Bison44 Posted August 12, 2019 Share Posted August 12, 2019 I hope Bair gives Ricketts a few shooting tips. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unnamed Trialist Posted August 13, 2019 Share Posted August 13, 2019 Game in Portland was still one of the most haplessly pathetic performances we've seen from the Caps--and even then we could have pulled out a draw, had a goal taken away from us. We really played like a third-tier team vs. a 1st tier team. If you watch Forge or Cavalry, they are better coached: Wheeldon to Whitecaps? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BearcatSA Posted August 16, 2019 Share Posted August 16, 2019 Sounds like the hammer might be coming diwn on the front office. Press conference is at 1230. ted 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big_M Posted August 16, 2019 Share Posted August 16, 2019 They will hire a sporting director who will report to ownership..no more president..lenarduzzi now a club liaison https://www.whitecapsfc.com/post/2019/08/16/whitecaps-fc-hire-sporting-director-global-search-underway nolando and ted 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nolbertos Posted August 16, 2019 Share Posted August 16, 2019 Bob Lenarduzzi is out as president, according to a news1130 headline. He’s slowly being let go from the club. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BearcatSA Posted August 16, 2019 Share Posted August 16, 2019 (edited) So, is the new sporting director going to be different from the new head of scouting, or is it the same person? Also, are we going to hear some decent, probing questions asked by the assembled media at the presser or will the club be allowed to freewheel with its own narrative? Here's a simple starter question: how are season ticket renewals going compared to last season ( and before that)? Edited August 16, 2019 by BearcatSA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
youllneverwalkalone Posted August 16, 2019 Share Posted August 16, 2019 Pat Onstad would be the obvious choice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Beaver 2.0 Posted August 16, 2019 Share Posted August 16, 2019 I take this as a positive sign of the club's (necessary and overdue) evolution. Kudos to Bobby for everything he has given to club and country, but it has been evident for some time that he is in over his head. I am excited to see who they hire, and from there I am excited to watch the club grow and improve etc. I sort of wish they'd made this change before they hired MDS, but I remain optimistic that Marc will still have huge success in MLS. (It just might take another three years, god help us.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toontownman Posted August 17, 2019 Share Posted August 17, 2019 Bobby the fall guy. Zero surprise and also zero surprise he is moved to a different cushy job. Is there really any point in the DOF job if the ownership still wont invest any competitive money into the first team? On paper it all looks promising. Time will tell if this is anything other then a stunt by the ownership to get the fans off their backs. Where I will credit them is their youth network which isnt cheap and will pay dividends. Likely more for Canada soccer in general than them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Watchmen Posted August 17, 2019 Share Posted August 17, 2019 This wasn't enough. Lenarduzzi isn't gone from the club, so his influence will still be felt. Ownership wants to hire a sporting director but then also said that Greg Anderson's role as "vice president of soccer ops" is safe. They made this move because they saw how bad their season ticket renewal campaign was going and think this is what people wanted, but without really understanding why it needed to be made. They're hyping up hiring a "Champions League level sporting director" that "runs a balance sheet of $10-, $20-, $30- million on the players side" while they spend under $10m (and think that Champions League sides spend so little). It's far too little, and they won't understand why it hasn't worked on getting more people to renew. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Ref Posted August 17, 2019 Share Posted August 17, 2019 (edited) After all the scandal for sexual abuse, Lenarduzzi moved to a secondary role. Jeff Mallett didn't have the balls to fire him outright. In my view both Duzzi and Mallett should be fired. Things never change!!! Edited August 17, 2019 by The Ref Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nolando Posted August 18, 2019 Share Posted August 18, 2019 Just back from the match tonight. Was very impressed with the Caps' work ethic....they showed they haven't given up. So many Canadians involved with Bair, Teibert, Crepeau, and Cornelius starting and then Henry and Ricketts subbed in to make it a half-dozen. It wasn't always pretty but there was a lot of everything in the game from amazing saves at both ends, a classic and largely ineffective villain in Rooney, and a surprisingly lenient referee which played into the hands of the home team tonight. Was impressed overall...it's like they took themselves off of life support. masster 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nolando Posted August 18, 2019 Share Posted August 18, 