MLS Offseason 2014-15: Do You Feel A Draft?

[Titans Bastard]

Red Bulls fired their coach, apparently. And Mix Diskerud is signing with NYCFC later this week.

Classic Metro. Just when they were achieving stability and building depth. Robin Fraser was rumored to be making a lateral move to Toronto to be an assistant, which seemed a little strange. Now Petke is out the door, which explains Fraser's move.

Petke oversaw two solid seasons including NYRB's first ever piece of silverware in 2013. This must be about clashes with management.

In other news, Philly is finally dealing with their GK glut by loaning Zac MacMath to Colorado. He'll compete with Clint Irwin for the top job there - the Rapids will have good depth.

Chicago signed their third foreign striker of the offseason - Guly do Prado. He's a Brazilian who climbed the ranks with Southampton but was not effective in the PL.

Honduran-American midfielder Roger Espinoza has returned to KC from Wigan. Good pickup - their midfield lacked a bit of quality ever since Rosell was sold to Sporting CP last summer.

Portland signed a young winger named Dairon Asprilla from Alianza Petrolera.

Orlando signed a Brazilian CB called Gustavo or "the Fridge". Sounds like he and Collin will form the most physically brutal tandem in the league next year.

Life begins to move on for NYCFC, who signed Ecuadorian CB Andres Mendoza.

A couple of young players moved to Liga MX clubs. Erstwhile top prospect Omar Salgado goes to Tigres on a free - a questionable move given Tuco's great hesitance to use youngsters. And RSL defender Carlos Salcedo has been sold to Chivas. Salcedo wanted out and it seems Salt Lake fans are disappointed to see him leave just before he was going to play a bigger role there.

MLS has signed Cyle Larin, a Canadian forward at UConn, who is expected to be a top two pick in the draft. The league hasn't otherwise done a good job of getting the best underclassmen to sign deals. Georgetown CB Joshua Yaro was expected to be the top pick but is going back for his junior season. Likewise Washington AM Cristian Roldan hasn't been lured out. And we all know Jordan Morris now but he announced he couldn't come to terms with the Sounders on an HG contract which is disappointing.

 

[Billy R Ford]

Too bad, I'd been looking forward to the return of the Petke-Kreis rivalry.

 

[robssecondjob]

As rumored Gerrard with join the LA Galaxy in July.

 

[DJnVa]

Portland says that a USMNT player "on the radar": http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/2015/01/06/portland-timbers-owner-merritt-paulson-says-usmnt-player-clubs-radar-2015
 

 

Paulson was also asked whether the team would be interested in picking up a USMNT player after being previously linked to Mix Diskerud before they signed Valeri instead. Former defender Michael Harrington is the only player to be called into a US camp while on the roster for the Timbers, but he failed to make an appearance with the team when he was called last January.
 
“With Mix been there done that,” Paulson wrote. “We tried and had we landed him Valeri wouldn’t be here (I make that trade any day of week and twice on Sun). There is a USMNT guy on our radar now.”
 

 

[Titans Bastard]

Portland says that a USMNT player "on the radar": http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/2015/01/06/portland-timbers-owner-merritt-paulson-says-usmnt-player-clubs-radar-2015
 
 

Given what's passed for USMNT players in recent camps, that could mean anything from Altidore to Bobby Wood to Miguel Ibarra. Paulson said it is not Mix.

Sacha Kljestan is definitely looking for a new home, though he's not really a USMNT player any more.

- Credible reports that Jesse Marsch will be the new NY manager. Montreal got rid of him, a bit harshly, after an okay expansion season in 2012. This is his second gig. Petke will be a tough act to follow, as probably the most popular NYRB manager of all time.

- MLS is said to be closing on a deal for Cristian Roldan. Good news for draft depth. Roldan would join forwards Cyle Larin and Romario Williams (UCF). They may also sign GK Alex Bono (Syracuse) and CB Conor Donovan (NC State) before all is said and done.

 

[soxfan121]

Given what's passed for USMNT players in recent camps, that could mean anything from Altidore to Bobby Wood to Miguel Ibarra. Paulson said it is not Mix.

 
On a scale of 1-10, where would "it's Juan Agudelo" rank on the frustration meter?

 

[Jimy Hendrix]

On a scale of 1-10, where would "it's Juan Agudelo" rank on the frustration meter?

