Colorado Rapids Forever

Today the Rapids announced the results of the 'fan activation' from the offseason where they were considering rebranding the club.  The overwhelming response (90%+) from the fans they talked to was don't change the name, don't change the colors, but updating the badge and other branding is fine.

So that's what they announced they're going to do.  We will still be the Colorado Rapids.  We still still be the burgundy boys.  We will have a new badge.  Nourse at the Post and Pollard at Burgundy Wave did get confirmation that "keeping the colors" might include slightly changing the shades of burgundy and blue but the fundamental colors will remain the same.

This is fine from my POV.  I'm not particularly attached to the logo, it was always the fallout of the botched Arsenal Colorado rebrand in 2007.  The important thing is that the Rapids will stay the Rapids and after having three different color schemes in their history they won't add a fourth (mostly).  Most clubs in the last 10 years have revised their badge due to the needs of a technological age where scaling the badge down to use on social media means complex designs get muddled.

The important thing here is really that for once they actually listened to the fans.  When I discussed this in January I really teed off on the Front Office, saying that either this decision had already been made or this would all go away and not be discussed again.  Instead they split the difference and decided, correctly, major changes would be a mistake but refreshing the identity had value.  In my defense the FO has a long history of talk without action but I welcome this change.

It sounds like due to timing with the schedule switch any sort of new badge and image probably won't be ready when the 27-28 first winter season launches, so we're looking at two years out before we see the results of this.

In other news that actually dropped last week but I was unable to get to, the Rapids have the details of their first Open Cup match of the season.  Its next Tuesday, April 14th, at 7:30pm at the Dick.  The opponent is USL Championship side Union Omaha.  The winner gets the winner of the SKC-Colorado Springs happening just down I-25 that same night.  If Colorado Springs wins then (assuming the Rapids win) then the battle of Colorado would be at the Dick.  If SKC wins and the Rapids do the all-MLS I-70 battle would take place in KC.  (If you're wondering the same things apply if Omaha wins, they'd host the Switchbacks but go to KC).  Sadly I probably won't be able to attend this one as I have to be on a flight the next morning.

#MLSAfterDawn

You can't call a game that started at 1:30pm local, 11:30am in the road team's market a #MLSAfterDark special, but this game delivered what you would expect from that tag in spades.  Unfortunately at the end the Rapids were left holding the short end of a 3-2 scoreline trying to figure out where it all went wrong.  And in about 20 minutes of the second half it went very wrong.

Random Thoughts:

• Uh, where to start?  I guess with one of the two obvious storylines so lets go with the officiating.  It was a mess.  It was clear from minute to minute nobody knew what was a foul or yellow card.  I'm not even sure the ref know what his level was.  The lightest of touches (Ojediran) would be carded while full body slams (on Navarro) weren't even a foul.
• That said, I have no problem with the two straight red cards.  Some refs would have just given a yellow for Travis' stomp and the VAR wouldn't have overruled, but Jackson came in aggressively, late, and got the ankle.  Its hard to complain about that being a red.  Likewise the foul on Fredrick was a DOGSO red.
• The first yellow to Navarro was self-inflicted.  At that point the ref had already given two reds, a yellow, and things were chaotic.  Don't give him an excuse to give another yellow by booting the ball away, even if it was lightly and probably not something that would be carded by other refs.
• Navarro second yellow was a joke, especially with what the ref was letting go at other times on the field.   There was barely contact, nothing that rose to the level of a foul.  I agree that if there was a foul there it would have to be a card for disrupting the attack, but there was no foul there.
• In the end though, the officiating didn't cost us the game.  Zack Steffen did.  Most of the time you can't really blame a keeper for a loss, but this is one of those times.
• Getting beat near post like he did on the first goal is unforgiveable, but that wasn't the worst of his mistakes.  His inability to play the back pass from Rosenberry and giving up the own goal is an all-time howler.  I think it surpasses Jared Watts for the worst own goal in team history.
• Some people want to blame Keegan for the back pass too, and it was "hotter" than you would probably like, but a keeper has to be able to play that ball, even on frame like it was.
• As you would expect some fans are calling for Steffen to be benched for Hansen.  I think that's a mistake.  Hansen made his own set of bad choices in NYC and needs a bit more seasoning.  I do think whatever benefit of the doubt Steffen had is lost now though.  Another bad game like this and you have to bench him.
• Moving on to everything else, there was a lot to like in the attitude the team displayed being down a man (the first time).  They didn't try to turtle and bunker and kept playing their game come hell or high water.  Once the red card on Toronto equalized things the Rapids actually had some good play. A great free kick from Aaronson and Keegan's annual long-range goal.
• Right before the second red card though I started to wonder why the Rapids looked like they were playing a man down when it was 10v10.  Something had switched in their mentality and they could never flip that switch back the rest of the game.  Instead they were desperately trying to hold onto the lead, then the draw, and got nothing.
• I hope Wells learned a lesson about subbing in two center backs right before a defensive corner kick.  I'm sure the chaos of having 4 CB's on the field and everyone figuring out their roles played into Sargent's winner.
• I felt bad for Manyoma, who got in in the 74th just before Navarro's second yellow only to come off in the 84th after Wells decided to insert those two center backs.
• On the plus side, Herrington kept it from being 4 or 5 to 2 with some big saves.  I don't see how he's here after the World Cup if he makes the Aussie roster (as he should).
• Going into next week's game Travis and Navarro are suspended for their red cards.  Thompson will likely be ineligible while waiting on his visa.  Cannon will probably still be unavailable to start due to his injury.  That leaves the team with exactly 1 right back, Rosenberry, and 0 left backs.  Might we see something like a 3-6-1 with some wingers playing wing-back?  Pushing a winger back to left-back?  Oh, and Sam Vines will be watching from the other bench.
• The good news about this mess is that there was nothing systemic wrong.  It was a combination of a bad ref, a horrible game from Steffen, and a little bad luck.  Just dump it in the trash and move on.

