Obviously it’s hard to predict how a club will perform throughout
their first season of Major League Soccer – there are simply too many
variables to make prophecy a worthy exercise. Today though, we begin to
take stock of exactly what Montreal can expect to achieve given the
players they selected in the MLS Expansion draft.

The Impact selected some quality players for their own use, some for leverage purposes and others simply to on-trade.
It was puzzling that they left good (and cheap) prospects like Mike
Fucito and O’Brian White alone. They, like the Whitecaps last year and
Philadelphia before that, chose to ignore
some high profile (read: expensive) guys like Freddy Adu and Jonathon
de Guzman, preferring to focus on supplementing their NASL quality with
legitimate CONCACAF talent.

Public and pundit response has been mostly positive – especially given the calibre of player
left unprotected by the established eighteen MLS franchises. Reaction
has been fair, with the selection of former US men’s national team
forward Ching by far the most debated
business item. As the draft was structured, the Impact simply had to
select the Houston forward regardless of his threats to retire. Doing so
put the Impact – and coach Jesse Marsch – in a bargaining position
where they hold all the cards.

The purpose of Expansion Drafts is not to provide the bulk of a
team’s roster for the future. Were a club coach to take that approach,
the club becomes mired in youthful mistakes and that coach is fired. The
best strategy to take is to focus on acquiring serviceable starters
without stretching for salary or the future.

It is rare that expansion draftees last for the long-term at a club:
three of the Sounders taken in 2008 now remain in Seattle. Two initial
Union draftees still reside in Philadelphia only two seasons into that
club’s MLS existence. Of last year’s Expansionistas, three sapling
Timbers are still in Portland while the Whitecaps finished with five of
their initial ten.

Whoever sticks – perhaps Sanna Nyassi, Justin Mapp or Zarek Valentin –
can be joined by Impact players who’ve competed well in Gold Cups and
attempt the step up. The new boys have high hopes for new signings like
Nelson Rivas and Evan Bush. Perhaps Marco Materazzi, Luca Toni or SuperPippo Inzaghi could bowl up in Little Italy as well.

It’s not the place of Expansion Drafts to provide the basis for
future success, only for stability and to give the incoming club some
assets that aren’t initially super out-of-pocket expenses. In following
this principal, the Impact came out winners from yesterday’s draft.

Written by

Matthew Wood

Very interesting article this is mate, helps to understand the division a bit more too! Well written piece by this guy and good to see you bringing this kind of content here

Yeah, the draft in the MLS is a real crap shoot. Getting established talent you can use today or parlay into a transfer fee or other players is certainly the way to go.