2019 (edited) Sick move from Bair. This kid is on fire. Edited August 18, 2019 by nolando Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpursFlu Posted August 18, 2019 Share Posted August 18, 2019 (edited) Bair has been great since he's moved to the wing. I guess just because your 6'4 doesn't necessarily mean CF is your best attacking position Also, if there is a better young defender in the MLS than Derek Cornelius, I would like to know who it is Edited August 18, 2019 by SpursFlu Bison44 and nolando 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nolando Posted August 18, 2019 Share Posted August 18, 2019 25 minutes ago, SpursFlu said: Also, if there is a better young defender in the MLS than Derek Cornelius, I would like to know who it is Great at both ends: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BearcatSA Posted August 18, 2019 Share Posted August 18, 2019 Reyna up top has consistently been lively and a threat : his hustle and pace pose a match up threat for opposing CBs. That's created space for the other attackers. Though I thought Hamid should have done much better on the goal, it doesn't take away from the Peruvian's overall contributions. The keeper exudes much confidence. Does he get the start against Cuba? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red card Posted August 18, 2019 Share Posted August 18, 2019 Good thoughts by MDS about Bair. Though why would a Canadian youth player feel entitled is beyond me. Other than about 5, Canadian youth players have done jack to warrant entitlement. youllneverwalkalone 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Watchmen Posted August 18, 2019 Share Posted August 18, 2019 That's long been part of the accusation aimed at the kids in the Whitecaps residency. That there's been a sense of entitlement among them. That while fans are screaming "play the kids", managers have been loath to use them at times because they're trying to break that sense of entitlement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Beaver 2.0 Posted August 19, 2019 Share Posted August 19, 2019 23 hours ago, Watchmen said: That's long been part of the accusation aimed at the kids in the Whitecaps residency. That there's been a sense of entitlement among them. That while fans are screaming "play the kids", managers have been loath to use them at times because they're trying to break that sense of entitlement. I suspect that managers have not played the kids because the kids have not shown they are ready, to be frank. I mean, Robbo tried out several kids over his tenure, and few made the cut. Sure, one could make the argument that he should have given them more time to develop, but he DID give a few of them decent chances to prove themselves, and aside from Davies, none of them did. Bustos? Froese? Even Adegkube. These guys were not ready for the jump to MLS. Maybe, in part, it had to do with a sense of entitlement. Maybe they were just not good enough. I suspect Levis will join those fellas after this season. I really like Brett, and I have no reason to believe he has a sense of entitlement, but his play this year has been mostly naïve and spotty. He plays with a big heart, which I love, but his game smarts are sorely lacking, and his skills are mostly just mediocre. I don't see Levis sticking with the team, sadly. But I am thrilled to see how Crepeau, Henry and Cornelius have been playing under MDS, and I am excited to see Ricketts join the team to play his specific role. Tiebert has been solid of late, and Bair's evolution out wide is promising. (What is most exciting is to see how Bair has displaced Ardaiz in the pecking order up front. Maybe Ardaiz can only be a front man, not a winger, but I am impressed with the steps Bair has taken. He still has a long, long way to go, but he has shown some encouraging signs these last couple of games.) The biggest challenge for our kids is continuing their development AFTER the academy and BEFORE they are ready for the first team. For 99% of the players, that is a massive gap. Davies is the exception, not the rule. Ivan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Beaver 2.0 Posted August 20, 2019 Share Posted August 20, 2019 A quick note: The Caps are now playing more cohesive football, look solid defensively and are starting to figure things out going forward. They still have a long ways to go, I admit, but they are playing now how I expected them to play at the mid-point of the season. There is still enough time to salvage the year, though it is hard to see them making the playoffs. Still, MDS's goal this season was to establish a nucleus, and it is only now showing itself. He made it clear that the Caps would add some better pieces once the core was established, and I presume we'll start to see some of those players come into the squad during the offseason. The fact that they were going after Cavallini is a very good sign, in my opinion. I am not entirely sure what is responsible for the Caps' transformation these past four games, but one has to think it has something to do with Inbeom playing where Erice had played for most of the season. I am not knocking Erice, who seemed solid enough, but I like how the Caps look with Inbeom playing the role he is playing. He is good on the