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Home Bodies

DaMarcus Beasley and other young U.S. players will improve MLS this year

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Posted: Thursday March 16, 2000 01:00 PM

The 17-year-old Beasley, at 5'7" and 126 pounds, has the speed and instincts to ignite the Fire attack. Karim Shamsi-Basha

By Grant Wahl

DaMarcus Beasley was 60 seconds late to his first meeting as a member of the U.S. soccer team last week. It was an honest mistake, one that would have gone without mention had Beasley, the Chicago Fire's 17-year-old midfielder, not been the most celebrated American rookie in the five-year history of MLS. When Beasley finally found the conference room at the team's Birmingham hotel, there were no stern lectures or cold shoulders or sidelong glances at wristwatches from the players. U.S. assistant coach Dave Sarachan did weigh in, however. "I guess DaMarcus must have been busy," Sarachan said, then paused, "watching Saved by the Bell."

NO DETHRONING D.C. The headline says it all: SI predicts D.C. United will repeat as MLS champ. Click here to see how the rest of the league stacks up.

The room erupted, Beasley grinned sheepishly, and for a moment at least, he looked like a kid who was two months shy of his high school graduation at Bradenton (Fla.) Academy. As soon as Beasley stepped onto the practice field, though, the best players in the U.S. saw that his reputation is no joke. Beasley, the third-youngest MLS signee ever, possesses a sprinter's speed and -- much rarer -- an innate soccer sense, the knack for knowing when to pass, dribble or make a run. At November's Under-17 FIFA World Championship in New Zealand, Beasley was runner-up for MVP honors and scored the tournament's most spectacular goal, a 30-yard volley. In last month's MLS exhibition season he was the third-leading scorer, with two goals and three assists in two games. On Sunday the left-footed Beasley tried to become the third-youngest national team player ever, but he did not see action in a 1-1 tie against Tunisia.

Several of the world's most storied clubs are interested in Beasley, among them Arsenal, AS Monaco, Barcelona and (perhaps most intriguing) PSV Eindhoven, the Dutch outfit that served as the launchpad for another precocious teen: Ronaldo. "It's scary -- DaMarcus makes me feel old," says U.S. and D.C. United midfielder Ben Olsen, only 22 himself. "The craziest thing is that he's fitting in, even though we're always joking that he's late for his spelling test."

Joking? When reached in his hotel room last week, Beasley was, in fact, doing his English homework. Though school and Olympic team commitments will keep him from joining the Fire full time until May, Beasley is likely to start for Chicago in its MLS opener at Dallas this Saturday. "DaMarcus can help us this year," Fire coach Bob Bradley says, "and not just by getting an occasional 10 minutes as a reserve."

Beasley is only one of several important signings in a league built by Americans, for Americans and, as is increasingly the case, on Americans. Sure, MLS still boasts a few name foreigners (Bolivian midfielder Marco Etcheverry of D.C., Ecuadoran forward Ariel Graziani of the Dallas Burn and German sweeper Lothar Matthäus of the New York/New Jersey MetroStars) as well as a few delightful foreign names (Chicago's Junior Agogo). But with most top internationals priced out of MLS's $1.7 million-per-team salary budget, the homegrown product is more attractive than second- and third-tier foreign players. "The average American player has gotten better every year, to the point now where some of the best players in the league are Americans," says Burn midfielder Jason Kreis, who last season became the first born-and-bred Yank to win MLS's MVP award.

In other words, the giant sucking sound you hear isn't more MLS jobs going to foreigners, but rather fountain pens running out of ink as young Americans sign contracts with the league. In the past year MLS has negotiated long-term deals with national teamers Kreis, Olsen, midfielder Chris Armas (Chicago) and forward Brian McBride (Columbus Crew). Other MLS players either have already left for Europe (New England Revolution forward Joe-Max Moore, San Jose EarthQuakes midfielder Eddie Lewis) or hope to in the near future (Fire forward Ante Razov), though all of them credit the league with their development. While the U.S. prospect who edged out Beasley for the Golden Ball award at the U-17 tournament in New Zealand -- striker Landon Donovan -- passed over MLS to sign a four-year, $400,000 deal with the German club Bayer Leverkusen last year, the U.S. league did sign rugged Chris Albright, 21, who will start up front for United and last week earned his third national team call-up. D.C. is again the team to beat, which brings us to a few tricky questions regarding the new season.

