JimmyJames Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 He appears to be living up to some of the expectations most fans placed on him with his signing...is this because he is finally healthy or becuase of the recent signings? I think it is a bit of both..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrue17 Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 I agree that its a bit of both... He is not the player he used to be however he can still be effective as he has shown. I think the players that he is surrounded by make the biggest difference. A player with calmness and thats reliable like Frings can help his confidence to focus on his game and surroundings Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Obinna Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 Combination of both. Hopefully he can continue his good run of form and help Canada out this september. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canuck Oranje Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 In my opinion, focusing on de Guzman might be the wrong reference. Frings is an on-field coach who understands what Winter wants to do. It's affecting the whole team. Based on the game I saw live and the reports I heard about yesterday's game, I think players like Plata and Henry and others are impacted by Frings when he's on the field as much as de Guzman. It's the realization that you are playing with someone you saw playing at the highest level when you were 12 that really hits home and ups the motivation level. Time will tell but so far, it might be the best signing from a soccer perspective by an MLS team. Beckham is marketing, Frings is football. Koevermans only reinforces the message. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BearcatSA Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 Hopefully he can continue his good run of form and help Canada out this september. From an NT standpoint that's the big thing. Apart from the foul on the penalty he executed the rest of the duties well last night. Though he was absent last night (and it showed), Frings has influenced the whole team as a whole as well as JDG in particular in prior recent matches. I hope he keeps it rolling. I'm not sure when his current deal runs out but getting a good run of form will help him in his next contract, wherever he goes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gian-Luca Posted August 20, 2011 Share Posted August 20, 2011 Which is similar to what happened in the old days in the NASL with Canadian players playing alongside the likes of Pele, Beckenbauer Eusebio, Bettega, etc. - and eventually got us into the World Cup of course. Hopefully the same thing will eventually happen again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BearcatSA Posted August 20, 2011 Share Posted August 20, 2011 ^A very young d-mid prospect like Stinson, for example, will certainly benefit from the German's influence, as well as the other young'uns on the roster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ivan Posted August 20, 2011 Share Posted August 20, 2011 The Frings signing also exposes the main weakness of pre-Frings TFC and our Nats. The lack of a true on-field leader. Hopefully, DeGuzman steps up to be that leader - you could already see him barking orders Thursday night. Not sure I saw him in that mindset before. Even if he doesn't, perhaps he could encourage someone like Simpson, Hutch, Johnson or McKenna to step up even more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Crampton Posted August 21, 2011 Share Posted August 21, 2011 Time will tell but so far, it might be the best signing from a soccer perspective by an MLS team. Beckham is marketing, Frings is football. Hyperbolize much? The Frings signing has been a good one and he was exactly the sort of midfield general leader player I asked for but there's an entire LEAGUE, most of whom are a lot better than Toronto, beyond TFC and LA out there: Mauro Rosales has easily been the best signing of the year and that doesn't even begin to talk about "all time" (as your quote implies). Call me back when TFC wins something, or at least competes for something beyond the NCC, and we'll start to comparing it to other great signings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest darowaan Posted August 21, 2011 Share Posted August 21, 2011 I think JDG is playing better because he is healthy, he seems to be settled in and getting regular games now, the transfer talk is all but gone, and the team around him is better. His job is made a lot easier when he has a partner in the center of the park who is as good as Frings is. It gives Julian an increased level of freedom that he has not had with TFC and that is paying off. He seems to be recovering some of the confidence that he had obviously lost and even if one of his two goals involved a fair bit of luck it is all good news from both a TFC and a CMNT perspective. If he is confident and gets anywhere near the level he was at before coming to TFC then he will be a difference maker for club and country. Personally I think he will benefit the most in the short term from TFC improving its midfield. But in the long run JDG will never get back to the level Toronto would have hoped for when they signed him Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Obinna Posted August 22, 2011 Share Posted August 22, 2011 I caught a bit of the game tonight and JDG, for the first time in a LONG time, looked like the player he was years ago. I noticed that when he had the ball, he would attack the space in front of him with confidence, it was very refreshing to see. Also hit the post tonight and was unlucky not to score. Great sign for TFC and the national team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redhat Posted August 22, 2011 Share Posted August 22, 2011 ^ Agreed. I don't know why he was subbed out for the Belgian player (name escapes me at the moment), but TFC didn't exactly get any energy with the sub and sucked defensively. But nice work from JDG! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Crampton Posted August 22, 2011 Share Posted August 22, 2011 ^ Agreed. I don't know why he was subbed out for the Belgian player (name escapes me at the moment), but TFC didn't exactly get any energy with the sub and sucked defensively. TFC has a much bigger game Wednesday. It was surely just squad rotation and protecting him for that. In fact, I would go so far as to suggest that Winter took JDG out because he was having a good game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keegan Posted August 22, 2011 Share Posted August 22, 2011 TFC has a much bigger game Wednesday. It was surely just squad rotation and protecting him for that. In fact, I would go so far as to suggest that Winter took JDG out because he was having a good game. Agreed, with JDG's injury woes in his career there's no point in over exhausting him for a meaningless game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
James Posted August 22, 2011 Share Posted August 22, 2011 The way he's been playing lately make you wonder if he hadn't been carrying an injury or two for most of the season. He's been deadly the past few games. Best player on the pitch really. If I were TO, if he keeps it going, I'd DP him again if I could. Having Frings in the back seems to be working too(I think lowly Chicago could have easily scored 2 or three more without him) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest darowaan Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 I dont think that JDG had been fully healthy for a while. Always seemed to be carry some sort of knock in the past 2 seasons but now he is not missing out on training time and getting in every game pretty much which is great for him. Could see in Chicago the difference just a bit of extra confidence can make for a player. He clearly still has the ability just needs the faith back to play his game As for him coming out it was purely to save him for midweek. Would have liked to see Frings come out as well but as others pointed out JDG has a history of english so no point risking him in a game that means last or second last in the east. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grizzly Posted August 23, 2011 Share Posted August 23, 2011 Would have liked to see Frings come out as well but as others pointed out JDG has a history of english so no point risking him in a game that means last or second last in the east. Yes and Frings has a history of German which is closer to Dutch than English is so naturally Winters felt that he should remain in the game! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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