In case you haven't heard, the USL collected a fifth scalp last night when the Seattle Sounders dumped Chivas USA out of the U.S. Open Cup - and by a lopsided score. For those interested in a closer look at this freeway pile-up, I recommend Luis Bueno's near-rant.
Well, thank god the third round is over. The embarrassment was becoming too much. Wait, hold the phone. The Sounders get the Colorado Rapids in the next round. Dang. Looks like Major League Soccer (MLS) - that's America's top-flight, by the way - better practice concealing the blushes.
I think I've already hammered my disappointment with MLS's run in this year's Open Cup into the ground, so I'll leave it to Dan Loney to look ahead and MLS's less-than-ideal chances in the coming rounds. For a discussion of a related subject, Bill Urban took a wider view at a subject I've already examined narrowly (should be the second link in this paragraph), by wondering whether the current reserve set-up will ever produce an MLS-bench side capable of beating a USL side.
Good question. And I'm afraid we have our answer.
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Showing posts with label Chivas USA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Chivas USA. Show all posts
Open Cup: It's Worse...but not that bad...
The Chicago Tribune's reporting staff almost prompted me to write a "holy-shit-the-sky-is-falling-and-it's-on-fire" kind of post, courtesy of a passage that appeared in their report on the Chicago Fire crashing out of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup (LHUSOC) on Sunday.
It takes only a quick look at the competition bracket, usefully posted on the U.S. Open Cup's official site, to know this isn't the case. For one, Chivas USA hasn't played their Round of 16 game - that's on "June 16, 2007" against the Seattle Sounders. And that's in Seattle, by the way, the significance of which will be made clear later. There's also the fact that the Colorado Rapids is still in the tournament.
Getting back to that "significance" flag I planted earlier, maybe the Tribune's staff is stupid like a fox. For starters, they can't be blamed for forgetting Colorado is not an MLS team; I do it all the time, at least when I don't forget the Rapids' existence entirely. As for Chivas, maybe the Trib's staff knew all about Chivas' road record and figured that, combined with the Seattle Sounders' current hot-streak, would, in fact, leave New England and Dallas as the only two teams that one can say without smirking belong in MLS.
In reality, though, there are a minimum of three MLS teams remaining in this year's tourney. And the way the brackets break down means that at least one lower-division team will make the semifinals - and given how MLS teams are faring in LHUSOC play this year, why would one bet against them? If a USL-1 - or, god forbid, USL-2 - team wins the tourney this season, what the hell, y'know? For all the interest MLS teams and schedulers show in the tournament, it would be justice, wouldn't it?
That returns, rather nicely, to the post I was going to write. And if you read the report on Chicago's loss in Windy City Soccer, you'll read this priceless line:
It shouldn't be this goddamn hard to tell which team on the field is top-flight.
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"The Fire became the fourth MLS team eliminated in the third round, joining Los Angeles, D.C. United and Houston on the sidelines. Only FC Dallas and New England remain."
It takes only a quick look at the competition bracket, usefully posted on the U.S. Open Cup's official site, to know this isn't the case. For one, Chivas USA hasn't played their Round of 16 game - that's on "June 16, 2007" against the Seattle Sounders. And that's in Seattle, by the way, the significance of which will be made clear later. There's also the fact that the Colorado Rapids is still in the tournament.
Getting back to that "significance" flag I planted earlier, maybe the Tribune's staff is stupid like a fox. For starters, they can't be blamed for forgetting Colorado is not an MLS team; I do it all the time, at least when I don't forget the Rapids' existence entirely. As for Chivas, maybe the Trib's staff knew all about Chivas' road record and figured that, combined with the Seattle Sounders' current hot-streak, would, in fact, leave New England and Dallas as the only two teams that one can say without smirking belong in MLS.
In reality, though, there are a minimum of three MLS teams remaining in this year's tourney. And the way the brackets break down means that at least one lower-division team will make the semifinals - and given how MLS teams are faring in LHUSOC play this year, why would one bet against them? If a USL-1 - or, god forbid, USL-2 - team wins the tourney this season, what the hell, y'know? For all the interest MLS teams and schedulers show in the tournament, it would be justice, wouldn't it?
