The first MLS Re-Entry Draft was relatively uneventful last week, with just two players being taken. The second Re-Entry is scheduled for Wednesday and is promising to have at least a few big names taken.
So who might go? Established stars like Juan Pablo Angel and Guillermo Barros Schelotto stand a good chance of being selected by teams hoping to find the missing piece to their championship puzzles. They're just a few of the well-known players available.
So why will players be taken this time around? Teams won't be obligated to sign players to their old contract figures, meaning they can work out more reasonable salaries with draft players assuming those players are willing to take paycuts.
Here are some of the players who could be picked up on Monday:
Juan Pablo Angel, Guillermo Barros Schelotto, Frankie Hejduk, Jeff Cunningham, Jaime Moreno, Cory Gibbs, Jimmy Conrad, Josh Wolff, Fred, Chris Seitz,
D.C. United has the first pick in Wednesday's draft, followed by Chivas USA, Philadelphia Union, New England Revolution, Houston Dynamo and Toronto FC.
Where do I see some top players going? Juan Pablo Angel and Jimmy Conrad are good bets for D.C. United, Chivas UA could definitely use a player like Schelotto,while Philadelphia might find it difficult to pass on grabbing either Angel or Jaime Moreno.
Who would you like to see your team grab in the Re-Entry Draft?
Padula to DC.
frankie hejduk would be good addition though.
I agree, DCU does not need Fred. Fred does not have speed or individual skill to beat anyone. He simply is not that good and was overrated since he came to MLS.
Would really love to see the Union grab an experienced defender, mostly Frankie Hejduk. I think he’d be a great fit with the young squad and would help organize the back line.
This draft has a lot of variables but as a Union fan I think they either go for another Forward or a versatile player in the back and this makes me think they will go after Cory Gibbs- he can play centrally and on the left and would offer cover for Orozco if not coming back and Harvey who lacks any offensive bite. The Union have the 3rd pick and I would really like to see Angel fall to them which I think could happen if DC uses there pick for defense and Chivas (Well Chivas seems to be in shambles so who knows, maybe they will go retro and invest in Moreno or something ridiculous).
As a Philly fan, I’m tempted to say go ahead and take Seitz. Tempted, but I still believe he has great potential, if a club is willing to stick with him. Its just a matter of how long do you have to wait. If somebody does take him now, they’ll get him at a good price. I predict JPA to Philly, if DCU doesn’t take him with their first pick.
Can’t see us taking back Fred over talent we desperately need i.e. another CB (Conrad) or a reliable striker (Angel).
I see nyrb going for depth in the back 4 but not sure its Jimmy Conrad. Maybe a Cory Gibbs or Frankie hejduk who could provide the help at right back they were looking for when they traded for Talley last season.
I don’t see GBS going to DC though stranger things have happened. First, GBS (for DCU fans) is an aging Christian Gomez–he can really only play 2 positions at this stage in his career: a withdrawn forward with free reign to go where-ever he wants or an A-mid in a 5 man midfield. That’s it. DCU needs a clinical finisher immensely. Getting GBS doesn’t solve that. And it commits the team to playing with a 5-man midfield (which puts even more pressure to get that finisher). GBS is a fine player with a lot left in the gas tank if he’s used wisely and on a team where he’s the right fit. But DCU is NOT that team.
Second, Boskovic has always been for his entire career a central midfielder. But with his national team (montengro), the joke is that they have 10 central mids and no other positions. So he plays a very effective left mid (who pinches in centrally). Plus, if you play Najar and Boskovic at the outside mids, then you want to play two defensive mids in the middle (say…McCarty and Simms). So GBS still doesn’t fit.
I think GBS makes sense for DCU only with 2 assumptions:
(a) he signs for a pittance (less than $100k)
(b) DCU concludes that there is no defensive organizer (ie: not Conrad and not Gibbs) and no clinical finisher (ie: not Angel) worth taking in this re-entry draft.
Actually, the two teams that I think could be extremely interesting for GBS (though I’m not sure either coach would go for him) would be NE or Colorado. In both cases, he’d be surrounded by hard working, hard running, ball winning midfield vacuum cleaners. With the right use, he’d show his big-game clutch performance on a regular basis and probably rest about every 5th game or come out at the 70th minute in games that were resolved. But I don’t think Gary Smith wants to go in that direction and I can’t say about NE’s approach.
+10000000000
You’re gonna laugh, but I’m not making this up. Alexi Lalas’s twitter.
Check this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_MLS_Re-Entry_Draft
It’s quite informative.
I know Frankie’s from SoCal and Bruce has a thing for acquiring members of his old 2002 and/or 2006 World Cup teams, but why would the Galaxy need or want Hejduk? They already have Franklin and DeLaGarza, and Frankie’s age has been showing as of late.
Do I remember hearing that Boskovic plays more naturally on the wings? Is it ridiculous to think of DCU getting GBS for attacking mid, putting Bosko and Najar on the wings, and moving Pontius and Quaranta up top? We could bring McCarty and Simms into defensive mid, and play GBS as 2nd forward, with Q, Pontius, and Ngwenya as alternate forwards/depth on the wings.
Just curious cause I’m seeing a lot of focus on JPA, but his bad back concerns me.
I’ll third the Seitz to Seattle speculation. That would be great.
Good guess with Seattle. I’d second that move.
I also like your predictions for DC and Chivas.
Should be an interesting draft.
