Here's a thread for offseason MLS roster moves and other related news. The MLS postseason can still be discussed here: https://www.bigsoccer.com/threads/ynt-eligible-mls-players-2018-in-season-thread.2081314/
One of the most impactful off-season decisions for a cohort of our youngsters. Who will be the next FC Dallas head coach? Also since the U20s ended I've been hearing rumblings Tab Ramos could be interviewed as early as this week for the #FCDallas gig.#DTID #USMNT pic.twitter.com/2i61WjyyZ3— 3rd Degree (@3rdDegreeNet) November 23, 2018
I asked about what it will take for Acosta to get back on the field. He said there is a lot that goes into it, but emphasized what happens outside of the games. I took his answer to mean Acosta shot himself in the foot.— RandalSerr (@randalserr) November 20, 2018
No surprise there. We should all know by now that Danilo is better than Aaron, yet Aaron was starting. So I guess Petke subscribed to the old "good person" test of Bob Bradley. And that's fine for club, but then Petke should have traded him for value instead of hiding him away in the nether regions of the doghouse.
A lot of moves around the league today. I can take FCD if others want to look at other squads. Not on this graphic, but its been reported that FCD has also extended a contract offer to Tesho Akindele. 📰 FC Dallas has exercised contract options on four players and has declined the options on six others for the 2019 season.https://t.co/zYWlsjUTyL— FC Dallas (@FCDallas) November 26, 2018 So who are the players who've not been extended? Two homegrown signings (Kris Reaves and Jordan Cano) and former GenAder (Canadian teenager Adonijah Reid). Perhaps those three will be offered USL deals. Who knows. Anyway, also not getting extended are...…..……...Roland Lamah, Maynor Figueroa, and Abel Aguilar. Nothing we didn't already know. OK. First obviousness out of the way. There are no centerbacks on the roster other than Hedges, Ziegler, and Richards. So if RIchards comes back, he'll be fully in the rotation. If Bayern signs him, then there's a big hole there. Adonijah Reid being let go is good for Jesus Ferreira. Lamah being let go doesn't really effect homegrowns as far as I can tell. Pomykal can play on the wing, but there's lots of competition there (including two GenAd draftees from 2018). Hollingshead signing is expected. A versatile player. A guy that Reynolds needs to beat out for the backup role to Reggie Cannon (increasingly important if Reggie gets more USMNT callups). What I was most interested in of these was Jacori Hayes. His signing is a roadblock for Servania. I still don't know how they protect him in the expansion draft. The numbers don't add up. Maybe they'll try to trade him to somebody before the expansion draft. Might as well use an asset instead of just releasing him. Expansion draft is December 11th, so just around the corner.
From what I saw of Hayes the last few games he played and what I saw of Servania in the U20 qualifying Servania is already much better. Hayes' game is a micro game. He is good in small spaces but he can't make passes or shots more than 15 yards for some reason. Even though he is older than Servania I don't think he's stronger and he's certainly not bigger. I will be interested in whether FCD's new coach is as reliant on tiny players as Oscar. I think in the playoffs those small players get manhandled when the refs swallow their whistles.
I'm with ya on that. But let's see what happens here. Would I be stunned if a player like Grueso is sold? No. Would I be stunned if Jacori is traded? No. I just bet that when the dust settles, there's going to be a place for Servania in the first team this season. By the way, we should also point out this story that won't go away...……………… FCD reportedly after one of the members of that recent U20 Venezuelan team that beat us at the last world cup. From what I can tell, he's an attacking left winger. So this is a Lamah replacement. Probably doesn't impact any of our US-eligible youngsters. Maybe Ferreira, but he plays as a forward these days. As I've said, we should just think of Pomykal as a #10, durking it out with Aranguiz for playing time. 1065713890791751680 is not a valid tweet id
With Adams and Steffen now essentially confirmed to be gone, the paradigm has shifted for guys who want to be a part of the national team. If you want to be on the roster, you have to be in Europe. Once you're a cemented starter, you can't start wasting years in MLS and not developing. The '93 to '96 range of players will never be as good as the younger guys because they've wasted prime years in MLS not really getting better. That goes for Trapp, Acosta, Roldan, Delgado, and others. The only positions where you could get away with playing in MLS a little longer are goalie and center back, but Zimmerman, Parker, and Long should make their way over sooner rather than later. Glad needs to get out of there before he becomes an MLS lifer. He hasn't really developed over the past year. Trusty and Durkin probably have another year before they start to stagnate. McKenzie may have a little longer.