I thought the Revs still had his MLS rights, but it is entirely possible that Football Manager 2015 is lying to me in this case.

 

[Pxer]

He left on a free, so they should still hold his rights.

 

[steeplechase3k]

Schedule is out....
 
Revs come to Portland on Saturday June 6th. 

 

[ThePrideofShiner]

Apparently the Timbers are in play for Jozy Altidore.
 
Wow.

 

[ThePrideofShiner]

Taylor TwellmanVerified account‏@TaylorTwellman

Multiple sources tell me Jozy Altidore and @MLS are in discussions about his return this winter with 3 teams applying. #TFC #RBNY #POR

 

[soxfan121]

Good. He's buried at Sunderland and needs playing time. Now that he's "failed" twice in England, he's got few better options than MLS.

 

[moly99]

I know Klinsmann doesn't want US guys in MLS, but it's not like Altidore is going to develop into a great player even if he stays in England. If his natural level is at some club like Wolverhampton he might as well go home to New Jersey and help convince promising young athletes there to play soccer.
 
Even as a fan of a rival club I'm glad the Timbers are looking at adding a "big name" player. Portland is a very nice city and they have great fans. They deserve some excitement and it's sad to see foreign players considering MLS prefer terrible sports cities like Orlando over them.

 

[Titans Bastard]

 
On a scale of 1-10, where would "it's Juan Agudelo" rank on the frustration meter?

I'd be okay with that because I'm so desperate for Agudelo to play somewhere, anywhere. I view him as crucial to bridging the gap to the next group of forwards like Rubio Rubin. He's still young enough to contribute many years to the USMNT but obviously he's fucking with the program.

I'd still be pissed that he passed up good Euro options because of the Stoke fetish. I don't believe that MLS does much to erode the skills of returning vets like Dempsey or Bradley. But I do believe that playing in Europe made them into the players that they are. Agudelo is ready for the challenge but is missing the boat through stubbornness.


In other news NYRB is rumored to be chasing Kljestan. It would not be a surprise to see Sacha to come back to MLS.

 

[Titans Bastard]

 
On a scale of 1-10, where would "it's Juan Agudelo" rank on the frustration meter?

I'd be okay with that because I'm so desperate for Agudelo to play somewhere, anywhere. I view him as crucial to bridging the gap to the next group of forwards like Rubio Rubin. He's still young enough to contribute many years to the USMNT but obviously he's fucking with the program.

I'd still be pissed that he passed up good Euro options because of the Stoke fetish. I don't believe that MLS does much to erode the skills of returning vets like Dempsey or Bradley. But I do believe that playing in Europe made them into the players that they are. Agudelo is ready for the challenge but is missing the boat through stubbornness.


In other news NYRB is rumored to be chasing Kljestan. It would not be a surprise to see Sacha to come back to MLS. Not sure that NYRB would be the best spot for him, as Dax McCarty and Eric Alexander have formed a strong partnership. Kljestan would probably be an upgrade on Alexander but the marginal return wouldn't seem to justify the investment.

MLS announced the full 2015 schedule, including TV. Only one FOX game wound up on FS2 which is great news. Still loving the 5pm/7pm ET Sun doubleheader.

 

[SoxFanInPdx]

Even as a fan of a rival club I'm glad the Timbers are looking at adding a "big name" player. Portland is a very nice city and they have great fans. They deserve some excitement and it's sad to see foreign players considering MLS prefer terrible sports cities like Orlando over them.

 
Won't happen. Yeah, we have great supporters here, but we're never going to be a big spot for "big name" players. I'm sure most of them couldn't even point out on a map where Portland even is. Also, MLS won't let the Timbers get a big name star. Hell, we tried to get Diskerud two years ago and MLS blocked it. The big names are always going to go to the NY's and LA's, and Toronto, Seattle even. Garber has to make sure the big names go to those cities in order to keep up fan interest and sell tickets. The Northwest is the leagues meal ticket and there is always going to be packed stadiums on matchday no matter. And Garber knows that too. Mind you, I don't think its right, but Garber is terrible and nothing will change until its forced.

 

[Cellar-Door]

Good. He's buried at Sunderland and needs playing time. Now that he's "failed" twice in England, he's got few better options than MLS.

