So how soon is very soon? :)

B****!! Why couldn't they take Vanney? At least we get to keep Rod and Guy... but Brian is going to be greatly missed.

First of all, it would be great to see Pope back with the club.

It's a shame Carroll has to go, but he did not fit our 442 and has seemed in a funk since his failed trial at Marseille. It was like watching Convey all over again. Hopefully he can get back to the level he was once at (excepting San Jose games against DC, of course).

Some big surprises on that list. Considering the fact that they took Vide, I feel like Dyachenko was the better pick from us (or, conversely, why not take Wolyniec or Doe from NY and then BC from us). I'm also really surprised that they took Pozniak (or anyone from Toronto, for that matter) over Burciaga. With Riley and Guerrero they don't need another left back, but Burciaga would make great trade bait. No one in the league would want Pozniak.

Still, it's overall a good set of picks. They're deep at center back (Cochrane, Goodson, Hernandez), right back (Hernandez, Riley), left back (Riley, Guerrero), and defensive midfield (BC, Vide).

If DCU were the 'skind, Pope would come in as Asst Head coach - Defense or something. God knows we need it.

Looks like Yallop has the beginnings of a pretty good backline by taking Goodson (FCD), Riley (NE), Cochrane (HOU) and Burciaga (KC). Carrol, Vide (NYRB), Grabavoy (COL) and Guerrero (CHI) in midfield isn't a bad start either.

Forwards, however, oy...

What happens to Jeff Carroll now?

Well, good luck to BC. I don't think things were going to move forward for him here, so it is good to see him get a fresh start.
SJ did a pretty good job getting stocked up to play next year. Not a lot of scoring talent, but fairly solid defensively.

Pozniak's the only surprise to me. He seems like a wasted pick. Everyone else is either a starter or a good squad player.

Yallop did an excellent job filling out his defense and creating depth in midfield with reasonably priced players. Yallop can now use his draft picks to create more depth and his allocations/trades to find a keeper and quality attacking players.

With BC gone does that mean Veron is a lock? With Simms as the only DM they gotta get Veron!
I hate to see BC go. He struggled this season but made tremendous progress from a bench player to a rock solid DM.

Brian Carroll will be missed, but I'm glad we still have Dyachenko.

Does anyone know why San Jose was arbitrarily limited to only 10 players? Why not 13 players so every team would have to suffer a loss?

Yallop coached Pozniak on the Canadian national team, I can understand that pick. What strikes me about this list, though, is it focuses very much on defense, which is a smart move by the san jose folks. 8 of the 10 players are either defenders or mids that are defensively focused (Vide, Carroll, Riley).
Now I guess they'll want to secure attacking players at their own pace. This expansion draft business is going to be around for a season or two more. Teams better get used to annually losing players like this.

How did the collective wisdom of SI loyalists fare? Comparing the actual picks (assuming they are legit) to DCUMD's compilation of the guesses made in previous threads, we can say "correct" if the collective wisdom's most popular choice was picked, "incorrect" if a less popular choice was picked, and "wildly wrong" if no one picked the player:

Correct: CARROLL (D.C.), Cochrane (Houston), Grabovoy (Columbus), Vide (N.Y.), Guerrero (Chicago)

Incorrect: Goodson (Dallas), Riley (N.E.), Pozniak (Toronto)

Wildly Wrong: J. Hernandez (Chivas), Glinton (L.A.)

So 5 for 10, not bad. Now, let's speculate on why they took Hernandez and Glinton!

Not too much a surprise to loose Carroll. He's a great midfielder and these expansion drafts are meant to keep those players on the field and not on the bench. Tough loss for United though. I really like Carroll in the Black and Red.

Oh well. New season. New Team.

We may have lost a Brian Carroll

but we kept a Rod Dyachenko!

Me thinks a Brian Carroll is easier to replace . . .

having said that Good Luck Brian!

I have to say that I am probably one of the only people that is not in the least saddened by the departure of BC. Nothing against him as a man, but he really didn't play like a passable DM his last year and a half here. Really only an off the bench option at this rate, so we've lost some depth. But when you consider that we're making overtures to Veron, Simms off the bench is more than enough. Fare thee well, BC.

