Salaries and 2013 Preseason

Today, the MLS players union released another update to the player salaries again.  Only one new addition on the list for Sporting KC, the addition of former Barcelona B player, Oriol Rosell.  The Spaniard is making $90,000 for his base salary and $98,750 in guaranteed compensation, the salary is prorated since he didn't sign until midseason.

In other salary news, Scott Angevine, who had been under contract to Sporting for a short time is on the list as a pool keeper, making $33,756, along with Steve Spangler, who trained with Sporting is making $33,750.  Former player, Luke Sassano isn't listed under Sporting's salaries any more, but he is at the bottom of the October list without a team since he's now in the NASL with Carolina.

2013 preseason back in Florida

Buried at the bottom of an article from Steven Goff today is the news on where at least a portion of KC's 2013 preseason will be.  Sporting has apparently agreed to return to Orlando again this year with 5 other MLS clubs (one of which is DC).  They'll once again participate in the Walt Disney World Pro Soccer classic, scheduled to take place from February 9th through the 23rd.

Some Random Wizards News

Some real quick house cleaning news about the Wizards today that's kind of interesting. First, I want to real quick touch again on the goal that Seattle scored against the Wizards on Saturday. Seattle coach, Sigi Schmid has responded to the news earlier today that the goal shouldn't have stood. He says that basically while Brad Evans did take the throw in up field, that happens all the time in soccer and you can't be "nitpicky" about when you call it. I think that's BS, you see it all the time in soccer, fouls are called earlier in the game that aren't normally called later, or things around midfield that aren't called around the defensive third of the field. That's how soccer goes, everything that's going on in the game influences the referee and his decision.

Speaking of that incident, I've seen quite a few people make the comment that Michael Fucito was offside on the play. Let me say what I said on Twitter earlier today again. You can NOT be offside on a throw in. It's in the Laws of the Game, Rule 11. Again, you can not be offside on a throw in so let's drop that argument please.

Onto other news, Steven Goff with the Washington Post wrote today that Jamar Beasley, the brother of DaMarcus, is looking to get back into MLS, and apparently the Wizards have spoke with him, but currently he's not been brought in for a trial. Beasley played under assistant coach, Zoran Savic when Savic was the coach of the KC Comets back before the team went under. Beasley has been playing basically indoor soccer since 2003 with a few trips to minor league outdoor teams. Something to follow along with for the immediate future.

Strike Appears Much Closer

The start of the 2010 MLS season looks to be in deep jeopardy after all the news that has come out today regarding the collective bargaining agreement. For those that missed it, the players union has voted overwhelmingly in favor of supporting a strike. The final tally was 350+ to 2 in favor of supporting it. Quotes from players in different articles posted today don't sound too encouraging either, and form the sounds of it, the players are planning to walk out at midnight on March 25th, the day the season is supposed to kick off. The league and the players union have since gone back and forth trading comments about the recent news of a potential strike. The fans are getting stuck in the middle.

And while many people support the players and there want to have more freedom within the league, just as many seem to be support the owners. And with unemployment still hovering close to 10%, it's going to be hard for the players to win over some of those fans that support the owners. And for a history lesson on soccer strikes in this country, check out the end of this Sports Business Daily article for information on the NASL strike that was one of the reasons for the leagues demise. The quote from Steve Gans is very telling because it's still as true today as it was then, "not enough people cared about it to keep the momentum going. The critical mass wasn’t there; there weren’t enough roots set down." Hopefully a strike doesn't happen, but at this point I'm not holding my breath on that.

The Elephant in the Room

I've been ignoring the big gigantic elephant in the room regarding the MLS collective bargaining agreement for a little while now, hoping that if I ignored it it'd work itself out and go away. But it hasn't gone away, and it's time for me to pull my head out of the sand and realize this is a very big issue. The twice extended labor talks between the league and the MLS Players' Union are coming close to their deadline of February 25th and it appears the two sides are still far apart on one key point, free agency. Apparently the latest set of talks have broken down as neither side wants to budge on the issue. The owners are dead set against allowing it, while the players don't appear willing to settle without it. The Wizards player union rep, Jimmy Conrad is quoted at length in an ESPN piece about the issue saying that unless things change, a work stoppage appears inevitable.

