On the first day in Sounders FC history (well, the first practice, that is) I had to write something, but so much has happened over the last 24 hours you will get it in bullet-point format.
- England superclub Chelsea FC are coming to Seattle to play in a friendly! No, really. The tentative date is July 18, and apparently all Sounders season ticket holders already have tickets, with this being one of the 3 bonus games.
- You’ll think I’m kidding, but I’ve heard quite a few whispers about another superclub setting up a Seattle showdown. Try Barcelona.
- USL defender Taylor Graham has signed with the Sounders FC. He’s kicked around MLS a little bit before, and might be able to find a spot as a backup central defender.
- Freddy Montero was in Seattle for practice! The star Columbian forward hasn’t worked out a deal with Seattle yet, and all sorts of rumors are flying around about whether he is going to play in Spain or stay stateside. The international transfer window closes at the end of the month, so we’ll know about his future in 10 days or so.
- In addition to Montero, there is at least one more international signing in the works. Could it be one of the Aussies I’ve noted in the past, Diego Walsh or Tarek Elrich? Their season ends down under on Sunday…
- Last but not least, there is an MLS team in Seattle. The wait is officially over.
Showing posts with label other leagues. Show all posts
Showing posts with label other leagues. Show all posts
1.08.2009
3 steps to making the Sounders a serious contender in MLS
I've been down on the playoff chances of the Sounders. I've said that the roster needs significant change, and I stand by that. But if said change happens, Seattle could have a postseason contender after all.
(Step zero, of course, is signing defender Jeff Parke and keeping him from trotting off to Europe. If that doesn't happen, no playoffs. Period. This should be priority numero uno for the organization right now.)
What do we have to work with? Well, with Schmid, Hanauer and Henderson, some of the best minds in the American soccer business, for starters. More importantly, there's quite a bit of cash left. Taking the 15 players we have signed, I slightly increased most of their salaries and decreased a few (here's looking at you, Vagenas). I doubled Parke's contract and assumed he signs here, and gave Keller 300k. All told, I estimate we've used about 1.6 million of a 2.3 mil cap. And with a bunch of allocation money remaining, probably in the neighborhood of 400k, the Sounders are in a good position to spend.
The latest sexy hot draft rumor has us taking Akron's Steve Zakuakuani, a striker. He's a guy in the Patrick Nyarko mold, and as such wouldn't be more than a backup next season. He also wouldn't count against the cap. We should add one more former USL Sounder to the team - and bench - leaving 3 roster spots left to make significant upgrades.
1. Central defense. Parke is good, Wahl is ok. But we want better than ok, right?
Solution - sign Roy Miller. This one appears to be nearly done. Miller is a big 24 year old Costa Rican who has a comparable game to Cory Gibbs. A defensive pairing of Parke and Miller would be amazing. Probably the best in the Western Conference.
Cost - since he's likely coming on a loan, I'd guess a relatively reasonable 200k.
2. Striker. Nate Jaqua is a very good target guy, but he can't create and do it all on his own. We don't have the personel to play a Columbus-style 4-5-1 very well, so another man up top is necessary.
Solution - sign Freddy Montero. Haven't we been over this already? The young Columbian has long been rumored to have had his rights purchased by the Sounders.
Cost - whatever it is, there would be allocations used. I'll go with about 200k, with maybe 125k in allocation money as well.
3. Outside back. Unless we're planning on playing someone out of his best position, we only have one at the moment - James Riley. And do you really want to count on Nate Sturgis's body not completely imploding? There's no easy answer for this one, but I've got a creative one...
Solution - sign Tarek Elrich! Who? He's a 21 year old Aussie currently playing for his home country's Newcastle Jets. A member of his U-23 team, he's the best player on a team going nowhere. He's got speed in bunches, vision, and loves to get forward and spur the attack. Exactly the type of outside back Sigi loves. When the Australian season ends in February, he will probably be looking for better opportunities.
Cost - not much. The A-League is even cheaper than MLS, and Elrich could probably be had for around 125k.
---Jaqua -- Montero --
-------Ljungberg -----
KSmith Evans Le Toux
Riley Miller Parke Elrich
--------Keller---------
This lineup, combined with the depth the Sounders would have, would be a top-4 club in MLS. No question. The resources are there to make Seattle a contender. The only question is whether the Sounders are willing to give it a try.
(Step zero, of course, is signing defender Jeff Parke and keeping him from trotting off to Europe. If that doesn't happen, no playoffs. Period. This should be priority numero uno for the organization right now.)
What do we have to work with? Well, with Schmid, Hanauer and Henderson, some of the best minds in the American soccer business, for starters. More importantly, there's quite a bit of cash left. Taking the 15 players we have signed, I slightly increased most of their salaries and decreased a few (here's looking at you, Vagenas). I doubled Parke's contract and assumed he signs here, and gave Keller 300k. All told, I estimate we've used about 1.6 million of a 2.3 mil cap. And with a bunch of allocation money remaining, probably in the neighborhood of 400k, the Sounders are in a good position to spend.
The latest sexy hot draft rumor has us taking Akron's Steve Zakuakuani, a striker. He's a guy in the Patrick Nyarko mold, and as such wouldn't be more than a backup next season. He also wouldn't count against the cap. We should add one more former USL Sounder to the team - and bench - leaving 3 roster spots left to make significant upgrades.
1. Central defense. Parke is good, Wahl is ok. But we want better than ok, right?
Solution - sign Roy Miller. This one appears to be nearly done. Miller is a big 24 year old Costa Rican who has a comparable game to Cory Gibbs. A defensive pairing of Parke and Miller would be amazing. Probably the best in the Western Conference.
