As most people are probably aware there has been a lot of uncertainty over the future of the second tier of North American pro soccer over the past couple of years. Back in 2009, a majority of USL-D1 franchises (including the Montreal Impact and Vancouver Whitecaps) attempted to break away back from the United Soccer League (USL) because they were disenchanted with the way the D2 tier of the sport was being managed and felt that team owners should have a greater degree of control in future. Trademark control over the old North American Soccer League name was obtained and the plan was to launch this second incarnation of the NASL in time for the start of the 2010 outdoor season. The USSF turned down their initial bid for sanctioning, however and managed to negotiate a short term compromise between the two parties so that a unified schedule of D2 soccer could continue this past under the USSF-D2 banner.
After the USSF issued a stringent new set of standards for the D2 level, in an apparent effort to force a merger between the two rival factions, the USL surprised most onlookers by announcing that they were going to merge their USL-D1 and USL-D2 divisions at the D3 level. This left the field clear to the NASL to attempt to gain D2 level sanctioning in time for the 2011 but a new requirement that a majority owner had to have a personal net worth of $20 million appeared to rule out participation by Crystal Palace Baltimore, NSC Minnesota and AC St Louis, while the Rochester Rhinos and Austin Aztex decided to side with the new USL Pro division at the D3 level. This left the NASL with just six franchises (including two in Canada, FC Edmonton and the Montreal Impact) two short of the minimum number required for sanctioning.
The latest news emerging from the recent NASL AGM is that the league now has eight teams in place that can meet the USSF's D2 level sanctioning requirement. Brian Quarsted of the Inside Minnesota Soccer blog has posted that those teams are the Atlanta Silverbacks, Carolina RailHawks, FC Edmonton, FC Tampa Bay, Montreal Impact, Miami FC Blues, NSC Minnesota Stars and the Puerto Rico Islanders. The two new additions are bolded and appear to have found funding from other ownership groups within the league. Word is that AC St Louis may still be added in time for 2011 if they can get their ownership situation sorted out, while San Antonio and possibly Austin (the Aztex having since been sold and moved to Orlando) are expected in 2012. A decision on sanctioning will probably be made by the USSF at meetings in Toronto during the MLS Cup weekend.
It is difficult to overstate the importance of having Canadian based pro teams playing at the D2 level. Although TFC, the Whitecaps and the Impact are doing a good job of developing youth players through their academy systems, there is a huge gap between playing at that level and starting regularly at the MLS level, which all but the most exceptional prospects will find very difficult to bridge. It is worth bearing in mind also that opportunities for Canadian players are going to be few and far in Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal due to the probable heavy reliance on import players and Americans. Currently MLS is talking in terms of having a 10 game reserve team schedule for fringe players on their rosters but the last time this was tried many of the games were little better than practice ground scrimmages that didn't really fit the needs of players in the 18 to 23 age range, who turn pro rather than accepting an NCAA scholarship.
What is really needed is another stepping stone to the MLS level where top prospects can get regular first team action in a fully professional league with a playing standard not too far removed from that of MLS. That is the obvious niche that D2 franchises can potentially fill in player development terms in a Canadian context as well as providing more opportunities for pro level Canadian players to ply their trade in their own country rather than overseas. Although players will obviously always want to try their luck in the largest European leagues in countries like England, Italy and Germany if the opportunity arises, there is really nothing to be gained either from the player's or the CMNT's standpoint by having players based in countries like Sweden, Finland and Lithuania relative to the D2 and D1 levels in North America. The good news is that the NASL has plans for aggressive expansion into Canada should they gain sanctioning with the USSF. In addition to FC Edmonton, who should start play in 2011 if everything goes according to plans at the USSF meetings, there are investor groups already in place in Ottawa and Hamilton with plans to start play by the middle of the decade.
