Good Friday morning Caps fans, hope you all have had a good week and are gearing up for some rest and relaxation this weekend. It is officially spring, after all what with Daylight Savings Time kicking in this weekend, so be sure not to go too hard watching the match on Saturday.
The Caps will travel to San Jose, a match that usually doesn’t go well for Vancouver, especially early in the year. The Quakes have been underwhelming so far this year but that didn’t mean much last year, when San Jose notched a 2-1 win amid the Caps’ early season swoon. The last time the Caps won in San Jose, Kei Kamara notched the winner so, yeah, it’s been awhile.
But Vancouver is heading into the weekend with some positive news. Sam Adekugbe has returned to training, suggesting he might be back in the starting lineup as soon as Saturday. This would be a welcome boost and would whittle the injury woes down considerably.
And in a blow struck for youth development, the Caps announced they were sending midfielder J.C. Ngando on loan to Las Vegas Lights in the USL.
On one hand, this bummed me out a bit. I’ve long been a J.C. Ngando truther and thought he was ripe for more minutes. I still believe in his skillset and think there is a decent MLS caliber player in there — but the truth is he was not going to be able to get meaningful playing time this season. A meaningful loan for his development isn’t a bad idea and leaves the door open for him to a) impress and gain a foothold into the first team or b) set himself up for a sale.
The upshot is Ngando’s loan frees up an international spot that can be used to help the team’s depth now (ideally at wingback). Making use of the free DP spot will probably have to wait until summer but it sounds like the Caps have designs on beefing up the roster — a good move.
Watch this space for more on those developments before the transfer window slams shut later this spring.
Shameless Self Promotion
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Ngando is 24, signed at 23, he is definitively not part of “youth development.” Players at 23 and older are not “young” players, and there isn’t much development ahead of them at that point, mostly refinement of what they already are.
That said, personally I agree it’s a disappointing move that he’s not going to be given a fair opportunity this season in the senior team. I think there’s something there with him better than at least Schopf and on par with what Berhalter brings in the midfield. This will be a poor decision, imo.