Its Game Week!

We're now within one week until kickoff of the season in Seattle on Sunday at 7:15pm.  That means its officially game week!  The offseason is over and its time to look ahead to the season.  Before we do that though there was a final preseason game against Orlando in Florida yesterday, which the Rapids won 4-1.  The 4 goals doubled the combined goals of the first two games which was a welcome sight after a couple of questionable starts.  To be fair Matt Wells was very clear that his goal in the preseason games was to see how a tired squad reacted so he didn't set the team up to win those first two games.

Yesterday Navarro had a pair of goals, Yapi had one, and our new Aussie Herrington had the last one  Yapi also picked up an assist and Aaronson has two helpers as well.  Good to see the big 3 of our attack on the scoreboard.  Also Atencio was subbed off for a "trialist" so there might be an additional name in camp we're unaware of..  Otherwise Holding, Cannon, Vines, and Ronan had the game off and Steffen and Hansen split time.  Otherwise the expected names got the start, with Ojediran coming off after 65 minutes.

Matt Wells said we should judge the team at the end of the transfer window, which is still 4.5 weeks away.  That said the team now is likely the team the starting XI on Sunday will be chosen from.  Anyone signed from outside the U.S. won't have their paperwork done in time, unless they're American but they still won't be ready to step into the starting lineup in less than a week.  This is the week where teams have to reach roster compliance which has led to the Rapids making notable intra-MLS moves in the past, most recently trading for Josh Atencio just before the start of last season.  Even if that type of move is made I think its unlikely that player starts since Wells seems to want a high level of fitness and integration for his team. 

Later this week I'll have my normal preview and predictions.  I may also update my international signing rankings for the first time in a couple of years.  And then of course we'll have a game preview either Friday night or sometime Saturday.  Remember, this will be the last full-season kickoff week in February.  Next year we'll be looking at the 14 game 'sprint season' before the calendar change next fall.

Rapids Continue To Trade Player Options For Money

So two official moves since last I wrote.  Bassett to Portland is now official, with the final price being the same as reported up front but the add-on potential being $100K less than first reports.  As I covered last week, this is not a great move.

Today the Rapids sent two international slots to Chicago for $650K of GAM this year and another $200K of GAM next year.  This is the most ever(?) paid for an international slot.  So good business, but it ties our hands in the number of reinforcements we can bring it.  By my count we have 6 internationals right now:

    Rafa Navarro

    Hamzat Ojediran

    Rob Holding

    Lucas Herrington

    Alexis Manyoma

    Ali Fadal

With two spots traded away that covers all 8 spots.  Now Navarro or Fadal could be getting a green card, or the plan might be to loan Fadal to Rapids 2 this season, but as of right now it appears we have no room for any more internationals.

Which makes this rumor interesting,  The Rapids are linked with Spanish center back Loic Williams, who currently plays for Granada in the Spanish Segunda Division.  The catch is that Granada is fighting relegation and won't sell him until the summer window.  By summer either one of those green cards may have come through, or Manyoma's loan will be up and if we don't buy him that spot will be free.

Williams just told 24 years old and has played his whole senior career in the Spanish lower leagues, amassing 95 appearances over the last 4 seasons for three different teams.  Granada bought him for 600,000 Euros from Tenerife after they were relegated to the third division last year.  The last player I can think of to come over from Segunda and make a solid career in MLS was Shaq Moore leaving Tenerife for Nashville in the summer of 2022 but its not something I've tracked closely either.

Right now the Rapids opening night lineup in Seattle in 19 days looks something like this:

Steffen

Cannon - Holding - Cobb - Vines

Ronan - Ojediran - Aaronson

Yapi - Navarro - Sealy

Which...isn't a MLS playoff-level starting XI.  Not unless Matt Wells has really turned some players around.

I know its been a quiet offseason here, but its hard to have much to talk about when you look at this roster and the lack of action this offseason.

One Month To Go

One month from tonight the Rapids kick off the season in Seattle., opposite NBC airing the Closing Ceremonies from Italy that would have taken place 8 hours earlier.  The Rapids haven't made a whole lot of news in the last week or two until today where they signed a draft pick and played their first preseason game.

Colorado signed 2025 Superdraft pick (so December of 2024) forward Donovan Phillip to a 2+3 season contract.  With the sprint season next season this means he's guaranteed through the sprint season, then has 3 team option years.  After being picked last season Phillip went back to school at NC State and won the MAC Hermann Trophy this year, which goes to the top player in Division 1.  He is actually the third Hermann trophy winner to make his MLS debut with the Rapids, but the first as a player.  Former GM Dan Counce and former coach Mooch Myernick were also Hermann trophy winners.

Phillip will join the team in Florida once he gets his visa.  On that subject Matt Wells was able to join the team in Florida just a couple of days after they got down there.  His new assistant coaches are still waiting for their visas though, as is new midfielder Hamzat Ojediran.  Braidon Nourse of the Denver Post has a good article about why these are taking longer than they used to and how its largely out of the Rapids hands.

The Rapids also extended Nico Hansen through the 27-28 season with options for the two seasons after that.

Today the squad got their first preseason action in, facing Nashville SC.  Interesting note is that Sam Bassett is in camp with Nashville and got time in this game, but after Cole had subbed out for the Rapids.  Colorado started in what looked like a 4-3-3 with a largely second-string lineup but with Steffen, Holding, Cannon, and Bassett starting alongside Herrington, Travis, Frederick, Wathuta, Harris, Sealy, and Yapi.  Yapi got the scoring going early with a nice curving shot into the far corner but after that it was all Nashville as they scored 3 to win 3-1.  The second half roster was another mix of starters and backups as it was Hansen, Rosenberry, Murphy, Cobb, Vines, Ronan, Antencio, Aaronson, KSB, Manyoma, and Navarro.

Hard to take much out of the first preseason game (or any preseason game really).  Wells had mentioned that he was intentionally working the team hard leading up to this one as he wanted to see how they reacted when they were tired.  About the most preseason tells you is if somebody notable isn't playing, but nobody was really missing from this one.  Ted Ku-DiPietro was the only notable name not to play but hard to get all our potential wingers on the field with everyone getting 45 minutes.

