What do most of us need? An economy where boxed wine won't be de rigueur at holiday parties a year from now.
But that's a pretty big "fix." Let's worry for now about things that can plausibly be accomplished.
With that in mind, here are, in alphabetical order, each MLS teams' most pressing needs going into the heavy season of winter roster repair. Avenues for improvement include next week's SuperDraft, swaps within the league and the currently open international transfer window.
Chicago: The Fire might be suspect due to age in two prominent spots (Brian McBride and Cuauhtemoc Blanco), but Denis Hamlett's roster has ample cover with several up-and-comers. Marco Pappa and Patrick Nyarko seem ready for more time, and either could be to 2009 what Robbie Rogers was to 2008: the year's young breakout guy in MLS. So, what does Chicago need to round out the mix? Perhaps one more attacking element on the right, and some depth in the back to cover a center back situation that seems tenuous.
As for that right midfield spot, Chris Rolfe filled in often in 2008. But he seems better suited to play closer to goal. John Thorrington can fill the position but seems better suited to play inside (or perhaps even at right back, an intriguing option opened by his presence there recently on Bob Bradley's national team.)
The Fire might need an additional element in the back, depending on the resolution to Wilman Conde's situation. Chicago's punishing center back has expressed some desire to play elsewhere, although he has two years remaining on his contract.
Chivas USA: Preki's team looks strong in the midfield, but has some shoring up to do on either side of that line. Specifically, goalkeeping remains an issue, and top-choice striker Ante Razov isn't getting any younger. The Red-and-White have a stable of promising goal scorers, headlined by Alecko Eskandarian and well-regarded youngster Justin Braun. But what they really need is a featured man. Razov will be 35 by the time Chivas launches its fifth season. He was healthy enough for just 17 starts in 2008, and counting on an injury-free season seems foolhardy.
In goal, Dan Kennedy, 26, finished the season as the No. 1 at The Home Depot Center. And he wasn't bad by any stretch. But he probably needs a strong challenger, at least. As next week's MLS Draft seems particularly well-stocked with netminders, the Red-and-White might indeed go that route.
Colorado: Here's the tricky part for Gary Smith this offseason: the Rapids manager must render his best assessment of whether Conor Casey's splendid late-season form was the long-awaited realization of what the big fellow can do when healthy, and whether the Rapids' target man can maintain that health and high level. If Smith believes Casey can continue to get the job done in front of goal, he is free to pursue midfield depth and a take-charge type for the back line. And the Rapids have not felt great about their situation in goal since Joe Cannon left after the 2006 season.
Without a selection in next week's draft until No. 20 overall, Gary Smith and Co. will most likely look toward the international transfer market to turn over an impact player.
Columbus: The good news was delivered, officially, a day after Christmas: MLS Defender of the Year Chad Marshall would maintain his Crew Stadium address, spurning European offers in favor of remaining with the league champs.
With that, newly appointed manager Robert Warzycha and technical director Brian Bliss could ditch those plans for a replacement search. Instead, they can concentrate on shoring up the attacking midfield spot and gaining a little more cover at forward. Adam Moffat is the likely replacement for Brad Evans, last year's man at attacking midfielder; Seattle selected Evans in the November expansion draft.
Otherwise, the league champs are in pretty good shape heading into 2009. They'll be busy, with CONCACAF Champions League matches added to the slate, so a little more depth along the back line won't hurt. Outside backs Gino Padula and Frankie Hejduk are both in their 30s.
D.C. United: It's a good year to be in the market for a goalkeeper in the United States. Congrats, United! Big Stefan Frei from Cal could be the target, but three or four others could conceivably be ahead on the rating charts at RFK. United currently owns the sixth and seventh picks in the first round, so a goalkeeper worth having will surely be there, one who can push incumbent Louis Crayton, and who could conceivable grow into a replacement.
Otherwise, Tom Soehn's team could certainly use some help in the back -- United's 51 goals allowed was 13th among 14 clubs last year. The club stands to improve most at center back and left back.
FC Dallas: Assuming that Kenny Cooper is staying at home through early summer, at least, the Hoops' big need is at center back. Duilio Davino is gone, having never settled into the MLS game, which requires a little more speed and a more physical approach. So, that's exactly what manager Schellas Hyndman needs: someone with enough athleticism to deal with MLS forwards.
