It's kind of a grab-bag out there today, so let's just dig in and throw out some bullet points:
- A couple spaces note (keying off a Soccer New England piece I have yet to read) note that the New England Revolution's Shalrie Joseph is mulling a hold out to protest the stall in his salary negotiations. Seriously, all I can say here is...dang...
- Ahead of this weekend's coolly-anticipated meeting between the Kansas City Wizards and the Chicago Fire, it's worth noting that Chicago sorta, kinda owns this series: we're talking 17-7-4 all-time and, apropos to this weekend's tilt, they hold a 11-1-1 edge in Chicago.
- That the Los Angeles Galaxy's slow start to 2007 has warmed Frank Yallop's seat received mention in a couple places today. Now, personally, I think the Galaxy front office would have to be eating crack to make this move, but we're talking about the dumber Lalas here.
- I know the words "good" and "column" seldom appear together when discussing Fox Soccer's Jamie Trecker (for the record, I like the guy just fine), but I thought he wrote a great perspective piece on how Toronto FC looks these days. Then again, given how similarly it reads to what I wrote about Toronto, I don't have much choice.
Showing posts with label Shalrie Joseph. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Shalrie Joseph. Show all posts
TEAM TALK: DeRo's Wallet, Revs Midfield Muscle
(Yeah, I know there's some overlap between this concept and, say, trade news, which will appear below. Such things will work out one day.)
Couple quick/half-ass-ish items to drop today.
The Houston Chronicle reports that the Dynamo have yet to make midfielder Dwayne DeRosario feel sufficiently loved in the pay department. That could prove a distraction as the season goes on - though, of course, DeRosario states that it won't.
Speaking of players disgruntled over pay, Shalrie Joseph picked up a feature in the Boston Globe along with fellow midfielder Khano Smith. Both made their 2007 season debuts with New England this past weekend and both showed well, Smith on offense and Joseph in controlling the middle of the park and the flow of the game. This isn't so surprising, as everyone points out, given the opposition.
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Couple quick/half-ass-ish items to drop today.
The Houston Chronicle reports that the Dynamo have yet to make midfielder Dwayne DeRosario feel sufficiently loved in the pay department. That could prove a distraction as the season goes on - though, of course, DeRosario states that it won't.
Speaking of players disgruntled over pay, Shalrie Joseph picked up a feature in the Boston Globe along with fellow midfielder Khano Smith. Both made their 2007 season debuts with New England this past weekend and both showed well, Smith on offense and Joseph in controlling the middle of the park and the flow of the game. This isn't so surprising, as everyone points out, given the opposition.
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(W)Revs Wrap: Cristman, Cristman!; More Joseph
I'll start with a little announcement: assuming things go according to plan, I'm going to relinquish my place on the New England Revolution blog for The Offside. Sabin, who has been my partner in producing that corner of The Offside, will take over sole authorship.
I decided instead to blog about another Major League Soccer (MLS) club: the Columbus Crew. They need the love and, me being a son of Ohio, I thought I'd make a decent fit. I'll let y'all know as soon as things get nailed down, but I won't, however, be linking back and forth between this site and that one. Why? This is, and will remain, a New England Revolution blog. In spite of my boredom/frustration with my team, I'm not changing allegiances. I'm merely providing a need - though it helps that it's a team for whom I've got a soft spot. So, Go Crew...except when you play New England.
Turning now to actual Revs' there's not much of substance. There are a couple nice pieces on rookie forward Adam Cristman, though one is more practically valuable than the other. That could be a factor of the Richmond Times-Dispatch piece focusing on Cristman's emotional well-being (good, for the record) instead of cold calculations of what will happen on the field, which is the tack taken by Soccer New England. With Pat Noonan's injuries looking to keep him out for the first game or so, these are things you might want to know.
Then again, New England Soccer News ran a piece this morning that is cautiously optimistic about an early return for Noonan. This space's position: it's a long season, people, don't rush it. Please?
Other quick items:
The Revolution corner of the BigSoccer boards is carrying a decent debate on the spat between Shalrie Joseph and the Revolution front office. It was petering into jabs last time I visited, but there's good content on sports economics and the value of a contract versus the value of a player in there as well.
And, tucked in the middle of expansive commentary on DC United and sundry items, the Washington Post's Steve Goff had something interesting to say about the 2007 Eastern Conference race:
Swell.
I decided instead to blog about another Major League Soccer (MLS) club: the Columbus Crew. They need the love and, me being a son of Ohio, I thought I'd make a decent fit. I'll let y'all know as soon as things get nailed down, but I won't, however, be linking back and forth between this site and that one. Why? This is, and will remain, a New England Revolution blog. In spite of my boredom/frustration with my team, I'm not changing allegiances. I'm merely providing a need - though it helps that it's a team for whom I've got a soft spot. So, Go Crew...except when you play New England.
Turning now to actual Revs' there's not much of substance. There are a couple nice pieces on rookie forward Adam Cristman, though one is more practically valuable than the other. That could be a factor of the Richmond Times-Dispatch piece focusing on Cristman's emotional well-being (good, for the record) instead of cold calculations of what will happen on the field, which is the tack taken by Soccer New England. With Pat Noonan's injuries looking to keep him out for the first game or so, these are things you might want to know.
