Conor Casey To Sign For TFC

[Ryan Keay]

Casey to Sign for TFC

[Guest Ed]

I would say this is a good signing. He has not really done that well at the Bundesliga level, only two late sub appearances this season with a team that is totally struggling. He played for FSV Mainz 05 for 3 seasons, and counting a handful of appearances for the then just promoted Hannover 96, he has 4 goals in some 44 Bundesliga 1 appearances. But he was quite prolific in the Bundesliga 2, scoring 7 goals in 19 appearances with Hannover 96 in 2001/2002 and then lighting it up with Karlsruher SC in 2003/2004 before his move to Mainz, with 14 goals in 30 appearances. I recall he was fairly effective as a target man in the US U23 (2000 Olympic) qualifying squad (against McKenna, Bent, De Rosario and others).

[canso]

Same age, size and style as Rob Friend...but he's not Canadian.

I don't like him. He kicked Victor Oppong in the head in WYC qualifying, not by accident either.

Who's national team are we developing here!?!

[loyola]

???

We didn't even played the USA in the 2001 WYC qualifying...what are you talking about?

[canso]

It was a friendly, you're right.

Good catch. Nice job. Nominate yourself for a prize of your choosing.

I still don't like him.

[Gian-Luca]

I must admit, while this is a good signing from a club team point of view, it would have been nice to have a Canadian striker on the team for for the first year. There are four strikers signed now - 3 from the US, 1 from Togo. Gonsalves is the only Canadian striker on the books but it will likely be tougher for him to make the team with this signing.

[SeanKeay]

Canadian strikers dont want to come home, or there not good enough.

End of story, yes we want canadians to develop and be great but if ian hume doesnt want to come home. Then its not mo's fault.

[RJB]

TFC is not going to have a plethora of Canadian talent. Any Canadians that end up being a big part of the Men's National Team will be years from now, once the fruits of their youth system come to bear.

[Free kick]

quote:Originally posted by Gian-Luca

I must admit, while this is a good signing from a club team point of view, it would have been nice to have a Canadian striker on the team for for the first year. There are four strikers signed now - 3 from the US, 1 from Togo. Gonsalves is the only Canadian striker on the books but it will likely be tougher for him to make the team with this signing.

I hear yeah. From what I was able to gather from the last press anouncement at the bier Market is that its going to be an on-going work in progress right into the season as far as roster building. Now, I dont know what kind of time limits the MLS has in regards to player movement. Who knows, maybe when the european season ends, there may be some interesting additions from the Canadian front.

[Free kick]

quote:Originally posted by SeanKeay

Canadian strikers dont want to come home, or there not good enough.

End of story, yes we want canadians to develop and be great but if ian hume doesnt want to come home. Then its not mo's fault.

Slim pickings for sure:

Ademolu, Stephen -

De Rosario, Dwayne -

Friend, Rob -

Gerba, Ali -

Hume, Iain -

Johnson, Will -

Occean, Olivier -

Radzinski, Tomasz -

Simpson, Dave -

If you eliminate those players who:

1) Are NOT available and can NOT be aquired ( eg.: De Ro)

2) There is question whether they can even play in the MLS and contribute effectively and consistently.

3) too young to be be relied on in a starting role in MLS ( Wil Johnson)

4) Mo doesn't like ( eg.: Occean)

And your left with Ian Hume, Rob Friend and maybe Tomas Radzinski. This kind of also puts in perspective, we are very very shallow at this position in Canada. Thats a serious problem.

[Free kick]

quote:Originally posted by RJB

TFC is not going to have a plethora of Canadian talent. Any Canadians that end up being a big part of the Men's National Team will be years from now, once the fruits of their youth system come to bear.

Well that is the hope. The national training centres would be a very good starting place to recruit for the Development teams. Thats is going to be the only way...

[KAS]

quote:Originally posted by Free kick

Slim pickings for sure:

Ademolu, Stephen -

De Rosario, Dwayne -

Friend, Rob -

Gerba, Ali -

Hume, Iain -

Johnson, Will -

Occean, Olivier -

Radzinski, Tomasz -

Simpson, Dave -

If you eliminate those players who:

1) Are NOT available and can NOT be aquired ( eg.: De Ro)

2) There is question whether they can even play in the MLS and contribute effectively and consistently.

3) too young to be be relied on in a starting role in MLS ( Wil Johnson)

4) Mo doesn't like ( eg.: Occean)

And your left with Ian Hume, Rob Friend and maybe Tomas Radzinski. This kind of also puts in perspective, we are very very shallow at this position in Canada. Thats a serious problem.

You forgot about Lombardo. He was just released in Italy by Atalanta *AFTER* the riot/tragedy. I suspect clubs in Italy are dumping alot of expendidble contracts to save money at the moment - just my guess. He will naturally want to stay there, but given the circumstances in Italy, and the fact that the European transfer window is closed, clubs might pass on him. If he wants to play before the U-20s, then MLS might be his best option. I would love to see him with TFC, even if only for a season.