That returns, rather nicely, to the post I was going to write. And if you read the report on Chicago's loss in Windy City Soccer, you'll read this priceless line:
"This was a night where the Fire was clearly second best in every aspect of the night except goalkeeping where Jon Busch kept the match close."
It shouldn't be this goddamn hard to tell which team on the field is top-flight.
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Top 5, 07.12: No USOC for DC; Other USOC; Stadium Porn; Kreis...
...and I leave the ellipses because I like Jason Kreis well enough and couldn't think of an appropriate verb that wouldn't sound insulting.
Trying to make this quick today.
- As a (I think) Harrisburg, PA blog put it, DC became the latest Major League Soccer (MLS) team to "go poof" in the U.S. Open Cup (OK: the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup...by Wheaties). The Harrisburg Patriot-News did a good homer write-up...as well they should. I see this loss as part of an irksome trend I mentioned yesterday and what The Offside Rules wrote today.
- Speaking of the Open Cup, Bill Urban forwarded a swell idea on USSoccerplayers.com: reserving a spot in the Superliga for the Open Cup champion (and how cool would it be if, say, the Harrisburg City Islanders lifted the Cup?). I wholly endorse Mr. Urban's recommendation - but would modestly propose adding the structural adjustments I mentioned yesterday (see the "yesterday" link above).
- I held off on this yesterday, but won't be able to ignore it till I post it and get the urge out of my system. The computer-drawn mock-ups of DC's potential stadium look delightfully space age. The image fourth from the left is my personal favorite...very tech.
- Jason Kreis' open letter to RSL fans is....is....I don't know. Painful? Mildly embarrassing, yet simultaneously appropriate? All I know is, the man deserved a better situation.
- As a fan of MLS trying to use cheapness - and I don't care what they discount: tickets, beer, parking; just something - I just wish a team other than Chivas USA was the one to give it a real-world test. Turning things over to Chivas USA co-owner, Antonio Cue:
Um...solidarity?
Ah, finally got the length of a Top 5 post to where I want it.
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Trying to make this quick today.
- As a (I think) Harrisburg, PA blog put it, DC became the latest Major League Soccer (MLS) team to "go poof" in the U.S. Open Cup (OK: the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup...by Wheaties). The Harrisburg Patriot-News did a good homer write-up...as well they should. I see this loss as part of an irksome trend I mentioned yesterday and what The Offside Rules wrote today.
- Speaking of the Open Cup, Bill Urban forwarded a swell idea on USSoccerplayers.com: reserving a spot in the Superliga for the Open Cup champion (and how cool would it be if, say, the Harrisburg City Islanders lifted the Cup?). I wholly endorse Mr. Urban's recommendation - but would modestly propose adding the structural adjustments I mentioned yesterday (see the "yesterday" link above).
- I held off on this yesterday, but won't be able to ignore it till I post it and get the urge out of my system. The computer-drawn mock-ups of DC's potential stadium look delightfully space age. The image fourth from the left is my personal favorite...very tech.
- Jason Kreis' open letter to RSL fans is....is....I don't know. Painful? Mildly embarrassing, yet simultaneously appropriate? All I know is, the man deserved a better situation.
- As a fan of MLS trying to use cheapness - and I don't care what they discount: tickets, beer, parking; just something - I just wish a team other than Chivas USA was the one to give it a real-world test. Turning things over to Chivas USA co-owner, Antonio Cue:
"We have not changed our ticket prices because we are trying to be just with the people and give them the best benefit with the soccer we are giving."
Um...solidarity?
Ah, finally got the length of a Top 5 post to where I want it.
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MLS Week 14: Power Rankings and Progress Report
Week 14 was a hell of a thing, wasn’t it? Considering the crush of games between last Wednesday and yesterday afternoon en masse seems like trying to eat a Big Mac in one bite, something the Surgeon General would recommend against, no doubt. The weight of those games feels almost like a pivot point, a time to take stock of what came before and to study the prospects for the future.
