One of the perks of covering Major League Soccer is the opportunity to vote for the end-of-season awards. Over the next 10 days or so, I'm going to try and compile my own list of players whom I will select for these prestigious awards.
Of course, I'd be remiss if I didn't ask for help from our loyal readers. So with that, let me know who you think I should vote for. I've got to vote in the following categories:
MVP
Coach of the Year
Defender of the Year
Goalkeeper of the Year
Rookie of the Year
Fair Play Award
Comeback Player of the Year
Sports Referee of the Year
Newcomer of the Year
BEST XI
Goalkeeper
Defenders (3)
Midfielders (5)
Forwards (2)
Actually, for one award I'm leaning heavily toward one player. Unless Chicago collapses these last two games, I'm strongly considering voting for Cuauhtemoc Blanco for Most Valuable Player.
Let me know what you think with regards to Cuau and the other awards.
8 comments:
As much as Blanco has helped Chicago, I dont know how many people will vote for a guy who will have played a little over one third of the season for his team.
Right now, and to little suprise, I think its a race between Angel and Emilio. My vote, homer that I am, goes to Angel. Without Angel, RBNY would be in far worse shape than they are now, while DC is, well, DC.
So I would vote for Angel for MVP, and Emilio for Newcomer (since I think that's the main reason MLS created that new award).
With Guillermo Barros Schelotto, the Crew were legit playoff contenders. Without him, they've tanked. I know you can't give the award to someone who only played about 10-12 games or so, but he's the epitome of "valuable"...
Coach of the year has to be Preki.
Newcomer should go to Galindo, look at the drastic turn around Chivas has made in the standings thanks to him. Winning the LA derby, first in the west, now in Supporter Shield contention and Super Liga.
But, I'm sure he'll be over looked for one of the aging super stars.
LB, I applaud your bravery. You are seeing what the true value of Mr. Blanco is.
Barring a red card (always a possibility, especially when Mr. Olsen will be hacking away) Blanco will play 14 MLS matches for the Fire - almost half a season. In the 12 to date, he's scored 4 and assisted on 6. Not gaudy stats by any stretch of the imagination. The Fire has won 5, drawn 5 and lost 2 in that time. Again, not a tremendous streak.
However, he (& Osorio & Conde) have lifted a floundering team into playoff contention. Toyota Park, which was hosting crowds of about 12,000 before, is now a sold out loud and energy filled home field. He's provided entertainment and excitement where we previously saw little.
His visits to other cities have sparked passion both for and against at each stop. He's done it all on the pitch, great passes (so many wasted by Fire forwards), great runs (or waddles) to put pressure on defenses, and tremendous free kicks. He's played the villian for all the haters, he's engaged the refs, he's ramped up the atmosphere with his reputation & deeds. You can see each team taking turns giving him whacks & he's taken them, and soldiers on.
Sure Angel and Emilio are having great years but Blanco is the total package. He is what the league wanted Beckham to be (although the not so glamourous version I must admit).
There will only be a brave few who will vote with you LB. Still, I'm glad to see that you are looking honestly at the big picture to see that Mr. Blanco deserves this honor.
I agree, Preki not getting coach of the year is a crime against humanity.
Also - I'd love to see Ante Razov in one of those categories. At this point, I don't even care which one. That guy is on fire this year. If we keep giving him praise, I bet he'll win the Cup for Chivas then spend the off-season curing cancer and fixing all the problems in the Middle East.
Andrea:
For goalkeeper oo ahead and write in Hope Solo, or better yet Briana Scurry since Hope is on "double secret probation".
Best 11:
------Angel--Emilio--Galindo-----
-----Fred----Blanco---Alvarez----
--------------Toja---------------
--E.Robinson--Suarez-E.Robinson--
--------------Guzan--------------
Pretty offensive, I guess, huh?
Just missing out: EJ, Beckerman, Schelotto, & others (since I didn't really put much thought into this)
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