Several Major US Soccer Media Sources Make Shalrie’s MVP Case
- Photo by Michael Dwyer (AP)
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Excerpts from the article ‘Surprise’ MVP choice should comes as no surprise by Ridge Mahoney of Soccer America
Article Link: http://www.socceramerica.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=Articles.showArticleHomePage&art_aid=34404
Revs midfielder Shalrie Joseph has never been a finalist for the MVP award for which voters usually favor attackers. Sometimes a goalscorer gets enough goals, as teammate Taylor Twellman (17) did in 2005, or did Luciano Emilio (20) in 2007, or Carlos Ruiz (24) in 2002, to tip the scales in his favor, though players who can rack up goals and assists - Preki (twice), Amado Guevara, Christian Gomez, Alex Pineda Chacon, Jason Kreis - are the prime candidates.
No less an authority than Bruce Arena anointed Joseph the league’s best player years ago but somehow the prowess and spirit and energy he brings to just about every game are taken for granted. Wouldn’t it be ironic that in 2009 — in a season he’s played up front to compensate for the loss of Twellman, or as a playmaker to replace his longtime teammate and friend Steve Ralston, or in multiple positions in the same game - that Joseph finally gets the league’s highest individual honor?
With Ralston out for the season, Joseph must anchor the middle, help screen a back line on which three newcomers start, and contribute offensively. He has other longtime MLS veterans to shoulder some of the load - keeper Matt Reis, midfield partner Jeff Larentowicz, defender Jay Heaps - but there’s youth or players not all that familiar with the league just about everywhere else.
What can’t be quantified is his presence, his range, his stamina, his heart, and his willingness to play, and play well, wherever he’s needed. He probably won’t win the MVP award even if New England does make the playoffs — contributions for a successful season are what the award is all about — but if there’s a year for him to at least be rewarded as a finalist, this is it.
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Excerpt from the column Monday Morning Centerback by Ives Galarcep at soccerbyives.net
On to MLS, where Shalrie Joseph has all but locked up SBI’s vote for MLS MVP. Yes, there are players who have scored more goals and delivered more assists, but this year Joseph has had a season where his MVP candidacy must finally be taken seriously.
Earlier in the season, when injuries had ravaged New England’s forward crop, Joseph stepped in and played forward, scoring goals and setting up teammates. Since moving back into central midfield, Joseph has returned to his dominating self, but he has continued to find the net. He scored game-winning goals against Seattle twice in a five-month span and has also kept the assists coming. After his two-goal effort in New England’s 2-1 comeback win vs. Seattle, Joseph now has eight goals and eight assists.
If you want to know how important Joseph is to New England, consider this. The Revs have lost just one match since he returned from a knee injury in mid-July in matches where Joseph plays more than 25 minutes (6-1-2). The two matches missing from that equation were a loss to KC (where he received a highly-questionable red card early in the first half) and to Chivas USA (with Joseph serving his suspension.
There are plenty of candidates for MVP, including Omar Cummings, Stuart Holden, Dwayne DeRosario, Fredy Montero, Zach Thornton and Guillermo Barros Schelotto, but right now our vote goes to Joseph, who is a candidate every year but has made perhaps his strongest case this season.
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Featured Article on Goal.com by Kyle McCarthy
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Monday MLS Breakdown: Joseph Presents Compelling MVP Case
While Landon Donovan remains the odds-on favorite to life his first MLS MVP award, New England’s Shalrie Joseph has quietly compiled a similarly successful campaign. Kyle McCarthy argues Joseph may have the best MVP case of all before reviewing all of the action from Week 28.
September 28th, 2009
By Kyle McCarthy
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This is supposed to be the year that Landon Donovan finally lifts his first MLS MVP award.
It may come as a surprise to most that Donovan, perhaps the finest American field player ever produced, has never captured the honor given to MLS’ preeminent player in a given season. The fact that Donovan has made the final three on only one occasion (2008) appears almost laughable given his contribution to the league over the years, though his production has veered more towards steady brilliance (in the five seasons prior to 2008’s stellar 20 goal, nine assist haul, Donovan averaged ten goals and nine assists per campaign) than eye-popping statistics.
Those numbers aren’t appreciably different in 2009 (10 goals, six assists), but Donovan has played a pivotal role in lifting the Galaxy out of the doldrums, meandering it through the furor surrounding The Beckham Experiment and laying the foundation for MLS Cup glory. Without him, the Galaxy would transform into a marginal playoff team solely reliant on its organization. Common wisdom has all but placed the trophy in Donovan’s hands, particularly after reigning MVP Guillermo Barros Schelotto missed time with a balky hamstring during the summer.