As such, an expanded, context-free edition of this site’s power rankings seems in order. Rather than look back at past week’s rating, what comes below takes a step back for a shot at The Big Picture: impressions from the season’s frenetic, surprising opening games to the wilting pace of the recent, hot weeks, as well as signs of things to come will determine who goes where in this table; expect some personal blind-spots to misshape these standings as well (see: Galaxy, Los Angeles). Moreover, the rankings will bow to the playoff format: the top two teams from each conference will make up the top four, while the four teams that follow from there are the teams I expect to make the post-season.
In other words, an attempt will be made here to be both current and predictive...with the expectation that the distance between my estimation of things and reality should be amusingly vast.
Here goes...
1) Houston Dynamo
The Dynamo is, without question, the best team in Major League Soccer (MLS) right now. With them firing on all cylinders - and on both sides of the ball - I’m to a point where I’ll accept the vilest of food dares about this team making the playoffs (I’m open to drinking dares on them winning the West). Brad Davis’ injury upset the offensive balance a little, but Brian Ching/Joseph Ngwenya looks surprisingly effective and Stuart Holden looks like sufficient cover for DeRosario’s so-far sub-par 2007. With MLS’s (by far) sturdiest defense behind them, the Canadian Wonder only needs to wake up (or stops thinking about what tight bastards league honchos are midway through a dribble), for these guys will romp to a repeat.
What Might Kill ‘Em: Their brick-shithouse defense will carry them to the post-season, but they’ll need their offense to get them out of it smiling. A return of the early-season goals drought seems the likeliest pitfall. This matters because, among the rarefied breed of actual contenders, the question isn’t making the playoffs, but winning the league.
2) New England Revolution
When some people look at New England, they see a glass half-full; when I look at them, I see a glass three-quarters empty. Why am I hardest on the ones I love? That’s a big question with a tough love answer: the Revolution will grab the top spot in the East because they’re one of the rare teams in MLS without significant holes somewhere on the field - e.g. they’ll make it by default. Solid and unspectacular, they’re hard to beat and possess the firepower to punish most teams. New England takes the field with two missions, the second subordinate to the first: Mission 1: Stop the other team from scoring; Mission 2: score as many goals as possible without in any way compromising Mission 1. For what it’s worth, those adjectives - “solid and unspectacular” - get at why they make the finals, but don’t win them. The only question left is, why do I like this team?
What Might Kill ‘Em: Given the thin (certainly cheap, possibly cynical) calculus on which this team operates, they seem one prolonged slip in attentiveness or confidence away from contender, or even meaningful, post-season, status. It’s possible this is happening now, but I’ve waited a while for this slip to come, Steve Nicol to get fired, etc. Even through several series of rookie classes, it never has. What can I say? The man has a system and it works - even if it’s too often uninspiring.
3) DC United
In all honesty, DC is the only team in this mix I can see failing to make the playoffs. But I’ll also admit upfront I don’t know how they do what they do, but the fact remains that they do (got that? Good). Judging by form and appearances, Coach Tom Soehn has figured out how to make the pieces of his mysteriously effective machine work. Christian Gomez doesn’t seem the threat he was in 2006 and both their big-shit new signings still seem to be finding their feet....and, yet, the team from DC keeps making progress; maybe Troy Perkins rediscovering confidence played the key role there. Their middling scores in the significant statistical categories (goals for/against) come from their early season nightmare; the fact they’ve attained respectability speaks up the team’s recovery.
What Might Kill ‘Em: Placing DC so high relies on two suppositions: first, that there’s no shame to losing to Houston on the road and, second, dubbing the loss to Real Salt Lake an anomalous hiccup. The long and the short is that, because DC is a model organization - good fans, plugged-in front office - signs of progress seem reliable. Says here, they’ll make the playoffs.
