IVES- I’m a big Rolfe fan and what people don’t realize right now is that he is still injured. The ankle injury that kept him out earlier in the season isn’t fully healed yet and won’t be until he fully rests after the season. When fully healthy I think his speed and shot could certainly be an asset on the right flank.

UNITED– Any news on the possible second New York franchise?

ERIC– Any Jose Angulo updates?

IVES– The last I heard he was in Italy trying to secure a deal. I haven’t been able to contact his agent but will keep trying.

BROSKI– Managments feelings towards Arena, which direction are they going?

IVES– The vibe I get is that Arena is safe for another season, which might explain why he felt comfortable enough to make some of the moves he did make.

LAR– Red Bull can sign two youth players from the academy correct? Updated power rankings on who they might be?

IVES– I still think Matt Kassel, Johnny Exantus and Walter Hines are the top three candidates. I’ll work on an updated rankings shortly.

GRO– Do you get a sense that next year, the year leading up to RBP, and having to compete with the Galaxy for attention, Red Bull will begin to go all out like we know they can? They have clearly been holding back in marketing, buzz, huge named players yada yada…

IVES– I’m still not sure what led to the Red Bulls cutting back on marketing this year but they cannot afford another full year of that weak presence in such a competitive market. I don’t think they’ve held back on signing big-named players. I think they will sign a high-profile star or two for the 2009 season. I also don’t think the Red Bulls are too concerned about what the Galaxy are doing.

AMIT– 1) Do you think that it would help Jozy Altidore to have him debut for USMNT with John Wolyneic?
2) Do older internationals in MLS garner interest from foreign clubs (i.e. Emilio)?
3) Is Claudio Suarez still the best Mexican outside back at this time? Pinto and Magallon are not that great, in my opinion.

IVES– 1. Not sure what that first question is about. 2. Foreign clubs are looking for bargains, be they veterans or younger players. 3. Carlos Salcido and Ricardo Osorio are as good as you’ll find among CONCACAF defenders so fullback isn’t a problem for Mexico. Also, as good as Suarez has been this year, he has lost a step.

CHRIS– Wile Red Bull played well Saturday against a good NE team, the backline continues to be a nightmare. It should have been an easy win if not for the awful marking mistakes and giveaway. Stammler seems to get beat every game but continues to start, Leitch the same thing. What back 4 should they go with going forward? I’d like to see Stammler and Leitch out. Any thoughts?

IVES– A month later, your wish appears to have been granted. If I had to guess, I think you’ll see a back four of Van Den Bergh-Parke-Mendes-Freeman in the playoffs.

JUSTIN– Who are your top five players in the world right now?

IVES– My Top Five Players in the World are:

1. Kaka, 2. Cristiano Ronaldo, 3. Lionel Messi, 4. Cesc Fabregas, 5. Ronaldinho.

The Five Best players I’ve seen play are (in no particular order):

Maradona, Zidane, Ronaldo, Ronaldinho and Thierry Henry.

SEAN– Do you see MLS going to a single table format JUST for the playoffs in the near future? Teams would still play in the Conferences during the regular season to meet travel needs, but come fall the top 8 teams get into the playoffs, and then 1 plays 8 and so on. If changing the playoff picture the way they did this year, would it be logical to creat even more competition?

IVES– I’m not sure you will ever see MLS do away with conference playoffs. The rivalries that already exist are worth keeping come playoff time.

As for the blog. It started the summer of 2006 when my newspaper asked me to do a World Cup blog. I was skeptical at first but then quickly fell in love with ability to share information on a constant basis. The World Cup blog was a big hit so I launched a permanent blog last November. I wasn’t sure how it would do but it grew more quickly than I ever thought it could. Where it goes from here on out is going to be interesting. SBI Readers can expect some changes in the coming months.

DAVID– rules question. If on a PK the shooter lays it off to the side and then a player runs in and shoots it is that legal, or does there have to be a shot? just wondering. and what’s the progress on red bull park?

IVES– I believe a pass is legal based on seeing it attempted a few times, including the failed attempt by Henry for Arsenal a few years back. SBI reader/referees can feel free to chime in.

DAVE– Sorry this isn’t soccer related but how do you pronounce your first name?

IVES– my name is pronounced EYE-VIS. I have no idea where Feilhaber will wind up. He will need to get more playing time for Derby before we can figure out where his future could be.

