Of course, the big dig for capital always occurs when you are supplanting youth for veterans with known capabilities - and what they are worth. But it's not as if the collective pockets within Union ownership aren't deep enough to foot the bill.
And tell me what team's management wouldn't want to spend the money to ensure that a quality product takes the pitch each week? Especially considering the par-for-the-course product currently on display continues to draw near-sellouts?
I'll agree that the strength of this team has always been its midfield corps. On attack, what Sebastien Le Toux and Danny Mwanga have done warrants no reason for change. And I know it's a fact that three players under age 25 have scored MLS goals. Mwanga, 19, has seven, Jack McInerney, 18, has a pair, and Shea Salinas, 24, scored a beauty from practically the endline in Houston. Great for building confidence, sure, but has it paid dividends on the final score sheet?
Hate to use another MLS team as an example, but look what Seattle accomplished by fielding experience. Granted, the Sounders weren't built from scratch and brought a lot of talent over from the USL-1, but with the addition of Kasey Keller, 40, in goal and the acquisition of Freddie Ljungberg, 33, as a designated player, the 2009 season ended with the MLS expansion side only setting the league record for most wins by a new club and capturing the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.
One name that continues to come to mind is FC Dallas goalkeeper Kevin Hartman.