Each side is now trying to win the battle in the media it would appear, as in response to the players' comments, the league has come back with counter claims to what the union says is going on in the meetings. There are a lot of quotes from MLS President Mark Abbott about the negotiations in that article and what they are trying to do. Based on what the league is saying, it appears that if there is a work stoppage, it will be from a players' strike, not a lock out. That's based on the news that the league is willing to start the season under the rules of the expired CBA (which the league can do based on the rules of the current CBA that state the terms remain in effect from year to year unless the other side is notified in writing 60 days prior to the expiration or renewal of the agreement. (page 9)). What that means for the players, is that they'll have to be the ones that walk out, and in doing so they will likely keep themselves from being able to play in other leagues as they'd still be under contract to MLS.

That could really hurt players like Jimmy Conrad, Roger Espinoza, Chad Marshall, Robbie Findley, and multiple other players who have hopes of making their countries World Cup team for this summer's tournament in South Africa. A work stoppage could kill any of the players' chances of making the cup, and certainly something that weights on some of those players' minds.

Right now it would appear that the league is the one holding the better cards after the statement that they're willing to work under the old CBA, but the union has come back again with another response to the league's statements. With more of this out in the media now, this looks like it could start to get really ugly as each side tries to win the media war. From what I've read by fans, there seems to be a fairly even split on which side people support, but all definitely don't want a work stoppage. The next 4 days will be very interesting.

Allocation List

The MLS transfer window is about to open up and that means rumors of players coming to MLS or coming back to MLS. Today, Steven Goff had rumors of 3 former MLS players returning to MLS. Danny Szetela, DaMarcus Beasley, and Stern John are all being rumored to returning to MLS. With these 3 potentially returning, the MLS allocation list could see a shake up. Four teams have already used their allocation this season, Seattle used theirs on Kasey Keller, Toronto traded their spot to Houston so the Dynamo could get Felix Garcia, San Jose got Bobby Convey, and LA grabbed Gregg Berhalter. With these moves, the Wizards are likely in 4th on the list, and the full allocation list probably looks something like this now. So the Wizards potentially have the chance to grab one of these players if Dallas, DC, or Colorado pass on 1 of these players (if they sign with MLS).

Honestly if this all holds true, I'm not overly interested in any of the 3, except maybe Szetela. The Wizards have already done plenty of work on the offense lately and neither Beasley or John would help enough to make them worth an allocation. I'd rather see the Wizards use their allocation on a defensive player.

Wizards in US Open Cup Proper

For the past two years, the Wizards have had to go through qualifying to get into the US Open Cup proper. In 2007 they lost out to Real Salt Lake in their qualifier, last year they defeated Colorado to move into the tournament. This year, the Wizards get an automatic pass into the US Open Cup proper since they were one of the top 6 teams in the league points standings last season. That's at least the way it's currently looking according to USOpenCup.com. Steven Goff broke the news yesterday that DC would be hosting FC Dallas in a qualifier. He also mentioned that they would play the winner of New York and San Jose if they won.

The qualifying is a bit off from what the assumption was back when Commissioner Garber gave his state of the league address. When he said that "All U.S.-based MLS teams will participate in the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup," the assumption was that all the teams would be in the US Open Cup proper instead of doing qualifiers. So was that a cleaver misspeak by Garber or did MLS change their minds?

More on Roster Changes

Last week I wrote about a rumor on the FC Dallas blog, 3rd Degree, about a potential change to the MLS roster. Steven Goff with Soccer Insider has picked up on it now and even has more information on it as well. According to Goff, the Board of Governors will meet today, and one of the things on the agenda is roster size. Goff says that the rumor is the same as the 3rd Degree rumor, that 4 developmental spots will be dropped, reducing roster size to 24. Along with that, Goff is also reporting that 2 more developmental roster spots will be lost, as they will be adding 2 more senior roster spots, meaning teams would have 20 senior roster players and 4 developmental players.

Personally I think this is a terrible idea for a few reasons. The first is that it will make things even harder for MLS teams competing in international tournaments as they lose 4 potential players to help them cope with the schedule congestion. Last year the Wizards used 30 players in all competitions, and outside MLS the only thing they competed in was the Open Cup. So imagine what teams like Houston, who will have more competitions to play in next year, think about this potential change. Some may argue that with 2 more senior roster spots, teams can actually go deeper, but that is going to turn out to be a misconception. Most teams are going to just promote 2 of their developmental players to take those 2 senior roster spots, so you only increase senior roster depth by name only, you're not going to make teams any deeper than they are now by adding those 2 senior spots.