Reggie Cannon...…………………….. I do think that the U20 World Cup will be a platform for McKenzie, Durkin, Carleton, Pomykal and others. I think its more likely that they move in the summer window than in this January window. Just as an aside, Zimmerman's MLS contract is expiring. Rumor has it that he has interest in both Europe and Mexico. In September it was reported that he had an "offer on the table" from a Euro club of unknown description. So we'll see if he moves, or if he re-ups with MLS. A guy like Zimmerman doesn't have a Euro passport (unlike say Miazga), which really limits his options. Glad looks to me like an MLS lifer. Which isn't bad. There are some really good MLSers like Chad Marshall, Matt Besler, Matt Hedges, etc. that have made a lot of money and had long careers. I'm not yet convinced that Glad is more than that. Others are. I'm not yet convinced Trusty is more than that either. I'm not yet convinced. Is Justen Glad right now as good as Matt Miazga was at the same age. Miazga finished 4th in Defender of the Year voting in 2015. He's struggling for playing time right now at a mid-table French club. EPB is a squad rotation player for a bottom half Eredevisie team. CCV is a bench player in the Championship. Where do I place a soon-to-be 22 year old Justen Glad relative to them?
So really I'm posting this because FCD have so much YNT relevancy. Pareja was hired as Tijuana's head coach and now there is this rumor: It's official. Next step? #Xolos and Pareja are working on bringing "at least" three players from FCD over to #LigaMXeng, as well as a former FCD player and current #USMNT man. https://t.co/paWkWFwqq7— Eric Gomez (@EricGomez86) November 27, 2018 I kind of doubt it is any of the YNT-eligible players, but any FCD player who leaves might be creating room for a YNT player.
RSL's moves. Biggest news is probably declining Tony Beltran's option, who was the primary competition for any of the Lennon/Herrera/Acosta trio. Doesn't look like there's going to be much competition for those 3 this upcoming year - Danny is probably likeliest to be out the door, but it's not impossible that he can win minutes this year. Also released a bunch of central midfielders - Mulholland and Sunny are gone, and Kreilach is pretty much locked in to playing striker, meaning there's lots of midfield minutes to be won. In a world where Acosta is getting along with his coach, he could be a candidate there. Also third-string keeper Conner Sparrow was released, and a birdie has whispered to me that it's because RSL is about to announce a signing that we'll all probably like. Don't take that to the bank, but it's possible.
would the former FCDallas player and USMNT player be Acosta? Acosta is on the way out of the USMNT senior team so maybe he will revamp his career in Mexico. Is it a step up to move from FCD MLS to liga MX in Tijuana? If players want to make that move FCD should wish the well and send them on their way. Really no one on the current FCD roster is good enough to be a non-trade player except Reggie and the young HG as they have bigger upsides than the guys they have been running out there for the last few years (Barrios, Urrutti, Gruezo, Ulloia, Hedges, Gonzalez). Time for FCD to rebuild with the young guys. Edit to add just noticed it is referring to youth players from FCD going to Tijuana. If they want to go, let them. FCD Academy probably a better place than Xolos Academy.
Walker Zimmerman makes a ton of sense as the former FCD and USMNTer. His MLS contract has run out, and he reportedly has gotten interest from Mexico. As far as current FCDers, you mentioned the relevant guys. A bunch of them are entering the last year of their deals. I would not expect the sold players to include any of the current thread eligible group. Jesse Gonzalez wouldn't surprise me, though. He wouldn't count as a foreign player in Liga MX. Unquestionably this particular FCD "window" has ended. Lots of turnover amongst staff and roster expected.
