This page will serve as a running blog on the Kansas City Wizards with the latest news and thoughts on the team and Major League Soccer.

To respond or share your thoughts, send e-mails to brad.porter@twcable.com. I will post reader responses in this spot.


3:06pm CST
January 27, 2008

* Seattle's expansion franchise, which will begin play in 2009, has hired former Wizards assistant coach Chris Henderson to be the team's Technical Director. The team made the announcement on their official website. As first reported on here on kcondemand.com, Henderson left the Wizards shortly before the holidays to pursue other opportunities. The departure came as a surprise. It was thought Henderson was considering a move to Colorado, where last season he was inducted into the Rapids' Gallery of Honor, but nothing materialized. Henderson retired as a player following the 2006 season and served as an assistant coach on Curt Onalfo's Kansas City staff in 2007. Henderson returns to his native Washington state when he starred at Cascade High School in Everett, WA. In 1989, Henderson was named the Gatorade Player of the Year as the nation's top prep soccer player. Henderson spent two of seasons as a professional player in Kansas City and was an integral part of the 2000 MLS Cup championship team.


1:47pm CST
January 27, 2008


* The Wizards have been working on a deal to bring in Columbian striker Ivan Trujillo to enchance their foward game. The deal, in principle, is done. The team will have to wait about two-to-three weeks, though, for Trujillo to attain his P-1 visa and his International Trade Card (ITC). The ITC is akin to a lisence to play soccer. MLS, the Wizards, and Columbian officials must all sign off on Trujillo's card that will allow him to play in the United States. It is a major headache and a hoop which US-based teams must deal with in signing foreign players. League officials say the contracts are the easy part. The paperwork and the red tape, however, are a royal pain in the you-know-what.

* Although Argentine midfielder Carlos Marinelli has re-signed with the Wizards, he must still secure his permit/visa to play in the US.

* Columbian forward Eloy Colombano, who scored one goal and dished one assist in 10 appearances last season for the Wizards, will be back for another season.

* The Wizards avoided major salary cap hits with their first round draft picks Chance Myers - the No. 1 overall pick - and Roger Espinoza, the No. 11 overall pick - because they are part of a program called Generation adidas. It is a win-win for the players and the team. The program signs players who leave college early and provides them with money to continue their education. The players sign contracts with adidas and their salaries do not count against the team's salary cap. The contracts are three year deals. By drafting players signed with Generation adidas, the Wizards will not have to negotiate with those players. Those players are also protected from the expansion draft and those protected spots do not count against the number of protected players the Wizards will have for the expasion draft. It also allows the team to develop those players long-term and not force them to produce immediately.



3:57pm CST
January 26, 2008


* Although the players will not say so publically, the general feeling is that many are o.k. with star striker Eddie Johnson moving on to play for Fulham in the English Premier League. For a little more than a year, Johnson has toyed with the idea of moving overseas for the chance to play against better talent. The prospect of getting paid a much higher rate was also a big factor. The talk was a distraction for the team and one that, now eliminated, will allow the Wizards to focus on the future.

* The Wizards should net a pretty heafty payday for losing Johnson. The team says, though, that they will be in no hurry to burn through it to land another big name/big talent player. I wouldn't be surprised if the Wizards waited until the late summer transfer window to spend some of that Johnson money.

* I think it says a lot about the Wizards, and in particular head coach Curt Onalfo, that they were able to turn Johnson's career around and make him into a desirable talent internationally. Nicely done.

* The Wizards unveiled a new team slogan this week: "The World's game...Kansas City's team." I like the fact the team, under its new ownership group OnGoal, LLC, is doing everything it can to re-brand itself and separate the organiztion for the past. The last few years under the direction of the Hunt family were pretty thin in terms of support.

* The Wizards will open their first off-season camp this week at the Sports Lodge indoor facility in Independence. The only downside is that Chance Myers, the number one overall pick in the SuperDraft, will not be there due to call-up with the US U-23 National Team. Although, should Myers make the U-23 team, he will represent the US at the Olympics in China and play against some of the best, young international talent in the world. All good....

* It is no secret the Wizards are mulling over a couple of different formations for this season. In 2007, first-year head coach Curt Onalfo employed a 4-4-2 almost exclusively. The team is thinking about using a 3-5-2 on occasion, maybe full time. That would probably mean moving Jack Jewsbury into a wide midfield position or provide some holding assistance to veteran Kerry Zavagnin. As a defender, Jewsbury was called on the provide a lot of push up the right side. Moving him to midfield would cut down the length his runs and maybe make him more dangerous. New England has had a lot of success employing five midfielders.

* Although Chance Myers played a lot of right back at UCLA, the Wizards believe he could move up to a right-side midfield position. Team officials compare his game to that of Columbus and US National Team defender Frankie Hejduk. That's pretty high praise. Hejduk makes a living killing teams with his marathon runs up the ride side. If Myers wants to play that kind of game he better invest in some track shoes...and keep a bucket handy - if you know what I mean...

* Wizards officials were also "wowed" by Myers ability to send in very precise passes to forward players on the run. That is something the Wizards will miss on the left side with the departure of Jose Burciaga, Jr.

* With Garcia and Burciaga gone, and if the team switches to a 3-5-2, how much pressure will US National team defender Jimmy Conrad be under?

* That said, I like the direction Onalfo and Technical Director Peter Vermes have taken. The two are going to put their stamp on the Wizards and move forward with their ideas on how to make Kansas City a championship franchise.

* I can't wait to see a game at the Wizards temporary facility at Community America Ballpark in KCK. Cramming 10,000-12,000 soccer-mad fans into that park will take the game-day experience to a new, higher level. The cavernous Arrowhead Stadium made Wizards games feel like a funeral.

* What do you think Galaxy mega-star David Beckham will think when he walks into the CAB, a minor league baseball stadium, to play the Wizards? My guess - "holy *%@#!" And that's a good thing.