Omar Salgado is stuck.
There's no other way to describe the situation in which the first overall pick in the 2011 MLS SuperDraft currently finds himself.
After the Vancouver Whitecaps acquired all sorts of attacking talent during the offseason to add to an already full stable — bringing in Sebastien Le Toux, drafting Darren Mattocks and signing NASL golden boot winner Etienne Barbara — it is no wonder that 18-year-old Salgado has yet to see the field this season. But aside from trotting him out for a 90-minute reserve league performance last week, the club does not seem to be making a whole lot of effort to get him consistent playing time.
Sources told Fox Soccer that Vancouver has turned away multiple trade offers within MLS while also turning down a loan opportunity in Europe for Salgado, whose Spanish passport makes him more attractive to clubs overseas. Sources also said that the Whitecaps have turned down potential loan moves to NASL clubs. As a result, Salgado is one of a number of U.S. youth internationals left in club purgatory, a topic that U.S. national team coach Jurgen Klinsmann touched on during his talk with the media on Wednesday.
"We need to find ways to get our 18-to-22-year-olds, 23-year-olds more playing time and maybe here and there more help," Klinsmann said. "On the other side, they also need to realize that they have to fight their way through the system. They have to find a way to break into the team."
For Salgado, who is still eligible for the 2013 U-20 World Cup even after competing in the 2011 cycle, the mountain to climb with the Whitecaps is quite steep. Breaking through on a club that starts Eric Hassli, Camilo and Le Toux and has all of that depth behind them is a brutal challenge, especially for the rather untested Salgado, who has 14 MLS games, five starts and one goal to his name.
If Vancouver won't trade or transfer him and is not willing to take the steps to accelerate his growth with a loan, then it appears that all of Salgado's talent and potential will toil on the bench along with him, restricting his chance to grow and contribute for both club and country in the near future.
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How should Vancouver handle Salgado? Should they remain patient and bring him along on the reserve team? Do they have an obligation to loan him out if he won't get minutes with the first team? What's your take on the situation?
Share your thoughts below.
Already mentioned above, but do it like it’s done in Germany, play the reserve team as a “real team” in a lower division. Real games, real competition. Or, build a team in a lower division comprised of nothing but these players needing game experience. Or, turn the reserve teams into a league, with enough games to make a difference. Of course, that assumes that all or most MLS teams will have the funding to support a B team.
This is why i dont agree with MLS having so many foreigners on the temas, take to consideration the players that hold green crad, look at the redbulls that have more foreigners than american and the list continue to grow. We need to have a cap of foreiners like in Mexico, the max is 5 non mexican pleayers per team.
Hope that’s actually 2,000 minutes, because 200 games is too much for anyone… 😉
seems that the first vancouver coach leaving after only some games in first season is the problem. He was a good coach who knew players and talent for europe. Than the man who is director now , german man, who has been bad coach everywhere he touches in MLS took him and put him from the team. Seems the newest coach thinks poorly because of what mr soehn was doing to salgado. we have seen him play in the milk cup and was quite good, maybe he is needing new place
He was leading scorer in the reserve league
Also considering that Vancouvers strikers are not great; I don’t see why he hasn’t seen minutes. Play Salgado.
On a positive note Villiyan Bijev played with Fortuna Dusseldorfs first team today in the Bundesliga 2. He played for about 20 mins.
As far as I know Martin Rennie said that Vancouver would like to loan him out. Who knows why Vancouver has denied him a loan. I don’t like it. The only thing I could come up with is the fact that Mattocks injured himself a few weeks ago. But I do believe a mandatory law playing under 23 players fro a certain amount of minutes should be set-up. They do this in Mexico and it’s obviously paying off. I also think that the Reserve league needs to be added to the NASL teams. We don’t do promotion and relegation so I don’t see the harm in it.
Salgado led the reserve league in scoring. That certainly entitles him to more playing time somewhere. If Vancouver can’t provide it they should loan him out. If each MLS team can have youth academy teams from U13 to U18 levels play a full season than they could certainly have the reserve teams play a full season.
In Mexico there is a rule that requires teams to use players under a certain age a certain amount of minutes during the tournament. They lose points if they don’t use them. I don’t know the specifics but you it shouldn’t be hard to google.
