December 30, 2008 by f4denz.

Well Christmas is over and the gift of a February US vs. Mexico match at Rio Tinto Stadium was pulled away by the Grinch who gave into the whining fans of Columbus, every had to be happy with two home playoff matches which were delivered in November, just a bit early. I am hoping that my New Years resolution for Real Salt Lake will be as exciting as the RSL playoff run.

Five fewer goals allowed

A modest goal (just a 13% improvement) for a team that showed early in the season that they had a defense that could help them win games, the end of the year signing of Jamison Olave and not losing any of our backline 4 in the expansion draft, should lead to a improved defensive effort. In 2008 RSL gave up 39 regular season goals, and had 8 clean sheets, including a 10 match streak that saw them only give up 4 goals and post 6 shut outs (earning 2 wins and 4 draws in those matches) and have a 5-1-4 record during those matches. If we had allowed 5 fewer goals this year Nick Rimando would have had a 1.13 GAA which would have placed him in the top 3 of MLS keepers, a place he was worthy of.

All year long we heard Jason Kreis mention that everyone is part of the defensive effort and that was clear as Real only twice gave up more than 2 goals after the All Star break, and when Kyle Beckerman move back to the D-mid role the team defense improved resulting in only two losses in the final 10 matches of the MLS season. Will RSL lose players during the off season, it is a sure thing that we lost some depth when Nathan Sturgis was taken in the expansion draft, and Kenny Cutler and others were lost as a result of the new roster restrictions of the league. I don’t doubt that we will lose a couple more during the transfer window, but I believe the core of the RSL roster will remain and that should lead to an even better defensive effort in 2009.

Six more goals scored

Again a modest goal (a 15% increase over 2008), which given the depth of RSL’s striker core should be easily attained. There were 8 times when RSL was held without scoring a goal in 2008, and 4 of those ended in 0-0 draws, goals in those matches would let RSL end the year with a 14-10-6 record and 48 points. I thought that Kenny Deuchar was the answer, but he wasn’t, he tried, he battled, but in the end the style of play needed to keep “Dr. Goals” at the top of his scoring form simply wasn’t something we could support. That could change, understanding that having a Ching like striker that needs the ball played high to his head could open up a new front in the RSL attack, but I am not sure that will take place and we may see Kenny move on to other pastures in the off season. I hope we keep him and see how we can work with Will Johnson, Andy Williams, and Clint Mathis to take advantage of a striker with abilities that are rare in MLS.

Our young core of Yura, Robbie, and Fabian all under 24 years of age and each contributing more than 5 goals in 2008 despite each starting less than 15 matches and playing under 1500 minutes (under 56% of available minutes) all have shown the ability to contribute. Yura proved to be a difference maker at the end of the season, Robbie had a great start to 2008 but tailed off significantly at the end of the year, and Fabian was impressive when healthy (he played only 642 minutes- 24% of the season), I good solid veteran could be the difference maker and if Kenny isn’t part of the 2009 plan I believe this would be the number one off season priority for Jason and Garth. We should know one way or another before the end of January, and rumors are flying about international players wanting to come to MLS in the January transfer window, RSL has cap room and a DP spot open.

Only one team in the West scored more than 46 goals in 2008 (LA’s 55), and this is an area that RSL simply has to improve in if they want to move up from 3^rd place next year.

Two more draws

An own goal against KC in the 89^th minute, and a stoppage time goal against FC Dallas, cost RSL valuable points in 2008 which could have been the difference of making the playoffs or not. All it takes is finishing those two matches and the goal of two more draws is met, as the season wore on the team improved and as stated above they only lost twice over the final 1/3 of the MLS season. It was early in May when we lost 3 matches of 6 including that FC Dallas match, and then again in August when RSL lost 2 of their 3 matches when finishing matches proved to be tough, anyone remember that 4-3 loss to Houston after taking an early 2-1 lead in the first third of the match.

I think this is a goal that can be reached, and with RSL’s playoff spot in question going into the last game of the season, a couple gained points earlier would have made the playoff hunt much easier for players and fans alike.