My bigger concern is that we're one month out and nothing has changed from my roster analysis a week and a half ago.  I did have one glaring mistake, I didn't consider the addition of Lucas Herrington.  That said right now to me he's the Australian Noah Cobb (or maybe since Herrington signed first Cobb is the American Lucas Herrington).  Both young center backs playing at a high youth level but yet to prove they can be a regular MLS starter.

Herrington aside though, I still have the same conclusions. With no other changes we're banking heavily on young players being able to quickly step up to be full-time starters and that Wells can unlock something in the team Armas couldn't.  I'm most concerned about a defense that is looking like its going to be Cannon - Holding - Herrington/Cobb/Murphy - Vines across the back line.  This is a defense that is likely to get torched regularly while only Vines would be expected to add to the attack.  The Rapids really need to make a move for a MLS ready CB and make it soon so they can integrate in camp before Feb. 23rd.

Finally, Some News.

Sorry I've been quiet here but nothing's been going on.  We traded an international slot for some GAM and got Toronto's 1st round pick next year so they could hire Neil Emblen and Jase Kim but otherwise even the couple of rumors that popped up have been pretty weak.

Two preseason matches ended in a 2-2 draw (goals from Josh Copeland and Sam Bassett, with Cole setting up his younger brother) and a 1-1 draw (goal by Rafa).  too soon to really draw any lineup conclusions from those.

Today though we got a bit of news.  Both Abe Rodriguez and John Berner have left camp in Mexico now that Steffen and Beaudry are back from their various National Team duties.  We'll see if they show up in Rapids 2 camp or not (which I just found out from Burgundy Wave is in Orlando).  Also Josh Copeland, Charlie Harper and Matthew Senanou have also left camp to join back up with Rapids 2.

That leaves Academy players Zack Campagnolo (GK) and Noah Strellnauer (M) in camp along with Rapids 2 players Nicolas Defreitas-Hansen (GK), Anderson Rosa (D)< and Sydney Wathuta (F).  No other unsigned players are currently in camp and Kevin Cabral has not arrived yet from working on his green card.

First game is 3 weeks from Wednesday when we host LAFC in the first leg of the CONCACAF Champions Cup.

Rapids Win Preseason Match and Loan Navarro

Colorado played a scrimmage against Liga MX side Querétaro F.C. today and came out on top 5-1.  They started arguably their best XI of Cole Bassett, Moïse Bombito, Jonathan Lewis, Jasper Löffelsend, Andreas Maxsø, Djordje Mihailovic, Rafael Navarro, Connor Ronan, Keegan Rosenberry, Zack Steffen, and Sam Vines and looked much better than last week.  The game was played as four 25 minute periods.  Bassett and Galvan each got a goal in the first two periods, then Harris got a brace with a Yapi goal in-between in the final period (which is also when Querétaro scored).  Colorado will play one more scrimmage in Mexico on Friday before coming home for a bit next week.

Earlier in the day the team completed the loan of Miguel Navarro to Tallares.  As previously reported its a year-long loan with an option to buy.  I'm assuming the option, or possibly a lower negotiated price, will be taken and Navarro will never play a game in a Rapids uniform.

Catching Up On The First Full Week Of PReseason

Well its been a week.  For me I mean, not the Rapids.  Finally got a chance to catch up.  After the Sam Vines news on Monday we had a preseason scrimmage, a player signing and loaning, and a rumor of another signing.

On Tuesday the Rapids played Mexican second-division side Atlético Morelia FC and lost 3-1.  This has started the normal worries in the Rapids fanbase.  Should we really be losing to a second-division side?  Meh, I'm really not worried.  It was the first game with a new coaching staff and a bunch of new players, Vines didn't play (just got to camp), Mihailovic didn't play (slight knock), Maxso and Ronan only played in the second half, which reportedly we looked much better in, etc.  If you're wondering Rapids 2 player Yosuke Hanya was the only player not under contract who got time.

On Wednesday Colorado announced they had signed Remi Cabral, Kevin Cabral's twin brother, to a contract from Rapids 2.  Then they immediately loaned him to Phoenix in the USL Championship for the season.  Remi is the reigning MLS Next Pro Golden Boot and the Rapids clearly feel like he's ready to step up to the next challenge.  The Championship is seen as a level above Next Pro.  We have the right to recall him at any time should we feel the need.  Since he's on loan for the season he won't take up a roster or international spot.

Then finally yesterday Tom Bogert at the Athletic reported that the Rapids are close to signing defensive midfielder Lamine Diack from Ligue 1 side Nantes.  He's a 23 year old Senegalese international and the rumor is that it would be a 6-month loan with a purchase to buy.  Essentially the same deal we had for Ilic last season.   We've also looked at Portuguese d-mid Leandro Lopes of Cercle Brugge, English d-mid Issac Hayden, and Kellyn Acosta, but according to Tom we prefer Diack because of his youth an potential.

This feels like the first "classic" Rapids move of the offseason.  By which I mean we're taking a flyer on a young player on the hope that his potential pays off, we're doing it as a loan, and we're not filling a critical position with a known option.  The other three players we've considered all have 100+ appearances in leagues roughly equal to MLS (Belgium top-flight, the Championship, the EPL, or in MLS) or better.  Diack has 52 appearances in the Macedonian top division, 34 in the Turkish second division, and 26 in the Turkish top-flight.  He has yet to appear for Nantes since being loaned to them this past summer (Nantes has an option to buy which they would have to exercise before they loaned him to us).  The whole "loan for 6 months and then buy" didn't work well for us last summer with Ilic and I don't think it will work well here either.

If this deal goes down as described its a step back from what has been a great offseason by Rapids standards.

Off To Training Camp With Three Draftees

The Rapids left for Mexico today, but not before a couple of transactions.  First, the final part of the Steffen move, sending Yarbrough's rights to San Jose, was finalized with us getting San Jose's 3rd round pick in return.  Then Colorado signed 3 (well technically 2) of their draftees to MLS contracts.  Midfielder Wayne Fredrick signed a three year deal with an option for 2027.  Defender Nate Jones (out of Washington!) signed a one year deal with three option years.  Forward Kimani Stewart-Baynes, who was already on a Generation Adidas deal with the league, was revealed to be on a three year deal with one additional option year.  The other three draftees, defender Anderson Ross and forwards Palmer Ault and Gunnar Studenhofft will be returning to school but the Rapids retain their rights for two years.