Don’t see how entitled he is when he’s securing a loan deal in NASL for himself? Seems like a clear sign he wants to prove himself, even at a (very) low level–which is the opposite of entitled.
It’d be entitled if he expected Whitecaps playing time or a European transfer. That doesn’t seem to be the case.
I would think there’s another side to the story as to the Whitecaps’ plans and thoughts, because it’s hard to see what they’re thinking as regards both Salgado and Mattocks.
Because 1) He’s a human being 2) if the value is in the transfer, then send him out to impress in a situation where he can excel. You want a transfer? Make him desirable.
Accumulate dust? That’s not a business strategy, that’s negligence. Let him trial abroad rusty and out of shape, having not played in over a year?
If a club is interested in him NOW, then his value doesn’t increase on the bench. If this is all just smoke and mirrors to unload him, than Vancouver is not only cruel to Salgado and a sh%tty business partner, but utterly confused.
I don’t really care what Salgado is doing in the situation. Loan him.
Who pays the Generation Adidas salaries? Does Adidas pay all of it. Is that the problem here Ives?
Vancouver would play him on their own PDL team before doing that.
This is unacceptble !!
Vancouver should be contracted from MLS
i do like the idea of playing the reserve teams vs. NASL/USL/etc. teams…
exactly. we live in this entitlement culture today where anyone young with potential just expects the world to open all of its doors for him and when it doesn’t happen people complain that some organization or someone else is holding them down.
Once people realize that their success is solely dependent on their effort and relentless drive to excel, not someone else’s evil agenda, will complaints like this disappear.
The way things are headed in this world, I don’t expect this to change soon. People like to feel sorry for themselves too much
If the hint is that Vancouver might like to sell him to Europe, why would you ship him to the minors now? If Vancouver’s choice is sending him to a B.2 team this summer to try out in prospect of a transfer, or shipping him to Carolina to get the rust off (but also giving off the message he may be struggling with the junior-senior adjustment), I think they let him accumulate dust now and then trial him around Europe this summer. If they had a potential $1 million transfer fee lost because someone in NASL breaks his leg, because they elected to favor the “get PT route”…..
It’s counter-intuitive, because we pretty much all know you get better getting practice reps and game PT. But if Rennie could care less and his value is in transfer, you don’t treat him like Houston’s no-name Josue Soto and ship him to the minors to get PT, you shop window the sucker and hope you can fool someone. In which case, U20 could have done them a favor and called him in so they could sell that scouting opportunity…
agreed, with a team as lowly as Vancouver has been since entering the league you would think that any player who is bringing it in practice would at least make the bench. I can’t imagine a scenario other than the fact that Salgado just isn’t playing at a high enough quality to make the first XI at Vancouver.
That said he does have a few quality players above him that should make it more difficult than if he was on say the Rev’s or Chivas USA.
Still I don’t understand why you don’t loan him out..? I guess his salary is still paid by Adidas so a loan won’t help financially but still…
There is absolutely nothing unique to the MLS about this. The vast majority of 18 year old professionals in any country do not play consistent minutes. Working hard to get in the team is a trait every young player should learn. They should not be rewarded for demanding to be sold or loaned to a lesser team where it will be easier for them. Becoming a professional player is difficult.
MLS needs a minor league stat. 10 reserve league games played in bunches does no one any good. The 18-21 ages are crucial for player development and MLS is just so poor at it. Salgado needs playing time and he needs it now. Denying loans when youre not going to play him is a joke and its no wonder top prospects are entering college or bypassing MLS altogether. And its not like hes not working hard. Hes been training all offseason and put on 20 lbs of muscle.Too bad him and Mattocks play for this team but at least Vancouver will finish in the bottom three along with the other two Canadian teams
damn Vikings at NYRB
how exactly is that enforced? What are the rules there?