Two more regular season wins

Notice the specific nature of that statement, in 7 of RSL’s 10 draws in 2008, points were left on the pitch as RSL was the superior team and could have, no should have won. Simple math says if we meet the goal of allowing 5 fewer and scoring 6 more goals, then twelve wins should be no problem for the 2009 Real Salt Lake squad. As RSL develops as a team, I think that winning close games will be the result. I also think that Jason will continue to develop as a coach, thrown in with no experience in 2007 we saw a much improved effort from Jason in development of talent and towards the end of the season a jump in the level of tactics used.

With two more draws and two more wins in 2009 we should finish next season with a 12-6-12 record and 48 points, which is a 20% improvement over 2008. That is a lofty goal in a sport where only two team finished with more points than that in 2008, but I believe that RSL has a great mix of youth and experience and are only missing one piece from becoming a top team in MLS. That piece is a proven goal scorer, we have one on the roster Kenny Deuchar, his record in the Scottish Premier League can’t be disputed in 2008 he scored 6 goals in 13 matches with Gretna, and in 2007 he scored 6 goals in 10 matches for St. Johnstone. We have to either make a decision to find a way to get him into our gameplan or let him go and bring in someone who can take the 3 goals that Kenny scored in 2008 for RSL and improve that number to 7-8. How we do that is a decision left to Jason and Garth, but we need someone to compliment our current strikers and force teams to deal with our speed players.

Two more playoff wins

Now this is a big goal, and some will read this as an expectation of winning the MLS Cup in 2009, but remember that RSL got a draw in the 2^nd match of the first round in 2008. I would love us to win the MLS Cup, but I don’t know if that is a realistic goal for 2009, I do think getting to that match is a realistic goal. The league will change in 2009, a new team with an almost unlimited bank roll will join the league (no other expansion team has entered with a DP, or bankroll like Seattle), rosters will be smaller (down to 24 from 28 players). RSL will also face some huge changes, playing all their home matches on grass, hosting the league’s premier match (the 2009 All Star match), and huge fan expectations based on the 2008 run.

This may be asking a bit much but given the way RSL played during the final 10 regular season matches and in their 3 playoff matches, we all have seen what Real Salt Lake is capable of on the pitch, and now there can be no looking back.

So those are the resolutions I would like to see RSL make, I know those are my goals for the team, a bit high but I honestly believe they are all things that are within reach of a team full of talent that given the chance can once again make history in 2009 like they did in 2008.

Posted in The soapbox | 1 Comment »

December 16, 2008 by f4denz.

So the rumor mill around all of soccer in North America is buzzing that soon US Soccer will announce the location for the February 11^th match is Rio Tinto Stadium in Salt Lake City, home of Real Salt Lake. While I think most sports fans will agree that in recent history not many events could equal the last time Real Salt Lake played host to the USMNT, it was part of the build up to World Cup 2006 and the match against Costa Rica filled RES with over 40,000 fans, but what would happen with a winter time match against a bitter rival like Mexico?

As a fan I am torn on this one, while I would love to have Salt Lake play host to this match, I question the judgment of the leaders of US Soccer in bring the match to Salt Lake. In 2008 we saw a high of 43 and a low of 27 on the 11^th of Feb., in 2007 it was a high of 48 and a low of 34, in 2006 it was 37 and 18. So one has to question the logic of playing a match were players and fans both would be exposed to weather that is not comfortable, yes teams in place play in conditions similar to this and in some cases worse. RSL has seen worst weather for matches much later in the year, so my question is does US Soccer want a home field advantage in a match like this to have a pro US crowd, something I believe would happen at any USMNT match in Salt Lake City. Or is US Soccer looking to play a match in a location to be the most uncomfortable for the Mexican team? I have to believe the later is the case, and while US Soccer had no part in the choice of dates, which were controlled by a “random” draw by CONCACAF, this might be a huge over reaction.

Other locations, so I have also heard Qwest field in Seattle (soon to be home of the Sounders FC) mentioned, the temp there is about 10 degrees warmer than in Salt Lake City in February. I know a number of people in Columbus are upset that they aren’t just given this match (there are a number of issues still unresolved from the last time the Crew played host to the USMNT), but the temps there are very similar to what exist in Salt Lake that time of year. Northern locations with indoor stadiums like Minneapolis, Indianapolis, St. Louis, or Detroit all seem like they could be options, as well as cities where the US would still hold a strong advantage in the stands, like Nashville, Charlotte, and even Jacksonville or Atlanta. So the number of choices are plentiful, and it would seem that Salt Lake City would be a market ready for another World Cup qualifier, but is February really the best option?