Then again, New England Soccer News ran a piece this morning that is cautiously optimistic about an early return for Noonan. This space's position: it's a long season, people, don't rush it. Please?
Other quick items:
The Revolution corner of the BigSoccer boards is carrying a decent debate on the spat between Shalrie Joseph and the Revolution front office. It was petering into jabs last time I visited, but there's good content on sports economics and the value of a contract versus the value of a player in there as well.
And, tucked in the middle of expansive commentary on DC United and sundry items, the Washington Post's Steve Goff had something interesting to say about the 2007 Eastern Conference race:
"Q: Who do you think is the most improved team in MLS this offseason? Who's going to be worse off than last year?"
"A: Once Beckham settles in, LA could have a very good team after missing the playoffs last year. NY has some potential with Arena in charge and Reyna in the leadership role. Worse? Things aren't looking good in New England."
Swell.
More on Shalrie Joseph
OK, putting back on my "serious hat," a Soccer America article contains a highly-intriguing twist in the Shalrie Joseph saga:
Uh-oh. You'd think this would make a deal more likely. It depends, I suppose, on how stubborn the New England Revolution front office can, and are willing, to get.
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"This impasse between Shalrie Joseph and the Revs/MLS is about more than money, and Joseph can prove it, or at least so claims his agent, Ron Waxman."
"'He will play for any other team in MLS under his current contract,' says Waxman of a deal that will pay Joseph a base salary of $157,500, plus bonuses, the same as last year. The salary is not guaranteed, unlike last year. 'I would love for them to come back to the table, but I don't live in fantasy land. I have been told negotiations are over. I hope they have enough respect for him to honor his request to be traded.'"
Uh-oh. You'd think this would make a deal more likely. It depends, I suppose, on how stubborn the New England Revolution front office can, and are willing, to get.
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(W)Revs Wrap: Joseph and, Yeah, I'm Bored
Slow news days aren't always a bad thing. For instance, someone - Kannell17 on the New England Revolution Fan Blog - took the time to run down the Wikipedia entry on sports hernia. I can't make heads or tails of the entry either, but am pleased he thought to do this.
Not that this will have any effect on Pat Noonan's recovery time...
As for me, the big thing I did today was find peace with the possibility of Shalrie Joseph getting traded. Actually, I did more than make peace with it. At this point, I'll be positively content if it happens...frankly, the Revs have bored me shitless this off-season. All the drama has been highly negative and I got enough of that around the dinner table in high school (just kidding, mom, dad).
Anyway, as noted in that post, I'm feeling a bit philosophical today...I think it's the stuff I'm reading and some thinking about media and blogging a friend prompted that's doing it.
More later.
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Not that this will have any effect on Pat Noonan's recovery time...
As for me, the big thing I did today was find peace with the possibility of Shalrie Joseph getting traded. Actually, I did more than make peace with it. At this point, I'll be positively content if it happens...frankly, the Revs have bored me shitless this off-season. All the drama has been highly negative and I got enough of that around the dinner table in high school (just kidding, mom, dad).
Anyway, as noted in that post, I'm feeling a bit philosophical today...I think it's the stuff I'm reading and some thinking about media and blogging a friend prompted that's doing it.
More later.
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(W)Revs Wrap: Breaking...Paranoid...Mulrooney...Joseph?
Given yesterday's speculation about FC Dallas looking like a sensible fit (see 4th "real" paragraph) for a wanna-be footloose Shalrie Joseph, I can't help but read the report that the Dallas side traded Richard Mulrooney to Toronto FC with a bit of alarm. As I point out here, it's hard not to notice that this should free up some cap space as well as a space on the field where Joseph normally lurks.
In other Revs news....God...does it matter?
No, we have to face the season...I've seen word elsewhere that Pat Noonan is headed to Germany to get his hernia tucked back in. He won't be available till a little ways into the season, but let's hope they'll finally get his abdomen squared away.
I'm going to close with one crucial point: I AM SPECULATING. And, kidding aside, this is actually kind of fun. So, we lose Joseph. So, the team won't be as good without him. Just close your eyes and imagine Joseph went to Celtic; see him helping them beat AC Milan in the Champions League...now, open your eyes and cope with the fact that Joseph could very well be around next season as well as being grumpy with his employers.
It gets to a point where you wonder if an exit wouldn't be better in the long run.
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In other Revs news....God...does it matter?
No, we have to face the season...I've seen word elsewhere that Pat Noonan is headed to Germany to get his hernia tucked back in. He won't be available till a little ways into the season, but let's hope they'll finally get his abdomen squared away.
I'm going to close with one crucial point: I AM SPECULATING. And, kidding aside, this is actually kind of fun. So, we lose Joseph. So, the team won't be as good without him. Just close your eyes and imagine Joseph went to Celtic; see him helping them beat AC Milan in the Champions League...now, open your eyes and cope with the fact that Joseph could very well be around next season as well as being grumpy with his employers.
