Color Blind (More Shirt Talk? Really?)

The DC United third shirt announcement got me thinking about the distribution of shirt colors in MLS, notably the common complaint amongst league fans that "everything is red and blue" with navy blue often singled out as a particularly egregious offender. So I did what seemed logical and headed for a spreadsheet (sad, I know, but true). Then things got a bit out of hand...

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What do you think of when I pair "Major League Soccer" with the term(s) "uniforms/kits/jerseys/shirts" (pick your nomenclature poison)? Besides "goddamn adidas," chances are that you'll think red and blue, particularly navy blue. At least that seems to come up more often than not in discussions of the color distribution in MLS shirts.

"Seems like the whole league wears red or blue."
"What's the obsession with navy blue?"
"It's the fault of American sports in general. They're all like that."

I'm sure you've heard much the same if you've bothered to pay attention to what amounts, admittedly, to nit-picking of an excessive degree given that we even have a professional league to enjoy, despite its many and varied faults. But are there actual numbers to back up these color-prejudice claims?

Yes and no. To wit...

To clarify...

These numbers are by no means exact or scientific. I merely looked at shirts (primary/home shirts only) and broke down the color scheme into rough percentages of the shirt so colored (badges and sponsors not included), dismissing subtle variations of color (thus only one shade of green despite the awful, nausea-inspiring "rave" green of Seattle) save in the example of blue, where I broke out light and navy blue as parts of the initial argument. Then I used a spreadsheet to figure the percentage of league shirts covered by each color.

Surprised? While navy is the dominant shade of blue, that's actually a pretty varied palette up there, despite red and white each claiming a fifth of the pie and the various shades of blue almost grabbing another fifth. Subjective analysis? Perhaps. But I took the liberty of creating some points of comparison.

Here's the English Premier League, the foreign league the majority of MLS fans will follow most closely in addition to their own...

...where we see less variety, with blue and white, and to a lesser degree red, dominant, though still a healthy assortment of colors are represented. Is the red-white-blue dominance a symptom of much older teams tied to less outre colors by dint of their Victorian-era birthing? Perhaps. You'll also keep in mind that promotion/relegation means that some variety is built into the mix by default.

An even less varied example from the Old World comes courtesy of Spain...

...where La Liga is blanketed to an even greater degree in the same three dominant colors, with white being the overwhelming favorite (yawn).

In Germany...

...red, white, and blue are again the big three, though this time blue is reduced to the status of minor player while white claims a fourth share and red nearly a half share of the pie.

But, lest we fear that all of these stodgy, old leagues (wink!) are so boring, it falls to the Italians to rescue us from boredom and produce the most balanced and attractive of pies (no pizza puns, please!)...

That said, did you spot the most represented colors? That's right—red, white, and blue. Just like the EPL, La Liga, the Bundesliga, and...Major League Soccer.

Conclusions?

While MLS has its fair share of red, white, and blue, it is remarkably balanced in color representation, particularly in comparison with three of the "big four" of Europe. Also: I question my mental stability for considering this an interesting exercise. Also also: isn't quality of play much more important to presentation of the sport and attracting fans than shirts? (cough! cough?)

Sigh.

How many days till First Kick?

Ooh, look! Shiny transfer window slamming closed!

Ooh! Shiny, Distracting Object (sigh)

Marketing? Money-grab? Shameless euro-poseurism? Jedi mind trick ("these aren't the forwards you're looking for...")?

All of the above.

But screw it. News is slow. In lieu of speculation on where the goals are going to come from this year, let's roll with the fashion angle and tea leaf strewn guessing-game nonsense, shall we?

Based on the banner graphic...

courtesy dcunited.com

...we're almost certainly looking at red as a primary color for the third jersey. You'll note that those three prominent black slashes behind the text are an enlargement of the adidas logo, but I'm guessing they're also a hint. I call black and red (hey! black and red? I've heard those colors juxtaposed before!) vertical stripes...

courtesy New Football Kits, Shirts & Jerseys

...though I've always had a fondness for rotating that 90 degrees...

courtesy Fútbolita

...and the fact that the announcement comes at an auto show means that stripes may take away from the prominent VW logo, so a red with black sash version of this Puebla shirt (if it's not just plain red with black trim) might be a sleeper pick.

courtesy SoccerShopUSA.com

Of course, if Payne gets heavily involved, I won't discount the possibility of Cat In the Hat retro-chic to bring back thoughts of old glories...

