Canetti's Corner - August 16, 2010
Welcome to edition No. 15 of my weekly blog. It appears on the new HoustonDynamo.com every Monday.
I hope everyone is doing well. The
blog is back after a one-week hiatus. Sorry for missing last week. I was out of
the office for a few days.
Let me get right into the issue
everyone wants to hear about: the team. I’ll keep it simple and to the point:
This 10-game winless stretch has been difficult on the entire organization.
There have been so many compounding factors that have contributed to this
streak, many which have been aided by bad luck (i.e., Palmer red card vs. NY,
Mullan offside at TFC, injuries, etc). We have never had to deal with such a lengthy run of tough results. After all, we’ve accomplished so much success in our
first four years, including:
§
Back-to-back MLS Cup titles in 2006 and
2007
§
Four straight MLS Cup playoff
appearances
§
Three trips to the MLS Western Conference final
§ Four CONCACAF tournament
appearances
§
Three SuperLiga tournament
appearances
§
Three trips to the SuperLigasSemifinals
§
One trip to the SuperLiga final
§
No. 1 in MLS in points from
2006-2010
We are not resting on our past,
but I think accomplishments can be sometimes forgotten during bad times. It’s
been a great run, but in all honesty, we didn’t expect it to end in 2010, nor are
we prepared to waive the white flag on the season. As we head down the stretch,
you can expect to see a team that will come out and compete to the best of its
ability every night and continue its push for the playoffs.
The players have
continued their great work ethic and fight, which is part of the Dynamo culture.
They have never given up on a match, and they will not give up on the season. I
know our team will give an effort you can be proud of. Hopefully, that effort
will lead to some wins, and we can get seriously back into the playoff
hunt.
Here is how the playoff picture
looks:
Top Two from the
Eastern Conference
1. Columbus
37
2. New York
31
Top Two from the
Western Conference
1. Los Angeles
43
2. Salt Lake
39
The Race for the
Final four Spots
5. Dallas
33
6. Seattle
29
7. Colorado
28
8. San Jose
26
Toronto
26
Chicago
21
New
England 21
Kansas
City 20
Houston
20
As you can see by this chart, we
are only six points from playoff position. Note that we have matches remaining
with Seattle, Colorado, San Jose,
Toronto, Chicago,
New England, and Kansas
City - seven teams all within nine points of us.
I received a lot of emails from
fans wanting to see change. At this point, it is important for you to clearly
understand that that there is little room for change in 2010. We have zero
salary cap space, so we can not sign any new players (plus the transfer window
has closed). Contracts are guaranteed, so there is no room to release players
and clear cap. The only change could come from a trade, but that possibility is
low as there is little projected movement in MLS. Late-season trades are now
difficult given the terms of the new CBA.
I know that it has been a
frustrating period for fans. I can only ask that you hang on as we look to
get back into the race. Our guys will fight to the end. They always
have.
In next week’s post, I’ll provide
an update on the stadium and training complex.
As always, emails are welcome to
ccanetti@houstondynamo.com.