Although many Canadian soccer fans will be oblivious to the events that will unfold, people who have the best interests of the Canadian game at heart should have their fingers crossed that the USSF decide to sanction that NASL, since that should help to ensure the ongoing participation of Canadian teams at the D2 level in the aftermath of the Impact's move to MLS. It remains to be seen if the CSA will agree to the entry of Canadian teams into USL Pro at the D3 level (the Victoria Highlanders and FC London have already expressed potential interest in recent months) given their recent sanctioning of the Canadian Soccer League to act as a national league at the D3 level in a Canadian context. The absence of a D2 league in the USSF's league structure could, therefore, mean a complete absence of Canadian pro teams between the PDL and MLS levels.
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Teal Bunbury opts to play for the USMNT
With today's news that Teal Bunbury has accepted an invitation from Bob Bradley to play for the USMNT against South Africa next week it looks like another young player has turned his back on playing for Canada. Bunbury is quoted on the Kansas City Wizards website as saying "It’s a wonderful opportunity, and its great to get this reward after the hard work that I put in this year," and “I’m honored and blessed that I will have the chance to showcase myself as a player to Coach Bradley.”
It will be difficult for some people to come to terms with this defection emotionally given his father is a near legendary figure in Canadian soccer and older generations of Canadian soccer fans still remember his exploits for the Hamilton Steelers, Toronto Blizzard and Montreal Supra in the original CSL and his stellar performances for the national team where he linked up so well with players like Radzinski and Peschisolido as a target man striker back when a long ball 4-4-2 was very much the order of the day tactically. The thing to bear in mind, however, is that his son is probably too young to have vivid recollections of any of that and has lived in the United States since he was ten years old no doubt doing the pledge allegiance to the flag thing children do there every morning at school.
This doesn't look like the sensible move for Teal Bunbury from a career standpoint. Competition for a place on the United States team is likely to be very fierce in the years ahead given the larger population and significantly higher FIFA ranking. If truth be told is he even assured of getting a regular game for Canada in future? With players like Simeon Jackson, Marcus Haber (recent injury notwithstanding) and potentially David Hoilett around that's far from a sure thing, in my opinion. When viewed from that sort of standpoint this starts to look like a move that was based on where his feeling of national allegiance truly lies and if that is the case his decision should be respected and the CMNT and its fanbase should focus on the players who actually want to play for the national team on that basis.
Edit: it turns out that Teal Bunbury's prime motivation was to be able to play in the World Cup finals:
http://www.kcwizards.com/news/2010/11/bunbury-i-want-play-world-cup-bottom-line
MLSsoccer.com: What one factor tipped you over the edge to the US side instead of the Canadian side?
Bunbury: The biggest thing for me is I want to play in a World Cup, bottom line. Every player in the world ultimately wants to play in a World Cup, and the way it’s looking the US has the better chance of making it to the World Cup, to be honest. That’s what really stuck in my mind every time I would contemplate it and that’s ultimately what swayed me.
Have to say that I think the kid has an inflated sense of his place within the pecking order of the game (does he not realize that the USMNT hands out caps to vast numbers of players in friendlie games who never get anywhere near the final 23 selected to go the World Cup finals?) and may have blown the only opportunity he will ever realistically have to fulfill that goal, which is to play for the land of his birth and help the CMNT qualify for the first time since 1986. Even then it's no sure thing he would actually be selected for reasons explained above.
It will be difficult for some people to come to terms with this defection emotionally given his father is a near legendary figure in Canadian soccer and older generations of Canadian soccer fans still remember his exploits for the Hamilton Steelers, Toronto Blizzard and Montreal Supra in the original CSL and his stellar performances for the national team where he linked up so well with players like Radzinski and Peschisolido as a target man striker back when a long ball 4-4-2 was very much the order of the day tactically. The thing to bear in mind, however, is that his son is probably too young to have vivid recollections of any of that and has lived in the United States since he was ten years old no doubt doing the pledge allegiance to the flag thing children do there every morning at school.
