TOP STORIES
Superliga Final
Well its been about twelve hours since I finished watching the Superliga final and I’m still in disbelief. That sure looked and sounded like more than 12,500 didn’t it? The MLS side fought valiantly, but were outlasted in sudden death penalty shootout. This game will be remembered for Miguel Calero’s save on Landon in the fifth frame of the shootout, but the match was peppered with moments and amazing saves by both keepers. Joe Cannon and Calero looked like two of the top keepers in any league as they frustrated their opponents who were handed plenty of quality chances by spotty defending. Becks took to the pitch and had to be taken out after injuring his right leg around the 37th minute. Cobi Jones’ experience helped the Galaxy persevere and led to the eventual tying goal and what a goal. The most unlikely goal from the most unlikely source. Much maligned Chris Klein buried a spectacular bicycle kick off a weak Pachuca clearance in the third minute of second half stoppage to effectively send the game into overtime. Overall the final reflected what the entire tournament prooved that the gap between Mexican and MLS teams is effectively zero. Both leagues are capable of producing some attractive soccer, although the Mexican versions is much prettier to watch on a consistent basis. Something else that we've come to expect, poor refereeing, was also evident as the CONCACAF crew did their worst again. This tournament was a success and I look forward to watching next year's version in Spainish or English.
MLS Week 21 – Separation and Flagging
FIRE v. Wizards – A little something for everybody at Arrowhead, which enjoyed the Blanco bounce at the gate for this Wednesday fixture. The FIRE had the home team on the ropes early, but Kevin Hartman called Blanco’s bluff and stood his ground, blocking the Mexican’s early penalty kick attempt.
MOTM: Kevin Hartman
Thursday
Goats v. Gals – Chivas Explosion!! Beckham Explosion!! Marsh v. Becks! Galindo shows who is boss of LA pitches at least until Pachuca rolls into the HDC. You get the feeling that this team is one Designated Players away from being a serious championship contender. Oops!
MOTM: Maykel Galindo – Opportunism and pure skill result in two for Chivas’ break-out star.
Saturday
Crew vs. Dynamo – While it took Nate Jaqua to pull a Dynamo draw Schelotto’s dazzling footwork enroute to his league leading assist was worth every bit that the league is paying.
MOTM: No position to judge
Wizards vs. FIRE – Different day, different teams. The FIRE follow their new leader to three points at home over a limp KC side earning me a free lunch in the process. Life is sweet.
MOTM: Cuauhtemoc Blanco – One goal, one assist in a 2-0 victory. Enough said.
Sunday
Gals vs. Rapids – You leave Becks at home and you will pay. A massively depleted Galaxy line-up got sliced and diced at DSGPark. You can’t be good if you give up three goals in the first half to the Rapids and the Galaxy aren’t. I think there was only one outbreak of “Bouna-time”.
MOTM:
RSL vs. Chivas USA – Chivas just can’t be stopped at home. Proof? They haven’t lost at the HDC this year. Chivas has enough gas left in the tank to slip by RSL and take three more points as the 2005 expansion derby sees the sides on opposite ends of the table.
MOTM: Jesse Marsh – Marsh’s sleek flick past Nick Rimando was all the home side needed to seal a solid week.
Other Week 21 Notes
The Flagship gets deflated and loses two thanks to some spotty defending and poor keeping.
United’s massive week pulls them within three points of the Revs.
Signing of the Week
Am I the only person who though Denilson was 45 years old? A long forgotten cog in the Samba King football machine, the midfield maestro came to MLS this week inking a deal with the Hoops. The 30 year old Denilson comes to MLS via Saudi Arabia, thus making him subject to excessive search at all US airports.
Sinking Lower
You’ve got to hand it to Eddie Johnson. He knew before any of us that the Wizards were on the cusp of ultimate MLS off field success when he spurned the offer from EPL bottom dwellers Derby County. Looks like next year they are going to be packing the house finally! Of course that house looks to be a minor league baseball stadium, but hey, it’s a start.
Quote of the Week
St. Louis Attorney Jeff Cooper who is trying to bring MLS to the hotbed on the possibility that his application for an MLS franchise be revoked by the league after presenting stadium development plans to the city of Collinsville, IL.:
“I’ll not only lose a lot of money,” Cooper told the newspaper, “but I’ll look like a dumb-ass at the same time.”
Yallop all but Gone?
Word is a certain Southern Californian-based German is waiting in the wings should Frank Yallop’s Galaxy. Good news for this gentleman is that he won’t have to change his Addias based wardrobe.
Ann Killion
Last week Ann Killion wrote a piece about Becks and US Soccer that was supported by twisted facts and perpetuated a great deal of myths.
Below is my reply, her rebuttal and my reply.
Ann,
I had to come to expect so much more from you when you start talking about soccer. Of course being a true MLS believer might dampen my views in your eyes, but en route to your “more of the same” point you skipped over two significant occurrences last week that us true believers took note of. One was your incorrect claim that the league “wallows around the 12,000 mark”. This might be true for the NY RedBulls, but is off by about 3,000 for the league. According to MLSnet.com, the league is averaging 15,917 this year. Backing out Beckham matches, the average is right around 15,000.
Secondly, you seemed to miss the attendances in non-Beckham matches this past weekend. True there were the typical attendance woes in Sunday’s Wizards and Thursday’s Rapid matches (7,000 and 10,000 respectively), but the story was very promising elsewhere. Columbus drew it’s largest crowd since 2004 (23,000), RSL put nearly 19,000 in the stands and Houston had over 19,000 show up for their in-state rivalry. Earlier this week DC United drew 18,000 on a Wednesday! This is not more of the same. This is a clear and measurable upwards trend.