Cost - since he's likely coming on a loan, I'd guess a relatively reasonable 200k.
2. Striker. Nate Jaqua is a very good target guy, but he can't create and do it all on his own. We don't have the personel to play a Columbus-style 4-5-1 very well, so another man up top is necessary.
Solution - sign Freddy Montero. Haven't we been over this already? The young Columbian has long been rumored to have had his rights purchased by the Sounders.
Cost - whatever it is, there would be allocations used. I'll go with about 200k, with maybe 125k in allocation money as well.
3. Outside back. Unless we're planning on playing someone out of his best position, we only have one at the moment - James Riley. And do you really want to count on Nate Sturgis's body not completely imploding? There's no easy answer for this one, but I've got a creative one...
Solution - sign Tarek Elrich! Who? He's a 21 year old Aussie currently playing for his home country's Newcastle Jets. A member of his U-23 team, he's the best player on a team going nowhere. He's got speed in bunches, vision, and loves to get forward and spur the attack. Exactly the type of outside back Sigi loves. When the Australian season ends in February, he will probably be looking for better opportunities.
Cost - not much. The A-League is even cheaper than MLS, and Elrich could probably be had for around 125k.
---Jaqua -- Montero --
-------Ljungberg -----
KSmith Evans Le Toux
Riley Miller Parke Elrich
--------Keller---------
This lineup, combined with the depth the Sounders would have, would be a top-4 club in MLS. No question. The resources are there to make Seattle a contender. The only question is whether the Sounders are willing to give it a try.
7.23.2008
Freddy Adu is not good enough for the Seattle Sounders
According to this article out of the New York Times, prior to Freddy Adu's loan to AS Monaco, he was offered to three teams in MLS. One of them was Seattle Sounders FC. All three teams turned the player down.
Now, this isn't as ridiculous as it seems on the surface. The 19 year old Adu, one of the stars of the US National team heading to the Olympics, would have cost so much that he would have required a designated player slot. The Sounders, of course, will only have one such slot. So the front office must have designs on either a player more talented and famous than Adu, and probablyone who will be a quality player for the club for more than one year. Given that the franchise has made all the right moves up to this point, I'm willing to give the benefit of the doubt.
This brings about the obvious question that I can't entirely answer - what player could the Sounders be targeting that would be better, on and off the pitch, than Freddy Adu?
Now, this isn't as ridiculous as it seems on the surface. The 19 year old Adu, one of the stars of the US National team heading to the Olympics, would have cost so much that he would have required a designated player slot. The Sounders, of course, will only have one such slot. So the front office must have designs on either a player more talented and famous than Adu, and probablyone who will be a quality player for the club for more than one year. Given that the franchise has made all the right moves up to this point, I'm willing to give the benefit of the doubt.
This brings about the obvious question that I can't entirely answer - what player could the Sounders be targeting that would be better, on and off the pitch, than Freddy Adu?
4.15.2008
The keeper conundrum
We're still half a year away from the serious roster building stuff, and already a potential roster conflict is emerging. But it's a good kind of conflict. Seattle Sounders FC will likely be able to choose between Kasey Keller and Marcus Hahnemann, both world-class keepers with local ties: Keller is from Lacey, Hahnemann is an SPU graduate and former Sounder from Seattle. And both have recently expressed serious interest in playing in Seattle.
Keller: "It’s an extremely attractive proposition. Hopefully at some stage it becomes a viable option, and coming from that area, it’s obviously something I’d find extremely interesting... there is a relationship (with the owners), and if it becomes something, then I’m all for it. If it doesn’t, I’ll still be a fan of the new franchise."
Hahnemann: "They (SSFC) are doing everything right and eventually when Reading don’t want me any more and I get sick of driving on the wrong side of the road and buying petrol instead of gas then I might leave... I know a lot of people are really excited to be getting a team in the MLS in Seattle and I am sure that those same people are, like myself, very pleased with what we saw. This may make coming home much easier."
Obviously, having either one of these players, both veterans selected for the 2006 World Cup, would be incredible both from a playing and a marketing standpoint. The first thought would probably be to take whichever one we can get. Both of their teams, especially Keller's Fulham, are in danger of being relegated from the lucrative English Premier League, so that could be a factor as well. We'll be watching closely to see whether Fulham and Hahnemann's Reading are sent down here in the last few weeks of the EPL season.
Keller: "It’s an extremely attractive proposition. Hopefully at some stage it becomes a viable option, and coming from that area, it’s obviously something I’d find extremely interesting... there is a relationship (with the owners), and if it becomes something, then I’m all for it. If it doesn’t, I’ll still be a fan of the new franchise."
Hahnemann: "They (SSFC) are doing everything right and eventually when Reading don’t want me any more and I get sick of driving on the wrong side of the road and buying petrol instead of gas then I might leave... I know a lot of people are really excited to be getting a team in the MLS in Seattle and I am sure that those same people are, like myself, very pleased with what we saw. This may make coming home much easier."
Obviously, having either one of these players, both veterans selected for the 2006 World Cup, would be incredible both from a playing and a marketing standpoint. The first thought would probably be to take whichever one we can get. Both of their teams, especially Keller's Fulham, are in danger of being relegated from the lucrative English Premier League, so that could be a factor as well. We'll be watching closely to see whether Fulham and Hahnemann's Reading are sent down here in the last few weeks of the EPL season.
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