http://web.mlsnet.com/news/mls_news.jsp?ymd=20070831&content_id=114813&vkey=news_mls&fext=.jsp I don't see a thread on this. Apologies if I'm justing missing it. But congrats to Troy. Remember when everyone was ready to dump him earlier in the season?
Congratulations Troy. Only in American can a young man go from being a part-time sporting goods salesperson to MLS Player of the Month
I think Troy Perkins is ready for Europe. Watching his play over the past couple of seasons he seems to be getting better and better. I would say maybe should be number 2 behind howard on the national team. I wouldnt be surprised if in a couple of years I see him in the Premiership.
Okay this epidemic of professional players creating multiple usernames on BS and hyping themselves up has got to stop. Troy, you should be ashamed of yourself.
Not sure if Cannon from LA is american or not but I would put him above both Howard and Perkins right now. That guy has been on fire.
Well earned. Troy has really picked it up after a slow stretch. His all-around game is at the highest level it's been at, period.
I agree he isn't #2 but he isn't 9th or 10th. However he is the best in the MLS and deserves to be on the MNT as a backup to Howard. IMHO
Cannon has always been a great MLS keeper - probably the 2nd best in league history behind Meola. He's not a great distributor but he's a fantastic shot-stopper - IMO almost as good as Keller and Friedel. And yes, he's American.
Three keepers who on any given day (but not EVERY day) are better than Perkins, but only two are from the US: Onstad El Guzano Reis Onstad is Canadian, so he sort of doesnt count, plus he's older than sin and will eventually play for FC Calgary United Krunk Juice. Guzan is pretty damn good, and will most likely get caps ahead of Troy as the MLS keeper of choice. Reis is a wanker but a pretty good keeper. He should get a punch to the nads at some point between now and the playoffs. By me. Or maybe someone dressed like me but with a fake mustache and parachute pants. Add Cannon in the mix, and I'd say that Troy is one of the top 3/4 keepers in the league. And he doesnt have to play with Donovan and Cobi, share a field with Donovan and Cobi, live in Houston or deal with M@ssholes constantly. Not a bad deal, and I havent even mentioned that he plays for the greatest football team in the world.
I'd take Troy over Onstad at this point. Onstad's been great for years but, IMO, he looks like he's lost some quickness this year. The Dynamo defense is a lockdown bunch, the best unit in the league, so he doesn't have to face too many dangerous chances. But I thought he looked weak in Gold Cup play and on what few chances Houston's given up. OTOH, Guzan should be GK of the year. The other guy who has impressed me this season isn't American - Coundoul out in Colorado.
I've always been a big fan of Cannon's but his distribution is just horrific... I think he booted the ball out of bounds a dozen times, in their last game vs. DC. I have never been a big fan of Reis... he is a decent shot stopper, but he is also a douchebag. At this point, I'd say Perkins and Guzan (in that order) are the two best MLS keepers. I see Seitz as being capable of moving to the top of that order, but he has to get minutes first (and play on a team that doesn't blow). Edit: I do like Bouna Time... he's played pretty well considering the team in front of him and how raw he is. (Note, that he is now selling "It's Bouna Time" jerseys at CO's remaining home games, with the procedes to go to charity... so that deserves some added rep, as well.)
Are you for serious? He "good" half the time, but he just makes so many mistakes, he just isn't consistent. Also, I'm not sure but didn't DOB once say something about him being religious
I was with you right up to the point you mentioned Condoul. I think he's a terrible keeper. He's all about instinct and reaction. His positioning is awful, and his decision-making is extremely suspect. He makes a ton of spectacular saves because he's too late to arrive at the position where he could have made a routine one. He might mature into a decent keeper, but it'll take some serious coaching before he does. Right now he's like an undisciplined version of Rimando.
Completely agreed. If his distribution were even halfway decent he would have been in the mix for the World Cup teams in 2002 and 2006. Seitz is going to be a stud. There's no reason that he and Guzan can't be in the mix for 2010, and he might very well be the guy in 2014. But, yeah, first he needs minutes. I actually give credit to RSL for not playing him much this season - you need a vet to play in front of a defense like theirs. A kid's confidence would get irreparably shattered on that team.
I agree with all this, with the caveat that he's much taller and bigger than Rimando and thus gets away with poor positioning and decision-making while Rimando usually doesn't. I don't think he's one of the three best keepers in the league, but he's a lot better than I thought he would be and he has obvious potential based on his size and athleticism.
I think you're being pretty charitable. Of all the starting keepers in the league, I would place him above the keepers from NYRB and TFC. That's it. BTW, I don't think saying someone doesn't suck as much as you thought he would is much of a compliment. Size and athleticism help, but intelligence, positioning and game awareness are far more important. I give you Scott Garlick as the perfect example of that.
I think he's the equal of Sala as well, and better than Hartman (who at this point in his career has all of Coundoul's positional sense and none of his athleticism), the Columbus guys, and Rimando. He might be the equal of Pickens in Chicago too. None of those guys are world-beaters. I don't think I'm setting the bar too high.