Sporting KC's major announcement today wasn't especially sexy, or really overly surprising, but that doesn't mean it wasn't a major announcement for the club. Sporting today announced that they had extended the contract of head coach and technical director, Peter Vermes through the 2019 season. Vermes' contract was set to expire after this upcoming 2017 season and with rumored interest from clubs and countries both within the US and reportedly internationally, KC sought to lock Vermes up to a longer deal.
After Bruce Arena's departure from LA a few weeks ago and Sigi Schmid's firing by Seattle earlier this year, Vermes is now the longest serving head coach in MLS and became the club's longest serving head coach this past year, having taken over as head coach on an interim basis back in 2009 after the firing of Curt Onalfo. Since then he coached the most games in club history, the most wins, both in league (103) and in all competitions (128). He's also tied with Sporting Legend, Bob Gansler for the most silverware in club history, having helped bring two US Open Cups and one MLS Cup (compared to one MLS Cup, one Supporters' Shield, and one US Open Cup by Gansler) to Kansas City. If Vermes is with Kansas City through the end of the deal he would become the longest tenured manager with one team in the short history of MLS, with over 10 years at one club.
As I said last night, the extension was the likely outcome of today's announcement, and while it's not a fancy announcement it was one that should be seen as a major announcement. Vermes staying in Kansas City is the best thing for the club at this point in time. His record speaks for itself with the wins and trophies in MLS. While the last two years have been rougher than the few before that, he's still managed to bring in trophies. To twist a quote that Vermes used today on the radio about managers some times thinking the grass is greener on the other side of things when talking about other job opportunities, the same is true for coaches, just because there's a section of fans that may not be happy with this move, that think KC would be better off with a new manager, but what's to say that the next manager is going to do any better? What's to say it doesn't actually get worse? If you look at every team in MLS they all go through struggles during each and every season pretty much. Very rarely do you see a team not go through major ups and downs in the same season, usually when those teams are always up they're usually at the top of the conference winning the Supporters' Shield.
In the end I still maintain that this is a good move for Kansas City, now comes the time where Vermes really earns his technical director money along with Mike Jacobs and Brian Bliss on filling the existing holes in the roster.
Showing posts with label Peter Vermes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Peter Vermes. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 29, 2016
Monday, November 28, 2016
Sporting to Have Major Club Announcement Tomorrow
Tomorrow morning, Sporting KC will be making a major club announcement at their downtown offices. Included at the announcement will be the club's coach and technical director, Peter Vermes, club president Jake Reid, and Mike Illig, representing the Sporting Club ownership group. Since it was announced around 3:30 this afternoon, plenty of speculation has taken place about what the announcement is going to be, is it a new player signing, is it a contract extension for Vermes, is Vermes leaving, is there a change in ownership coming? There are plenty of guesses being made about what the announcement is going to be about.
Here's my take on a few of the potential ideas.
Peter Vermes Contract Extension
If there was betting line for what the announcement was going to be tomorrow, this would be the odds on favorite and is my guess for the announcement tomorrow. Vermes last signed a contract extension over the summer in 2013 that extended his stay with Kansas City through the end of the 2017 season. With this coming season being the last in that contract and rumors of US Soccer interest, LA Galaxy interest, and foreign interest, both club and national team, locking Vermes up long term is certainly something that would have to be on at the top of the KC priority list. Vermes has virtually every single coaching record in KC's history and with the departure of Bruce Arena from the LA Galaxy, Vermes is now the longest tenured manager in MLS.
Vermes is Leaving Kansas City
This one isn't completely far-fetched, because of the reasons I listed in the last section, Vermes' profile as a coach continues to rise, he was named as one of the primary candidates to replace Jurgen Klinsmann as national team boss, is about to be out of contract, and has reportedly had interest abroad. Where this idea falls apart though is the timing of the announcement. If Vermes was leaving Kansas City for another position, standard practice is to let the other team that the manager is going to be the one that makes the announcement first, then the team the coach is leaving releases a statement, they don't generally have a press conference with the coach announcing his departure.
Player Signing/Departure
The first problem with this idea is the fact that the release called it a "major club announcement," if this was going to be a player signing or departure, the team would have announced it as a "major player announcement" or something similar. If it was a signing, you would expect the player to also be available at least for a brief statement with the club, but the announcement makes no mention of a player (not that it would give away the player's name, but would say that the player would be available for comment). If it was a departure, like with a coach departure, Sporting would probably wait until the club the player was going to to announce the move before making the announcement themselves.
Front Office Shake Up
Ever since OnGoal LLC bought the Kansas City Wizards, Sporting Club CEO, Robb Heineman has been the public face of the ownership group when it comes to dealing with the media and at announcements. So with tomorrow's announcement including Mike Illig, son of Cliff Illig, as the representative of Sporting Club, it certainly raised some eyebrows among fans. There have been rumblings about Heineman's role with the club lately and the fact that he's not part of this announcement will certainly do nothing to quell those rumors, but any sort of announcement like that doesn't make a ton of sense tomorrow. That sort of announcement isn't something that you feel would need to involve Vermes being at the press conference, and especially not something that the club would make Vermes available for interviews about after the meeting.
There are other ideas that have been thrown out on Twitter tonight, things like buying FC Kansas City or expanding Children's Mercy Park, but those and others are reaching much more than even some of the above ideas. As I said near the beginning, the odds on favorite for tomorrow's announcement would be a contract extension for Vermes that will keep him in KC long term, or at least raise the release clause that US Soccer or any club team would have to pay the club if they really wanted him.
Here's my take on a few of the potential ideas.
Peter Vermes Contract Extension
If there was betting line for what the announcement was going to be tomorrow, this would be the odds on favorite and is my guess for the announcement tomorrow. Vermes last signed a contract extension over the summer in 2013 that extended his stay with Kansas City through the end of the 2017 season. With this coming season being the last in that contract and rumors of US Soccer interest, LA Galaxy interest, and foreign interest, both club and national team, locking Vermes up long term is certainly something that would have to be on at the top of the KC priority list. Vermes has virtually every single coaching record in KC's history and with the departure of Bruce Arena from the LA Galaxy, Vermes is now the longest tenured manager in MLS.
Vermes is Leaving Kansas City
This one isn't completely far-fetched, because of the reasons I listed in the last section, Vermes' profile as a coach continues to rise, he was named as one of the primary candidates to replace Jurgen Klinsmann as national team boss, is about to be out of contract, and has reportedly had interest abroad. Where this idea falls apart though is the timing of the announcement. If Vermes was leaving Kansas City for another position, standard practice is to let the other team that the manager is going to be the one that makes the announcement first, then the team the coach is leaving releases a statement, they don't generally have a press conference with the coach announcing his departure.
Player Signing/Departure
The first problem with this idea is the fact that the release called it a "major club announcement," if this was going to be a player signing or departure, the team would have announced it as a "major player announcement" or something similar. If it was a signing, you would expect the player to also be available at least for a brief statement with the club, but the announcement makes no mention of a player (not that it would give away the player's name, but would say that the player would be available for comment). If it was a departure, like with a coach departure, Sporting would probably wait until the club the player was going to to announce the move before making the announcement themselves.
Front Office Shake Up
Ever since OnGoal LLC bought the Kansas City Wizards, Sporting Club CEO, Robb Heineman has been the public face of the ownership group when it comes to dealing with the media and at announcements. So with tomorrow's announcement including Mike Illig, son of Cliff Illig, as the representative of Sporting Club, it certainly raised some eyebrows among fans. There have been rumblings about Heineman's role with the club lately and the fact that he's not part of this announcement will certainly do nothing to quell those rumors, but any sort of announcement like that doesn't make a ton of sense tomorrow. That sort of announcement isn't something that you feel would need to involve Vermes being at the press conference, and especially not something that the club would make Vermes available for interviews about after the meeting.
There are other ideas that have been thrown out on Twitter tonight, things like buying FC Kansas City or expanding Children's Mercy Park, but those and others are reaching much more than even some of the above ideas. As I said near the beginning, the odds on favorite for tomorrow's announcement would be a contract extension for Vermes that will keep him in KC long term, or at least raise the release clause that US Soccer or any club team would have to pay the club if they really wanted him.
Monday, August 08, 2016
Could Sporting Learn Something From Portland Yesterday?
The title is a loaded question, because there is plenty that Sporting Kansas City can learn from the game yesterday against the Portland Timbers, but there is one specific thing that I want to focus on. Sporting's offense again struggled in a road game, recording just three shots on goal against a team playing without its starting center backs and playing almost 30 minutes with a man advantage (failing to record a single shot on goal during the time up a man). The 3-0 loss was their 10 straight on the road without a win and third straight road loss. In those 10 games, Kansas City has scored just a single goal.
The one thing that I specifically want to focus on in the game was Portland's formation. For most of this season, Portland has played a 4-5-1/4-3-3 hybrid, similar to what Kansas City plays. Diego Valeri would be at the point of the midfield with Darlington Nagbe and Lucas Melano usually out wide behind Fanendo Adi. Behind the trio is the pairing of Diego Chara and either Ben Zemanski or Jack Jewsbury. In the past this lineup has allowed for Portland's speed on the wings to really help them get forward. Yesterday though Portland abandoned their traditional formation in favor of a standard 4-4-2 formation with two central midfielders and two wingers. As I was listening to the game on the radio (running late, missed the first five minutes on television) Taylor Twellman mentioned that Caleb Porter had mentioned how while Jack McInerney partnering Adi may not have given them the strongest midfield, he had made the change to get his finishers on the field for the game. Now granted, much of that plan was shot by the 12th minute red card to Diego Chara, but Portland basically stayed with the four man midfield after the red card with McInerney dropping deeper. What the formation did is that it put Valeri out on the wing where he was able to get himself more space isolated away from Kansas City's three central midfielders of Roger Espinoza, Benny Feilhaber, and Soni Mustivar. Going against Kansas City's outside back he was able to float around more when he didn't have the ball. On the opposite wing Nagbe gave the Timbers an option on both wings to be a threat going forward and playing balls for Adi (and McInerney if the red card hadn't occurred).
