 |
||||||
|
||||||
|
The Revolution will cut ties with players like Pat Noonan if they don't fit into the plan. (CHRIS ADUAMA/aduama.com) |
For Kraft Soccer in particular, there is more evidence that a big named player wouldn't pay. Bringing in a Portuguese star makes the most sense given the size of the Portuguese community in Southern New England. But only 28,623 came to see Benfica, the Iberian country's best supported club, play Santa Clara in 2003. At first blush, that attendance seems respectable, but this was for a one time event. A similar bump in attendance couldn't be expected for a single player appearing over the period of an entire season.
When, in May 2004, the Revolution hosted Sporting Lisbon, the Portuguese capital's second big club, only 7,648 came out for the match, despite the appearance of Joao Pinto, as big a star as Portugal has produced since Eusebio. It would be only too easy to extrapolate from that paltry turn out, that signing a big name Portuguese star to a Designated Player-size contract would never, ever pay for itself in increased attendance.
And if a big name Portuguese star doesn't draw fans to Foxboro, what other kind of star would? There probably isn't one.
Add to that the fact that Steve Nicol fairly abhors star players, believing instead that teams win games, and that he had this philosophy drilled into his head while a player at Liverpool in the '80s, and you reach the inescapable conclusion that Luis Figo, Rui Costa, etc., etc., etc. are never going to be suiting up in red, white and blue.
The Revolution are a club bent on fiscal constraint. The Krafts have lost some millions of dollars over the history of their ownership of the franchise. In recent years, through fiscal austerity, they have limited those losses, flirting with profitability, and all the while remaining competitive on the field. From their perspective, none of the facts on the ground scream out for a change of course.
Despite remaining tight-lipped about their scouting program, the Revolution have run the rule over a number of high-profile signings without successfully completing any deals. Particularly in the markets these players come from, there is a sense that player values are over-inflated. Remember that most European leagues, including Belgium, Norway, Sweden and Scotland, pay players of MLS-quality significantly more than our domestic league, thus the loss of Revolution stalwarts Adin Brown, Paulo Dos Santos and Pat Noonan, but also top MLS talent like, Joseph Ngwenya, Danny Califf, et. al.
The Noonan deal is a perfect illustration of where Kraft Soccer (and let me be clear that when I'm talking about Kraft Soccer and player acquisition I mean Sunil Gulati, President, Mike Burns, Director of Soccer, and Steve Nicol, head coach) is in terms of honing the team for 2008. Noonan didn't perform up to expectations last season, and, in a contract year, that gave the team a vehicle for "right-sizing" his contract. Despite being significantly under the salary cap, team management felt compelled to rein in Noonan's contract, a gamble given the salaries European clubs are paying, and one they lost when Noonan walked.
For better and worse, this is the player acquisition dynamic. No player will come into the Revolution locker room unless he fits Steve Nicol's needs (which seem to be talent, flexibility and character) and comes for the right money. Thus far, club management feels this approach has yielded them everything but the winning goal in a championship match.
When set beside the approaches of clubs like LA Galaxy and Red Bull New York, it seems a winning one. Whether it is a strategy that will eventually bring silverware remains to be seen.
Blink
Del.icio.us
Digg
Furl
Google
Simpy
Spurl
Technorati
Y! MyWeb|
[?] Subscribe To This Site
|
Return to top