This doesn't look like the sensible move for Teal Bunbury from a career standpoint. Competition for a place on the United States team is likely to be very fierce in the years ahead given the larger population and significantly higher FIFA ranking. If truth be told is he even assured of getting a regular game for Canada in future? With players like Simeon Jackson, Marcus Haber (recent injury notwithstanding) and potentially David Hoilett around that's far from a sure thing, in my opinion. When viewed from that sort of standpoint this starts to look like a move that was based on where his feeling of national allegiance truly lies and if that is the case his decision should be respected and the CMNT and its fanbase should focus on the players who actually want to play for the national team on that basis.
Edit: it turns out that Teal Bunbury's prime motivation was to be able to play in the World Cup finals:
http://www.kcwizards.com/news/2010/11/bunbury-i-want-play-world-cup-bottom-line
MLSsoccer.com: What one factor tipped you over the edge to the US side instead of the Canadian side?
Bunbury: The biggest thing for me is I want to play in a World Cup, bottom line. Every player in the world ultimately wants to play in a World Cup, and the way it’s looking the US has the better chance of making it to the World Cup, to be honest. That’s what really stuck in my mind every time I would contemplate it and that’s ultimately what swayed me.
Have to say that I think the kid has an inflated sense of his place within the pecking order of the game (does he not realize that the USMNT hands out caps to vast numbers of players in friendlie games who never get anywhere near the final 23 selected to go the World Cup finals?) and may have blown the only opportunity he will ever realistically have to fulfill that goal, which is to play for the land of his birth and help the CMNT qualify for the first time since 1986. Even then it's no sure thing he would actually be selected for reasons explained above.
2010 Expansion Draft
On Wed November 24th, the Whitecaps and Timbers will get to select 10 players each from the rosters of the 16 existing MLS teams in a ten round draft with the Whitecaps picking second each time. The existing teams get to protect 11 players with homegrown and Generation Adidas players automatically protected. No team can lose more than two players and if a player is selected a twelfth player can be added to bring the protected list back up to eleven again. A key stumbling block when considering who to put on the protected list is that teams can only make three fewer foreign players available than they have on their roster. With those ground rules explained here is who I would place on TFC's protected list if I were the one calling the shots at BMO Field:
DP players
1 Julian DeGuzman Assuming there is a no-trade clause in Julian DeGuzman's contract and he is on a guaranteed deal for 2011 there is no question who the first name on the list will be. Mista's deal was only until the end of the 2010 season so presumably he can be made available.
The three foreigners (non-Canadian or non-American citizens or permanent residents)
2 Maicon Santos Given the uninspiring form of many of the other import players it would be a major shock if Maicon Santos is left off the list. Arguably his injury in the home game against Chivas was the beginning of the end for Preki and Mo Johnston.
3 Amadou Sanyang Not universally liked amongst the fanbase but if he has recovered from his injury will probably be retained given he does a reasonably competent job for a low salary number in a position that is much more difficult and pivotal than most fans realize.
4 Martin Saric A difficult selection because a strong case can also be made for Milos Kocic. The reasoning here is that a core nucleus of players that can start regularly needs to be retained to avoid trying to make too many changes all at one like last season. A question mark would be Saric's contract status in 2011 and if he is headed back to Europe then I would protect Kocic here assuming he doesn't have a green card with an eye to what might happen if a good tranfer offer is received for Stefan Frei during the January transfer window.
The Canadians (there may be no Canadian content requirement now but TFC still need domestic players for marketing reasons)
5 Dwayne DeRosario Although his self-indulgent cheque signing gesture should have been the beginning of the end for DeRosario at BMO Field there are signs that MLSE management are prepared to overlook it and there is no way a competent management team (interim or otherwise) will risk losing him for nothing to the Whitecaps. If he leaves in the build up to the 2011 season it will be as part of a trade.
6 Nana Attakora No brainer for reasons that should be obvious to all. Good enough to start regularly while being paid a bench player's number against the salary cap. He is only going to improve in the seasons ahead.