Meanwhile Kansas City again threw out the wing pairing of Connor Hallisey and Jacob Peterson, a pairing that's not exactly going to cause any dread for the opposing wingbacks. Hallisey had another rough game, one game after looking stronger against Portland, Hallisey looked lost and not sure what to do with the ball a lot of times when he received it. When KC was up a man it seemed like Portland was dictating play for Kansas City to go through Hallisey, trying to force the second year pro to be the one to beat them. On the other wing, Peterson has been in some fine form, but has been a "squad" player his entire career, a guy that can give you a good shift out there; help the team out, but in the end isn't going to be very impressive. These are Kansas City's starting wingers at the moment with Graham Zusi, Brad Davis, and Justin Mapp all still recovering from injury.
With this current situation with the wing, the thought again turns to changing the formation. It's been a popular talking point for a while now among Kansas City fans, going away from the 4-3-3 that Peter Vermes has been true to since he took over the club back in 2009. He's worked to build rosters year in and year out that can play in that formation, that can work the way he wants that formation to work. This year though Kansas City isn't really getting that second goal scorer from the wing that Vermes has always seemed to have in the past. From CJ Sapong, to Kei Kamara, to Krisztian Nemeth, it seems that KC has always had a secondary scoring threat on the wing (minus 2014 when Dom Dwyer carried the Kansas City offense himself). In the current crop of wingers on the team though there really isn't that goal scorer, Davis, Hallisey, Mapp, and Zusi are all pure wingers that are going to look to go wide first and shoot second. The closest KC has is Peterson who has a career high of four goals in a league season and just 19 league goals over his 10 year career.
The answer it would seem with this group of wingers that Kansas City needs to play with two forwards on the field, adding Chilean Diego Rubio to the starting 11. Against Portland down a goal, Vermes put Rubio and Dwyer on the field together for the first time all season in the 78th minute. The introduction of Rubio led to a very good spell of play by Kansas City and some of their better chances late in the game when they had two forwards and were really pushing the game looking for an equalizer. Considering that this may well be only the second time that Dwyer has had a partner up top since he became the regular starter (Dwyer and Claudio Bieler were only on the field together for one to two games during Bieler's tenure), it's not something that Vermes really attempts to do much.
Let's ignore for a second the improbability of Vermes changing formations to a 4-3-3 (it's his stubbornness to change formations that has caused me to laugh off any ideas of changing formations over the last few years) and take a look at exactly how that lineup would look. For that I point you directly to Portland's lineup yesterday. Their normally attacking midfielder, Valeri (Benny Feilhaber) was on one wing with Nagbe (Peterson until Zusi is ready to start) on the other. Behind those two and central, basically creating an "empty bucket" midfield would be Espinoza and Mustivar. Then you have your box-to-box and your stay at home defensive midfielder both on the field. Espinoza gets the freedom to roam the same way Chara has with Jewsbury on the field. That would allow Sporting to get Rubio on the field with Dwyer to try to boost the offense. It would also be something different to throw at opposing teams that are used to seeing Vermes consistently throw out the same time.
With everyone healthy, it would also allow Kansas City to do something with Hallisey to try and boost his confidence. Hallisey has shown flashes at times on the field, but many times has looked like he's a step slow or just lacking for confidence. A switch in formation (that would see Feilhaber spending time on one wing) would put less reliance on needing him to regularly contribute and allow Kansas City to loan him to Swope Park where he could look to build up his confidence.
There are some draw backs to this formation (beside the fact that I don't think Vermes would do it). The change in formation would see Kansas City give up a lot in the middle of the field. So much of Kansas City's play involves controlling the middle of the field, keeping the other team moving the ball there looking for a turnover. Switching from the three man to a two man central midfield would see Kansas City conceding more ground in the middle and would see a drop in possession, probably not in the 72% to 28% variety that KC had on Portland yesterday, but the formation change would also need to come with a philosophy change when that formation is played. KC would likely need to change the way that they high press if they were to run with this formation, the midfield isn't going to have the same bite, especially when they would play against teams who still employ the three man center midfield (which is quite a few).
Another issue would be on the bench where Kansas City would be back to where they were last year in terms of bench depth; they'd have no one on the bench to really give a spark in terms of goal scoring. Sure Davis and Mapp have scored their fair share, and a healthy Zusi would allow Peterson to be a sub off the bench, but in a tie game or losing, the hope that maybe a goal would be found on the bench really wouldn't exist, similar to the 2015 season.
While I don't expect any change in Vermes' strategy to come, having a formation that he trusts to throw out could be very beneficial to the team. Kansas City threw out the 3-4-3 at times in a game earlier this season to some decent success; it caused issues for the LA Galaxy to adjust to after expecting the traditional 4-3-3. Doing something out of the box to catch an opposing team off guard would be a good way to change the team's fortunes on the road.
The one thing that I specifically want to focus on in the game was Portland's formation. For most of this season, Portland has played a 4-5-1/4-3-3 hybrid, similar to what Kansas City plays. Diego Valeri would be at the point of the midfield with Darlington Nagbe and Lucas Melano usually out wide behind Fanendo Adi. Behind the trio is the pairing of Diego Chara and either Ben Zemanski or Jack Jewsbury. In the past this lineup has allowed for Portland's speed on the wings to really help them get forward. Yesterday though Portland abandoned their traditional formation in favor of a standard 4-4-2 formation with two central midfielders and two wingers. As I was listening to the game on the radio (running late, missed the first five minutes on television) Taylor Twellman mentioned that Caleb Porter had mentioned how while Jack McInerney partnering Adi may not have given them the strongest midfield, he had made the change to get his finishers on the field for the game. Now granted, much of that plan was shot by the 12th minute red card to Diego Chara, but Portland basically stayed with the four man midfield after the red card with McInerney dropping deeper. What the formation did is that it put Valeri out on the wing where he was able to get himself more space isolated away from Kansas City's three central midfielders of Roger Espinoza, Benny Feilhaber, and Soni Mustivar. Going against Kansas City's outside back he was able to float around more when he didn't have the ball. On the opposite wing Nagbe gave the Timbers an option on both wings to be a threat going forward and playing balls for Adi (and McInerney if the red card hadn't occurred).
Meanwhile Kansas City again threw out the wing pairing of Connor Hallisey and Jacob Peterson, a pairing that's not exactly going to cause any dread for the opposing wingbacks. Hallisey had another rough game, one game after looking stronger against Portland, Hallisey looked lost and not sure what to do with the ball a lot of times when he received it. When KC was up a man it seemed like Portland was dictating play for Kansas City to go through Hallisey, trying to force the second year pro to be the one to beat them. On the other wing, Peterson has been in some fine form, but has been a "squad" player his entire career, a guy that can give you a good shift out there; help the team out, but in the end isn't going to be very impressive. These are Kansas City's starting wingers at the moment with Graham Zusi, Brad Davis, and Justin Mapp all still recovering from injury.
With this current situation with the wing, the thought again turns to changing the formation. It's been a popular talking point for a while now among Kansas City fans, going away from the 4-3-3 that Peter Vermes has been true to since he took over the club back in 2009. He's worked to build rosters year in and year out that can play in that formation, that can work the way he wants that formation to work. This year though Kansas City isn't really getting that second goal scorer from the wing that Vermes has always seemed to have in the past. From CJ Sapong, to Kei Kamara, to Krisztian Nemeth, it seems that KC has always had a secondary scoring threat on the wing (minus 2014 when Dom Dwyer carried the Kansas City offense himself). In the current crop of wingers on the team though there really isn't that goal scorer, Davis, Hallisey, Mapp, and Zusi are all pure wingers that are going to look to go wide first and shoot second. The closest KC has is Peterson who has a career high of four goals in a league season and just 19 league goals over his 10 year career.
The answer it would seem with this group of wingers that Kansas City needs to play with two forwards on the field, adding Chilean Diego Rubio to the starting 11. Against Portland down a goal, Vermes put Rubio and Dwyer on the field together for the first time all season in the 78th minute. The introduction of Rubio led to a very good spell of play by Kansas City and some of their better chances late in the game when they had two forwards and were really pushing the game looking for an equalizer. Considering that this may well be only the second time that Dwyer has had a partner up top since he became the regular starter (Dwyer and Claudio Bieler were only on the field together for one to two games during Bieler's tenure), it's not something that Vermes really attempts to do much.
Let's ignore for a second the improbability of Vermes changing formations to a 4-3-3 (it's his stubbornness to change formations that has caused me to laugh off any ideas of changing formations over the last few years) and take a look at exactly how that lineup would look. For that I point you directly to Portland's lineup yesterday. Their normally attacking midfielder, Valeri (Benny Feilhaber) was on one wing with Nagbe (Peterson until Zusi is ready to start) on the other. Behind those two and central, basically creating an "empty bucket" midfield would be Espinoza and Mustivar. Then you have your box-to-box and your stay at home defensive midfielder both on the field. Espinoza gets the freedom to roam the same way Chara has with Jewsbury on the field. That would allow Sporting to get Rubio on the field with Dwyer to try to boost the offense. It would also be something different to throw at opposing teams that are used to seeing Vermes consistently throw out the same time.
With everyone healthy, it would also allow Kansas City to do something with Hallisey to try and boost his confidence. Hallisey has shown flashes at times on the field, but many times has looked like he's a step slow or just lacking for confidence. A switch in formation (that would see Feilhaber spending time on one wing) would put less reliance on needing him to regularly contribute and allow Kansas City to loan him to Swope Park where he could look to build up his confidence.
There are some draw backs to this formation (beside the fact that I don't think Vermes would do it). The change in formation would see Kansas City give up a lot in the middle of the field. So much of Kansas City's play involves controlling the middle of the field, keeping the other team moving the ball there looking for a turnover. Switching from the three man to a two man central midfield would see Kansas City conceding more ground in the middle and would see a drop in possession, probably not in the 72% to 28% variety that KC had on Portland yesterday, but the formation change would also need to come with a philosophy change when that formation is played. KC would likely need to change the way that they high press if they were to run with this formation, the midfield isn't going to have the same bite, especially when they would play against teams who still employ the three man center midfield (which is quite a few).
Another issue would be on the bench where Kansas City would be back to where they were last year in terms of bench depth; they'd have no one on the bench to really give a spark in terms of goal scoring. Sure Davis and Mapp have scored their fair share, and a healthy Zusi would allow Peterson to be a sub off the bench, but in a tie game or losing, the hope that maybe a goal would be found on the bench really wouldn't exist, similar to the 2015 season.