Man of the Match: Rafael Navarro.  For not getting on the score sheet he had a hell of a match and with a different ref likely draws a penalty or a free kick or two in dangerous positions.

Old Friends Meet As Enemies

The Rapids get back from the international break with an early start up north as they're on the road in Toronto.  At the scene of their greatest triumph they'll face off agianst their former coach in Robin Fraser, their former MVP in Djordje Mihailovic (possibly, he's listed as questionable), and their former goalkeeper will be on th bench in Will Yarbrough.  The Rapids recent acquisition from Toronto, Kosi Thompson, will not be available as he's still waiting on his visa.  Kickoff is a very early 11am Mountain tomorrow so don't oversleep!

(Interesting note, both Toronto and Colorado have one MLS Cup win, and both teams win their MLS Cup at BMO Field in Toronto)

Player Availability:

OUT: D Reggie Cannon (ankle), M Ted Ku-DiPietro (shoulder), M Connor Ronan (leg)

Along with the three injured players and Thompson waiting on his visa, new acquisition Georgi Minonugou will not be available, something to do with his visa and having just returned from national team duty with Burkina Faso he can't leave the country right away to go to Canada for this game.  If we were playing another U.S. side he would be able to play.

Kind of tricky to predict this lineup.  Travis was not good at right back last time out so I think Rosenberry will get the start.  Both Herrington and Cobb went on long trips for international callups (Australia and South Korea, respectively) so neither one likely has the legs to go 90.  Herrington got more minutes during the trip but he's young so I'm betting he gets the start with the plan to sub him out around the 60th minute.  Up front Yapi is in the same boat, but with our winger depth being tested I think he also likely gets the start with a plan to sub him out.

Prediction: 1-1 draw, goal by Navarro.  If we were a little healthier and/or a little more rested, or maybe at home, I'd be ok predicting a win.  But I feel like there's just enough stacked against us that we're going to get a draw and be fairly happy about it.

Herrington And Other Internationals

I've been trying to write this post all week but the Rapids keep making solid moves I need to talk about first.  Good problem to have.  Another good thing to have is Lucas Herrington who has been the biggest surprise of the season so far in my opinion.  I did not rate a guy coming over from the A-League as a solid starter but Herrington has arguably been our best (and certainly our most consistent) player over the first 5 games.

And I'm not the only one who has noticed.  Last week a rumor broke that he's being eyed by Everton and West Ham.  Now these type of rumors are always going around so take them with a large grain of salt but that's some notable interest for an 18 year old who has only 5 starts outside his home league.

He was also noticed by the Australian national team and got his first start and cap in their 1-0 win over Cameroon today (early this morning Denver time).  Not only that but he was named man of the match by fans.  You have to think he's got a decent chance to make the World Cup squad at this point, especially if he gets the start and plays well against Curacao on Tuesday.

So a hot start, possible World Cup play, and rumored interest from the Premier League.  I think the Loic Williams signing is partially in preparation for Herrington to leave sooner rather than later.  I don't think its impossible to see him sold in the summer window, and if he's still here for the sprint season next spring we should count ourselves lucky.

This weekend is a busy international break for a number of other Rapids:

• Donovan Phillip got the start as the lone striker for St. Lucia.  He scored the only goal for the Piton in a 6-1 loss to Azerbaijan in Sumgayit
• As mentioned yesterday new winger Georgi Minoungou is in Ouagadougou as his Burkina Faso side hosts Guinea-Bissau in a friendly tomorrow
• Darren Yapi scored the first goal in the USA U-21's 2-0 win over Japan in a friendly in South Korea.  I can't find anything about this game other than the score and goal scorers, but Noah Cobb is also with the team.  The two Rapids will face South Korea as well before returning to Colorado.
• Bryce Jaimson is in camp with the U.S. u-20s in Argentina.  The squad faced the Argentina U-20s in a friendly today and won 3-0, but based on the picture posted of the starting XI Jaimson didn't start and he's not listed as a goal scorer.  Again, that's all I can find on the match.  They will play another match against Independiente's reserves on Tuesday.