Will MLS teams ever achieve parity? Although the league has used player allocations and the salary cap in a fruitless attempt to impose Scandinavian-style socialism on its teams, there are signs that the plan might finally have some effect this season. "There's clearly a class system of teams, but the weaker teams are a little stronger, and the stronger teams are a little weaker," says U.S. (and former United) coach Bruce Arena. "So maybe the league's hopes of parity will come true this year." Another reason: Thanks to realignment -- into three four-team divisions -- MLS has switched to weighted schedules. While each team will have four games against its division rivals, evenly matched teams (such as D.C. and Los Angeles on the high end, and Tampa Bay and the Kansas City Wizards on the low end) will play each other four times, while poorly matched teams (say, K.C. and D.C.) will meet only twice.

Can Matthäus save the MetroStars? While Matthäus, a five-time World Cup veteran, hasn't slipped much -- at 38, he was named Germany's player of the year last season -- it's unlikely that even he is up to the Herculean task of lifting last year's most inept team. His chances will be enhanced if brittle midfielder Tab Ramos stays healthy and if new Colombian strikers Adolfo (El Tren) Valencia and Alex Comas can finish. Either way, don't expect a MetroMiracle: Matthäus will be singing auf Wiedersehen to his new team when he takes a month off in midseason to play in Euro 2000.

Which of the new rule changes will make the biggest difference? As part of first-year commissioner Don Garber's effort to make the game adhere to world standards, several rule changes will go into effect. The referee will keep the time on the field; if regulation play ends with the game tied, 10 minutes of sudden-death overtime (and not a shootout) will follow; and teams that draw will each be awarded a point. In addition, the eight clubs with the best records, regardless of division, will earn playoff berths. Which change is most significant depends on whom you ask. L.A.'s Robin Fraser, the 1999 Defender of the Year, prefers the allowance of draws. "If you go into a hostile environment on an opponent's field and battle to get a tie, you feel you should get something more for your work than zero points," he says. In any case, expect ties to be plentiful if parity increases.

Why is MLS's alltime leading goal scorer threatening to go sell shoes in Costa Rica? It goes like this: In November, United traded Roy Lassiter to the Miami Fusion. Lassiter, who was scheduled to earn a base salary of $100,000 this season, the third of his four-year deal, went to the league and asked for his contract to be renegotiated, preferably for the league maximum ($260,000). When MLS offered $130,000, take it or leave it, Lassiter left it, refusing to honor his current deal. Last week Lassiter, who has a habit of talking about himself in the third person, threatened to sit out the season and move his family to Turrialba, Costa Rica, where he owns a store called Lassiter Sports. "I wish the league would figure out a better contract for Roy Lassiter," he says. "What's wrong with that? But I can sit out and live in Costa Rica on 30 grand a year. I've got land and property and a house." But apparently not much sense. Says Lassiter, "I don't know much about contracts." Including, it turns out, the need to honor them.

Will the suit be tailor-made for the league or for the players? The most important off-the-field matter to be decided this season will be addressed on Sept. 18, when a federal court begins hearing the players' legal challenge to MLS's single-entity system. "Players want the freedom to change clubs when their contracts are up," says Fraser. "They want clubs to choose their own players and decide how to spend their own salary cap money. It's only fair for the players to determine their own market value." Replies Lamar Hunt, owner-operator of the Crew and Wizards, "Losing the lawsuit would be harmful to the league. Soccer has proved it needs careful nurturing, and labor discord and lawsuits are not positive."

How long will MLS stars continue playing in the U.S.? Lewis dreamed of playing in Europe as a kid in Cerritos, Calif., and this week he got his wish when MLS sold him for just under $2 million to Fulham of the English first division. Whether he'll be part of a growing trend of MLS defections remains to be seen, though. Moore, for example, has thrived since leaving last fall for Everton of the English Premier League, scoring six goals in one recent seven-game stretch. "The English are still skeptical of MLS and American players," Lewis says, "but with U.S. results continuing to improve since '98 and Joe-Max banging in goals, it's getting easier."

As for Beasley, he may already have an inside track. Though he has signed with MLS for two years with two option years, MLS could sell his contract at any time to a foreign club -- possibly for a seven-figure payday. "I want to play in the States my first year as a pro, and I'm looking forward to this season," Beasley says, "but I'd be interested in going overseas next year."

Beasley knows he's being watched all over the world. As Hans Gillhaus, a scout for PSV Eindhoven, says, "I've seen tapes of him from the world youth tournament and MLS spring training, and what interests me are his ability at such a young age and his playing on the national team. It all depends on the tapes I'll see and the financial terms, but that will be decided in the coming months."

Nothing against MLS, but if you're allowed to choose between the Fire and the club that loosed Ronaldo on the world, it's not too tough a call. Memo to all U.S. soccer fans: Enjoy Beasley here while you can.

Issue date: March 20, 2000

 

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