While I don't expect any change in Vermes' strategy to come, having a formation that he trusts to throw out could be very beneficial to the team. Kansas City threw out the 3-4-3 at times in a game earlier this season to some decent success; it caused issues for the LA Galaxy to adjust to after expecting the traditional 4-3-3. Doing something out of the box to catch an opposing team off guard would be a good way to change the team's fortunes on the road.
Monday, August 01, 2016
S.A.S. Monday After Stats - Century Edition
A lot of century marks hit in yesterday's game for Sporting KC.
Peter Vermes earned his 100th league win as Sporting's coach. He's the sixth MLS coach to hit that mark and the first KC coach to do it.
Jacob Peterson made his 100th league appearance for KC, he's the 32nd player to hit that mark.
Benny Feilhaber started his 100th league game for KC, he's the 24th player to hit that mark.
In the 18th minute, Roger Espinoza moved past Michael Harrington and into 11th place on the list of league minutes played, he finished the game with 11,706 minutes played.
Espinoza started his 150th game in all competitions, he's the 14th player to hit that mark.
Peter Vermes earned his 100th league win as Sporting's coach. He's the sixth MLS coach to hit that mark and the first KC coach to do it.
Jacob Peterson made his 100th league appearance for KC, he's the 32nd player to hit that mark.
Benny Feilhaber started his 100th league game for KC, he's the 24th player to hit that mark.
In the 18th minute, Roger Espinoza moved past Michael Harrington and into 11th place on the list of league minutes played, he finished the game with 11,706 minutes played.
Espinoza started his 150th game in all competitions, he's the 14th player to hit that mark.
Tuesday, July 05, 2016
A Look at Vermes and the Summer Transfer Window
The secondary transfer window for MLS opened today for the month of July and will close on August 3rd. With the window open teams can now acquire players via MLS trade, via transfer if the player is still under contract with another club, or by signing a player that became out of contract since the league's primary window closed. The third is how Sporting has made their first addition this window, bringing in Honduran left back Ever Alvarado.
This should prove to be an interesting transfer window for Kansas City as the club has really not been in this sort of situation since the club rebranded before the 2011 season. For the most part Vermes has used the summer window as a way to bring in players that may contribute some over the course of the rest of the season, but is an addition that is more looking towards the next year. This year though Vermes is going to have to go about it a little differently. While KC has had deficiencies in the past, when the transfer window has opened previously, KC has been in a strong position in league play that hasn't required them to use the summer window to acquire "game changers." Since the rebranding, KC has been looking to just fill a few gaps in the lineup.
Since the rebranding in 2011 the only time that KC has had fewer than the 25 points they have in 2016 through 19 games was in 2011 when KC had 23 points and were 5-6-8 with a schedule that had them play on the road just three times in their final 15 games. KC doesn't have the luxury of the home heavy schedule down the stretch this year and will need to adjust their plans accordingly. In 2011 when KC was behind in the table, even with the home heavy schedule they did make a number of additions, with some being towards the future while others were to help the team that year. KC brought in a designated player, Brazilian, Jeferson, on loan, and while he didn't work out, the effort was there to try to improve the team and get them back into the race for MLS Cup. KC also brought in Daneil Cyrus on loan who looked decent before an injury ended his season. KC's other three additions were for the future with Peterson Joseph and Lawrence Olum being signed and playing little while Soony Saad was acquired via a weighted lottery.
In 2012 through 19 games, KC already had 36 points with an 11-5-3 record and really didn't have the need to acquire much of anything in the summer transfer window. The club acquired just three players, Neven Markovic, who was brought in as defensive depth and made just two appearances for the club, Scott Angevine, who was mainly brought in to be available for a friendly, and Oriol Rosell, who despite starting the club's final playoff game against Houston, appeared just five times in league play and was seen as a player for the future when he was signed.
In 2013 Sporting was again in a fairly comfortable position in table position, having earned 30 points through their first 19 games, with a record of 8-5-6. On their way to MLS Cup that year Kansas City once again didn't make any dramatic additions to the team, signing mainly for future growth and depth. KC signed their third homegrown player, Erik Palmer-Brown, brought in Jimmy Medranda on loan, signed Brendan Ruiz, and right before the roster freeze signed Federico Bessone. Of those four players, only one played at all in 2013, and that was Medranda, who made a one minute cameo appearance when KC defeated the Columbus Crew 3-0.
While the second half of the 2014 season didn't go very well for Kansas City, they were actually in a better position through 19 games than they were in their MLS Cup winning season in 2013. The team had won 32 points with a 9-5-5 record through their first 19 games. This is the one season that breaks away from the pattern that Peter Vermes has followed in the past with additions. KC brought in three players, the biggest of those signings being Jorge Claros, a player that Vermes had been chasing for a while. Claros ended up playing in seven games, starting four of them and missed the final three regular season games due to a suspension. His addition was a long term play for Vermes as the club had been looking to replace Roger Espinoza since he left after the 2012 season, unfortunately that move didn't pay off. KC's other two summer signings that year were Michael Kafari and Martin Steuble, with Steuble being the only one to play a game for Kansas City, appearing twice.
Last year Sporting had again gotten out to a strong start and by the 19th game were considered a leading candidate for the Supporter's Shield and MLS Cup, KC had 33 points and a 9-4-6 record up to that point of the season. Again a poor second half of the season not helped by key injuries limited Kansas City to just their US Open Cup run. KC just made two additions over the summer in 2015, bringing in Amobi Okugo via a trade and signing Jordi Quintilla in the hopes of getting another Barcelona product success the same way they did with Rosell. Unfortunately Okugo, who most fans hoped would see time at center back where he'd been successful, played just three times for KC, all in the midfield and was gone during preseason. Quintilla made eight appearances last year in league play and also added the winning goal in the penalty shootout in the Open Cup, but was gone in June.
While it's certainly not exact, especially when you hear Robb Heineman throw out names like Marko Marin during pregame interviews, there is certainly a pattern of Kansas City using the summer window less when they are playing well, even with injury issues. The past two years injuries on the back line have made a center back seem like a logical summer addition but KC has never gone that route. The question now is whether Sporting will be more aggressive in the window this year with the team struggling. Vermes has said in the past that he prefers the winter window for acquiring players because those brought in during the summer have to get themselves up to speed and fitness for Vermes' system and that takes too long with a mid-summer signing for Vermes.
The addition of Alvardo would seem to point to at least a little more activity, as KC looks to shore up their defense with an international player, something KC has only done one other time in the summer since 2011, and that's when they grabbed Claros. It's an area of the field that hasn't been horrible for KC, but needed an upgrade over the committee that has been playing there this season with Medranda, Amadou Dia, and Seth Sinovic all having shifts at left back.
At this point, KC has three roster spots left open after the signing of Alvarado and waiving of Quintilla. It also keeps Kansas City with five of their international roster spots filled at this time. With Diego Rubio's loan extended the team said that he no longer occupies a young DP slot, which would open a slot back up for the team to use this summer if they want to.
For anyone that has watched Sporting this year, it's obvious where the biggest hole is for the team, it's in chance creation coming from the wing. While Brad Davis has scored three goals across all competitions, that's not the main reason he was brought in, he was brought in for his assists (which he has not recorded one of for Sporting since being acquired). Vermes has tried to keep the cutting in ability that worked so well with Krisztian Nemeth last year by inverting his wingers, playing Davis and Graham Zusi on their opposite wing so they'll be cutting in on their dominate foot, but it's not coming close to matching the threat that Nemeth posed for KC. Sporting isn't going to come back and find a straight replacement for Nemeth, but Sporting has to do something to look like a more serious goal scoring threat from other positions. Right now the goal scoring is very one dimensional in trying to get Dwyer the ball. KC is too reliant on crosses into the box for a 5'9" forward, who while good in the air is going to be handled much of the time by bigger center backs. The players that Vermes has brought in haven't panned out exactly as planned with the likes of Justin Mapp having not even played 30 minutes by this point of the season. At the same time returning players like Connor Hallisey and Jacob Peterson have been unable to fill the gap on the wings with any regularity, while people wait for the Zusi that plays with the national team to regularly show up for Sporting (like Sunday).
This will be an interesting summer window for KC, by no means do I think Vermes' job is in jeopardy at this point, but continued struggles this year and not addressing needs will make his seat hotter.
This should prove to be an interesting transfer window for Kansas City as the club has really not been in this sort of situation since the club rebranded before the 2011 season. For the most part Vermes has used the summer window as a way to bring in players that may contribute some over the course of the rest of the season, but is an addition that is more looking towards the next year. This year though Vermes is going to have to go about it a little differently. While KC has had deficiencies in the past, when the transfer window has opened previously, KC has been in a strong position in league play that hasn't required them to use the summer window to acquire "game changers." Since the rebranding, KC has been looking to just fill a few gaps in the lineup.
Since the rebranding in 2011 the only time that KC has had fewer than the 25 points they have in 2016 through 19 games was in 2011 when KC had 23 points and were 5-6-8 with a schedule that had them play on the road just three times in their final 15 games. KC doesn't have the luxury of the home heavy schedule down the stretch this year and will need to adjust their plans accordingly. In 2011 when KC was behind in the table, even with the home heavy schedule they did make a number of additions, with some being towards the future while others were to help the team that year. KC brought in a designated player, Brazilian, Jeferson, on loan, and while he didn't work out, the effort was there to try to improve the team and get them back into the race for MLS Cup. KC also brought in Daneil Cyrus on loan who looked decent before an injury ended his season. KC's other three additions were for the future with Peterson Joseph and Lawrence Olum being signed and playing little while Soony Saad was acquired via a weighted lottery.
In 2012 through 19 games, KC already had 36 points with an 11-5-3 record and really didn't have the need to acquire much of anything in the summer transfer window. The club acquired just three players, Neven Markovic, who was brought in as defensive depth and made just two appearances for the club, Scott Angevine, who was mainly brought in to be available for a friendly, and Oriol Rosell, who despite starting the club's final playoff game against Houston, appeared just five times in league play and was seen as a player for the future when he was signed.
