Who got it right in the Benny Feilhaber sweepstakes? Probably everyone
by Steve Davis on Apr 22, 2011 10:46 AM EDT
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This Benny Feilhaber flash fire was the big news of Major League Soccer’s week. (Unless you count the Red Bull uprising, cemented when Hans Backe’s boys made fish food out of D.C. United on Thursday night, as “news.”)
Chivas USA was first up in the allocation order, so the Goats had first dibs on Feilhaber, the U.S. international who came off the bench to play in three of four matches at last summer’s World Cup in South Africa. Coach Robin Fraser and the Goats stunned some fans and media by taking a pass on the talented midfielder. (Some writers even suggested that Chivas USA was being coy last weekend by not immediately snapping up Feilhaber’s rights, instead pressing the matter right up to Tuesday’s deadline. They might want to pay more attention next time.)
Philadelphia was next in the order, but also passed on Feilhaber, who will count $400,000 toward a team’s salary cap, according to one league source who tipped the cap number to me.
Next up came New England, who did take on the California native.
So, is it possible that everyone made the right call. I’d say “yepper.” Although there might be one body in all this that wasn’t at its best. Read on for more.
Feilhaber was never a slam dunk for Chivas USA. As I wrote last week at SI.com, Chivas actually has a little midfield depth, with some good, young talent already on patrol and its best man still yet to play in the injured Paulo Nagamura. Chivas needs strikers. So the weekend was probably spent trying to arrange a trade; Chivas would take Feilhaber and then immediately move him.
There weren’t any takers, and that had a lot to do with the inflated $400K cap figure. That’s also the reason Philadelphia Union boss Peter Nowak said, in effect, “Nah, we don’t need him here, either.”
Nowak nailed it. Feilhaber is a good player. But is he a 400K game-changer?
Here’s what he told CSNPhilly.com in this report: “You think Benny Feilhaber is a big name? Really? I have nothing against Benny, we go way back. My point is, if I look at the big players and their salaries go against the cap, you have to ask yourself if it’s worth it?”
And the answer is “No.” That’s a cap figure that would put him alongside players like Javier Morales, David Ferreira, Shalrie Joseph and others. And I just don’t think Feilhaber is that guy.
I don’t care that he has 38 U.S. appearances. I can name a dozen MLS midfielders who are every bit as good as Feilhaber who don’t make half that amount. Heck, two of them played last night: D.C. United’s Dax McCarty and the New York Red Bull’s Joel Lindpere. (The excellent Red Bulls holding midfielder Teemu Tainio probably doesn’t make over $200,000, either; this year’s salary figures aren’t out yet.)
So, why is he making $400K? That’s where I’d say someone didn’t have his best day. That someone is at the league; it was MLS headquarters who signed Feilhaber at that number. They were fishing the man out of the Danish second division, after all. That ain’t Serie A or the Bundesliga. It’s not even the 2. Bundesliga! Feilhaber didn’t appear to have many great options, so MLS really tossed him a lifeline with that figure.
Chivas and Philadelphia stand a good chance of having another good player pop up the allocation process; they retain their spots at Nos. 1 and 2 after passing on Feilhaber.
New England, on the other hand, at No. 3, might not get a shot at anyone. The allocation order is reshuffled at the end of the year, so this was probably going to be the Revs’ only chance for 2011 at such a player. That’s why I’d say Feilhaber, even at an elevated salary figure, makes sense New England. . (They could still trade him, but coach Steve Nicol needs passing and possession, and Feilhaber fits the bill.)
It’s the same as talented college player in the MLS draft who comes attached to some big flaw. Perhaps he doesn’t make early in the selection process. But as he falls in the selections, it makes more sense for some club to go ahead and take him. The risk factor declines as he moves down the line.
So, Chivas USA wins. Philly wins. And the Revs see a useful asset fall into their lap.
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In Benny's defense
he was a good player for AGF when they were in the first division and when he got injured in 09-10 that contributed a lot to AGF getting relegated.
Win or lose, we'll always be there for you.
by johnjahafanclub on Apr 22, 2011 11:27 AM EDT reply actions
Steve, does your source say that the 400k cap hit implies that he’s a DP and banking even more than that?
No
MLS teams can buy down a cap number so that the official DP designation does not apply
by Steve Davis on Apr 22, 2011 12:31 PM EDT up reply actions
Dynamo?
So did the Dynamo win or lose?
