as far as the trade goes i think it will have helped DC even though chicago is a great place to play i think it's pretty obvious that a location change will help dema get back to playing a'la 2k1. i'll only miss him if he decides to smoke us when he plays us.
I will definately miss Kovalenko. His grit and determination alone adds so much to a team. He has gone through a bit of a rough time lately, but he has the skills and desire to really be special in this league. I hope he does well in DC whenever he's not playing us.
Speaking as an outsider, I always feared Metro playing chicago because of Kovalenko, not Nowak, not Beasley, but Dema. He had good vision and was feisty, Dema hated to lose and he could get under an opponents skin. He covered alot of space and runs off the ball very well. I wish Dema was on Metro and not DC.
Dema was having some rough times here. Lot of bad luck seemed to be resting on his shoulders the last few seasons. If Dema gets over that this year, lots of teams are in trouble. You can accuse Dema of a lot of things, but you are never able to accuse him of not leaving anything on the field. He plays every match as if it were the World Cup Final, for good or ill.
Yea, I'll miss him, too. and yes, the cubs do suck. In fact, if it wasn't for the sox, they'd be the suckiest team in town.
Yea, I'll miss him. When he was on the field you knew he was out there to play, and as Sweeper said, he could get under an opponents skin with the best of em...however he got under his own skin sometimes as well. I think his poor showing this year was because the team looked to him for leadership during the times without Nowak, Stoitchkov, and with Wolff missing pressure was placed on him to get extra goals. Kovalenko is not a team leader, he is more of a Lt. He is there to back up the leaders on the team and he did that very well. He will be missed, and I wish him success...except when he's playing the Fire.
He'll be hard to replace (well maybe not 2002 Dema). He had the attitude/workman ethic that Chicagoans really appreciate. Not to mention his skill. Come on, that full volley goal against Morelia last year? ......a thing of beauty.
I dunno... I was kinda getting tired of those dives that actually looked like dives... I mean... it looked like he was going for extra points for perfect form. Kind of embarrassing. Also, this will force the Burnt fans to be creative and think of some other crap, besides Bradon "Weenie" Pollard, to hold over our heads for years on end.
Not much to hold over our head...boy's bakery was doing gangbuster business when I went by one day. Probably earning more than Pillsbury ever earned in MLS. God knows why though. Frigging health food. Homer: "Hello??? Taste?"
How much to miss Dema? It depends entirely on how well Mapp performs for the Fire. And whether Dema scores on us. I'll miss him, but it's a reason to go to the DC games. Last year DC and Chicago played back to back 0-0 draws. It would take seeing Dema again to get me to make the treck for another one of those.
I will miss Dema. While yeah, he didnt have the best season last year, his effort could never be questioned. I always got a kick outta the look Dema would get on his face when a call didnt go his way.
Never a # 10 I'm happy he's gone - I always perceived him as being groomed for the #10 jersey when Novak was over the hill, and he never had the vision for it. Meanwhile we now have better players in the middle of the field. I dislike players with "busy feet" like Dema - they always appear to be about to do something worthwhile with the ball, but more often than not, fail to do much. I watched the national team in Bradenton play two-touch in training - great fun to watch (Beasley was good at this) - I think that Dema is the type of player who would not have the vision for this type of practice, and for the increased pace of the new MLS. Some of you who watched him in training may know better, but I hope we have better talent in midfield now. Watch out for that Logan Pause!!
i, for one, will sorely miss seeing dema running around the pitch to no great effect in a fire kit. but, then, i support united.
actually, after a few moments' reflection, i suppose that was a bit harsh. good luck to him, i suppose; and perhaps he can regain some of his more impressive form from a couple years back.