2025 Roster and Transfer Discussion Thread

[mgarbowski]

I think Hudson River Blue had a piece after the salary release saying we are 24th in the league in total salary. Just embarrassing and unacceptable on so many levels.

Without accounting for money spent on acquisition fees it's a meaningless stat.
We spend a lot on fees compared to other clubs. As has been documented, much of it has not been spent well. But the spend is there.

With the rules in place, the salary spend metric is almost entirely a measure of the DP salaries for 2-3 players per team, which is why it tracks so poorly with results. The top 5 salary spend teams are ranked 10, 28, 26, 3, and 30 in the shield table. I'd be more embarrassed to be in that group.

 

[CCMore]

And to add a quirk, Trey from Blue Balls shared a stat that said for dollars spent per point, we are 5th in the league. Meaning that we are punching above our weight in some instances. I think he said it’s like $9 million per point and then compared it to LAG who was $51 million per point. Inter Miami is also near the bottom. But that’s because some teams spend a fuck ton on guaranteed funds on DPs. Which he said none of it matters because it’s up to every team to spend how ever much they want on their DPs. And while we are punching above our weight, (to keep using the expression) we don’t weigh all that much at the moment which inflates our ranking in this state but won’t show up well on the table. I think he also is cherry picking by using LAG as an example cause they are having an uncharacteristically bad this season.

 

[mgarbowski]

Galaxy 2025 is mostly a result of bad injury luck and roster rules making it impossible to have real depth.
NYCFC’s #5 r rank on point per salary dollar is, as noted, due to a very low denominator. Circling back, the denominator is comparatively low because it excludes transfer fees.

 

[ZYanksRule]

Galaxy 2025 is mostly a result of bad injury luck and roster rules making it impossible to have real depth.
NYCFC’s #5 r rank on point per salary dollar is, as noted, due to a very low denominator. Circling back, the denominator is comparatively low because it excludes transfer fees.

Yeah -- we have spent a lot of money, we just spend it on transfer fees. I would like to see us spend transfer fees on higher-priced, more sure-thing players like when they spent money to acquire Maxi Moralez and paid him $2 million, but we are not as cheap as this chart makes it look.

 

[mgarbowski]

It's a shame the transfer fee data is not all readily available because I'm sure someone would track it and add it to the salary data if that were possible.
Also they are non-recurring, so it would probably make sense to spread the fee over the length of the initial contract, which I believe is what the league does for cap compliance purposes.
Then you can argue about whether you need to deduct sell-on fees received from buying fees paid.
That all does tend to prove though, that the simple salary total is an extremely limited subset of the data.

 

[Marito]

Top spending positions (not on loan): CB, RW, CB, CF, DM

MLS Players Salary Guide | MLS Players Association

Every year the MLS Player Association releases our annual salary guide, listing each player in the MLS along with their current salary. We see this transparency as an extremely important part of our mission to support and protect the player community.

mlsplayers.org

View attachment 13994

Pretty crazy that Keaton is our 11th most-expensive, instead of 3rd or 4th, and way below Perea, Risa, Julian, etc. I am guessing that his extension came when he was dealing with the blood clots and his future as a professional footballer was in doubt? otherwise it makes no sense that he's a relative low-earner.

 

[gbservis]

It's a shame the transfer fee data is not all readily available because I'm sure someone would track it and add it to the salary data if that were possible.
Also they are non-recurring, so it would probably make sense to spread the fee over the length of the initial contract, which I believe is what the league does for cap compliance purposes.
Then you can argue about whether you need to deduct sell-on fees received from buying fees paid.
That all does tend to prove though, that the simple salary total is an extremely limited subset of the data.

I'd bet money our transfer spend on attacking U22 intuitive players per goal is the worst in the league.

 

[gbservis]

I'd bet money our transfer spend on attacking U22 intuitive players per goal is the worst in the league.

