Inexplicably out of the starting eleven, Aurelien Collin’s absence from the pitch is disconcerting. Without a disclosed injury, leaving arguably the club’s best defender from last season on the pine to start the year would seem to be a very large error in judgement. Certainly, it is early in Orlando City’s second MLS season and there is plenty of time for the head coach Adrian Heath’s trust in his young lions to be justified. However, I have often noticed that when a player as accomplished as Collin has been in his career is suddenly and inexplicably out of favor with the head coach, there is an underlying problem waiting to surface.
The fact is that I do not believe that Orlando City SC has a center back on their roster better than Collin, However, it would be disingenuous of me to not disclose my feelings about Collin. There are very few soccer players in the world that I root for as individuals. Aurelien Collin happens to be one of those players. Beyond his play on the pitch, I have become a fan of the person Collin is off the field. His positive outlook and encouraging attitude has been an inspiration to me on more than one occasion. Because of this, I understand that I have a bias where Collin is concerned and a comparison to Seb Hines or another center back would likely be unfair coming from me. Simply understand I believe Collin should be in the starting lineup barring injury.
Heath clearly does not feel the same way. Tactically, it does not seem to matter whether OCSC features Collin or Hines in the lineup, the approach remains the same. Therefore, it seems that this is a chemistry issue either between Heath and Collin or Collin and the other defenders.
My initial thought is that it must be a chemistry issue between Heath and Collin and that, to me, is the more disconcerting of the two. Orlando City has yet to show a superior tactical approach to the game and if Heath is unwilling or unable to adjust his schemes to incorporate the talent of Collin it does not bode well for the future. Orlando has shown a lack of creativity without Kaka and often a lack of direction on the field.
While Collin does little to replace Kaka’s creativity in the midfield, as a six-year MLS veteran and MLS Cup MVP he does bring much-needed leadership on to the pitch with him. The best coaches understand how to bring out the best in their players. They also understand how to best manage the talent they have on the roster. Simply leaving a talent on the bench accomplishes neither.
Occasionally, such action is required by a coach when a player demonstrates an attitude that is detrimental to the team but there does not appear to be any personal issues between the club and Collin.
So again, it comes back to feeling like this is an issue between Heath and Collin.
As big of a mistake as I believe it to be, if Heath has determined that Collin no longer fits into his plans, Orlando City management has a decision to make. Collin’s contract will expire at the end of this season and while keeping him around as center back depth may seem like a good idea to protect against injury, it is a wasteful use of a valuable asset.
Without regular playing time, there is little locker room leadership to be offered by Collin and it is difficult to justify paying a starter’s salary to a benchwarmer. There is also the matter of Orlando City seeming to be, despite the recent acquisition of Antonio Nocerino, committed to the youth movement. The likelihood of the club offering Collin an agreeable contract at the end of the year seems less and less probable. With Collin falling one year shy of the free agency threshold, a low (perceived or otherwise) offer tying him to a club that benched him for a season does not seem a desirable off-season outcome.
If things do not change or nothing can be adjusted in the next few weeks, it may just be in everyone’s best interest for the club to move Collin before the transfer window closes for the season. The club could get value back and Collin would have a better chance to get on with a club that wants him as part of their future.
Main Photo: Alex Menendez, Getty Images
