Outspoken Etienne Barbara ripd Lagos and MLS contracts

[nolando]

"Minnesota people think that Manny is some sort of god in soccer because [the team] achieved what [they] achieved - the championship and the final of the other [year]. But trust me, I tell you the honest truth: it’s not like that. Manny doesn’t know anything how to coach a team. No inspiration for the player, no communication with the player, nothing. It’s the rest of the crew that does the job. It’s the assistant coaches that do the job. The captain does the job. This is how [Minnesota] survives."

http://www.startribune.com/sports/blogs/218155741.html

If you think his frustration with the MLS system has subsided, think again. "One thing that I prefer in NASL is that at least they don't treat you just like a piece of merchandise," he says. "Because that's what MLS is. First you cannot negotiate your contract, you have to sign for four years. And then they can tell you to go home after six months. So that doesn't make sense. That's very disrespectful for a player. At least in NASL, they treat you better."

http://www.startribune.com/sports/blogs/201271081.html (This is from April but many, like me, wouldn't have seen it)

[Mr.Impact]

Par for the course for this Maltese Douche. Gets sacked, and then bad mouths his former club.

[shermanator]

FC Edmonton dodged a huge bullet when he decided not to sign.

[Lord Bob]

He's right about MLS at least. He may well be right about Minnesota; he's not badmouthing the club, he's badmouthing Lagos (while praising the assistant coaches).

[Cheeta]

If he's critical of a coaching style fair enough, he's allowed his opinion, but said coach he's critical of hired the assistants he's praising and dictates their function and roles.

If the gaffer wants to be distant from the players and liaison to the players through the assistants so be it. It's his program, he decides how its going to play out.

That can rub some players the wrong way I guess. But then, so can the involved, outwardly emotional coaches. To each his own.

MLS? MLS is a strange animal. Everyone knows that.

[Mr.Impact]

Mls is a strange animal ... for fringe players like Barbara. Don't hear many complaints from players who are able to stick. Maybe if Barbara would stop running his mouth, and start producing on the field, he would actually give himself a realistic chance at the MLS. In the meantime he'll have plenty of time to contemplate during those long bus rides.

[Unnamed Trialist]

MLS contracts are a joke and, what is worse, make managers lazy and FOs too. Instead of setting up a viable roster over a preseason, giving its players decent contracts that denote commitment over a few years, and then adjusting in modest ways as you go, coaching the block with focus and skill, you have this constant cop out of flipping players around. You think it is just the way the coaches and execs can get off having to be replaced for incompetence, the brass love it: fiddle with players and make them the scapegoat for coaching and managing incompetence.

The greatest football clubs in the world and lesser successful ones are built on consistency, keeping a core together, and adjusting 3-4 pieces a year max while bringing up the odd academy player slowly. Scouting hard. There is nothing conducive to doing this in MLS and on top of it, the consequences for players and fans who are loyal to them is terrible.

[alberta white]

Mls is a strange animal ... for fringe players like Barbara. Don't hear many complaints from players who are able to stick. Maybe if Barbara would stop running his mouth, and start producing on the field, he would actually give himself a realistic chance at the MLS. In the meantime he'll have plenty of time to contemplate during those long bus rides.

That's also a mouth that runs off constantly though the 90 minutes by the way.

[Drillers81]

Anyone who has seen Etienne Barbara play in the NASL would know that, while he has tremendous talent, he is very lazy, critical of teammates, coaches and officials and belligerent towards opponents. A quick review of his playing record shows he had two good seasons and many mediocre ones. Martin Rennie, his coach with the RailHawks, gave him his chance in MLS when Rennie signed on to coach the Whitecaps. Barbara ended up playing with the U-23 team in Vancouver while Rennie took the 'Caps to the playoffs without him.

Barbara is on his second team this season and his 10th in 14 years, he has a total of two first-team appearances with a top flight club (the MLS Whitecaps) and, while making 30 appearances for Malta, has only three goals to show for his efforts.

Barbara benefitted from a strong, well-coached team with Rennie in Carolina, however I still feel that it was Pablo Campos that was the real engine of this team and not Barbara (who benefitted from Campos' playmaking abilities). Campos followed up his 12 goals (with Barbara scoring 28) in 2011 with 21 in 2012 and he has 4 so far in 2013 (playing along side Barbara again). Now that Barbara has moved to Tampa Bay, I expect Campos will flourish in Minnesota.

If Etienne Barbara had any brains at all he would work on the weak parts of his game and stop being such a whiny loud-mouthed prima donna.

[Grizzly]

Anyone who has seen Etienne Barbara play in the NASL would know that, while he has tremendous talent, he is very lazy, critical of teammates, coaches and officials and belligerent towards opponents. A quick review of his playing record shows he had two good seasons and many mediocre ones. Martin Rennie, his coach with the RailHawks, gave him his chance in MLS when Rennie signed on to coach the Whitecaps. Barbara ended up playing with the U-23 team in Vancouver while Rennie took the 'Caps to the playoffs without him.

Barbara is on his second team this season and his 10th in 14 years, he has a total of two first-team appearances with a top flight club (the MLS Whitecaps) and, while making 30 appearances for Malta, has only three goals to show for his efforts.

Barbara benefitted from a strong, well-coached team with Rennie in Carolina, however I still feel that it was Pablo Campos that was the real engine of this team and not Barbara (who benefitted from Campos' playmaking abilities). Campos followed up his 12 goals (with Barbara scoring 28) in 2011 with 21 in 2012 and he has 4 so far in 2013 (playing along side Barbara again). Now that Barbara has moved to Tampa Bay, I expect Campos will flourish in Minnesota.

If Etienne Barbara had any brains at all he would work on the weak parts of his game and stop being such a whiny loud-mouthed prima donna.

I don't disagree with your comments considering his attitude but I think you are downplaying his accomplishments at the NASL level where he has consistently scored and played well. Campos benefitted as much from Barbara's play making skills as vice versa when they were together. Barbara was injured for much of his MLS season and never really got much chance to show what he could do, he only played 15 minutes in MLS and 61 minutes in the Voyageurs Cup. Campos by the way played in MLS for two years appearing in 41 games but only scoring 4 goals before being cut. And how many goals do you expect Barbara to score for Malta playing in WC and Euro qualification matches against teams like Italy?

[Lord Bob]

Barbara played 45 minutes with the Whitecaps U-23s last year. His problem is that he was injured, not that he was dumped to PDL.