I liked it. But seriously. Lifetime ban.
2017 Roster Discussion
- Thread starter NYCFCfan
- Start date
I'm starting to get concerned about our offseason. Mix hasn't been sold and we have 4 GKs on the roster. Meanwhile Reyna is at CES doing a panel. People keep saying the club will announce a flurry of acquisitions but where are the rumors of these players? Signings don't just appear out of thin air, journalists/reporters get scoops. A quote from an agent or a player being seen on the way to a physical. I really don't think we're close to anything right now.
Yep. It is a bit concerning that there aren't any rumored targets.
There are rumored targets. Camargo, Cummings, Horgan, and some others. Ultimately, I'm glad we are playing things close to the chest. But it's a frustrating method for fans in early January.
For those worried about the lack of buzz and rumors I went back and checked on all our signings last winter. I ignored the Jack Harrison draft which is a special case, especially with us having no 1st round pick this year. What follows is the date we first heard of each guy as a possibility, followed by the date of a confirmed signing or acquisition.
Ethan White December 10, 2015 - December 10, 2015
Ronald Matarrita December 24, 2015 - Jan 20, 2016
Frederic Brillant Jan 21, 2016 - Jan 28, 2016
Andres Mendoza Jan 22. 2016 - Jan 22, 2016
Mikey Lopez Jan 26, 2016 - Jan 26 - 2016
Frederico Bravo Jan 28, 2016 - Feb 20, 2016
Shannon Gomez Feb 17, 2016 - Mar 3, 2016
Andre Rawls Mar 3, 2016 - Mar 3, 2016 (technically we drafted him in 2015 but never signed and this was non-rumored)
Steven/Stiven Mendoza Mar 8, 2016 - Mar 11, 2016
So as of this date last year we had one acquisition in hand, just as we have Sean Johnson this year. We also had a rumor of exactly one guy we eventually signed (Matarrita), and did not get the next rumor until January 21. Just like we now have a Camargo rumor, if we actually get him.
So we're not really behind last year's schedule.
Ethan White December 10, 2015 - December 10, 2015
Ronald Matarrita December 24, 2015 - Jan 20, 2016
Frederic Brillant Jan 21, 2016 - Jan 28, 2016
Andres Mendoza Jan 22. 2016 - Jan 22, 2016
Mikey Lopez Jan 26, 2016 - Jan 26 - 2016
Frederico Bravo Jan 28, 2016 - Feb 20, 2016
Shannon Gomez Feb 17, 2016 - Mar 3, 2016
Andre Rawls Mar 3, 2016 - Mar 3, 2016 (technically we drafted him in 2015 but never signed and this was non-rumored)
Steven/Stiven Mendoza Mar 8, 2016 - Mar 11, 2016
So as of this date last year we had one acquisition in hand, just as we have Sean Johnson this year. We also had a rumor of exactly one guy we eventually signed (Matarrita), and did not get the next rumor until January 21. Just like we now have a Camargo rumor, if we actually get him.
So we're not really behind last year's schedule.
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Setting people on tasks to pretend that management cares is hideously bad management. If we're not getting anything useful with the late round picks I see no reason to engage in charades.
Did we have as much turnover though? It feels like we cut more fat this offseason, plus there's the Mix and 4 GKs situation to deal with.
Agreed. I remember thinking "shit, we suck" rather than, "shit, who do we even have?"
Actually, by this measure we're ahead, as this year we have already signed both SJ and Okoli.
And by this measure you'd rather have a bunch of shite on the roster and less anxiety about new signings than a roster (mostly) cleared of shite but filled with uncertainty.
I'll take the uncertainty and trust in Reyna/PV.
Exactly. I posted on this earlier, but didn't check on rumors, so that's good work and helpful.
Also, we've signed two players (Okoli, Johnson), so we are actually ahead of last year.
Yes, the number of departures is about the same.
The big difference between the two off-seasons is that this year, one of our open spots is for a DP. I think that is contributing to some of the existential angst in the forums.
For those "timeline checking", the variable left out, that is perhaps more important when analyzing the level of angst on the forum, is the rate that other clubs have been filling holes this year versus last. If NYCFC is on a similar schedule to last year but everybody else is locking up players, the perception is that we're treading water while others are swimming. I doubt there is a finite number of targets in the world of soccer, but there are a finite number of them that are of the quality to make an impact in MLS while also being the right price-point with little-to-no transfer fee. With each one that signs elsewhere, there is an ephemeral sinking feeling in the stomach of a missed opportunity. And maybe this doesn't matter since we're signing CR7, but the "trust them/me" rationale is more puff than grounded entering our third season.