You bet you butt it is, I saw we take full advantage of a great new Stadium, a proven fan base that will come out to support the USA, and the environmental advantages of elevation and climate. So let’s take advantage of it, oh and if you’re interested in my tickets in section 4, row 4, seats 1-2 just drop me a line and I am sure we could work out some kind of deal.

See you in just a couple months if the soccer gods and the guys at US Soccer are kind enough to grant us this one.

OFF MY SOAPBOX

Posted in The soapbox | 2 Comments »

December 10, 2008 by f4denz.

So I am sorry that I have been so bad at posting since the season ended, but I needed a bit of a break and work has been keeping me very busy. With the current state of the stock market, I have to pay a lot more attention to work since the amount of IRA’s and 401K’s have been greatly reduced in recent months.

No more reserves

So just prior to the MLS Cup match the commish announced the end of the MLS reserve division and a reduction in the number of roster spots for each team. So while we saw typical powers like New England, DC United, and Houston struggle as the season went on with all the obligations of LHUSOC, CONCACAF Champions Cup, SuperLiga, and others, you would think that the league would look at ways of expanding the rosters. Now each team will have 24 roster spots instead of 28, each team can now have 20 senior players vs. 18, but without a reserve division what do the other 4 players do? It isn’t like MLS is going to allow more players on the bench to be used as subs, so in a move that Garber claims was in response to fans, I ask who among fans asked for smaller teams?

No the salaries being saved are those guys who crippled team payrolls with those huge $17,000 and $30,000 annual salaries, yup getting rid of 4 of those players will allow each team between $68-120,000 more a year to spend, and have even less depth than they currently have and no organized structure for those younger players to develop. The number of players who will be forced to give up the game, or try to get a job in the USL is huge when you consider that 60 players now are left on the outside looking in. With the number of players considering moves overseas, the rosters next year will be very light on US talent as we become a developmental league for Central and South American teams, I am not sure that it is a bad thing but when picking US national sides I expect a huge number of future players to come from Europe and not from MLS. Teams will struggle to keep full sides if US Soccer taps the MLS for more than a couple players, a shame that now players who desire to play for their nation will likely have to abandon MLS.

It is this type of short sighted moves that have plagued MLS for the last 5-6 years, and with more teams having their own stadiums and being more financially stable. With cities bidding on future franchises, this is the time for MLS to turn control of teams and league operations over to the clubs and their owners. Don has done a great job and the league probably would not have survived without his close attention to details and control in the early days, but we are entering year 14 and when the collective bargaining agreement runs out with the players union I believe it is time for Garber to step down.

The correct move should have been to increase the salary cap to 3.5 million dollars, which would have allowed teams to upgrade their talent level while still keeping a low payroll for a professional sports team. I also would have changed the DP rule to charge teams $500,000 against their cap, this would have allowed 3 million dollars for the remaining 27 team spots, an average of just over $111,000 per player. No mention was made so I am going to assume that Landycakes and LA still get a pass on his bloated DP salary despite the team not having two DP slots, this type of ruling is part of the problem with having control not be more in the hands of team owners, exceptions get made for teams based on some mythical need, while others get left out in the cold.

Sturgis and others gone

So with the changes to roster size RSL made a couple moves before the Expansion draft. They released Besagno, who never developed into the player that John Ellinger and others imagined. I hope that Nik gets a chance with another team, he got great reviews and praise for his play in the USL this year. Also let go was Kenny “ginger ninja” Cutler, one of the RSL originals Kenny was willing to fill in wherever and whenever asked, but with new roster restrictions and just 32 starts in his MLS career he was expendable with the new smaller roster. Dustin Kirby was also let go, and with just 2 appearances in MLS action he was another victim of the death of the reserve division.