...or some terrible silver, "We Win Trophies" abomination (cause you know that's the only silver we'll be wearing until we find somebody to bang them in—oops! Sorry, still wondering where those notional goals we'll be scoring are going to come from).

Anybody else got 2¢ and the energy to rub them together?

Thoughts on USA v. Chile

Considering Bob Bradley was exploring the shallow end of the player pool (or was it the kiddie pool?), the disjointed defense, inability to connect the passing dots, and generally ugly, frenetic play was to be expected from out-of-season fringe players without experience together trying to prove themselves to the boss. Though we were getting reports of Bob insisting on Barcelona-style pass-and-move in camp, there was only one real flurry of coherent attack in the first half. In time-honored tradition, it was when the US conceded the point that maybe Chile played the technical game better and got on with being direct and physical that things started happening more consistently in attack.

With that in mind, it should be of little surprise that few players made a case to shove off towards the deep end of the pool. Dax McCarty covered tons of grass and contributed to both attack and defense demonstrating some incisive passing sprinkled in amongst the poor giveaways. Tim Ream continued to impress, particularly with his calm distribution from the back. Juan Agudelo instantly made things happen for a program that often struggles with just that sort of problem.

On the other end of the scale, Chris Wondoloski, Marvell Wynne, and Jeff Larentowicz can exit the pool altogether. They're good enough MLS players, but I can't ever see them being at home on this level. You could make an argument for Wondoloski not getting enough service to impress and struggling with the lone striker role, but I just don't see him ever being a factor for the full national team. Brek Shea, on the other hand, probably will make that step someday, but he needs to go back into the over for further cooking, particularly since he doesn't play a position of need, as say Omar Gonzelez, in a very similar situation, does.

The remainder were somewhere in between though positional need and promising moments mean I wouldn't mind another look at Zach Loyd (out of control at times, but confident on the ball in a way I like from fullbacks), Mikkel Diskerud (was trying too hard, but I think he'd be better surrounded by higher quality, calmer players where he's complimentary rather than central to attacking efforts), and Teal Bunbury (took his penalty well and caused problems with his physicality, though he also killed a few attacks by playing backwards rather than staying positive).

I'll be interested to see the roster for the Egypt game. Did anybody here impress Bradley enough (both in camp and in the game) to earn a look with the big boys?

Mighty Bull

Ngwenya, who turned out for Railstars before leaving for the US, was on Tuesday seen training with newly-promoted Chicken Inn.

“They (DC United) will be starting preparations soon, but I am still here, I have some stuff that I have to sort out,” Ngwenya said.

A source at Railstars, where Ngwenya was training last week told NewsDay Sport on Thursday that the player indicated he would be going back to the US in two weeks. (source)

"Stuff," huh? Not a great way to impress a boss known for commitment to the cause...

Also, Chicken Inn? Railstars? 

Bah! Both pale in comparison to last year's Zimbabwe Premier Soccer League (ZPSL) champions...Motor Action Football Club! The "Mighty Bulls"!

Hmm. Methinks Ngwenya was training with the wrong team as he looks to get his excuses in order for Olsen. Mighty Bull indeed...

The King is...Alive?

When I got the press release about Cobi Jones signing on with the Cosmos as assistant undersecretary to the director general or whatever, my response was: "Interesting. Seems a bit premature considering they don't even have a senior team yet and aren't locks for MLS. But interesting in that it takes a different tack from the whole Pele/Chinaglia honorary posting."

But this?

Says Eric Cantona, “I am very honored to join the legendary club New York Cosmos. It’s a big project, a wonderful project. The Cosmos are very strong, beautifully made, with a great past. It’s kind of a mix between football and art. I will do everything that I can to help us first find our way to regain the #1 position in the United States, and then for us to become one of the best clubs in the world over the coming years.”

