Sounds about right. He will need to massively improve on his previous form to make it in the MLS.
Sounds about right. He will need to massively improve on his previous form to make it in the MLS.
Mulraney and Jon Gallagher were named as substitutes for Atlanta's game against Inter Miami last night, but the game was postponed before kick off in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement: https://www.atlutd.com/post/2020/08/...ednesday-night
I was saying in the Finland game thread that i think it's time to have a look at him. Horgan offered very little but if he can get a call up at Wycombe surely the MLS is an equivalent level.
Bring Back Belfast Celtic F.C.
Im not so sure. Ive been in the States for 7 years now and been to a few MLS games but I just cant get into it. The general standard is genuinely awful. I got excited about the recent season where they played it in a bubble over a month, there was not much other sport on so I watched 1st few nights but I gave up after that, it was just brutal.
There is a big range in quality in MLS. Some very tidy footballers, some teams that play good technical football. Also some atrocious defending at times.
But I would suggest from a fan engagement perspective Razor, a big part of what takes away from my enjoyment is the poor TV production values. The commentary at times is unbearable, and in some MLS markets the in-game directing really hurts enjoyment of the game (zooming in at the wrong time, etc...people who clearly don't know the game).
Essentially, unless it's a national broadcast, you've got guys that are in many cases not "soccer first" broadcasters -- they're guys that couldn't make it in baseball, basketball or American football.
We are lucky that in Vancouver we've got a guy who knows his stuff and is "soccer first." TSN also has good production values relative to many U.S. markets.
All that said, given our lack of scoring options -- I'd say there's really no harm in calling Mulraney up and at least having a look at him train with the others. To make a truer comparison, we have called up Jack Byrne. IMO there is no question the MLS is a superior standard to the LoI given the money involved.
Sweden, Scotland, Slovakia and so on seem to have no problem in picking players from MLS and it doesn't appear to harm them greatly.
Gallagher looks to be ahead of Mulraney to me given his greater versatility and the fact that he's playing more regularly. If he continues to do well there's no reason not to pick him ahead of the likes of Horgan.
Mulraney will want to have improved a lot over the past 2 years to be anywhere near to good enough. He was a weak link for the 21s in the last campaign, the likes of Farrugia, Elbouzedi and Shodipo – all much better...
Gallagher is a different story. Think he'd probably be worth a try in the medium term, I'd probably like to see Byrne play a game or two first to gauge if he can offer something, Gallagher and Ronan would be next on my list for fringy creative midfielders after Byrne...
You make some good points, I would say that going to a game is really good fun. They really go out of their way to add an entertainment factor to it whether it be fireworks or even down to the amount of food and drink options available. Its very family friendly and is a good evening out. Ive only been to LA Galaxy games so there is obviously a bit of a "Hollywood" factor added. LA FC have tried to get fans more interactive and their fans actually create a brilliant atmosphere which also looks great on tv. I had family visiting last year and we watched LA derby on TV and they were blown away by the "entertainment" added factor. They are all very involved in the LOI and thought there was a lot the LOI could learn from the MLS with getting fans in stadiums.
All that being said, the last game I was at was one of Zlatans last games and it was awful stuff on the pitch. From midfielders not being able to pass, terrible to no off the ball movement to poor defending and in general a real lack of any quality. There was some stuff I seen that I wouldnt expect from Leinster Senior League players. You're right that there is a such a wide range of standard across the league but I really dont see any improvement in it in the last 10 years. I dont see many young US kids coming through it and going on to be top players. Like us their top talent still goes abroad.
Played in the second leg of Atlanta's CONCACAF Champions League quarter final game against Club America last night: https://www.atlutd.com/post/2020/12/...hort-aggregate
Atlanta won 1-0, with Conway who came on for Mulraney scoring late on, but lost 3-1 on aggregate
If we decide that a player's salary is a reasonably good indicator of their value, it brings up an interesting question - a number of people here (myself included) have talked about Zach Elbouzedi as a potential option for the international team on the basis of his performances in the Allvenskan. Estimates of the average salary there seem to come to about the equivalent of US$150000 per year so it would be reasonable to think Elbouzedi earns somewhere in that region. Meanwhile, Mulraney earns about $300K. Based on this, should Mulraney be ahead of Elbouzedi in the pecking order?
Given our paucity of attacking options I think it’s worth looking at Mulraney, especially in a friendly. I know we all like to beat Horgan endlessly but really if it’s between someone like him or Mulraney I’d say let’s see what Mulraney has got.
Thankfully it's not between Horgan or Mulraney though. I've seen both up close when they played in Scotland - Horgan is the better player of the two by a distance, but that's not saying much. Mulraney is just raw pace and absolutely nothing else ability wise unfortunately.
Leaves Atlanta, 8th in the Eastern Conference, for Orlando City, who are third.
https://www.mlssoccer.com/news/orlan...atlanta-united
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