mid-week review

well, it was wonderful to see that the low-finance world of german espionage was able to release magadh for a post match review. from what i understand ice station zebra has limited cellular reception during the northern lights and requires some skillful attention to the old pothead ingenuity. it amazes me that regardless of the ice shelf, the polar bears, and the long melt, he was able to save enough tinfoil, chocolate milk caps to twist together well enough to resemble a television antenna.

i am not certain, but i think angela merkl may have banished him for certain remarks he made in defense of the italian mob. a predilection for off the cuff statements is never a valued character trait in international politics.

which brings me to football. because there has been very little to tittle-tattle about since the utter defensive turd taken on sunday, we might as well discuss the continuing issues that plague this side. no, i am not referring to a complete inability of the central defense to care to defend properly, nor am i referring to the continued discipline issues of our best midfielder. what i am referring to is the fact the timbers are still without a head coach. i know it was likely too much to ask for the front office to actually have a cogent plan in place when they used the now classic "philosophical differences" to justify giving spencer the boot, but the use of the term "philosophical differences" actually implied they had some idea where they were going. nearly two months and an eight game winless streak later there is no indication that a plan exists.

sure, there are whispers caleb porter is the prefered candidate of the front office for the head coach, but those are just whispers. if you do not already know it, i am one for a good rumor. typically when i hear or read a good one i like to stoke the fire and give you lot the ins and outs. but this is one rumor i am not going to entertain. frankly, the whisper that started the whispers was so vague anyone who wanted to believe any whisper about a potential head coach signing could find reason to believe that whisper. i am glad to know that the timbers front office and caleb porter like one another, but until the whisper becomes a page on the official site it remains a whisper. if more develops on this one, i will willingly tell you all about his failure to lead the usmnt u-23 to the 2012 olympics.

when it comes to hiring a new coach with the qualified philosophical and ideological genomes, the only indication the front office has a plan was given to us by merritt when he said he was shocked that the timbers head coach was such an attractive gig. even if there was a plan (i do not believe there was one), and even if caleb porter is the prefered candidate in the "i like you, you like me" mutual decision to combine forces and see where this thing takes us, it does not matter if things remain as they are in the timbers front office. even if jurgen klopp determined to leave borussia dortmund to bring the timbers back from the ashes of the 2012, sophomoric jinx, the fact gavin still remains in charge would doom one of the best managers in football to failure.

coaching football in the mls is not a job exclusive to only mls bread coaches. to suggest such a strange nepotism is necessary because the game is so different fails to acknowledge that football is football. the issue with the mls resides in the brain trust that brings players into the league, that can settle the accounts, that can adhere to the rigid cap restrictions, and that can identify quality players to fill the different and absurd roster designations. because the mls is the only league in professional football currently instituting a player and salary structure as it does, any mls side requires someone who has been trained in the ways of the mls. consequently, it is my opinion the only managerial position in an mls side that requires mls experience is the general manager slot. while he may have 1.5 years of on-the-job-training, gavin has really mucked up that process and has left the timbers in an unenviable last place.

now, i am not an adherent or supporter of the hashtag gwout movement, but i understand it. i simply believe there is better and more constructive way to engage in the debate against gavin's employment than such a contentious and polemical use of social media. if the last 6 years, the last year and a half, even the last 8 games, has not persuaded the owner that gavin is not the man to transform this club into a respectable institution of football, the debate on social media certainly will not have an effect

in order to gain any informed opinion about gavin you need only look to his recent player development and acquisition skills. judging gavin should be as easy as returning to a question the exiled magadh asked yesterday: what is kris boyd's role? to further that searching inventory, we could ask what is the current role of eric alexnader? or of the young danny mwanga? mike fucito? more importantly, what is the purpose of having these players in the squad when they are either not being used or being used properly? these are players gavin brought in, on purpose, yet they sit unused and without purpose, or used other than the purpose they were intended.

when it comes to a trade, gavin exercises less personal control than bob whitsitt. this is the reality of gavin. which indicates he has no philosophical direction other than believing change is the only constant. he may believe he is building an mls caliber side, but his constant changes only deplete the chemistry within the squad or fail to adequately address its needs. this is a conversation i often have with mine and magadh's fishy friend from up north. regardless of his flounders affiliation, our friend knows football and he cannot believe what gavin has done to this club through player interaction. that says it all.

arguments in support of caleb porter being hired as the new timbers head coach often include the fact he knows american soccer and he is a good recruiter. if he is hired, do not think for one minute that caleb porter will be recruiting or bringing in american talent to the timbers. gavin controls the type of player that comes in and the regions they come from.

but these are acceptable little peccadilloes in the owners mind, unworthy of any concern. and, regardless of the open acknowledgement that the supporters made this club, the owner still calls the shots. with his recent social media tirade, i think it was made clear the polemical was not well received. this is disturbing given how the club's situation has not improved since extinguishing the philosophical differences. i cannot take heart knowing that the front office is in pursuit of a coach whose ideals will resemble their/his own. if that is the case, i expect continued player turnover, a continued lack of direction, the continued inconsistent plan, and a continued inability to relate to the supporters. this is what you can look forward to, because, as the owner said, gavin is going nowhere.

that does not bode well for the future.

sunshine.