4) FC Dallas
Call me crazy (cue chorus: “You’re crazy!”), but Dallas’ recent defensive solidity - along with the introduction of some leadership in Adrian Serioux - has me viewing them as 2007’s dark-horse contender; I give tons of credit for that turn-around to Dario Sala, but the rest of the pieces are shaping up as well. Add a return to health for Kenny Cooper into the mix, the likelihood of Carlos Ruiz, at last, slimming down to fighting weight, a great pair of recent additions in Juan Toja and Pablo Ricchetti, and - gasp - useful threats like Arturo Alvarez and Ramon Nunez lurking in the wings, and Dallas looks like a decent candidate for making some noise. There was something curiously inspiring - at least from the point of view of Dallas fans - to that draw with Houston a couple weeks back, ugly as it was. The knock on Dallas has always been fragility, so the sight of them kicking and scrapping walks that one back a bit.
What Might Kill ‘Em: When you’re cursed, you’re cursed. Dallas has to exercise their demons, establish a sense of belief they can win the big ones...whoops, the verb ought to be “exorcise.” It’s Ruiz they need to exercise...
5) Kansas City Wizards
This team can score; assuming Eddie Johnson doesn’t bring his Copa America form home with him, they should score even more. Wayward finishing has hurt them lately, but the chances are coming by, literally, the score. The Wizards are fast, pretty, and fun to watch. The fruits they derive from pressuring teams all over the field showed as recently as this past weekend against LA. The highly relevant question is whether that same pressuring game is what leaves them so vulnerable at the back. If you accept that statement that Dallas sets a Gold Standard (of sorts) for Dodgy Defending, what does the fact that KC has allowed one more goal in the season so far say? (And, it should be noted, in two fewer games.) The hard reality is that KC’s defensive performance ranks with Chicago’s and RSL’s - not good company. Sort out the defense and KC suddenly becomes a contender; but will sorting out the defense take away from the flash offense? That’s the question of KC’s season.
What Might Kill ‘Em: The defense, without question; teams that can shut up shop against these guys will find a way past them eventually.
6) Chivas USA
This constitutes one of my “wacky” pick (OK, the third, perhaps fourth), but I think I’ve got the general picture right, even if I louse up the details: i.e. the post-season will feature a 5-3 split, favoring the Eastern Conference. I’m feel comfortable, though not quite confident, about that call. Where I don’t feel so good is picking Chivas as that team. There’s enough to like about them - beginning with that c-rrazzzy home record (5-0-1, 1 goal conceded) - and, in general, they strike me as a team built essentially right for MLS: solid in terms of shape and equipped with enough lethality to win close ones. On the downside, their 8th in the league for scoring and, at times, it seems like Maykel Galindo is the all the offense they have. Then there’s that road form issue: 1-5-2...ouch. Still, a win or two - or as many ties as possible - in their seven remaining road games and the Goats control their destiny. Not too shabby.
What Might Kill ‘Em: So many different threats: a resurgence from LA; Colorado waking up and realizing they can win, etc. Combine any of these with Chivas’ struggles on the road and they’re one of the three Western Conference teams hitting the links early. For what it’s worth, I count LA getting their shit together the biggest threat.
7) Columbus Crew
I don’t view this as wacky; Columbus, making the playoffs, that is; placing them over New York? Maybe. The thing is, Columbus has as much depth as any team in the league - not quality of depth, but simple depth in the sense of players familiar with and available for familiar with positions. That amounts to guys playing where they’re comfortable, which should spare them the Personnel Hell Red Bull has endured. The Crew’s offense started showing signs of life with the deal that brought in Alejandro Moreno; Guillermo Schelotto has taken care of the running the show. The offense’s stir coincided with another happy event: the up-and-down defense hitting an up in the form of three consecutive clean-sheets and only six goals allowed in their last six games; mixed in all that were seven points of nine against higher-placed Eastern Conference rivals. In general, the trends are good; so long as the Crew keeps guys like Chad Marshall and Schelotto fit and productive they’re a plausible playoff team.
