Nobody will ever be able to say that Vancouver's first draft was not without a healthy dose of drama. The stories and rumours coming out of the combine this year are sure fun to read.[PAGE][/PAGE][PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
Two articles yesterday written by Geoffrey C Arnold, kind of scared me a little. The first says Teitur is disappointed with the fact that he wouldn't get a chance to have a up close and personal look at consensus number one overall pick Darlington Nagbe. Then a little later in the day he says that the rumour coming out of the combine is that Nagbe doesn't want to come to Vancouver.
How weird is that? A kid who grew up and did his studies in the Mid-West, doesn't want to move across an entire Continent and into another Country. Weirdo. That's fine, it's kind of important that you know that sort of thing before you go trying to tell him that is what is best for him. An unhappy new signing is pretty much a useless new signing. Attitude is everything. If you look at the kind of players Vancouver has signed thus far you can kind of see the makeup of the kind of player Teitur is looking for. All you have to do is go back to his statements when he announced the signings of Jay Nolly, Wes Knight, and Philippe Davies. " Talent makes you interesting, but attitude makes you good"
Nagbe is definitely not short on talent, he won the M.A.C. Herman award this year as the best player in U.S. Men's College Soccer. He was a finalist the year before. He won a national championship with the University of Akron Zips (along with 6 of the other projected first round picks). It just doesn't seem like his attitude jives with what the Whitecaps do though. The Cap's aren't AC Milan; where divas are welcome, ask around. Jay DeMerit is going to play his first professional game on North American soil this spring because he went to England with a backpack and a soccer ball to prove he could make it. He climbed all the way into the Championship and now wants to try a new challenge. He doesn't sound like the type of player to sit out a combine, hell he even went to the Whitecaps end of season camp in California to work on team chemistry. That's the kind of player that Teitur (or any coach for that matter) wants on their team.
Perry Kitchen would seem to fit that mould. MLS soccer.com already posted an article where Kitchen says that he's started looking into what Vancouver is like as a city and a club. That shows he's at least interested in coming here, which is a refreshing change. Kitchen is a bit of a raw talent at this point though, and coaches seem to like him in a defensive roll as either a holding midfielder or a centre back. He comes off as very consistent and disciplined (which probably has a bit to do with his military background), but it doesn't sound like he's all too creative. Which is fine in those roles within Thordason's 4-4-2. Get the wingers the ball, and let them push the ball up. Word is he is the kind of player who could make an impact right from the first whistle of the season. He's even been compared to Sam Cronin. Which some people might not really think is that big a deal, but lets just remember that Sam Cronin was good enough to supplant Carl Robinson from TFC's starting line up. He sounds like the kind of player who could really benefit from a couple years training beside a guy like the aforementioned DeMerit. They're both from the Mid-West, played some time in Chicago, they'd make good roommates on the road. One could also imagine that DeMerit would be a good role model for the aspiring USMNT player.
Those are you're 2 supposed top picks in the draft.
DC United hold the rights to the 3rd pick in the draft. My biggest fear all weekend has been the thought that Vancouver might trade their first pick to DC, in exchange for the 3rd overall pick and another player. Then with the third pick Vancouver shock everyone and take highly sought and previously scouted Omar Salgado.
Am I crazy?
I sure hope not, Salgado fits the bill for what Vancouver seem to be setting out to do. While he could be a great contributor 3-4 years down the road, he's not really there yet. He would probably help push the progress of a guy like Dou Dou Toure in the residency. Don't expect him to be putting up big numbers right off the bat with the first team. It doesn't sound as though he would even be able to play for the 'Caps until his 18th birthday according to the Vancouver Province's Mark Weber. Tom Sohen has said "While there's a border between Canada and the U.S., it's one league,". Meaning that his franchise is part of a company based out of the United States, so he should be treated as playing in the United States. It makes me wonder if AS Monaco has these sort of problems? Really though what is it with this kid and paperwork? We couldn't sign him in the summer and we might not be able to sign him nearly a year later? Is he really that good that we need to approach FIFA about changing their view on his transfer status? I have always been told that if something is too good to be true it usually is. Maybe it's time to give up on this dream for now. My biggest fear is that he turns out to be Andrea Bargnani (sorry to those of you don't watch basketball) if you take him at number 1. High expectations and average results will leave a bitter taste in the fans mouths especially with this being the historic 1st draft in club history..
What do you think? Am I crazy? Would you be happy to see Perry Kitchen chesting down balls and playing them systematically to the wings? Should the 'Caps chase Salgado? Let me know. You can reach me on twitter @pureslang i'll be immersed in combine news and notes all week.
For the record the other 2 players I had big hopes for in the combine; UNC's Michael Farfan and Akron's Anthony (Alphabet Soup?) Ampiapitakwong, have not really fared all that well so far in the camp. Sounds like their size has been the issue... who'd have guessed that?!?