‘01 Welcome to the #NERevs first team, Nicolas!➡️ https://t.co/AGbIUOmr1w https://t.co/8cWFDkT2wV— New England Revolution (@NERevolution) November 27, 2018
His USSDA page says he's Brazilian, and I can't find anywhere that guarantees US citizenship, even though it looks like he's been in the US for a while.
Rennicks is a Revs academy alum right? They may end up squeezing three academy signings out of that academy this year, that would be something else.
"It's Spanish for 'The FC'" cut James Murphy, but Shaft Brewer will be back. https://www.lafc.com/post/2018/11/27/lafc-announces-roster-moves-2019-season
He is, but Rennicks and the Revs aren't on the best of terms. Unrelatedly, the domestic 01 class is really weird. So far, the guys contracted with MLS are: -Dallas: Thomas Roberts and Bryan Reynolds -San Jose: Jacob Akanyirige -Houston: Erik McCue -Colorado: Cole Bassett -New England: Nicolas Firmino -Salt Lake: Julian Vazquez Not only are 4 of the teams least likely to sign a homegrown there, but people were really only expecting Roberts to be signed when he was. Everyone else was completely out of the blue. Another odd thing is that there are also 6 '01s (I'm less sure about that than about the MLS guys) signed to pro USL deals. They are: -Seattle: Alec Diaz, Azriel Gonzalez, and Marlon Vargas -Orlando: Jordan Bender -San Antonio: Ethan Bryant -Sacramento: Roberto Hategan That's something we haven't really seen before, and it's mostly due to Seattle, but still interesting enough. I think we'll see this large number of USL signings continue for odd birth years.
Glad should've been in the top few spots a year ago. He was just as good as Miazga, he just didn't get the recognition for it due to some injuries, U-20 WC, and playing for RSL. This season, he wasn't as good, but he was still pretty good. RSL's backline was a mess. Glad was their best defender this season, assuming we aren't counting Acosta. I also don't think it matters that Petke benched him at the end of the season. We see that footballing merit often isn't the only factor in Petke's lineup decisions.
I've seen Firmino play a few times. Looked decent at the academy level and one of the few "prospects" for New England, but I didn't think his play was worthy of a first team contract. I didn't think he was eligible for the USA. He's also been listed a number of times with the name "Elio."
So we're saying Glad was just as good as a guy that currently get on the field for a mid-table French team? I like Justen Glad. I just see him as a Matt Besler, Matt Hedges type. These are good players. USMNTers. I just don't see him as a guy with tools that are going to get him a move to a "big" Euro league. He doesn't have the Euro passport that Miazga has so the same number of doors aren't going to be available to him.
Glad is two years younger than Miazga. I am saying I think he was as good at the same ages. Miazga doesn't get on the field anymore at Nantes. He hasn't made the 18 in weeks. Also, I don't see anything bad with being similar to Besler. Besler is one of our NT's best all time defenders, better than a lot of guys who played in Europe. Besler didn't play any first team games until he was 22. Glad will have played 92 first team games when he turns 22. I don't know if he'll play in Europe or not. Thats his decision to make, but I think he's good enough to play for the NT.
My new piece today is on FC Dallas homegrown midfielder Thomas Roberts who is one of the best American players of the 2001 birth year and who impressed on his recent training stint with Bayern Munich. Check it out. For @ClassicASN https://t.co/dYnBRBJvA0— Brian Sciaretta (@BrianSciaretta) November 28, 2018
Mmm. Not sure about all of the above. To me, Yedlin, Miazga and now Adams and Steffen went to Europe because they were good enough. Trapp and the others just aren't that good. In particular, how does Steffen fit in with your assertion? He left Germany for MLS and did just fine. I mean, yeah sure, play at the highest level possible. But mostly, plan your career wisely. Consider the next move. You can stagnate just as easily on the bench of random European team X as you can in MLS. Key points are: will I be challenged? Will I have a fair chance for PT? Do they really want me? The answer to those questions could be in many places.