When Damir Kreilach was signed ahead of the 2024 season I wrote an article that I would describe as tepidly positive.
Kreilach was clearly not able to be the centre-peice of a team anymore but my argument was that in the era of 5 subs, there could be a greater role for finishers or players that were specifically for the last 20 minutes or so of a game. For a while, Kreilach was starting regularly, which was very perplexing, but he quickly settled into the role that I was imagining for him. But confidence in him to even do that seemed to drop over the course of the season. I think this was shown pretty clearly by the fact that Vanni Sartini didn’t sub Kreilach on with his team down a goal and on the verge of elimination.
But if we look at the stats, my hypothesis that Kreilach could be useful late in games was basically shown to be correct. In the very limited minutes he played he was in the 83rd percentile for expected goals. I don’t think he would have maintained that if he was playing regularly, but late in games against a low block he could make things happen.
However, even though this experiment “worked” I don’t think it’s one that should be repeated. Kreilach would probably be doing the Whitecaps a favour if he retired and if he doesn’t do that they should probably buy out his contract. It all has to do with roster spots.
This year MLS started releasing these snazzy roster breakdowns.
I think it was technically possible to discern this information in previous years but it’s a lot easier to think about when it’s all laid out like this. I noticed that the Whitecaps made an interesting choice. They chose to only fill 18 out of a possible 20 senior roster spots, spreading the money over fewer players. To be clear, because these rules can be confusing, this is not a case of cheapness. Rather, they are going for a quality-over-quantity approach. I actually think this is a roster-building strategy that makes a lot of sense for the Whitecaps. If you are trying to be a team that develops young talent then you don’t want to be clogging up the roster with mediocre journeymen. You also want those young players to have the best chance to succeed by playing alongside quality players.
But if you’re using one of those senior spots on a player like Kreilach who just can’t play 90 minutes then essentially you’re rocking with 17 senior players. Add in the fact that Sam Adekugbe’s injury troubles meant he was only available for about a quarter of the MLS minutes and the Whitecaps were effectively playing with 16 senior players this season. No wonder those international call-ups were so devastating! I think this is the key to understanding why it felt like Vancouver had no depth this season, despite the squad mostly being composed of pretty good players.
So, while I think it’s true that older players can have a bigger role in the 5 subs era, I think if you are choosing to go with 18 senior players then they need to be 18 players you can reasonably rely on to play 90 minutes when called upon. Kreilach is definitely not that; it’s up to Vancouver’s sports science team to decide if Adekugbe is.
I think you can link the fates of Kreilach and Levonte Johnson from your other article. If Kreilach was more effective as a depth/replacement option up front, Johnson would have seen less of the pitch and would have been used in situations that might have suited him better. I think the ultimate answer (and one that might be difficult to achieve) is that on a championship winning team Brian White is your 2nd option as striker.
I would have liked to see Kreilach come in once LAFC were up. I think he’s a big guy and a poacher so throw him in. Berhalter’s service to him might just give you that one moment. I dont really know much about him but he seems to be the traditional 9. Also it’s maybe his last pro games so he is going to go for it. If I was the coach I would have thrown him there for the last 20.
good comments on Kreilach- he will want his 2025 salary of over RIDICULOUS salary of $440K- how did Axel think signing him was a good idea is beyond me ? i said from the onset it was a bad signing- pay him, release him and free up the Cap space- sometimes you just have to ‘cut bait’
Adegukbe is a YES and a NO- he did play well in the last month, but OMG, his leg injuries are on-going and i am unsure if he can be a strong player for 2025- i like his soccer intelligence, connection with his passing, his crosses- but when he gets an injury, he is gone for a long time- will 2025 be worse?? its a crap-shoot– and he is making over- GULP- $990K- but has a contract until 2027- YIKES!! – he is a loyal Canadian and gives his best which sometimes is quite good– he needs to do a lot of rehab work in- good luck, Sam!!