At what point is Salgado’s predicament his own fault? He arrived in Vancouver expecting to be given play time and didn’t live up to that expectation. The hard truth is he didn’t deserve it. Having seen him at practice, he’s not impressed. Shoving matches with teammates because he doesn’t like being played hard (just didn’t seem used to a men’s game), a sulky attitude, and a lack of results when played don’t help ones cause for additional playing time. To post the question “Do [the whitecaps] have an obligation to loan him out if he won’t get minutes with the first team?” is a bit one sided. “Do [the whitecaps] have an obligation to loan him out, despite his attitude problems of the previous season, if he won’t get minutes with the first team?” would be a better question.
Now having said that he’s been much better this season and i fully expect him to get playing time soon. He worked hard over the summer (put on a good amount of weight which when you’re 6’4 and skinny comes in handy), and looks to be more focused. Certainly playing for a coaching staff that is respected can only help after the mess that was last season.
In general it seems that people mistake the whitecaps drafting him first overall as somehow the whitecaps thought he was a superstar. Truth is he’s far from it at present. He was drafted because he was 3-5 years younger then everyone else and had a higher upside(and still might).
As for the Caps picking up Mattocks in this season’s draft, it’s a pretty pointless argument. It was generally accepted that the Caps would pick the best player left to them, as by and large the top two were head and shoulders above the other players in the draft. They had no control over who they got, and probably would have preferred to have gotten Wenger. To say that their decision to draft Mattocks has any bearing on what they think of Salgado is intellectually lazy.
Having said all that i think they should loan him out to get playing time, ideally to a European team. I firmly believe he’s on his way to being a solid player, and this past offseason really opened his eyes, both to his potential, and to what sort of effort he has to put into fulfilling that potential.
I’m going to try to take the other side here.
Instead of blaming the team for burying the player, how about we place some blame on the player for not making it absolutely impossible for the team to NOT play him. Salgado’s dad said as much last year about his son’s situation.
If you’re supposed to be the next great thing, then surely earning a spot on Vancouver Whitecaps’ starting squad is within the realm of possibilities.
Show up to practice first, stay later than everyone, and put it all on the line in every drill. If that doesn’t do it, then perhaps you are being buried by management, though it behooves them to play their best options.
“Waiting for a more lucrative suitor.” Perhaps Vancouver believes there is yet more raw asset value to be extracted from some other European team for Salgado’s potential. The test there would be if their assessment is right, ie, if his services are in fact bid upwards in the next window or two. You don’t have to play to be treated as an asset, Freddy Adu.
Now, if they are delusional about the market for Salgado as-is, then I buy your theory, he needs to prove himself somewhere, either to be worthwhile as a team member or to revive the transfer interest. However, he would have to earn his Vancouver PT (no guarantee, people act like they should start a prospect ahead of the others, even as their record improves? it’s a senior team not an academy side…..), he is of no transfer value to Vancouver traded, and if he’s demoted back to the minors it doesn’t exactly sell him abroad even if it is better for him personally to be playing.
So I don’t see it as just straightforward, “Oh, play the kid.”
Loan him, you morons.
If Vancouver had a few more seasons under their belt, this wouldn’t be a question.
how do you boost a players worth to a European if you DON’T PLAY HIM?
you could say the same thing is going on with Agudelo at NYRB
Adopt a rule in MLS like the (now repealed) rule in Mexico: each club has to give a domestic under-20 player at least 1000 minutes per season. Maybe tweak the age threshold if you want, but this could go a long way solving the minutes problem that Klinsmann keeops citing.
Man, this piece reads like a piece of propaganda. SBI trying to turn the screws on Vancouver?? Bottom line: their player, their decision.
Agree with AdamTheRed. OK, if you don’t think he is ready and there is better talent ahead of him. But they won’t trade him or loan him out? The only possible reason is it’s managed by a bunch of clowns. No other logical explanation.
Worth considering that perhaps Salgado is being kept around (a) in case he turns a corner on his own through sheer dint of effort or (b) until he can be sold for substantial bucks to Europe. If Vancouver thinks he has transfer value then they might be indifferent to trade value, or the potential for a loan outside of the context of a prospective transfer. This is not necessarily best for the player, who as long as he is a mere prospect not deemed fit for PT rots on the bench (or reserves), but this wouldn’t be the first time — see Freddy at Benfica — that a team treats a peripheral player as an asset that they maintain on the books, even as they negatively impact his career.
