According to Major League Soccer Soccer headlines, MLS teams are starting to assert themselves against their eternal enemy, their players.
Here's Frank Klopas, who according to the headline, is wielding the hammer:
Yeah! That's laying down the law – oh, the actual article is slightly different?
"Klopas: We expect Castillo back for preseason"
Okay, well, "expect" is different from "will," but I'm sure Frank made his meaning plain –
Ah. Oh, and by the way, Castillo can walk in June.
Okay, so Klopas isn't in any position to give orders. But the MLS front page says otherwise, so that's what I choose to believe.
Slightly closer to reality might be Toronto FC's newfound stridency. They're also being pushed around by a high-profile signing, and everyone's up in arms about it.
And rightfully so. Enough is enough. They've signed a famous player to do a job, and he shouldn't be allowed to skip out by lollygagging around in the wrong country. Toronto fans deserve better, and it's about time that MLSE came through for them. That means cracking down on the people who think they can do a job with one eye elsewhere. And if big things aren't forthcoming very quickly in BMO Field, it might be time for Toronto to sever ties with Juergen Klinsmann altogether. Wait, what?
At least they got De Rosario back…assuming he doesn't get murdered in the mean streets of Scarborough.
By the way, am I supposed to know the difference between a Technical Director, a Director of Player Development, and a Director of Team and Player Operations?
Well, obviously Toronto FC does, right? Sure, you and I might think it's idiocy to go to the trouble of finally giving Paul Mariner a proper MLS job, then hiring someone else to coach. But MLSE aren't the kind of people who would take a popular franchise and run it deep into the
Oh, right.
Anyone sort of see De Rosario's point, though? He made less than half as much as Mista, for God's sake. Mista scored no goals, and cost $845 billion dollars – wait, that's not Mista, that was the Iraq war. I get them confused.
Then there's the Galaxy. There's always the Galaxy.
Tim Leiweke told the LA Times' resident billy-goat eater to expect big things:
Could Juan Pablo Angel be the superstar Leiweke is referring to?
I would assume the short answer is no. Angel was an early example of a Production DP as opposed to a Publicity DP, and the Galaxy exclusively specialize in the latter. I would be shocked if Angel got Designated Player money. MLS, like WWE, tends to use the word "superstar" fairly freely, but I don't think JPA qualifies in this context.
Of course, Angel is also 35, but age is only a number to the Galaxy, the biggest cougar-chasers in the hemisphere.
Although right now the Galaxy forward line will be two of Mike Magee, Adam Cristman, Chad Barrett, and Jovan Kirovski. So maybe Angel has the upper hand here after all.
There is no truth to the rumor that, in revenge for stealing Cobi Jones, the Galaxy plan to sign Pele.