ball, very quick, and has the legs to get into the attack from time to time. And he will only get better, especially if we can get a couple of high quality players around him. (Imagine a couple of guys of his quality flanking him in midfield rather than merely serviceable foot soldiers like Rose and Tiebert.) nolando 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Watchmen Posted August 21, 2019 Share Posted August 21, 2019 On 8/19/2019 at 10:59 AM, The Beaver 2.0 said: I suspect that managers have not played the kids because the kids have not shown they are ready, to be frank. I mean, Robbo tried out several kids over his tenure, and few made the cut. Sure, one could make the argument that he should have given them more time to develop, but he DID give a few of them decent chances to prove themselves, and aside from Davies, none of them did. Bustos? Froese? Even Adegkube. These guys were not ready for the jump to MLS. Maybe, in part, it had to do with a sense of entitlement. Maybe they were just not good enough. I suspect Levis will join those fellas after this season. I really like Brett, and I have no reason to believe he has a sense of entitlement, but his play this year has been mostly naïve and spotty. He plays with a big heart, which I love, but his game smarts are sorely lacking, and his skills are mostly just mediocre. I don't see Levis sticking with the team, sadly. Robinson would routinely play 4 or 5 kids at a time (and Bustos out of position) with secondary/bench players, then complain that they "didn't show enough". Compare that to Davies and now Bair - kids given the chance to play with basically the regular rotation, and actually developing from it. Adegkube to me is actually the most interesting case out of all of them. He actually outplayed Harvey to start a season, looked pretty good in 5 or 6 starts, then got injured. When he returned from injury, he never played again. Rumours swirled it was because of "attitude/entitlement" issues, but it's honestly hard to figure out which came first: did he not play because of "attitude" or did he develop an "attitude" because he'd shown he could play but wasn't given the chance again? jonovision 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BearcatSA Posted August 21, 2019 Share Posted August 21, 2019 The goalkeeping has been very good and a significant difference maker. He has had many big time stops at key moments as well as a very strong command of his penalty area. He provides a lot of confidence for the back line. What killed this team defensively last season was that it didn't get that kind of goalkeeping from the Kiwi Confed Cup signing (now in the A League) and Beer League Brian Rowe. He's been MDS's best signing this year. I cringe to think how bad things would be without his keeping. With that, I have a pretty tempered view of everything else I've seen from the any of the other outfield personnel though I have appreciated Reyna's work as the CF). Saturday night's match boiled down to Crepeau making all his big save attempts and Hamid missing one he'd liked to have back (though his save off of Cornelius' header was a pretty awesome reaction effort). I was disappointed that Reyna's crack off the crossbar was just a tad too high. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GlassCity Posted August 21, 2019 Share Posted August 21, 2019 My two cents on the Whitecaps search for a new Technical Director. https://thisglasscity.wordpress.com/2019/08/21/technical-direction/ The Beaver 2.0, toontownman, nolando and 1 other 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unnamed Trialist Posted August 21, 2019 Share Posted August 21, 2019 My view is that the team is still playing badly, is poorly coached, and worse--making the exact same mistakes as under Robinson. For me, it looks like partially the previous intertia, which MDS has not broken by any means, and partially MDS not knowing how to get anywhere near to the type of play he spouts. The team does not pressure the ball effectively, nor as a team, and other sides slice through our pressure rather easily, all the way to our defensive third. That is bad coaching. We do not shift to cover the width of the pitch. We are constantly outnumbered in key defensive areas, like down both wings, when the other team is attacking. Dangerous plays are not challenged at the top of the box, or even in it. All these are key coaching flaws, not to mention what we do when we happen to get the ball back. To explain this better we'd need to look at sequences of play, on video, but the same errors repeat, and game are fundamentally the same as last year. So why change the coach? MDS has not offered a vision I find at all interesting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toontownman Posted August 22, 2019 Share Posted August 22, 2019 10 hours ago, GlassCity said: My two cents on the Whitecaps search for a new Technical Director. https://thisglasscity.wordpress.com/2019/08/21/technical-direction/ Shocked they would both be so open about the position! Downside is that likely means no one from the caps has been in touch lol. Great article and thanks for sharing. GlassCity 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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