Well, it's silly season time. Let's review the roster, eh? 2003 Roster: GK: Returning - Busch Unknown - Presthus Gone - None We can keep Presthus, but I can't see us passing on an opportunity to move him for value. We might be able to shave some cap space by finding a cheaper alternative. D: Returning - Clark, Denton, Dunseth, McCarty, Leitch Unknown - Torres* Gone - None Torres was shaky at times, and that doesn't bode well for a SI. We need an impact player, and preferably one that can play centrally and on the left. Ability to play on the right an added bonus. M: Returning - Oughton*, Maisonneuve, Garcia, Martino, West Unknown - Harkes, Perez*, Matteo Gone - Warzycha Warzycha is off to retirement, and I think you'll find few protesting the decision. Matteo can stick around as a developmental player, but if we can replace him with someone better, I'm all for it. Does Harkes have another season in him? He says he does, and I want him here if that's the case. Can we move Perez and cut some cap space? Can we pick up a college player to back up Martino? Can Oughton get his green card and allow us to find another SI? F: Returning - McBride, Buddle Unknown - Cunningham, Washington Gone - None McBride is nearly unmovable IMO. Buddle is untouchable. Cunningham is mercurial in every sense of the word. Can we move him to improve the squad in other areas? Do we want to? I'd like to keep Washington, but does he want to stay here or return home (DC) for the twilight of his career? Looks to me like we've got a nice young core to build upon. There won't be as much turnover in the 2003 squad. Discuss.
Bye, bye Torres and Peluso. How can we have two SI's that do not get significant playing time?? We all know that if Oughton had his green card he would be a sure lock for returning -- he will only improve and who else was able to blast shots from outside the box and get them on target? I also seriously hope that Bakes leaves. He's a great player (when his mind is in the match) and a viable asset to our team. However, give the man a shot at Europe while he doesn't need a motorized wheel chair to get around. I also seriously hope to hell that Harkes stays. If for nothing else than his leadership roles. Also, if he does play well, pay the man what he's worth!
I may be in the minority here, but looking at your defense I see Denton as a player who dpwn the stretch solidified himself in a left back role. The fact that he can play at left mid in a pinch is a bonus. I'm penciling him in as a starter out there at left back. Clark in my opinion could have one or two more good years left, and I'm not sure about Leitch. I'd say we can upgrade at Central or right back and use Clark to groom whoever that player may be. Now everyone already knows that I think Cunny might be a player who could get us a valuable player who fits that rold in a trade. But in todays Di$patch, Merz mentions the Dante trade rumors again, mentioning that Dante may not wanna be here if he had to sit again, saying he may wanna play more regularly. Even if we get rid of Cunny it would be tough for him to beat out Buddle for that starting role. It will be interesting to say the least.
Re: Re: Your 2003 Columbus Crew... He's my starter too. But if we drop Torres he's more or less our _only_ left back. That makes me nervous. We've seen Clark, Leitch, and McCarty all at right back - we've got some depth there. Maybe what we really need in the back isn't another central defender, but a right/left outside back. Get some SI who's equally comfortable on either flank, who's solid defending and can get forward into the attack.
1) As I've said many times, I can see no way for Presthus to return. He just signed a new contract that everyone implied at the time (last January) was VERY substantial by MLS standards. And with no sign that MLS intends to raise the cap, you've got a bunch of guys like Busch, Buddle and Martino who deserve a few more bucks. Bucks that Presthus is now getting for making sure the bench doesn't blow away. And since there is NO chance of him regaining the starting position, he has to go. It's just too easy to pick up decent cheap American backup help in goal. Problem is, I can't believe he has much trade value, since to trade him means somebody else has to pick up his contract as is: a starters' contract. Look around the league for me and tell me please whose starter he would replace. I can't think of one. And as the 11th rated keeper in a ten team league this year, well, I just don't see a big line forming. Ergo, I believe the Crew really has no choice: he will be waived next month. 2) Please spare me the Denton, Dunseth, McCarty party line. Yes they did a great job down the stretch, but the team still needs a talent upgrade in the back. Torres is clearly not the answer. You and I can debate his pros and cons until we turn blue but the bottom line is that Andrulis isn't playing him. And an SI who can't make your lineup is an SI who needs to move on. Sorry Danny. Priority number one this off-season, as in LAST off-season, is to upgrade the back line. Denton did a whale of a job down the tretch but is not the long-term answer. McCarty came on, and Dunseth will have to beat out Leitch. 3) Sorry to see Pelusa go. I liked the guy. But by the end of the season he was simply not in the mix. He never even warmed up against the Gals. Again, an Si has to play. Perez isn't. End of tale, end of an era. 4) A forward has to go. I wish I thought it was going to be Cunningham because I think Dante is a better, more consistent player who does more to help you win. McBride apparently isn't going overseas, and he's not going anywhere else in MLS. Like it or not, it's not worth the time to discuss: he's ours. So it's down to Cunny or Dante, and my money's on Dante, but it's probably best for him. Buddle will get his share of time with injuries and spot starts. If anything, he'll take more time from West than anybody else, but he can certainly play from the right - IMO he doesn't need to be coming down the middle to be effective. So I have Bob Rifle, Harksie (sorry - but even healthy, with Martino and Oughton playing solid he's a bench player at best), a Forward, Presthus and Perez gone. One sopt obviously has to go to a backup keeper, but Greg knows one when he sees one so I'm not worried. That leaves, IMHO, four open slots.