To make matters worse, you go on to perpetuate the myth that by somehow stepping foot on European soil, American players improve. There is no evidence to show that being added to a roster of a European team improves American players other than goalkeepers. The results have been a mixed bag at best. Most American players show little to no improvement after transferring overseas. Clint Dempsey and DaMarcus Beasley have shown little improvement at the club or international level since leaving MLS. Clint Mathis set himself back years by playing in Germany and only now has regained any of his earlier MLS form. Bobby Convey’s club form had improved, but he has yet to have any significant impact on our national team. On the flip side, Landon Donovan has neither improved or regressed by choosing MLS over foreign options. Certainly if a starting MLS player starts for and EPL or LaLiga team on a consistent basis, they will likely improve their form, but otherwise the transfers have been tantamount to a water treading cash grab and who can blame the players for the later.
Ann’s Reply:
Thanks for the email. Re: attendance: 1) After the experience with the Earthquakes, I know better than to believe MLS' figures and 2) there is still a Beckham effect because there are ticket plans that require buying tix to other games in order to see Galaxy.
Re: Europe - I don't know anyone in the soccer world who doesn't think players get better and tougher by playing in the best leagues, including Bruce Arena and our current national team coach whose own son is playing in Europe. Landon absolutely regressed between 2002 and 2006.
AK
US Soccer Snob Rebuttal:
AK,
Thanks for your reply. I certainly appreciate it.
1. What's at debate is reported attendance numbers. I certainly know there is a difference between reported and actual in MLS. Your mixing and matching of what you think the numbers are and the reported numbers is misleading, but hey, it makes your point.
2. The European move is a myth. Look for any signs of proof of this claim outside of the goal keepers box and they will be limited at best.
3. Donovan did not regress between the last two world cups. He just played out of position. Did you expect LD to win headers from the Czech back line? His greatest 2006 moment was against Italy where he was arguably the best player on the pitch because the red cards forced him into is natural attacking midfielder role.
MLS Prediction Central
Last Week (3-6)
SEASON (42-73)
Saturday
FIRE vs. The Flagship – The Metros are out rooted in their home by Blanco fans, but still get a draw against a FIRE team whose stock is rising.
United vs. Hoops - This is why Direct Kick was invented. East vs. West in what could be a preview of the MLSCup. United looks to put together something more substantial than the fluky 1-0 victory they scored last week.
Wiz vs. Dynamo – Another blockbuster showdown! This should be an exciting match that sees the Western Conference team start building up en route to October with a convincing win over the Wizards who have played a Beckham-like schedule in the last two weeks.
RSL vs. Gals – RSL returns to So Cal to get three points from Klingsman’s Galaxy.
Sunday
Rapids vs. Crew – Look for a draw between two adrift sides. Colorado’s got the Mo’, but the road can be an unfair place.
Podcast:
The Soccer/Dynamo Power Hour
(NOTE: If you know a Podcast that needs to be added please let me know and post a link.)
Showing posts with label RSL. Show all posts
Showing posts with label RSL. Show all posts
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Thursday, May 24, 2007
US Soccer Snob’s US Soccer Update – 5/24/07
MLS Week 7 – A step backwards
This weekend we were treated to some terrible soccer (and weather) almost across the board. Luckily there were a few moments of brilliance sprinkled between the hacking and incomplete passes.
Wednesday
Toronto v. Dynamo - Nothing can keep these fans away from the madhouse on the lake. Can 2,000 DeRo supporters be wrong? They were last Wednesday and Houston got outplayed and new acquisition Joseph Ngenyna made like his predecessor, Alejandro Moreno and squandered a couple of prime scoring opportunities. Andy Welsh slammed home a Ronnie O’Brien free kick to send the Torontonians into a frenzy. Most amazing stat of the day: Complaints by Mo: 0. More on this later.
Thursday
FIRE v. Dallas – Another Brimstone Cup match, another Dallas win. Dallas outclasses the FIRE for 65 minutes and then managed to hang on for a 2-1 victory over the home team. Juan Toja was the man of the match in my book. His dominance across the field kept the 32 FIRE defenders fielded by mini-Coach “Defensive” Dave scrambling all evening. After Kenny Cooper almost broke the stage side Toyota Park crossbar in the 54th minute with a screamer from well outside the box, Toja doubled the Dallas advantage in the 60th with a rocket that would have scored without the slight deflection by Logan Pause. The FIRE with the fresh injection of Brian Plotkin, Thiago, and Chad Barrett besieged the Dallas goal for the remainder of the match and converted in the 73rd minute after Thiago won a ball from two Dallas defenders, split two more with a pass to Barrett, which was crossed to an on rushing Calen Carr. Carr poked the ball past Sala to halve the lead. The FIRE almost leveled in the match when Thiago slammed a Justin Mapp corner into the near post. This match revealed that the FIRE can no longer afford to play converted defenders such as Gonzalo Segares, Ivan Guererro and Robinson as midfielders and expect them to cover for an aging central defensive tandem of CJ Brown and Chris Armas. Armas in particular looks like he aged ten years in the off season.
Saturday
Toronto v. DC United – Now here’s a game brought to you by Mo Johnston! UGLY! The first half lacked any cohesion whatsoever, but did bring the interesting footnote of Aleko Eskandarian scoring his first non-DC United goal vs. DC United. Aside from that, there was little to take away from the first half aside from the foul festival that is becoming commonplace at BMO field. I mean, we are talking about a team that is coached by a man who thought a red card was too harsh when one of his players tried to bite an opponent. DC was flat until the insertion of Guy-Roland Kpene in the 56th minute for walking yellow card Facundo Erpen who was on the verge of earning his second of the match. Shortly thereafter, DC tied the match off a Bobcat Goldthwaite own goal and continued pressing. In the 79th minute a great over the top ball found Luciano Emilio who was subsequently dragged down in the box by TFC’s Marvell Wynne. You guessed it, Mo didn’t agree with the call. That made no difference to Jamie Moreno, who tied Jason Kreis’ MLS all time goal record with a well struck penalty kick. Moreno who has only been able to score via the spot this season may well be running on fumes, despite his recent call-up to the Bolivian national side.