It gets to a point where you wonder if an exit wouldn't be better in the long run.
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Shalrie Pissed, Oxygen Leaves Room
Just as I was getting warmed up to my day, a post by my colleague on The Offside tells me that midfielder Shalrie Joseph finally reached his limit with the coal-to-diamonds tightness of the New England Revolution front office purse strings and his asked to be traded.
As noted in the comments there, the only upside to this situation comes with the fact that I've not yet produced my season preview for the Revs. A grumpy Joseph, never mind an absent one, will severely downgrade their chances of success this season. And, here's a personal note to the Revolution organization: get bent. I'm really missing the virtue of running a roster below the salary cap for year after year; you're pissing off your players, some of them the best in the league. I'm an underemployed middle-aged man who runs a blog as a kind of methadone for writing - and it seems I've got more ambition in one typing finger than you've got across your organization. Kind of sad, really.
Naturally, there's a full-blooded and growing freakout underway on the Revolution message boards on BigSoccer. Most of them match the sentiment of the above, and all are unanimous in demanding that the responsible party in the Revolution front office just pay the man what he deserves (league maximum), but there's one looking to what happens next. That post builds on something Steve Goff posted on The Soccer Insider, which came out of a conversation with Ron Waxman, who is Shalrie Joseph's agent. The key sentence there:
And that's where the other post, by someone who goes by "JoeW," comes in: he looks at which teams might have the needs and available cash to pick up Joseph. I can't vouch for his list (though it reads sound enough), but there's one team he mentions who should be sending all kinds of mating displays in the direction of Joseph and his agent: FC Dallas. They definitely view Joseph's position as a personnel need as evidenced by their pursuit of Edgar Davids and Joseph will come with a much smaller price tag. If I'm Dallas, I top any offer New England kicks up up to the salary cap; and I'd bid 'em stupid on bonuses. Basically, show the guy you give a shit about his material well-being and I'm guessing he jumps.
Turning from Joseph to the big picture - both for the Revolution as a team and the league as a whol - there's one quote from Joseph that underlines everything about the Revs' business operations that keeps appearing in articles (like this one) and posts on this subject:
Another poster a little ways down the thread (here; he goes by RevsFanDan) brings up the designated-player rule and that's worth exploring because it gets at a very large potential problem: how will players who were bonafide stars in the league prior to the rule's establishment take it when a foreign player comes in making all kinds of bucks while they continue to toil below, sometimes well below, the league's maximum?
Someone mentions a strike. It's a scary thought, and I don't know what the players have for leverage at this point given soccer's precarious state in the U.S. sporting landscape, but I wouldn't put outside the realm of possibility either.
As noted in the comments there, the only upside to this situation comes with the fact that I've not yet produced my season preview for the Revs. A grumpy Joseph, never mind an absent one, will severely downgrade their chances of success this season. And, here's a personal note to the Revolution organization: get bent. I'm really missing the virtue of running a roster below the salary cap for year after year; you're pissing off your players, some of them the best in the league. I'm an underemployed middle-aged man who runs a blog as a kind of methadone for writing - and it seems I've got more ambition in one typing finger than you've got across your organization. Kind of sad, really.
Naturally, there's a full-blooded and growing freakout underway on the Revolution message boards on BigSoccer. Most of them match the sentiment of the above, and all are unanimous in demanding that the responsible party in the Revolution front office just pay the man what he deserves (league maximum), but there's one looking to what happens next. That post builds on something Steve Goff posted on The Soccer Insider, which came out of a conversation with Ron Waxman, who is Shalrie Joseph's agent. The key sentence there:
"Waxman says Joseph would be willing to play for any of the other 12 clubs in MLS."
And that's where the other post, by someone who goes by "JoeW," comes in: he looks at which teams might have the needs and available cash to pick up Joseph. I can't vouch for his list (though it reads sound enough), but there's one team he mentions who should be sending all kinds of mating displays in the direction of Joseph and his agent: FC Dallas. They definitely view Joseph's position as a personnel need as evidenced by their pursuit of Edgar Davids and Joseph will come with a much smaller price tag. If I'm Dallas, I top any offer New England kicks up up to the salary cap; and I'd bid 'em stupid on bonuses. Basically, show the guy you give a shit about his material well-being and I'm guessing he jumps.
Turning from Joseph to the big picture - both for the Revolution as a team and the league as a whol - there's one quote from Joseph that underlines everything about the Revs' business operations that keeps appearing in articles (like this one) and posts on this subject:
"There is a lot of disenchantment on the team; I don’t want to speak for all the guys, but I know I have been unhappy about my contract situation and others have been worried about theirs."
Another poster a little ways down the thread (here; he goes by RevsFanDan) brings up the designated-player rule and that's worth exploring because it gets at a very large potential problem: how will players who were bonafide stars in the league prior to the rule's establishment take it when a foreign player comes in making all kinds of bucks while they continue to toil below, sometimes well below, the league's maximum?
Someone mentions a strike. It's a scary thought, and I don't know what the players have for leverage at this point given soccer's precarious state in the U.S. sporting landscape, but I wouldn't put outside the realm of possibility either.
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