R.J., regardless of who DCU picks up in the off-season, I think Simms is going to be a mainstay in the starting eleven.

Count me among those who don't understand why thought San Jose selected 10 players. I thought they had 11 picks. Did they trade a draft pick for a player to be named later?

Well Glinton was a "Yallop player" at LA, as was half the roster. So figuring who he'd like from that squad was tough.

Chivas had a few decent players available. Cunliffe hasn't lived up to his draft position yet and is too soft for many coaches. Zotinca, Hernandez, etc - it wasn't hard to see one being taken, but it could have been anyone. This was one case where Yallop might've turned his selection into a SuperDraft pick by taking Flores (or maybe Nunez). Hernandez is decent depth, but so is Pozniak, Riley, and probably Cochrane. 11 of the 18 man roster needs to end up being starters. Don't expect all 4 to stick around.

What has everyone seen out of Dyachenko that we're so glad he's still around? I see his top end as a decent squad player, someone to spell your premier attackers on occasion, or someone to put in when you're fielding a more attacking lineup for a particular game. I don't think he has the speed, skill, or creativity to become a consistent attacking threat in this league. But I hope I'm wrong!

Just got off the phone with Carroll.

Clearly, disappointed to leave the area.

However, given the history of expansion drafts and player destinations, there may be more to this than appears...

Stay tuned

This has been said on several occasions, but I guess I have to rehash it:

Juan Sebastian Veron is NOT a defensive midfielder. N-O-T. He can be a box-to-box guy, if you play someone like Simms next to him. The only time he'll be our defensive midfielder is if we're absolutely going for broke late in a game to get a goal back.

I'm not saying he's lazy, but defensive midfield is not where to put him. The people threatened as starters by Veron would be Gomez (at attacking midfield) and Moreno (if Gomez is moved to forward).

So we'll have to trade a pick to get BC back?

I will be all the attack SJ needs! The team will revolve around me once again

Ben Olsen can play some holding/defensive mid if needed (although, then DCU would need a right mid) and DC has some d-mid prospects. I think losing Dyachenko would have been a worse loss.

I'm a bit surprised that SJ didn't select either Burciaga or Oduro.

So long Brian, good luck to you. Get back on track. You're always welcome with the eagles.

This is not a surprise, with simms playing well, and faith in the future of Arguez, Brian was looking expendable. Also, it kept them from selecting Dyachenko.

Does anybody else see Dyachenko as a possible candidate for conversion to a back or d-mid? He's big and pretty fast, given the chance he could be another Marc Burch.

Goff, what a tease! How long should we stay tuned?

Pozniak is probably a wasted pick.
There are better players on the other teams that didn't have anyone selected.
Pozniak will never be a starter on a decent team in this league.
he's a benchwarmer who is serviceable when needed (starter goes down).

Maybe I just haven't seen enough of Dyachenko (I only get to see the nationally televised games these days, and he hasn't played much in them), but can someone explain to me the fascination with Rod? I've never seen any particular aptitude for finishing, his holdup play is hot and cold. He combines fairly well with others but doesn't seem like a threat to go by anyone on his own. The odds seem high that he ends up on the Seattle expansion list this time next year. Is this just my lack of exposure, or does he really have that much potential?

Before Dyachenko can pull a Marc Burch, Marc Burch needs to pull a Marc Burch. Which is to say, Burch needs to improve his defending to solidify his conversion (though I believe he'll do so with more experience).

Frankly, we need Dyachenko at forward right now a lot more then we need him anywhere else.

My error then, I was under the strong impression that Veron was more than anything else a DM.

At the end of the day though, I don't see the need for BC. We have got Simms who is an excellent DM for the forseeable future.

But when you consider that this really looked like it'd be Olsen's last year on the wing (I mean, Benny scored at least 7 goals and in general was fantastic, but the speed isn't there and we really ought to looking for a true winger), you can see that a reasonable scenario is Olsen at DM, Simms off the bench.

