Coming off the weekend, here's my thoughts on what happened the past few days:
1. Denilson's a lost cause. I've been following Denilson closely since his much-trumpeted arrival in MLS with FC Dallas and after his latest performance (last week on "MLS Primetime Thursday" against Chivas USA), I think it's time for Steve Morrow to bite the bullet on this failed investment.
Denilson's start was lukewarm with the Brazilian clearly showing lethargy at times. However, since his benching for the U.S. Open Cup final, Denilson's played with a much more commendable sense of urgency and at least attempted to track back more on defense. The only problem is that he's still ineffective.
The main problem is that in his heyday, Denilson was all about flash, exhilarating pace and an unsurpassed ability to break people down off the dribble. What he's never been is a goal scorer, or even a player with much vision -- which is basically what prevented him from reaching the heights that people forecast for him.
Seeing him the last few weeks, it's clear that the knee injuries he's suffered over the last couple of years have sapped him off virtually all his speed, so what you're left with is a player who still has great dribble technique, but lacks the ability to explode past people anymore.
Which leads to the question about how much homework FC Dallas actually did on his signing -- or whether they were assuming the version of Denilson they signed was still equivalent to the brilliant but erratic version that played at Betis, as opposed to the past-his-prime player that toiled at Al Nasr in 2006. The biggest red flag should have been the fact that Denilson actually wanted to return to play in Brazil this past summer, but clubs like Palmeiras took a look at him and wanted no part of him.
2. Schelotto's value for money. The Crew were eliminated from the playoff chase this past weekend but not for any lack of trying on the part of Guillermo Barros Schelotto who scored a terrific game-winner against the Revs. In my mind Schelotto has been the best signing of the season in MLS -- especially when you consider the way he's carried the Crew all season and the fact that he's signed for a bargain price (only $150,000 a year).
In fact, when the Crew first announced they were signing Schelotto, I thought he'd been acquired at a DP level wage and was shocked to find out that wasn't the case. Kind of makes you wonder what the other MLS teams were thinking -- for example, the Galaxy after are paying comparable money to players like Chris Klein and Peter Vagenas, and surely that money would have been far better spent acquiring someone like Schelotto to team up with David Beckham and Landon Donovan.
3. England is on a roll. David Beckham might still be headed for his dream of 100 caps for his country and represent England in Euro 2008, with the way the English national team is rolling as of late (granted Estonia isn't exactly a powerhouse).
It's also not by accident that England's recent rich run of form has come about in part with England forced to abandon the Steve Gerrard-Frank Lampard midfield combination (due to Lampard's injury). Despite it being painfully obvious to virtually every man on the street the last few years that a Lampard-Gerrard combo has major deficiencies, (made even worse by Gerrard's current insipid form and Lampard's inability to contribute anything to the game when not scoring) -- English managers have foolishly continued to pin their hopes on the duo.
In the absence of Lampard, the English midfield has finally gelled with the pairing of Gerrard and Aston Villa's Gareth Barry in a holding role. At this point, the untouchable should be Barry -- and he should be paired with whomever is in better form out of Gerrard and Lampard, but I suspect at some point England will once again resort to the Gerrard-Lampard duo out of some perverse hope that the two can finally produce in tandem.
Player pimping
I've been touting Falcao, the world's best futsal (indoor) player to MLS for a while now (sadly no one seems interested). What's not to like? Incredible ball skills, the ability to be utlitized as a playmaker or an out-and-out striker and the fact that even players like Ronaldinho and Robinho (both of whom were futsal standouts too) are on record as being awed by his skills.
Better yet, from what I hear Falcao would be interested in giving MLS a shot and would want around $600,000 a year which would represent a bargain if his skills translated to MLS. Granted it's a gamble, but given the success of players who have made the transition in the past, it's not a stretch either. Would one such former player, Chivas USA coach Preki give Falcao a shot? Who knows but it'd be fun to watch him in that Chivas lineup given the team's style of play.
U.S.-Switzerland
For those of you unable to catch the game on TV this Wednesday (i.e. skive off work), I'll be doing a play-by-play of the game which starts at 2.30 p.m. ET.