Actually Portland’s whole identity is not being us. We have a history of winning Cups that Portland does not. We lead the all time series, including an even 15-15 in Portland.
But this post won’t change your opinion. Go nuts.
Rage much d5ve?
That was hilarious and ironic. Timbers fans seem a bit Seattle-focused-crazy to this casual observer.
Source for Birmingham rumor?
If you don’t rip out your eyes to stab at your brain with a knife sharpener first.
FFS, I’m all for a rivalry that brings real heat, in a packed stadium with ridiculous displays and support, but this 24/7/365 internet sniping by halfwits and full-blown morons who think the history of the rivalry started in 2009 is extraordinarily tiresome.
Every once in a while, I’d like to see a full, detailed conversation about player transfers and team news without Joe Soundersfan raging out because his FO won’t give him the time of day and his entire identity as a fan is based around a giveaway scarf and not being Portland.
Kudo’s JoeW! Great post here.
I’m hoping that DC grabs Angel, Conrad or GBS.
This rivalry will be so good for MLS 🙂
First, I suspect that teams have already been talking to agents. Afterall, you don’t want to pick a player who you’d want only if he’ll play for $80k and discover he’s still insisting on $240.
Second, based on the first assumption, who teams pick is then driven to a great extent by the conversations they’ve had with agents (and agents in turn with their clients). I don’t see how we could have an intelligent (or even semi-intelligent) mock draft given how the variable that has the most impact (how much teams are willing to offer for a respective talent and how much the respective talent is willing to accept) is an unknown.
I do know that Ben Olsen was quoted before the draft as saying that DCU felt they could get a couple of players from this. They got Ngwenya. So figure one more. If a lot of these players are willing to come down significantly in price, we could see a lot of action. Otherwise, I can see teams saying “Conrad is nice but I can get someone who will play in more games, is faster and will only cost me $100k while Conrad won’t sign for less than $140k” (and the same for Angel or any other player). So this is very much about “value” rather than need. LAG might need to replace Buddle but I think they aren’t going to take anyone from this group and pay them $150k-$200k when they could either sign a DP striker (the most logical approach) or go for someone cheaper from Central America.
If the Galaxy lose Buddle to Birmingham City (where he is reportedly on trial), they will need two strikers. Could get one out of this draft.
you know nothing of NE. Nicol would never take a Cunningham. Not his type at all
No one cares. Go ineffectively troll MLS Rumors or some other site that caters to the special needs kids.
Surprisingly, LA’s Jovan Kirovski is the only player reported to have been taken off the list of available players. Ashe and Robinson weren’t part of the re-entry draft anyway.
ahahahaha
This backline would lose to Seattle 5-0.
Is this a joke? Mendes is highly competent, and the other option is Marquez. No thanks.
Any word on whether RBNY is interested in anybody on this list?
My prediction:
DC – Fred
Chivas – Schelotto
NE – Cunningham
Houston – Stephenson
Chicago – Angel
Seattle – Seitz
NY – Conrad
i wish DC would take Cunningham and then just pay him to sit on the bench so he can’t take Jaime Moreno’s record
I’m hoping somehow Seitz falls to Portland. I think someone will snatch him up, but I would love to see him in a Timber uniform.
Cunningham was a cancer in Toronto too… major headcase… and I seem to remember Jason Kreis hated him in Salt Lake, even though Cunningham scored a decent number of goals there.
I’d warn any team to avoid Jeff Cunningham at any cost.
Anyone have any information as to who the league was able to sign in advance of the draft, resignings (like Robinson and Ashe in Houston), or,like, anything?
Also to consider: He never succeeds on functioning teams.
Hang tight for 17 hours and you’ll get the real thing.
Hey Ives,
Could you run down a hypothetical mock Re-entry draft with a bit of commentary–just for funsies?
This whole system is complicated and I have no earthly clue who will take who.
Thanks and keep up the good work
Here’s the challenge with Cunningham–he’s a cancer in the locker room. I think Hyndman used him well (coming off the bench to run at people on the counter) this year. But overall, Cunningham is a player who is attractive only in the right situation.
With Angel, turf is a bad fit. He’s had a bad back for 2 years now. He needs a grass field.
I’m not sure I see LAG going for any of the big names. I think they’d much rather spend their bucks on another DP with a name and then use remaining money on good support players (ie: Klein-type players). Hejduk might be a good LAG fit b/c he so fits the system that Arena likes to play and he might be the second most fit player in MLS next to Landon Donovan.
no, thats the point. At his price he’s a very very expensive bench player who is now a year older. He’ll sign, but for a significantly lower amount.
I don’t see how Jeff Cunningham doesn’t end up with a club. Even at his price, he’s worth the goals that he consistently manages to nab.
Jimmy conrad and Tim Ream would be a nice pairing…..
I doubt JPA would be willing to play his home games on turf at this point in his career.
Philly taking Jaime Moreno? Doesn’t seem likely. He was barely able to move last season, and I’m sure nobody is even considering taking him at his current age and fitness level.
ives is there any chance at all that the Revs get JPA or Schelotto? any?
I think JPA goes to either Philly or DC i think if he goes to philly you can sign them up for the playoffs play in game.
I’d like it if LA could get Angel. GBS would be interesting too. Not sure how Arena would use him though? Second striker behind Buddle?
I like the idea of a Wallace-Gibbs-Brunner-Gilbert back line in Portland.