So, news today is that Landon Donovan just signed a new contract with the LA Galaxy, that will pay him a lot more than he was previously making. Prior to this contract, Donovan was “grandfathered” into a designated player slot, meaning that LA had filled their spot with David Beckham, but they allowed the Galaxy to keep Donovan as well. Several players have been grandfathered in order for them to stay with their current teams. Many people are upset that Donovan still is not required to take up the Designated Player spot for the Galaxy, which would mean they would have to choose between Beckham and Donovan.
While I am no expert on the rules of running a team in the MLS, I had to think about how big of a deal this is, and what the implications could mean.
First, I had to think of RSL. We do not have anybody occupying a Designated Player spot, and yet, we were the MLS Champions in 2009. Now, the regular season was not that good for us, but I wonder if that had more to do with us totally sucking on the road, and not because we do not have a designated player.
My only concern (and argue with me if you think I am wrong) is that as the MLS continues to grow, more players will want to play in this league, whether they are Americans or from elsewhere. As these players come into the league, I fear the MLS will make exceptions to where players go to in order to make the players happy, and sell their product. Do you really think Thierry Henry is going to come to the MLS if he is told that he is going to play for Real Salt Lake? Where my fear lies is that eventually teams with have 3, 4, and maybe 5 Designated Players on their roster, and then it might be too difficult to compete with them in the future. Will this happen? I don’t know. I hope that the league would see this as a problem and make some firm rules about rosters.
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Roster Moves
So far during this off season, RSL has made three changes to their roster.
The first move was the acquisition of Abe Thompson from Kansas City. Abe is a veteran MLS striker. Honestly, I cannot remember ever seeing him, and his name is not familiar for me. I guess we will just have to wait and see when RSL gets into training camp about this new player.
With the addition of Thompson came the trading of Chris Seitz to Philadelphia. In my opinion, this was a good move for RSL. Seitz has barely seen the pitch here at RSL, and I think he deserves a chance to go and show what he can do. With Rimando playing the way he is, I do not see us using Seitz anytime soon. I think that Kyle Reynish will be sufficient as RSL maybe looks to add a veteran backup keeper. This was also a good move as I believe it prevented Philadelphia from taking any RSL players in the expansion draft.
Finally, RSL agreed to a contract extension with Fabian Espindola through the year 2013. Great news for RSL. With Yura's future in question (will he stay in Europe if his team is relegated, switch to a new team, etc) and the possiblility of Robbie Findley playing for the National Team during the World Cup, it was important for RSL to lock up Espy. He is a great striker in my opionion, and adds a lot of flare to the team. It will be interesting to see how Kreis lines up our strikers this upcoming season.
What do you guys think of the moves? Is their anything you are hearing in regards to roster moves? Let me know.
The first move was the acquisition of Abe Thompson from Kansas City. Abe is a veteran MLS striker. Honestly, I cannot remember ever seeing him, and his name is not familiar for me. I guess we will just have to wait and see when RSL gets into training camp about this new player.
With the addition of Thompson came the trading of Chris Seitz to Philadelphia. In my opinion, this was a good move for RSL. Seitz has barely seen the pitch here at RSL, and I think he deserves a chance to go and show what he can do. With Rimando playing the way he is, I do not see us using Seitz anytime soon. I think that Kyle Reynish will be sufficient as RSL maybe looks to add a veteran backup keeper. This was also a good move as I believe it prevented Philadelphia from taking any RSL players in the expansion draft.
Finally, RSL agreed to a contract extension with Fabian Espindola through the year 2013. Great news for RSL. With Yura's future in question (will he stay in Europe if his team is relegated, switch to a new team, etc) and the possiblility of Robbie Findley playing for the National Team during the World Cup, it was important for RSL to lock up Espy. He is a great striker in my opionion, and adds a lot of flare to the team. It will be interesting to see how Kreis lines up our strikers this upcoming season.
What do you guys think of the moves? Is their anything you are hearing in regards to roster moves? Let me know.
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Lets Get Started
Welcome once again to View From the North Goal.
I know, last year I really sucked at the blog, but I was trying to do way to many things with it. This year, the blog is strictly going to be reactions and my personal views on Real Salt Lake. If you are looking for news and information on the team, check out
www.rsltothecore.com. That is the team’s homepage on news and information. You can also check on some links from that page. My personal favorites are Keepin it Real and www.rslsoapbox.com.
It is still sinking in that we are the MLS Cup Champions. There is pride in knowing that when other teams play us, they will be playing the defending champs. 2010 looks to be a very good year, not only for RSL, but for the entire soccer community. The regular season looks to provide new challenges, as we work now for the Supporters Shield. There is also the excitement of a new team in the league, the Philadelphia Union, who might be starting Chris Seitz as their keeper. I can only imagine the game here, Rimando vs. Seitz. RSL looks to play in their first ever CONCACAF Champions League, and look to be only the third American team to win that prestigious tournament. In the summer, MLS might take the backseat as we look to South Africa and the World Cup, which might see the inclusion of our own Robbie Findley. I am very excited at what is to come, and I hope you are all as well.
As always, if anybody is interested in looking at tickets, let me know and I will work it out.
Check back next week as I will discuss some recent roster moves by RSL.
I know, last year I really sucked at the blog, but I was trying to do way to many things with it. This year, the blog is strictly going to be reactions and my personal views on Real Salt Lake. If you are looking for news and information on the team, check out
www.rsltothecore.com. That is the team’s homepage on news and information. You can also check on some links from that page. My personal favorites are Keepin it Real and www.rslsoapbox.com.
It is still sinking in that we are the MLS Cup Champions. There is pride in knowing that when other teams play us, they will be playing the defending champs. 2010 looks to be a very good year, not only for RSL, but for the entire soccer community. The regular season looks to provide new challenges, as we work now for the Supporters Shield. There is also the excitement of a new team in the league, the Philadelphia Union, who might be starting Chris Seitz as their keeper. I can only imagine the game here, Rimando vs. Seitz. RSL looks to play in their first ever CONCACAF Champions League, and look to be only the third American team to win that prestigious tournament. In the summer, MLS might take the backseat as we look to South Africa and the World Cup, which might see the inclusion of our own Robbie Findley. I am very excited at what is to come, and I hope you are all as well.
As always, if anybody is interested in looking at tickets, let me know and I will work it out.
Check back next week as I will discuss some recent roster moves by RSL.
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