Photo by ISIphotos.com
You might ask yourself how a defender on the absolute worse defense in Major League Soccer can win an award. While that is a valid question what you should ask yourself is just how good does a defender have to be to get noticed playing on the nightmare that was the 2008 LA Galaxy defense.
Sean Franklin was that good. A rookie who spent much of the year covering for the mistakes and deficiencies of the players around him, Franklin showed that he has all the tools to become a standout defender for years to come. He was impressive enough to earn a look from U.S. national team coach Bob Bradley earlier this week, and he impressed enough to win 2008 MLS rookie of the year.
Franklin beat out New England’s Kheli Dube and Houston’s Geoff Cameron for the award in what has to be described as an extremely weak year for rookies. That’s not a knock on Franklin, but rather on a rookie class sorely lacking in impact players.
Franklin certainly looks like just that, and it will be interesting to see how good he looks once he goes back to his natural position of right back after spending much of the year in central defense.
What do you think of Franklin winning MLS rookie of the year? Share your thoughts below.