Colorado also released a list of the players with the team in Mexico.  Along with the 29 signed players (but not Sam Vines, yet) there are two Rapids 2 players and one trialist.  Vines is back in Colorado so I'm guessing its just a matter of time before the deal is signed and he flies down to join the team.

The two Rapids 2 trialists are two midfielders, Daouda Amadou and Yosuke Hanya.  Both played well in the successful Rapids 2 season last year, with Hanya in particular making a big impact.  I doubt either of them are going to be signing a first-team contract any time soon, but this will allow the staff to get a real good look at them.  The trialist is GK , most recently with SKC 2.  Presumably he's beling looked at as a backup for Beaudry on Rapids 2, I see no way he's being evaluated for the first-team roster.

There are two signed players not in Mexico.  First is Daniel Chacon, who was signed from Rapids 2 in June and loaned to Alajuelense in Costa Rican side.  He blew out his ACL while playing for them and is continuing his recovery in his home in Costa Rica.  Second is Aboubacar Keita, who was signed to a new multi-year contract in August.  He's currently training with TSV Hartburg of the Austrian Bundesliga.  You have to assume that's a precursor to a move to Austria, otherwise the Rapids wouldn't approve it.  Hopefully we can get back the equivalent of the $300K of GAM we traded to the Crew for him back in the 2022 preseason.  He's made 0 appearances for the Rapids over the two seasons he's been here due to a combination of injuries.

So here's the full camp roster.  The press release said we have 3 Designated players, 5 Homegrowns, and 7 International players.  We have 5 players on this roster that came through the Rapids Academy as homegrowns, but we have 3 others who we traded for and at least up to this point a traded homegrown could still be considered a homegrown.  I don't know if that's changed or if the press release was trying to focus on the local kids.  Until that's clarified I've put a (?) after the Homegrown label on the other 3.  I've also count 8 internationals based on last season, so my guess is Galvan, who's been here the longest, has gotten a green card but that's a pure guess.  I'm not counting Löffelsend who was reportedly back home working on his green card and who is presumably far enough along in the process to not count as an international.

(Underlined = Trialist, Italics = Rapids 2)

Goalkeepers:

Ethan Bandry

Adam Beaudry - Homegrown

Marko Ilic - International

Zack Steffen

Defenders:

Lalas Abubakar

Seb Anderson - Homegrown

Moise Bombito - Generation Adidas

Michael Edwards - Homegrown(?)

Alex Gersbach - International

Nate Jones

Andreas Maxsø - International

Miguel Navarro

Keegan Rosenberry

Midfielders:

Daouda Amadou

Cole Bassett - Homegrown

Omir Fernandez - Homegrown(?)

Wayne Fredrick

Braian Galvan - International(?)

Yosuke Hanya

Oli Larraz - Homegrown

Jasper Löffelsend

Djordje Mihailovic - Designated Player

Ralph Priso - Homegrown(?)

Connor Ronan - International

Sidnei Tavares - International

Forwards:

Kevin Cabral - Designated Player, International

Calvin Harris - Generation Adidas

Jonathan Lewis

Rafael Navarro - Designated Player, International

Kimani Stewart-Baynes - Generation Adidas

Darren Yapi - Homegrown

Welcome Back Sammy Dimes?

The biggest surprise of the preseason hit today when the Denver Post reported that the Rapids are in final negotiations to bring Sam Vines back.  He's expected in town in the next day or two to take his medical and finalize the deal.  Vines is reportedly in the last year of his contract and this will be a new deal (talk says 4 years).  Given that he has less than 6 months left I'm assuming whatever fee we might have paid is fairly minimal.  The Rapids all but confirmed the move with a tweet about "cooking up a 13 course meal".  As you can see above, Sam wears #13.

Vines left for Royal Antwerp in the summer of 2021 and was a regular for them until injuries derailed his time there.  e broke his leg in training the day before the 2022 World Cup squad was announced, one he had a high chance of making (since Shaq Moore made it) and missed the rest of the season. Even after recovering he's had a hard time getting regular play.  He featured in the two Champions League qualifiers Antwerp played in August, but then a clerical error led to him being left off the roster for actual Champions League play.  A knock had him miss the early pat of the season, but he managed to get back on the field for Antwerp's two games around Christmas before their winter break.

Burgundy Wave reported the Rapids approached him about returning and he wasn't interested, further clarification today was that approach was in the summer.  Its somewhat understandable that somebody who thought he would be playing in the Champions League would pass.  Now that he's not on that roster and struggling to get playing time making the move back to MLS probably makes more sense.

He is, obviously, a first-game starter at LB for the Rapids.  While this move may not have been in the works when we traded Gutman for Navarro, having both Navarro and Vines at LB is good depth (the less said about Gersbach the better).  This is a very unexpected but great move by the FO.

Preseason officially started today so Vines will be a bit late arriving, but he needs the least amount of time to adapt out of all the new players.  I know he rehabbed his broken leg for at least part of the time here in Denver and of course his family is still here, as is his future in-laws.