I personally haven't started freaking out yet, but with every MLS signing, I am shaking my head while wondering WTF is CFG/Reyna working on that could take so much time? It's one thing to drag out the CR7 contract, but the others should be fairly simple deals to finalize.
I personally haven't started freaking out yet, but with every MLS signing, I am shaking my head while wondering WTF is CFG/Reyna working on that could take so much time? It's one thing to drag out the CR7 contract, but the others should be fairly simple deals to finalize.
I also think that
D_RoyJenkins had identified a couple of worthwhile issues in our excess GKs and the Mix situation. I figure we will use our uncharged buyout on one of them, and have been holding off as we attempt to unload somebody via more productive channels. We could even wait until camp is open if we use it on one of the keepers because it seems PV wants to make them compete first.Re Mix, I think the consensus here is we'd prefer he stay, play, and be productive. But we can't see evidence that that's the plan -- and that it's working - until several weeks into the season. The only way to resolve the Mix situation now is to trade/transfer him for something useful and the problem, AHABS, is there is little market for him at this salary given how little we have played him.
Regarding rumors, I was struck at how tight the rumor period was for most of our acquisitions. On all but three it was one week or less. And arguably it was only two players not three. Gomez signed as a camp trialist Feb 17 -- which basically excited nobody and got close to zero attention -- before signing for good on March 3. But there was zero buzz or rumors before he came on as a trialist.
Also I remember that after Wingert was released on January 30 we subsequently discovered that the club told him they wanted to move him 2 weeks before it was announced. They held discussion with pretty much the entire league and nothing was leaked. They run a pretty tight ship.
Then somebody do the work. Until then and until that work shows me that league wide, adjusted for 2 new teams, there is a meaningful difference in the rate of league wide acquisitions, I'm not going to just assume there has been a meaningful change based on vague perceptions. Plus I kind of doubt it for 2 reasons.
1. We tend not to get our acquisitions from the standard MLS player pool, which is where the primary limitation lies.
2. The international pool, even given our roster cap limitations, is so vast, that I think it would be hard to ever say that the club is running out of options.
Ulrich you sort of nod to this later in your post, but seem to think it's a smaller pool than I do given the budget constraints. For all I know you are correct. But I don't know how we could possibly measure it to see whose vague sense of things is closer to correct.Stop moving the goalposts with zero evidence. The doomsayers said we were behind schedule.
Gotham Gator showed we weren't. Then the cry was but we don't even have rumors! And I showed that's no different than before. Now it's but the league might be moving faster than ever before! Fine, it's time for one of the people making up claims about why we might be behind schedule to actually do some research and prove it.
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And one point to be clear: I have limited faith in our management. We have a decent record for a second year team but we also have had some significant missteps. I am not suggesting everything is well or that they will build a solid team this year. That's definitely to be determined, and really won't be known until late in the season. As late as last June I thought we would not make the playoffs last year and I was not alone. But I just see no evidence that the calendar shows they are already failing in 2017.
N
NYC24
Guest
On the latest ExtraTime Radio an emailer asked "which team has been the quietest this offseason?"
These are the clubs the hosts mentioned in order:
New England
Orlando
San Jose
Vancouver
Toronto
L.A.
RedBull
NYCFC
Philly
These are the clubs the hosts mentioned in order:
New England
Orlando
San Jose
Vancouver
Toronto
L.A.
RedBull
NYCFC
Philly
There been about 90 annouced moves so far this offseason. That averages out to about 4 per team. That number is probably much less if you take out the two expansion clubs.
Most of the annouced moves have been for Latin American players. I imagine we will be hearing more European moves very soon. The CFG track record has been much better in Europe than Latin America anyway.
Most of the annouced moves have been for Latin American players. I imagine we will be hearing more European moves very soon. The CFG track record has been much better in Europe than Latin America anyway.
Ironically, the CFG track record for Melbourne City is the complete opposite...
Has CFG splashed the cash for Melbourne regarding transfer fees, or are they in the same boat as NYCFC?
You can only have 5 foreign players and there is a salary cap but can have two marquee players. Its the most MLS like league in the world besides MLS IMHO.
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