Finally another addition hits the roster with United's acquisition of Maicon Santos. In another time, with a different club, I might be pleased with this pickup. As it stands, I'm just left feeling suspicious.
Why?
While Santos has a reasonable history with the league (and so will not have to suffer through a period of adapting to the style of play), his mediocre goal tally (14 goals in 2.5 years) and the fact that he's far more adept at scoring the odd spectacular goal than finishing chances regularly don't exactly make him the ideal fit as the style of poacher I think United lacks.
Likewise, while his build and reasonable technical ability make him an interesting prospect as a target forward, I'm less sanguine about his levels of effort/commitment and ability to play well with others (read as: share the ball). While selfishness is often a requisite trait for a good forward, I'd suggest that Santos' MLS goal haul doesn't exactly justify his.
Of course, if Santos is motivated, comes with a reasonable price tag (as you would expect given last year's $126k salary figure and no sniffs in the Re-Entry Draft), and is projected as depth, he's an excellent choice. He can play up top or in the hole, possesses good athleticism and skill, and can score you the odd goal. As cover for both forward spots (up high or in the De Rosario spot), he'd be a pretty good fit. That said, the FO's recent record leads me to believe that this may be their "solution" up top.
Color me a little underwhelmed and looking nervously at a team (and franchise) that are uncomfortably reminiscent of the consistent promise and consistent failure of a certain club in Toronto.
Sigh.
Still, this list of trialists looks promising for our depth problems. Roster Reset #3 coming soon...
On to the reset! We have work to do and things to analyze!
ReplyDeleteI'm not disappointed. Toronto's a @#$%ty organization, and their attack didn't work on any level last year. Santos has always looked like he could be a success in the league, maybe DC is the place it finally clicks, especially with a familiar De Ro backing him up. When everyone is healthy, he'll have Pontius, Najar, De Ro, and a healthy Boskovic to provide service. A one eyed Fred could score with that support.
ReplyDeleteMoreover, our silence in the transfer market speaks of failure. I'd rather rely on Santos than whatever 3rd rate desperation buy comes in at this point.
That makes the assumption that Santos isn't the third-rate desperation buy, doesn't it? Considering the promised signings "by the end of the year" and "in the next couple of weeks" that never materialized, that has to be a possibility -- a very real possibility given that we passed on him in the Re-Entry Draft, even at the stage where we could have negotiated salary...
DeleteI've got a good feeling about him, the same way I did about Jakovic and James (when a lot of people were scoffing about their abilities). Jakovic is a very good player when healthy, and James should not have been let go.
DeleteI think Santos turns it around and delivers on the potential that he has shown inconsistently in his time in MLS. I might not have anything to back it up, besides his understanding with De Ro, but I think he fits and becomes a starter. He's the right type of player, he's got good skill, and DC could do worse than a skilled strong forward with nowhere else to go. (As opposed to Allsopp, who was playing in the middle east, for god's sake).
Fair enough.
DeletePersonally, I've never been convinced by him, but we shall see.
I hope this signing isn't the 1 that was promise "by the end of the year"? I remember last yr when DCU kept saying they were gonna sign a international player they got REALLY LUCKY WITH DeRo.
ReplyDelete