7 Adrian Cann A great addition to central defence. It is debatable whether TFC would have been anywhere near a playoff spot if he had not been signed. As long as he is under contract for 2011 at a reasonable salary cap number (and comments made at the postseason press conference suggested that he expects to be) there is absolutely no doubt in my mind that he will be on the list.
The Americans (given the salary cap and roster rules the backbone of any MLS roster are the players that enter the league through the NCAA)
8 Stefan Frei Assuming he graduates from Generation Adidas status his inclusion is an absolute no brainer.
9 Chad Barrett A player TFC may want to trade eventually if a better option can be found on the international transfer market but not a player TFC management will want to lose for nothing during an expansion draft.
10 Nick LaBrocca Another player who has his critics but his low salary and versatility in midfield should be enough to see him claim a place on TFC's protected list barring any complications with his contract situation.
11 Dan Gargan As with Matin Saric this is another difficult selection because a case can also be made for Jacob Peterson or Ty Harden. If the team is going to hit the ground running in 2011 there probably needs to be at least one fullback returning who can be relied on to do a competent job. Peterson's salary number may scare Vancouver and Portland away despite signs of improved form at the end of the season and TFC may not be too sorry to see him go for the same reason. Harden like Gargan provides good inexpensive depth to the roster but plays at the same position as Attakora and Cann and is therefore more expendable at this point.
Up for grabs:
Unprotected foreigners: Mista, Hscanovics, Usanov, Joseph, Gomez, Kocic
Unprotected domestic Canadian players: White, Gala
Unprotected Americans: Harden, Garcia, Peterson, Conway
Protected younger players:
Homegrown players: Doneil Henry, Nicolas Lindsay
GA players: Fuad Ibrahim {assuming GA status retained}
Given TFC's relatively poor season and given there are now 15 other teams available to choose the 20 players from, TFC may avoid losing any players. I suspect TFC will probably wind up losing one player, however, because there are some obvious potential targets that are likely to be left unprotected. An expansion team might be willing to be patient with O'Brian White to see if he can turn things around, for example, and Ty Harden might look like a good bargain as a serviceable defender costing the league minimum against the cap. There are usually a large number of goalkeepers made available so TFC probably have a good chance of getting away with leaving Conway and Kocic unprotected but Conway in particular might look like a good option as an inexperienced and relatively inexpensive goalkeeper. Very few people would have predicted that the Sounders would select Jarrod Smith (possibly in error thinking it was Johann) so it's difficult to rule any scenario out completely at this point. I will be more than a little bit surprised if Mista, Hscanovics, Usanov, Gala or Joseph wind up plying their trade on the Pacific coast next summer.
(Nov 18th) Edit: Fuad Ibrahim and Stefan Frei have both graduated from Generation Adidas. I don't think Ibrahim has done enough over the past four years to make it onto the protected list. He might be a tempting target for the Timbers if his number against the salary cap (as opposed to his total earnings with guaranteed bonuses factored in) is close to the league minimum.
DP players
1 Julian DeGuzman Assuming there is a no-trade clause in Julian DeGuzman's contract and he is on a guaranteed deal for 2011 there is no question who the first name on the list will be. Mista's deal was only until the end of the 2010 season so presumably he can be made available.
The three foreigners (non-Canadian or non-American citizens or permanent residents)
2 Maicon Santos Given the uninspiring form of many of the other import players it would be a major shock if Maicon Santos is left off the list. Arguably his injury in the home game against Chivas was the beginning of the end for Preki and Mo Johnston.
3 Amadou Sanyang Not universally liked amongst the fanbase but if he has recovered from his injury will probably be retained given he does a reasonably competent job for a low salary number in a position that is much more difficult and pivotal than most fans realize.