That's great especially when people start talking about the million games or so we have to play next year. We need players of Simms' quality to carry us through those cups.

Everything is so speculative at this point; will we sign Veron, do Mo n' Go return, who'll be the starting partner with Emilio, can we find speed on the wing, etc.. that it doesn't make much sense to spend too much time talking about formations.

But one thing is very clear, DC has lacked championship depth. NE is able to bring on Dorman in the Cup final. We have to set the standard that we need players at the quality of Simms and above coming off the bench. If you look at NE and Hou this is our primary shortcomning-we may match up 11v11, but 12v12 or more and we look pathetic.

Our defense may finally be getting to that point, but we have a while to go before our attack has a definitive form and reliable depth.

I don't see Dyachenko being the kind of player you convert. Look at some notable examples in MLS:

Marc Burch
Bryan Namoff (drafted as a playmaker)
Chris Albright
Bobby Rhine
Jonathan Bornstein (yes, he was a striker in college)
Jack Jewsbury (debatable success)

What's notable about all of these players is that they're all athletic. Dyachenko is not some fat schlub, but he's not fast or inclined towards physical play. He's also not inclined towards playing anywhere but the middle, and he's most certainly not a center back.

Picking Carroll was pretty predictable. I made a list of 10 players I would have selected and Yallop only agreed with me on Carroll!

Lots of defense. It'll be interesting if some of these guys are trade bait as Goff seems to hint.

If these were Mo Johnston's picks (Toronto's expansion draft last year) a lot of these guys wouldn't even land at the airport in San Jose before being traded.

Good for Carroll, maybe a change of scenery gives a new start and regain his confidence.

I wish him the best.

Wow, England wetting the bed

re England

Does the second guessing of the starting lineups start now, or does it wait till halftime ?

Unbelievable, and laughable.
Now the FA will have to take a long look at its self.

Wow, England wetting the bed

---------------

Funniest comment today!

They questioned the lineup before the game started. Anyone else watching the English feed? The commentator started the match asking why they started that keeper... Oh England, I laugh at your ability to choke terribly.

this would be huge if England can not make it into Euro 2008. wetting the bed for sure, and probably will continue to with the reoccurring nightmares of missing out on this cup.

Has england ever missed out on qualifying for Euro? I know they have for the world cup. Wild.

Hmm.

I wonder if Mr. Beane has just validated DCU's strategy of using foreign slots on attacking options.

I am thinking DC has a lot of players who are more naturally inclined to play in the central part of midfield and we don't have enough speedy, skilled wingers. I think it would also be nice to have more than 5 defenders.

I'm going to be in London tomorrow...oh, should be interesting to read all the tabloids and see the reactions of all the English. I knotw its usually the French who riot, but, I'm a little nervous (more so for my parents who are already in London)

Beckham to the rescue ?

If Beckham rescues England, then McLaren should be sacked for waiting 45 minutes, or rewarded for calling him up. I'm not sure which.

Goff - Last year the expansion draft was a prelude to a number of big trades for TFC. Do you see Yallop following the same strategy? And if he does, how will that effect BC and DCU?

Enquiring minds want your take?

Fear not, DCU fans. DMFs are a dime-a-dozen in this country. As a fandom, you should be pleased that the expansion draft excised a $100K+/yr salary in a position where a ~$50k/yr player is more than sufficient.

Should Simms or any number of superdraft picks take over at DMF for your team, you will not notice the difference. That is, except for when your team has the ability to add another ~$50k/yr component at will.

For YOUR Chicago FIRE, the expansion draft continues to be an area where the team simply wets the bed:

RSL Draft: Sir Dave the Short Sarachan gives away the serviceable-for-MLS Andy Williams for free. This, so that he can start ~$40k/yr Thiago at the #10 while continuing to stockpile lefties, DMFs, and defenders.

TFC Draft: Sir Dave the Short Sarachan gives away the serviceable-for-MLS Nate Jaqua for free. This, because Jaqua wanted to get away from Sarachan's incompetence.