RBNY vs. Crew – I didn’t get to see too much of this game, but I did witness Dane Richards ROY campaign take another step forward with a great cross to ageless journeyman John Wolyniec for the opener. After that, Columbus pretty much got hammered into the ground by a merciless Red Bull side. The Red Bulls did very well considering they had to deal with the shock of Claudio Reyna not on the roster due to injury. Ronny Waterrus and Young Jozy were not on the pitch either with Waterrus nursing an injury and Jozy going to a Prom. Props to Bruce for letting Altidore attend an important event. There will be plenty of more games for him to take part in. I think Arena knows what he has on his hands in NYC and it should scare the hell out of anyone who loves MLS. I mean anyone, because it is clear to tell from attendance that no one in NY/NJ loves MLS.
Dynamo v. Revs – Shalrie Joseph fires a low liner past Pat Onstad early on to give the Revs all they needed against a tepid Dynamo attack. The Dynamo look very lost at the moment and might start to think about some serious changes. Rarely this year have Brian Ching, DeRo, Brad Davis and Joelajandro Dagrenya look close to being on the same page.
Colorado v. Wizards – Thank God for HDNet! That is so exclusive no one except Mark Cuban can watch the games! The draw here saw Carlos Marinelli back on the pitch, which is good news for KC’s fans. The fan base that has the distinction of putting up a “no rating” on their local TV game broadcasts according to the KC Star. That is sub 0.1 territory which means that less than 900 or so TV’s were tuned to the match. That’s got to hurt more than Jimmy Conrad’s jaw!
Sunday
Chivas v. Galaxy – Superclassico and another “sell out”! Ever watch a match with no connection between either teams midfielders and their strikers? Watch this on MLS replay and you’ll be able to claim that distinction. Tough match for spectators and that includes those lying down on blanket on Lalas hill.
Dallas v. RSL – A great Sunday afternoon crowd witnessed yet another droll first half , which gave way to a RSL showcase (and Jeff Cunningham swan song) in the second half. But the RSL Williams/Adu show was stolen by Dallas’ finishing, including the no-look Goal of the Week stunner launched by Chris Gbandi in the 82nd minute. I was shocked to see that eight cautions were issued in this match. What is this? Toronto?
Friendly Notes:
This week LA fell to Rangers 1-0 at the Home Depot Center while Toronto held Benefica to a scoreless draw. Not to bad all things considered. What other conclusions are there to draw from this?
Sheva open to America
According to the Evening Chronicle in Newcastle, Chelsea striker came away from last summers MLS All Star game impressed enough to move him to the following statements about the league. Shevchenko said: "I would like to play there, actually. Soccer is growing in the US and I'd like to be a part of that. I played there last summer against the MLS All-Stars and I saw myself that it's definitely improving.” Upon reading this, Alexi Lalas picked up the phone.
MLS Prediction Central
Last Week (2-6)
SEASON (12-23)
Thursday
FIRE vs. RBNY – As much as it hurts, I’ve got to go with the Red Bulls on this one. Bruce has got the whole team playing up to (Richards) and beyond (Mathis) their potential. With Angel getting familiar with his surrounding, the FIRE’s terrible (there I said it) central defense will look stupid all night.
Saturday
Wizards vs. Revs – The Revs keep winning, but something tells me that Marinelli and the Wizards will be able to get a draw out of this one.
TFC vs. Crew – The TFC UFC takes on the Crew (who’s logo is probably more appropriate for the visitors given their style of brawl ball). Toronto gets their first road win here in a shoot out.
Dynamo vs. DCU – Tommy’s boys are back on track as Dominic continues to look for answers and Saturday night at RFK is no place to search for those answers. I’ll take DCU comfortably.
Galaxy vs. Rapids – All Rapids all the way here. Jacob Peterson and Connor Casey got some much needed time in the Rapids mid-week Open Cup victory over RSL. Look for these players to have a role in this match.
FCD vs. Chivas – Steve Morrow figured something out over the last month and it is going to be trouble for any team in FCD’s path. Chivas’ midfield is having some difficulty in connecting to its attacking players and Pablo Ricchetti will ensure that remains the case.
Sunday
RSL vs. FIRE – Woe is RSL. This team is too good to continue to struggle the way they are, but alas, their struggles will not end on the road. The FIRE win their first in four and Carr begins to make a name for himself.
New Soccer Basher Enemy: Norman Chad – It’s great when a nationally syndicated writer uses every opportunity to bash MLS. Find his articles your own! I mean this stuff is hold over anti-soccer junk from days begone.
Euro-Snobs of the Week
The AP ran an article about two twenty year old American college students, Dan Dahlin and Ian Smith, who won tickets to the Champions League final via a UEFA lottery. Good for them, until the last quote of the page came up. When asked about David Beckham’s move to the Galaxy Smith quipped, "He's obviously shifting away from soccer to the movies." Obviously!!! Bite me Ian!
Writer of the Week:
Brian Dohn for this nice piece.
Podcast:
The Dynamo Power Hour with Glenn Davis special guest Marcus Hahnemann.
(P.S. – Is Thomas Rongren the spokes person for Danish Inspirations?)
NEXT WEEK: Early Season MLS Awards
This weekend we were treated to some terrible soccer (and weather) almost across the board. Luckily there were a few moments of brilliance sprinkled between the hacking and incomplete passes.