Also, although more a winger than a striker. Jamie Peters is available on a free this summer - and is having difficulty qualifying for a renewal of his work permit in England. I get the feeling that MoJo has been close to signing him for awhile now, with Peters holding out in the hope of turning things around at Ipswich. Interestingly, it looks like he is doing just that, as he has been starting in alot of their games lately, so he might be able to renew his permit and stay in England.

Finally, Radz is out of contract this summer and has expressed doubts about remaining at Fulham. He obviously could find another quality club in Europe, but the desire to return home, and the use of the DP slot, might be enough to bring him over. Of course, with ticket sales being as strong as they are, I could see MLSE behaving like they used to do with the Leafs (pre-salary cap) and decide not to spend more money on players because they will sellout all the games anyways. I hope that's not the case, but if Mo decides to trade the DP slot for a promising youth player, allocation money, or a great Superdraft pick (LA Galaxy will be desperate to aquire one for 2008/9 to keep Donovan with Beckham), then I would be ok with that to.

[SeanKeay]

Mo has contacted lombardo, but I have heard that lombardo wants to stick it out in Italy and find himself a club.

Trust me guys, i want canada to succeed as much as you guys. If you had the chance to talk to Mo you would find out he wants Canada to get better. Hes a great guy and knows ALOT about canadain soccer already.

Wouldnt suprise me if he somewhere down the road coaches the nats.

[Free kick]

quote:Originally posted by SeanKeay

Mo has contacted lombardo, but I have heard that lombardo wants to stick it out in Italy and find himself a club.

Trust me guys, i want canada to succeed as much as you guys. If you had the chance to talk to Mo you would find out he wants Canada to get better. Hes a great guy and knows ALOT about canadain soccer already.

Wouldnt suprise me if he somewhere down the road coaches the nats.

True. When I constructed my list above, I used the Player pool on the CSA page and cut and pasted all the contents on to an excel spreadsheet and applied the filters to look for players listed as fwds or MF/FWD. The reason Lombardo didn't show up is because I purposely added a filter for all U20 and U17 player.

Some people on this forum tend to discredit the MLS for one reason or another. Specifically they diminshed the quality by comparing it to leagues that dont have anywhere near the infrastructure or investment capital that MLS has. Whatever one's opinion is, its still a professional circuit. A U20 player is not a sure thing for the MLS and we have seen U20 go though an adaptaion period even in the USL when they are no longer playing against boys and now have to play against men. Therefore imagine what it would be like for a U20 player like Lombardo. You have to consider that Mo's job depends on results and performance and there are 11000 people who expect results. Aside from someone like Peters, or if you are a "cant miss kid" Iwouldn't expect to see a flurry of U20's.

[Cheeta]

And he's working on a pretty tight budget no matter how you slice it. Simply can't afford Radz until Radz goes into semi-retirement (and I DO see that happening once his Fulham days are done but you never know). Or for that matter Hume, even if Hume were willing to swap pounds straight up for dollars.

So it's going to be tough no matter what. Mo has to be a lot more critical of how the dollars are spread around just because the numbers are so finite. He may like a player, just not at that price if you follow.

Mo seems pretty cautious with the money so I just don't see him "overpaying" for a Canadian who'd have to be converted to a forward when he can get a ready made foreigner for cheaper.

Interesting that Peters name came up. Think he was on a lot of peoples minds once word of the work visa troubles got out. And maybe Mo did some inquiring. You'd be surprised (or maybe not) how often a player goes from the bench to the pitch once options elseware become available. Think Peters could be converted to a galloping forward if needs be. Pace, real pace like what Peters has that is can't be taught and is allways dangerous. Easy to work into any attacking scheme to. Good for Peters if he can stay on at Ipswich next season, bad for TFC.

"If you had the chance to talk to Mo you would find out he wants Canada to get better. Hes a great guy and knows ALOT about canadain soccer already.

Wouldnt suprise me if he somewhere down the road coaches the nats".

That maybe the worse kept secret at the CSA. (At least you get a feeling he's playing hard, declared or otherwise, at getting the job).

Haven't decided yet as to what Mo is as a manager. Too early to tell anything but I've at least opened my mind to the man a bit, but we'll see.

P.S. Maybe Conor isn't too bad a signing. Too many unfamiliar faces on this club for me to guess.

[nolando]

Originally posted by Cheeta

And he's working on a pretty tight budget no matter how you slice it. Simply can't afford Radz until Radz goes into semi-retirement (and I DO see that happening once his Fulham days are done but you never know).

I think a lot of people are whispering that Radz will be done at Fulham at the end of this current season - at very least it looks like Fulham may be done with him in terms of him playing in anything close to a starting position. Don't know if Radz would be happy to be fourth or fifth striker/winger/mid/whatever and only see cup action, for example.

I can definitely envision him coming back and playing in Toronto in the DP slot. If Reyna is considered worth it by MLS standards, then I should think that Radz should be too. Time should soon tell.