SJE, Mark II Draft: Juan Carlos Osorio gives away Ivan Guerrero for free. Arroyave doesn't yet have the back story on this one yet, but it had BETTER be good. Osorio weakened the FIRE with this gift to SJ.

Between DCU and the FIRE, you guys made out like bandits in this expansion draft.

Yes, Beckham to the rescue...

Can I get a "HELL YEAH!" for an MLS player?

What a sublime cross, first-time, with eyes

now its a fun 20+ minutes of keep away

Looks like I may have an early Thanksgiving dessert: A nice big piece of humble pie. Thanks England.

Nevermind. Croatia 2-3 England

or just under 20 minute of attacking

It looks like England has failed to qualify for the Euro finals a few times according to wikipedia.

"Osorio weakened the FIRE with this gift to SJ."

Just revenge for Guppy's ham-fisted attempts to prevent JCO from negotiating with RBNY. I suggest teh Fire keep jerking him around so he can further sabotage your team.

McLaren to coach the Red Bulls? If there are any pieces left.

Time to scrap New Wembley and let England play in a place where they can win. The English Channel worked out well in 1588 and 1940.

And it is actually 3-2 Croatia with the lead.

Quite clearly McClaren's last match as the gagger . . . er gaffer.

"And it is actually 3-2 Croatia with the lead."

Clicked submit instead of preview. Oops.

I sure will miss throwing things at the tube when BC is spraying errant passes all over the place and not picking up runners.

Dyachenko has shown a lot more promise than any other attacking sub this year. I think he deserves more opportunities.

Do the England players know they can pass backwards?

Andorra can still come back and tie 10-man Russia.

No, I'm just kidding.

I suppose Osorio might be a bit ignorant about Guerrero. I think Ivan has been injured ever since Osorio arrived. Between Mapp and Segares, Chicago has their left side starters, so losing one of the 3 isn't a disaster. Regardless a trade would have been a smarter move than losing him for nothing. Carr or Pause should've been unprotected instead.

looks like a few more Beckham games next summer in MLS.

Now the FA can sack McLaren and hire someone Special.

I-270...

How will Jose coach England when he'll be so busy with the Metrodonkeys?

What do you expect, England's WC squad hardly beat Ecuador . . . . or Trinidad for that matter.

"I wish that my rifle had given the same to those quislings who sold out the Patriot Game"

I-270...

How will Jose coach England when he'll be so busy with the Metrodonkeys?

Good for england, they don't deserve to be in Euro 2008 if they can't get out of that mediocre group; shame Scotland couldn't manage to get a pass.

"The result will surely cost Steve McClaren his job as England manager and after such an abysmal display, he can have few complaints.

He gambled his position and England's participation on two huge selections and dropping Robinson and Beckham proved catastrophic. "

BBC website:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/internationals/7103110.stm

Marcelo Lippi ain't that special.

How about a Brit newspaper headline competition?

I'll start:
"Wembley Woes: Croatia Crushes!"

"London's Burning"

No matter how people trash talk about Beckham he still set up the equalizer goal and how about that? If they let him start it could have set up more. McClaren should have at least put James in instead of Carson. That move is exatly like Greg Ryne did.

I-270...

How will Jose coach England when he'll be so busy with the Metrodonkeys?

Posted by: d, dc | November 21, 2007 05:01 PM
---------------------

Because he's Special. How dare you question his Specialiciousness.

Lions Remain at Home as the Cro's Fly

It's not like the Greg Ryan move, Robinson had been shocking through out the qualifying process; unlike Solo.
I do agree that James or Robert Green should have started.

Now we wait and see what happens to the McClaren and the higher ups at the FA.

Righto Ladies and Gentlemen! That does it for me. Blog to you later and have a Happy Thanksgiving.

It's not like the Greg Ryan move, Robinson had been shocking through out the qualifying process; unlike Solo
-----
True.
I am sure McClaren will be gone. FA probably wouldn't be able to take the heat from the public keeping him after this mess.
Sure, American fans will see a lot of Beckham next year. If he is not injured walking on their home stairs. haha

I suppose Osorio might be a bit ignorant about Guerrero. I think Ivan has been injured ever since Osorio arrived. Between Mapp and Segares, Chicago has their left side starters, so losing one of the 3 isn't a disaster. Regardless a trade would have been a smarter move than losing him for nothing. Carr or Pause should've been unprotected instead.