The other reason it's a terrible idea is because of two names, Kevin Souter and Nelson Pizarro. The two Wizards who came through the open tryouts. With four fewer roster spots next year, what's the likelihood that a team is going to take a gamble on an open tryout participant and put them on their roster? Both Souter and Pizarro contributed this year to the first team, but without those 4 roster spots, I have my doubts that the team would have signed the duo.

Update to Cuban at Practice

Last week I had posted about the Wizards having one of the recent Cuban defectors out at practice last week, training with the team, and today we have an update on the situation. At the time I had said that the player was either Pedro Faife or Reynier Alcantara, both of whom had defected before the US vs Cuba game in DC in October. Goff is reporting that it was in fact Alcantara at practice with the Wizards. Apparently his representative had received a call from the team, and they lined up a 4 day workout for the Cuban while he was on his way to Los Angeles to talk with an immigration attorney.

This was who I thought the player was after seeing him in person at practice on Thursday last week but had not wanted to say anything at the time. According to wikipedia, Alcantara is a striker who had been playing for FC Pinar del Río in Cuba. He scored 50 goals for the club and reportedly won the leagues MVP award in 2006 and 2007. It looks like he could definitely be a contributor to the Wizards next year if they sign him.

Wolff's Salary and Former Wizards Update

Earlier today, Steven Goff with the Washington Post posted some of the salaries for some of the recent additions to MLS. His original post didn't have the salary for the Wizards latest signing, Josh Wolff. In a later post today, he does have Wolff's salary. Wolff's full season salary is $200,000. That is right around where I had expected it to be, as he's a returning US international. Is that too high a price to pay for Wolff, a forward who coming in had scored only 2 goals in a season and a half playing as a right winger in the German second division?

Wolff has shown good since coming to KC, while he only has one goal, he's been able to combine well with Davy Arnaud and Claudio Lopez to help make KC more dangerous.

OTHER NEWS
Some other news, this time about former Wizards. First, last seasons MVP, Eddie Johnson, was named to the preliminary roster for the upcoming World Cup Qualifier against Guatemala. Johnson joins Fulham FC teammate Clint Dempsey, Brian Ching, and Landon Donovan as the 4 forwards on the roster. Still no Kenny Cooper which is still the most puzzling thing about Bradley's roster choices.

In other former Wizards news, former first round draft pick, Matt Taylor has signed with TUS Koblenz on the German Bundesliga 2. Taylor, who was picked up by Chivas USA in the expansion draft had been playing with Hollywood United after being released last year by Chivas, and finishing the season with the Portland Timbers.

Lopez With the Team

Steven Goff has an update on the Claudio Lopez watch down in Argentina. Goff has spoken with Curt Onalfo, and has confirmed that Lopez is in fact with the team down in Argentina. When Goff spoke with Onalfo, the team was on their way to a team BBQ. According to Onalfo, all that remains for Lopez to do is to pass a physical and finalize paperwork. According to Bob Luder, with the KC Star, the team plans to announce the signing tomorrow.

Claudio Lopez Deal Nearly Done

According to Brad Porter, via his blog, the Wizards have nearly finished the signing of Argentine forward, Claudio Lopez to be their designated player. The terms of the deal are not know at this time, but according to Porter, Lopez will be making way over the $400K that qualifies him as a DP.

Lopez, 33, becomes the team's first official designated player, after the departure of Eddie Johnson and his being a "grandfathered" DP.

According to Porter, if the Lopez deal feel through, the team was also looking at another player from South America and another from Africa, let the speculation begin on who those players were.

Steven Goff is reporting the deal is not 100% yet, but his contact says that Lopez is expected to sign a 2 year contract.

UPDATE: I've updated the link, Porter has updated his blog to say the deal is nearly done.

Lopez Deal Close

More news on the Claudio Lopez front. Steven Goff is reporting that the teams are very close to a deal and are ironing out details. According to Goff, barring any major problems late in the process, a deal could be announced later this week. Goff links to an Argentine article that talks about the ongoing process as well. According to the article that is linked, Lopez is currently in Buenos Aires having been introduced to the team and will join them for their continued preseason. The article also mentions two other teams that the Wizards will be playing while down there, Boca Juniors and River Plate. Last year, the Wizards played both teams last year on their trip down to Argentina, losing 2-0 to Boca and defeating River Plate 4-0 in their final game of the trip.

Lopez Coming to KC?

