Sounders Contract Thoughts
I have done a few variations of this over the years, but with the main season over for the Sounders, and we're heading into the post season it seems like a good time to look at the roster and begin prognosticating on who stays, who goes, etc.
According to Transfermarkt these are the players who's contracts expire this year. This is a friendly reminder I don't know anything. This is all my gut reactions and thoughts. I fully expect to be laughably wrong in areas and for folks smarter than me to highlight that.
Keep to Sell
- Obed Vargas - No surprise here. Rumors are already circulating of European teams interested in him. My expectation is the Sounders exercise the contract option and then sell him for his chance overseas. I'll miss the wunderkind, but he deserves the chance to compete with the best of the best.
Keep
- Ryan Kent - Signed as a replacement for Paul Arriola heading into the Club World Cup we saw some flashes with him, but between injuries and lack of reliable level of play, I vote we give him another season to try and get into the MLS swing of things.
- Paul Rothrock - Paul, if we let him go, will land somewhere in MLS and likely as a deserved starter. I think he is a crucial piece of our depth and I would happily up his pay to have him in the rotation.
- Osaze de Rosario - He had a good season and has shown sparks of brilliance. Keep him learning with Jordan and Preki and others.
Keep (for the right price)
- Stefan Frei - This one really hurts. I love Stef. I hope he goes on to coach and replay Tommy Dutra for the club. I think he could do really well at that. But also, he's getting up there and he's letting more goals in than we'd like. Add to that that our backup keeper has never been stronger and it's time to see about formally passing the torch.
- Nouhou - There are die hard fans of Nouhou. I have been one of them. But his play has wavered enough that I no longer think he is unquestionably the best in position. I could see us keeping him or letting him go, depending on where contract negotiations land.
- Yeimar - Once one of the undisputed best CBs in the league. His age and injuries are catching up with him. I'd welcome having him stick around for another year in rotation, but I think it will depend on the contract.
- Danny Musovski - No one had this season on their predictions for Moose. I'd like to keep him. But also suspect that he may want to find a role with a larger paycheck and guaranteed starts with another MLS club.
- Kalani Kossa-Rienzi - A product of our development pipeline, he's had some good looks but not enough to merit reliable playing time except in times of need. I could see us keeping him on a low contract but as soon as we're bidding against another team I'd say we should let him go.
- Jon Bell - One of the two depth CBs up for renewal this year. I wouldn't be against keeping him for the right price.
- Kim Kee-Hee - Same as with Jon Bell. Let's make a deal.
- Leo Burney - Another club signing from the Tacoma club to bolster our roster. I imagine we exercise the option and give him more time to play, but we'll see.
Farewell
- Joau Paulo - This one hurts. He rose to be one of my favorite Sounders ever. But time comes for us all. I would love to see him move into another role with the club, whether coaching or working in the youth academy.
- Jacob Castro - Our third string keeper. One of the ancillary roles on the club. He's not had any real chances with the first club and we should always strive for a potential backup keeper to be league ready and, as far as I know, he isn't.
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I can't help but be in awe of the charisma that exudes from Ryan & Rob in Welcome to Wrexham
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My happy place. On the couch with soccer on the TV, a book in hand, and a sleeping dog next to me.
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Yesterday, Katie and I canceled our Sounders season tickets. We've had them since 2013. This isn't me winding up to make some screed about how angry I am at the club. The reality is, it just became a luxury we couldn't afford anymore, and the friends who have been buying tickets with us have dwindled.
At the peak, we had ten seats which we bought and friends bought in to us. But that has dwindled to fewer and fewer until we had one other couple who came to games with us this season and they decided they weren't going to renew for next season. And, we completely got it. We were in the same place. Them deciding to cancel gave us the permission we needed to also cancel.
We'll still go to games. We'll still watch nearly every game. We still love the Sounders. We just won't hold tickets to every game next season.
It's a bummer. Talking with a friend who was considering canceling his ticket, he struggled with the decision to do so because it was very much a core element of who he was. A sentiment I very much understand as a die-hard fan. But, for us, we just took a hard look at our finances and realized it was a sizeable spend we could cut.
Maybe we'll be back in a future season, we'll see.
Go Sounders.
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Much love to Jurgen Klopp. I wish him all the best in his next adventure. I'll watch wherever he lands. I followed him from Dortmund to Liverpool and I'll follow him on.
