Toronto FC has talent, but little depth. (Getty Images)

Its the very last team in our 2010 Look-in series. First off sorry TFC fans for not posting this sooner. I had ever intention of doing this last week but set backs got in the way.

Lots of changes have taken place in Toronto this winter. From the turf being removed for natural grass at BMO Field, to a new manager in Preki taking cover and re-doing the roster his way. Lots of changes have taken place but have any really done a good enough job of getting this club ready for 2010?

Will this be the year that Toronto finally gets to the playoffs? Is Preki the right guy to lead the way? Let’s take a look now to see where this team is at right now and what places they need to improve on before the new season gets underway.

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Stefan Frei has proven to be one of the better picks in the 2009 draft. (Getty Images)

We are nearly halfway through the 2009 campaign and it is a good time to review how the rookies are doing thus far. As stated before I think this year’s rookie class has been one of the better ones that we have seen in recent years. Plenty of rookies are getting a chance on the field and some are making very good impacts with their clubs.

For me right now the rookie of the year race is really starting to heat up. A few guys have really shown they are worthy of the honor already and continue to do so each week. While I won’t go into any particular order with this list I will say the few that are mentioned are definitely above and beyond the rest of the class here.

Steve Zakuani (Seattle Sounders FC): The number one pick continues to impress me. I knew a while back that this kid had some special talent and I believe we are seeing just that here this season. Currently he has two goals and three assists on the year. His number may not jump out to some but his skill on the field definitely do to me. Right now he has to be considered a front-runner for ROY honros. Good to see a number one pick live up to the expectations of the pick.

Stefan Frei (Toronto FC): I think Frei has made a lot of clubs second guess themselves this year to why they didn’t pick him until Toronto did late in the first round. He’s already proven himself to be a quality starter in the league. Hell he’s even gotten Toronto’s old keeper out of a job because of his play. While he has let in a few more goals than other keepers out there a lot of that could be due to the defense that plays in front of him, though I think that could be changing soon. Continue Reading…

Rodney Wallace has proved to be one of the best picks in the 2009 Draft. (Getty Images)

A lot has been said about this year’s draft class. Going into the draft a lot of people thought it was a deep pool of players, more so than it had been in a few years. After eight or nine games for most clubs you could say those people figured right. Many rookies continue to get plenty of minutes and impress folks in the stands with their abilities.

I figured instead of doing the usual look at the potential rookie of the year today to do something a little different. Instead I will be looking at each club’s selections once again. I’ll do most of the first round and a few random picks here and there from that with a few other notes.

Most of all the clubs who had first round selections used them wisely as we can all see. A few others did not though. Then you have the clubs that hardly picked at all. Those are tough to grade.

As always feel free to post your comments below on the subject.

Seattle Sounders FC: This club made a big splash with Steve Zakuani at number one who has lived up in my eyes as a number one pick. Definitely more of a Maurice Edu-type pick rather than a Nikolas Besagno-type number one pick. Which is a good thing for the expansion Sounders. Zakuani has done enough to make the Sounder draft class one of the better ones this past year. Continue Reading…

I will be honest, this rookie class is already far and away better than it’s older brother from a season ago. Instead of digging deep to get a rookie of the year like we did last year it seems like we will have a true race once again this season between maybe four or five guys.

Its early so far but its worth going in to see who has the best shot after the first couple weeks.

So far this won’t be in any particular order but if you have an order to who you think is leading the rookie pack this early feel free to post below. If you think a rookie needs to be on this list, just post below.

Steve Zakuani, Seattle Sounders FC – I think we are all seeing why this kid was picked first by Seattle back in January. And to think we had some questions about Seattle not picking him and trading away that top pick. Right now I think it is safe to say that the number one pick could be the leader in the clubhouse after three games. His one goal and one assist have helped lead the Sounders to their perfect record thus far. Continue Reading…

I know I have been a little delayed in getting this out but I think it actually worked out fine getting the season predictions out on the week of the new season. Hard to believe that we are just days away from the first kick of the new year up in Seattle.

Time now for the final preview if you will, the season predictions. I will go through who I think we need to keep an eye out for, some rookies that could make a splash, and some coaches that could be on the hot seat this year. Later on today (or maybe tomorrow morning) I will have the year’s first power rankings.

Keeping in the tradition of past season predictions there will be some random stat guesses. Like them or hate them, I do them every year and sometimes actually end up correct on them.

As always feel free to add your own predictions below.

