The positive spin is good, and much appreciated. The reality is the Timbers seem to be forever mired in the "can't get all our players on the field at the same time" zone. When is it ever going to come together for this team?
It was very frustrating to see Mabiala out there. They had no other option, except play Miller at CB, and we haven…
The positive spin is good, and much appreciated. The reality is the Timbers seem to be forever mired in the "can't get all our players on the field at the same time" zone. When is it ever going to come together for this team?
It was very frustrating to see Mabiala out there. They had no other option, except play Miller at CB, and we haven't seen that yet, and I wonder why, when there has been the opportunity. Does he not rate at CB? Are they thinking he is a worse option than Mabiala? How is that possible?! (Sorry Larrys!)
I have to believe that Gio has his imprint on the lineup and Llamosa executed it. Does Gio think outside the box? Ever? Ancelotti puts Camavinga, one of the most highly touted midfielders in the game, to go play left back because they need him out there. He gets the job done. It works - for the most part - because he is a good player and is the best option, despite him being a midfielder. But no one would ever think to do something like that unless you had to, and there have been plenty of opportunities for the Timbers to think outside the box this year - not in tactical stuff but personnel.
The simple operative procedure is to get the best players on the field. What we saw is that Gio rates Mabiala over Miller at CB, and Rasmussen over anyone else. You could also say that he has limited options when even one CB is out, and that is on the front office. The result is that the Timbers are shaky in the back beyond the starters, and despite their best efforts offensively, can't overcome that shakiness. So, despite the optimism on your part, I see the Timbers hovering around the playoff line, showing glimpses of what could be, but more often than not, missing players, and missing opportunities to play the best 11 through the rest of the year.
I agree with everything you’re saying. I’d much rather have Miller at CB than Mabiala. I think Gio sometimes believes in his players more than he should
I’m just happy to see progress through the types of conversations we’re having here
It was painful watching Mabiala play at Cincinnati. It seemed that any other Timbers player would have been better at center back, even a forward. Why is he allowed to ever cross the midfield line? I like his personality and he seems like a supportive teammate, but he is not a plus on defense.
It's still kinda mind blowing to me that we moved Tuiloma and then failed to add a replacement. They must have thought they were getting good value for him and would easily add a CB that was an upgrade but they're not so easy to come by. Bill got "pass of the week" this week for a great long diagonal leading to a goal for Charlotte. Really thought this would be his year to claim a starting spot full time in Portland. If we don't add someone at least at that level then letting him go was a big mistake.
The point of moving Tuiloma was not to add a like-for-like or better replacement. It was done to get salary budget charge relief, and to start to fix the financial mess GW made of the roster. Eric Miller is the stopgap there until the Timbers' cap woes ease up.
We’re reportedly trying to sign a “top CB target” by the end of today according to Tom Bogert, so hopefully that goes through because we desperately need it
When we traded away Bill so close to the start of the season it felt like we would have a replacement ready to go, but that wasn’t true
I see it as both. It was pretty clear we didn't have someone coming in when the news of the shock trade came through (I spoke with someone who knows Tuiloma last week and apparently he was blindsided by the trade too). Then a week later we sign Eric Miller, you knew the real reason was pre-season cap relief.
That said, if we sign a top CB now, will they even get here before the summer transfer window?
I know everyone hates the Tuiloma trade (I did) but the reality is that there were not a ton of players on this roster that were seen as both expendable and worth anything of value. The small number of players who fit that bill were all going to hurt, but we needed to get below the salary cap to start the season, and then figure out how to build from there. Next off season ad shedding Blanco, Niezgoda and Mabiala will open up some spending flexibility, but it is still 8 months away.
The positive spin is good, and much appreciated. The reality is the Timbers seem to be forever mired in the "can't get all our players on the field at the same time" zone. When is it ever going to come together for this team?
It was very frustrating to see Mabiala out there. They had no other option, except play Miller at CB, and we haven't seen that yet, and I wonder why, when there has been the opportunity. Does he not rate at CB? Are they thinking he is a worse option than Mabiala? How is that possible?! (Sorry Larrys!)
I have to believe that Gio has his imprint on the lineup and Llamosa executed it. Does Gio think outside the box? Ever? Ancelotti puts Camavinga, one of the most highly touted midfielders in the game, to go play left back because they need him out there. He gets the job done. It works - for the most part - because he is a good player and is the best option, despite him being a midfielder. But no one would ever think to do something like that unless you had to, and there have been plenty of opportunities for the Timbers to think outside the box this year - not in tactical stuff but personnel.
The simple operative procedure is to get the best players on the field. What we saw is that Gio rates Mabiala over Miller at CB, and Rasmussen over anyone else. You could also say that he has limited options when even one CB is out, and that is on the front office. The result is that the Timbers are shaky in the back beyond the starters, and despite their best efforts offensively, can't overcome that shakiness. So, despite the optimism on your part, I see the Timbers hovering around the playoff line, showing glimpses of what could be, but more often than not, missing players, and missing opportunities to play the best 11 through the rest of the year.
I agree with everything you’re saying. I’d much rather have Miller at CB than Mabiala. I think Gio sometimes believes in his players more than he should
I’m just happy to see progress through the types of conversations we’re having here
It was painful watching Mabiala play at Cincinnati. It seemed that any other Timbers player would have been better at center back, even a forward. Why is he allowed to ever cross the midfield line? I like his personality and he seems like a supportive teammate, but he is not a plus on defense.
It's still kinda mind blowing to me that we moved Tuiloma and then failed to add a replacement. They must have thought they were getting good value for him and would easily add a CB that was an upgrade but they're not so easy to come by. Bill got "pass of the week" this week for a great long diagonal leading to a goal for Charlotte. Really thought this would be his year to claim a starting spot full time in Portland. If we don't add someone at least at that level then letting him go was a big mistake.
The point of moving Tuiloma was not to add a like-for-like or better replacement. It was done to get salary budget charge relief, and to start to fix the financial mess GW made of the roster. Eric Miller is the stopgap there until the Timbers' cap woes ease up.
We’re reportedly trying to sign a “top CB target” by the end of today according to Tom Bogert, so hopefully that goes through because we desperately need it
When we traded away Bill so close to the start of the season it felt like we would have a replacement ready to go, but that wasn’t true
I see it as both. It was pretty clear we didn't have someone coming in when the news of the shock trade came through (I spoke with someone who knows Tuiloma last week and apparently he was blindsided by the trade too). Then a week later we sign Eric Miller, you knew the real reason was pre-season cap relief.
That said, if we sign a top CB now, will they even get here before the summer transfer window?
I know everyone hates the Tuiloma trade (I did) but the reality is that there were not a ton of players on this roster that were seen as both expendable and worth anything of value. The small number of players who fit that bill were all going to hurt, but we needed to get below the salary cap to start the season, and then figure out how to build from there. Next off season ad shedding Blanco, Niezgoda and Mabiala will open up some spending flexibility, but it is still 8 months away.