enough to handle there at the moment with Mr. David Stokes. Why trade for someone you admit isn't very good, are you David Kasper's sockpuppet or something?

 

What happened to the Emilio rumor? Are we going to sign him and if so will that be the allocation? If I understand the translations from the other thread then there shouldn't be an allocation needed to sign him. In this scenario we have Sanneh, who did play central D at Nurnberg, with an allocation and our proven goal scorer on a free. The real question is can Tony still play. If Moreno is any example of soccer after back surgery then the answer is probably yes. Also playing Stokes is better then playing him wide. He was a central defender, IIRC and would do alot better then on the wing.

 

I was using Akwari as an example. Because Marshall is inaccessible, and I don't think Wingert is ready (nor a central defender)..

I was thinking of the Crew because adding Szetela, Andrulis has got to Save his job somehow..

 

Sanneh can still play and has proven it as recently as his USMNT appearances - the most recent of which was June 2 against the depleted Honduras side. I have no doubt that he would be an immediate and noticeable upgrade to DC United's onfield talent. Heck, we might even get him to make some runs forward like he did in the WC quarterfinals so we can have, at least at times, a bit of a large physical presence in front of our opponent's goal.

For DC United, the questions about Sanneh revolve around his long term durability and how much he would cost to acquire. In my opinion he is worth an allocation, IF he stays healthy. (Sorry, I don't how to make that "IF" print out bigger)

Sanneh still entertains notions of playing at the Bundesliga 2 level if you believe the Yanks Abroad threads. So I don't think we could sign him for much less than the league max, although an allocation would defray some of the costs for a time. However, if German teams don't demonstrate any interest his salary expectations will probably decline and make him more affordable to the DC. But I think if we sign him right now (as a stopgap for an injured Nelsen) we will need to pay a fairly hefty price by MLS standards.

 

Read this and tell me if you think Tony Sanneh is coming anywhere in the US, much less D.C.

 

No. Love Sanneh. Would love to get him back. But not for an allocation. We've wasted enough of those, thanks.

 

To me, it's really just a health question. If Tony is healthy, I believe he's certainly worth an allocation and league max.

If Nelsen ends up leaving, I think Tony could fill the void for several seasons as our central defender.

Once again, it's really all about his health in my book and I can't blame Tony for getting upset that MLS won't pony up the money he wants. If healthy, he's worth it.

 

With Nelsen out for the next month/two months (and possibly in England next year), it may be time to rethink the subject.

Sanneh may be willing to come back to DC United is he gets the max salary.

If Sanneh stays healthy, he would be worth it.

 

Why can't people understand that Sanneh played for Nurnberg FC and not Nuremburg. The former is a football club and the latter is a city where the Nazi elite where tried after WW2. Sorry to be picky but my step-grandmother comes from Nurnberg. It is a lovely city that is famous for its Christmas cookies. And after reading the article Monster linked I'd say MLS has blown any chance of signing him.

 

How about a three-way?

Sanneh to the Crew with our allocation; Crew give Danny Szeitgeist to MetroScum; we get back Eddie Pope.

Or some variation (Scum also give a spare forward like Galvan Rey or Glenn to one or both teams. Crew get first dibs on spare forward.) Everybody happy?

Good to know. Always thought it was a Koln/Cologne Munchen/Munich thing.

 

Tony's gotta realize he's crested his career in the Bundesliga and the rest of Europe - Unless he's got more personal reasons for wanting to stay - Any of which could be legitimate reasons for accepting play on a Div 2 team

Other than that coming back here seems like such a natural fit - Outside Def or Outside Halfback (but probably doesn't have the speed anymore) - Great in deadball situations, Def and Off - I'd pressure the MLS to try to negotiate a lower salary and then pick him up - But realize we got Cap room now and will likely have a lot more after the Dispersal Draft -

 

It was written a week ago, not "some time ago.".

The guy actually talked to Tony. Have you? Have you talked to Ivan about Tony? Or Durbin? Or Garber? Or Payne? Or Kasper?

If the answer to those questions is No, I'll take the word of a guy who has actually interviewed people involved.

If the answer is Yes to any of those, please share the comments so it can counter the interview of Tony Sanneh.

 

This is slightly off topic, but this part of the article on Sanneh is significant, IMHO:

"Where will they find a starting national team player on a top ten ranked team in the world who will play for anything close to what I am asking? Where could they even find another American that has a guaranteed starting job [in Europe] to give it up along with half of his salary to come back?" Sanneh questioned. "I want to see who they bring in with my pedigree for less money."

Existing MLS salary caps and maximums (which are, admittedly, at times exceeded) are going to cause a dip in quality on the field if they haven't already. Obviously, there is a connection between what comes in (gate, TV etc) and what goes out, including player salaries. But something is going to have to give.

Along these lines, something that puzzles me about recent discussions about Bobby Convey's transfer to Reading -- many folks pointed out that Reading is about mid-table in Division 1, and that attendance in Division 1 is on a par with attendance in MLS. And Division 1 no longer has a lucrative TV contract, IIRC. The point often made was that this was more of a lateral move than a step up.

If so, how is it that Reading can pay a $1.5 million transfer fee and a reported salary more than 3 times what MLS was paying -- $500K v. $143K?

True, they have a Sugar Daddy owner, but Uncle Phil, Lamar et al aren't sitting around with tin cups.

 

And DC United's best player is Ryan Nelsen, not Nelson or Nielsen or Nielson, but you don't think me saying that is going to change anything do you? Sour grapes man, most people couldn't tell the difference of yours or my example.

 

I think that quote was in part, reference to the coming expansion. The cap needs to be increased and soon, I don't think another season with the same cap is going to cut it. Because of it we may see a larger departure of players because they can't get a deserved raise. While it will give younger players a shot that will lower the quality on the field for at least a time until these players gain experience. Hopefully as part of a CBA a higher salary cap can be negotiated.
As for Tony. Go back to Europe and sign for your 700,000 assuming Nurnberg wants you back. He's a good player, but is not getting any younger and whether or not he doesn't think it's an issue, his back problems would be a concern for any team that's interested and he'll undergo a pretty thorough physical so they can be convinced he's healthy. I'm not sure he can afford to have such a prima donna attitude towards MLS, and would you really want to have him with that attitude?

 

He is indeed a quiet prima donna and he plays hardball when it comes to his salary.
Some of the Sanneh comments on these boards have been a little hard to digest: folks this is the same guy who did so well with our National team. He would be an impact player, and he would be one of the fastest players in the league. His speed and athleticism has never been an issue, instead teams he's played with have been in awe of it. He has never played central defense. Striker, outside midfield, outside back, defensive midfielder. A utility guy.
While we're at it let's bring back Pope and Agoos and we've got 3/4 of the World Cup backline, back together at DC where it all started.

 

sounds like hes still a little bitter about past salary negotiations with MLS....