Now that we’re getting deep into the heart of the offseason it is time again to take a deep look at the FC Dallas roster and begin to evaluate who we want to stay and who we want to go.

In years past we’ve done a Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down series to look at each player and we’re bringing it back again this year since we have a little extra offseason time to do it. Up first is a look at Roland Lamah.

Lamah was brought in this past winter to be the big attacking option on the wing to help replace Fabian Castillo. The veteran had bounced around Europe a bit but brought good experience to the group.

What Lamah brought to the table

It was clear early that Lamah was struggling to adapt to the style of play and travel in MLS. He didn’t score his first goal until late May in a 3-1 loss at the Chicago Fire. After that the goals began to roll in as he scored a hat trick against Real Salt Lake in June and then back-to-back braces against DC United and Toronto FC in the early summer.

But as FCD’s attack dried up, so did Lamah as he didn’t score another goal until late September before capping off another brace in the season finale against LA. He finished the year with 11 goals and three assists.

Salary impact

Naturally we’re starting with the biggest salary impact on the team. Lamah’s base salary is a team-high $630k with the total compensation reaching just below $800k at $773k.

FC Dallas used some of their TAM (targeted allocation money) to sign him and had to send a little bit over to the Houston Dynamo to obtain his discovery rights (yes, MLS is weird like that).

Final thoughts

Needless to say, his 11 goals wasn’t terrible but when you consider how he was doing it, it doesn’t quite match the price tag that he was brought in at. He was a good locker room guy, which is always important but I would totally classify him as a leader of this team.

But I’m not here to say he should stay or go, I’m leaving that up to you. Thumbs up or thumbs down? Let us know what you think in the comments below.