In 2013 Sporting was again in a fairly comfortable position in table position, having earned 30 points through their first 19 games, with a record of 8-5-6. On their way to MLS Cup that year Kansas City once again didn't make any dramatic additions to the team, signing mainly for future growth and depth. KC signed their third homegrown player, Erik Palmer-Brown, brought in Jimmy Medranda on loan, signed Brendan Ruiz, and right before the roster freeze signed Federico Bessone. Of those four players, only one played at all in 2013, and that was Medranda, who made a one minute cameo appearance when KC defeated the Columbus Crew 3-0.
While the second half of the 2014 season didn't go very well for Kansas City, they were actually in a better position through 19 games than they were in their MLS Cup winning season in 2013. The team had won 32 points with a 9-5-5 record through their first 19 games. This is the one season that breaks away from the pattern that Peter Vermes has followed in the past with additions. KC brought in three players, the biggest of those signings being Jorge Claros, a player that Vermes had been chasing for a while. Claros ended up playing in seven games, starting four of them and missed the final three regular season games due to a suspension. His addition was a long term play for Vermes as the club had been looking to replace Roger Espinoza since he left after the 2012 season, unfortunately that move didn't pay off. KC's other two summer signings that year were Michael Kafari and Martin Steuble, with Steuble being the only one to play a game for Kansas City, appearing twice.
Last year Sporting had again gotten out to a strong start and by the 19th game were considered a leading candidate for the Supporter's Shield and MLS Cup, KC had 33 points and a 9-4-6 record up to that point of the season. Again a poor second half of the season not helped by key injuries limited Kansas City to just their US Open Cup run. KC just made two additions over the summer in 2015, bringing in Amobi Okugo via a trade and signing Jordi Quintilla in the hopes of getting another Barcelona product success the same way they did with Rosell. Unfortunately Okugo, who most fans hoped would see time at center back where he'd been successful, played just three times for KC, all in the midfield and was gone during preseason. Quintilla made eight appearances last year in league play and also added the winning goal in the penalty shootout in the Open Cup, but was gone in June.
While it's certainly not exact, especially when you hear Robb Heineman throw out names like Marko Marin during pregame interviews, there is certainly a pattern of Kansas City using the summer window less when they are playing well, even with injury issues. The past two years injuries on the back line have made a center back seem like a logical summer addition but KC has never gone that route. The question now is whether Sporting will be more aggressive in the window this year with the team struggling. Vermes has said in the past that he prefers the winter window for acquiring players because those brought in during the summer have to get themselves up to speed and fitness for Vermes' system and that takes too long with a mid-summer signing for Vermes.
The addition of Alvardo would seem to point to at least a little more activity, as KC looks to shore up their defense with an international player, something KC has only done one other time in the summer since 2011, and that's when they grabbed Claros. It's an area of the field that hasn't been horrible for KC, but needed an upgrade over the committee that has been playing there this season with Medranda, Amadou Dia, and Seth Sinovic all having shifts at left back.
At this point, KC has three roster spots left open after the signing of Alvarado and waiving of Quintilla. It also keeps Kansas City with five of their international roster spots filled at this time. With Diego Rubio's loan extended the team said that he no longer occupies a young DP slot, which would open a slot back up for the team to use this summer if they want to.
For anyone that has watched Sporting this year, it's obvious where the biggest hole is for the team, it's in chance creation coming from the wing. While Brad Davis has scored three goals across all competitions, that's not the main reason he was brought in, he was brought in for his assists (which he has not recorded one of for Sporting since being acquired). Vermes has tried to keep the cutting in ability that worked so well with Krisztian Nemeth last year by inverting his wingers, playing Davis and Graham Zusi on their opposite wing so they'll be cutting in on their dominate foot, but it's not coming close to matching the threat that Nemeth posed for KC. Sporting isn't going to come back and find a straight replacement for Nemeth, but Sporting has to do something to look like a more serious goal scoring threat from other positions. Right now the goal scoring is very one dimensional in trying to get Dwyer the ball. KC is too reliant on crosses into the box for a 5'9" forward, who while good in the air is going to be handled much of the time by bigger center backs. The players that Vermes has brought in haven't panned out exactly as planned with the likes of Justin Mapp having not even played 30 minutes by this point of the season. At the same time returning players like Connor Hallisey and Jacob Peterson have been unable to fill the gap on the wings with any regularity, while people wait for the Zusi that plays with the national team to regularly show up for Sporting (like Sunday).
This will be an interesting summer window for KC, by no means do I think Vermes' job is in jeopardy at this point, but continued struggles this year and not addressing needs will make his seat hotter.
Monday, June 20, 2016
S.A.S. Monday After Stats
Peter Vermes coached his 271st game in all competitions, becoming the club's all time leader for games managed.
Benny Feilhaber's goal was his 25th league goal in his MLS career.
Feilhaber's assist was his 28th in league play for KC, tying him with Mo Johnston for 5th all time on that list.
It was his 40th assist in all competitions for KC, tying him with Davy Arnaud for 4th all time on that list.
Feilhaber's goal was his 20th league goal for KC, moving him into a tie with CJ Sapong and Mark Chung for 11th on that list.
It was Feilhaber's 24th in all competitions for KC, tying him with Teal Bunbury for 12th all time on that list.
Feilhaber's goal was his 13th at home in all competitions for KC, tying him with Chris Brown, Chung, and Claudio Bieler for 14th on that list.
It was his 11th league goal at home, tying him with Brown, Igor Simutenkov, and Sapong for 13th on that list.
At 31 years, 345 days, Lawrence Olum became the 15th oldest player to score a goal for KC in both league play and in all competitions, moving past Diego Gutierrez (31 years, 320 days).
Jacob Peterson made his 50th start in league play for KC, he's the 46th player to hit that mark.
In the 4th minute, Roger Espinoza moved past Chance Myers and into 17th place for minutes played in all competitions, Espinoza finished the game wtih 12,817 minutes played.
In the 62nd minute, Espinoza passed Seth Sinovic and moved into 16th place for league minutes played for KC, Espinoza finished the game with 11,076 minutes played.
Espinoza made his 166th appearance in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Josh Wolff for 14th all time on that list.
He made his 142nd start in all competitions for KC, tying him with Jimmy Nielsen for 16th all time on that list.
Espinoza made his 125th start in league play for KC, tying him with Sinovic and Tony Meola for 15th place on that list.
Espinoza and Chance Myers both made their 145th league appearance for KC, breaking the tie they were in with Wolff and Matt McKeon for 12th all time on that list.
Benny Feilhaber's goal was his 25th league goal in his MLS career.
Feilhaber's assist was his 28th in league play for KC, tying him with Mo Johnston for 5th all time on that list.
It was his 40th assist in all competitions for KC, tying him with Davy Arnaud for 4th all time on that list.
Feilhaber's goal was his 20th league goal for KC, moving him into a tie with CJ Sapong and Mark Chung for 11th on that list.
It was Feilhaber's 24th in all competitions for KC, tying him with Teal Bunbury for 12th all time on that list.
Feilhaber's goal was his 13th at home in all competitions for KC, tying him with Chris Brown, Chung, and Claudio Bieler for 14th on that list.
It was his 11th league goal at home, tying him with Brown, Igor Simutenkov, and Sapong for 13th on that list.
At 31 years, 345 days, Lawrence Olum became the 15th oldest player to score a goal for KC in both league play and in all competitions, moving past Diego Gutierrez (31 years, 320 days).
Jacob Peterson made his 50th start in league play for KC, he's the 46th player to hit that mark.
In the 4th minute, Roger Espinoza moved past Chance Myers and into 17th place for minutes played in all competitions, Espinoza finished the game wtih 12,817 minutes played.
In the 62nd minute, Espinoza passed Seth Sinovic and moved into 16th place for league minutes played for KC, Espinoza finished the game with 11,076 minutes played.
Espinoza made his 166th appearance in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Josh Wolff for 14th all time on that list.
He made his 142nd start in all competitions for KC, tying him with Jimmy Nielsen for 16th all time on that list.
Espinoza made his 125th start in league play for KC, tying him with Sinovic and Tony Meola for 15th place on that list.
Espinoza and Chance Myers both made their 145th league appearance for KC, breaking the tie they were in with Wolff and Matt McKeon for 12th all time on that list.
Thursday, June 16, 2016
S.A.S. Thursday After Stats
Peter Vermes coached his 270th game in all competitions, tying him with Bob Gansler for the most games coached for Kansas City.
In the 119th minute, Benny Feilhaber hit 10,000 minutes in all competitions for his Sporting KC career.
Feilhaber's goal was his 11th for KC away from home in all competitions, tying him with Kei Kamara and Graham Zusi for 8th all time on that list.
Chance Myers made his 171st appearance in all competitions, breaking his tie with Michael Harrington for 11th on that list.
Roger Espinoza made his 165th appearance in all competitions for KC, tying him with Josh Wolff for 14th all time on that list.
Diego Rubio's goal was the 1000th goal scored in a KC game in all competitions away from KC.
In the 119th minute, Benny Feilhaber hit 10,000 minutes in all competitions for his Sporting KC career.
Feilhaber's goal was his 11th for KC away from home in all competitions, tying him with Kei Kamara and Graham Zusi for 8th all time on that list.
Chance Myers made his 171st appearance in all competitions, breaking his tie with Michael Harrington for 11th on that list.
Roger Espinoza made his 165th appearance in all competitions for KC, tying him with Josh Wolff for 14th all time on that list.
Diego Rubio's goal was the 1000th goal scored in a KC game in all competitions away from KC.
Sunday, May 08, 2016
Sunday After Stats
Peter Vermes coached his 223rd MLS game for KC, becoming the all time leader for games managed for the club.
Benny Feilhaber made his 150th MLS league appearance in his career.
In the 89th minute, Roger Espinoza passed Diego Gutierrez and into 18th place for minutes played across all competitions, he finished the game with 12,248 minutes played.
Espinoza made his 136th start in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Gutierrez for 18th all time on that list.
Seth Sinovic made his 157th appearance in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Tony Meola for 16th all time on that list.
Benny Feilhaber made his 150th MLS league appearance in his career.
In the 89th minute, Roger Espinoza passed Diego Gutierrez and into 18th place for minutes played across all competitions, he finished the game with 12,248 minutes played.