While we're on the preseason subject, Colorado announced their preseason schedule and its the same as last year.  Physicals and other prep work this coming week here in Colorado, then off to Mexico for a while, a quick trip back home for a few days, then off to Florida up until the weekend before the season starts when they come home to Colorado.  During their times in Mexico and Florida they'll play 6 closed door friendlies.  In Mexico they'll face Liga MX side Querétaro FC along with Liga de Expansión MX sides Atlético Morelia and Atlante FC.  In Florida they'll play CF Montréal and Orlando City SC, along with USL Championship side Hartford Athletic 

Rapids Finish Preseason With A Loss

Colorado played its final preseason match today, facing off against the Union in Orlando.  The starting XI

Yarbrough

Rosenberry - Abubakar - Maxsø - Gersbach

Priso

Ronan - Bassett

Nicholson - Yapi - Barrios

This group played a pretty close to first team starting XI from Philly to a draw at halftime.  At half Wilson came in for Maxsø  and Acosta came in for Yapi, so I'm guessing Ronan or Barrios were playing center forward at that point.  Right after half the Rapids conceded, and after 75 minutes full swaps were made:

Yarbrough

Anderson - Rosenberry - Bombito - Wilson - Beitashour

Max - Acosta

Galvan - Harris - Cabral

The 90 minutes ended at 1-0 Philly, but the teams had agreed to play 135 minutes total.  That turned into a bit of a mess with the final score being 4-1 Philly, the Rapids goal coming from Cabral with Acosta assisting.  The final lineup included Anderson coming in for Yarbrough and Markanich coming in for Rosenberry before the final 45.  Edwards was a late sub as well.

And with that, we enter game week.  The team will stay in Orlando before flying to Seattle for next Sunday's game.

New Keeper Incoming? & Preseason Results

I was going to dedicate this post to catching up on a couple of preseason results but we've got some player news tonight to get to first.  Brendan Ploen of the Post is reporting that a loan agreement has been reached with goalkeeper Marko Ilic and his Belgian side K.V. Kortrijk to loan Ilic in until the summer transfer window, with an option to buy him outright then.

This is an interesting move in the vein of other loan-to-buys like Esteves, Namli, and even Yarbrough originally.  The only oddity is the short length.  Depending on when exactly "in the summer" is, the loan could be for as short as 18 games (if its until the summer window opens in Belgium) to as long as 26 games plus at least 2 Leagues Cup games (if its until the close of the window in Belgium).  That's generally long enough to get a good read on a field player where you can get him in for some minutes even as a sub but its much harder to do for a goalkeeper that needs to unseat an incumbent just to get playing time.  There will also be at least one Open Cup match during the loan.  If he's her through the end of the window you have to figure he's getting any USOC and Leagues Cup matches at minimum.  More on this if/when it becomes official and we have more details.

Also, relevant to this, Colorado's second round pick GK Oliver Semmle signed with Louisville City FC today, as expected it appears he didn't get an offer from the Rapids.

So now, on to the first couple of preseason matches in Orlando.  On Saturday the Rapids faced off against the home team in their first game against MLS competition this year.  The starting XI looked like (best guess on formation):

Yarbrough

Rosenberry - Abubakar - Wilson - Beitashour

Price

Bassett - Ronan

Nicholson - Rubio - Barrios

Most of that group went 75 minutes and played a scoreless draw in the first half.  At half Price and Ronan came off for Acosta and Priso.  All the action happened after the break as right out of the locker room Barrios set up Bassett to take the lead, and Rubio doubled it on a PK he earned about 7 minutes later.  Orlando would get one back before the Colorado made full-scale subs:

Rodriguez

Anderson - Bombito - Edwards - Markanich

Priso

Bassett - Harris

Galvan - Yapi - Cabral

This group gave up a goal to end the game in a draw.

Then yesterday the burgundy boys took on USL side Miami FC.  The big news in the starting XI was the first minutes for Gersbach and Maxsø:

Rodriguez

Anderson - Bombito - Maxsø - Gersbach

Priso

Acosta - Max

Galvan - Yapi - Cabral

This group gave up a goal in just 8 minutes, which hurts, but bounced right back with Max and Priso combining to set up Cabral for the tying goal.  Colorado had chances but couldn't break the deadlock in the first half.  At the break Yarbrough replaced Rodriguez, Markanich replaced Gersbach, and Harris replaced...somebody.  Then in the 60th minute the remaining 8 players were swapped out leaving an XI of:

Yarbrough

Rosenberry - Abubakar - Wilson - Markanich

Bassett

Ronan - Harris

Nicholson - Rubio - Barrios

This group would take the lead on a Rubio goal from a Nicholson cross with less than 15 minutes to go.  Markanich would get one 3 minutes later off a rebound of his own shot from a Ronan cross.

Colorado will play Philly on Saturday in their last preseason friendly before the season opener next Sunday in Seattle.

Second Friendly And More Rumors

Yesterday the Rapids had their second preseason match, this one against Mexican second division side Mineros FC.  It was a 5-3 win that Colorado led throughout.  The starting XI:

Yarbrough

Anderson - Abubakar - Edwards - Markanich

Price

Bassett - Galvan

Barrios - Yapi - Cabral

The formation is my best guess as to how the 11 lined up.  Bassett scored twice in the first 10 minutes before Mineros got one back from a PK midway through the half.  Colorado then slammed the door shut with goals from Rubio, Nicholson, and Cabral (a PK) before halftime.  Galvan, Edwards, Vallecilla, Cabral, and Rosenberry all picked up assists on the scoring.  Mineros would get two back after the break.  Once again there was no updates as to who subbed in/out during the game but obviously Rosenberry, Nicholson, and Rubio all got in at some point in the first half.

Also in the last 48 hours there's been a new signing rumor and more heat around one of the rumors I discussed this weekend,  The one player we haven't heard anything more about is Maxsø which is a little disappointing.  The player that' heated up is Austrian goalkeeper Patrick Pentz, with multiple reports that a deal is done.  At the same time draftee goalkeeper Oliver Semmle has a USL offer and reported interest back in his home country of Germany.  There was talk before they even left for Mexico that he was at best a long-shot to make the squad, now with another keeper being signed and having other options I would be surprised if he even makes the trip to Orlando to finish preseason.

The new rumor is finally a left back rumor, specifically left back Alex Gersbach.  He's Australian and will turn 26 in early May.  Currently he's with French Ligue 2 side Grenoble where he's made 42 appearances since he joined them before the start of the 21/22 season.  He's also made 6 appearances for the Australian National Team, though he was not part of their recent World Cup roster.  He's also spent time with teams in Norway, Denmark, and the Netherlands and got his professional start with his home country's Sydney FC.

Obviously he fills the biggest hole remaining on the roster with only Markanich and Beitashour as "natural" left backs, and neither one seem ready to be an every game starter in 2023 (for very different reasons).  