The list of RSL players left exposed to the Seattle expansion draft included:
Besagno, Nik
Cutler, Kenny
Deuchar, Kenneth
Horst, David
Joy, Ian
Kirby, Dustin
Kovalenko, Dema
Mathis, Clint
Nunez, Tino
Reiman, Kevin
Reynish, Kyle
Sturgis, Nathan
Tennelle, Brennan
Williams, Andy

The players that were left unprotected were done so for a number of reasons and Seattle chose to take a chance on Nathan Sturgis, and while his time at RSL has seen him injured more than healthy, many people estimate that Sturgis was one of our top talents when able to play. The few matches he played early in the 2008 season sure gave those opinions a leg to stand on as he looked to be a great player able to play on the back line or in the midfield. I hope that his lingering injury problems are behind him and that he can begin to move forward with his new team and be able to get back on the radar of the USMNT.

Time for good deeds

Every RSL fan, and most MLS fans are aware of the illness that is facing the Williams family this year and while many from Salt Lake and other MLS cities have done great things in raising funds to help the family cover medical expenses, now we get a chance to do more. This Saturday (Dec. 13^th) at Rio Tinto Stadium there will be a chance to get tested to see if you are bone marrow match for Marcia Williams, here are the official details as provided by RSL:

Soccer Unites Utah and Real Salt Lake to host Williams’ Bone Marrow Match Drive this Saturday at Rio Tinto Stadium

In a continuing effort to lend support to Marcia Williams, the wife of RSL midfielder Andy Williams, Soccer Unites Utah, Real Salt Lake, and Rio Tinto Stadium will team up with DKMS – the world’s largest marrow donor center – to host a bone marrow match drive this Saturday, December 13, from 10:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. in the Center Circle Club (ground level) at Rio Tinto Stadium. Fans and the public are invited to undergo free testing to see if you’re a match for Marcia or another person desperately seeking a bone marrow transplant… all it takes is a little paperwork and a swab of your cheek. Those attending the marrow match drive are asked to park in the West/VIP lot and enter the stadium through the main/VIP entrance on the West side. If you are still curious for more information, head over to DKMSamericas.org for more on what it means to be a bone marrow donor or visit www.SoccerUnitesUtah.com for more ways in which you can help assist the Williams family.

I hope to see you there.

OFF MY SOAPBOX

Posted in The soapbox | 3 Comments »

November 24, 2008 by f4denz.

Venturing off my Real Salt Lake focus, I thought it would be interesting to see which 10 players I would take if I were the GM of the Seattle Sounders FC. They already have their number one keeper so I need a back up, they already have their main offensive midfielder and a quick but unproven player to work the side, and they brought with them their number one striker for the successful USL side. If you want to see the list of available players click here.

I am not going to put these players in any particular order because it doesn’t matter, they get 10 players and no more than one player from any team:

Eddie Gaven, Columbus Crew(midfield/forward)- Eddie is only 22 years old and can play in the midfield or up front as a striker, he already has over 120 starts in MLS and has 28 goals and 25 assists talk about a foundation player.

Diego Jimenez, New York Red Bulls(defender)- Signed by New York late in the season but if you want a major reason why New York made it to the MLS Cup, Diego is that reason at just 22 years of age he was rock solid in the Western Conference final and with just 6 starts he is a bit of a wildcard but he could be a huge part of a new clubs back line.

Ian Joy, Real Salt Lake(defender) – Ian is a solid player with good international experience, he is a fan favorite and would be a great asset to a new club. He is only 5 foot 9 inches but he has good speed and understands how to move up the wings in support of the attack, he is just 27 years old and one heck of a nice guy off the pitch and a fireball on it.

Rohan Ricketts, Toronto FC (midfielder)- One of the few bright spots for TFC and I am amazed that he is available, he is just 27 years old but brings good experience from his playing time in England. He scored 4 of Toronto’s 32 goals and had 4 of their 25 assists, he has great pace and would really be a compliment to Freddie.

Facundo Erpen, Colorado (defender) – The 25 year old defender from Argentina has the ability to play all four back line positions and knows how to contribute to the attack. He was a MLS All Star in 2006, with the new 24 man roster Seattle will need players who can fill in at multiple positions and Facundo can do that, including playing defensive midfielder.

Patrick Ianni, Houston (defender)- Young, big, and quick the 23 year old could play the back line or perhaps work as the defensive midfielder for Seattle. I have heard rumors that Seattle is looking at Nate Jaqua, but to be honest I think it would be a mistake to pick up a very inconsistent striker, there must be a reason that in 3 years he has gone from Chicago to LA, then to Houston, then to Austria and then back to Houston, but is now left available. Do the smart thing and take a very good Ianni.