Espinoza made his 136th start in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Gutierrez for 18th all time on that list.
Seth Sinovic made his 157th appearance in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Tony Meola for 16th all time on that list.
Monday, May 02, 2016
S.A.S. Monday After Stats
Last night was Peter Vermes' 222nd league game in charge for KC, tying him with Bob Gansler for the most games coached in team history.
Justin Mapp became the 200th different player to play in a competitive game for Kansas City.
Mapp at 31 years, 196 days, he is the 19th oldest player to debut for Kansas City in both league play and in all competitions.
Matt Besler started his 184th game in league play for KC, breaking his tie with Chris Klein for 6th place on that list.
Seth Sinovic made his 126th league appearance for KC, breaking his tie with Tony Meola for 17th all time on that list.
Sinovic made his 156th appearance in all competitions for KC, tying him with Meola for 16th on that list.
Roger Espinoza started his 135th game in all competitions for KC, tying him with Diego Gutierrez for 18th all time on that list.
Justin Mapp became the 200th different player to play in a competitive game for Kansas City.
Mapp at 31 years, 196 days, he is the 19th oldest player to debut for Kansas City in both league play and in all competitions.
Matt Besler started his 184th game in league play for KC, breaking his tie with Chris Klein for 6th place on that list.
Seth Sinovic made his 126th league appearance for KC, breaking his tie with Tony Meola for 17th all time on that list.
Sinovic made his 156th appearance in all competitions for KC, tying him with Meola for 16th on that list.
Roger Espinoza started his 135th game in all competitions for KC, tying him with Diego Gutierrez for 18th all time on that list.
Tuesday, February 16, 2016
Vermes and Formation Changes
Once again there has been plenty of talk in preseason about Sporting KC's head coach, Peter Vermes changing Kansas City's formation from what has become their traditional 4-3-3. This has become a yearly occurance for Kansas City over the years, from attempting a two forward system back in 2014 in an attempt to get both Claudio Bieler and Dom Dwyer on the field at the same time, to more tinkering in the 2015 preseason, to this year where according to Robb Heineman, the club has been using the 3-5-2 regularly in training. Each time though KC has ended up reverting to their traditional 4-3-3 with a few minor changes, inverting the midfield triangle, having the wingers sit deeper, almost as wide midfielders in a 4-5-1, and almost having three separate midfield lines.
So you'll understand when KC fans will be a little hesitant about the claims this year that Vermes is looking to change his trusted formation he's used for going on seven years now. A formation he's specifically tailored his roster for. At this point all the talk about formation changes just feels like smoke screen in an attempt to throw off opponents who may not scout the team well enough. But doing it for three years without any major changes, and still playing the high press regularly, it's going to take actually seeing the new formation in a competitive game for fans and other teams to truly believe that Vermes is serious about a formation change.
That said, let's just for a few minutes pretend that Vermes is serious and take a look at some ideas for how a 3-5-2 with KC's current roster would look, starting with the defense and working forward.
Defense
With the addition of Nuno Andre Coelho KC improved their depth at center back, but one option with the 3-5-2 would be to play all three of Coelho, Matt Besler, and Ike Opara in the three center back positions. It would solve some questions of who starts at center back, but immediately brings up another concern that the team had last year, if either Opara or Coelho (who has recent injury issues) you find yourself once again with Kevin Ellis getting a large number of minutes for Kansas City in the center of defense.
A potential work around for that would be to only start one of Coelho and Opara on the right side of the three center backs with Besler on the left, and Sporting's defensive midfielder, Soni Mustivar playing the central center back. It's a look that KC has had many times over the years when KC's wingbacks have gotten forward. Whether it's been Julio Cesar, Oriol Rosell, Lawrence Olum, or Mustivar, KC's deep lying midfielder has at times looked like a third center back for Kansas City, mainly as someone to assist with distribution out of the back. In this formation, Mustivar would likely still play a little further up the field than the other two center backs but also not get forward as much as he did last season either. The draw back here is that you put a midfielder, who isn't even six feet tall in the middle of your three man back line. In this formation Besler and whoever starts in the right center back position are likely going to need to play narrow and not get pulled out wide much. This will also put more pressure on the two wide midfielders to do a lot more work to get up and down the field.
Midfield
In the end though the wide players getting up and down the field won't be a huge departure from what KC's current outside backs have been doing for the last few years. Saad Abdul-Salaam, Amadou Dia, Chance Myers, and Seth Sinovic have all had big responsibilities on both the offensive and defensive halves of the field, so just pushing their starting position a little further up the field isn't going to have a huge effect on them in that regard. The big change for the wide midfielders in a hypothetical 3-5-2 formation is that they won't have the winger in front of them to work off of on overlaps. That will likely push for KC to do more build up through the middle of the field, something that the club had struggled with until Benny Feilhaber really worked his way into the formation. Being able to work through the middle and then get a ball wide to one of the outside midfielders to cross in will add a different dynamic to KC's attack.
In the middle of KC's 3-5-2 midfield, not a lot will change from the way the team plays currently with their 4-3-3. You're still going to have the midfield triangle one way or the other in the middle, whether it's inverted with just Roger Espinoza or Mustivar at the bottom or someone like Feilhaber or Brad Davis at the tip it'll still look very familiar to how it's looked before. One change could be if Mustivar were to be the third center back, KC at times would almost appear to have four central midfielders in that situation.
This formation would put a lot of defensive responsibilities on the outside players, which is why I've only really include the club's outside backs as the wide players. That does hurt some of the influence that someone like Justin Mapp would have on the game as he'd likely have a bit of a role change with a switch from a 4-3-3.
Forward
This is the area of the field, at least with the current roster that makes a move to a 3-5-2 really not make a ton of sense. With only Dom Dwyer, Jacob Peterson, and Daniel Salloi listed as forwards on the roster, finding a consistent starter to play with Dwyer up top could be difficult. I'm not sure that Salloi is ready for that responsibility and Peterson just doesn't score enough to be consistently getting those minutes. That puts you in a situation where you're playing two forwards who are in a more staggered position, someone like Graham Zusi playing a bit behind Dwyer, more so to play off the team's target striker. It would probably help with one area that KC struggled with at times last season, leaving Dwyer isolated up top where he'd get the ball and have no one to provide assistance while he faced off against the entire opposing back line. In that sense getting another forward higher up the field to help him is a big plus of a switch to a two forward formation.
In the end it's an interesting idea to play around with, especially in preseason when it's a lot easier to experiment with the way the team plays. But in the end I won't be holding my breath for anything like that to happen until I see it occur in an actual MLS game.
So you'll understand when KC fans will be a little hesitant about the claims this year that Vermes is looking to change his trusted formation he's used for going on seven years now. A formation he's specifically tailored his roster for. At this point all the talk about formation changes just feels like smoke screen in an attempt to throw off opponents who may not scout the team well enough. But doing it for three years without any major changes, and still playing the high press regularly, it's going to take actually seeing the new formation in a competitive game for fans and other teams to truly believe that Vermes is serious about a formation change.
That said, let's just for a few minutes pretend that Vermes is serious and take a look at some ideas for how a 3-5-2 with KC's current roster would look, starting with the defense and working forward.
Defense
With the addition of Nuno Andre Coelho KC improved their depth at center back, but one option with the 3-5-2 would be to play all three of Coelho, Matt Besler, and Ike Opara in the three center back positions. It would solve some questions of who starts at center back, but immediately brings up another concern that the team had last year, if either Opara or Coelho (who has recent injury issues) you find yourself once again with Kevin Ellis getting a large number of minutes for Kansas City in the center of defense.
A potential work around for that would be to only start one of Coelho and Opara on the right side of the three center backs with Besler on the left, and Sporting's defensive midfielder, Soni Mustivar playing the central center back. It's a look that KC has had many times over the years when KC's wingbacks have gotten forward. Whether it's been Julio Cesar, Oriol Rosell, Lawrence Olum, or Mustivar, KC's deep lying midfielder has at times looked like a third center back for Kansas City, mainly as someone to assist with distribution out of the back. In this formation, Mustivar would likely still play a little further up the field than the other two center backs but also not get forward as much as he did last season either. The draw back here is that you put a midfielder, who isn't even six feet tall in the middle of your three man back line. In this formation Besler and whoever starts in the right center back position are likely going to need to play narrow and not get pulled out wide much. This will also put more pressure on the two wide midfielders to do a lot more work to get up and down the field.
Midfield
In the end though the wide players getting up and down the field won't be a huge departure from what KC's current outside backs have been doing for the last few years. Saad Abdul-Salaam, Amadou Dia, Chance Myers, and Seth Sinovic have all had big responsibilities on both the offensive and defensive halves of the field, so just pushing their starting position a little further up the field isn't going to have a huge effect on them in that regard. The big change for the wide midfielders in a hypothetical 3-5-2 formation is that they won't have the winger in front of them to work off of on overlaps. That will likely push for KC to do more build up through the middle of the field, something that the club had struggled with until Benny Feilhaber really worked his way into the formation. Being able to work through the middle and then get a ball wide to one of the outside midfielders to cross in will add a different dynamic to KC's attack.
In the middle of KC's 3-5-2 midfield, not a lot will change from the way the team plays currently with their 4-3-3. You're still going to have the midfield triangle one way or the other in the middle, whether it's inverted with just Roger Espinoza or Mustivar at the bottom or someone like Feilhaber or Brad Davis at the tip it'll still look very familiar to how it's looked before. One change could be if Mustivar were to be the third center back, KC at times would almost appear to have four central midfielders in that situation.
This formation would put a lot of defensive responsibilities on the outside players, which is why I've only really include the club's outside backs as the wide players. That does hurt some of the influence that someone like Justin Mapp would have on the game as he'd likely have a bit of a role change with a switch from a 4-3-3.
Forward
This is the area of the field, at least with the current roster that makes a move to a 3-5-2 really not make a ton of sense. With only Dom Dwyer, Jacob Peterson, and Daniel Salloi listed as forwards on the roster, finding a consistent starter to play with Dwyer up top could be difficult. I'm not sure that Salloi is ready for that responsibility and Peterson just doesn't score enough to be consistently getting those minutes. That puts you in a situation where you're playing two forwards who are in a more staggered position, someone like Graham Zusi playing a bit behind Dwyer, more so to play off the team's target striker. It would probably help with one area that KC struggled with at times last season, leaving Dwyer isolated up top where he'd get the ball and have no one to provide assistance while he faced off against the entire opposing back line. In that sense getting another forward higher up the field to help him is a big plus of a switch to a two forward formation.
