I can see that Waldo is going to be followed by the debacle that was France '98 for the rest of his life. Good. It couldn't happen to a nicer guy. The more that he, Harkes, Lalas and the rest of that crew bitch and moan and try to put that debacle solely on Steve Sampson's shoulders, the more that they prove those of us right that say that majority of the blame should go to those players themselves. The country expected them to represent the country with honor, not undercut the team because they were disappointed that their boy was left off. Don't get me wrong. I'm a Steve Sampson fan. I'm just a fan of players' not embarassing the country by being unprofessional petulant biatches. Good to see that Waldo still doesn't get it. I don't give two craps about his beef with Steve Sampson. Not for a second. But I'll always resent the fact that Waldo and his boys acted like they didn't even belong in France, on or off the field.
I have to disagree...you don't just get rid of your captain (for life) going into a world cup... I hate sampson, yes the way the players acted was also a disgrace but it started with sampson, not only did he screw up the team by getting rid of the captain, he also had that great 3-6-1 formation, ya, that got us somewhere... Sampson set US soccer back... Arena, MLS, and our 2002 WC squad saved us...
And that's why Waldo's not in marketing. If you're building a brand, sometimes, it might pay to associate yourself with more established symbols. Admitting failure to connect with one audience is better than ignoring it.
Well, interesting that Waldo would bring up branding. In the game yesterday he suggested getting rid of the playoffs altogether, which I might agree with. However, "MLS Cup" and the "MLS Cup Playoffs" are a key focus of the MLS branding strategy from what I can see. Maybe a better idea to further pare down the playoffs to four teams, or just have the conference leaders play in MLS Cup, preserving the brand.
I agree with Waldo, actually. In fact, I agreed with a lot of what he said. Unfortunately, a lot of the ideas are practically impossible at this point (changeing the schedule, no playoffs, etc.). It's good to hear an opinion from a player who's been out there, even if you don't always agree with him. He's getting pretty self-congradulatory about his "call-it-like-it-is" style, though. Anybody notice in the Crew-Fire match when Stone directed an instant replay question (from Ty) his way how he completely ignored it? Probably was actually watching the game and didn't hear them...
You can agree with Waldo on whether the playoffs or Chivas USA are ultimately good ideas. But I think people get caught up with the idea that "admitting failure" would be bad for MLS. Usually, admitting failure means you're going to try something that might work... So really, it's his idea that MLS needs to be its own product that I disagre with. It needs to be a success. Until it is, I have no problem with MLS borrowing ideas and traditions from elsewhere.
i loved that... the conversation was annoying the hell out of me... and eric comes in and completely ignores wtf they are talking about it puts the focus back on the game ty and stone didn't talk about the instant replay crap again i also loved how eric got andrulis a bit off... he asked him if cunny, mchead and buddle were suppose to be out there at the same time all season... andrulis sounded like he was trying to not say the wrong thing so he could save his job anyone notice ty say that the marsch got the keeper to go the wrong way on the pk?... he guessed correctly, he just couldn't get to it
oh yeah... eric should pretty much shut the hell up about '98... recognize there were errors on both sides (players and coaches)... and leave it at that
Generally speaking, I agree. France was (and still is) a nightmare experience. That said, based on a short conversation with Wynalda about this topic -- and assuming he wasn't giving two fans (who he'd never met before) a hard time -- he intends to level accusations of financially motivated corruption in player selection at various people connected with the '98 team in his book. He is certainly an opinionated and interesting fellow.
I will go on record as saying that '98 was the best thing that could ever have happened to MLS and the US Natl team.
I like this article and it seems like a lot of effort and time is put in, but I disagree with his statement that coaching is not important in professional soccer. Coaching is still important but the focus is much different. In professional soccer there should be less focus on skill and technique for field players, but there still should be lots of coaching going on tactically and mentally. Ability to coach will always be important.
Wynalda should try to syndicate himself. Whether you agree or disagree, he's never dull. As a Boston Globe reader, I think the paper would be much better served by running his column once a week vs. the crap we get from Frank Del 'Apa most of the time. And FDA is considered one of the better soccer writers in the country, which of course says all we need to know about the quality of soccer coverage among daily newspapers in the US.
He's not dull, but dishing it and taking it are two different things. He can do one, but not the other. And I agree with him on many points of the '98 debacle. But there was room to admit his own failings and mistakes (and he make them) there, but he blew past that with a sideswipe at that reader for even bringing up the situation. It's a valid point, Waldo. Treating as anything but would seem to shove your objectivity out the airplane window.
I'm glad to see that the only former/present Nats player to have spoken out about Copa America agrees with what seems the minority sentiment here on BS Quotes: "The decisions that we make today and tomorrow and next week will have an effect on the team that ends up in Germany 2006 and knowing that we'll be judged on how we perform in the World Cup, more should be done to ensure we have a great showing in Germany. I believe, however, that it will be very difficult for our players until certain measures are taken to ensure the fact that our players have optimal training and optimal preparation. At this time they do not. A perfect example is our excluding ourselves from Copa America. This is an embarrassment and it is one more reason for us to reevaluate our schedule. I commend the Costa Rican soccer federation for the recognition of this fact and their willingness to try and resolve the situation by including the Costa Rican National Team in that tournament. It is a wonderful opportunity to prepare and play againt the best teams in our region in a big competition. For us not to go will be a huge, huge mistake." ..... 'So here's a question for you: does the U.S. really deserve to be a top 10 team? I was just as excited about their World Cup success as the next American soccer fan, but it discourages me to see that 1) we have yet to win a major tournament at any level, and 2) it still seems like we have trouble "dominating" teams we are supposed to beat ... It makes me wonder if our W.C. '02 success was more due to catching the rest of the footballing world off guard. I'm sure that won't be the case in '06.' - Hollins Showalter, Minneapolis, MN " WYNALDA: If we play in the Copa America and do well then the answer is yes. If we do not play in the Copa America, then no. There is no "supposed to dominate" in international soccer. Not until you go to Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala do you understand what that means. Those are some of the most difficult places to play on the planet. If Brazil played in our region they would struggle with the likes of those teams on those fields in their backyard they're not easy to play against. "