Greetings from Germany

[Werkself]

Hello guys,

me big fan of the city of Montreal is giving cheers for your first goal in the MLS. Next time I visit Montreal I will watch a game of Impact.

I am a big fan of the famous Bayer 04 Leverkusen, the lovely little club in western Germany that always kept playing beautiful football but never manages to win the league title.

If you got any questions on german football, fanbases and support or stadium architecture, keep asking.

If you ever come to germany an want to see a game, ask me.

Greetings

[Napule]

Guten tag! Danke for your support camarad!

[axedorjan]

Hello guys,
me big fan of the city of Montreal is giving cheers for your first goal in the MLS. Next time I visit Montreal I will watch a game of Impact.
I am a big fan of the famous Bayer 04 Leverkusen, the lovely little club in western Germany that always kept playing beautiful football but never manages to win the league title.
If you got any questions on german football, fanbases and support or stadium architecture, keep asking.
If you ever come to germany an want to see a game, ask me.
Greetings

Guten Tag!
Cool from you to share with us your interest about the new franchise - All the fans are thrilled by the new adventure !

Unfortunately, Me I am a big fan of Bayern München (since I was 10)
Not the squad of Beckenbauer, Breitner, Maier and Gerd Muller
But the one of Rummenigge, Matthäus, Augenthaler ...

During these years, because Bayern used to have the edge over Bayer, we used to refer to your club as "Neverkusen"
but honestly that is not deserved.
If only Bayer did not loose Ballack & Ze Roberto to Bayern, if Christoph Daum had not been involved in a drug affair,
if ...

Yet, Bayer has one of the best crowd of Bundesliga and the BayArena is an outstanding stadium (worth to pay a visit)

Cheers !

[Bxl Boy]

Wilkommen zu impactsoccer.com

No league title, but I remember the UEFA-Pokal on penalties
I found that for you, maybe you already know it by heart
First time I see it since I watched it live on TV almost 25 years ago

[Werkself]

@Bxl Boy: Nice that people remember that match (at that time the final was played in two games), for us the greatest moment in clubs history.

@axedorjan: Christoph Daum was a problem yes, but we crashed in 2003 after the final in the champions league was lost agains the century squad of Real Madrid. The problem was that our main sponsor and owner, the Bayer AG, totally crashed through the Lipobay scandal and the TV budget/income crashed too because the german media company "Premiere" crashed too. If you have running contracts this can kill everything. Now where back and getting better every year. But its hard against club like Bayern, Schalke, Dortmund and Wolfsburg which have endless budget.

By the way, Michael Ballack will join MLS next season, maybe to Montreal?

[MrImpact]

Welcome to the Forum Werkself!

Speaking of Michael Ballack, do you believe that he is still capeable of playing at a top level, considering the many injuries he has suffered from?

I read an article that mentioned that Ballack is looking to play for New York Redbull, the the club is not ready to sign him, as they see him a holding midfield player. What position is he most useful at this stage of his career?

Thanks for your opinion.

[Jasmin]

Speaking of endless budget, that is also an interesting question. I have also followed EPL and la liga. But since I started following MLS, I have come to know the league better. Are you aware of how the MLS works? Team budget limits, player drafts, the DP rule, etc. As a european, what do you think of this way of managing a league?

In the EPL, la liga and serie A, it seems it is always the same few clubs are the one winning the cups. I have slowly come to appreciate the reasons behind how the MLS league does things. I am confident that every team can find success and remain competitve. In Europe, I don't get how some teams manage with the huge salaries. I heard of stories such the one where Real Madrid had to put up a player as colateral with a bank in order to obtain the loan to pay for salaries. Imagine if they could not pay off the various salaries of some players...

[axedorjan]

@axedorjan: ... Now where back and getting better every year. But its hard against club like Bayern, Schalke, Dortmund and Wolfsburg which have endless budget.
By the way, Michael Ballack will join MLS next season, maybe to Montreal?

True - Bayer has one of the best crop of young talents of Bundi and the future looks bright :

- Bernd Leno has been sensational this year (and there is also Fabian Giefer around, and Oliver Schnitzler after that ... What will they do with Adler ?
- Sydney Sam, Schürrle are already top class players.
- with two young prospects like Marian Sarr and Samed Yesil you have two gems of a special kind.

All you need is some good veterans like Rolfes to join those young talents ...
But for Ballack - I will pass on this one : Even if he survives to one of these artificial turfs , I think he would be a better fit for NY or even Chicago ...

[mephistau]

Bah!
Aspirine.
What have you done lately.

[arseniq33]

If you got any questions on german football, fanbases and support or stadium architecture, keep asking.

Germany, land of the best stadiums in the world.
They still build proper stadiums, which is nice.

[Werkself]

Speaking of endless budget, that is also an interesting question. I have also followed EPL and la liga. But since I started following MLS, I have come to know the league better. Are you aware of how the MLS works? Team budget limits, player drafts, the DP rule, etc. As a european, what do you think of this way of managing a league?

