It’s almost certainly not Dwayne de Rosario’s fault (directly) that The Scottish Sun made up a bunch of arse-brained quotes about the Malvern area of Scarborough being a worse gang-infested, bullet-happy den of drug doom than South Central Los Angeles.
It’s almost certainly not Dwayne de Rosario’s fault (directly) that he wound up getting his shins kicked on a Scottish soccer field without his agent filing the proper paperwork with Toronto FC, Major League Soccer or – apparently – Glasgow Celtic.
Both incidents seem born of ego and naivety – if not outright ignorance.
[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
And while I am not one of those reaction-happy fans who think a player’s likeability and morals are more important than his ability to score 15 goals in your average MLS season, there is one position on the TFC squad I no longer wish to see filled by such an obviously self-serving public-relations train wreck:
Captain.
It’s becoming clearer by the second that DeRo will not be joining the Green half of Glasgow. He therefore remains one of the very few actual soccer assets on Toronto’s roster. And Earl Cochrane, or Paul Mariner, or Jurgen Klinsmann, or someone else, will have to figure out what to do with him.
And if soccer, business or sanity reasons don’t allow you to cancel Mister Malvern’s © return plane ticket from Ye Bonnie Wee Highlands, at least toss his armband in the MegaMulcher © before the start of training camp.
It doesn’t even have to be a demotion. Find a real position for DeRo – and players he can lay the ball off to before he feels he has to hoof yet another outside low-hoper over the enemy crossbar. Ideally, find a guy who can firmly and effectively set him straight when he does that too many bleep-blessed times on the trot.
That’s a lot to ask, admittedly, from a team whose future is being mapped by a consultant and a company man. (And I like Earl Cochrane a lot, but his exact role needs to be clarified – quickly.)
The armband is obvious. Deeper decisions about DeRo’s future, though, are going to require some patience and care. The market value of any player – even an outside Golden Boot candidate like DeRo – dries up significantly when the stink of desperation is upon the team trying to unload him. Also, MLS is a squirrelly market that tosses big obstacles in front of rival teams that might actually want to snap DeRo up.
You could always make him a Designated Player, I suppose, but at least ask around the league and see if there’s even one other team out there that thinks he’s DP material. If there ain’t, Toronto could just end up paying far more money for the same chronic problems.
How’d we get here? Terrific player, in his hometown, and all this happens. Mo Johnston’s huge-money signings of de Guzman and Mista didn’t help. There are ways, of course, that a good organization can smooth such things, but Toronto FC has yet to prove to anybody they’re a good organization.
Short of a full-time move to Celtic, I fear there is no easy answer to the current Dwayne de Rosario mess. And that’s a dirty shame, because the last thing this fractured, underwhelming half-roster needs is out-of-control, ill-conceived public posturing from its unquestioned best player.
From now on, for fans of both DeRo and T.O., the only crime is to be surprised.
---
Problem being, of course, who’s your captain now?
Many a wise man has been up and down the 2010 TFC roster looking for an armband model. The only consensus heart-and-soul, blood-and-guts, go-get-‘em guy is veteran MLS defender and Team Media Good Guy Dan Gargan.
Gargan works his tail off out there, and shows all concerned what doing your very best by example looks like. Any serious consideration of Euro vet Julian de Guzman wrecks on the overwhelming consensus that he’s just a bit too quiet, and doesn’t want the extra weight the captain’s burden requires.
Gargan’s not a glamour guy, but he’s a solid place to start. MLS is still not a glamour league (not that many would suggest the Scottish Premier League is, either.)
Sooner or later, TFC has to start signing players for 2011. If one of those is a clear, consensus captain, hallelujah!
Until then, though, it might not be the worst idea to quietly slip the onfield-general reins to a guy who absolutely cares about the crest on the front of his jersey, and can model that for every last soul in the entire organization.
I don’t think it’s any kind of stretch to say MLS players can relate to Dan Gargan a heckuva lot more easily than they can to Dwayne de Rosario.
Onward!