RSS
Home
MLS Draft '09: Analysis
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
Steve Zakuani, top draft pick. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
Midway through the first round of yesterday's Major Lague Soccer SuperDraft, I noticed something odd. I was writing down the name of the draft pick before Commissioner Don Garber had announced it.
It was, by Major League Soccer standards, a quiet draft day, with few to no surprises. Teams mostly stood pat with their picks, and even the notoriously trade-happy Toronto FC kept all three of its first rounders.
For the local sides, one trade went down, with Chivas picking up a couple of extra draft picks and defender Ante Jazic from the Galaxy in exchange for the 19th pick.
To recap the day:
LA Galaxy - Omar Gonzalez (D, UMd.), AJ DeLaGarza (D, UMd.), Josh Boateng (F, Liberty) and Kyle Patterson (M/F, St. Louis).
Chivas USA - Michael Lahoud (M, Wake Forest), Kyle Christensen (F, Denver) and Jaime Franks (M, Wake Forest).
In addition, Chivas USA acquires Jazic, who might be more useful in the future because of his Canadian citizenship; the defender could be shipped to Toronto FC, possibly in a package deal that would bring Stefan Frei, the top goalkeeper in the draft, to the red-and-white.
For the Galaxy, head coach Bruce Arena immediately got deeper on his backline with the addition of Gonzalez and DeLaGarza. There are some questions about the duo in terms of speed (Gonzalez) and size (DeLaGarza), but if both can contribute next year, the draft has to be considered a success.
Chivas USA, meanwhile, picked up Lahoud instead of Frei, which will be fine if the team can trade for Frei, but otherwise seems foolish. The 2008 season is tough to judge the team on, due to the massive injury problems, but one has to think that goalkeeper and central defense were two of the team's biggest concerns. However, if midfielder Sacha Kljestan ends up heading abroad, Lahoud could be pressed into action early, making the pick a smart one.
Related Articles:
Add a Comment