What Might Kill ‘Em: Injuries...or the possibility they'll wake up and remember they're Columbus. I kid, I kid. They’ve got great depth - in midfield in particular, even if it’s a bit green - but not a defense or forward. Take a hit there and this call goes pear-shaped fast.
8) Red Bull New York
Week 4 - y’know, back when no one could score on Red Bull and Dane Richards and Clint Mathis looked like God out there - well, that seems like ten seasons ago with the way Red Bull looks lately. A funny thing about that: it’s not so much that Red Bull simply sucks, but it appears they may just suck on the road - against competent teams, at least. The stretch of June and July games, in which Red Bull allowed 16 and scored only 10, featured six road games out of seven; the two wins they managed came against Colorado and a lucky one against Toronto. Seeing as they stay at home till the middle of August, we should all know a little more about New York by then. In the here and now, the injury-plagued defense draws a lot of commentary - and that is a problem - but there’s plenty more wrong with the Red Bulls, some related to aging Europeans fizzling on the wings. For all that, I get the sense that what’s becoming an annual struggle between Kansas City and New York will recur in 2007, only with a bigger potential prize: whichever team that gets things right soonest could easily bump New England or DC.
What Might Kill ‘Em: The comphrensive funk they’re now in could prove lethal. A lack of depth in defense is the chief structural problem, but they haven’t looked good much of anywhere. Could this be Arena’s first outright, no-safety failure? Will the New York market destroy another reputation? I'd pay to see that (because I'm a horrible, little man).
OK, since I don’t think the rest of these cats will make it, I’ll write shorter pieces for them. And do note the subtle difference in language: it’s no longer “what might kill ‘em,” but “What Might Let ‘Em In.”
9) Los Angeles Galaxy
If there's a fly in the ointment, it lives in LA. I thought they looked pretty good against KC - though that could be down to the Wizards approach buying them crazy amounts of space. Still, the difference between this game and how appallingly horrible they looked in losses to Colorado, Dallas, and the Crew recommends keeping an eye on this bunch. Unlike a number of teams below, LA has made trades to improve - or attempt to improve, anyway. They’re schedule might kill them in the end, but at least the cavalry has arrived.
What Might Let ‘Em In: It won’t take more than “good enough” form, a slip by Chivas, and continued horrible play from Colorado. Way stranger things have happened.
10) Toronto FC
I start the no-hopers list with the team most likely to defy the label. At least Toronto meets losses with determination, even anger; the rest of the remaining teams look flustered and harried. They’ve got the fight, but need to learn to win on the road. And, just to pass on a bit of advice: I don’t think playing both Colin Samuel and Danny Dichio is the answer.
What Might Let ‘Em In: A couple road wins would probably do it - especially if they come against the more vulnerable Eastern teams. Translation: they really needed to beat Chicago this past weekend.
11) Colorado Rapids...
....are in free-fall. Fire Fernando, dudes, your team hasn’t won since May. (Where’s Real Salt Lake when you need them?) On the upside, the main problem looks like offense: the wait for their last two-goal game goes back further still to April. At this point, it’s almost not a question that Clavijo is to blame: the man who excels at getting the most out of human reclamation projects has now built a team of them - and it shows.
What Might Let ‘Em In: The return of that mysterious Rapids/Raiders swagger. When they get in that “us-versus-them” mode, Colorado starts winning - ugly, yes, but winning all the same.
12) Chicago Fire
I don’t know anything about the Fire’s new coach, but I believe one thing to be true: Sir Alex Ferguson couldn’t make winners of this bunch. I kid, I kid. In truth, last weekend’s game against Toronto showed a lot about this Fire team: individual players found ways around the TFC defense, they played in beautiful balls to...to...no one. In one particular memorable (and sad) moment, Chris Armas capped a promising Fire move with a nearly perfect run into the area, but no one followed him, and no one was there to knock in an enticing, yet blind, cross. The thing is, that game was theirs for the taking.
What Might Let ‘Em In: Armas’ run wasn’t the only instance of good play going nowhere. Maybe Osorio will get the Fire’s attackers on the same page. There are useful players, but they’re misfiring to a degree where I want to hide the children.
