Soccer Stuff

Well, the Crew drafted three college players in today's "SuperDraft," but that wasn't the big news. All-time leading scorer Jeff Cunningham was traded to the Rapids for a first round pick in 2006. Cunningham was a somewhat petulant individualist, but I think he really humbled himself for the better of the team in the Crew's record-setting 18 game unbeaten streak last season. However, his salary wasn't commeasurate with his production. Plus, Martino seemed to play much better without Cunningham in the lineup, as Cunningham's dominance and selfishness limited Martino's effectiveness. At this point in their careers, I think the Crew made the right choice by effectively choosing Martino over Cunningham for the focus of their attack. Certainly I'll miss Cunningham's "electricity" with the ball, but obviously, the Crew needed to make a change to get to the next level.

In worse news, one of the things I love most about soccer is changing... Soccer is a relatively obscure sport in America. Therefore, it's seemingly devoid of me-first "superstar" thugs that permeate other sports, like football, basketball, and baseball. Certainly there are soccer players that meet that criteria, but at least it's not as well-publicized. I think soccer is finally "catching up" to the rest of the major American sports. ESPN is reporting that the USSF is on the verge of selecting "scab" players for the Men's National Team, because the existing team is unionized and feels that they aren't being paid enough to participate. I'm not going to argue that soccer players need to fight for a fair piece of the pie in the sport's infancy in the U.S. However, I question the timing, since the U.S. is preparing to start the final stage of World Cup qualifying, and it's team is poised to make a splash in Germany in 2006. There is a Feb. 1st deadline for an agreement to be made. Please, gentlemen on both sides of the problem, I implore you to come to an agreement! Give me a team that I can be proud of on and off the pitch, in a sport where America is in an unusual spot - an underdog, yet with a legitimate chance to earn some respect and credibility for American soccer.