That they’ve weighed a Euro-loan should also be a hint he’s being treated as an asset because the usual US process is a playing time loan to the minors. People sent to Europe like John, Ream, Gonzo are being shop-windowed. The impression is thus that they are waiting for a more lucrative suitor who will then be allowed to kick the tires if they want first.
Agudelo is a more complicated issue because that resonates more with Shea 2011 to me, if he breaks out he will play. I think that has more to do with Backe than treating him like an asset, because Agudelo has shown something. Salgado is nothing but potential and the only reason Vancouver is sitting on an otherwise presently unproductive player is either asset value or the odd chance he just clicks into form and shoves the rest aside.
MLS should make him play even if Vancouver has to field 12 players, referees should not be allowed to call offsides on him and all his goals should count as double.
Vancouver it says turned down the loans, not the player
Great question and topic for USMNT. Especially with all that has gone down recently with the U-23’s. Juan Agudelo, different circumstances, has some likeness of issues. Seems to me that if they don’t have a top-flight MLS squad to break into, like Shea and Nagbe, then Reserves are a good consideration. But when the talent potentioal is high like Agudelo and Salgoado, then a loan option might be another strong option. That way clubs keep their potential growth at hand. Reserve league level of play is increasing. Needs work, but will continue to develop as a good option for players not getting top-flight playing time. Some clubs starting U-23 squads, like Timbers and Sounders would be still another option. Again keeping the developing talent close at hand.
Other way around. Salgado tried to get loans and offers, and Vancouver turned them down.
Reading Jonah Freedman’s article today talked a little about this. They had a rule that required each team play a player under 20 thousand minutes each year. USSF should do something like this with the MLS teams. The Canadian teams can get this with their Canadian players (which wouldn’t do anything for Salgado at this juncture).
I didn’t know Vancouver had tried to loan him out. I wonder why he refused it. Seems like a loan is the best option at this point; at least until his contract expires.
Draft Nagbe!!!!!
To everyone who says the NCAA serves no purpose in developing soccer talent anymore, I give you exhibit A. Unless a 17-year old is somehow good enough to get noticed and then picked up by a European club without possessing an EU passport, college soccer is probably a better way to develop as an 18-20 year old than riding the pine and playing reserve games. Look how many college players got called into the U-20 camps, yet Salgado who has a pro contract isn’t getting a look (according to the link Ives provided.) This behavior by Vancouver is shameful.
Sound like his fate is sealed, unless US Soccer can pressure MLS into forcing the hand of Vancouver to loan him out.
Regarding his development and that of other reserve team members, would it be possible for MLS to play the reserve teams in one of the lower division soccer leagues? The benefits to this would be to the players, the team, and MLS: The players would get meaningful competition and would play for whatever trophy/championship is in that league, the team benefits because their reserve players are developing quicker as they play in meaningful games, and the league benefits with increasing exposure to fans in non-MLS markets.
Damn Canucks trying to sabotage USMNT. Loan him out!
They should do what RSL did with Gil and loan him out to a lower division team. I think Gil benefited alot from getting solid playing time while with St. Louis
he and agudelo should be sold as a two-fer to a club that hives half a poop.
Seems to me,Vancover should look into loaning Salgado out to the PDL.
MLS clubs are so poorly mismanaged that this should come at no surprise.
They should absolutely get rid of him since they clearly have no intention of playing him
Drafting forwards with top picks consecutive years in a row while going out and signing top league forwards as well?
It’s like the Lions drafting a wide receiver with their top pick every year for a decade. It’s moronic.
I understand not playing someone, but not allowing loans etc is such a joke!
Same way Red Bulls should handle Agudelo either play him, trade him, or loan him. These young players need consistent minutes more than anything else. Right now clubs are just wasting talent and money.
Sell him. Wasn’t that the reason they drafted him anyway?
There’s no game film on him, so surely there’s still got to be a European club with a couple mil to spend that will still love his size and “potential”?
i think MLS should make mandatory like we do in Colombia league for young player to play. Look how many of our young player are going to your league now, plus the many we put to europe. make them play, they get better and is good for everyone ( mls team and player)