13) Real Salt Lake
The odds would have to be biblical to make a bet on these guys to make the playoffs worth taking. The smarter bet might be on them beating Chivas’ worst-ever season. Bad, and unlikely to get better.
What Might Let ‘Em In: The Earth opening up and swallowing three teams from each conference. Points deduction for match-fixing among the teams above them. Perhaps a massive bribe to bring Jack Warner into the picture. In other words, it ain’t gonna happen.
As such, an expanded, context-free edition of this site’s power rankings seems in order. Rather than look back at past week’s rating, what comes below takes a step back for a shot at The Big Picture: impressions from the season’s frenetic, surprising opening games to the wilting pace of the recent, hot weeks, as well as signs of things to come will determine who goes where in this table; expect some personal blind-spots to misshape these standings as well (see: Galaxy, Los Angeles). Moreover, the rankings will bow to the playoff format: the top two teams from each conference will make up the top four, while the four teams that follow from there are the teams I expect to make the post-season.
In other words, an attempt will be made here to be both current and predictive...with the expectation that the distance between my estimation of things and reality should be amusingly vast.
Here goes...
1) Houston Dynamo
The Dynamo is, without question, the best team in Major League Soccer (MLS) right now. With them firing on all cylinders - and on both sides of the ball - I’m to a point where I’ll accept the vilest of food dares about this team making the playoffs (I’m open to drinking dares on them winning the West). Brad Davis’ injury upset the offensive balance a little, but Brian Ching/Joseph Ngwenya looks surprisingly effective and Stuart Holden looks like sufficient cover for DeRosario’s so-far sub-par 2007. With MLS’s (by far) sturdiest defense behind them, the Canadian Wonder only needs to wake up (or stops thinking about what tight bastards league honchos are midway through a dribble), for these guys will romp to a repeat.
What Might Kill ‘Em: Their brick-shithouse defense will carry them to the post-season, but they’ll need their offense to get them out of it smiling. A return of the early-season goals drought seems the likeliest pitfall. This matters because, among the rarefied breed of actual contenders, the question isn’t making the playoffs, but winning the league.
2) New England Revolution
When some people look at New England, they see a glass half-full; when I look at them, I see a glass three-quarters empty. Why am I hardest on the ones I love? That’s a big question with a tough love answer: the Revolution will grab the top spot in the East because they’re one of the rare teams in MLS without significant holes somewhere on the field - e.g. they’ll make it by default. Solid and unspectacular, they’re hard to beat and possess the firepower to punish most teams. New England takes the field with two missions, the second subordinate to the first: Mission 1: Stop the other team from scoring; Mission 2: score as many goals as possible without in any way compromising Mission 1. For what it’s worth, those adjectives - “solid and unspectacular” - get at why they make the finals, but don’t win them. The only question left is, why do I like this team?
What Might Kill ‘Em: Given the thin (certainly cheap, possibly cynical) calculus on which this team operates, they seem one prolonged slip in attentiveness or confidence away from contender, or even meaningful, post-season, status. It’s possible this is happening now, but I’ve waited a while for this slip to come, Steve Nicol to get fired, etc. Even through several series of rookie classes, it never has. What can I say? The man has a system and it works - even if it’s too often uninspiring.
3) DC United
In all honesty, DC is the only team in this mix I can see failing to make the playoffs. But I’ll also admit upfront I don’t know how they do what they do, but the fact remains that they do (got that? Good). Judging by form and appearances, Coach Tom Soehn has figured out how to make the pieces of his mysteriously effective machine work. Christian Gomez doesn’t seem the threat he was in 2006 and both their big-shit new signings still seem to be finding their feet....and, yet, the team from DC keeps making progress; maybe Troy Perkins rediscovering confidence played the key role there. Their middling scores in the significant statistical categories (goals for/against) come from their early season nightmare; the fact they’ve attained respectability speaks up the team’s recovery.
