By J Hutcherson -- Here's the thing about going three for four in opening leg draws. It tends to convince people that Major League Soccer got it right by not spending on keepers. After all, there are the results.
MLS spends on attacking players while laughing along at any club putting real money towards the defense, much less coaches. Close games, teams that functionally can't break another down, and the standard excuses when it doesn't go quite right.
It's part of an object lesson most in Major League Soccer have no interest in learning. Spend on your goalkeeper, and you don't normally end up in a situation where your defense lacks confidence.
When your defense is confident, your midfield doesn't have to cover. When your midfield isn't covering, they can focus on supporting the attack. With support, the attack doesn't end up a bunch of odd runs and almost chances. In other words, something different from what passes for the average MLS style from the last few seasons. It starts with the keeper.
There are defenders in bigger leagues than MLS who don't have the 1v1 skills while gladly stepping into the attack. That's down to knowing that missteps aren't going to be punished as long as the keeper is doing his job. In this League, for too many clubs still playing, it's the same old work-rate, stepping into lanes, and panic defending in the box.
Unfortunately for MLS, the list of former keepers now playing elsewhere is better than those in the League. Every time a backup steps up and makes a statement, the wording needs to be checked. If it's 'we can get by without having to spend' it's not what any club should want.
Jon Bush wasn't a career backup. He had the starting job in Columbus, proving he could run a defense at MLS level.
Kansas City and San Jose both took advantage of Los Angeles' seeming unconcern with quality keeping. Seattle adding Kasey Keller should keep an expansion team in contention longer than they have any right to be next season. Some teams get it. Most of the Eastern Conference, not so much.
Yes, MLS has tried and failed with the import model when it comes to keeping. At the same time, they've also run through the once-deep MLS keeping pool. A few retirements, and the keeping issues of '08 could end up being the difference in contending and not so much.
Comments, questions, solutions to problems that have yet to present themselves. Please, tell me all about it.
