Most people try to finish their shopping by Christmas. But the New England Revolution remain on the search for new talent as training camp opened this week.
The Revolution currently boasts 13 senior players on its roster, with defender Rob Valentino (Generation adidas) and Gambian developmental duo Abdoulie Mansally and Sainey Nyassi also expected to contribute.
With five open roster slots, Revolution assistant coach Paul Mariner knows his team has significant work ahead it to fill out the squad and create competition for places.
"We're working on it," Mariner said. "We're in a state of flux at the moment. Steve's on his travels right now. I'll be on my travels too."
While Mariner wouldn't confirm it, Honduran newspaper reports have said head coach Steve Nicol is in Honduras trying to find a few players to help fill out the roster. Nicol will return on Friday, according to team officials.
The increasing standard of play in the league means it is more and more difficult to bring in capable players even when the team wants to go out and get them, Mariner said.
"It's easier said than done," Mariner said. "It's getting harder to bring in the quality players you need to play in this league."
It is also harder to keep the quality players, if this offseason is any indication.
U.S. international striker Pat Noonan left for Aalesund FK in the Norwegian Tippeligaen after his contract wasn't renewed. Midfielder Andy Dorman departed for Saint Mirren of the Scottish Premier League on a free transfer. Defender Avery John rejected a contract offer and remains a free agent, although the Revolution retain his rights.
"It's the nature of the league," Mariner said of the departures. "We'll try to strengthen as we go along. We're completely aware of what we need to do. But our core group is still intact."
Revolution captain Steve Ralston said his team can rely on the remaining core moving forward, but noted that any additional changes fall under the dominion of Nicol, Mariner, and director of soccer Mike Burns.
"We lost some guys this offseason," Ralston said. "We have a lot of our core guys back too. It's out of our control. We leave that to the coaches and the management."
Mariner said the prospect of additional fixtures, which could potentially include berths in the CONCACAF Champions League and SuperLiga during the summer months, means his team needs a stronger squad to deal with the additional demands.
"It's going to be a long season," Mariner said. "We're going to be playing a lot of games. That puts an emphasis on the squad. It's a huge emphasis for us. We'll have to use our squad more than we have in the past."
Chris Albright's arrival from Los Angeles marked the first major arrival of the offseason on Jan. 18. Defender Jay Heaps, who also plays Albright's preferred right back spot, said the U.S. international's arrival "makes the team better" and admitted other players will be arriving in the next few weeks.
Heaps noted that he leaves transfer strategy up to the coaching staff, but he did outline a philosophy his coaches would probably endorse.
"My philosophy is that the team should get enough good players," Heaps said.
Andy Jasner is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