He's not buried at all, he's played a good amount this year. He's just been really really really terrible. He's gotten far more run than I would ever have expected considering his massive failures last year.

 

[Titans Bastard]

 
Won't happen. Yeah, we have great supporters here, but we're never going to be a big spot for "big name" players. I'm sure most of them couldn't even point out on a map where Portland even is. Also, MLS won't let the Timbers get a big name star. Hell, we tried to get Diskerud two years ago and MLS blocked it. The big names are always going to go to the NY's and LA's, and Toronto, Seattle even. Garber has to make sure the big names go to those cities in order to keep up fan interest and sell tickets. The Northwest is the leagues meal ticket and there is always going to be packed stadiums on matchday no matter. And Garber knows that too. Mind you, I don't think its right, but Garber is terrible and nothing will change until its forced.

Do you have a source on MLS blocking a Mix transfer? I thought he backed out because he didn't like the contract structure (I.e. Possibility of being traded). Later with the Crew, his dad reportedly asked for more money at the last second and the deal fell apart. But I didn't follow either saga incredibly closely.

 

[Pxer]

Any reason why the Revs aren't all over Jozy? Seems like a perfect fit, and he could try to rekindle some of the old spark of his strike partnership with CD9. (yes, I say this about every decent DP)

 

[Arroyo Con Frijoles]

I'm guessing it's a money thing because otherwise I'd have to think they'd be in.  They absolutely need another forward, and for all his EPL failures, I think he's going to be really really good in MLS.  

 

[Titans Bastard]

I read a report that said Jozy is asking for $5-6m. If true, you can't blame anyone for not being interested. You can do better for the price. Sunderland hasn't been a good fit for him, but that doesn't excuse playing like he's been lobotomized. I don't watch that much EPL but caught a few of Jozy's starts this year. His off the ball work was shockingly bad. He's not elite, but better than this. Just seems to mentally collapse in tough club situations.

Wake me up when the asking price is halved. There may be a transfer fee demanded by Sunderland too.

Anyway, today there are also reports that philly will be buying out Edu's contract from Stoke. Assuming the fee isn't too big, a good move for all parties.

Houston signed a young Argentine winger named Leonel Miranda from Independiente.

MLS signed U20 / NC State CB Conor Donovan to a GA contract to round out the group in advance of the Combine and the draft. After some consternation last week, the league was able to land a decent GA class, although one of the top targets (Yaro) went back to school.

 

[SoxFanInPdx]

Do you have a source on MLS blocking a Mix transfer? I thought he backed out because he didn't like the contract structure (I.e. Possibility of being traded). Later with the Crew, his dad reportedly asked for more money at the last second and the deal fell apart. But I didn't follow either saga incredibly closely.

 
I don't have a source I can link you to, but I've heard that was another issue, if the league would have even allowed the transfer. Mix wanted it, Porter wanted it (coached Mix in the U-20 USMNT), but it didn't happen. Another issue and an ongoing one is that Mix didn't want to sign a contract with MLS and I can't blame him. I think it's moronic that a player has to sign a contract with the league first, then they decide who that player goes to. 

 

[Titans Bastard]

 
I don't have a source I can link you to, but I've heard that was another issue, if the league would have even allowed the transfer. Mix wanted it, Porter wanted it (coached Mix in the U-20 USMNT), but it didn't happen. Another issue and an ongoing one is that Mix didn't want to sign a contract with MLS and I can't blame him. I think it's moronic that a player has to sign a contract with the league first, then they decide who that player goes to. 

FWIW, while all players technically sign with the league, MLS doesn't decide which players go to which teams. There are rules mechanisms in place for that. The mechanisms are too many, too complicated, and too often made up on the fly. But they exist. There have been more than a couple dubious cases / exceptions. But for 99% of players, the league does not choose which team they go to.

I do think that the increasingly tortured transaction rules are a growing issue for the league. The rules have gotten messier over the last few years. The growing number of serious fans are asking questions. This pressure is a good thing. The league needs to get going. The problem is that these rules more or less stem entirely from the lack of free agency, which probably isn't going anywhere.

There will be a lot more to digest once the new CBA is agreed upon.

 

[Phil Plantier]

The Frank Lampard story continues: turns out he never signed a deal with NYCFC (press conference notwithstanding) and is a Man City player on a contract until June.
 