Also if you dont think Feilhaber is worth it then why wouldnt NE be a loser in the deal? They could have made a deal with the Dynamo that including swapping picks and getting a young midfielder like Danny Cruz or Collin Clark or maybe a veteran defender like Bobby Boswell. Their new 4th spot in allocation would turn into the 3rd spot so they would be just were they started last week but with an attentional player.
Dynamo a non-factor
MLS teams wheel and deal all the time. They toss around potential deals just to see if they’ll fly, knowing they probably won’t. So, I don’t really consider the Dynamo more than a peripheral player in all this … meaning your boys from South Texas aren’t “winners” OR “losers” in this. They just kicked some tires and moved on. … as for NE: again, it makes more sense as you move down the allocation order. Chivas and (probably) Philly will have a chance to scoop up a “free” asset further down the line. NE probably won’t. So it makes sense for NE to get while the gettin’ is good. The situation is different with Chivas and Philly. Make sense?
by Steve Davis on Apr 22, 2011 12:35 PM EDT up reply actions
Thanks for
defending my honor! Okay, so that wasn’t your intention. I said when this story broke that Feilhaber is a solid, sometimes spectacular mid, who has had both form and injury issues his entire career. He’s simply not worth that kind of money. For example, Mauro Rosales with Seattle—about 200,000 per season, twice the impact player of Benny, played on Argentina’s national team, played with River Plate. Who would you want him at 200,000 or Benny at 400,000? Thought so.
Shame, really, that Benny’s last name isn’t Bradley. Guys with that last name get all the breaks on the national team…
Dude
That’s really not fair to Bradley. He’d be a starting midfielder regardless of the last name of our coach. Oh, and completely off topic.
Dooley-isms Archiving the Genius.
by kingofzachland on Apr 22, 2011 7:17 PM EDT up reply actions
Completely off topic?
Perhaps a little off topic, but I do believe the topic in general is Feilhaber’s value. I happen to personally rate him a little higher than a guy who makes errant passes and runs all over the place to compensate for his lack of tactical acumen. I happen to be of the ideology that a modern central defensive midfielder should run less, holding to protect the center-halves while fullbacks run up to provide width.
IMHO, Bradley is a relic: a 4-4-2 box-to-box guy (his hero is Roy Keane, remember) in a 4-2-3-1/4-3-3 era where DMs are supposed to 1. defend and 2. switch the point of attack with careful passing. And I’m not alone in this thinking
I would pay $400k for a 26 year old Steve Ralston
If Benny is deployed in that role and succeeds, then it’s a home run for New England.
Different read on Chivas
Steve, I’m not sure I see Chivas as having the same number of good young midfielders as you do. I’m not saying they’re bad or anything, but their midfielders all seem to be average, bland MLS midfielders. Where’s the game-breaking ability, or even someone who can do more than make sideways passes and work hard? Mondaini’s good, but he’s all alone out there.
I’m going through their roster, and the first attribute that jumps to mind with just about every midfielder is “hard work.” This is MLS, everyone has hard workers. That’s like going to a job interview and telling them you know how to use the internet. Nagamura, LaBrocca, Zemanski, Elliott, Lahoud, Flores, Mendoza…where’s the sizzle here? Where’s the invention?
The only two exceptions are Blair Gavin and Gerson Mayen. Gavin could add an extra element to the Chivas attack, but he was also pretty inconsistent last year. Is he ready to be an important name for Chivas, or will he just be another complimentary player? Mayen, meanwhile, never seems to get his chance. Is he bad at training? With Gavin unavailable, it seems like a no-brainer to me that Mayen would have to start, just to give this flavorless midfield something it is in dire need of. In either case, it seems unrealistic to me that Chivas will become a good, or even decent, team by adding Gavin to their lineup. They need more than that for today and also for tomorrow.
I think Feilhaber would have been a great fit for them. Combine him with Mondaini, Nagamura, Flores providing energy and pace on the wing, and you’re talking about a midfield that could actually create some chances for Braun and/or Moreno (depending on whether Fraser wanted to stick with the 4141 formation he envisioned in preseason). The only way I could see this being a good call on their part is if they have a similar midfielder lined up for the summer window that they’ve kept secret, or if Gavin steps up to the next level (and possibly even the level after that) as a player in the very near future.
Writer - Black and Red United
Interesting thoughts
Mondaini, as you point out, is the one potential creator. And again, I think Feilhaber could help Fraser’s team. It’s just a matter of what they need more, and at what price? But that’s just my opinion. Like I said, you make some good arguments.