Lawson Vaughn, Chivas (defender) – When healthy he was a solid part of the Chivas defense that was very good early in the year, the 24 year old has played in 48 matches since being drafted in the 2006 Supplemental draft. He started 22 matches last year for Chivas and 11 starts his rookie year of 2006. A nice player who can play a number of defensive positions would be a great player to have available on your roster.

John Cunliffe, San Jose (forward) – John has been waiting for a team to give him a chance, not sure how much more he could do with 5 goals in under 900 minutes over two MLS seasons, he has taken 26 shots, with 11 being on goal. Those are good numbers for a young striker and playing with a great attacking midfielder could be the break he has needed. At just 24 years of age, John is a player that has always looked impressive when get gets playing time, but too often is stuck behind other strikers, give him a chance and I am willing to bet he will not only impress but provide some great offensive chances.

Khano Smith, New England (midfielder) – Speed Kills and Smith has great speed and may be one of the fastest players in MLS and while he often plays midfield for New England for the Bermuda National team he is a striker. 8 goals and 11 assists in his MLS career that has seen him get 54 starts and play in 85 matches.

Francis Doe, DC United (forward) – Francis is another player that despite good numbers when given a chance, just seems to never get a break. He has 4 goals and a assist in under 900 minutes of MLS action, but also has played well for his national team (Liberia) and in the 2008 African Cup qualifying stages he scored two goals.

Wildcard pick:

Marcelo Gallardo, DC United (midfielder) Depending on if the FO brass of Seattle can work a deal with him, and if he is healthy, how could they not take Marcelo Gallardo the 32 yr old showed early in this season that he can be a real asset to a team as he scored 4 goals and had 3 assists in just 15 matches this season with DC United.

I tried to really go for some young players with great upside, but simply haven’t gotten a shot to really perform in MLS. Big names like Jimenez, Erpen, Ricketts, and Gaven would provide a good backbone of a squad and up the Seattle roster to half strength with their 4 current signings and 10 players from the expansion draft. That still leave room for the Super and Supplemental draft, as well as some international players or trades.

OFF MY SOAPBOX

Posted in The soapbox | 1 Comment »

November 24, 2008 by f4denz.

Down to 24

So part of Garber’s state of the league address last week included a move to a 24 man roster, with just 4 slots for developmental players and the death of the Reserve Division (I think this is a horrible move for the league and development of talent in the US, but more of that tomorrow). In response RSL has released players prior to the announcement of the 11 protected players, gone are Kenny Cutler (RSL original), Nik Besagno (RSL’s 1^st draft pick), Dustin Kirby. Part of this move was the graduation of Nik from Generation Adidas, which if he were still part of the program he wouldn’t have needed to be protected.

Protected

Here is the official list of 11 that were protected by RSL:

• Kyle Beckerman
• Nick Rimando
• Javier Morales
• Jamison Olave
• Will Johnson
• Yura Movsisyan
• Robbie Findley
• Nat Borchers
• Robbie Russell
• Chris Wingert
• Fabian Espindola

RSL still has 3 players on the Generation Adidas program:

1. Chris Seitz
2. Tony Beltran
3. Alex Nimo

That means that RSL is leaving 11 players unprotected and remember we can only lose one player from this list (it doesn’t mean that Seattle will take any from RSL’s roster):

1. Andy Williams
2. Nathan Sturgis
3. Dema Kovalenko
4. Kenny Deuchar
5. Ian Joy
6. Clint Mathis
7. David Horst
8. Brennan Tennelle
9. Kevin Reiman
10. Kyle Reynish
11. Tino Nunez

With the list of exposed players, I think Joy and Kovalenko are probably in real danger of being selected, as is Kyle Reynish as a back up to Seattle’s number one keeper Kasey Keller. This list isn’t far off of my original list, I am a bit surprised that we would leave a talented youngster like Sturgis exposed, but after a year and a half with the team and almost all of that time injured I can understand it. According to what I read on the SL Trib website putting Andy on the unprotected list was a move that in deference to his family situation. I really hope Andy stays and I believe should be allowed to finish his career with RSL.

OFF MY SOAPBOX

Posted in The soapbox | No Comments »