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"Out of all the unimportant things, football is the most important"
Pope John Paul II
A perfectly true quote heard on Welcome to Wrexham in an exchange between Ryan Reynolds and John Green
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Women's World Cup is On and Streaming It
So last night the World Cup began again, this time in Australia and New Zealand. As a result the wife and I agreed to sign up for a streaming solution which would guarantee our ability to watch it. It airs on Fox and Fox Sports 1, which is the one network we don't have completely covered from viewing, because 99% of what it airs is stuff we don't need. But, this is that one percent of content we wanted. So, off I go to figure out our best option.
After investigating the options I decided I would try Hulu Live, since we already had Hulu as part of our Disney+ bundle - easy, right? Wrong.
It is literally impossible for me to sign up for Hulu Live currently.
I even waited in queue and chatted with a customer service agent who was also flummoxed as to why I didn't have it as an option. I suspect I would have had to cancel my subscription altogether and then maybe it would have worked, but as it turns out - their loss ended up saving me money.
I discovered Sling has a promotion going on now where the first month is half price. And, as luck would have it, a month is what we need for the World Cup.
So, for the next month, we have a Sling subscription!
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Inside the deal that brought Messi to Miami
Fascinating stuff. The sort of deal which business people dream of. As much as I am going to hate to him making Miami a good team, I'm excited for what he is going to do to the league.
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Megan Rapinoe to retire after 2023 Season
Not entirely surprising, but still sad to see her finally go. She's played less and less for the Reign, either because of time with the international squad, or just to preserve herself for the upcoming World Cup.
She's been with the Reign since the launch of NWSL and has been a mainstay for the US Women's team. She's had a fantastic career and will go down as one of the most important female soccer players in US history for her role in getting the women's team equal pay.
Her partner, WNBA great Sue Bird, retired after last season. I hope they enjoy a long and happy life together. Until then, I'll be cheering her on for the Reign and during the World Cup.
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Messi will play for Inter Miami
It's been rumored before, certainly will make things interesting to have a player of his caliber in MLS. I only hope to see him next year as the Sounders are not scheduled to play Miami again this year.
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American businesswoman Michele Kang buys the OL Group to form first female sports group
I've been aware of this story for a bit because it affects my local women's team, the currently named OL Reign.
So, the tldr: Seattle Reign launched with the NWSL. A few years ago the owners sold the majority steak to Olympic Lyonne in France. They are a powerhouse and already own several other teams (both mens and womens.) Since the sale though, they haven't really done much visibly with the club other than help loan us players from their Europe teams.
It came out a few months ago that this deal was in the works. The rub? Michele Kang owns another NWSL team, the Washington Spirit (after having taken control after the previous owners were ousted for, let's say - problematic views.)
So now that she owns two NWSL teams, clearly one needs to go. So the Reign are up for sale as this deal finishes. No word on buyers. The hope is either the Sounders, or the female owner group for the Seattle Storm take them on. We'll see.
Aside from the negative (kind of) impact on the Reign, I'm glad to see this business develop and hopefully Kang has a successful (in all ways but beating the Reign) result.
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It's a good thing I've spent my life an Atlanta Falcons fan. Otherwise, not sure how I could go on supporting Tottenham.
This recent run and the past few years of revolving door for coaches is just... a lot.
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I am not going to be okay when Ted Lasso ends. This week's episode was so meaningful and amazing.
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Woke up still buzzing after the Sounders win last night. Overall pleased with MLS on AppleTV+, still things to improve but overall solid presentation. Really hoping it proves successful for MLS and Apple.
Sounders looked dangerous and exciting. I'm hoping that was more Sounders being good and less Colorado being bad. We'll see over the coming weeks.
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When I met John Clarke
Six year ago I sat in the common area of the hotel in Ireland, among dozens of other people. It was late at night, or early early in the morning depending on your opinion, and I watched the Atlanta Falcons (MY Atlanta Falcons) give away a commanding lead in the first half of the Super Bowl. A lead large enough that my close friend Liz felt comfortable telling me "Congratulations" before she headed off to bed.
I want it made clear, I responded immediately and vehemently against this sort of premature celebration - no matter how much I was agreeing with it when she said it. I knew that there was another entire half of football to be played. And I knew it was far from guaranteed. I knew this for two reasons:
First, our opponent were the New England Patriots with Tom Brady. The Patriots and Brady were a dynasty and there was no doubt in their skill.
Secondly, we were the Atlanta Falcons. A team which I've supported my entire life out of some sort of masochistic obsession. The Falcons have found new ways to lose games. And on this day, we were going to find a new one: Giving up a 21-3 halftime lead.
It was, to put it simply - brutal. I was demoralized and heartbroken.
I was also tired. And I was also looking at a very early flight home from Ireland to Seattle. I had set up to have a taxi ready very shortly after the football game ended so I could head directly to the airport.