Last, but hardly least, there's one more Colorado connection in international play today.  Right now, Friday night in Denver but Saturday in the Marshall Islands, this is happening:

The Ratak Cup is the Marshall Islands' futsal tournament that they are using to build the sport in the islands.  Because of the lack of space and the ease of using already existing basketball courts many small Oceania countries focus on futsal over 11-a-side football to grow the sport.  Earlier this week the Marshall Islands Soccer Federation put out a call asking for sponsors for the tournament.  There was enough interest amongst Centennial 38 members that we decided to sponsor the tournament and actually raised more than double the amount they were looking for.

This is the second iteration of the tournament, expanding from 4 teams in 2024 to 6 teams i 2026 as they kickstart their new futsal league.  The club names are great:

• Real Majuro
• Vasco de Laura
• Clube de Rairok Flamengo
• Ajeltake Arsenal
• Boca Lagoon
• Rita Plate

Majuro, Laura, Rairok, and Ajeltake are communities in the Marshall Islands while Rita is the nickname given by G.I.'s to the now-former naval base on the island.

3 players who played in the 2024 tournament represented the Marshall Islands in their first ever national team games as part of the Outrigger Challenge Cup held last August in Arkansas (Springdale, Arkansas has the largest population of Marshallese outside the islands) and the hope is this year's tournament will be an opportunity for more players to raise their game and play for the full national team in the future.

Even though the tournament is wrapping up just as I post this we're still raising money to help the federation and will be sending them an additional donation of whatever we raise over the next couple of days.  If you want to help out you can donate through C38's website here.

Transfer Window Ends; Judgement: Curiously Competent!

The transfer window closed at some point this evening so its possible a late move may still leak out but I think its safe to say this final move being reported by Niko Moreno and confirmed by Tom Bogert and the Denver Post is the final move for the Rapids.  Colorado is sending $2M in GAM to the Sounders for winger Georgi Minoungou.

Minoungou is 23 years old, 24 in July.  He was born in Ivory Coast but represents Burkina Faso at the senior national team level (he played for the Ivory Coast U-20s before making the switch).  He's currently away with the Burkina Fason national team as this deal is made.  He started his professional career at Czech side MFK Vyskov in 2021 but was loaned to the Tacoma Defiance (Seattle Sounders 2) for the 2022 season and has been in Seattle ever since, moving up to the first team in 2024 and making 21 appearances for my hometown club in 2025.

The reason for the move is that the Sounders are stacked at winger and Georgi is probably 7th in the pecking order if everyone is healthy.  He's still quite raw in many areas but he has one of the best dribbles in the league and no fear about going at any defender.  He's also been pointed out for having an obvious joy for the game and willingness to play both offense and defense.

This is a good, possibly great, move for the Rapids.  It fills an obvious need as I think Minoungou becomes a heavy favorite to start opposite Yapi on the wings and he has a very friendly contract ($104K in 2025) that goes through the 2028-29 season.  $2M is a lot to pay but we need the official announcement (presumably tomorrow) to see how that's split up over time and if there's any performance metrics on it.

As I mentioned yesterday Matt Wells challenged us 2 months ago, after the Bassett trade, to wait until the end of the window to judge the team.  At the time that sounded just like Padraig Smith in 2022 when he traded MAK to open the window and then promised more moves to come, only to sign one player on short-term loan the rest of the way.  Especially when coming into this final week the only move had been to sign Miguel Navarro on loan (and buy out Vines).  It was also a concern that they said "end of the transfer window" when there was 5 games before that and we have a track record of wasting time with signings.

This week though the Rapids put together three solid moves in area of need.  A center back this summer that could fill in if Herrington is sold (Williams), a right back for depth (Thompson), and now a potential starting winger (Minoungou).  All young players that maybe weren't deals but also don't look like dramatic overpays.  This doesn't make the team a MLS Cup favorite but it does put us in position to build on our solid start.  Despite the concerns about not having the deals done before the season started Wells got us off to a 3-0-2 start so it didn't hurt us too much.  Not something I'd generally recommend though.

This wasn't a perfect window of course.  The Sealy move isn't looking strong considering how much we paid and it hurts to see Bassett playing for a different MLS team.  On the flip side Herrington is a top-tier find for this team and Ojediran is the destroyer we've been looking for.  Overall a stronger window than many of us predicted and one that was generally better than average for this team.