Really? I dont see that at all in that comment. Without much thought, I could name at least 10 MLS players that "kissed up" to Berhalter. I'm guessing that you came to that conclusion because you really didn't like the one I took from the comment and rejected it on impulse.
Last year, after it became clear that Berhalter was about to be re-hired, who was the first player to issue public support? Timo Weah. I don't think that kind of public praise means anything.
They all supported it. One of the weirdest things I have ever seen. I think you are mostly right, especially the way the federation has been run. That being said, most people on this board went nuts when anybody complemented Berhalter. I guess the same people who discounted all the players positive comments on Klinsmann. The last bit was to just remind me what I think of most people on this board.
Since folks were using this thread to bash Wynalda and Ramos, id like to offer up two of my least favorite former USMNT players. Of course there is Alexi and Stu consistently saying epicly stupid things, but Howard and Landon continue to want sabotage players careers to please their bosses and hype a shit league that is irrelevant. 1864446437259428002 is not a valid tweet id
Wynalda better than Donovan in just about every way. Let me know if any of you need to explain the concept of ambition. 1864683409521692986 is not a valid tweet id
I believe I am judging them on both of those things and unlike most folks on here, I am able to separate things. I also judge them on their club careers, impact on American soccer, and ambition they showed to reach their potential. You can find people in this thread bashing guys like Wynalda and Ramos for their coaching and media presence. I think someone suggested these guys shouldn't be able to question a US coach based on their coaching record. A lot of ex-USMNT players have gotten jobs within the USSF, i mean MLS, circle and have compromised themselves to the point nobody should listen to them. Thankfully for me, the ones I view as the worst, weren't players I really admired. Stu is the only one that my view as a player is significantly worse as a person/announcer. Keller looks like he want to join him.
Separating personality/media presence from skill and ability, Wynalda and Ramos were not even in the same stratosphere as Donovan, who was the best attacking player in USMNT history, as well as one of the best, statistically, in the entire history of the sport at the international level
Wow. That is a weird response. My point was that I can agree that Donovan has historically the best statistical career with USMNT of any player, while understanding that he came way short of his potential. He underachieved what he could have been by an enormous margin. I dont find this an admirable trait of an athlete. While his Stans will claim he came back and stayed in MLS to support the league, but the reality is he needed the league just as much as the league thought they needed him. His enormous natural ability made playing in MLS adequate, but the league and silly MLS fans made believe like staying in MLS was good enough for an international career. While there are other factors, but this has caused significant damage to the USMNT pool. We all know that he has always consistently said dumb shit. This is why I dont care for him personally and why I think he is a horrible commentator (he does have a very good and interesting view of the game and he lucks into articulating that every now and again). I think anybody who is pushing MLS on our top players are the enemy of the USMNT. So yes, I despise the guy. Two last thoughts. People have mocked both Ramos and Wynalda for coaching failures, but LD has outdone them by bombing out of women's league. Wynalda and Ramos were both close to LD in soccer ability and have have done a ton more for the game in this country than that little POS.