With my Matt Ryan Falcons jersey tucked back in my suitcase, I went outside to catch my cab.
The driver was a nice enough guy. I remember him making clear he was happy to chat or drive in silence given the early hour. I wasn't ready to sleep yet so I decided to talk. The Super Bowl of course came up, but he admitted he didn't follow American football. Which then easily transitioned to soccer.
I tended to fall back on soccer as a conversation with cab drivers in Europe as it was more likely to be fruitful and also to do my part to help show the world that America does have soccer fans.
My driver, "John," according to his displayed license, told me that he had actually played in the Premier League as a youth. He mentioned it offhandedly as we were driving through the pitch black Dublin roads. I think he expected it to be something we moved on from, but I had my smartphone and a curiosity to know who he was. I googled "John Clarke Premier League" or something similar and the conversation went roughly:
John: "Yeah, so I played in the Premier League back in the 80s."
Me: "Oh really?"
John: "Those were the days..."
...
Me: "You played for Manchester City?"
John: "How did you know that?!"
Me: "I found you online."
John: "My information is online?"
He viewed himself as forgotten and so when I was able to find him and bring that up, I could hear his own surprise and spirits lift.
(I am guessing he is front right of this photo, but I am not sure.)
From what I have found, he was a sub for the club that year. As it turns out there is a book about the squad he was part of, and when I googled him I found some info shared by people looking for information about people from the squad.
The rest of the drive was him talking about playing and stories from it. I can't stress how much this cab ride lifted my spirits from the low pits of losing the Super Bowl the way the Falcons did.
At the end of the ride, I sheepishly asked John for a photo. "I've never met a Premiere league player before." He of course agreed.
There, in the unloading zone for Dublin airport, I snapped this blurry photo. A memento of that cab ride and a reminder of the power of sports. They can take us to the lowest lows and lift us out of them. They have the power to transport a man, forty years removed from his time playing, back to his youth and a marquee moment where his team was the best in England.
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Sounder at Heart survived SBNation/Vox's massacre
Layoffs are never fun. SBNation shut down all but two MLS blogs (as well as the entirety of their NHL blogs) and with a few days perspective, Jeremiah Oshan posts about the future for Sounder at Heart and admits to the survivor's guilt that comes with being one of two MLS blogs which were spared the hatchet.
US soccer coverage is going to look very weird and I hope another enterprising group picks the various blogs up, or at least steps in to continue to provide coverage for the other teams.
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Forever one of the greats, farewell Pelé
Few names carry the same weight as Pelé, the Brazilian legend. While it is arguable if he is the greatest ever now, it is unquestionable that he remains one of the players who forever changed the game and raised its visibility around the world.
I've had the chance to go to Brazil twice, both times to São Paulo. On the first of those trips I was able to visit the "Museo de Futbol" in São Paulo which was virtually hosted by Pelé.
Sadly, I don't have a good photo from inside. My phone at the time only had a so-so camera. I have a blurry photo of me posing in front of the virtual Pelé, but it is not worth sharing. I keep it purely to add to the memory of that visit.
That said, it is still one of my all-time favorite travel memories, to stand in what almost felt like a holy place in a country that loves the beautiful game, hosted by the hero of soccer for the country.
Obigrado Pelé.
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Soccer + Boxing Day
I spent this morning (mostly) watching soccer. My body woke me up a bit before 4am, and normally I'd go right back to sleep, but I knew the Spurs played at 4:30. I want to stress, normally I don't get up that early to watch the games - but since I was up, I decided to go for it.
I almost wish I hadn't, as the Spurs only managed a point. I then watched Crystal Palace's game against Fulham, before crawling back into bed for a few more hours. Then I got up again and sadly watched Arsenal perform the way I had hoped the Spurs would.
I'm not sure we'll get a St. Tottering's day in our favor this year.
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Congrats to Argentina!
Watched this morning's World Cup final. I came into it rooting for Argentina, cheering for Messi to finally get a World Cup trophy. The match was a wild and drama filled one, but glad France folded and Argentina claims the win.
Also, check out this incredible photo by Kai Pfaffenbach for Reuters:
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USA is through to the Round of 16 at the World Cup!
After missing the 2018 World Cup, it feels good to make it to the knockout stage once again. Bring on the Netherlands!
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2022 FIFA World Cup bracket and standings
This page has turned out to be my go-to source for World Cup info and scheduling. It's a simple page layout, no ads, and has all the information I want.
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Qatar says 400-500 workers died for the World Cup
Disgusting. I'm so sad and angry that this happened and that the repercussions will be minimal, if any.
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