Whether NYCFC offer refunds or not, it's hard to imagine who will take them seriously for the first year or two. I can't really think of a way they could have messed this up more.
 
http://www.theguardian.com/football/2015/jan/09/manchester-city-error-frank-lampard-new-york-city-fc-deal

 

[steeplechase3k]

https://twitter.com/NYCFC/status/555030469222604800
 

Welcome to The Club, @MixDiskerud. #NYCFC

 
NYCFC may have singed Mix, or maybe it was Man City.  

 

[ThePrideofShiner]

Jozy to Toronto is complete. Defoe sent to Sunderland. I wish I didn't have to wait until September to see Altidore and Bradley visit Seattle.
 
http://www.tsn.ca/toronto-fc-completes-swap-deal-altidore-to-toronto-defoe-to-sunderland-1.181889

 

[Titans Bastard]

That deal makes a lot of sense for Toronto. Altidore isn't as good as Defoe, but it's obvious that Defoe didn't want to be there. They get rid of a headache, pick up a big name, and get some cash out of the deal as well.

I wonder what Jozy's salary is though.

 

[Billy R Ford]

MLS is naming its MVP award after Landon Donovan.
 
Trivia tidbit, he only actually won the MVP once (2009)- the only player who has won it more than once is Preki, in 1997 and 2003.

 

[Zososoxfan]

Screamer article discussing the MLS labor negotiations: http://screamer.deadspin.com/why-mls-may-be-headed-for-a-work-stoppage-1679956810/+GregHoward1
 
I don't follow MLS business as much as others here, so interested to hear what you all are reading between the lines.

 

[soxfan121]

Phillipp Lahm will not be walking through that door. 

 
"That's [his contract's expiration] a possible date [of retirement]. I will be 34 then. It will be the right moment. I'm not someone who is going to push and push until I break. I want to leave at the top of my game.
"I want to have the memory of magnificent years with the national team and Bayern. I don't see myself going to the USA or Qatar."

We'll have to wait and see just how steely his resolve is when 2018 comes around and he's no longer the integral part of the Bayern setup he is now, but still. It's one thing when we point out MLS's ... shortcomings, but when a player like Lahm himself equates the league with Qatar's—well, he's telling you all you need to know.
 

 

[Vinho Tinto]

This part of the quote is important, no?
 
"That's [his contract's expiration] a possible date [of retirement]. I will be 34 then. It will be the right moment. I'm not someone who is going to push and push until I break. I want to leave at the top of my game.

 

[soxfan121]

This part of the quote is important, no?
 
"That's [his contract's expiration] a possible date [of retirement]. I will be 34 then. It will be the right moment. I'm not someone who is going to push and push until I break. I want to leave at the top of my game.

 
Not really. The same information is contained in the commentary below. 2018 and all.
 
EDIT: However, that's why including the link is important - so other people can click, read and then suggest that the rest of the quote is "important". 
 
Would you mind telling us WHY you think it is "important" to point out that he will be 34 in 2018 or that he has said the same crap every athlete says about the end-drawing-nigh? 

 

[Vinho Tinto]

It's important because you left in Deadspin's shot at MLS (cause God knows when I want hard analysis for soccer or who Bret Favre flashes his dick to - I go to Deadspin), but left out Lahm saying he just may retire because of the physical toll of playing top flight football. It was a sneaky troll by proxy.

 

[soxfan121]

THE POINT is that a world-class player puts MLS on the level with Qatar. 
 
EDIT: Added the full quote to the original post so VT can stuff his bullshit where the sun don't shine. Don Garber Youth can't take any fucking criticism of their precious MLS. You suck.

 

[Vinho Tinto]

I think you are mad because you know it's true.

 

[moly99]

If you were from Plymouth, Soxfan, would you support Plymouth Argyle or one of the bigger clubs?
 
I don't think there are any MLS fans who think the league is on the level of the major Euro leagues. We don't care, though. The better MLS clubs would be second to third tier in England and the rest of the clubs would be third to fourth tier. But if I were in England I might very well be a fan of some team like AFC Wimbledon anyway.
 