Posted by: undrafted | November 21, 2007 04:51 PM

--------------

Justin Mapp is a worthless, lazy piece of garbage whenever the ball is not at his feet. He is football-stupid, and that simply has not changed in now HALF A DECADE in MLS.

Since the average player spends less than ~5% of a match with the ball at his feet, this is decidedly a bad thing. Having Mapp on your team is like playing 10 v. 11, unless he himself has the ball. With the ball in his possession, he's STELLAR. But that's only ~5% [4 min, 30 sec] where he is at all useful. The other 83 min, 30 sec, he's WALKING. [Actually, since he can't bother himself to get into 90 min shape, its more like 3 min of GREAT on-the-ball-play, and 57 min of worthlessness.]

Defensively, he spends 99.99999999999% of the time wondering if that cloud in the sky looks more like a horsey or a doggy. Offensively [when he's off the ball] he spends 99.99999999999% of the time wondering if that cloud in the sky looks more like a horsey or a doggy.

Chris Rolfe learned more about how to be a professional midfielder in 5 weeks than Justin Mapp has in 5 years. Mapp is lazy, dumb, mentally weak, and not as physically fit as a player of his age should be.

But I DO agree with you on this point: Pause should've been exposed instead, since DMF are a dime-a-dozen in MLS. Osorio really screwed the pooch on this one. Because in a league with limited roster spots and a salary cap, a successful team simply can't GIVE value away.

Chest, Veron is neither a traditional DM nor a traditional AM. He's more of a ball-winning central-mid who's great at linking the attack.

Yet despite agreeing with most of that, I still think Mapp is one of the better "pieces" to have in MLS. I do agree that he can't handle the tradition LM defensive responsibilities. But I think he's worth adjusting the rest of the squad to cover that (he's creative, skillful, and quick). I agree he doesn't have 90 minutes in him, but I think that's just something he can't fix no matter how hard he would train. So sub him each game with Gutierrez. He did manage a Best XI when healthy and I'd take him over Guerrero every time. But I know he's long been khan's least favorite player, so I leave it at that. I don't expect to ever change his mind.

Rolfe Barrett
Mapp Blanco ***RM
***DM
Segares Conde Brown Robinson
Pickens

quality depth: Soumare (still raw)

I really do see the Fire as the team to beat in the East if they keep Osorio. With 2 more pieces and some luck with injuries, they can move up into the top tier. Losing Guerrero was a mistake, but it gives them a chance to figure out a true starting RM. Pause may be able to handle the starting DM spot.

Do you really think San Jose will trade many of these players? I know it's usually the case, but I can't see it happening too much with this set of useful budget (minus Guerrero) squad players. They aren't going to get much better for the salaries being paid.

I agree that SJ doesn't seem to be following Toronto's trade them all approach. Of course Toronto had a limit on US based players and had to maximize those slots. Carroll, Goodson and Guerrero may be the only ones with much trade value and all may be too expensive for most teams.

Carroll - well known to DC fans. Tireless CM, good defender though without classis MLS DM bite, limited creativity/shooting but can help sustain the attack. Got a new contract in 2007 after giving up on Euro trials. Under Soehn lost spot most often lately to Simms. Too expensive as a squad player. Likely starter somewhere. 50/50 at best to remain in SJ IMO.

Cochrane - decent starter but weakest link on Houston squad. Has a little more upside and not expensive. Former SJ player. Potential starter. Houston is probably not too eager to get him back with Ianni about ready and may have been looking to upgrade anyways.