Drew Moor is a good MLS center back, and Aaron Pitchkolan demonstrated the ability to fill in capably in spots. But neither is the big, booming, experienced voice that can steer the back line through choppy waters. That's the major offseason target.
Elsewhere, FCD's left side is in desperate need of reinforcement. The club continues to pursue (within MLS and beyond) a midfielder and a defender who can play along that side and get the wider 4-4-2 shape Hyndman wants -- but that he couldn't have in 2008 due to the a roster construct that favored central players.
Kansas City: So desperate was the search to find flank players who could pep up the attack last year, manager Curt Onalfo had world class striker Claudio Lopez playing out there at times. Still, 37 goals in 30 games (12th among 14 teams) pretty much says it all: the Wizards' attack simply must improve.
Lopez and slashing attacker Davy Arnaud represent a good start. But Onalfo's side needs another striker and, more importantly, a slick midfielder to pull all the attacking elements together.
The forward class of this year's draft is well-stocked. But the Wizards' offseason history under technical director Peter Vermes might be instructive here.
Last year the club selected UCLA defender Chance Myers with the top overall pick, then immediately stated that Myers didn't necessarily need to start or contribute right away. And Vermes certainly showed he wasn't afraid to trade away important players when he sent Nick Garcia to San Jose a year back. So perhaps the Wizards, with their initial selection at No. 8 overall, will prefer to improve via the trade instead of attempting to do so through the draft.
Houston: The Dynamo's needs are in evolution, largely contingent on whether Bobby Boswell remains stateside or takes his game abroad.
Even if Boswell stays, Houston could use more speed along the back line. Right back is a bit of a trouble spot. Richard Mulrooney filled in ably, and provided the Dynamo with a swell passer from the spot. But Mulrooney is a midfielder by trade, and a right back who can defend comfortably and then get forward would be a blessing. A pacey center back to push Eddie Robinson -- who didn't have his best year in 2008 -- could also make Robertson Stadium a tougher place to play.
Otherwise, manager Dominic Kinnear could use some depth at forward to replace Nate Jaqua. And veteran Brian Mullan will need some periodic breaks at the right midfield spot. Kinnear previously had cover there, but Stuart Holden will now inherit a starter's role as Dwayne De Rosario's heir at attacking midfielder.
LA Galaxy: Where to start? The Galaxy are pretty much set at right midfield with that Beckham fellow. And young Sean Franklin seems like a good bet to be aligned at one of the center back spots on opening day. Otherwise, the field looks wide open.
Even the second striker spot could be a potential target for acquisition. Not because Landon Donovan, who led the league with 20 goals last year, isn't a great player. Rather, we don't know just yet if Donovan's loan to German heavyweight Bayern Munich will turn into a longer arrangement.
So, the Galaxy executives absolutely must find a player capable of challenging to start immediately when they select next week at that No. 3 overall spot in St. Louis. Otherwise, they'll look to climb back into the playoff picture through trades, transfers and discovery options. They desperately need a big presence at holding midfielder, and are similarly desperate to land an experienced goalkeeper. After that, the Galaxy need another center back, another central midfielder, depth at the outside fullback spots and greater speed in midfield generally. Oh ... and maybe a goal scorer to replace Donovan. Someone who could turn up, say, 20 goals. Ya know, because guys like that are just hanging around on trees, right?
New England: We're all about to find out how much Michael Parkhurst really held things together in the back for Steve Nicol's bunch. The brainy young defender is in Denmark now, and Nicol's ability to turn up a suitable replacement will say a lot about how things go this year in the land of shamrocks and chowder.
Nicol's team could also use a left midfielder. Everyone thought highly of Mauricio Castro, who held that position for most of 2008. But zero goals and three assists in 24 games just isn't the kind of production that will take Revs where they want to go.
They'll need some cover at attacking midfielder, too. Steve Ralston was more than adequate there when healthy in 2008. But he made just 20 starts, and the league's all-time assist leader turns 35 this season while coming off a season-ending injury.
New York: Claudio Reyna's midseason retirement in 2008 gives manager Juan Carlos Osorio some options -- starting with one huge decision. The Red Bulls can chase a headline grabber, placing a second designated player alongside Juan Pablo Angel. But Osorio has said he's leaning instead toward trading the DP asset, which would presumably free up cap room for two or three capable parts.