If you're wondering about our ability to sign all these internationals its a bit hard to track where we are.  We know for sure that we have 9 slots in 2023.  The tricky part is that the roster page seems to be in flux so tracking who qualifies as an international is tough.  Right now Nicholson is listed as an international, despite having gotten his green card during his first stint with the Rapids.  Acosta, Vallecilla, and Wilson are not listed as internationals though they were internationals last year.  If the website is correct we have 7 internationals under contract (Max, Price, Cabral, Harris, Ronan, Galvan, Nicholson).  That means we'd need to find a international slot, loan an international out, or hope somebody (probably Price or Harris) get their green card before the season if we want to sign all 3 rumored international players.  Thanks to Joseph Samelson for helping me figure all this out.

Weekly RoundUp

Of course early this week when I had time there was no news, then in the last 48 hours when I had a ton of stuff going on there's was a bunch of news.  So lets get caught up all at once.

First the Leagues Cup groups were announced yesterday.  The groups were determined by giving the MLS and Liga MX champs a bye to the knockout round, then the remaining top 15 teams in each leagues were seeded opposite each other.  So the best of those 15 MLS teams got the worst of those 15 Liga MX teams, second-best got second-worst, etc.  The Rapids were not one of the 16 best teams last season.  The way they seeded the remaining teams was to break them up into regions (West, Central, South, East) and then seed them so the best MLS team in that division got the worst remaining MLS team in that division in their group.  

The end result of all that is that the Rapids ended up in a group with Nashville SC and Toluca from Liga MX.  The Rapids will host Toluca, and Nashville will host both the Rapids and Toluca.  After the 3 games the top two teams move on to the knockout rounds.  My guess is that the Rapids will travel to Nashville first, then the games against Toluca will happen so that Toluca will know immediately if they are staying in the U.S. for the knockout rounds or are eliminated and can go home.  I don't know much about Toluca, but taking a look at their recent finishes they finished 6th in the recent Apertura and before that they went 15th, 6th, 11th, 11th, 15th (COVID shortened), and 17th.  Based on that they seem very similar to the Rapids.  Sometimes good, sometimes bad, mostly mediocre.  I think this is a group we can get out of, but it will be close games between all three teams.

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Next up, on Thursday Colorado played its first friendly of the season, a 3-0 win over second-division Mexican side Celaya FC.  There was no stream of the match so all we've seen is a few highlights the Rapids have posted.  The goals were scored by Darren Yapi, who got a brace, and Diego Rubio.  Nicholson had the assist on the Rubio goal while Rapids 2 winger Yosuke Hanya got assists on both Yapi goals (Rubio also got an assist on the second.  All the goals were after the 60th minute, and the Rapids made wholesale changes in both the 30th and 60th minute,  Unfortunately the Rapids twitter feed only reported on the 30th minute changes and the starting 11 so we don't know who else was on the field when the team started scoring.  At least 23 players got 30 minutes in the friendly though.

Another note, in some of the camp footage the Rapids have posted from Mexico you can see Drew Moor in coach's gear in the background.  I don't know if he's just helping out during preseason or if he's going to be officially added to the staff (he did get a coach's jacket with his initials on it) but regardless, good to see he's still involved with the club.  Hat-tip to Joseph Samelson for pointing that out to me.

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The other thing that happened this week is rumors about 4 different signings from Europe.  Two have been reported by Brenden Ploen at the Denver Post as done deals, while two others are more rumors.

Dispensing with the rumors the Rapids were linked to two players, French Ligue 1 Reims and Austrian international keeper Patrick Pentz and Cypriot First Division Omonoia and Nigerian international keeper Francis Uzoho.  Being linked with two keepers is a bit unusual, given that Yarbrough has pretty solidly locked up the starting spot.  But Yarbrough only has one guaranteed year left on his contract, with a team-option for 2023, and will turn 34 in two months.  We saw his play fall off last year compared to 20221, but with a much worse defense in front of him as well.  So the Rapids thinking about a post-Yarbrough future isn't out of line right now, but you have to wonder about the wisdom of looking internationally for a position the U.S. does very well in developing, and its a little frustrating to hear about the team looking at future potential over filling in the current holes.  That said, from some of the scuttlebutt I'm hearing, these reports seem to be more about agents using some passing interest to hype up their clients more than true interest from Colorado

The two moves that are expected to be completed in the near future are the signing of Irish midfielder Connor Ronan from Wolves of the English Championship and Danish centerback Andreas Maxsø from Brøndby in the Danish Superliga.

Ronan will turn 25 in about 6 weeks, and came up through the youth system at Wolverhampton (and before that Rochdale), making his first team debut in 2016.  He's only appeared 8 times for Wolves, being sent on a succession of loans, including stints in Slovakia and Switzerland.  Most recently he spent the '21-'22 season with St. Mirren in the Scottish Premiership where he was a regular starter, with 24 starts and 7 goals.  He became known for his long-range shot, scoring repeatedly from outside the box.  He's also on the edges of the Irish national team, having played for all the youth sides and being called to camp last March but has not yet been capped by the full team.

Ronan would add to what's becoming a very crowded midfield with Price, Max, Bassett, Priso, Acosta, and Larraz all available to play in the center.  Price, being a former Wolves player himself, probably helped with a recommendation on Ronan so you hope they could work well together.  At 25 this is also a potential move for the future.

The other rumored "all but done" deal is the most exciting move of the offseason IMO.  Maxsø will turn 29 in a couple of months and is a regular starter for top-Danish club Brøndby.  He joined them at the start of the 2019/20 season from a third division German side and has made 96 appearances in 3.5 years.  6 months after arriving he was named team captain, a position he still holds.  He helped lead Brøndby back to a championship in the 2020/21 season and appeared in the Champions League qualifying stages against Red Bull Salzburg, scoring a goal in the home leg.  He's a fan favorite but has struggled over the last season, so it may be time for a new start somewhere else.  He seems to prefer playing in a back 3, so this may indicate a return to our 3/5-man backline in 2023.