Oy vey. Couple that with an announcement heavy on the "King Eric" schtick, and...

How the hell are we supposed to take this project? Have you read Grant Wahl's fascinating interview with Terry Byrne? Go ahead, I'll wait...

I can't get my head around it. For every sane, promising word I hear, there's some total crazymaking "art project" nonsense tossed in as a countermeasure. I guess the only thing that's certain is that the outcome, one way or the other, is going to be both extreme and entertaining. There's potential for the glorious to happen, but almost certainly more potential for a catastrophic (and hilarious) failure. 

Should be fun to watch.

The Kasper/Ashton Stranglehold

It’s Akron Coach Caleb Porter’s world, we just live in it: Five of the first eight selections were from the NCAA champion Zips, and two more went in the second round. (Goff)

So was the FO's failure to land him last year due more to something they did (or didn't do) or to his desire to stick with his program (or the college ranks in general)? Could have been money, could have been security, could have been a bad pitch on the FO's part. But the dude can obviously pick talent. And that makes me wonder if the Kasper/Ashton stranglehold on personnel decisions was the breaking point.

SuperDraft Tea Leaves

United picked up midfielder/defender Perry Kitchen, fullback Chris Korb, and goalkeeper Joe Willis in the 2011 MLS SuperDraft. There are a number of points I'm curious about in relation to these picks, but the most interesting tactical talking point seems to be what Olsen's going to do with all those central midfielders...

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Boskovic, King, Kitchen, McCarty, Morsink, Shanosky, Simms, maybe even McTavish or Quaranta at a stretch. That's an awful lot of central mids, even given the expanded rosters this year. Granted, Kitchen and/or Shanosky might be destined for the back line (where we've already got James, Jakovic, White, and possibly Brasesco ahead in the pecking order) and Boskovic can play on the left wing, but you're still looking at a logjam of central midfielders.

Which raises the question: what kind of system is Olsen building towards?

Coaches' tactical decisions often fly in the face of who they were as players (helllloooo, Preki!), but Olsen seems to be assembling the kind of hustling, bustling lot he would have fit right in with. And one glance at that group of central mids reveals far more holding/defensive types than silky creators. So is it too early to make any assumptions? The logjam may just give way to a flurry of transfer activity, but I wonder...

I wonder if we're looking at a two-deep central midfield, either behind (1) a creative a-mid and a wide trident in attack [4-3-3/4-5-1 or (gasp!) the return of 3-5-2!], (2) three mobile a-mids beneath a single striker [4-2-3-1], (3) an a-mid and sole striker with two wide midfielders in line with the holders [4-4-1-1], or two creative wide mids and two forwards [the Bob Bradley 4-4-2 special]. Given the types of forwards we currently have at our disposal (and yes, I'll take it as given that we're not done shopping), I don't see any of the sole-striker shapes being that attractive. Combine that with Olsen's reliance on a 4-4-2 down the stretch last year, and I'm beginning to suspect something like the Bradley approach.

So what would it look like?

A stable core of six holding down the defensive fort—four on the back line behind two holding mids—and four fluid attackers that look to unsettle the defense through a combination of pressing and movement. The two wide attacking midfielders (Quaranta, Najar, Boskovic, maybe Pontius, Ngwenya, and Junior) start on the wing, but often drift infield beneath the strikers, allowing fullbacks to get forward and provide width. The mobile forwards can also offer width, dragging defenders out of position for the inside-out wide men to exploit. Though stronger on the counter, allowing one of the central holders to join the attack more often or tasking the fullbacks to get forward in support would provide more options in situations where we're dominating possession or chasing a game. 

Come to think of it, I'm reminded not just of Bradley's USA, but the current MLS Cup holders as well. 

Hmmm.

Deploy the Digital Scouts! (Part Deux)

Reader rob asked to see the Football Manager stats for Rodrigo Brasesco that I was looking at for the initial "Deploy the Digital Scouts!" post, so...here they are (in the 11.2.0 update database viewed with the FM2011 data editor). Note that a "0" rating usually doesn't indicate a 0 out of 20 (most ratings are out of 20). Rather it essentially says to the game "no specified data, make it up using the given ability levels, position, etc." Of course, it goes without saying that those with religious objections to seeing the magic behind the curtain should click away now so as not to sully their experience of the game by having any view of the editor or its secret sauce. The rest of you...carry on.