Goodson - Holdover for Morrow though started when available. Free agent but his MLS rights are worth something as many have strong opinions on him good and bad (he could latch on nicely in Europe or bounce back in a year or so). Together with Cochrane they may make too inexperienced a pair. Likely starter if signed, may cost slightly above average for a starter (above $100-150k)

Grabavoy - Was doing fairly well (borderline all-star) until late in the season when Sigi seemed frustrated and lost confidence (he subbed him out and then sharply criticized him to a sideline reporter during one late season game). Good skill and an excellent passer for a CM with some rare creativity for a US college product. Lacks size and can be overpowered. Fall short defensively as a true 2-way CM. A cheap alternative to bringing in a star foreign #10, but hasn't yet proven he can consistently lead the attack.

Riley - Good squad player who can fill in anywhere on the backline and is ok at RM. Has flirted with nailing down a starting position for NE but ultimately fell short and is now 25 y/o. Not sure he has the tools to excel in any one position, especially having a slight build for MLS. But plays smart and is a proven spot starter.

Vide - After a somewhat disappointing college career at UVA, he found favor with Arena and snuck into a starting position with Reyna and Kovalenko injured (and Stammler needed on the backline). Good workrate and bite, though sometimes fouls a little too much. Not quite proven yet but as a classic overacheiver I wouldn't rule him out as a future career starter just yet. Most likely to provide depth at a good cap value and may refine his game in the mold of a Armas.

Guerrero - Quality all around but soon turning 30. Questions over recent injuries along with beforehand seeming to lose a step. Likely to be at least an average starter if healthy (good skill, tactics, and crossing).

Jason Hernandez - Bradley discovered him in Metroland and brought him along to Chivas (part of Wynne-Klejstan trade). Can play CB or RB and proven as a decent starter for two teams now, though never clearly a first choice player. Recently paired with Claudio Suarez (anyone looks good next to him) and struggled to consistently start in place of Shavar Thomas, Alex Zotinca, or Lawson Vaughn (for RCB or RB). Not quite an average starter but at 24 has some upside remaining. Somewhat of a surprise pick, wouldn't be shocked if Chivas got him back for a 3rd round draft pick.

Gavin Glinton - Has bounced around MLS (and then USL after injury) but always gets another chance because of his pace. Not proven as a consistent starter (or a consistent late sub for that matter). Yallop brought him to LA a year ago and chose him over other favorites on the LA roster. He may stick around as a 4th striker.

Chris Pozniak - A versatile right flank defender who can play anywhere in the midfield. Yallop knows him from coaching the Canadian national team. Though more valuable to Toronto (if the merging of US/Canadian roster status doesn't happen), I wouldn't be surprised to see Yallop keep him. He's not fast enough to be a regular flank starter, but is a decent enough spot starter.

The issue Yallop now has is roster balance. He's gotten several cheap, decent squad defenders. He'll be hard pressed to keep them all and find 11 starters on his 18 man senior roster. Signing Goodson should be a priority. The odds aren't good of finding any foreigner who's better for a decent price (Conde's don't grow on trees). A Cochrane/Goodson pairing is risky, but a veteran organizer (like Petke or Vanney) is expensive (Yallop bypassed his chance to pick either of these guys up). Yallop still needs 2 starting strikers and a GK. Guerrero, Carroll, Goodson, and Cochrane are the core for starters here. Between Riley, Hernandez, and Pozniak, Yallop may find one starting outside back. Grabavoy and Vide are best suited as the backup CM pairing though both have upside. These 10 aren't likely to all stay, but pretending they might - the 18 man senior roster ought to have 4 strikers and 2 GK's (Glinton can fill one slot). That leaves 12 roster spots for the other 9 players. I've suggested looking elsewhere for a starter in the CM, both outside backs, and RM. That's not 13 players for 12 spots. So while the defensive depth is here, Yallop is best served in trading away at least a couple guys, as the depth on the midfield flanks needs help too.

