Last season the Whitecaps brought in a defender by the name of Mouloud Akloul. He is an absolute house of a man. Despite his intimidating profile, the incredibly personable Frenchmen won the clubs Blue and White Award for Community Service and Spirit last year while he spent the majority of the season rehabbing a surgically repaired ankle. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
Surgery is a funny thing, regardless of the the fact that they've been cleared to play, a lot of times players maintain a fear of re-aggrivating their injuries. Rightly so, these are peoples lives and careers that we are talking about here. We saw it through the first half of last season with Wes Knight who appeared apprehensive at times, and looked to lose a bit of the confidence that he had gained the previous season.
Therein lies the problem when you are a player who is known for their ferociousness, and fearlessness. There is no Wizard of Oz waiting around to just gift you with courage. You have to drum up that courage on your own.
Akloul got a chance to test his ankle at the end of last season, and looked to be out of step with the pace of top players at the D2 level. It's hard to imagine that bodes well for his chances of making the first team this year in MLS. We are just over 70 days away from the first game of the season, and their has been no news on Mouloud's status with the club for next year. No contract announcement but to the same end he has not been cut. In the dog eat dog world of club soccer, when you are holding a highly prized international spot you had better be performing.
Ricardo Sanchez and Jonathan Steele fell victim this reality of modern soccer last year and it wouldn't come as a huge surprise if Akloul met the same fate. If he isn't seen as a starter during the first half of the season don't expect him to be with the club at BC Place.
He has a huge hill to climb. Hopefully this year we see less of the big defender at the beach and more of him on the pitch. At this point it's his spot to lose.