Let's begin with the hidden attributes, where we see a fairly professional and loyal dude who's decent under pressure and unlikely to stir the pot.

The general stats indicate a better than average (though hardly world-beating) player, primarily right-footed, with a good reputation at home in Uruguay but little recognition worldwide.

Positionally (and here the zeroes are just that), he's a natural right back, an accomplished center back, and can fill in on the left in a pinch.

Mentally (and for the remainder of these screen grabs, a zero means "not specified"), he's slightly above average, highlights being work rate, teamwork, and determination).

Physically, he's quick off the mark with good lung capacity, strong but nothing too special in the air.

Technically, he's pretty middle of the road, not so hot on the ball and merely average (for a defender) at marking and tackling, the primary defensive skills. His heading is the most notable skill (as Chest observed in his intensive YouTube analysis), though below-average dribbling, crossing, and passing skills mean he's most likely to provide offensive help from set pieces.

Of course, I'm not saying any of this is meant to be taken as gospel, and I'll certainly form my own opinions when we get a first-hand look, but, like rob, I'll trust the FM researchers over a YouTube clip any day of the week.

Deploy the Digital Scouts!

For those interested in this sort of thing, I had a little poke through the Football Manager 2011 database to see what exactly I could find out about Rodrigo Brasesco, assuming that those who rated him there might have a more intimate view of his capabilities than a YouTube clip. According to said profile...

• He'll be choosing the #3. It's listed as his preferred number, and I don't think anybody on the current roster wears #3.
• He's professional, loyal, handles pressure situations reasonably well, and causes little controversy. Combined with stats that indicate a hard working, determined leader, you can see why he'd be wearing the captain's armband at his previous club, even at the age of 24.
• Positionally, he's rated as being a natural right back (20 on a 20-point scale), almost as high as a center back (19 out of 20), and adequate on the left (14 out of 20) as well.
• He's reasonably quick and strong and adequate, though not spectacular, in the air.
• Definitely more of an athlete and a worker than a technique player. As a fullback, you'd expect him to give you more in terms of defensive solidity than bombing forward.

So say the digital scouts...

Waiting for Draft Day

Better. Possibly.

We all remember the YouTube greatness of one Cristian Castillo, don't we? Assuming Brasesco pans out (though that's a mighty big assumption considering our recent forays south of the border), we've at least got some reasonable depth at the back if we include the recent addition of Daniel Woolard and the signing of Ethan White to a homegrown contract.

Draft in a reserve guy with the Suppie we just picked up from LA, and you've at least got the numbers in defense. Still, it bears remembering how many goals this lot, now with a few pieces swapped about but still the same core group, shipped last year. You could counter that by claiming the second half of the season was better, injuries played a factor, and Olsen's stamp seemed to produce a less brainfart-happy group at the back. Which will tell this year, and are we done shopping for starting-quality defenders?

And while we're raising questions, you've got to ask if there's international help coming for the attack. As it stands, we've just shipped Cristman, a hard-working, if unspectacular, bench forward (and the type of player I would have expected Olsen to keep around despite his having been an Onalfo signing), leaving us with Wolff, Pontius, and Ngwenya up top. Of course, our numbers in midfield may see Quaranta and Najar getting time on the front line, but we're still shy a dependable boot in front of net. Hard to bank on a draft pick to provide that, so I wonder what sort of irons, be they of the in-league trading or international shopping spree variety, are still in the fire.

Draft day should be an interesting one.

Chugga-Chugga...

D.C. United announced today that the club has re-signed midfielder Kurt Morsink and acquired defender Daniel Woolard.

Choo-choo! The mediocrity train rolls on.

And Then There Were Three?

Major League Soccer officials announced Wednesday that the MLS SuperDraft will return to a three-round event this year, and the following Supplemental Draft will also consist of three rounds. (source)

So what happens to previously traded fourth round picks? Also, note that the Supplemental Draft has been resurrected. All hail the return of the Suppies!