No win-win options remain for Fire coach and Soumare
Fire coach Denis Hamlett admits he's being a bit "old school."
But to be realistic, there are few players in Major League Soccer who aren't dreaming of a nice, fat European contract. Fire defender Bakary Soumare is different only in that he grew up in France and plainly admits he wants to return.
It looks like Soumare will get his wish sooner rather than later. The Fire wanted him to stay and help win the MLS Cup, reportedly turning down a $2 million offer from French club Boulogne.
Hamlett said Sunday that Soumare won't play for the Fire again until he can commit to give his best effort. Since the two got into a, uh, heated discussion at halftime of a game at Houston on Aug. 9, Soumare hasn't even dressed, though he has continued to train with the club. Now it appears the Fire has changed its mind and a transfer is imminent.
"It's pretty evident when a player says he's not committed to the team and his teammates, so at that point, OK, that's it," Hamlett said. "You move forward and put the players on the field who will work for each other. This is what it's about. It's a team game, unless I'm missing something."
He isn't, and at least some of the players seem to be siding with their coach.
But clearly, the all-star defender is missed. This has been a busy stretch, with four games in the last two weeks. Defenders Wilman Conde, Gonzalo Segares, Tim Ward and Daniel Woolard all are injured.
"It's a little harder when you have that many injuries to one specific part of your team. It makes it challenging, but at the same time we feel the guys we still have on this team are committed to each other," Hamlett said before Sunday's thrilling 3-2 comeback victory.
That win, however, might have changed the dynamics of the situation. Think of it as a message to Soumare from his teammates. With you or without you, we are playing to win a championship.
"It's tough," said Fire team captain C.J. Brown. "Everybody here likes Baky. They respect him as a player. He's a good kid. The situation, it's just emotions flying. -"
"If he has to go now we wish him the best, but from now on we've got to focus on us," Brown added, maintaining an even tone. "It's always about the guys in this locker room that want to contribute. You kind of just stick with that group. If he can't do that right now, then we've got to let him do his thing and we've got to do ours."
It would be easy to say Soumare is just being selfish, but that's a word not easily applied to the 23-year-old native of Mali. He's an intelligent, personable guy who involves himself in charitable organizations, just like his mentor and agent, former Fire player Diego Gutierrez. Soumare wasn't available for comment.
"This was something that came about under a negative situation and we're trying to make it a positive one for everyone," Gutierrez said. "Some of (the Fire players) might agree with him, some might disagree, but at the end of the day he's that one that has to live with it."
Picking sides in this spitting match isn't easy, but it looks like everyone involved could be a winner and a loser.
Soumare gets his wish to go to France but looks petty and selfish in the process, a deal he seems willing to make.
Hamlett shows he's in charge, but he loses an all-star defender at a time when his back line is depleted by injuries. If he can guide his team to a championship, then he can silence all his critics and show he ranks among the league's best coaches. If the second-place Fire can build on Sunday's stirring win, there's no telling how far it can go, especially if players get healthy in time to contribute again.
The club will get a good portion of Soumare's transfer fee, but technical director Frank Klopas faces an especially busy off-season replenishing the roster.
It's too bad it's working out this way, but one way or another, it has to be worked out. The sooner the better.