[Guest Jeffery S.]

quote:Originally posted by SeanKeay

Canadian strikers dont want to come home, or there not good enough.

End of story, yes we want canadians to develop and be great but if ian hume doesnt want to come home. Then its not mo's fault.

Is Mo your dad now Sean? I don't think we need pure apologists on the board, there is no reason why when thinking about a fourth striker you can't look at some up and coming Canadian talent. So it IS your dad's fault.

Will give you credit for the interview with Edu though, good work. Just think that you now doing official U-sector interviews with TO players does not necessarily mean you have to be their cheerleader, real journalists do not have to ingratiate themselves that way. You can be critical and still do the job, there is nothing in the books to say you have to lick the organization's butt.

[VPjr]

Wow Jeffrey, that's a pretty harsh post against Sean. Yellow Card in my book. Sean, keep up the good work.

There is absolutely no need for people covering the team, like Sean, to be negative towards TFC. The team has not played a game and have had a total of 4-5 practices with only part of the squad even suiting up for many of those sessions. What is there to criticize at this point? Now, if the team falters and Sean or any other media type becomes an apologist for the team when its obvious they are f---ing up, then I'll change my tune but right now, I'll stay positive and trust that the people who derive their livlihood from this game (i.e. Mo) are trying to do their best, with the tools available, to put a winner on the field.

In Sean's defence, Mo definitely does come off as a good guy in the public and it is in no way his fault if Canadian players don't want to take a pay cut to come home to play for an expansion club that has a salary budget for an entire 22 man squad that is less than what "average" players earn in La Liga or the EPL. Jeffrey, who should Mo bring over in your opinion? I am sure most anyone you name has been contacted and turned the offer down. TFC is not an established club yet, Mo is still a relatively unproven coach and MLS, rightly or wrongly, is not rated that highly in the soccer world (especially since the pay is so low, relatively speaking). If, in 2-3 years, we are unable to lure home some good Canadian talent, then I will be more disappointed. Right now, I am just thrilled to have a squad to call my own.

[loyola]

quote:Originally posted by VPjr

If, in 2-3 years, we are unable to lure home some good Canadian talent, then I will be more disappointed.

That's how I've always saw this thing, at first we won't be satisfied as canadian soccer fans due to the low number of canadians in the team but we'll have a better picture of the club policy toward canadians in 2-3 years maybe even next year.

[Ryan Keay]

I won't even bother with Jeffrey's comments, but as to the other, valid comments, the reason we've got Conor Casey and not any of our Canadian strikers comes down to one thing:

Conor Casey was signed on a free. There are no Canadian players of a similar talent level in the same ballpark of a transfer fee.

I'd love for TFC to be able to drop cash on a similarly talented Canadian, but those sort of deals don't work in the MLS transfer structure. MLS clubs don't make multi-million dollar signings unless they use the DP rule. There is only one Canadian striker who could even be considered for that and he isn't interested in returning quite yet (Radz).

As for guys like Lombardo and Johnson, there was serious interest, just not enough cash.

[SeanKeay]

quote: don't think we need pure apologists on the board

Fernando Aguiar and Thunder Dan.....

[loyola]

quote:Originally posted by SeanKeay

Fernando Aguiar and Thunder Dan.....

Let me add Steven Vittoria to that list.

[Free_Kick3]

I saw on usector's website yesterday that they are looking at lombardo but can't seem to find the link today can anyone confirm?

[Free kick]

quote:Originally posted by Jeffrey S.

Is Mo your dad now Sean? I don't think we need pure apologists on the board, there is no reason why when thinking about a fourth striker you can't look at some up and coming Canadian talent. So it IS your dad's fault.

Will give you credit for the interview with Edu though, good work. Just think that you now doing official U-sector interviews with TO players does not necessarily mean you have to be their cheerleader, real journalists do not have to ingratiate themselves that way. You can be critical and still do the job, there is nothing in the books to say you have to lick the organization's butt.

But I dont see anything in his is post that suggests anything of that sort. Just like with the Lynx in the USL, TFC people and coaches are pretty acessible and that is great thing about soccer here. You can go up and ask the a question and they'll give you their time and a good answer. hell some even post here. What is wrong with that?

Regarding the journalism bit, he's not getting paid as journalist so why the need to "be critical and still do the job" when it isn't his job. More importantly, what is there to be critical about? The team hasn't played a single game yet!!

Nobody here licks any organizations butt. Just ask the Hartrells if we do?

[Grizzly]

quote:Originally posted by Jeffrey S.

Is Mo your dad now Sean? I don't think we need pure apologists on the board, there is no reason why when thinking about a fourth striker you can't look at some up and coming Canadian talent. So it IS your dad's fault.

Will give you credit for the interview with Edu though, good work. Just think that you now doing official U-sector interviews with TO players does not necessarily mean you have to be their cheerleader, real journalists do not have to ingratiate themselves that way. You can be critical and still do the job, there is nothing in the books to say you have to lick the organization's butt.

Pathetic.