Welcome to the latest installment of Your Questions Answered. There is a good range of questions in this batch, with topics ranging from Jonathan Spector's U.S. national team prospects to my ranking of all the stadiums in MLS.
Surprisingly, there were no John O'Brien, MLS promotion/relegation or Red Bulls stadium questions. Trust me, I'm not complaining.
Now, onto the answers:
If not healthy, will Bradley bring him anyway ala John O'Brien 2006?
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DAS – Why does ESPN run a ticker during all soccer broadcasts?
I like it, but why the about-face?
If I were the sponser who is ponying up $1M I'd be asking Garber to pull the knife out of my back.
BLUE WHITE LION– If you got to choose your special "birthday meal", what would it be?
JOE K– hi ives, do you know if there are any soccer sports radio shows? preferably in the NYC area.
SBGARRETT– What's new for Kamani Hill? Is he still playing at Wolfsberg? He doesn't appear to be on their reserves or lower division side.
With all their success this season its sad not to see a nat be a part of it.
Also, Dempsey must be getting the attention of some of the larger clubs in the land after doing pretty well for Fulham, any rumbles of a transfer? (I hope he stays at least another year to get PT)
DREW– 1. Does Davy Arnaud deserve a longer look by Bob Bradley?
2. Will he get it?
3. Why doesn't Jimmy Conrad get any love from Bradley anymore?
GOTHAM SC– What were to happen if our academy players who chose not to play abroad such as ferrari and exantus decided to come back to the mls and wanted to play for the red bulls? How would that work, would we only be allowed to sign one or could we claim a discovery find on both of them.
Also with Salmon being a good central defender and a senior, plus Duka and Kassel probably going pro next year. Is there any chance that Osorio puts down serious contract deals for them. Thanks.
JAVIER– The Galaxy's offense is terrible. Can they afford a couple quality forwards espcially given LD's and Beckham's salary? If you agree they need help in this position who would you recommend (that they could afford)?
Buddle is hurt, Gordon has never shown anything,Kirovski is past his prime, Jordan and LD are more of attacking midfielders than true forwards. This is not highly respected list of forwards.
JEFF– I don't think you've been asked this recently, so now that you've visited Rio Tinto and Qwest, how would you rank the MLS stadiums?
It is interesting to me that Spector gets serious looks on West Ham but is included in conversations here in the same breath as Hejduk and Bornstein and Pearce. Of course if healthy. thats the case with every player. Given his versatility and Cherendolo being a head above other Left Back options, Spector plays on the left. Then in the center by 2014.
If I was a US soccer fan, I wouldn’t be very worried about the attendance figures. I think MLS’s figures are very impressive, more so when considering the role of soccer in US media. Remember, they are pretty much on par with Brazilian Serie A and slightly higher than say Turkish or Russian leagues.
@SHOLATA
I completely agree. I think stadium location is another huge problem. I know it’s far easier said than done, but stadia should really be built as close to city centers as possible. The reason teams like Seattle and Toronto do so well is really twofold: 1) Good stadium location; and 2) No confusion about the target audience.
There’s nothing much that can be done about #1 at this point, but at the very least, MLS team should start targeting young, urban sports fans instead of soccer-playing children and their families. I think Portland is a great example of how soccer can really take off under the right circumstances. It wasn’t that long ago that the Timbers Army was three rows deep. Now, it’s starting to fill up the stadium. There’s far more potential growth when the game-day environment because fun, noisy, and passionate…no offense to any youth soccer players out there, but you’ll never achieve this effect with a stadium 1/4 full with 8-12 year olds and their “lame” parents (no offense to any “lame” parents, either).
On a separate note: I’ve been told that the Red Bulls are really Jersey’s team, but it’s kind of sad that I haven’t seen a single ad in New York this entire year. Not one.
the question isn’t why is it so hard to get fans to come out for the Dallas team. The real question is why is MLS so bad at marketing this game.
the level of play has improved since the inception of MSL. The stadiums are better. The refereeing? But what most needs improvement is selling this game to the US market. The league, not just Dallas, has yet to figure that part out. Why? Is it that hard?
I am not saying Cherundolo is the greatest right back in the world, but he positions himself well and can get forward when necessary. He has a tendency to disappear, but I don’t think that’s totally bad. While I rarely say at the end of a game, Cherundolo was the man of the match, I also never say, Cherundolo was bad tonight. He does his job. He lacks flash, but he’s consistently good (or competent, at least).
