Martin Rivero 'Should Have Made' 24 Under 24

Matthew Doyle, better known as the Armchair Analyst for MLSsoccer.com, has shown himself a fan of Martin Rivero through the season. (In a twitter convo with me a while back, he espoused how good a potential Rapids midfield with Rivero and Hendry Thomas could end up being.) It's no surprise that Rivero is picking up fans, he has produced pretty well for a 23-year old coming into a new country with eight assists and a goal. He has had the potential to score even more with his powerful shot.

Rivero did not make the 24 Under 24 list as voted by fans, analysts, and coaches, but in Doyle's column on Friday he argued that the Argentinian should have been on it. In fact, he said that Rivero was the second biggest snub out of anyone in MLS behind only Rafael Baca of the Earthquakes.

I enjoy his reasoning, as well:

Why he didn’t make it: The God’s honest truth is that Rivero didn’t make it because he’s not a prat. If he was moody, myopic and prone to the “me first” behavior many of us associate with the typical Argentine enganche (think Juan Román Riquelme), he’d have captured everyone’s imagination. We want our No. 10s to be tortured artists, not hard-working, team players.

Works for me! In the end, it's really just a meaningless contest, though I wouldn't mind seeing both Rivero and Tony Cascio sneak their way on next season.