In the EPL, la liga and serie A, it seems it is always the same few clubs are the one winning the cups. I have slowly come to appreciate the reasons behind how the MLS league does things. I am confident that every team can find success and remain competitve. In Europe, I don't get how some teams manage with the huge salaries. I heard of stories such the one where Real Madrid had to put up a player as colateral with a bank in order to obtain the loan to pay for salaries. Imagine if they could not pay off the various salaries of some players...

Ouff, a lot of questions.
Well I understand that, but that budgeting seem quite strange for me to understand. In Germany a lot of the money comes from TV. That pot is given to all teams in which the best team gets the highest amount. So even with a small amout, your club can develop with good management. I MLS it seems to be that every new season everything is reset and everyone gets the same. That some kind of communism.

I also dont like the system. I my opinion it would be better to have a regular season where each division winner compete in one big final. A second league would be nice to have new teams come up every year.

Buts that the european point of view, you guys have other traditions with all those NBA, NFL Playoff stuff. I ll never understand that.


About Europe:
Spain: Madrid & Barca are in dept, guess 500 Million Euros each. They get more in debt every year, the bank lends them the money. Spanish league - boring.

England: Premier League is most popular, nearly all clubs have been bought by billionaires, sheiks or companies. TV and merch a big income as well. Clubs are in dept too. Good league - crazy amounts that make that sport ridiculous.

Germany: Some clubs little in dept (Schalke, Dortmund, Cologne), those beautiful stadias are bulit and owned by the city and lend to the clubs for a very small amount (except Leverkusen, Bayern, and some other who have build their own home. TV income is splitted on all clubs by their success. Best youth in europe, clubs are forced to do work there. Bayern is too strong and out of competition because there is no club in their sourrounding and this part of germany is most wealthy and has a lot of rich companys that sponsor them.

[Werkself]

@axedorjan: ... Now where back and getting better every year. But its hard against club like Bayern, Schalke, Dortmund and Wolfsburg which have endless budget.
By the way, Michael Ballack will join MLS next season, maybe to Montreal?

True - Bayer has one of the best crop of young talents of Bundi and the future looks bright :

- Bernd Leno has been sensational this year (and there is also Fabian Giefer around, and Oliver Schnitzler after that ... What will they do with Adler ?
- Sydney Sam, Schürrle are already top class players.
- with two young prospects like Marian Sarr and Samed Yesil you have two gems of a special kind.

All you need is some good veterans like Rolfes to join those young talents ...
But for Ballack - I will pass on this one : Even if he survives to one of these artificial turfs , I think he would be a better fit for NY or even Chicago ...

Quite well informed.

Yes Yesil an Aydin are our big hope. These kids rock!

You forgot to mention Lars Bender he is our best player and will play a big role in Germanys midfield future.

[Werkself]

Welcome to the Forum Werkself!

Speaking of Michael Ballack, do you believe that he is still capeable of playing at a top level, considering the many injuries he has suffered from?

I read an article that mentioned that Ballack is looking to play for New York Redbull, the the club is not ready to sign him, as they see him a holding midfield player. What position is he most useful at this stage of his career?

Thanks for your opinion.

In MLS on position "10" - central offense midfielder

I think Ballack has still very good qualities and could lead a club to win a title. He got a good shot, as well with head, but its main quality is his very fast and precise passing quality making the midfield fast.

OK, enough Montreal for today, makes me holiday sick, wanna get back there and walking through the center, Saintcatherine and Saintdenis and finally diner at Schwartzs,

[axedorjan]

Speaking of endless budget ... I heard of stories such the one where Real Madrid had to put up a player as colateral with a bank in order to obtain the loan to pay for salaries. Imagine if they could not pay off the various salaries of some players...

About Europe:
Spain: Madrid & Barca are in dept, guess 500 Million Euros each. They get more in debt every year, the bank lends them the money. Spanish league - boring.
England: Premier League is most popular, nearly all clubs have been bought by billionaires, sheiks or companies. TV and merch a big income as well. Clubs are in dept too. Good league - crazy amounts that make that sport ridiculous.

Germany: Some clubs little in dept (Schalke, Dortmund, Cologne), those beautiful stadias are bulit and owned by the city and lend to the clubs for a very small amount (except Leverkusen, Bayern, and some other who have build their own home. TV income is splitted on all clubs by their success. Best youth in europe, clubs are forced to do work there. Bayern is too strong and out of competition because there is no club in their sourrounding and this part of germany is most wealthy and has a lot of rich companys that sponsor them.