According to Steven Goff, the Wizards are in the late stages of talks with Argentine forward Claudio Lopez. If talks go well and an agreement is reached, Lopez would become the team's first designated player. As I've mentioned in previous posts on the topic, this would be big for the Wizards. It'd bring an established veteran forward to the Wizards. Someone that would immediately come in fill a role on the Wizards front line. Hopefully the Wizards and Lopez can work out a deal to bring El Piojo, "The Louse" to Kansas City. It would be a huge lift for a team that has kept quiet on the incoming player front this offseason.

Claudio Lopez Update

Steven Goff has an update to the Claudio "El Piojo" Lopez story that he posted earlier today that I wrote on.

According to one source that Goff spoke with, "I think it's going to happen." Another telling sign is the fact that Wizards coach Curt Onalfo had "no comment." Not a denial as you might expect if there was nothing to this rumor, but a no comment. Something is definitely up.

The more I think about it, the more I'm excited about this move. Lopez would bring some name recognition in soccer circles, and it will be interesting to follow this story. He'd also bring a much needed scoring punch to the Wizards front line.

Claudio Lopez to KC?

This rumor made the rounds a few months ago on MLS Rumors. I didn't put much faith in it, because the site didn't list any sources with it. Today, though, we do have a reliable source. Steven Goff is reporting that the Wizards are currently in negotiations with the 33 year old Argentine. This would definitely be a big signing that would take some of the pressure off the front office from some fans who don't think the team has done enough this offseason. Lopez is currently playing for Racing Club in Argentina, and had played for the Argentine National Team in both the 98 and the 02 World Cup. Lopez would definitely help fill the gap left by Eddie Johnson leaving.

Eddie Johnson to Fulham

Steven Goff, of the Washington Post, is reporting that Eddie Johnson has left the US men's national team camp in LA. Goff is reporting that Johnson has left because of ongoing serious discussions with Fulham, aka Team USA England. If these rumors are true, Johnson could become the fifth American on the Cottagers, joining Clint Dempsey, Carlos Bocanegra, Kasey Keller, and Brian McBride.

Chris Henderson Gone

Steven Goff has broken this story on his blog today. Apparently Chris Henderson, the Wizards assistant coach, has left the team. Henderson, who played for the Wizards in the 1999 and 2000 season had rejoined the team as Curt Onalfo's assistant last season. According to Goff, Henderson was on the verge of joining Colorado in some capacity. That deal has apparently fallen through, and now Henderson could be on his way to join the Seattle expansion team next year.

Honestly, this sucks. Henderson has been a Wizards favorite for years. He's one of a small group of former Wizards including Diego Gutierrez, Preki, and Mo Johnston that get the full respect of the Cauldron when they return to KC each year. I'm going to miss Henderson in KC, but good luck to him.

Changes to MLS Foreign Player Rule

Steven Goff, over at Soccer Insider reported a few days ago that it looked like MLS was going to dumping their senior/youth international distinction for foreign players, instead going with a foreigner or not approach. According to Goff MLS teams will have 8 foreign slots with no age restrictions starting next season.

This change likely won't have much of an effect on the Wizards, though. Kansas City has rarely ever used their full allotment of SI and YI spots. Usually the Wizards have had anywhere from 3 to 5 of their international slots used at one time. This year, the Wizards only had 3 of their slots used, for Scott Sealy, Carlos Marinelli, and Eloy Colombano. So chances are extremely unlikely that the Wizards will fill those other 5 slots for next season.

I could, though, see the Wizards adding another one or possibly two foreign players to their roster next year. Especially with the news later on in that same Goff article about Coach Onalfo attending a scouting combine in Argentina.

Update on Johnson to Derby.

As I posted yesterday, the big rumor going around, is Eddie Johnson making a move to Derby County. The rumor is still being talked about quite a bit in MLS and Derby circles. The most newsworthy information on the topic I've seen, though, was from Steven Goff with the Washington Post. His quote on the topic, is that while the rumors are going around, it doesn't look like Johnson will be moving for the moment. The funny thing, though, is that the day after this rumor surfaced, this article was published on The Rams website about the team being interested in American players.

Wizards Linked with Another Attacker

It's been a busy few days for the rumor mill when it comes to the Wizards. In the past week, they've been linked with Eloy Colombano, Daniel Osorno, and the continued link with Idan Shriki. Now they've been linked with a current MLS player. According to Steven Goff with the Washington Post, the LA Galaxy are shopping Santino Quaranta to make room for Chris Klein's salary. According to Goff, the Wizards appear to be the target location, for draft picks.

Personally this isn't worth it in my opinion. Quaranta doesn't bring anything different to the table then we already get out of Aranud, Harrington or Sealy.