It's always amusing that people advocate the European model because of promotion and relegation and try and sell people on the forlorn hope that some team like Plymouth Argyle could be promoted through the ranks to become a great club. Well with the likely growth of the sport here over the next several decades we have an opportunity to see our local clubs go from being a backwater that players like Lahm don't want to play at to the level of clubs like Porto or AC Milan. Sure, I'll probably be in my sixties when it happens, but I would likely be waiting far longer for Plymouth Argyle to reach Champions League.

 

[Titans Bastard]

Continued offseason notes, travel jet-leg / insomnia edition:
 
* Seattle signed English right back Tyrone Mears.  He looks like the top candidate to replace Yedlin.  Mears is known for playing in one match for Jamaica before discovering that he wasn't Jamaican at all, and his father is actually from Sierra Leone.  He's also bounced between the EPL and the Championship.
 
* The Sounders made a couple of other moves, signing GK Troy Perkins.  Perkins has been slowly slipping down the pecking order of MLS keepers over the years, but is a strong signing as a backup for Stefan Frei.  They also signed UDub forward Darwin Jones as a homegrown player.
 
* Houston signed 27 y.o. former Espanyol center back Raul Rodriguez.  Looks like he'll compete with Jermaine Taylor and David Horst for a place in the starting lineup.
 
* DC signed 30 y.o. DM/CB Markus Halsti from Malmö FF.  Halsti is a Finnish international.  DC already has strong partnerships in CB (Boswell + Birnbaum) and in CM (Kitchen + Arnaud), so I'm not sure where he'll slot in.  Maybe he'll take some minutes from Arnaud, who is getting long in the tooth.  Not sure if he and Kitchen would be too defensive a combo, though.
 
* DC also acquired Costa Rican forward Jairo Arrieta from Orlando in exchange for an international roster spot.  Orlando had taken Arrieta in the expansion draft from Columbus, who had declined their option on his contract.  Now signed for presumably a lower salary, he'll be speedy depth behind Fabian Espindola, Luis Silva, and Eddie Johnson.
 
* Vancouver signed 24 y.o. Uruguayan center back Diego Rodriguez on loan from Juventude (of Uruguay)
 
* Montreal signed 21 y.o. Argentine center back Victor Cabrera on loan from River Plate.
 
* In addition to the Defoe/Altidore swap, Toronto signed Michigan State midfielder Jay Chapman as a homegrown player.
 
* RSL signed Pecka, a Brazilian DM who was last with the Fort Lauderdale Strikers
 
* Chicago signed Adailton, a 31 y.o. Brazilian journeyman center back.
 
* KC's out-of-contract US/Lebanese forward Soony Saad has signed in Thailand for BEC Tero Sasana.  I'm sure you're all familiar with the club.
 
* In a draft deal, Columbus picked up Rapids left back Chris Klute in exchange for moving down a few places.  Klute had a down year in 2014, but was one of the best left backs in the league in 2013.  A bunch of Rapids players had down years in 2013, as the team suffered with injuries and the questionable management of Pablo Mastroeni.  Seems like a great, cheap pickup to me.
 
* Two more official USL Pro arrangements: Chicago has affiliated with St. Louis and NYCFC has affiliated with Wilmington.  Neither are surprises.  We are still awaiting official word on Dallas/Arizona and NYRB II.

 

[Titans Bastard]

The college draft was on Thursday, which is always a crapshoot.
 
Canadian forward Cyle Larin, who left UConn early, went first overall to Orlando City.  He's supposed to be pretty good, but who knows really.  The MLS draft is a crapshoot because it's difficult to scout all of the college ranks and some teams don't seem to put in much effort.
 
The Revs had traded their first round pick for Teal Bunbury last year.  On Thursday they traded their second round pick to Seattle for future considerations, which turned out to be the rights to forward Sean Okoli.  Okoli is a local Seattle kid who left Wake Forest to sign an HG deal, but the Sounders cut him loose this fall.  He still has some potential and is probably a more interesting project than most other players still on the board, based on the track record of historical picks in that range.
 
It's kind of pointless to evaluate the draft until a year or two into the future.

 

[AgentOrange]

http://gianlucadimarzio.com/en/calciomercato/toronto-fc-makes-a-rich-offer-to-giovinco/

Sky Sports' Di Marzio reporting that Toronto's offer to Sebastian Giovinco is 6m euros a year after taxes, which is crazy high if you ask me. Where does Toronto get that money? Di Marzio is very reliable in general though. Giovinco is out of contract in June. Rumored to be pursued by Tottenham, Monaco, and a number of clubs in Italy as well. Can't see anyone besides maybe Monaco matching that salary.