colorado. david kramer doesn't hold a candle to tom presthus, and garlick is recovering from surgery on his thumb (i think it's his thumb). the rapids need a big-name keeper, i don't know when garlick will be back, and look at adin brown, he has just recently found his form after his injury -- so who knows if garlick can rebound quickly. presthus to rapids, i called this about six weeks ago.
I think it would have been a very good move for them six weeks ago. Kramer really stunk up the place in the playoffs. But AIUI there's no reason to suspect that Scott won't be back next season. I think you had a good idea for them that would have been a big help if not a lifesaver, but IMO the ship has sailed on that one. I do see them going for another backup. But you look at a situation like LA has with Reis and Hartman: nobody will pay market for a keeper in MLS and Sigi (last seen waddling his fat behind accross the frozen tundra of CCS) is unwilling, up to now, to give one away. It's a buyers' market.
2003 Roster: GK: Returning - Busch Unknown - Presthus D: Returning - Denton, Dunseth, McCarty, Leitch Unknown - Clark Gone - Torres* M: Returning - Oughton*, Maisonneuve, Garcia, Martino, West Unknown - Harkes Gone - Warzycha , Perez*, Matteo F: Returning - McBride,Cunningham,Buddle Unknown -Washington Gone - None I would like to see us pick up a few more solid defenders, get rid of Perez ........overall, I'm happy with who we have.
It would be very tough to do this through trade in MLS in my opinion. There really aren't too many great defenders in MLS, I mean the Revs got to the final with Jay Heaps as a vital part of their defense. The players I look at who could be very useful to our squad defemsively like a Wade Barrett, or a Reyes are virtually untouchable. Our guys (Dunseth and McCarty) though we all complained about them vocally throughout the season were just a few years ago competing for backline spots on our Olympic team. And Denton has been servicable his first few years in MLS and came up big just these past three months. While I'm not saying that all these guys are future Nats by any means, I am suggesting that at one time they were seen as good enough to be in the player pool for our u-23 teams and Olympic teams. The potential has always been there and it could be that they have turned a corner this year. Also what we could get in a trade outside the untouchables isn't in my opinion a substantial improvement over these guys. The only way I see us getting much better new blood in there is if Andrulis and co. should use their scouting trip down in Guatamala to pick up SI's that are living under the radar. But then again I am unfamiliar with any studs coming up through the college ranks who could contribute right away. Bill do you know any?
We need one or two standout defenders (Nick Garcia, Mike Petke, Milton Reyes, Rusty Pierce-caliber players). Sell Cunningham to get him. Martino will continue to develop in midfield. Buddle and Bakes work well together with Washington off the bench, but Cunningham should go.
Sell a leading MLS scorer for the past two seasons for a defender? I wouldn't do it. Can you imagine playing AGAINST Jeff Cunningham? Perez will go back to Colombia or take a huge pay cut, Dante will be with DC next year, and Torres will be loaned back to Saprissa for an indefinite amount of time (forever). That will open up two high priced senior international spots. Heck, why waste our money on an international just because we have the spots. Why not just add some proven Americans. I hear a certain German team is looking unload a world cup defender whose name starts with s, ends with h, and has anne in the middle. I'd love to see that partership again, Sanneh serving crosses to McBride....WOW!!! Not that anything that remotely great would happen to Columbus. I'm just happy for the Open Cup win. BWG Richmond, VA
Originally posted by Virginian Can you imagine playing AGAINST Jeff Cunningham? half of me worries about playing again cunny. the other half says 'hey, don't worry....cunny will take the ball wide and play with it between his feet until one of our defenders strips it away. Perez will go back to Colombia or take a huge pay cut, Dante will be with DC next year, and Torres will be loaned back to Saprissa for an indefinite amount of time (forever). That will open up two high priced senior international spots. good point. if we don't have to get rid of cunny in order to gain more depth in the back, then sure...keep him. but i hope he stays happy if he doesn't start every game.
Actually I agree almost word for word with what Foos started the thread with. I don't think Presthus will go, there is too much talk from the coaching staff about him fighting for his starting role next season. I don't think he will be waived. Harkes and Perez are the biggest if's in the whole bunch. Central midfield is congested with talent with Maissoneuve, Oughton and Martino. There you have youth and experience. I don't think Perez will be sent packing unless another, better, SI comes along. Dante to DC? I'll believe it when I see it. It will be interesting to see what happens during the Superdraft.