IMO this is exactly the type of player we should be looking at.  He comes from a generally "lesser" league but as a starter for one of the top teams we should expect him to be MLS quality.  At 28/29 he's at the top of his game, and he fills an immediate need in giving us a starter at centerback.  If he's a good as he appears to be I expect him to be a regular starter this season.

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Last, but not least, I wanted to comment on the news from VOX Media, who owns the SB Nation sites including Burgundy Wave, yesterday.  Their decision to pull back on MLS sites is a disappointing one, and leaves good writers for Rapids coverage like Matt Pollard and Joseph Samelson in limbo.  I have written for them off and on over the years, paid in nothing but publicity (that's a statement, not a complaint), and its great to have a central place for Rapids coverage like Burgundy Wave.  I haven't always agreed with their take on things, and depending on who was running it at the time I was more or less involved, but I as really looking forward to what Matt and Joseph were going to do this season.  Hopefully they can come up with a workable plan to keep it running.

Finally Some Preseason News

After a week of nothing out of Commerce City we got two announcements yesterday.  The first was that Colorado re-signed Michael Edwards,  Edwards was the homegrown defender we acquired from DC last year and who spent the season with Rapids 2 and the Switchbacks.  He's been re-signed for 2 seasons.  I don't expect him to have a significant impact on the 2023 season.

The other thing we got was a list of trialists that travelled to MExico with the team.  Looking at this list I'm not sure any will make the team, but there are some possibilities.

From Rapids 2:

M Daniel Chacon - Chacon was signed by Rapids 2 in the middle of last season and immediately loaned back to his Costa Rican team in preparation for the World Cup.  It seemed to work as he was on the plane to Qatar and got one appearance, the final minute in the Ticos win against Japan.  If any trialist is likely to make the final roster I think its Chacon but it still feels like a bit of a long shot.

M Yosuke Hanya - Hanya is a winger who played a similar role for Rapids 2 as Lewis plays for the senior team.  Fast, nose for goal, still has some things to work on.  I'm hopeful he turns into something long-term but I don't see it in 2023.

M Marlon Vargas - Just signed by Rapids 2 this week from Tacoma Defiance.  I know very little about him but I doubt he would have signed a MLS NEXT contract if there was a realistic shot at a MLS deal.

From Rapids Academy:

M Robinson Aguirre - Aguirre just turned 18 after Thanksgiving but was already a regular for Rapids 2 last season and has appeared for El Salvador.  Another young midfielder with potential.

GK Adam Beaudry - Beaudry isn't in Mexico yet, having been called up for the U.S.'s U-17 camp, but will join the team there.  He could be competing for the 3rd GK spot with draftee Semmle but he feels a bit young to make that jump from the Academy to the first team this year.

D Daniel Garcia - 18 year old Garcia has been in the Academy since his U-12 days.  He appeared in about half the Rapids 2 games last season, which isn't the most convincing track record to move up yet.

Other trialists:

D Ismaila Jome - Jome is already a bit of a journeyman at 28, having played for everyone from the Ventura County to Minnesota United.  He appeared the most for the Switchbacks in 2019 with 34 appearances, after which he spent a season with the Austin Bold and two seasons with Timbers/Timbers 2.  This is actually not his first appearance in a Rapids uniform (hat-tip to Joseph Samelson on this) as he was one of the Switchbacks "loaned" to the Rapids for the Arsenal friendly in 2019 where he came off the bench.  If Chacon doesn't make the move up Jome is the only other player I think might get signed.

GK Oliver Semmle - Our second round draft pick, he'll be looking to claim the 3rd goalkeeper spot behind Yarbrough and Rodriguez.  Though from what I hear its a big hill to climb.

So here's our full camp roster, with roster designations noted where I know them.  Unsigned players in italics:

Goalkeepers:

Abe Rodriguez - Homegrown

William Yarbrough

Oliver Semmle - Draftee

Adam Beaudry - Academy

Defenders:

Lalas Abubakar

Seb Anderson - Homegrown

Steven Beitashour

Moise Bombito - Generation Adidas, International

Michael Edwards - Homegrown

Aboubacar Keita - Homegrown

Anthony Markanich

Keegan Rosenberry

Jackson Travis - Homegrown

Gustavo Vallecilla - U22 Initiative, International

Danny Wilson - International

Daniel Garcia - Academy

Ismaila Jome

Midfielders:

Bryan Acosta

Max - U22 Initiative, International

Cole Bassett - Homegrown

Braian Galvan - International

Oliver Larraz - Homegrown

Sam Nicholson - International

Jack Price - International

Ralph Priso - Homegrown

Daniel Chacon - Rapids 2

Yosuke Hanya - Rapids 2

Marlon Vargas - Rapids 2

Robinson Aguirre - Academy

Forwards:

Michael Barrios

Kevin Cabral

Calvin Harris - Generation Adidas

Jonathan Lewis

Diego Rubio

Darren Yapi - Homegrown

Well, Preseason Is Here

I went pretty quiet over the holidays, first because we got caught in Southwest's meltdown and our Christmas back in Seattle with my extended family became a Christmas in Denver with our cat for my wife and me.  Then after enjoying some downtime I was hoping the Rapids would do...something in the lead up to training camp opening but instead we got more silence than the lack of announcements about the cancellation of our flight.  So here we are.  The players report to Commerce City tomorrow for fitness checks over the weekend and camp officially opens on Monday.

I did leave one thing out, right before Christmas Colorado waived Collen Warner.  He was under contract for 2023 so unless we're using our one allowed buyout per offseason on him we will have to take his cap hit next year.  That was a grand total of $84K, unless he was a Supplemental Player who didn't count against the cap.

So with that the Rapids "offseason" moves are officially over.  They amounted to letting Irwin, Zardes, Mayaka, Edwards, and Warner go and letting Esteves and Gutierrez return to their teams from their loans.  To replace them we recalled M Cole Bassett, traded for M/F Kevin Cabral and F Calvin Harris, and drafted D Moise Bombito and GK Oliver Semmle.  We also re-signed D Steven Beitashour.

Um, yeah.  I don't see how this team got better.  Yes, we get Keita, Larraz, and Galvan back from injury (and Price as well) but this is not a MLS-caliber team right now.  We might have a competitive starting XI, but there are real questions about our depth pretty much everywhere.  We have a complete hole at LB and our striker options to partner with Rubio are questionable right now.