4 Martin Saric A difficult selection because a strong case can also be made for Milos Kocic. The reasoning here is that a core nucleus of players that can start regularly needs to be retained to avoid trying to make too many changes all at one like last season. A question mark would be Saric's contract status in 2011 and if he is headed back to Europe then I would protect Kocic here assuming he doesn't have a green card with an eye to what might happen if a good tranfer offer is received for Stefan Frei during the January transfer window.
The Canadians (there may be no Canadian content requirement now but TFC still need domestic players for marketing reasons)
5 Dwayne DeRosario Although his self-indulgent cheque signing gesture should have been the beginning of the end for DeRosario at BMO Field there are signs that MLSE management are prepared to overlook it and there is no way a competent management team (interim or otherwise) will risk losing him for nothing to the Whitecaps. If he leaves in the build up to the 2011 season it will be as part of a trade.
6 Nana Attakora No brainer for reasons that should be obvious to all. Good enough to start regularly while being paid a bench player's number against the salary cap. He is only going to improve in the seasons ahead.
7 Adrian Cann A great addition to central defence. It is debatable whether TFC would have been anywhere near a playoff spot if he had not been signed. As long as he is under contract for 2011 at a reasonable salary cap number (and comments made at the postseason press conference suggested that he expects to be) there is absolutely no doubt in my mind that he will be on the list.
The Americans (given the salary cap and roster rules the backbone of any MLS roster are the players that enter the league through the NCAA)
8 Stefan Frei Assuming he graduates from Generation Adidas status his inclusion is an absolute no brainer.
9 Chad Barrett A player TFC may want to trade eventually if a better option can be found on the international transfer market but not a player TFC management will want to lose for nothing during an expansion draft.
10 Nick LaBrocca Another player who has his critics but his low salary and versatility in midfield should be enough to see him claim a place on TFC's protected list barring any complications with his contract situation.
11 Dan Gargan As with Matin Saric this is another difficult selection because a case can also be made for Jacob Peterson or Ty Harden. If the team is going to hit the ground running in 2011 there probably needs to be at least one fullback returning who can be relied on to do a competent job. Peterson's salary number may scare Vancouver and Portland away despite signs of improved form at the end of the season and TFC may not be too sorry to see him go for the same reason. Harden like Gargan provides good inexpensive depth to the roster but plays at the same position as Attakora and Cann and is therefore more expendable at this point.
Up for grabs:
Unprotected foreigners: Mista, Hscanovics, Usanov, Joseph, Gomez, Kocic
Unprotected domestic Canadian players: White, Gala
Unprotected Americans: Harden, Garcia, Peterson, Conway
Protected younger players:
Homegrown players: Doneil Henry, Nicolas Lindsay
GA players: Fuad Ibrahim {assuming GA status retained}
Given TFC's relatively poor season and given there are now 15 other teams available to choose the 20 players from, TFC may avoid losing any players. I suspect TFC will probably wind up losing one player, however, because there are some obvious potential targets that are likely to be left unprotected. An expansion team might be willing to be patient with O'Brian White to see if he can turn things around, for example, and Ty Harden might look like a good bargain as a serviceable defender costing the league minimum against the cap. There are usually a large number of goalkeepers made available so TFC probably have a good chance of getting away with leaving Conway and Kocic unprotected but Conway in particular might look like a good option as an inexperienced and relatively inexpensive goalkeeper. Very few people would have predicted that the Sounders would select Jarrod Smith (possibly in error thinking it was Johann) so it's difficult to rule any scenario out completely at this point. I will be more than a little bit surprised if Mista, Hscanovics, Usanov, Gala or Joseph wind up plying their trade on the Pacific coast next summer.
(Nov 18th) Edit: Fuad Ibrahim and Stefan Frei have both graduated from Generation Adidas. I don't think Ibrahim has done enough over the past four years to make it onto the protected list. He might be a tempting target for the Timbers if his number against the salary cap (as opposed to his total earnings with guaranteed bonuses factored in) is close to the league minimum.
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