 

[Titans Bastard]

http://gianlucadimarzio.com/en/calciomercato/toronto-fc-makes-a-rich-offer-to-giovinco/

Sky Sports' Di Marzio reporting that Toronto's offer to Sebastian Giovinco is 6m euros a year after taxes, which is crazy high if you ask me. Where does Toronto get that money? Di Marzio is very reliable in general though. Giovinco is out of contract in June. Rumored to be pursued by Tottenham, Monaco, and a number of clubs in Italy as well. Can't see anyone besides maybe Monaco matching that salary.

 
I wonder for how many years.  Think about what that money could do if invested in cheaper, high-upside South Americans or in youth development.  6m/yr on a guy who has scored two goals in Serie A over the last 1.5 years is insane.  Giovinco is a fringe Italy NT player in his prime, but do you really get much respect for landing a player like that if you have to drastically overpay?
 
I just think there are so many ways to get a better return on the investment of that money.

 

[AgentOrange]

Wow. It sounds like a done deal.
http://www.sportsnet.ca/soccer/tfc-toronto-fc-sebastian-giovinco-mls-major-league-soccer-serie-a-juventus/

 

[soxfan121]

Is there a limit to what one team can spend on DP salary? ~$20M/season between Bradley, Altidore & Giovinco, right? The other ~20 guys on the roster make how much, total - $500K?

 

[nickandemmasuncle]

If you were from Plymouth, Soxfan, would you support Plymouth Argyle or one of the bigger clubs?
 
I don't think there are any MLS fans who think the league is on the level of the major Euro leagues. We don't care, though. The better MLS clubs would be second to third tier in England and the rest of the clubs would be third to fourth tier. But if I were in England I might very well be a fan of some team like AFC Wimbledon anyway.
 
It's always amusing that people advocate the European model because of promotion and relegation and try and sell people on the forlorn hope that some team like Plymouth Argyle could be promoted through the ranks to become a great club. Well with the likely growth of the sport here over the next several decades we have an opportunity to see our local clubs go from being a backwater that players like Lahm don't want to play at to the level of clubs like Porto or AC Milan. Sure, I'll probably be in my sixties when it happens, but I would likely be waiting far longer for Plymouth Argyle to reach Champions League.

 
Added to this, MLS fans tend to support the league because doing so is most likely a necessary step on the path to legitimately contending for a World Cup. And in light of that, all the talk about how the league is killing the national team's World Cup prospects is silly.
 
In the short term, we essentially have no chance at winning the cup under any circumstances, whether our guys are playing in Europe, the US, or Antarctica. In the long term, which option has a better shot at working out in a sustainable manner: 1) overcoming all the labor restrictions, competition from EU players who have no such restrictions (and from players in every other soccer-playing country in the world), cultural differences / biases, etc., etc., to try to export our guys to European teams to develop / refine their talent; or 2) building our own top-level domestic league (with accompanying youth development machinery) that's easily accessible to American players and is capable of producing World Cup-winning talent?
 
There is (arguably) one country in the world that has made option 1 work. That's it.
 
But people apparently are too short-sighted or too impatient to grasp the futility of option 1 in both the short term and the long term. So we've got people bitching about Donovan's career choices or about Dempsey and Bradley coming back to MLS, because then we'd have had a 2 in 10,000 chance of winning the World Cup this year, instead of a 1 in 10,000 chance, and the whole time, they miss the bigger picture, which is this: The sooner people get on board with MLS, the sooner we'll have a top-level domestic league, and the sooner we have a top-level domestic league, the sooner we'll compete for the World Cup. 

 

[Titans Bastard]

Is there a limit to what one team can spend on DP salary? ~$20M/season between Bradley, Altidore & Giovinco, right? The other ~20 guys on the roster make how much, total - $500K?

 
DPs only count around $375k towards the cap regardless of salary.  Toronto had three DPs last year (Bradley, Defoe, Gilberto), so from a cap perspective it was the same deal even though they were spending less overall.  Here's what their team was making on an individual basis.
 
Edit: but of course all this should be viewed with the caveat that everything can change in the new CBA.

