Wells is no better then Jacob so that’s not improved depth.

What were the biggest issues in 2009. Two: First, no consistent attack from central midfield. Second, Clark was the only moderately consistent wing player. Some may believe Smith will help, some like me may hope, but again, if he does, it’s not because of his past in MLS. I don’t think depth was nearly as big an issue as the lack of attack from the central midfield. Losing both wings was bad but if there was someone left in the middle who could play, the Rapids would have been in the playoffs. We can’t expect 2 sub wing players with starter quality. I do expect one attacking central midfielder of starter quality. We had none in 2009 and thinking we have one in 2010 is simply wishful thinking.

In my opinion, he’s our best left back but he’s probably also our best center back.

~ Marcus and FC Denver – I have Dably at center back for 2 reasons. First, Dalby is listed as a midfielder but he’s played most if not all of preseason at centerback. Leading me to believe he is out of the mix for a center mid spot. Second, the depth chart doesn’t take into account every position every player plays. It tries to list where the player will feature more prominently this season. For example, I have Wells Thompson as a left mid but he’s played just as much time on the right in preseason, plus right mid was his normal spot with NE. Putting him on the left just shows we have cover in that position.

~ Dave and FC Denver – Smith doesn’t play with an offensive/creative mid, so i wouldn’t hold my breath for one showing up. Larentowicz and Wells are a perfect example of the type of players that Smith wants. They are physical and ball winners. The creativity is going to come from the wings. That is why I believe the Rapids need to sign another winger.

And to clear up any confusion on Jeff Larentowicz, he is a center mid/center back. Purely defensive player. He has 9 goals and 9 assists in 5 seasons. So he’s good for one or two goals and maybe one or two assists but i doubt he’ll light up the scoreboard.

~ Dave, I agree that we are still lacking depth in a majority of positions. Depth wise I think we are strong at center mid and center back, and we have one solid sub in Wells Thompson for the wings. We still need to bring on board one more forward, a left back (possibly another right back), and a winger.

~ Dave, What are, in your opinion, the biggest failures in 2009? Let me know and I can try to get some answers.

~ I think I’m optimistic about the Rapids because I believe in Smith’s system. When everyone was healthy we were a good team last season. Smith isn’t bringing in the “best” players, because that is unnecessary for his system. He is trying to find a group of the right players. From my limited conversations with Coach Smith, I get the impression that he believes in the team as whole. The system and team work is going to carry the team to the playoffs.

Thanks again for all the comments.

@ Dave – Thanks for post. Your analysis is valid and if so, could spell another Rapids season of mediocrity. Here’s my analysis:

“The team is no better in the central offensive midfield then they were last year and considering the absolute failure in that position, not filling it is almost criminal.”

I’m not sure how you don’t see the Jeff Larentowicz pickup as an upgrade over Labrocca or Medhi (probably a major upgrade, but atleast a minor one). I think Larentowicz MLS all-star caliber CM and will form a very tough CM pairing with Pablo. Then you add Labrocca off the bench and you have a really strong CM combination.

“Last year the team had a healthy Clark along Cooke on the wings. This year Clark’s return to form is up in the air and Smith is still an unknown quantity.”

I believe that Smith is atleast as good as Clark, if not better. We only saw flashes last season, but Smith is a big 2-way upgrade over Cooke, imo. Adding another aggressive and capable wing player in Wells Thompson to replace the non-effective Jacob Peterson was a good play as well. Are we gonna be screwed again if we lose two starting wingers? Sure, but which team in the MLS wouldn’t be?

Anywhoo, great comments.

The team is no better in the central offensive midfield then they were last year and considering the absolute failure in that position, not filling it is almost criminal.

Last year the team had a healthy Clark along Cooke on the wings. This year Clark’s return to form is up in the air and Smith is still an unknown quantity.

I’d call the rest a wash.

I just realized I never addressed depth. The Rapids may be deeper in defense and can outnumber the league in defensive mids. Yeehaa. I see no change in depth elsewhere.

As of March 9th, I’m very disappointed that GS did almost nothing to address the biggest failures of 2009.