Agreed, Let's see if Duncan can get his green card and worry about replacements ONLY if they are additive. Can we get T-bone back??
Duncan with a green card, T-bone as an SI, the depature of Torres (who's he?) would rock. Using that formula, we'd have 1 SI spot left. I don't know why, but i'm starting to think Mike Clark's time is slowly starting to run out. Especially if we can keep Leitch and have a good draft.
I may sound like a complete idiot to some of you but: Keep Perez Toss Maisennouve Keep Cuningham Dump Washington(since we won't dump McBride) Quality left backs in this league are virtually non existent, decent ones are difficult to come by. Denton is decent, keep him. Some of you have said you trust Greg's judgment. Why shouldn't his judgment be trusted on Torres? He's only 25. He looked brilliant in his first 3 matches, then after his red card for tugging on Faria's jersey he fell off. Then he was injured. I still don't know about McCarty. Dunseth was good in spots. We still lack leadership among the back line typically administered by one of the center backs. If Clark retires, stick Leitch on the right. We didn't lose any of the seven or so matches he played in. Keep Oughton, if you need an offensive sub in the midfield, can you put Mais in there? Hell no. You need an offensive midfielder, Perez. And don't even try to tell me Perez and Martino don't work well together, its been proven they can work well. When they are in tandem Perez is the fulcrum in the center that everyone plays off of and Martino creates havoc with his runs and crosses. Whether it's worth how much he's making? I don't know. I don't know how much he makes. But to me and 7+ other people on this board, what McBride does isn't worth more than 100k tops. Dump West for God's sake. Just about completely useless he is.
hang- Didn't see your question earlier on possible college defenders. There is some talent there, although I like a couple underclassmen better than most of the seniors. Combined with the fact that we won't have a very high draft pick (krypto always seems to have a handle on this) and factor in that first year defenders rarely contribute (anybody seen Lee Morrison lately? Chris Gibandi?) and it's just not likely that we can get a boost for next year. (One of the best up and comers in college was Chefik Simo (Furman) out of the U17 residency, who was badly injured in the accident that killed former U17 captain Gray Griffin. The kid will be a force someday if he can come back) Chris Wingert at St Johns is very good, but he's only a Junior and his plans are uncertain. CJ Klass out of Washington is bigtime but he's a Sophomore. (Remember where you first heard the name) Among seniors, there's the kid at Indiana, John Swann, and Jason Cole out of St Louis (BTW the Billikins are retiring BMB's number in a ceremony next week). Guy Abramson (sp?) at Rutgers is pretty good too. There's also a Junior at Dayton, Denny Clayton, that people speak highly of. Basically though I think we'd better not look for 2003 backline help in the NCAA.
Couple of very promising college players would be available to back-up Martino. Ricardo Clark (Furman)-U20 MNT, Mike Mariscalco (Butler) - 2 time PDL All League 1st team, David Testo (UNC). Clark is currently a sophomore and Mariscalco (whose from near Columbus) and Testo are seniors.
I think his name is "Clanton", not "Clayton". He was PDL Defender-of-the-Year for the Chicago Fire Reserves.
Crewpens, Andrulis dumping Mais is about as likely as Ralph Nader bringing the Mideast to peace. It's not gonna happen, if we concede that McBride is still here, lets also concede that Mais will stay with us. Bill, I've seen that Swann kid from IU a couple times this year as well as last and I've seen Wingert a couple times. I like both of them. But I haven't heard of the other guys, I'll try to keep an eye out on the dish for some more college games to check them out. Quick note on Swann and IU, last year while watching IU go to the title match and seeing some of their other games I remember watching him play aside Ryan Hammer. I thought that Hammer would have a chance to get picked up by some MLS team as the captain of a solid IU defense, who was also great on set pieces. He wasn't even drafted and I have no idea what happened to him. Anyone have any clues? Also, any chance that Ned Grabavoy IU comes out early like Martino did, we don't need him, but the kid is an absolute joy to watch, and I'd like to see him get some MLS time as opposed to gettin hacked to death by Michigan State and the likes.
I'm sure you're right, and thank you. I'm usually too lazy to actually do any research, so I depend on others to clean up after me. With the tournament starting in just a bit, I'm hoping we'll get to see a bunch of these guys. Also worth noting is that, while Gbandi was taken before Twellman, Davis, Martino et al., and Chicago grabbed the immortal Billy Sleeth, IMHO the best defender to show up this year was Kante, who was taken out of Florida International as a midfielder. Hudson moved him to the back and he was a revelation. (As for Ryan Hammer, he did have a solid season in 2001, but he was a fifth year player, He really didn't play much before that, and was not invited to the Umbro Select Tournament, which is usually a death knell. He had played some in the PDL while in College, (Kalamazoo Kingdom) but is not listed there now.)