Wednesday
Toronto v. Dynamo - Nothing can keep these fans away from the madhouse on the lake. Can 2,000 DeRo supporters be wrong? They were last Wednesday and Houston got outplayed and new acquisition Joseph Ngenyna made like his predecessor, Alejandro Moreno and squandered a couple of prime scoring opportunities. Andy Welsh slammed home a Ronnie O’Brien free kick to send the Torontonians into a frenzy. Most amazing stat of the day: Complaints by Mo: 0. More on this later.
Thursday
FIRE v. Dallas – Another Brimstone Cup match, another Dallas win. Dallas outclasses the FIRE for 65 minutes and then managed to hang on for a 2-1 victory over the home team. Juan Toja was the man of the match in my book. His dominance across the field kept the 32 FIRE defenders fielded by mini-Coach “Defensive” Dave scrambling all evening. After Kenny Cooper almost broke the stage side Toyota Park crossbar in the 54th minute with a screamer from well outside the box, Toja doubled the Dallas advantage in the 60th with a rocket that would have scored without the slight deflection by Logan Pause. The FIRE with the fresh injection of Brian Plotkin, Thiago, and Chad Barrett besieged the Dallas goal for the remainder of the match and converted in the 73rd minute after Thiago won a ball from two Dallas defenders, split two more with a pass to Barrett, which was crossed to an on rushing Calen Carr. Carr poked the ball past Sala to halve the lead. The FIRE almost leveled in the match when Thiago slammed a Justin Mapp corner into the near post. This match revealed that the FIRE can no longer afford to play converted defenders such as Gonzalo Segares, Ivan Guererro and Robinson as midfielders and expect them to cover for an aging central defensive tandem of CJ Brown and Chris Armas. Armas in particular looks like he aged ten years in the off season.
Saturday
Toronto v. DC United – Now here’s a game brought to you by Mo Johnston! UGLY! The first half lacked any cohesion whatsoever, but did bring the interesting footnote of Aleko Eskandarian scoring his first non-DC United goal vs. DC United. Aside from that, there was little to take away from the first half aside from the foul festival that is becoming commonplace at BMO field. I mean, we are talking about a team that is coached by a man who thought a red card was too harsh when one of his players tried to bite an opponent. DC was flat until the insertion of Guy-Roland Kpene in the 56th minute for walking yellow card Facundo Erpen who was on the verge of earning his second of the match. Shortly thereafter, DC tied the match off a Bobcat Goldthwaite own goal and continued pressing. In the 79th minute a great over the top ball found Luciano Emilio who was subsequently dragged down in the box by TFC’s Marvell Wynne. You guessed it, Mo didn’t agree with the call. That made no difference to Jamie Moreno, who tied Jason Kreis’ MLS all time goal record with a well struck penalty kick. Moreno who has only been able to score via the spot this season may well be running on fumes, despite his recent call-up to the Bolivian national side.
RBNY vs. Crew – I didn’t get to see too much of this game, but I did witness Dane Richards ROY campaign take another step forward with a great cross to ageless journeyman John Wolyniec for the opener. After that, Columbus pretty much got hammered into the ground by a merciless Red Bull side. The Red Bulls did very well considering they had to deal with the shock of Claudio Reyna not on the roster due to injury. Ronny Waterrus and Young Jozy were not on the pitch either with Waterrus nursing an injury and Jozy going to a Prom. Props to Bruce for letting Altidore attend an important event. There will be plenty of more games for him to take part in. I think Arena knows what he has on his hands in NYC and it should scare the hell out of anyone who loves MLS. I mean anyone, because it is clear to tell from attendance that no one in NY/NJ loves MLS.
Dynamo v. Revs – Shalrie Joseph fires a low liner past Pat Onstad early on to give the Revs all they needed against a tepid Dynamo attack. The Dynamo look very lost at the moment and might start to think about some serious changes. Rarely this year have Brian Ching, DeRo, Brad Davis and Joelajandro Dagrenya look close to being on the same page.
Colorado v. Wizards – Thank God for HDNet! That is so exclusive no one except Mark Cuban can watch the games! The draw here saw Carlos Marinelli back on the pitch, which is good news for KC’s fans. The fan base that has the distinction of putting up a “no rating” on their local TV game broadcasts according to the KC Star. That is sub 0.1 territory which means that less than 900 or so TV’s were tuned to the match. That’s got to hurt more than Jimmy Conrad’s jaw!
Sunday
Chivas v. Galaxy – Superclassico and another “sell out”! Ever watch a match with no connection between either teams midfielders and their strikers? Watch this on MLS replay and you’ll be able to claim that distinction. Tough match for spectators and that includes those lying down on blanket on Lalas hill.
Dallas v. RSL – A great Sunday afternoon crowd witnessed yet another droll first half , which gave way to a RSL showcase (and Jeff Cunningham swan song) in the second half. But the RSL Williams/Adu show was stolen by Dallas’ finishing, including the no-look Goal of the Week stunner launched by Chris Gbandi in the 82nd minute. I was shocked to see that eight cautions were issued in this match. What is this? Toronto?
Friendly Notes:
This week LA fell to Rangers 1-0 at the Home Depot Center while Toronto held Benefica to a scoreless draw. Not to bad all things considered. What other conclusions are there to draw from this?
Sheva open to America
According to the Evening Chronicle in Newcastle, Chelsea striker came away from last summers MLS All Star game impressed enough to move him to the following statements about the league. Shevchenko said: "I would like to play there, actually. Soccer is growing in the US and I'd like to be a part of that. I played there last summer against the MLS All-Stars and I saw myself that it's definitely improving.” Upon reading this, Alexi Lalas picked up the phone.
MLS Prediction Central
Last Week (2-6)
SEASON (12-23)
Thursday
FIRE vs. RBNY – As much as it hurts, I’ve got to go with the Red Bulls on this one. Bruce has got the whole team playing up to (Richards) and beyond (Mathis) their potential. With Angel getting familiar with his surrounding, the FIRE’s terrible (there I said it) central defense will look stupid all night.
