JDG to FC Dallas

[closetboostie]

Those who have a problem with players going out for some drinks after a game have a seriously warped sense of reality. When I saw that article on CSN today I was shocked. I already commented on the article on that site but I am honestly disgusted with the extent some fans think they should have a say in how players live their lives away from their job.

[canucklefan]

I won't comment on the video but I think JDG was "lucky" if he there were no consequences for partying after the Honduras loss while Canada had a WCQ game a few days later.

Chilean national team TD Claudio Borghi had some disciplinary issues with his players lately and the Chilean Football Association suspended the players involved. Last year, Jorge Valdivia (Palmeiras), Arturo Vidal (Juventus), Carlos Carmona (Atalanta), Jean Beausejour (Wigan) and Gonzalo Jara (Brighton & Hove Albion) missed a WCQ game against Uruguay (played on Nov 11, 2011) because they arrived 45 minutes later to practice.

Last WCQ game against Venezuela, Borghi again suspended 2 players: Gary Medel (Sevilla) and Eduardo Vargas (Napoli). They were seen partying at 4 AM.

These are players established with some of the best clubs from Europe.

Paraguayan club Olimpia also rescinded 3 players contracts after they were seen smoking and drinking alcohol before a league game. Two of these players were really important to the team, Sergio Orteman and Vladimir Marin.

[Sam]

Partying the night after the loss to Honduras in 2008 while he was still on national team duty I have a problem with. After the NT camp was over and he was back with his club, I have no problem with.

National team duty is a special occasion where you are away, solely for the purpose of soccer and representing your national side. However if we say that this boat party is wrong because it was during the TFC season, that is essentially saying he can't go out for 9 months of the year, which is stupid.

[Keegan]

I won't comment on the video but I think JDG was "lucky" if he there were no consequences for partying after the Honduras loss while Canada had a WCQ game a few days later.

Chilean national team TD Claudio Borghi had some disciplinary issues with his players lately and the Chilean Football Association suspended the players involved. Last year, Jorge Valdivia (Palmeiras), Arturo Vidal (Juventus), Carlos Carmona (Atalanta), Jean Beausejour (Wigan) and Gonzalo Jara (Brighton & Hove Albion) missed a WCQ game against Uruguay (played on Nov 11, 2011) because they arrived 45 minutes later to practice.

Last WCQ game against Venezuela, Borghi again suspended 2 players: Gary Medel (Sevilla) and Eduardo Vargas (Napoli). They were seen partying at 4 AM.

These are players established with some of the best clubs from Europe.

Paraguayan club Olimpia also rescinded 3 players contracts after they were seen smoking and drinking alcohol before a league game. Two of these players were really important to the team, Sergio Orteman and Vladimir Marin.

Ya but in these cases those players were drinking before games, as in the night before. De Guzman's boat cruise wasn't the night before a game and there's no evidence to suggest he has been partying on the road either, all we know is that he bailed out the 3 boneheads who were arrested in Houston.

[Califax]

Partying the night after the loss to Honduras in 2008 while he was still on national team duty I have a problem with.

Can someone please clarify to what level he was "partying"? It's an important distinction.

[canucklefan]

Ya but in these cases those players were drinking before games, as in the night before. De Guzman's boat cruise wasn't the night before a game and there's no evidence to suggest he has been partying on the road either, all we know is that he bailed out the 3 boneheads who were arrested in Houston.

That's why I said I won't comment on the video, because I have no idea in which context it happened. It seems however that JDG likes to party a lot....

I will add to the list the case where 3 TFC players were arrested in Houston after an incident in a bar:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sport...rticle4323627/
All three were taken to jail and released when teammate Julian de Guzman posted bail.

This suggests me that JDG was in the bar with the players that got arrested, again, before a game.

[closetboostie]

That's why I said I won't comment on the video, because I have no idea in which context it happened. It seems however that JDG likes to party a lot....

I will add to the list the case where 3 TFC players were arrested in Houston after an incident in a bar:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sport...rticle4323627/
All three were taken to jail and released when teammate Julian de Guzman posted bail.

This suggests me that JDG was in the bar with the players that got arrested, again, before a game.