Hejduk…he’s better than I’ve given him credit for, but I really think anyone who says he’s surpassed Cherundolo as our first choice is off his or her rocker. Let’s go down a check list:
Positioning: Cherundolo
Crossing: Cherundolo
Passing: Cherundolo
Dribbling: Cherundolo
Not dribbling the ball out of bounds: Cherundolo
Giving up dangerous free kicks: Hejduk
Reckless play (two-footed tackles): Hejduk
Speed: Hejduk
(I refuse to put intangibles on this list, like “heart” and “passion.” I don’t buy that unchecked aggression equals “heart.” Maybe Cherundolo wants to win just as much as Hejduk…)
Hejduk has speed and “tenacity,” yes, but half the time he has to sprint back and lunge in at an attacker, it’s because he was either out of position or beaten.
It’s just strange to me…when I think of steady performers on the National Team, I think of Howard, Cherundolo, and Bocanegra. I’m a little confused why we’d want to replace Cherundolo with a guy who has a tendency to put in some really, truly, poor performances. As for Spector…why not the left?
you can’t hate on the inca kola, but for a birthday aji de gallina with a pisco sour sounds a bit better. But ives’ selection wasn’t too bad.
I second dbex on his point about Cherundolo – I just don’t feel that he’s all that strong of a defender. I’d certainly prefer a RB with a bit more size and athleticism, even if he would be a stay-at-home type. Hejduk is a flawed player, but I’ve even started to think his speed and tenacity make him more valuable Cherundolo. That said, I hope Spector gets healthy and makes that position his own.
@ Mike Caramba, and anyone else who wants to answer:
What do people see in Cherundolo? I admit, I’ve only watched him on Nats duty, as I don’t get Bundesliga games on my cable system, but here’s what I see: a small defender with average speed, decent positional sense, and above-average crossing ability who gets manhandled by physical forwards and makes some surprisingly dumb decisions (like the red card in WC qualifying). I *want* to like him, but haven’t seen a reason to yet. Can someone explain to me what I’m missing?
really? but flan has no taste. to compare it to something, i would say its taste is similar to the acting prowess of ‘toad’ in gran torino.
A Liverpool team featuring five capped Spanish internationals beat Man United twice this season. Once you add in Casillas, Xavi, Iniesta, Villa, Silva, Senna and the rest of the bunch, I am fairly certain they could dispose of the Mancs…
Giggs is definently one of the greatest PL players ever, though he’s definently a rung below the world greats.
I am all for Spector when healthy, but am I the only one who still regards Cherundolo as one of our best, most consistent players? I think he’s a lock at right back when healthy.
For Joe K who asked if there were any soccer radio shows, the FAN 590 (fan590.com) based in Toronto has a soccer show every Thursday evening. It’s generally at 9pm but it’s sometimes earlier or later depending on whether the station is broadcasting a Blue Jays game.
ok i can understand spector not starting for the US if he’s injured, but if he’s healthy and getting serious minutes at West Ham (even in a substitute role like he’s in now) should be enough to have him start for the US. i’d take a West Ham sub player/starter over a Columbus Crew starter or Hertha Berlin sub. if he’s healthy, Spector is one of the most versatile players we have, as he could easily beat out Dolo/Hejduk on the right, either of our Center Backs, and definitely Pearce/Bornstein on the left – Spector has even seen time playing a d mid role for West Ham. the idea that a guy so young and so successful already in the best league of the world has to fight to get a look over a scrub like hejduk.
time to eat healthier ives. no more soda and fried crap. tough love man
While George Best is definitely one of the best players of all time, he’s not in the same category as Pele and Maradona.
Pele and Maradona live in the category that crosses over all sorts of cultural lines. You could go to a baseball game in Kansas City and I bet people there would know who Pele and Maradona were if you asked. There’s no way they’d have any clue who George Best was though.
It’s a shame, but true.
inca cola = liquid cotton candy
I’d love to see Chicago take advantage of the depth win Superliga — That would be great for all involved.
Pulling for Seattle to win MLS in their 1st season — what a class squad
Question, are there any former USMNT team players that are now playing beach soccer due to their persistent nagging injuries?
What if the MLS implemented a system that rewarded lower division clubs and punished the worst club in the MLS somehow?
Are there any plans for the New York City USL team to leverage off another stadium that might potentially be built for MLS teams?
Also, when was Kirovski “in his prime”? Youth days at Man U? His strike rate has been pretty low for….well, forever. He’s got to be near the top of the list of American players that didn’t live up to the hype.
@Eric Anderson
It’s an interesting question, but George Best is widely considered one of the best ever–he had the same national-team issues, playing for Northern Ireland. I don’t think a lack of an international career negates a player’s club accomplishments, nor does it preclude a player from being counted among “the greats.” It might make it a little harder, though.