Saturday
Wizards vs. Revs – The Revs keep winning, but something tells me that Marinelli and the Wizards will be able to get a draw out of this one.
TFC vs. Crew – The TFC UFC takes on the Crew (who’s logo is probably more appropriate for the visitors given their style of brawl ball). Toronto gets their first road win here in a shoot out.
Dynamo vs. DCU – Tommy’s boys are back on track as Dominic continues to look for answers and Saturday night at RFK is no place to search for those answers. I’ll take DCU comfortably.
Galaxy vs. Rapids – All Rapids all the way here. Jacob Peterson and Connor Casey got some much needed time in the Rapids mid-week Open Cup victory over RSL. Look for these players to have a role in this match.
FCD vs. Chivas – Steve Morrow figured something out over the last month and it is going to be trouble for any team in FCD’s path. Chivas’ midfield is having some difficulty in connecting to its attacking players and Pablo Ricchetti will ensure that remains the case.
Sunday
RSL vs. FIRE – Woe is RSL. This team is too good to continue to struggle the way they are, but alas, their struggles will not end on the road. The FIRE win their first in four and Carr begins to make a name for himself.
New Soccer Basher Enemy: Norman Chad – It’s great when a nationally syndicated writer uses every opportunity to bash MLS. Find his articles your own! I mean this stuff is hold over anti-soccer junk from days begone.
Euro-Snobs of the Week
The AP ran an article about two twenty year old American college students, Dan Dahlin and Ian Smith, who won tickets to the Champions League final via a UEFA lottery. Good for them, until the last quote of the page came up. When asked about David Beckham’s move to the Galaxy Smith quipped, "He's obviously shifting away from soccer to the movies." Obviously!!! Bite me Ian!
Writer of the Week:
Brian Dohn for this nice piece.
Podcast:
The Dynamo Power Hour with Glenn Davis special guest Marcus Hahnemann.
(P.S. – Is Thomas Rongren the spokes person for Danish Inspirations?)
NEXT WEEK: Early Season MLS Awards
Thursday, May 3, 2007
US Soccer Snob’s Bi-Weekly US Soccer Update – 5/3/07
MLS Week 4 – Questions, Answers and More Questions
The first question that went through my mind during the opening shots of Bee-Mo field was, “Are they just giving away scarves there?” While the answer to that was “Yes” for season ticket holders, the Toronto FC fans immediately cemented their position amongst the best in the league and their organized fan clubs are right near the top too. There was a great difference between the first franchise game for a Houston or RSL and then the first game we witnessed on Saturday. This crowd was not out for curiosity’s sake! Nay! They were out for the blood that their team has yet to draw. While TFC couldn’t reward their fans with any points, they did have their top performance of the year! Danny Diccio showed why Connor Casey got to go home to Denver as his physical presence asked questions of KC all game. That is a tremendous statement given that Jimmy Conrad and Nick Garcia are amongst the roughest defenders in the league! Perhaps following the advice in my TFC related entry, Mo replaced Marco Reda in the starting eleven in favor of Andrew Boyens and the result was a far more competent defense. Jim Brennan also elevated his game from previous outings. Despite having most of the run of play, TFC conceded a late near post Eddie Johnson tally. EJ was rewarded for his score by the Canuck fans with a dousing of Molsen. KC did well considering the early loss of superstar in the making, Argentine, Carlos Marinelli to a hamstring injury.
The Crew entertained DC United and continued the visitors woes by shutting out the side that most predicted to dominate the league this year. Columbus will become far more dangerous in the attacking end when Guillermo Barros Schelotto arrives, however an overall solid performance from the Crew helped them retain their unbeaten status. A real stand out this season has been the play of Joseph Ngwenya who caused DC headaches and probably bruises all night.
Saturday wrapped up with a Superclassico in the sold out Home Depot Center, where the Gals put two early goals on the other home team. Unfortunately, I was unable to watch the rest of the match due to technical difficulties, but it was nice to see Cobi hit the scoresheet.
Sunday was Texas Football matches which were amongst the most spiritless of the entire season. First the Revs topped an out of gas FC Dallas 1-0 under the midday sun at PHP. The Rev’s got their goal off the hands down goal of the week winning strike by Taylor Twellman. Twellman’s volley into the far side netting cam off a great pass from Steve Ralston, who is likely to top Carlos Valderrama’s all time MLS assist record this season. He is unlikely to adopt El Pibe’s hairstyle, although I think everybody would love to see that!
The Fire got the better of Houston at Robertson stadium for the second consecutive year as Chris Rolfe and company put together another solid, but unspectacular win. The lone goal in the match started with a long ball from Gonzalo Segares into the right hand corner that Rolfe tracked down. Rolfe then streaked to the corner of the box before faking a shot, then cooly taking it after the fake to beat Pat Onstad to the near post. The Fire immediately went into an even greater defensive shell and managed to hold on to the lead. While the 3-5-2 formation will not show it, the Fire have actually been starting five defenders, two defensive midfielders, two attacking mids and a lone forward. The absence of Justin Mapp was felt as his replacement Thiago again failed to show any of the spark that has been missing for well over a year. The stadium fell very quiet in the second half as the Dynamo supporters groups El Batillion and The Texian Army walked out of the stadium after a dispute with security. When will MLS front offices educate their security about soccer fans? This has happened in just about every city in the league with any sort of sizable support group. These groups are part of the attraction for (North) American fans now. Support the supporters and give them a long leash!