ANDY B- 1. I’m preparing to start following MLS "for real" next year when the Quakes come back to the Bay Area. Since I haven’t been paying attention– how long should it take for an expansion team to become competitive in MLS these days?

2. Any players who might realistically wind up on an expansion squad you’d be excited to have if you were becoming a Quakes fan? Or will they all be ‘leftovers?’
Thanks for fielding two questions.

IVES– An MLS expansion team can be competitive in year one if the head coach and GM have a clue and don’t make too many mistakes. That said, anyone hoping for a repeat of the 1998 Chicago Fire might want to be more realistic.

As for players who may be available, I think the quality of player in the next expansion draft will be weaker than last year’s but there can always be gems to be found.

MBROSE– What does it say for US soccer that I went to the Gold Cup final (US vs. Mexico) and now I am on the Fire’s spanish speaking phone tree and mailing list? I don’t even live in Chicago and I’m getting phone calls and mailings in spanish telling me I need to go see Blanco.

IVES– It sounds like some agressive marketing by American soccer people. I don’t have a problem with that and am actually pleasantly surprised to hear that these types of efforts are taking place.

ALEX– Do you think that the USMNT should have some sort of "signature" jersey, a la Italy’s blue? We seem to change around alot. If it were up to you, what would it be?

IVES– I suggested this very thing back in March. I happen to like the all Navy uniforms. None of the world’s top teams wear all navy so they wouldn’t be using anyone else’s look. I also don’t mind the white jersey and navy shorts combo. That could work as a permanent option.

IVES– Well, the answer to this one is clearly no. Rafa Benitez needs to stop tinkering and throwing away points. Liverpool has far too much talent to be having the problems they’re having.

MONEYBALL– The rumors about Wynne and Edu got me thinking: why do more MLS teams not loan players out in the MLS offseason. With the relatively long offseason (October – March for non-playoff teams) foreign clubs could get some value at least, and possibly even borrow the players into June depending on the borrowing team and league. You’d think it would be at least a plausible idea for some teams in some situations.

IVES– The mismatch transfer windows are the main reason you don’t see MLS players get loaned out. Yes, it would benefit a young player to be playing from January to April but the transfer windows mean a loaned player would have to stay until July 1. I’m not sure how many MLS teams can afford to loan out a player good enough to play in Europe and miss them for three months.

Now, if MLS teams could loan a player from November to March then I think you would see plenty of MLS teams loan out young talents. So why would Toronto FC consider loaning out players like Maurice Edu and Marvell Wynne? Both players are expected to miss a bunch of time with the Olympic team next year so Toronto may just see it as worth loaning them out. Again, that’s speculation. I haven’t heard anything concrete about Wynne and Edu being loaned out.

MIKE FROM BALTIMORE– What do you think the future holds for Quaranta? He’s had some major injury issues but was once a pretty promising prospect. He’s even been called into camp for the US a few times. But now after bouncing around from DC, to LA, to NYRB without much of an impact, how soon do you think he’ll be suiting up for the Baltimore Blast????

IVES– I wish I could figure out Quaranta’s deal. I remember the summer of 2005 when he looked very good. During his brief time with the Red Bulls, before he got hurt again, Quaranta looked out of shape and uninspired. Is he washed up? That’s tough to say about a player who just turned 23. He will have another chance to prove himself in Red Bulls camp next spring but I’m not sure how many more chances he’ll get.

BLUEFISH– did I overrate gooch?

IVES– I think Serie A is a stronger technical league but La Liga is more entertaining. I think the top level of the Mexican league is better than MLS but the Mexican league spends considerably more money on players so this shouldn’t be a surprise. That said, the gap isn’t nearly as wide as some would have you believe.

SCOTT– Do you see any players getting loaned out during the off-season?

IVES– It sounds like loans may happen this winter but I can’t imagine why an MLS team would loan a player out and effectively lose him until July, meaning they would miss three months of the MLS season.

ALEX– 1) With the struggles of Toronto FC, do you feel that they can be competitive with their foreign player restrictions considering the dearth of good Canadian talent in north America? Is it possible that the MLS will declare both American and Canadian player’s as domestic? Would this be a good thing for the league?

IVES– I think MLS will have to adjust some of the restrictions and folks at TFC seem to believe this is going to happen. I’m not sure if it will be as drastic as allowing American and Canadians to be domestics. If that did happen i don’t think it would hurt the league at all.