Players to watch in 2009:

• Guillermo Barros Schelotto, Columbus Crew – The MVP, probably the best player even for his age in the league. Even if GBS is half as productive as he was a year ago the Crew will be alright. The man can make anyone look good on the field. Sure he is a DP but he is well worth the pay in my book. Still for the Crew to repeat GBS needs another 15-20 assist year, with probably 6-9 goals too.
• Christian Gomez, DC United – The main reason why I have him here is because he is back in Black…the Black-and-Red that is. Getting Gomez back in DC is a big thing, plus this time he seems like he really wants to be there. Good thing too because this could either be a good DC team or a terrible DC team.
• Kenny Cooper, FC Dallas – For Dallas a lot still rests on Cooper. How much longer will he be with the Red Stripes? And can he produce like he did a year ago? A 15-20 goal season shouldn’t be far off with the addition of David Ferreira, but will he stay on board for the full year? I just doubt it.
• Landon Donovan, LA Galaxy – Just like Cooper, how long will the Galaxy be able to hold on to LandyCakes in 2009? For me this should be his last year in MLS. Maybe even last couple months. I really was shocked to see Bayern Munich not pick him up and I wouldn’t be shocked to see another club in Europe come get him before the year is out. As for the MLS side with Donovan, I fully expect him to pick up where he left off in 2008.
• Dwayne de Rosario, Toronto FC – The big guy is finally home in Toronto. Just how good will the Reds be with him in 2009? I think the potential is certainly there but as we all know it comes down to his pairing with Amado Guevara. Its a pairing I have to say I like though and one I think will work. If it doesn’t it could be another long year at BMO Field.

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Gotta love a good draft rumor the week leading up to the SuperDraft. If you told me a week ago about this idea I probably would have laughed it off a bit but the more I look into the better it sounds on both ends. Several reports including SBI are saying that Toronto and Seattle could be trading picks in this week’s draft.

Toronto would move up to #1 and of all things Seattle would take some allocation and move down to #4. Yup, that would mean Toronto would own the top two picks. After all the talk about Toronto shipping the second overall pick to the best buyer this deal sounds more reasonable for Toronto.

Apparently this is all stemming from a poor MLS Combine for a couple players that Seattle had in mind for the top pick. Mainly Steve Zakuani isn’t living up to his billing at the Combine so far. Sure Combine results are tough to tell anyways from year to year but they do hold weight with clubs.

Plus the idea of getting some extra allocation for the expansion club is a smart move I think. Moving down to number four won’t be a big swing in the quality of player they could draft. Not to mention there could still be a outside shot that Steve Zakuani would fall to that spot if they were there. Toronto would be at the top two and would probably take Stefan Frei and Sam Cronin with the top picks. Some believe they will take Cronin only to deal him to someone else. Which I could see them do it with Omar Gonzalez as well.

Honestly I like this deal for both clubs if it turns out to be true. Toronto gets better in possible in areas they need help with; Mo Johnston gets to play the trade game like always; and Seattle gets some solid allocation and a good prospect for Sigi Schmid.

What do you all make of this possible pick swap between these two sides? It could be a domino effect that could change a lot of things in this draft.

Graham Zusi leads Maryland to another National Title. (Getty Images)

So let’s be honest here, the College Cup this past weekend was just okay. Nothing special and really nothing worth taking time away from the holiday season for. I watched recaps, highlights and read some reviews of the semifinals and found a way to tune in for the final yesterday between Maryland and UNC.

First off I really wish Wake Forest had made the final. All year long I had seen clips and heard reports of just how damn good that team was. Turned out their power ran into a brick wall on Friday against UNC. No knocking UNC for what they did to slow down the Demon Decans, it was just boring stuff to watch really.

The other semifinal between Maryland and St. John’s didn’t look all that much better. Sure it ended with a sweet goal in overtime but for the most part it too was a bit unwatchable on the account of the style of play that St. John’s brings to the table.

I just don’t get why some coaches, in college and even in the pros, hold off in big games. I really felt that this weekend’s Cup was that way. Some sloppy play out of all four teams really hurt this year’s Final Four from being a great one. It wasn’t terrible but it sure could have been better with some offense.

Moving forward to Sunday’s game, it was just as slow and sloppy as the two on Friday. For once the weather was the reason. Usually these games are in North Carolina or Columbus or somewhere a bit cold (yes I know sometimes it is in LA, so hush). This one was in a fairly warm Texas town called Frisco, you know the town outside of Dallas with the soccer stadium. Continue Reading…