Even though Donovan has deserved the praise he has garnered this year and even though he will likely take home his first MVP award at the end of the season, he probably isn’t the most deserving candidate despite his (former) weekly perch at the top of the MVP tracker located in this column.
That title goes to New England midfielder (and occasional forward) Shalrie Joseph.
Quantifying what makes a candidate the “most valuable player” presents a particular and persnickety challenge. In the face of a difficult and nebulous term, MLS MVP voters often rely too much on stats and too little on actual influence.
The best and most literal interpretation of the phrase directs voters towards the player who is most valuable to his team. Joseph, with perhaps a quibble or two from Donovan and Toronto FC’s Dwayne De Rosario, stands above every other player in MLS when evaluated on that criteria.
“Goals, assists, work rate, you name it, he’s got it,” New England coach Steve Nicol said.
Joseph has needed those qualities and more to carry an injury-ravaged and, at times, quality-challenged Revolution side to the cusp of the playoffs. De Rosario (mostly in the Reds’ loaded midfield) and Donovan benefit from a considerably stronger supporting cast than Joseph has at the moment, a byproduct of New England’s inability to retain players like Clint Dempsey, Andy Dorman and Michael Parkhurst in recent years. New England’s comparative lack of proven talent when contrasted with most of its playoff-chasing brethren places considerably more emphasis on Joseph to deliver week-in and week-out to fuel a playoff challenge against better-equipped sides. He has delivered in kind.
Those who prefer to use statistical measures can certainly find plenty of data to back up Joseph’s sizable contribution. The Grenada international midfielder leads New England with eight goals and eight assists on the campaign, both new career highs. Combine the two totals and Joseph has contributed to just over half of the Revolution’s tallies on the season (16 of 31). The splits between when Joseph takes the field (10-6-6, 31 goals scored) and when he sits (0-2-1, zero goals scored) merely serve to reinforce Joseph’s importance.
Joseph’s influence on the Revolution extends far beyond his contribution to the scoresheet. He remains the league’s preeminent defensive midfielder, controlling matches alongside central midfield partner Jeff Larentowicz. His passing range - particularly when he hits long diagonal balls over distance - is matched by few others in the league and perhaps no player without the words Designated Player attached to his name.
Most importantly to his side’s once-flagging playoff chances, Joseph has displayed the versatility to play as a striker. Talismanic striker Taylor Twellman played twice this season before succumbing to a concussion and the Revolution’s sole remaining creative force, Steve Ralston, has missed time on and off with a variety of ailments, though perhaps none as serious as the right knee injury he suffered in Saturday night’s 2-1 in over Seattle.
With his best two attacking players unavailable, Nicol has shunted Joseph up top for stretches this season to play in a target role. The defensive midfielder, a former forward at St. John’s, turned into a bona fide target man and consistent goal threat when deployed in the attacking third, earning praise from teammates and coaches alike.
“He’s one of the best soccer players in this league,” Revolution defender Jay Heaps said. “Put him at forward. Put him at defensive midfield. If you put him at center back, he’d still be one of the best players.”
Joseph once again proved his worth by contributing two second-half goals in Saturday night’s critical 2-1 win over Seattle to lift a New England side stunned by Fredy Montero’s sixth-minute wonder strike and Ralston’s potentially serious knee injury (early signs weren’t promising as Ralston limped out after the game on crutches and more information is expected today) halfway through the first half.
The second of those goals, a deceptively difficult header tucked just inside the far post from Larentowicz’s unchallenged cross, grabbed all three points and prompted Nicol to note goals similar to Joseph’s conversion were why “proper strikers get paid a lot of money.”
“He’s a game changer, regardless of whether he’s playing the ball forward or he’s up there scoring goals,” Larentowicz said. “I’m happy he’s on our side.”
Joseph’s case presents the most compelling MVP claim, but the nuanced nature of his candidacy and the voting electorate’s reticence to recognize players who contribute defensively (only one goalkeeper and one defender have ever made the final three nominees) likely means Donovan (or perhaps even De Rosario if TFC makes the playoffs and he continues to score) will take home the gong.
Awarding Donovan or someone else won’t be unjust or undeserved. Ignoring Joseph’s claim may, however, overlook the true meaning of value and the player that best displayed it in 2009.
MVP Tracker
1. Shalrie Joseph, New England midfielder - Is any more proof required at this point?
2. Landon Donovan, Los Angeles midfielder - Second on the tracker, but likely first when it counts.
3. Dwayne De Rosario, Toronto FC midfielder - Veteran attacker notched a goal (11 on the campaign) and an assist in a surprising 2-2 draw in Chicago.
Next in Line: Omar Cummings, Colorado forward; Guillermo Barros Schelotto, Columbus midfielder; Chad Marshall, Columbus defender; Conor Casey, Colorado forward.