The Liga is clearly divided in 3 divisions :
- The one of Real and Barça
- The one where Valencia, Athletico Madrid, Sevilla & Villareal usually competes for one of the two others spot for the european champions league
- The one for the rest
What I like in this league : the derbies ! (like for instance the one between Athletico Bilbao & Real Sociedad)

Well its ** BAYERN ** right ?
Its true that Bavaria is one of the wealthiest part of Germany (plenty of well known brands are located here like BMW, Adidas ext ...)
I know what you meant : this situation is the opposite of the one of Nordrhein-Westfalen where there is at least 4 clubs competing in the Bundi (Among them, BVB, M'gladbach and Schalke !)
Also bayern münchen has capitalized from 21 Bundesliga championships (and 9 times runner-up
The Club did not miss a lot of qualifications in UEFA competitions during the previous 30 years -
and there is so much money involved in these competitions ...
An important part of Bayern revenue is provided by his results in the European champions league


Speaking of Bayern, he just qualified for the cup final - and will face Dortmund.
Whats your predictions for the end of the season, Werkself ?

[axedorjan]

I got some more questions for you Werkself

- Who do you think is the best young player this year in the Bundesliga ?
I am a big fan of Mario Götze but he does not seems to have a great year ...

And for the Euro this summer :
- Do you think Adler could be back for the tournament with Germany ?
- If Lahm plays as a leftback, who will play at the opposite wing ?
- Are you confident with the association of Khedira and Basti in the middle ?
- Besides Özil, who else do you see in the middle ?
- Muller / Podolski / Reus : who will do the cut up front ?
- Klose or Gomez as a starter ?

PS : - Klose with the impact ?

[Werkself]

I got some more questions for you Werkself
Dortmund is the favorite, Bayern only has expensive players, but the Dortmund system is way more modern.


- Who do you think is the best young player this year in the Bundesliga ?
I am a big fan of Mario Götze but he does not seems to have a great year ...
He is injured but quite one of the best.

And for the Euro this summer :
- Do you think Adler could be back for the tournament with Germany ?
No, we have a lot of young keepers, especially BERND LENO which are really good, but only 19 of age!
- If Lahm plays as a leftback, who will play at the opposite wing ?
I really dont know. Depends on the offense winger.
- Are you confident with the association of Khedira and Basti in the middle ?
- Besides Özil, who else do you see in the middle ?
- Muller / Podolski / Reus : who will do the cut up front ?
Depends on the system. Good players:
Reus, Götze, Schweinsteiger, Özil, Müller, Schürrle
Bad:
Po**lski, Rolfes & Khedira
- Klose or Gomez as a starter ?
Gomez

PS : - Klose with the impact ?

No, buy a really good modern concept coach instead, like we have in Germany: Klopp, Dutt, Tuchel an so on... I have been to Montreal and I have seen a lot of people in the parks playing football, so build up your own youth players, keeping playing the system of the coach from the youth to the grown ups. That will be bad seasons for some years, but at the end this club is going to be unbeatable like Barcelona. Especially in the MLS where you always stay in first league and have that high "Quebec-Identification" with the club.

[Werkself]

Hello guys.

German press says Michael Ballack is in discussion to play in Montreal next season. Impact has made an offer contracting the Leverkusen legend.

"Der ehemalige DFB-Kapitän Michael Ballack steht womöglich vor einem Wechsel in die amerikanische Major League Soccer (MLS). Der 35-Jährige, zuletzt bei Bayer Leverkusen unter Vertrag, hat eine unterschriftsreife Offerte von Liga-Neuling Montreal Impact erhalten, mit der er aber offenbar noch nicht zufrieden ist.
„Wir haben ihm ein Angebot vorgelegt, sind uns aber noch nicht einig geworden. Deswegen wurden die Gespräche erst einmal gestoppt“, sagte Montreals Sportdirektor Nick De Santis.
Ballack ist im Moment als EM-Experte beim amerikanischen Sportsender ESPN im Einsatz. Montreal halte sich daher erst einmal zurück. „Er ist derzeit sehr beschäftigt. Wir müssen jetzt sehen, was rauskommt“, ergänzte er. Ballack könnte in Montreal unter anderem Mannschaftskollege des früheren italienischen Auswahlspielers Marco Di Vaio werden, der Ende Juni debütieren soll.
Neben Montreal wurde zuletzt Philadelphia Union als einziges Team gehandelt, das ernsthaftes Interesse am einstigen Star von Bayern München und dem FC Chelsea habe. Ballack, der im Mai bei Bayer seine Bundesliga-Karriere beendet hatte, liebäugelt schon seit einiger Zeit mit einem Wechsel nach Übersee.
Als Ziel des gebürtigen Görlitzers wurden unter anderem die New York Red Bulls gehandelt. Allerdings kann Ballack nur zu einem Klub wechseln, der eine Position für einen „designated players“ frei hat. „Designated player“ werden außerhalb des festen Gehaltsrahmens (Salary Cap) entlohnt."

[Elwood Blues]

Thanks for reporting the news.

Little hint, I don't think that a lot of us ( meaning members of the forum) can read German. If you could translate, that would be great! Thanks.