Wanted to run the numbers just for fun. Including Bakrar, as he was originally a U21 player:



As crazy as it sounds, Bakrar might be the best value of the bunch.

 

[BC19]

I would say I don’t have the words to describe how much I despise David Lee, but I do and it would probably get my account banned. How this man still shows his face at his place of work I do not understand. This is second of the last three seasons he has ruined for the fans. Fuck him.

 

[LionNYC]

I would say I don’t have the words to describe how much I despise David Lee, but I do and it would probably get my account banned. How this man still shows his face at his place of work I do not understand. This is second of the last three seasons he has ruined for the fans. Fuck him.

I will not (likely) ban you for that.

 

[moogoo]

would we have won if we had parks? i think we would have looked a hell of a lot better.

fernandez needs to go. only reason i can think jansen keeps starting him is that he's being told to by Lee/CFG. there's gotta be no other reason for it because the kid is dumb. not only that, but physically, he's not exactly super gifted either. He's not beating people 1v1, he's not a speedster running in behind (mostly because he just stands and watches and has no idea where to go), and he doesn't have an engine (he looked tired to me almost the entire game).

There is only one reason he gets time on the field and it's gotta be a mandate. anybody with any sense would not play him. his teammates probably don't even want to pass him the ball. he's not even good enough to play with our IIs or academy teams. just get rid of him.. please.

 

[Shwafta]

would we have won if we had parks? i think we would have looked a hell of a lot better.

fernandez needs to go. only reason i can think jansen keeps starting him is that he's being told to by Lee/CFG. there's gotta be no other reason for it because the kid is dumb. not only that, but physically, he's not exactly super gifted either. He's not beating people 1v1, he's not a speedster running in behind (mostly because he just stands and watches and has no idea where to go), and he doesn't have an engine (he looked tired to me almost the entire game).

There is only one reason he gets time on the field and it's gotta be a mandate. anybody with any sense would not play him. his teammates probably don't even want to pass him the ball. he's not even good enough to play with our IIs or academy teams. just get rid of him.. please.

*ahem*

If I knew I could make 724,000 for running straight into a wall every time I get the ball, I'd put in an application for NYCFC right wing

 

[moogoo]

*ahem*

i'm right there with you dude. tbh, even at my current age and health issues, I genuinely feel like I could offer more in the game than fernandez.

 

[mgarbowski]

would we have won if we had parks? i think we would have looked a hell of a lot better.

fernandez needs to go. only reason i can think jansen keeps starting him is that he's being told to by Lee/CFG. there's gotta be no other reason for it because the kid is dumb. not only that, but physically, he's not exactly super gifted either. He's not beating people 1v1, he's not a speedster running in behind (mostly because he just stands and watches and has no idea where to go), and he doesn't have an engine (he looked tired to me almost the entire game).

There is only one reason he gets time on the field and it's gotta be a mandate. anybody with any sense would not play him. his teammates probably don't even want to pass him the ball. he's not even good enough to play with our IIs or academy teams. just get rid of him.. please.

Every signal from Lee, Cushing and Jansen says Cushing was let go and Jansen hired in large part because Cushing did not develop the kids, which has come to mean Ojeda and Fernandez after we bailed on Jovan and given that Jones and Martinez actually did flourish. Since Cushing mostly did not play that duo, especially in the final third of the season, failure to develop meant Cushing did not even give them a chance. So of course Jansen is going to play them. On top of that, Jansen has no Santi, so somebody had to inherit those minutes, and Fernandez fits better on a front line with Wolf and Martinez or Wolf and Bakrar than Ojeda does. But mostly Fernandez gets the minutes because he's the team's third best offensive producer.

You can theorize that Pascal is giving Fernandez the rope to hang himself, or following instructions, but he's just chasing what productivity he can find.