RSL unnecessarily dropped three points on its home pitch to rivals Colorado Rapids on Monday despite dominating possession and clearly having the better of the play all evening. A couple of mental breakdowns in the span of four minutes doomed the home team. The first goal came as RSL defender Daniel Torres tracked down a long lofted ball to the edge of his own box. Deciding to play the ball back to the keeper Torres turned to the left and was absolutely shocked to see the Rapid’s Roberto Brown in his face. Brown took the ball into the box and put a move on Torres that sent the RSL defender sliding to the ground. Brown easily converted past a deserted Chris Seitz to mark the occasion of Seitz’ first MLS start. Seitz added to his woes minutes later as he handled a ball that may or may not have been a pass back. I guess he never heard the “when in doubt” addage. This wrinkle was unfortunate for Seitz because he had played a great match up until that point. Overall, this match was a great viewing experience, because despite these lapses, high quality football was on display at Rice-Eccles and the crowd let it be know that there was no love for the visitors.
Let’s face it Coach John Ellinger is on borrowed time in Salt Lake. We know owner Dave Checketts recognizes that RSL is in the spotlight out there. He recognizes the need to show the fans that they are trying to improve. Freddy’s signing was a first step, now Ellinger needs to go. The Coach has gotten everything he’s asked for and has just been unable to make this talent line-up click, he couldn’t get anything out of Mathis, now he gets Freddy and despite all the trumpeting about Adu returning to his natural position, where do we find him? On the wing playing second creative fiddle to Mehdi Ballouchy! They flipped sides at the half, but Ballouchy was responsible for most of the attacking midfield responsibilities. To make matters worse, most of Ballouchy’s first touches were criminally bad, showing all the ball had to offer to the defense again and again. RSL needs to relegate Ellinger to the Rongren Pile and hire a proven winner.
MLS Prediction Central:
Season Record (5-9)
Last Week (3-5)
Thursday
DC – Revs – The hot Revs keep DCU scratching their head and head out of RFK with another win.
KC – Crew – The Crew remain undefeated with a draw at Arrowhead.
RSL – NYRB – With Torres on the bench, RSL draws at home versus the Flagship.
Colorado – Houston – The Rapids got it going on and put on a showcase for their fans.
Sunday
DC – Chivas – Finally DC’s breakout performance and a big W for the preseason darlings. In doing so, DC bucks the trend of Thursday Night teams underperforming.
Revs – FIRE – The Fire cool the exhausted revs and leap to the top of the table.
PODCAST :
The Soccer Hour with Glenn Davis
The first question that went through my mind during the opening shots of Bee-Mo field was, “Are they just giving away scarves there?” While the answer to that was “Yes” for season ticket holders, the Toronto FC fans immediately cemented their position amongst the best in the league and their organized fan clubs are right near the top too. There was a great difference between the first franchise game for a Houston or RSL and then the first game we witnessed on Saturday. This crowd was not out for curiosity’s sake! Nay! They were out for the blood that their team has yet to draw. While TFC couldn’t reward their fans with any points, they did have their top performance of the year! Danny Diccio showed why Connor Casey got to go home to Denver as his physical presence asked questions of KC all game. That is a tremendous statement given that Jimmy Conrad and Nick Garcia are amongst the roughest defenders in the league! Perhaps following the advice in my TFC related entry, Mo replaced Marco Reda in the starting eleven in favor of Andrew Boyens and the result was a far more competent defense. Jim Brennan also elevated his game from previous outings. Despite having most of the run of play, TFC conceded a late near post Eddie Johnson tally. EJ was rewarded for his score by the Canuck fans with a dousing of Molsen. KC did well considering the early loss of superstar in the making, Argentine, Carlos Marinelli to a hamstring injury.
The Crew entertained DC United and continued the visitors woes by shutting out the side that most predicted to dominate the league this year. Columbus will become far more dangerous in the attacking end when Guillermo Barros Schelotto arrives, however an overall solid performance from the Crew helped them retain their unbeaten status. A real stand out this season has been the play of Joseph Ngwenya who caused DC headaches and probably bruises all night.
Saturday wrapped up with a Superclassico in the sold out Home Depot Center, where the Gals put two early goals on the other home team. Unfortunately, I was unable to watch the rest of the match due to technical difficulties, but it was nice to see Cobi hit the scoresheet.
Sunday was Texas Football matches which were amongst the most spiritless of the entire season. First the Revs topped an out of gas FC Dallas 1-0 under the midday sun at PHP. The Rev’s got their goal off the hands down goal of the week winning strike by Taylor Twellman. Twellman’s volley into the far side netting cam off a great pass from Steve Ralston, who is likely to top Carlos Valderrama’s all time MLS assist record this season. He is unlikely to adopt El Pibe’s hairstyle, although I think everybody would love to see that!
The Fire got the better of Houston at Robertson stadium for the second consecutive year as Chris Rolfe and company put together another solid, but unspectacular win. The lone goal in the match started with a long ball from Gonzalo Segares into the right hand corner that Rolfe tracked down. Rolfe then streaked to the corner of the box before faking a shot, then cooly taking it after the fake to beat Pat Onstad to the near post. The Fire immediately went into an even greater defensive shell and managed to hold on to the lead. While the 3-5-2 formation will not show it, the Fire have actually been starting five defenders, two defensive midfielders, two attacking mids and a lone forward. The absence of Justin Mapp was felt as his replacement Thiago again failed to show any of the spark that has been missing for well over a year. The stadium fell very quiet in the second half as the Dynamo supporters groups El Batillion and The Texian Army walked out of the stadium after a dispute with security. When will MLS front offices educate their security about soccer fans? This has happened in just about every city in the league with any sort of sizable support group. These groups are part of the attraction for (North) American fans now. Support the supporters and give them a long leash!