2007 salaries:
Carroll 119k
Goodson 54k (free agent, likely 2x or 3x this)
Cochrane 66k
Grabavoy 53k (though ? free agent)
Riley 31k
Vide 18k (upgraded to ~33k on senior roster)
Guerrero 188k
Hernandez 46k
Glinton 50k
Pozniak 95k

So Yallop is already looking at ~736k for these 10. They're likely to get the customry 5% boost, so it's 773k. I see Goodson looking at a large raise. No idea how much but will guess ~100k. Let's assume the 3rd striker will be as expensive as the other starters and the 2nd GK will cost near the minimum as does the one from the list who departs. So for the starting strikers, 3rd striker, AM, RM, 2 outside backs, and GK, Yallop has the cap (say $2.35 million) minus 770k = 1.58 million for these 8 players. That's an average of ~198k per player. The only bad contract Yallop picked up is Pozniak (if he's a sub, though he cover about 4 positions). Yallop's done a good job of leaving room to pay his starters. Now it's up to him to find good value doing so.

Yet despite agreeing with most of that, I still think Mapp is one of the better "pieces" to have in MLS. I do agree that he can't handle the tradition LM defensive responsibilities. But I think he's worth adjusting the rest of the squad to cover that (he's creative, skillful, and quick). I agree he doesn't have 90 minutes in him, but I think that's just something he can't fix no matter how hard he would train. So sub him each game with Gutierrez. He did manage a Best XI when healthy and I'd take him over Guerrero every time. But I know he's long been khan's least favorite player, so I leave it at that. I don't expect to ever change his mind.
Posted by: | November 21, 2007 07:21 PM
---------

Here's the problem with "adjusting the rest of the squad around Mapp," as you claim:

There already is an "all offense, no defense" guy in Blanco. And there are ~2.5 million reasons why he'll be in the squad. In a 4-4-2, there is no space to have TWO "all offense, no defense" players in the team. For the FIRE to best utilize Mapp, they'd have to play a 4-3-3, with Mapp as a left winger.

But this formation also demands that the 3 MF are 2-way players with a lot of lungs. It also demands that the outside backs have attacking attributes to provide width.

The FIRE have none of these things, and to accomodate the lazy piece of garbage that is Mapp, they'd have to change ~9 or 10 players in the squad just to do so. Maybe 6 or 7 STARRTERS would have to be changed, just to accomodate the lazy piece of garbage that is Justin Mapp.

And no, I don't dislike Mapp. I like his abilities on the ball. But like a parent that eagerly awaits the day that their toddler learns to "go potty," I've eagerly awaited the day that Mapp "gets it." I've waited HALF A DECADE for Mapp to figure out what to do with himself whenever the ball isn't at his feet. And this ISN'T just the defensive part of it, its what to do to put himself in a better position to receive the ball. How to make runs for his mates. How not to stand and admire a pass he just made.

Mapp hasn't done it, and I've resigned myself to the fact that maybe he never will. Convey figured it out at some point, though it took him awhile. Maybe Mapp can, too. But I doubt it.

With Guerrero, the FIRE already had a guy that "got it." And now they gave him away for free.

Fair enough, Blanco makes Mapp expendable. But with Blanco turning 35 and Guerrero hitting 30 (and showing it), I'd be concerned to get rid of a 23 y/o Mapp. Very few players at 22 y/o (Mapp basically missed this year) are able to fully lead an attack (and many do improve in that regard). Giving away Guerrero was dumb. I'm hopeful that Blanco can help focus Mapp. Blanco has all those intagibles that are missing from Mapp's game. It's a FC Barcelona type risk to overload the attack, but with a solid backline I think Chicago can pull it off. The creativity of Blanco + Mapp alongside Rolfe's finishing and Barret's good posititiong could be devastating to most MLS opponents.

AlecW81-

What you're saying and what I said are basically the same. This is from me: "He can be a box-to-box guy, if you play someone like Simms next to him." I saw Veron very often during his first stint in Italy, his Man. United days, with Argentina, and some of his time with Inter. I know exactly what he brings to the table; it's just that a lot of people are misinformed and think that he's going to sit behind Gomez and break up plays.

Mapp hasn't done it, and I've resigned myself to the fact that maybe he never will. Convey figured it out at some point, though it took him awhile. Maybe Mapp can, too. But I doubt it.

Posted by: khan | November 22, 2007 11:45 AM

-------------

Took Convey a while? I guess -- but he was in MLS at age 16 and is only about a year older than Mapp.