After Martinez and Wolf our front line sucks but Julian has been the best of the rest. Jones is out. Ojeda has worse production than Fernandez. Ojeda has 0 goals and 0 assists in 700+ minutes in 2025 and 0 assists and 3 goals in 1650 minutes over 2 years. Why would he get time over Julian? Bakrar gets almost 1 goal per 270 and no assists. Julian is even out-producing Maxi this year. They both have 2 goals but Julian has 3 assists to 2 for Maxi even though Maxi has played 460 extra minutes.

NYCFC G+A per 90 2025
Wolf and Martinez 0.58 tied
Fernandez 0.42
Bakrar 0.32
Parks 0.31
Maxi 0.23
Ilenic 0.20
Perea 0.18
Haak 0.16
Then everybody else at 0.0 including Ojeda.

Recognizing that Julian has been the best front line player after Martinez and Wolf this year and deserves his minutes is not an affirmation of Fernandez so much as an indictment of David Lee. Every Fernandez criticism I see people making is right. Somehow he's still our third most productive offensive player.

 

[moogoo]

Every signal from Lee, Cushing and Jansen says Cushing was let go and Jansen hired in large part because Cushing did not develop the kids, which has come to mean Ojeda and Fernandez after we bailed on Jovan and given that Jones and Martinez actually did flourish. Since Cushing mostly did not play that duo, especially in the final third of the season, failure to develop meant Cushing did not even give them a chance. So of course Jansen is going to play them. On top of that, Jansen has no Santi, so somebody had to inherit those minutes, and Fernandez fits better on a front line with Wolf and Martinez or Wolf and Bakrar than Ojeda does. But mostly Fernandez gets the minutes because he's the team's third best offensive producer.

You can theorize that Pascal is giving Fernandez the rope to hang himself, or following instructions, but he's just chasing what productivity he can find.

After Martinez and Wolf our front line sucks but Julian has been the best of the rest. Jones is out. Ojeda has worse production than Fernandez. Ojeda has 0 goals and 0 assists in 700+ minutes in 2025 and 0 assists and 3 goals in 1650 minutes over 2 years. Why would he get time over Julian? Bakrar gets almost 1 goal per 270 and no assists. Julian is even out-producing Maxi this year. They both have 2 goals but Julian has 3 assists to 2 for Maxi even though Maxi has played 460 extra minutes.

NYCFC G+A per 90 2025
Wolf and Martinez 0.58 tied
Fernandez 0.42
Bakrar 0.32
Parks 0.31
Maxi 0.23
Ilenic 0.20
Perea 0.18
Haak 0.16
Then everybody else at 0.0 including Ojeda.

Recognizing that Julian has been the best front line player after Martinez and Wolf this year and deserves his minutes is not an affirmation of Fernandez so much as an indictment of David Lee. Every Fernandez criticism I see people making is right. Somehow he's still our third most productive offensive player.

I take your point. and yes, absolutely this is all on David Lee and our very sparse roster. I just think it gets to the point where I'd rather give up Fernandez's possibility to make an assist or get a goal (which seems ever so unlikely watching him play) to get someone else on there who could possibly create more chances for anyone else and give us better flow in our attack. You're right that there aren't any other choices though. But watching him frustrates me so much, i would play otoole on the right wing (he used to be a forward after all) and let cavallo take the left wingback spot.

this season is basically over. i have zero optimism for the upcoming transfer window. we have heard no rumors so far, which to me, just means that they haven't even gotten close to signing anyone when the window opens or early in the window. gonna be another quiet window with maybe one or two meh signings on the last day.

 

[BC19]

The transfer window opens on July 24th. For any impactful signing to play in all our league games from that date (11) they likely would need to be signed within the next 10 -14 days. I doubt this will happen and I’ve grown to doubt that Lee will do anything this window. I can see his quote in August already, “It is exceptionally difficult to reinforce the team when the window is only open for four weeks.”

 

[moogoo]

The transfer window opens on July 24th. For any impactful signing to play in all our league games from that date (11) they likely would need to be signed within the next 10 -14 days. I doubt this will happen and I’ve grown to doubt that Lee will do anything this window. I can see his quote in August already, “It is exceptionally difficult to reinforce the team when the window is only open for four weeks.”