RSL unnecessarily dropped three points on its home pitch to rivals Colorado Rapids on Monday despite dominating possession and clearly having the better of the play all evening. A couple of mental breakdowns in the span of four minutes doomed the home team. The first goal came as RSL defender Daniel Torres tracked down a long lofted ball to the edge of his own box. Deciding to play the ball back to the keeper Torres turned to the left and was absolutely shocked to see the Rapid’s Roberto Brown in his face. Brown took the ball into the box and put a move on Torres that sent the RSL defender sliding to the ground. Brown easily converted past a deserted Chris Seitz to mark the occasion of Seitz’ first MLS start. Seitz added to his woes minutes later as he handled a ball that may or may not have been a pass back. I guess he never heard the “when in doubt” addage. This wrinkle was unfortunate for Seitz because he had played a great match up until that point. Overall, this match was a great viewing experience, because despite these lapses, high quality football was on display at Rice-Eccles and the crowd let it be know that there was no love for the visitors.
Let’s face it Coach John Ellinger is on borrowed time in Salt Lake. We know owner Dave Checketts recognizes that RSL is in the spotlight out there. He recognizes the need to show the fans that they are trying to improve. Freddy’s signing was a first step, now Ellinger needs to go. The Coach has gotten everything he’s asked for and has just been unable to make this talent line-up click, he couldn’t get anything out of Mathis, now he gets Freddy and despite all the trumpeting about Adu returning to his natural position, where do we find him? On the wing playing second creative fiddle to Mehdi Ballouchy! They flipped sides at the half, but Ballouchy was responsible for most of the attacking midfield responsibilities. To make matters worse, most of Ballouchy’s first touches were criminally bad, showing all the ball had to offer to the defense again and again. RSL needs to relegate Ellinger to the Rongren Pile and hire a proven winner.
MLS Prediction Central:
Season Record (5-9)
Last Week (3-5)
Thursday
DC – Revs – The hot Revs keep DCU scratching their head and head out of RFK with another win.
KC – Crew – The Crew remain undefeated with a draw at Arrowhead.
RSL – NYRB – With Torres on the bench, RSL draws at home versus the Flagship.
Colorado – Houston – The Rapids got it going on and put on a showcase for their fans.
Sunday
DC – Chivas – Finally DC’s breakout performance and a big W for the preseason darlings. In doing so, DC bucks the trend of Thursday Night teams underperforming.
Revs – FIRE – The Fire cool the exhausted revs and leap to the top of the table.
PODCAST :
The Soccer Hour with Glenn Davis
Monday, April 30, 2007
Quick Prediction
RSL vs. COL - Look for RSL and Cunningham to get on track versus the Rocky Mountain EastSiders.
Monday, February 5, 2007
US Soccer Update
RSL Stadium Falls Through
Hopefully, this isn’t the type of groundbreaking that Becks will be making in the US!
How can anyone the majority of Utah residents and their legislators to have vision? Look at some cities that play it safe: Cincinnati and Kansas City. Let’s look at cities that have had vision: Cleveland, Indianapolis, Denver. See any difference between the three. The last three used a combination of sports facilities and urban infrastructure investment to completely revamp their dying downtowns. Cincinnati and Kansas City have had opportunities to do the same thing, yet allow their visionary plans to become so tied in legislative red tape that poor decisions were inevitably made and once in a half-century opportunities were squandered.
Overall I though RSL, concert projections were a tad bit high, particularly given the poor concert schedule at Toyota Park in year one (2 concerts with about 20K average). However, that entire complex would have been a boon for Sandy and the entire Valley. Yes, some taxpayer money would have to be spent, but isn’t that contingent on a massive private investment by RSL? A park like this would have been a win-win. Now RSL will be off to St. Louis for 2008 and good! The legislators deserve the loss of the tax dollars that this franchise has raised for them over the past two years. Here’s hoping that RSL makes a deep playoff run and then pulls the plug on the town. Salt Lake deserves nothing less for jerking around a true visionary and chance taker.
RBNY Signs Watterus
I know there are plenty of puns with making a splash and a guy named Watterus, but that would assume that a splash had been made. Certainly the Energy Club upgraded their goalkeeping situation, but I can’t help but be disappointed by the clubs poor initial foray into the big-time transfer market. Reyna and Watterus are guys that could have been signed with or without the Designated Player rule. Plus, does anyone think that Claudio Reyna is worth $1M? With his injury rate, that will work out to be about $250,000 a game. Isn’t that more than Beckham? The whole Arena/Reyna thing has made me sick for the last nine years and anyone that sees this as anything other than a gift from Il Bruce to Captain Worthless needs a wake up call. Moving on, RBNY has one senior international slot and one designated player slot left, let’s see if they can attract anything other than B level talent. Now, it seems that Il Bruce has his sights set on DaMarcus Beasley. This can mean one of three things: 1. Arena is a closed Man City fan and is intent of picking off the whole team one at a time. 2. Arena is looking for a central defender (or right winger). 2. Arena is looking for someone to throw under the bus once the annual tanking of the New York franchise occurs. Let’s hope that Run DMB sends Bruce some of his choice quotes from this past summer in response to the transfer request.
MLS Adopts Qualification System for Open Cup
The rational for this move is to clear up some time on every teams schedule; however, I’m not sure how much time it will free up. It takes one game off the docket for the top three clubs in the divisions, but will add an extra game for the Galaxy and the number of matches will remain the same for the NYRB. On a separate, but related issue, the biggest problem with the US Open Cup is lack of promotion and reward for the participants. One of US Soccer top priorities, other than naming a full-time National Team coach, should be obtaining main sponsorship and expanded television coverage for the Open Cup. The tournament is a big deal in non-MLS cities and certainly there are benefits to offer a main sponsor, such as tournament naming rights, banners, etc. The sponsor money could be used to boost the paltry purse for the final participants. This bounty currently sits at $100,000 for the winner and $50,000 for the runners-up. Broken up between the players that are fielded during the tournament (lets say 20), we are looking at $5,000 per player on average, which in a league where the average salary is between $80,000 and $100,000, is certainly not “bust my ass” money. The thanklessness of becoming an open cup winner certainly doesn’t help either. If there is any country where this format should work well it is the US. This tournament is Hoosiers and Rocky rolled into one. An NCAA style tournament crossed with baseballs hierarchy system! Even better, upsets happen all the time. Lest not forget when an absolutely loaded Fire team dropped a 1-0 decision to Milwaukee Wave United in Beer Town with Pitor Nowak, Carlos Bocanegra, Run DMB and Hristo Stoitchkov on the pitch.
