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| Friday, September 14, 2001 24:18 EST |
2000 Kansas City Wizards at a glance
[SportsTicker]
Division: Western
Stadium: Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Mo.
Soccer capacity: 20,571
Investor/Operator: The Hunt Family
Head coach: Bob Gansler
1999 record and finish: 8-24 (20 points), sixth place in West
1999 offensive ranking: 11 (33 goals, 1.03 per game)
1999 defensive ranking: 9 (53 goals, 1.66 per game)
Top returning scorer: Preki (7 goals + 11 assists = 25 points)
Key returning players: Preki, Mo Johnston, Uche Okafor, Tony Meola, Chris Henderson, Alex Bunbury
New players of note: Miklos Molnar, Nick Garcia, Matt McKeon, Peter Vermes
Key departed players: Alexei Lalas, Digital Takawira, Scott Vermillion
Outlook
Despite the preseason additions of goalkeeper Tony Meola,
midfielder Chris Henderson and defender Alexi Lalas, the Wizards
dropped their first seven games of the 1999 season, the worst start in
league history. After Ron Newman, the team's original coach, and interim
coach Ken Fogarty went 0-7, Bob Gansler was hired, stopped the bleeding
and went a respectable 8-10 in his first 18 games.
Gansler's development of young players such as midfielder Chris Klein,
forward Chris Brown and midfielder Brian Johnson helped the team
grow with veterans Henderson, Preki, Mo Johnston and Uche Okafor. Meola,
who suffered a severe knee injury three days before the season opener
and missed the first 23 games of the season, became the fourth and most
poised goalkeeper of the season to guide the Wizards' defense.
Canadian international Alex Bunbury, a midseason addition last year, is
a force up top, having scored four goals and adding four assists in 1999.
Bunbury will team with 29-year-old Danish international Miklos Molnar
and Trinidadian Gary Glasgow to give the Wizards plenty of scoring
opportunities. Gansler has stated that the 36-year-old Preki will most
likely come off the bench.
The addition of defensive midfielder Matt McKeon from Colorado
should allow Mo Johnston to play more of an attacking role in 2000.
Veteran defender Peter Vermes, acquired during the offseason from the
Rapids, and first-round SuperDraft pick Nick Garcia help solidify
the defense.
Players to watch
Miklos Molnar, or "Danish Dynamite" as he is
known to soccer fans in Europe, led MLS Spring Training 2000 in scoring
with five goals in three games. Preki who turns 37 in June, can still
keep opposing defenses imbalanced with his creativity. Chris Henderson
provides speed and leadership on the flank, while Matt McKeon gives the
Wizards the defensive midfielder the club sorely lacked in 1999.
Peter Vermes, Uche Okafor and rookie Nick Garcia lead the defense.
Goalkeeper Tony Meola, who trained extensively with the U.S. National Team
during the offseason, was the finest netminder in the league until last
year's knee injury. Meola consistently comes up with jaw-dropping saves
and organizes his defense better than anyone in MLS.
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