Where could New York use those players, whether it's a DP or otherwise? The back line was up and down last year, and some additional stability wouldn't be a bad thing. (Especially in light of Diego Jimenez's recent departure to Mexico's Tecos.) The Red Bulls could target a center back, or rely on Mike Petke's return to fill up Jeff Parke's minutes; Parke was selected by Seattle in the expansion draft.
Much of the offseason tinkering depends on the Red Bulls' ability to re-sign Dave van den Bergh. The veteran left midfielder (or left back, or center midfielder, or pretty much anything) is out of contract. Red Bull would love to re-sign him, but the Dutchman won't come cheap, and he's ready to return to Europe if the MLS offer isn't deemed sufficient.
Osorio also has a decision to make in goal. Will Jon Conway be in the right frame of mind once he gets past his 10-game suspension? (The Red Bulls' former No. 1 has five games remaining before regaining eligibility for matches in 2009.) And if so, is young playoff hero Danny Cepero at a point where he could be a bargaining chip in trade talks, or is he too valuable as depth in the net?
Real Salt Lake: If Jason Kreis' side had a forward capable of finishing more consistently, those 10 wins in 2008 could easily have been 13 or 14. And perhaps that one menace in front of goal could have finally pushed one past a Red Bulls back line that bent and bent but never broke in that memorable conference final last November.
Fabian Espindola, Robbie Findley and Yura Movsisyan -- take your pick, really -- can be good building blocks at forward. But how good would any of them look next to a real game-breaker, a guy who can simply fill up the net at Rio Tinto?
San Jose: Who could possibly complain about the fine job manager Frank Yallop did in building from the ground up in 2008? Assuming central midfielder Francisco Lima, who turns 38 in April, can hold up in 2009, the Earthquakes are about two players away from being a legitimate MLS Cup contender.
They need a striker who can chip in 10-15 goals. Add that element to Ronnie O'Brien's passing and to Darren Huckerby's attacking industry, and the attack at Buck Shaw is suddenly something the talk about.
So the real need is in the back. Everyone along the back line is OK, if somewhat limited. Nick Garcia is tough and experienced, but lacks some pace. Jason Hernandez is a good, versatile presence, but not a match-turner. It goes on. So, one big presence back there could easily raise the level of the surrounding parts.
Past that, one additional central midfielder to push or backup Lima and Ramiro Corrales couldn't hurt.
Seattle: With just 15 players on the roster, including headliner Freddie Ljungberg, who won't be tearing up the flanks any time soon, the newbie Sounders could use a little bit of everything. (Well, Sigi Schmid's team is set at goalkeeper, with Kasey Keller in command. But they'll need a little of everything else.)
At present, they're probably best stocked in the midfield, where Brad Evans, Khano Smith, Nathan Sturgis, Peter Vagenas, Stephen King and the recovering Ljungberg present some good options. But they'll need more bodies in defense and at striker, plus depth for the midfield. As for another recognizable name, look for someone with "goal scorer" on his resume. At present, former Toronto reserve Jarrod Smith and Sebastian Le Toux are the only two strikers signed up. Le Toux had 14 goals in 30 games last year in USL for the Sounders; he'll be monitored closely this year as a test-case for how a big scorer in USL stands up in the MLS game.
Toronto FC: Talk about sitting pretty in the draft. The BMO bunch will select at Nos. 2 and 4 overall next week in St. Louis. Which way will they go?
They still need some help along the back line, but the most pressing need remains at forward. Chad Barrett and Danny Dichio might be too much the same; both are physical target strikers. Is there a player in the draft capable of making an instant impact as a second striker? That's what technical director Mo Johnston and manager John Carver must decide.
Of course, Johnston and Carver remain interested in pursuing a designated player, and that unnamed biggie is more likely to fill the forward spot. So, the BMO brain trust may look elsewhere to find a much-needed center back, someone with a little speed, but someone who can stabilize the back line in moments of pressure. TFC was tied for last in the league in 2008 in goals allowed over the last 15 minutes.
The other shoe that needs to fall here is Dwayne De Rosario, and for more than one reason. "De Ro" may yet land in Europe instead of settling into soccer life in his hometown. And if he stays, where will he play? At attacking midfield, where he was so successful in Houston? If he's there, what of playmaker Amado Guevara? Or will De Rosario line up as that second striker, in front of Guevara?
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