If by before a game you mean three days before, than that statement would be accurate. I guess they should never go out, could be "before" a match. If you're going to imagine what may have happened in order to support your case, it would be nice if you were a little more clear of the circumstances.

[Califax]

This suggests me that JDG was in the bar with the players that got arrested, again, before a game.

Am I missing something or can you not call a guy at his hotel (who makes the most money) and ask him to come down to central booking?

[Sam]

Am I missing something or can you not call a guy at his hotel (who makes the most money) and ask him to come down to central booking?

+1... and it's stupid to read anything more into something we know nothing about.

[Grizzly]

But this guy went from the best player of his generation (and maybe the a generation or two before that) to a very average player in a short-amount of time. Meanwhile, he's been pretty public extra-curricular activities. And this isn't the first time we've had the discussion about him. So I think the criticism and your post is fair.

Thanks for noticing. People are not understanding what the issue is. It is not about him drinking or having a private life, it is about what type of attitude he is showing on and off the pitch. So what if there is a video of Radz drunk on the internet. Everytime I saw Radz play for country or club he worked his ass off and gave his all. I will criticize him for the period of time during which he did not show up for Canada but everytime he did show up he came to play. Indeed even though he is playing at a level significantly lower than MLS now he is still working his ass off in every game clip I see of him.

I have met JDG and he seems like a really cool and nice guy. I also get the impression he is pretty non-nonchalant and enjoys living the easy life. And for the most part that is the attitude he conveys on the field as well. I never get the impression he feels bad that he hasn't come close to earning the salary TFC gave him. I don't get an impression that he feels he has let down the fans. I don't care whether he was drunk or not, in the pictures of him at Club Opera after the Honduras game he certainly did not look like he was half as upset as most of us who watched the game. When I saw him play in Germany he worked his ass off and also did so in the first few years at Deportivo. We also remember how hard he worked and how motivated he was during that Gold Cup run where people were saying he was not only the best Canadian player but one of the best in CONCACAF.

Now it is possible that his skills have declined or his body has suffered from injuries but for the most part what I see is a lack of effort and passivity. Look at the New England goal Rycroft is talking about in his article in which he voices similar concerns to mine. A player is breaking through the midfield and DeGuzman makes very little effort to stop him and then when the guy blows by him DeGuzman just stops entirely and watches the rest of the play like a spectator. I would be embarrassed to show my face at a party after allowing a goal like that, it is one thing to make a mistake but another to allow a goal due to lack of effort. Contrast this to how he played for Deportivo when he would give 100% percent to stop a guy and if he ever got beaten he was like a tiger trying to get stop the guy and get position on him again. And then the year following him being named Deportivo's MVP his form dropped drastically for both club and country. It was also around this time that I first started seeing all the party pics of his on Facebook. And also he used to make posts to friends in the cities he would play in that sounded like a guy going to see his mates for a long weekend not someone coming to play a top level soccer game. (and no Califax I did not save the pictures on my computer and don't have any idea if they are still on the various social media).

Can I prove an absolute correlation between this and the fall in his level of play? No. However, it seems pretty suspicious. It is also very interesting that a guy who left Germany as a well respected top prospect and was voted MVP of a La Liga team one year earlier did not receive much interest from either German or Spanish clubs when he was out of contract. These clubs talk to each other and follow players very closely and something must have changed in a year to make them lose interest.

The fact of the matter is if you play well and give your all on the pitch your lifestyle and attitude will not be questioned. If you do not do this and you are a very high paid athlete then your lifestyle is fair game for criticism. And at the very least you need to appear as if you are doing your best and care deeply both on and off the pitch. If TFC doesn't have good enough players to play with you that sucks but still give 100% on the pitch. If your skills are starting to deteriorate that is bad also but still play your heart out. If we lose a heartbreaking game to Honduras that pretty much kills our World Cup chances don't go out and party and then post pictures of you smiling and laughing at a dance club while the Canada fans are suffering a group depression. Yes JDG has always shown up for Canada when called but the days of when we should be just happy that someone puts on a Canada shirt should be long gone, when you put on a Canada shirt you need to give your all. There may have been the odd game that was an exception but for the most part I haven't seen that from JDG since that great Gold Cup tournament.