 

[Senator Donut]

I'm watching a little bit of Verona at Juventus today and it made me think of A.J. Soares, who supposedly signed with the gialloblu way back in December. The deal still hasn't been completed. Ives says the deal is still on, but could the Revs have pulled a fast one to sneak him through the expansion draft, or I am delusional?

 

[The Talented Allen Ripley]

THE POINT is that a world-class player puts MLS on the level with Qatar. 
 
EDIT: Added the full quote to the original post so VT can stuff his bullshit where the sun don't shine. Don Garber Youth can't take any fucking criticism of their precious MLS. You suck.

 
Go pound sand, you fucking fuck. I don't even care about whether your argument is valid, although the fact that you desperately want it to be gives you massive credibility problems. You could be right. But you're also a sanctimonious assclown who can't get out of his own way. May you be mounted by a rabid dog.

 

[Cellar-Door]

Lahm's quote is about what I'd expect out of a player of his quality honestly. To him MLS and Qatar are similar, they are places he could probably get payed a lot of money to play out the string against competition well below what he plays now, and probably be a top player without much effort. He isn't saying MLS is as bad as Qatar, just that both are far beneath him and he isn't going to go there just for easy money.
Listen, I think even the most ardent MLS supporters would agree that the overall level of competition is way below the top leagues in Europe, it's why washed up stars like Keane and Henry can dominate with little effort, and scrubs like BWP can be top players.

 

[Billy R Ford]

Lahm's quote is about what I'd expect out of a player of his quality honestly. To him MLS and Qatar are similar, they are places he could probably get payed a lot of money to play out the string against competition well below what he plays now, and probably be a top player without much effort. He isn't saying MLS is as bad as Qatar, just that both are far beneath him and he isn't going to go there just for easy money.
Listen, I think even the most ardent MLS supporters would agree that the overall level of competition is way below the top leagues in Europe, it's why washed up stars like Keane and Henry can dominate with little effort, and scrubs like BWP can be top players.

 
Yeah I agree with this, though I'd nitpick at saying guys like Henry and Keane only have to put in "little effort." They still have to work hard, other DPs like Rafa Marquez and Denilson half-assed it in MLS and hugely underachieved because of it.
 
I think a good comparison for Henry especially is guys like Miroslav Klose, Frank Lampard, or Paul Scholes/Ryan Giggs from a few years ago, guys who were among the best in the world in their day and continued playing into their late-30s. Like them, Henry these past few years was absolutely still Premier League or La Liga quality, but he would have had to accept a somewhat diminished role as his body and skills began to slow down. Instead, he went to a lesser league in MLS, and remained one of the very best players in the league he played in.

 

[Mr. Wednesday]

Yeah I agree with this, though I'd nitpick at saying guys like Henry and Keane only have to put in "little effort." They still have to work hard, other DPs like Rafa Marquez and Denilson half-assed it in MLS and hugely underachieved because of it.

"Little effort" has never worked for a former international star in MLS. Just ask Lothar Matthäus.

 

[Titans Bastard]

* Colorado has made a lot of changes to their central midfield.  First, they acquired Marcelo Sarvas from LA.  Sarvas is getting old (turns 34 in October), but he was a relatively unheralded key cog in LA's drive to MLS Cup this season.  From what we saw in 2014, it looks like he still has another good year or two in the tank.
 
Rapids defensive midfielder Jose Mari has left the club, as rumored, and signed with Levante in La Liga.  He joined Colorado last offseason from Real Zaragoza in La Segunda, so it's a nice move for him if Levante can avoid relegation this year.
 
They also traded for Sam Cronin, who comes from SJ.  Cronin is the definition of a mediocre MLS midfielder.
 
* KC traded for Mr. Alex Morgan, a.k.a. Servando Carrasco.  He'll provide depth in central midfield.
 
* NYRB has made a pair of acquisitions.  They traded for GK Kyle Reynish from Chicago.  Reynish will back up Luis Robles, as usual #2 Ryan Meara is on loan with NYCFC where he'll likely start.

They also signed their first-round draft pick Leo Stolz.  Stolz is a German midfielder from UCLA who won the Hermann Award (player of the year).  He fell to #18 because he was posturing about signing with a German club.  Instead, he quietly worked out a deal with NYRB, who signed him almost immediately after the draft.