Neither Wynalda or Ramos were anywhere close to Donovan lmao, its posts like this that make me realize you’re fully incapable of viewing any match or player in an objective manner, your weird and creepy hate blinds you
That is a wild post. All because I have respect for pioneers of the game in this country. What is even more amusing is I never made a claim about the relative talents of the three players, but it was you were the one claiming "Wynalda and Ramos were not even in the same stratosphere as Donovan". [See edit below] I dont usually like to get into debates about which player is the best. It is a waste of time to me. I dont think to date we have had a player that is completely on different levels than the rest. Id say that our top 20 players of all time are all in the same "stratosphere". I would easily put Donovan, Wynalda, and Ramos on that list. So I guess I do actually disagree with you. I have no idea what you think I'm not being objective about. I dont agree with you, but still your views on these players could be reasonable. I dont think your extreme take is objective at all given that I would think there are a lot of fans who would agree with me. There plenty lists out there whether an all time best XI or top 20 or 25 lists. I found one that was posted on bigsoccer and I didn't see any outrage about where Ramos and Wynalda ended up on this list. 7. Eric Wynalda Until Jozy, Dempsey, and Donovan surpassed him Waldo was the USMNT all-time leading scorer with 34 goals. Wynalda was never afraid of the big occasion, scoring against Switzerland in the 1994 World Cup and against Argentina in the 95 Copa America. 3. Tab Ramos Still one of the most, if not most skillful, American midfielders ever produced. Born in Montevideo, Uruguay but made in New Jersey, Ramos was explosive on the dribble but even more explosive when he’d cut into his right and let loose a strong shot on goal. Elegant, quick, and with that heart known by soccer players in Uruguay, Ramos is a player that even today would be a lock starter. https://www.bigsoccer.com/threads/25-greatest-usmnt-players-of-all-time.2123176/ Edit: i finally saw where I previously said they were close in ability
I think Tab presents himself very well whenever he does interviews. Wynalda could tell me the sky is blue and I'd double check. I have no problem with Landon defending/championing MLS but he does have to stop using people like Gio and Puli for his arguments (though in fairness it does sound like Wes and Sargent were a lot closer to joining Cincy than they weren't this summer)
The folks at CBS disagree with little Landon. Some even are trying figure out why he would say such outlandish and stupid things. He obviously doesn't understand American soccer media that think it first priority is to market MLS. 1866926079086092547 is not a valid tweet id
I think it is a little harsh on Wynalda, but agree I would put Tab ahead of him for saying less controversial things. That would put LD well behind both of them. His opinions are of no use to anybody besides MLS fans. Which is a fairly small group of silly individuals that shouldn't be taken seriously either.
this is all so see-through garber wants some mls usmnters for the 2026 so badly thing is it doesnt matter at all.....wuld iterally do nothing for mls to have some of these guys in mls.....and would hurt the usmnt as well garber needs to retire
That's an odd take. I'm an MLS fan along with being fans of other leagues but that doesn't mean I think it's the best league in the world. Should football fans that follow the SEC be called dumb because it's not as good as the NFL?
Which is an odd take? 1. Nobody outside of MLS fans give a crap what LD has to say 2. MLS fans are a very small group 3. MLS fans are silly individuals who shouldn't be taken seriously (about soccer) I think your question is dumb. I will give you chance to ask another one if you want.
Gah I'm going to make a really false claim about something then get really upset about it. In 2008 the average MLS club valuation was $48.5 million, in 2024 it was $678 million. This is something Garber and his employers care about. There were 36 MLS players representing 12 countries in Qatar, 6th highest representation of any league. That's a consequence of the above.
There is no such thing as "MLS fans." There are soccer fans, most of whom watch multiple leagues, many of these watch MLS as well as European leagues and international games. The ideas there is this group of fans who only watch or care or know about MLS and are separate from the larger soccer community in the United States is a creation untethered from reality.
There's definitely a community on this board that wants a thriving domestic league and at the moment MLS is the only option. So we want MLS to do well. If MLS does well it feeds into the NT. If you live in England, or Italy, Spain or Mexico you take your domestic leagues for granted. If you live in USA, Australia there's a collective inferiority complex. You see an attendance of less than 10k on a cold Wednesday evening and you panic. I actually hope that USL expands to the point where it can create a D1 league like it has on the women's side (it's called D1 but everyone knows it's not the senior league) as the more high level soccer we have, and the more opportunities kids have to be involved the better. The only people that have created a MLS/NT conflict are a few rabid NT fans who think we can have a world beating team based around dual nats, college graduates and pay to play academies because reasons.
You are the one created an analogy that had nothing to do with the topic. The only thing I liked about it is you compared MLS to an amateur football league in America. Once your question is corrected to be about the actual topic, I would say yes, SEC football fans should be called stupid if they suggested a 4 year pro in the NFL with injury issues go play in the SEC for a couple of years would help their career. It isnt dumb for watching MLS, but for continuously trying to make it more than it is and suggesting that it is an alternative to the best leagues in the world.