In the end it's an interesting idea to play around with, especially in preseason when it's a lot easier to experiment with the way the team plays. But in the end I won't be holding my breath for anything like that to happen until I see it occur in an actual MLS game.
Monday, February 15, 2016
Another Tweet and Fly with Robb Heineman
Sporting KC's Robb Heineman gave another one of his Q&As on Twitter tonight, another #TweetnFly time as Heineman made his way down Tucson to observe some preseason there.
As expected, one of the topics that brought out the most questions was the current roster and fan concern over the loss of Krisztian Nemeth to Qatar. Heineman came out with his first question attempting to address the situation, at least a little bit saying that they were looking for a "#9" to back up Dom Dwyer, also saying that they were currently negotiating a contract. Heineman seemed confident that the team would have a player in time for the home opener on the 12th, but that the player wouldn't be a big name. Over the course of his answers he also said that they'd like to find themselves a young DP. A young DP offers the team more salary cap flexibility because they offer the team a lower cap hit, only $150,000 if the player is 20 or younger, only $200,000 if he's between 21 and 23 ,instead of the standard $436,250 that DPs are paid. Adding to that, Heineman said that the club was in negotiations with several DPs, and that the target position for those players is forward. On the topic of signing new foreign players, he said that it has gotten easier for the club to add those players, but that it's still not a slam dunk convincing players to play in KC.
Of players on the team currently, one of the recent rumors has been Marcel de Jong being on his way out of Kansas City, being told he has no place in the team. Heineman didn't confirm that he was gone, but when asked if de Jong was saying said "likely no." On the team's other players that appear to be on the outside looking in, Heineman again didn't give much away, but doesn't' expect Bernardo Anor or Amobi Okugo to be in KC's 18 for opening day.
Heineman was also asked about his team's coach, Peter Vermes and the reported interest in him by teams abroad. He believes that Vermes was never really interested in the rumored clubs that were supposedly trying to get him to coach their team. That led to a follow up question about Vermes and the national team, something that has been talked about quite often when Jurgen Klinsmann has struggled with the team. While Heineman thinks he'd be good in the position he doesn't see Klinsmann leaving for a while.
On the topic of Vermes, Heineman was asked about the rumors of his changing formations this season, Heineman said that Vermes had the team practicing in a 3-5-2 a lot. While it's a nice thought, it's something that's been discussed over the last few years since teams really started to catch onto KC's style of play. But each time KC may trot out the new formation in preseason or in a game but then revert back to the traditional 4-3-3 that the team has played since Vermes took over as the team's head coach. I'll belive that switch happens when I see it happening. He also was asked about the injuries and what the team has done to address the number of injuries over the past two years, saying that they're trying some new training techniques in 2016 to help with that.
On the topic of Sporting Club's latest team, the Swope Park Rangers, Heineman was asked about how the club was going to utilize the new team. Heineman says that the team will get several loaned players and he expects them to develop quality players for KC, standard line, but it's got to be the hope of pretty much everyone since the team was announced. On the topic of the Rangers, Heineman confirmed (like Sporting did earlier in the day) that the foreign center midfielder he'd mentioned on Twitter back in January was in fact Kevin Oliveira, the Cape Verde midfielder from Benfica. The team though seems very high on him as Heineman expects Oliveira to be on the first team by the end of this season.
As always with his Q&As he was asked a number of questions that he always gets asked giving more answers. The one that has probably come up every time is the expansion of Children's Mercy Park. In the past in these Q&As Heineman has said that there were plans and possibilities to expand the stadium, but as time has gone on those expectations have changed in Heineman's response. Tonight he came straight out and just answered "no" when asked if there were plans in the near future to expand the stadium. Since the news about potentially purchasing Everton surfaced, Heineman has had to face a number of questions about whether Sporting Club would go out and purchase another foreign team, but Heineman shot that idea down as well fairly quickly. He was also asked again about the training facility and when it would break ground, Heineman said that they are waiting on grading permits and that they'll be breaking ground in April.
Heineman also touched on a number of topics on MLS as a whole, from his feeling that the magic number of MLS teams is 28 to the league's biggest hurdle being getting better "average" players as he put it, although he also talked about fewer synthetic fields in the league as well. He also stated how he felt the league wasn't quite ready to get out of the teams ways yet, and instead still needed to go with metered growth for the league, and the the teams' academies need to catch up. He also took the political way out when discussing the LA Galaxy's ability to bring in players as well as when he was asked about the new Columbus Crew jersey.
Finally, there were all the random questions he answered that provided some insight on a number of topics, from his agreement with Peter Vermes' quotes about how an MLS team in St. Louis would be great for the team and the league to confirming that the team was still looking to put a PDL team in Garden City/Western KS. He also shot down the rumored Sporting KC/KC Royals television network that was rumored this offseason, saying that it'd be news to him. He also played coy about a pro futsal team in KC after the reports that Mark Cuban had joined up with the new professional futsal league. He also talked about jerseys, once again stating the league was doing away with "third jerseys," but saying that it would be two years before the club had an alternate jersey that featured a nod to the club's old rainbow jersey, maybe a throw back to the team's old original jersey, which is apparently his favorite.
It's always fun to get Heineman's insight, but it may be more fun to read the questions that don't actually get answered by him. And as always take it with a grain of salt, it took us years to get through a Q&A without a question about blue turf.
As expected, one of the topics that brought out the most questions was the current roster and fan concern over the loss of Krisztian Nemeth to Qatar. Heineman came out with his first question attempting to address the situation, at least a little bit saying that they were looking for a "#9" to back up Dom Dwyer, also saying that they were currently negotiating a contract. Heineman seemed confident that the team would have a player in time for the home opener on the 12th, but that the player wouldn't be a big name. Over the course of his answers he also said that they'd like to find themselves a young DP. A young DP offers the team more salary cap flexibility because they offer the team a lower cap hit, only $150,000 if the player is 20 or younger, only $200,000 if he's between 21 and 23 ,instead of the standard $436,250 that DPs are paid. Adding to that, Heineman said that the club was in negotiations with several DPs, and that the target position for those players is forward. On the topic of signing new foreign players, he said that it has gotten easier for the club to add those players, but that it's still not a slam dunk convincing players to play in KC.
Of players on the team currently, one of the recent rumors has been Marcel de Jong being on his way out of Kansas City, being told he has no place in the team. Heineman didn't confirm that he was gone, but when asked if de Jong was saying said "likely no." On the team's other players that appear to be on the outside looking in, Heineman again didn't give much away, but doesn't' expect Bernardo Anor or Amobi Okugo to be in KC's 18 for opening day.
Heineman was also asked about his team's coach, Peter Vermes and the reported interest in him by teams abroad. He believes that Vermes was never really interested in the rumored clubs that were supposedly trying to get him to coach their team. That led to a follow up question about Vermes and the national team, something that has been talked about quite often when Jurgen Klinsmann has struggled with the team. While Heineman thinks he'd be good in the position he doesn't see Klinsmann leaving for a while.
On the topic of Vermes, Heineman was asked about the rumors of his changing formations this season, Heineman said that Vermes had the team practicing in a 3-5-2 a lot. While it's a nice thought, it's something that's been discussed over the last few years since teams really started to catch onto KC's style of play. But each time KC may trot out the new formation in preseason or in a game but then revert back to the traditional 4-3-3 that the team has played since Vermes took over as the team's head coach. I'll belive that switch happens when I see it happening. He also was asked about the injuries and what the team has done to address the number of injuries over the past two years, saying that they're trying some new training techniques in 2016 to help with that.
On the topic of Sporting Club's latest team, the Swope Park Rangers, Heineman was asked about how the club was going to utilize the new team. Heineman says that the team will get several loaned players and he expects them to develop quality players for KC, standard line, but it's got to be the hope of pretty much everyone since the team was announced. On the topic of the Rangers, Heineman confirmed (like Sporting did earlier in the day) that the foreign center midfielder he'd mentioned on Twitter back in January was in fact Kevin Oliveira, the Cape Verde midfielder from Benfica. The team though seems very high on him as Heineman expects Oliveira to be on the first team by the end of this season.
As always with his Q&As he was asked a number of questions that he always gets asked giving more answers. The one that has probably come up every time is the expansion of Children's Mercy Park. In the past in these Q&As Heineman has said that there were plans and possibilities to expand the stadium, but as time has gone on those expectations have changed in Heineman's response. Tonight he came straight out and just answered "no" when asked if there were plans in the near future to expand the stadium. Since the news about potentially purchasing Everton surfaced, Heineman has had to face a number of questions about whether Sporting Club would go out and purchase another foreign team, but Heineman shot that idea down as well fairly quickly. He was also asked again about the training facility and when it would break ground, Heineman said that they are waiting on grading permits and that they'll be breaking ground in April.
Heineman also touched on a number of topics on MLS as a whole, from his feeling that the magic number of MLS teams is 28 to the league's biggest hurdle being getting better "average" players as he put it, although he also talked about fewer synthetic fields in the league as well. He also stated how he felt the league wasn't quite ready to get out of the teams ways yet, and instead still needed to go with metered growth for the league, and the the teams' academies need to catch up. He also took the political way out when discussing the LA Galaxy's ability to bring in players as well as when he was asked about the new Columbus Crew jersey.
Finally, there were all the random questions he answered that provided some insight on a number of topics, from his agreement with Peter Vermes' quotes about how an MLS team in St. Louis would be great for the team and the league to confirming that the team was still looking to put a PDL team in Garden City/Western KS. He also shot down the rumored Sporting KC/KC Royals television network that was rumored this offseason, saying that it'd be news to him. He also played coy about a pro futsal team in KC after the reports that Mark Cuban had joined up with the new professional futsal league. He also talked about jerseys, once again stating the league was doing away with "third jerseys," but saying that it would be two years before the club had an alternate jersey that featured a nod to the club's old rainbow jersey, maybe a throw back to the team's old original jersey, which is apparently his favorite.