"The summer transfer window is notoriously difficult with added competition from the european clubs. Fortunately, I am very confident in this roster and think we can compete with any team in the league." - Lee

 

[gbservis]

Every signal from Lee, Cushing and Jansen says Cushing was let go and Jansen hired in large part because Cushing did not develop the kids, which has come to mean Ojeda and Fernandez after we bailed on Jovan and given that Jones and Martinez actually did flourish. Since Cushing mostly did not play that duo, especially in the final third of the season, failure to develop meant Cushing did not even give them a chance. So of course Jansen is going to play them. On top of that, Jansen has no Santi, so somebody had to inherit those minutes, and Fernandez fits better on a front line with Wolf and Martinez or Wolf and Bakrar than Ojeda does. But mostly Fernandez gets the minutes because he's the team's third best offensive producer.

You can theorize that Pascal is giving Fernandez the rope to hang himself, or following instructions, but he's just chasing what productivity he can find.

After Martinez and Wolf our front line sucks but Julian has been the best of the rest. Jones is out. Ojeda has worse production than Fernandez. Ojeda has 0 goals and 0 assists in 700+ minutes in 2025 and 0 assists and 3 goals in 1650 minutes over 2 years. Why would he get time over Julian? Bakrar gets almost 1 goal per 270 and no assists. Julian is even out-producing Maxi this year. They both have 2 goals but Julian has 3 assists to 2 for Maxi even though Maxi has played 460 extra minutes.

NYCFC G+A per 90 2025
Wolf and Martinez 0.58 tied
Fernandez 0.42
Bakrar 0.32
Parks 0.31
Maxi 0.23
Ilenic 0.20
Perea 0.18
Haak 0.16
Then everybody else at 0.0 including Ojeda.

Recognizing that Julian has been the best front line player after Martinez and Wolf this year and deserves his minutes is not an affirmation of Fernandez so much as an indictment of David Lee. Every Fernandez criticism I see people making is right. Somehow he's still our third most productive offensive player.

I'd go even further and say Lee has intentionally built this roster to force Fernandez or Ojeda to play. There are no other options. He won't even sign a CAM because he knows inevitably Pascal will move things around to put the CAM or Maxi on the wing just to have four competent attackers just like Cushing did with Maxi and Santi.

 

[FootyLovin]

NYCFC G+A per 90 2025
Wolf and Martinez 0.58 tied
Fernandez 0.42
Bakrar 0.32
Parks 0.31
Maxi 0.23
Ilenic 0.20
Perea 0.18
Haak 0.16
Then everybody else at 0.0 including Ojeda.

Just sayin.

NYCFC npkG+A per 90 2025
Wolf 0.58
Fernandez 0.42
Martinez 0.39
Bakrar 0.32
Parks 0.31
Maxi 0.23
Ilenic 0.20
Perea 0.18
Haak 0.16
Then everybody else at 0.0 including Ojeda.

 

[mgarbowski]

The transfer window opens on July 24th. For any impactful signing to play in all our league games from that date (11) they likely would need to be signed within the next 10 -14 days. I doubt this will happen and I’ve grown to doubt that Lee will do anything this window. I can see his quote in August already, “It is exceptionally difficult to reinforce the team when the window is only open for four weeks.”

"The summer transfer window is notoriously difficult with added competition from the european clubs. Fortunately, I am very confident in this roster and think we can compete with any team in the league." - Lee

He won't even sign a CAM because he knows inevitably Pascal will move things around to put the CAM or Maxi on the wing just to have four competent attackers just like Cushing did with Maxi and Santi.

I’m very confident we’re signing an attacking DP this summer. I’m moderately confident he will be a CAM. I’m slightly confident he will be older than 22.
I’ve no idea if he’s coming from Europe, LatAm or elsewhere, or what we’ll spend or how good he will be.