Hopefully what that means is that there are still moved to come when camp opens, but you have to winder what's taking so long.  The more time the players have to work together in camp the better.  This week has been full of news from other teams making signings, including a report tonight that FSL is dropping $4M on a winger.  If the worst team in the Rockies can drop that kind of coin on a signing there are real questions as to why the Rapids aren't making significant moves, especially after landing UC Health as a sponsor and stockpiling GAM.

Moving away from the roster, the team also announced their plans for preseason today.  After getting the basics out of the was in Commerce City the team will head to Queretaro in Mexico for about 3 weeks for altitude training in warmer weather than Colorado.  While there they will have closed-door matches against Liga MX side Queretaro FC and second-division clubs Celaya FC and Mineros de Zacatecas.  This is a great thing to see from Colorado, its time to get out of the "comfort zone" of spending the full training camps in Arizona or Florida playing other MLS sides and USL clubs.  I just wish we had done it last season when the work in Mexico might have helped us with our opening match in CCL play in El Salvador.

After their Mexican stay the team will come back to Commerce City just long enough for everyone to check in and see their families and friends before turning around and heading to Orlando on February 5th.  They'll stay there through the end of preseason and fly from there directly to Seattle for the season opener on February 26th.  While in Florida they'll have closed door friendlies against Orlando City and Philly, as well as USL side Miami FC.

A really good looking preseason plan.  I just hope we have a good roster to go along with it.

First Scrimmage Tomorrow and Welcome Back Mezquida

Tomorrow (Saturday) we get our first chance to look at the Rapids, though not a real chance to look at any new Rapids.  Their first game in the Desert Showcase against SKC is tomorrow at 4pm and will be available on the Rapids website.  It will be geolocked to Altitudes broadcast region however, so if you live outside the mountain states, good luck.  This is a stupid policy that most MLS teams instutied a few years ago and needs to go away.  Three of the four preseasons matches will be streamed this way, next Saturday's in Tucson match will be streamed and geolocked to Altitude, and then the closed-door match with Orlando on the 11th will be streamed by Orlando and geolocked to Central Florida.  The Rapids also have a closed-door match on the 1st but that will not be streamed.

Of course we don't know who we're going to see tomorrow, because the Rapids have gone radio silent since they entered preseason.  The amount of information the team gives out has always been somewhat random, some years being more open than others, but this is the quietest I've ever seen it.  We don't even have a preseason roster of who's in camp.  Fans and media, particularly Joseph Samuelson, have done a good job piecing things together from the few photos that are out there.  What we know is that two of our big "new" signings will not be part of the team tomorrow.  Bryan Acosta is with the Honduran National Team and for some reason Max has yet to leave Brazil, based on his social media posts.  Presumably Keita is in camp though nobody has confirmed that.  Both our draft picks will be available as they've been seen in training photos.

Of course there's still a large hole at #9, since we still haven't made the signing we're all waiting for.  I'll have more about this next week, but we're approaching too little too late time on that signing when it comes to the CCL, which knocks a hole into the way the team has been talking about taking it more seriously this year.

On a brighter note, Colorado announced they re-signed Nicholas Mezquida today.  Its a one year deal with a second team option year and the deal is structured so that Mezquida will be added to the supplemental roster and thus won't count against the cap.  There's also an unofficial report that Mezquida has received his green card and won't count as an international, something I was told last year would be likely by now.  Assuming that's true being able to re-sign him as a supplemental domestic player makes this a no brainer.  He's reportedly great in the locker room and has the right skills to be a solid sub off the bench.  Last year's $300K+ against the cap was a bit much for an international sub, but two big changes makes him a valuable retention going into a year where we'll need depth.

I'll be back later this weekend with a recap of tomorrow's friendly.

Re-Signings and Preseason

As expected there was a bit of news in the last 24 hours.  First we announced two returning players.  both Drew Moor and Steven Beitashour signed new 1 year deals with 1 year team options.  While I'm a little surprised by the latter, thinking retirement was likely, its good to have the veteran leadership of both of them back.  Personally they could have given Moor a 5 year contract and I would have been ok with it.  He's a club legend and will go into the Gallery of Honor when he retires.  If he wants to keep getting paid to be an extra coach in the locker room and our closer for 1 goal wins, I'm fine with that for however long he wants to do it.

Of the 6 players that the Rapids were negotiating with from last season, we have signed the two above.  Badji decided to sign for Cincinnati (for a rumored large number), and Mezquida is reportedly talking with San Jose.  That leaves Jeremy Kelly and Kort Ford.  There's been no work about Kelly at all, though I  don't think he'll play a major role one way or the other in 2022.

There's also been no word about Ford, but that's understandable given the passing of his mother.  I'm sure he's had other things to focus on.  The memorial for Mamma Ford is today at Greely Central High School, in fact it starts at the top of the hour (11am).  I'm currently in isolation due to COVID so I won't be attending but it is open to everyone.

The other news today is that the Rapids released their preseason schedule because, surprise, training camp starts Monday!  Players will have physicals the first day with the first training session on Tuesday.  The club will train in Commerce City for a week and then head to Arizona.  They'll play 3 matches down there, including two in the Desert Showcase, then leave for Orlando on Feb. 9th.  While there they'll play a closed-door friendly with Orlando City and train before going to Guatemala City for their Champion's League match.

So yeah, very quick offseason for Colorado this year.  Only 46 days from their playoff loss to the opening of training camp.  Once we have an idea of who's in camp I'll start my annual camp roster tracker.  And of course, we still have the Superdraft coming on Tuesday.