It's always fun to get Heineman's insight, but it may be more fun to read the questions that don't actually get answered by him. And as always take it with a grain of salt, it took us years to get through a Q&A without a question about blue turf.
Tuesday, January 05, 2016
Brian Bliss Named Sporting KC's Director of Player Personnel
Sporting Kansas City made an addition to their technical staff today when the club hired former player, assistant coach, and interim head coach Brian Bliss as the club's first Director of Player Personnel. Bliss spent one season in Kansas City as a player back in 1998, appearing just three times after being acquired from New York in the offseason. After his playing career was done Bliss moved into coaching, first in the A-League before joining the Kansas City Wizards as part of Bob Gansler's staff. Bliss was an assist with KC from 2000 until 2006 when he was named interim head coach after the departure of Gansler going 4-4-6 when in charge of the team.
When Kansas City named Curt Oanlfo as the club's permanent head coach, Bliss spent a year as the State Director of Coaching for Kansas Youth Soccer before taking the Technical Director role with the Columbus Crew. He was in that role through the 2013 season when he also spent time as the club's interim head coach. When he was let go by the Crew after the season he took the same position with the Chicago Fire and last year again took the role as interim head coach after the firing of Frank Yallop. For the third time he was passed over for the permanent head coaching job with the Fire, but retained his Technical Director role until leaving for his new position in Kansas City.
In his new role with Sporting, Bliss will oversee player personnel matters while assisting in scouting for Peter Vermes. He'll also share a player assessment role for not just Sporting Kansas City, but for the Swope Park Rangers and the Sporting Academy as well. This as a whole is a good move for KC. With two professional teams and an academy to watch over, giving Vermes more professional help that has an eye for talent evaluating the available talent is certainly a plus for Kansas City as a whole. Bliss was in charge of the Crew when they brought in the likes of Will Trapp from their academy and Federico Higuain as a designated player so he's had success from multiple areas while recruiting players. The move also gives Kansas City three veterans from the 1990 USA World Cup team on their staff with Vermes, Bliss, and Desmond Armstrong working with the Sporting academy and affiliates.
From some comments I've read from a few Fire fans they felt that Bliss was the only one under the old regime that actually listened to the players and had the players back. So while the Fire was a dumpster fire at times last season, Bliss seems to be one of the bright spots for them.
When Kansas City named Curt Oanlfo as the club's permanent head coach, Bliss spent a year as the State Director of Coaching for Kansas Youth Soccer before taking the Technical Director role with the Columbus Crew. He was in that role through the 2013 season when he also spent time as the club's interim head coach. When he was let go by the Crew after the season he took the same position with the Chicago Fire and last year again took the role as interim head coach after the firing of Frank Yallop. For the third time he was passed over for the permanent head coaching job with the Fire, but retained his Technical Director role until leaving for his new position in Kansas City.
In his new role with Sporting, Bliss will oversee player personnel matters while assisting in scouting for Peter Vermes. He'll also share a player assessment role for not just Sporting Kansas City, but for the Swope Park Rangers and the Sporting Academy as well. This as a whole is a good move for KC. With two professional teams and an academy to watch over, giving Vermes more professional help that has an eye for talent evaluating the available talent is certainly a plus for Kansas City as a whole. Bliss was in charge of the Crew when they brought in the likes of Will Trapp from their academy and Federico Higuain as a designated player so he's had success from multiple areas while recruiting players. The move also gives Kansas City three veterans from the 1990 USA World Cup team on their staff with Vermes, Bliss, and Desmond Armstrong working with the Sporting academy and affiliates.
From some comments I've read from a few Fire fans they felt that Bliss was the only one under the old regime that actually listened to the players and had the players back. So while the Fire was a dumpster fire at times last season, Bliss seems to be one of the bright spots for them.
Saturday, October 17, 2015
S.A.S. Saturday After Stats
The game was Peter Vermes' 250th in charge of Sporting KC in all competitions.
Paulo Nagamura made his 250th start in all competitions in his MLS career last night.
In the 45th minute, Chance Myers moved past Roger Espinoza and into 18th place for league minutes played for KC. He finished the game with 9,780 minutes played. In the 74th minute, Myers moved past Diego Gutierrez and into 17th place for minutes played in league play for KC.
Myers' made his 130th start in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Aurelien Collin for 18th on that list.
Seth Sinovic made his 124th league appearance for KC, breaking his tie with Chris Brown for 18th on that list.
Graham Zusi made his 163rd start in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Jack Jewsbury for 8th all time on that list.
Paulo Nagamura made his 250th start in all competitions in his MLS career last night.
In the 45th minute, Chance Myers moved past Roger Espinoza and into 18th place for league minutes played for KC. He finished the game with 9,780 minutes played. In the 74th minute, Myers moved past Diego Gutierrez and into 17th place for minutes played in league play for KC.
Myers' made his 130th start in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Aurelien Collin for 18th on that list.
Seth Sinovic made his 124th league appearance for KC, breaking his tie with Chris Brown for 18th on that list.
Graham Zusi made his 163rd start in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Jack Jewsbury for 8th all time on that list.
Thursday, October 01, 2015
S.A.S. Thursday After Stats
Krisztian Nemeth's goal was his fifth in the US Open Cup this year, that tied him with Dom Dwyer for the most in the competition this year.
The five goals also ties Nemeth for the most goals in team history in the US Open Cup with Dwyer, Davy Arnaud, and Igor Simutenkov. When you include qualifiers he's tied for first now with those three and CJ Sapong.
The game technically ended in a draw, meaning it is Peter Vermes' 59th draw in all competitions breaking his tie with Bob Gansler for the most in all competitions in team history.
In the 116th minute Graham Zusi moved past Jack Jewsbury and into 8th place for minutes played in all competitions, Zusi finished the game with 14,978 minutes played.
Zusi also tied Jewsbury for 8th in starts in all competitions for KC with 162.
The assist by Chance Myers was his 17th in all competitions for KC, tying him with Claudio Lopez and Roger Espinoza for 17th on that list.
Myers made his 129th start in all competitions, tying him with Aurelien Collin for 18th on that list.
Counting qualifiers as well Myers and Matt Besler broke their tie with Nick Garica for the second most games played in the US Open Cup with 15.
In the US Open Cup proper Besler and Jacob Peterson tied Garcia for the second on that list for games played.
The five goals also ties Nemeth for the most goals in team history in the US Open Cup with Dwyer, Davy Arnaud, and Igor Simutenkov. When you include qualifiers he's tied for first now with those three and CJ Sapong.
The game technically ended in a draw, meaning it is Peter Vermes' 59th draw in all competitions breaking his tie with Bob Gansler for the most in all competitions in team history.
In the 116th minute Graham Zusi moved past Jack Jewsbury and into 8th place for minutes played in all competitions, Zusi finished the game with 14,978 minutes played.
Zusi also tied Jewsbury for 8th in starts in all competitions for KC with 162.
The assist by Chance Myers was his 17th in all competitions for KC, tying him with Claudio Lopez and Roger Espinoza for 17th on that list.
Myers made his 129th start in all competitions, tying him with Aurelien Collin for 18th on that list.
Counting qualifiers as well Myers and Matt Besler broke their tie with Nick Garica for the second most games played in the US Open Cup with 15.
In the US Open Cup proper Besler and Jacob Peterson tied Garcia for the second on that list for games played.
Monday, September 28, 2015
S.A.S. Monday After Stats
Dom Dwyer's goal was his 44th in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Chris Klein for 4th on that list.
Dwyer made his 100th appearance in all competitions for KC, he's the 38th player to hit that mark.
Dwyer scored his 21st league goal at home for KC, tying him with Chris Klein and Mo Johnston for 4th all time on that list.
The draw was Peter Vermes' 58th in all competitions for KC, tying him with Bob Gansler for the most in all competitions for KC.
Dwyer made his 100th appearance in all competitions for KC, he's the 38th player to hit that mark.
Dwyer scored his 21st league goal at home for KC, tying him with Chris Klein and Mo Johnston for 4th all time on that list.
The draw was Peter Vermes' 58th in all competitions for KC, tying him with Bob Gansler for the most in all competitions for KC.
Thursday, September 10, 2015
S.A.S. Thursday After Stats
Last night was Peter Vermes' 52nd draw in league play as KC's head coach, breaking his tie with Bob Gansler for the most draws in team history.
Graham Zusi started his 158th game in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Mo Johnston for 10th place all time on that list.
Seth Sinovic made his 120th appearance in league play for KC, breaking his tie with Diego Gutierrez and Uche Okafor for 19th on that list.
Graham Zusi started his 158th game in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Mo Johnston for 10th place all time on that list.
Seth Sinovic made his 120th appearance in league play for KC, breaking his tie with Diego Gutierrez and Uche Okafor for 19th on that list.
Sunday, August 16, 2015
Sunday After Stats
The win was Peter Vermes' 87th in league play for KC, breaking his tie with Bob Gansler for the most leauge wins in KC history.
It was also Vermes' 200th game in charge of the team.
This was the 200th home in in all competitions for KC.
Benny Feilhaber's assist was his 18th in all competitions for KC this season, tying him with Preki in 2003 for the most assists in a single season for KC.
Feilhaber's assist was his 23rd in league play for KC, breaking his tie with Kerry Zavagnin for 8th on that list.
Feilhaber made his 100th appearance in all competitions for KC, he's the 36th player to hit that mark.
Dom Dwyer's goal was his 32nd in league play for KC, breaking his tie with Mo Johnston for 6th place on that list.
His goal was his 41st in all competitions for KC, tying him with Kei Kamara for 5th place all time on that list for KC.
Dwyer's goal was his 19th at home in league play for KC, breaking his tie with Scott Sealy for 7th on that list.
The assist by Chance Myers was his 15th in league play for KC, tying him with Claudio Lopez, Chris Henderson, and Roger Espinoza for 16th on that list.
It was his 16th in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Diego Gutierrez, Michael Harrington, and Henderson for 19th on that list.
In the 86th minute, Myers most past Jose Burciaga and into 20th place for minutes played in league play, Myers finished the game with 9,404 minutes player.
Myers made his 128th league appearance for KC, tying him with Jimmy Nielsen for 15th place on that list.
It was also Vermes' 200th game in charge of the team.
This was the 200th home in in all competitions for KC.