Awards:
Absurd Foreign Press Story of the Week:
Donovan Quits Galaxy in Response to Beckham Move – London Daily News
Idiot of the Week:
Peter Corroon – Who is looking the gift horse in the mouth? Without RSL, neither the national team nor Real Madrid would spend one day in your city. That is two days without the tax dollars or economic impact generated by 45,000 fans. Nearly 300,000 fans go through RSL gates every year for all competitions. In 2008, it may be zero.
PODCAST:
The Soccer Hour with Glenn Davis: http://images.chron.com/content/news/photos/blogs/sportscast/podcast_soccer013007.mp3
Hopefully, this isn’t the type of groundbreaking that Becks will be making in the US!
How can anyone the majority of Utah residents and their legislators to have vision? Look at some cities that play it safe: Cincinnati and Kansas City. Let’s look at cities that have had vision: Cleveland, Indianapolis, Denver. See any difference between the three. The last three used a combination of sports facilities and urban infrastructure investment to completely revamp their dying downtowns. Cincinnati and Kansas City have had opportunities to do the same thing, yet allow their visionary plans to become so tied in legislative red tape that poor decisions were inevitably made and once in a half-century opportunities were squandered.
Overall I though RSL, concert projections were a tad bit high, particularly given the poor concert schedule at Toyota Park in year one (2 concerts with about 20K average). However, that entire complex would have been a boon for Sandy and the entire Valley. Yes, some taxpayer money would have to be spent, but isn’t that contingent on a massive private investment by RSL? A park like this would have been a win-win. Now RSL will be off to St. Louis for 2008 and good! The legislators deserve the loss of the tax dollars that this franchise has raised for them over the past two years. Here’s hoping that RSL makes a deep playoff run and then pulls the plug on the town. Salt Lake deserves nothing less for jerking around a true visionary and chance taker.
RBNY Signs Watterus
I know there are plenty of puns with making a splash and a guy named Watterus, but that would assume that a splash had been made. Certainly the Energy Club upgraded their goalkeeping situation, but I can’t help but be disappointed by the clubs poor initial foray into the big-time transfer market. Reyna and Watterus are guys that could have been signed with or without the Designated Player rule. Plus, does anyone think that Claudio Reyna is worth $1M? With his injury rate, that will work out to be about $250,000 a game. Isn’t that more than Beckham? The whole Arena/Reyna thing has made me sick for the last nine years and anyone that sees this as anything other than a gift from Il Bruce to Captain Worthless needs a wake up call. Moving on, RBNY has one senior international slot and one designated player slot left, let’s see if they can attract anything other than B level talent. Now, it seems that Il Bruce has his sights set on DaMarcus Beasley. This can mean one of three things: 1. Arena is a closed Man City fan and is intent of picking off the whole team one at a time. 2. Arena is looking for a central defender (or right winger). 2. Arena is looking for someone to throw under the bus once the annual tanking of the New York franchise occurs. Let’s hope that Run DMB sends Bruce some of his choice quotes from this past summer in response to the transfer request.
MLS Adopts Qualification System for Open Cup
The rational for this move is to clear up some time on every teams schedule; however, I’m not sure how much time it will free up. It takes one game off the docket for the top three clubs in the divisions, but will add an extra game for the Galaxy and the number of matches will remain the same for the NYRB. On a separate, but related issue, the biggest problem with the US Open Cup is lack of promotion and reward for the participants. One of US Soccer top priorities, other than naming a full-time National Team coach, should be obtaining main sponsorship and expanded television coverage for the Open Cup. The tournament is a big deal in non-MLS cities and certainly there are benefits to offer a main sponsor, such as tournament naming rights, banners, etc. The sponsor money could be used to boost the paltry purse for the final participants. This bounty currently sits at $100,000 for the winner and $50,000 for the runners-up. Broken up between the players that are fielded during the tournament (lets say 20), we are looking at $5,000 per player on average, which in a league where the average salary is between $80,000 and $100,000, is certainly not “bust my ass” money. The thanklessness of becoming an open cup winner certainly doesn’t help either. If there is any country where this format should work well it is the US. This tournament is Hoosiers and Rocky rolled into one. An NCAA style tournament crossed with baseballs hierarchy system! Even better, upsets happen all the time. Lest not forget when an absolutely loaded Fire team dropped a 1-0 decision to Milwaukee Wave United in Beer Town with Pitor Nowak, Carlos Bocanegra, Run DMB and Hristo Stoitchkov on the pitch.
Awards:
Absurd Foreign Press Story of the Week:
Donovan Quits Galaxy in Response to Beckham Move – London Daily News
Idiot of the Week:
Peter Corroon – Who is looking the gift horse in the mouth? Without RSL, neither the national team nor Real Madrid would spend one day in your city. That is two days without the tax dollars or economic impact generated by 45,000 fans. Nearly 300,000 fans go through RSL gates every year for all competitions. In 2008, it may be zero.
PODCAST:
The Soccer Hour with Glenn Davis: http://images.chron.com/content/news/photos/blogs/sportscast/podcast_soccer013007.mp3
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