Full preseason schedule:

• Jan. 29 – Sporting Kansas City vs. Colorado Rapids (Desert Showcase match | Tickets)
• Feb. 1 – Colorado Rapids vs. Seattle Sounders FC (closed-door friendly)
• Feb. 5 – Colorado Rapids vs. Houston Dynamo FC (Desert Showcase match | Tickets)
• Feb. 11 – Orlando City SC vs. Colorado Rapids (closed-door friendly)

Rapids Finish Preseason With A Draw And A Win

 On Wednesday the Rapids and the Galaxy played to a 2-2 draw.  The Rapids lined up with:

Irwin

Rosenberry - Abubakar - Trusty - Vines

Price - Acosta

Barrios - Namli - Shinyashiki

Rubio

The Rapids got a 17th minute goal from Barrios, off a Vines assist

At half the team swapped out to play:

Yarbrough

Larraz - Wilson - Moor - Beitashout

Warner - Bassett

Yapi - Mezquida - Lewis

Benezet

The second goal came from Bassett with Lewis getting the assist.  Both  LA goals seemed soft, one coming through Abubakar and the other beating Yarbrough near post.

Then last night Colorado defeated USL Phoenix 1-0.  The starting XI:

Yarbrough

Rosenberry - Abubakar - Trusty-  Vines

Price - Bassett

Barrios - Namli - Shinyashiki

Rubio

The Rapids scored off a free kick by Namli that Barrios finished.  The concern in this game is that Vines left in the 28th (replaced by Beitashour) and Abubakar left in the 43rd (replaced by Wilson).  Not exactly normal subs, crossing fingers that there were no serious injuries.  There were a handful of subs late for Colorado, and Jeremy Kelly got time with Phoenix in this game.

The Rapids finish preseason with a loss to FSL and a draw with the Galaxy, having won every other game (and barely conceding any goals in them).  Its pretty clear who most of the starters are based on preseason:

Yarbrough

Rosenberry - Abubakar - A - Vines

Price - B

Barrios - Namli - C

Rubio

A is a toss up between Wilson and Trusty.  I think it will be Trusty but it could go either way

B could be Acosta or Bassett, I'm guessing Acosta

C is the real question mark.  Shinyashiki appears to have the inside lane to play on the outside, but both Lewis and Benezet are pushing him for that spot.  I really have no idea who will start here in Dallas.

Rapids Lose Meaningless Preseason Game

On Saturday the Rapids looked out of sorts, especially in midfield, and got worked over by FSL, losing their first preseason game 3-0.  Despite running out close to a first choice lineup the Rapids never looked in the game and barely bothered MacMath in the FSL net.  It sucked, but its a preseason game.  In the long run it doesn't matter and I'm not particularly worried.  We look like that against Dallas in two weeks, then we have a problem.

In other news, the league announced today they're participating in FIFA's concussion substitute trial this season (as is the NWSL).  Teams will be allowed two additional substitutions in case of players needing to be pulled form the game with concussion symptoms.  If a concussion substitution is used the opposing team will get an additional sub to even things out.

MLS is also continuing to use the COIVD rule of 5 subs this season, at 3 total times during the match.  That means in an unlucky game with two concussion injuries both teams will be able to sub 7 total players.

Streamed Friendly Tomorrow

The Rapids will stream their Visit Tucson Sun Cup friendly against another team (FSL) tomorrow night at 7pm.  There may be a territorial restriction on the stream requiring you to be within 75 miles of DSG Park.

On Wednesday the Rapids played, and won, two 45 minute scrimmages against FC Tucson and LA Galaxy II.  Against FC Tucson the Rapids lined up with:

Irwin

Rosenberry - Abubakar - Trusty - Beitashout

Price - Wilson

Namli - Bassett - Barrios

Shinyashiki

After giving up an early goal, their first of the preseason, the Rapids came back with two goals from Shinyashiki for the 2-1 win.

Then against LA Galaxy II the lineup was:

Irwin

Ford - Trusty - Moor - Beitashour

Warner - Larraz

S. Bassett - Wilkerson - Benezet

Mezquida

(Sam Bassett is Cole's younger brother, getting a taste of preseason as an Academy player)

Mexquida scored early and often, getting his first goal in the 2nd minute and ending up with a hat-trick in a 3-0 win.

Rapids Win, U-23s Win, And We Add GAM

Busy weekend for the Rapids.  They played KC on Saturday and won 1-0 on a late Drew Moor header.  That sounds familiar... anyway, here were the starters:

Yarbrough

Rosenberry - Abubakar - Wilson - Beitashout

Price - Acosta

Bassett - Namli - Barrios

Shinyashiki

Anderson, Benezet, Rubio, and Serna were listed as out, Lewis and Vines are still with the U-23s (see below).  Apparently Trusty still hasn't been cleared to return from international duty and was not available but as you can see Bassett made it back.  Makes me wonder if maybe Cole was released a couple of days earlier than Auston from U-23 camp to allow him to get back faster.  So that's pretty much the first team lineup given who was available.

At half Irwin came in for Yarbrough and Galvan came in for Barrios.  SKC made a complete lineup change at half.  At the 60 minute mark the rest of the starters were subbed out resulting in:

Irwin

Edwards - Ford - Moor - Kelly

Warner - Larraz

Galvan - Mezquida - Yapi

Toure

At 77 Hundley came in for Galvan.  Two minutes later Moor headed home the only goal of the match to make the Rapids 3 for 3 in preseason.

Also over the weekend the U-23s beat the Dominican Republic 4-0 to move to 2-0-0 in Olympic qualifying and clinch a spot in the semifinals.  The team will play Mexico on Wednesday, who is also 2-0-0, to determine who wins the group.  The winner gets the second place team in the other group in the semifinals while the loser gets the other group winner.  The semifinal winners qualify for the Olympics.  (If the teams draw Mexico will win the group on goal differential.)  Vines and Lewis have started both matches.  Lewis has shown flashes and in generally has been among the better players but has had lapses.  Vines might be the best player for the U.S. so far.  He's quickly locking down that LB spot and while he'll face competition to start once the European players are added to the roster, at this point he's almost a lock to make the Olympic squad as a backup at least if the team qualifies.

Lastly the Rapids made a trade today, sending an international spot to Atlanta for 2021 in exchange for $225K in 2022 GAM.  As I understand it that means we won't actually get the cash until next offseason, which is part of the reason that's about the highest amount I've ever seen an international slot go for on its own.  Good bit of business by the Front Office.  That leave the Rapids with 6 slots and 8 players, so I think its safe to say that some green cards are in the near future.