Benny Feilhaber's assist was his 18th in all competitions for KC this season, tying him with Preki in 2003 for the most assists in a single season for KC.
Feilhaber's assist was his 23rd in league play for KC, breaking his tie with Kerry Zavagnin for 8th on that list.
Feilhaber made his 100th appearance in all competitions for KC, he's the 36th player to hit that mark.
Dom Dwyer's goal was his 32nd in league play for KC, breaking his tie with Mo Johnston for 6th place on that list.
His goal was his 41st in all competitions for KC, tying him with Kei Kamara for 5th place all time on that list for KC.
Dwyer's goal was his 19th at home in league play for KC, breaking his tie with Scott Sealy for 7th on that list.
The assist by Chance Myers was his 15th in league play for KC, tying him with Claudio Lopez, Chris Henderson, and Roger Espinoza for 16th on that list.
It was his 16th in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Diego Gutierrez, Michael Harrington, and Henderson for 19th on that list.
In the 86th minute, Myers most past Jose Burciaga and into 20th place for minutes played in league play, Myers finished the game with 9,404 minutes player.
Myers made his 128th league appearance for KC, tying him with Jimmy Nielsen for 15th place on that list.
Thursday, August 13, 2015
S.A.S. Thursday After Stats
Benny Feilhaber's goal was his 10th goal in all competitions this season, combined with Dom Dwyer and Krisztian Nemeth, it is the first time in club history that three players have his double digit goals in a season.
Feilhaber's goal was his 18th in all competitions for KC, tying him with Matt McKeon for 16th on that list.
Feilhaber's assist on Soni Mustivar's goal was his 17th in all competitions, tying him with Graham Zusi and Preki in the 1997 season for the second most assists in a single season.
It gives Feilhaber 33 assists in all competitions in his KC career, breaking his tie with Mo Johnston for 5th place on that list.
The win was Peter Vermes' 109th in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Bob Gansler for most wins in all competitions for KC.
Krisztian Nemeth scored his fourth goal in the US Open Cup. In the USOC proper that ties him with Soony Saad for fourth on that list.
In the USOC proper and qualifiers that ties Nemeth for fifth with Saad and Ryan Pore.
His four goals are also the second most in a single season in the US Open Cup behind Dom Dwyer's five this season.
Matt Besler moved past Chance Myers and Michael Harrington and into third place for minutes played for KC in all USOC games, he finished the game wtih 1,130 minutes played.
In the US Open Cup proper, Besler also moved into third place for minutes played, he finished with 920 minutes played.
Besler and Chance Myers made their 14th appearance across all levels of the US Open Cup, tying them with Nick Garcia for the second most in club history.
Kevin Ellis made his 50th appearance in all competitions for KC.
Feilhaber's goal was his 18th in all competitions for KC, tying him with Matt McKeon for 16th on that list.
Feilhaber's assist on Soni Mustivar's goal was his 17th in all competitions, tying him with Graham Zusi and Preki in the 1997 season for the second most assists in a single season.
It gives Feilhaber 33 assists in all competitions in his KC career, breaking his tie with Mo Johnston for 5th place on that list.
The win was Peter Vermes' 109th in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Bob Gansler for most wins in all competitions for KC.
Krisztian Nemeth scored his fourth goal in the US Open Cup. In the USOC proper that ties him with Soony Saad for fourth on that list.
In the USOC proper and qualifiers that ties Nemeth for fifth with Saad and Ryan Pore.
His four goals are also the second most in a single season in the US Open Cup behind Dom Dwyer's five this season.
Matt Besler moved past Chance Myers and Michael Harrington and into third place for minutes played for KC in all USOC games, he finished the game wtih 1,130 minutes played.
In the US Open Cup proper, Besler also moved into third place for minutes played, he finished with 920 minutes played.
Besler and Chance Myers made their 14th appearance across all levels of the US Open Cup, tying them with Nick Garcia for the second most in club history.
Kevin Ellis made his 50th appearance in all competitions for KC.
Sunday, August 09, 2015
Sunday After Stats
The win was Peter Vermes' 86th in league play for KC, tying him with Bob Gansler for the most wins in team history as a coach. He did it in 23 fewer games than Gansler.
The win was his 108th in all competitions for KC, again tying him with Gansler for the most wins in team history. He did it in 33 fewer games than Gansler.
In the 90th minute, Amobi Okugo (making his Sporting KC debut) hit 10,000 minutes in league play for his MLS career.
At 30 years, 201 days, Benny Feilhaber became the 19th oldest player to score a goal for KC, jumping ahead of Sasha Victorine and Claudio Bieler.
The goal was Feilhaber's 15th in league play, tying him with Chris Brown for 16th place on that list.
It was Feilhaber's 17th in all competitions for KC, tying him with Miklos Molnar, Eddie Johnson, and Jimmy Conrad for 17th on that list.
Feilhaber's goal was his 8th away from home in league play, tying him with Sasha Victorine for 13th on that list.
It was his 9th in all competitions away from home for KC, tying him with Brown and Matt McKeon for 13th on that list.
His assist was Feilhaber's 22nd in league play in his KC career, tying him with Kerry Zavagnin for 8th all time on that list.
It was his 32nd in all competitions for KC, tying him with Mo Johnston for 5th all time on that list.
In the 55th minute, Chance Myers moved past Aurelien Collin and into 18th place for minutes played in all competitions, Myers finished the game with 11,498 minutes played.
Myers' made his 151st appearance in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Brown and Roger Espinoza for 15th on that list.
Myers' started his 124th game in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Jose Burciaga for 20th on that list.
Jacob Peterson made his 100th appearance across all competitions for KC, he's the 35th player to hit that mark.
The win was his 108th in all competitions for KC, again tying him with Gansler for the most wins in team history. He did it in 33 fewer games than Gansler.
In the 90th minute, Amobi Okugo (making his Sporting KC debut) hit 10,000 minutes in league play for his MLS career.
At 30 years, 201 days, Benny Feilhaber became the 19th oldest player to score a goal for KC, jumping ahead of Sasha Victorine and Claudio Bieler.
The goal was Feilhaber's 15th in league play, tying him with Chris Brown for 16th place on that list.
It was Feilhaber's 17th in all competitions for KC, tying him with Miklos Molnar, Eddie Johnson, and Jimmy Conrad for 17th on that list.
Feilhaber's goal was his 8th away from home in league play, tying him with Sasha Victorine for 13th on that list.
It was his 9th in all competitions away from home for KC, tying him with Brown and Matt McKeon for 13th on that list.
His assist was Feilhaber's 22nd in league play in his KC career, tying him with Kerry Zavagnin for 8th all time on that list.
It was his 32nd in all competitions for KC, tying him with Mo Johnston for 5th all time on that list.
In the 55th minute, Chance Myers moved past Aurelien Collin and into 18th place for minutes played in all competitions, Myers finished the game with 11,498 minutes played.
Myers' made his 151st appearance in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Brown and Roger Espinoza for 15th on that list.
Myers' started his 124th game in all competitions for KC, breaking his tie with Jose Burciaga for 20th on that list.
Jacob Peterson made his 100th appearance across all competitions for KC, he's the 35th player to hit that mark.
Thursday, August 06, 2015
Sporting Add Quintilla as Window Closes
The secondary window for MLS clubs has officially closed, so unless
paper work was already in process, no more players that are currently
under contract will be coming to an MLS club. This year that now
includes players traded within MLS. The only way for clubs to sign
players now is if they were out of contract at the time the transfer
window closed.
KC did finalize some business before the window
closed, finalizing the rumored move for Spanish midfielder, Jordi
Quintilla. The midfielder who grew up in Barcelona's youth system had
played in the French second division last season with Ajaccio.
Quintilla's role recently was compared to that of Roger Espinoza by in
the Star article about his potential signing, but he's also played
attacking midfield and spent some time on the wing. At 21 though this
seems to be a stereotypical summer signing for Peter Vermes. Players
that won't necessarily play a whole lot this year, but will contribute
more in the upcoming seasons (see the likes of Oriol Rosell, Peterson
Joseph, and Lawrence Olum).
With the window closed now, KC
sits with 26 players currently on their roster, two under the roster
maximum, with one player, Mikey Lopez, on loan to Oklahoma City, and two
players, Espinoza, and Ike Opara out with long term injuries. So really
KC has just 23 players at this point in time.
While it's
certainly easy at this point to be frustrated with that and the lack of
movement by the team, especially when compared to the teams around them in the standings, they can still make moves. As long as the player
is out of contract when the transfer window closed, a player can be
added to the roster up to September16th. The question becomes what level of talent they would be able to acquire that is currently out of contract.
I think KC did a decent job of addressing their defensive deficiencies with the addition of Amobi Okugo and the continued emergence of Kevin Ellis as a viable center back option. Okugo can also help out in the midfield, which may be required now with the injury to Espinoza and the age and recent injury history of Paulo Nagamura.
The area that I feel KC still needs to address for the team is the lack of offense off the bench. When KC has their best 11 on the field, with Dom Dwyer, Benny Feilhaber, Krisztian Nemeth, and Graham Zusi in the front four, the offense can look impressive, but if one of those players is unavailable (like Dwyer this coming weekend) the level of talent that comes in to replace them is just too steep a drop. Most likely if either of those four is out you're going to see some shuffling and one of Jacob Peterson or Connor Hallisey enter the lineup, although Bernardo Anor seems like he is healthy and returned from his injury and could provide minutes. Peterson and Hallisey have really not shown a whole lot offensively this season, the three have produced zero goals and three assists over 1,198 minutes played this season in 31 combined games. And while Anor had looked impressive in preseason, has played just 188 in six games this year before being injured. And really since he's been injured has been when KC has really turned things around.
I don't think they need a player who would be a DP, they just need someone that at least seems a threat to score a goal or provide something offensively off the bench if KC needs a late goal. Right now if KC needs an offensive spark off the bench I have no clue where it'd come from. We'll see if KC does anything to address that issue, because while I think KC's "Best XI" can compete with anyone in the league, their bench is woefully inadequate, and with that Vermes is likely to run his "Best XI" out every game, and we saw last year the affect that it had on the team by the end of the season when everyone was basically exhausted, that was due mainly to injuries, this is more due to the talent drop off on the bench.
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