To prove my NE sports fan bona fides, allow me to state that it was "Jiri" Welsch, and not "Yire" - the Celtics have never had a player with a first named that started with "y," except for some Israeli dude Yon somebody who is still "stashed" somewhere across the globe, I think.
An amazing pre-season of bold newness and bold hype, but we are not talking about Jermaine Jones having been spotted walking though that door.
Can a hastily-thrown together team find instant karma under Coach Double-Speak? Maybe. Keep Hope Alive.
If so, it's going to be a model for all other MLS teams - if you are a loser, scour the globe and slap together all that you can find.
Hard to tell what we will get from the high school coach. I'm usually getting excited about the season getting ready to start, this year have the season tickets but don't have any interest in going this year.
Excellent analysis as always. I must admit I'm having a hard time drumming up any enthusiasm/optimism for this season. With so many new players coming in, I feel I've lost some of my connection to the team. Knowing that Porter is still in charge does not inspire any confidence. Perhaps he'll surprise us and show us he really is a coaching genius but I'm not holding my breath. I can't wait to see how the new players respond when he starts throwing them under the bus. (I also just read about Bielsa in the "Inverting the Pyramid" book so I actually knew what you were referring to!)
While I have often gotten out over my skis on the pre-season optimism thing, I do think that you have to like the players brought in. Last season's mid-season additions (Miller, Sands, Yusuf, Langoni) did well and there's every reason to think they can be significantly better starting off fresh as compared to climbing aboard last year's train wreck.
Campana surely looks like an upgrade, if only for the reason that he has already shown he can score consistently in MLS.
Bono is clearly an upgrade on any gk we started last season with.
Feingold sure looks like an excellent prospect who already has European international experience.
Our two new center backs have youth, quality experience, size and athleticism going for them. Will they be steady and cohesive enough to better last years' pairings? We'll have to wait and see, but that's not a very high bar IMO. And our two backup center backs figure to be at least as good as what we had.
Ganago may or may not be a legit wing buster, but at the minimum he brings a speed dimension off the bench that we were sorely missing.
Finally, in Porter's defense, he got a late start last year and had to deal with a mess of a roster that Onalfo put together. Every acquisition since Porter was hired has been significantly better than those Onalfo did on his own. Surely that can't be a coincidence.
Yeah, kind of an awesome post.
To prove my NE sports fan bona fides, allow me to state that it was "Jiri" Welsch, and not "Yire" - the Celtics have never had a player with a first named that started with "y," except for some Israeli dude Yon somebody who is still "stashed" somewhere across the globe, I think.
An amazing pre-season of bold newness and bold hype, but we are not talking about Jermaine Jones having been spotted walking though that door.
Can a hastily-thrown together team find instant karma under Coach Double-Speak? Maybe. Keep Hope Alive.
If so, it's going to be a model for all other MLS teams - if you are a loser, scour the globe and slap together all that you can find.
Thanks!
Good catch on Welsch, a Tommy Point welll earned!
Hard to tell what we will get from the high school coach. I'm usually getting excited about the season getting ready to start, this year have the season tickets but don't have any interest in going this year.
OH Bravo! Ok, so I tend to admire people who hold the same point of view I do, BUT ...
Thanks for this. We shall see. Personally, I think he's just plain loco.
Thanks as always
Excellent analysis as always. I must admit I'm having a hard time drumming up any enthusiasm/optimism for this season. With so many new players coming in, I feel I've lost some of my connection to the team. Knowing that Porter is still in charge does not inspire any confidence. Perhaps he'll surprise us and show us he really is a coaching genius but I'm not holding my breath. I can't wait to see how the new players respond when he starts throwing them under the bus. (I also just read about Bielsa in the "Inverting the Pyramid" book so I actually knew what you were referring to!)
Thanks Paul!
I'm hoping the two preseason games we can see show some positive signs to give us something to cling to going into the season.
Bielsa is a complete one off for sure but has been a source of inspiration for many coaches.
While I have often gotten out over my skis on the pre-season optimism thing, I do think that you have to like the players brought in. Last season's mid-season additions (Miller, Sands, Yusuf, Langoni) did well and there's every reason to think they can be significantly better starting off fresh as compared to climbing aboard last year's train wreck.
Campana surely looks like an upgrade, if only for the reason that he has already shown he can score consistently in MLS.
Bono is clearly an upgrade on any gk we started last season with.
Feingold sure looks like an excellent prospect who already has European international experience.
Our two new center backs have youth, quality experience, size and athleticism going for them. Will they be steady and cohesive enough to better last years' pairings? We'll have to wait and see, but that's not a very high bar IMO. And our two backup center backs figure to be at least as good as what we had.
Ganago may or may not be a legit wing buster, but at the minimum he brings a speed dimension off the bench that we were sorely missing.
Finally, in Porter's defense, he got a late start last year and had to deal with a mess of a roster that Onalfo put together. Every acquisition since Porter was hired has been significantly better than those Onalfo did on his own. Surely that can't be a coincidence.