Expansion draft time again…

For the second year running we are approaching the expansion draft. Next week Montreal get to pick 10 players for their new MLS squad. Each existing team get to protect 11 players; those left off the list are fair game for selection. Teams can only loose one player to the expansion draft, last year they could loose two.

As before Generation Adidas and home grown players don’t count against the 11. For Seattle only Michael Tetteh is automatically protected.

So the big question is who do the Sounders protect? There are a numbers of things that have to be taken into account when creating this list.

• Where the Sounders have depth (midfield)
• Is anyone going to be lost to free agency/transfer (Alonso? Montero?)
• Who do we have coming in during the transfer window (goalkeeper)
• What do Montreal need/want
• Is there anyone Montreal does not want

So it’s time for the list and my reasons.

There the people I think are the automatics:

• Alonso
• Rosales
• Fernandez
• Montero.

Rosales is out of contract, but both sides are making noises that it’s a done deal so he stays on the automatic list for me.

• Zakuani

Coming back from a massive injury, but you can’t expose him as he’d be snapped up in a second. OK, that’s the obvious ones accounted for, lets fill out the rest…

Next are the central defenders, here there are three options and Ianni is the one that misses out. JKH is close to an automatic. Parke has been solid and very, very important to this team and contributed a lot of leadership (captain perhaps?)

• JKH
• Parke

There is no point in protecting any of the keepers on the current squad. Hanauer has been clear there is an experienced help coming to replace Keller so there is no need to cover anyone there.

OK, the first seven were fairly straightforward, now life gets a little more difficult when we start talking about the final four spots.

• Riley

He’s the first choice at that position and Montreal don’t seem to have an incumbent so it would be a risk to leave him exposed.  He may be slipping a little, but this is the one place there is no real depth in the squad.

So that leaves three protected spots for quite a large group of players. Wahl, Gonzalez, Evans, Freiberg, Neagle, Fucito, Carrasco and Ochoa. Don’t forget White is coming back from Injury, but I think his recovery is some way off.

So this is the packed midfield and left back and there are few choices to made between players with very similar roles.

• Wahl or Gonzalez
• Evans or Freiberg or Carrasco
• Neagle or White or Fucito or Ochoa

The first question is not which left back do we protect, but do we need to protect a left back? Montreal can’t take both Wahl and Gonzalez. I think I’d be tempted to leave them both open. Wahl has added more value to the team, especially from dead ball situations.

Two places left. Carrasco is going to play second fiddle to Alonso, so he is not on the list. Evans and Freiberg are very similar, the team just signed Freiberg for another year and does not have Evans history of injuries. But Evans adds depth at right back if it’s needed.

Last discussion is the three forwards. Neagle has been one of the stars of the year. Fucito started well, but faded towards the end somewhat. His production just was not quite there. Ochoa is a tough one, we did not see much of him as a late season signing. He’s got history with Sigi, and what we’ve seen is very positive.

My last three

• Neagle
• Ochoa
• Freiberg

Freiberg takes it over Evans, the injury thing is a big deal. Evans has missed a lot of football over the last couple of years, but the right back cover makes it a close run thing. Montreal can’t pick both Wahl and Leo, so I’ll take that risk.

Neagle has played himself onto the protected list. He’s not automatic, but makes was the first one of the last 9 to be added.

Ochoa is the wild card, if he were to be picked the team would still have White, but Whites return not 100% certain right now. I’d take him over Fucito on production and the little/large Fucito/Montero pairing up front never seemed to work quite right.

So that’s my 11, we’ll find out what Hanauers and Sigis list after the MLS final.
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