Good stuff as always. One question I keep coming back to is - why not give Rhine a try at right back? His minutes at forward may be cut short as soon as Kreis comes back. Left mid has Maurin coming on and unless O'Brien gets hurt I don't see him coming out at all. Bobby would make himself a lot more valuable and push Salyer. If Phil gets hurt having it would be nice to have options. I like the way Clarke has gotten Eddie to play. Amazing how different personalities can draw people out. It appears Eddie needs the direct approach while getting a little older probably hasn't hurt. When Jason comes back where do you see him playing as the season progresses?
It's going to be interesting to see how Coach Clarke handles the Kreis situation. With the team playing so well, will Jason's time be limited initially to see how he gels with the team? Or will Clarke make Kreis a full-time starter even if the team's quality of play drops a bit as a result?
Rhine at right back might work, not sure if Rhine would go for it. Salyer has been playing very well anyway. I for one am not sure the Burn need a another right back the way he is palying. As for Kreis he will be playing forward. No midfield except in strange cases. The plan was for rotation this year anyway. The Burn want to keep him healthy and were not planning on him starting every game. They want to mix it up at forward a bit, espically with Jason.
3rd degree mentioned Reyes. Is he still a possibility? I thought we had all determined it was best for everyone to move on. Things are just fine right now, why mess with the chemistry?
Good stuff again, as usual. It's great to hear that Kreis and Wagenfuhr may be ready to go soon, and that Glinton is at least training again. Why mess with chemistry? Because, I think, the team is still a little thin at forward, right midfield, and central defense. Of course, they're in much better shape than New England or San Jose right now. (knock on wood)
Last week Colin told me the window was not closed, there was still a chance at Reyes... But this week I heard Reyes had gone home to Honduras... which doesn't mean he could not come back, but I think it makes it much more unlikely.
Because every team on the planet can get better. The Burn have two more discovery signings and an allocation. Remember both Valakari and O'Brien are discovery signings. If you could add another player of that calber why would you not?
I do not have exact numbers... but I believe from talks with Clarke and Elliott that the Burn are currently about 30 to 40 K under... when combined with the money you would get by cutting someone (remember there is no roster room)... you can get anywhere from 70k'ish if you cut someone at 30K range or 130K is you cut somone at 100K range... or even higher? That is plenty of room to bring in a discovery at least.
Yeah, I remember you saying that now that you mention it. I just wonder how we're going to handle EJ's 75K that will be coming off of P-40 protection, annual cost-of-living adjustments, and ROB's probable demand for contract renogotiation if he has as good a year as expected. I guess it's still a little early to be worrying about these things, but they could certainly be considered timebombs that need to be factored into any decisions on bringing in additional players.
There will be expansion next year so some players will be unprotected with higher salaries. EJ needs a big year or he may be looking at 40-50K instead of the current 75K or higher, let's hope the cap takes a hit due to an outstanding year. ROB is grossly under paid and will be adjusted to the 100K level. Honestly who is more dynamic in the attack, with Kreis' uncertainty, Ronnie is the attack.
I wouldn't be suprised if they finally increase cap as well for next year. Here are some ways I see us getting cap space: If Nunez develops as expected, I see Pareja gone. Glinton gone either cut or grabbed in expansion Rhine possibly taken in expansion Quil possibly taken in expansion Talley possibly taken in expansion I think as long as we can keep a solid core down the middle (Gibbs, Davis, Simo, EJ) , we can fill in with young cheap players similar to what Chicago did the last couple of years.
I'm not sure how contract negotiations work, but if I were GE I would be negotiating with O'Brien's agent now to extend his contract for another 2-3 years past this one with a hefty raise starting in 2005. I'm very worried that his low contract will embitter him over the season and he'll be waiting to leave MLS once his contract expires.