Thursday, November 10, 2011

Ignorance is Bliss, an Outdoor Cat

Brian Bliss, Technical Director, Columbus Crew (reportedly) was talking today about 'long time' Crew mid-fielders.

“For as many years as they’ve been in the league and for the amount of money – not that they’re getting rich, they’re getting paid – there’s got to be a better division of statistics among those three guys, and that’s going back to 2010 as well.”

What? Really? This is our technical director speaking? My goodness.

What the Hell is having a "better division of statistics"? What statistics exactly are they looking at here?

I really hope it isn't goals and assists, as Mr. Craig Merz alludes to in his article today. If it is then he is driving the team off a cliff. Specifically if he is speaking of the Mid-Field. Heck, even if he is speaking on Forwards - he shouldn't.

Major League Soccer is single entity. Meaning the ultimate goal of the league is to make money through parity. It's not hard to generate that parity when talent is fairly negligible in this corner of the hemisphere.

Shake a tree and you'll get a 3 goal 2 assist mid-fielder in MLS. Actually, want to know how many in 2011 achieved that feat? 31 MFs did (that's mids only). It ain't the players the Crew have, it is how they were used. Too many changes. It was like there were trying to pick a lock in Splinter Cell and they never got it.

Bliss is already being linked to other teams around the league now. Most notably the NE Revolution.

I'm really worked up over his comments today. I know I shouldn't be but he has gotten to me. Ignorance shouldn't be tolerated in regards to personnel, though.

If Bliss is interviewing for other positions then he should remove himself from making comments on the future makeup of the Columbus Crew.

Instead (among other posturing comments earlier this month) we get this:

“[Kevin] Burns played some significant minutes, too. He’s a core guy. He’s been around for four years. Maybe you expect a little more out of that whole area of the field.”

Burns was one of the winningest players on the team (if not THE winningest).

Leave the technical decisions to someone more capable. If none more capable are available then keep your paws off the carpet and don't eat all the food in the bowl. psst!

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On a note; The Crew are worth less than most of the companies readers stumbling here might work for. Heck, most fans of MLS might manage more people and larger budgets (accounts) than the entire Crew franchise. I understand this. There are good people working hard in the Crew franchise. Even better supporters holding the team up. It's just frustrating when there seems to be 'change for change sake' (with Burns) at the moment.

2 comments:

Bleeno said...

glad to hear Gaven is gonna stay. Ekpo, although good, was hit or miss for me over the season and can be replaced. hopefully with a player with more speed. Rogers can go go go. haven't seen him do much. i'm sure he can. but he's not a Crew player for me. his heart lies elsewhere so his body might as well follow.
agree that too many changes sort of killed off momentum from match to match. that needs fixing. and (as its been said and over-said) the team needs a vocal leader. preferably in midfield. but if the coaches can give their confidence to Heinemann next season, he'd be the one for me. passionate player. and if he and Gaven are having a good game, my sense is that everyone would get a lift.
and i'd go ahead and trade Mendoza for a hamburger and shake.
delicious.

Larry W Johnson II said...

bliss went on about the forwards today. again, too much focus on goals. renteria has a bum wheel and mendoza isn't reliable yet he rates this combo highly.

heinemann and mendoza seemed to develop a rapport mid season. i think that helped mendoza feel part of the team and high up the table the team went.

just a fans observation, but late in the season even when heinemann wasn't on the pitch, mendoza would run over and give him a big hug after a goal. after that difficult isolating early season mendoza had i felt that moment was telling. there's leadership there for sure.