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Boswell, Zakuani, Franklin among those taken in Stage 1 Re-Entry Draft

Sean Franklin, Steve Zakuani

Photo by David Bernal/ISIphotos.com

By FRANCO PANIZO

Stage 1 of the MLS Re-Entry Draft is over and done with, and with more players taken than ever before.

Five players were taken in the first part of the 2013 MLS Re-Entry Draft on Thursday afternoon, including centerback Bobby Boswell, winger Steve Zakuani and right back/midfielder Sean Franklin. Franklin and Boswell were both taken by D.C. United with the first and 20th picks, respectively, while Zakuani was scooped up by the Portland Timbers with the No. 2 overall selection.

The two other players nabbed in Stage 1 were midfielder Corben Bone and defender/midfielder Marc Burch. The Philadelphia Union selected Bone with the sixth pick and the Colorado Rapids used their spot at No. 13 to grab Burch.

Of all the moves, the Timbers selecting Zakuani is most likely to grab headlines. Not only does the move mean we could potentially see Zakuani go up against his former club, the Seattle Sounders, but it also reunites him with head coach Caleb Porter. Zakuani played under Porter at Akron from 2007-08.

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What do you think of these selections? Which pick do you think was the best? Expecting United’s defense to be substantially better with Boswell and Franklin on it? Do you see Zakuani shining in Portland?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. Big moves so far. Good for DC, going out there and being aggressive. Also like timbers pickup, can’t wait to see what tomorrow has in store.

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    • oh, your criticism hurts so much. this option was created after negotations w/ the MLS player’s association and a necessary step for a single entity like ours. you might understand if you bothered to pay attention. at all.

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    • Yes, people often follow sports based on personnel regulations. I mean baseball has ridiculously arcane rules (major league/minor league service times, arbitration, Rule Five, delegation for assignment, and more! The commissioner is a used car salesman!) everyone knows Americans hate baseball. Have you seen the nfl’s collective bargaining agreement? A document only the legions of expensive lawyers who drafted it could like, and Americans hate the nfl, right?

      So what’s your precise objection to this particular process? These particular players we’re let go by their teams for various reasons, mostly financial, which happens every day in every league. Without this system, these five players would be unemployed today they are basically restricted free agents which happens in every sport in the us.

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      • To elaborate: they were 8th in the world last year, ahead of Ligue 1. I guess you’re going to argue that the French hate soccer?

  2. As bad as the defense was, the offense was equally woeful. I’m assuming since they just spent 400k on defense — leaving them without a lot of extra cap space — they are securing a forward DP.

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    • “leaving them without a lot of extra cap space”

      Huh?

      DC already had close to $1 million in cap space after jettisoning DeRo, Pajoy, Ruiz, Saragosa, and McDonald (who they were on the hook for even after he went to RSL). Add in the allocation money for missing the playoffs and making the CCL, plus the Rochat and Najar allocation money from their transfers, and DC can afford to overpay for more than a few veteran players and still have money left over to go after a few major signings.

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  3. Statement by DC. They knew the defense was weak and have improved the players at 2 needed spots. Now they need to get some depth on the wings and a true striker.

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  4. Dynamo will miss Boswell. He saved their bacon numerous times per game. Smart player, has lost a little speed but he reads the game very well. Great at helping out when things go cattywampus

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    • Boswell’s getting up there in age, he’s pricey, and he’s lost a step. We’ll miss the Boswell of the 2011 & 2012 seasons, but not so much the Boswell of 2013. I think Brunner is an adequate replacement for Boswell 2013. Now, the issue is depth…

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    • There were times during the year where I was upset with Bobby but that’s only because myself and others placed sooooo much pressure on him because he is an experienced player and has always performed well for the team. That being said, I felt that he needed to take a back seat and give Eric Brunner a chance to develop along side Jermaine Taylor but then Taylor broke his foot so he played along side Bobby. I wish Bobby could stay with Houston as a good sub and help educate and mentor the team as Ching has with Bruin. I felt the same way about Adam Moffat but he’s in Seattle now but I’m glad that Warren Creavelle has had a chance to shine. I’m looking forward to 2014 and believe that Houston is going to go far in the playoffs yet again! Go Dynamo!

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  5. as a DC fan first, and an LA fan second, i’m thrilled with Franklin joining. i’m still not okay with the Arnaud transfer, but these two moves for DCU are spot on.

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    • If DCU had given up something they actually needed to get Arnaud, I would be upset, but we didn’t. We were soaking in International Slots.

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      • i disagree. $180,000+ (that’s my guess for his contract) for a bench player is way too much. Silva will start ahead of him and while the depth IS nice, at that price it is steep. so i think DCU did give up something…cap space/money.

        certainly not a nightmare move, but it’s a little puzzling given DCU’s history of signing older, expensive, experienced players that never work out.

  6. Ugh, I completely understand why Zakuani had to be let go by Seattle but was really hoping he wouldn’t land at Portland. Would not be surprised to see Porter get the best out of him again

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    • There’s a negative development that Portland is offsetting with this move for Zakuani. Rodney Wallace tore his ACL at the end of the playoffs and is facing the usual 5-7 months out of action, plus the unknown timeframe of regaining full match sharpness.

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      • ACL tears take longer than 5-7 months to recover from generally. Adrian Peterson has ruined peoples perception of the correct timeframe for that injury, most people take a lot closer to a year. Unfortunate for Wallace

      • I would say expecting 5-7 months is a bit ambitious is all, yes it happens sometimes but often times high level athletes (like derrick rose) take a year or more.

  7. Mr. Franklin, thank you for your service. You were one of my favorite Gals and I will miss you. With that said, should you figure out that first touch and continue to improve your crossing… please don’t do so when you are on the pitch with the gaLAxy… There are already too many former gals out there killing us in games… (Stupid Alan Gordon for one)

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  8. Should be interesting if Zakuani gets playing time against Seattle. DC looking to reload with some very steady players in Franklin and Boswell.

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    • Boswell is definately closer to the end of his career than the beginning to my eyes, but he could give another solid couple of seasons and definitely his experience will come in handy in DC.

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      • and the difference between him and Arnaud, for me, is that we needed someone like Boswell to come in and play that position right away. which he will. Arnaud is likely to be used the same as Silva. and since i think most DCU fans would agree Silva should start, that leaves Arnaud on the bench at a salary of $180,000 (my guess). obviously the depth is nice, but again, not at that price.

  9. Sad to see Franklin leave LA. I don’t blame Bruce for shipping him since he was making $250k a year, but that leaves a big whole in LA’s right back position. As it stands, Oscar Sorto and (out of position) AJ DeLaGarza are our only options. We need a third option.

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      • Not really. Oscar Sorto is just a kid. He’s a talented homegrown player from LA, but he’s only 19. He’s not first-team ready. And AJ has played as a center back his entire LAG career until this past season. So it would’ve been more accurate if I’d said, “We need a first option.”

    • I think it’s more accurate to say that AJ is finally in the right position for himself. He has to continue to grow and improve in that position, but he was always a misfit at center back.

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    • Thanks for the memories SF. I am kind of pissed that MLS rules make it impossible for a guy to be good and play his entire career for the same team. Oh well with Robbie Rogers at RM its not like we need a RB anyway.

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      • AJ is your RB and RR isn’t useless, he’s…. Oh okay, he’s useless. Shame, he’s plenty gifted, physically, but just not motivated. Maybe he will get his head together in the offseason, but seems unlikely. I don’t think playing soccer is a big priority for him. Who knows, I shouldn’t judge. What the heck do I know, but that’s what it seems like.

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