What Might Kill ‘Em: Placing DC so high relies on two suppositions: first, that there’s no shame to losing to Houston on the road and, second, dubbing the loss to Real Salt Lake an anomalous hiccup. The long and the short is that, because DC is a model organization - good fans, plugged-in front office - signs of progress seem reliable. Says here, they’ll make the playoffs.
4) FC Dallas
Call me crazy (cue chorus: “You’re crazy!”), but Dallas’ recent defensive solidity - along with the introduction of some leadership in Adrian Serioux - has me viewing them as 2007’s dark-horse contender; I give tons of credit for that turn-around to Dario Sala, but the rest of the pieces are shaping up as well. Add a return to health for Kenny Cooper into the mix, the likelihood of Carlos Ruiz, at last, slimming down to fighting weight, a great pair of recent additions in Juan Toja and Pablo Ricchetti, and - gasp - useful threats like Arturo Alvarez and Ramon Nunez lurking in the wings, and Dallas looks like a decent candidate for making some noise. There was something curiously inspiring - at least from the point of view of Dallas fans - to that draw with Houston a couple weeks back, ugly as it was. The knock on Dallas has always been fragility, so the sight of them kicking and scrapping walks that one back a bit.
What Might Kill ‘Em: When you’re cursed, you’re cursed. Dallas has to exercise their demons, establish a sense of belief they can win the big ones...whoops, the verb ought to be “exorcise.” It’s Ruiz they need to exercise...
5) Kansas City Wizards
This team can score; assuming Eddie Johnson doesn’t bring his Copa America form home with him, they should score even more. Wayward finishing has hurt them lately, but the chances are coming by, literally, the score. The Wizards are fast, pretty, and fun to watch. The fruits they derive from pressuring teams all over the field showed as recently as this past weekend against LA. The highly relevant question is whether that same pressuring game is what leaves them so vulnerable at the back. If you accept that statement that Dallas sets a Gold Standard (of sorts) for Dodgy Defending, what does the fact that KC has allowed one more goal in the season so far say? (And, it should be noted, in two fewer games.) The hard reality is that KC’s defensive performance ranks with Chicago’s and RSL’s - not good company. Sort out the defense and KC suddenly becomes a contender; but will sorting out the defense take away from the flash offense? That’s the question of KC’s season.
What Might Kill ‘Em: The defense, without question; teams that can shut up shop against these guys will find a way past them eventually.
6) Chivas USA
This constitutes one of my “wacky” pick (OK, the third, perhaps fourth), but I think I’ve got the general picture right, even if I louse up the details: i.e. the post-season will feature a 5-3 split, favoring the Eastern Conference. I’m feel comfortable, though not quite confident, about that call. Where I don’t feel so good is picking Chivas as that team. There’s enough to like about them - beginning with that c-rrazzzy home record (5-0-1, 1 goal conceded) - and, in general, they strike me as a team built essentially right for MLS: solid in terms of shape and equipped with enough lethality to win close ones. On the downside, their 8th in the league for scoring and, at times, it seems like Maykel Galindo is the all the offense they have. Then there’s that road form issue: 1-5-2...ouch. Still, a win or two - or as many ties as possible - in their seven remaining road games and the Goats control their destiny. Not too shabby.
What Might Kill ‘Em: So many different threats: a resurgence from LA; Colorado waking up and realizing they can win, etc. Combine any of these with Chivas’ struggles on the road and they’re one of the three Western Conference teams hitting the links early. For what it’s worth, I count LA getting their shit together the biggest threat.
7) Columbus Crew
I don’t view this as wacky; Columbus, making the playoffs, that is; placing them over New York? Maybe. The thing is, Columbus has as much depth as any team in the league - not quality of depth, but simple depth in the sense of players familiar with and available for familiar with positions. That amounts to guys playing where they’re comfortable, which should spare them the Personnel Hell Red Bull has endured. The Crew’s offense started showing signs of life with the deal that brought in Alejandro Moreno; Guillermo Schelotto has taken care of the running the show. The offense’s stir coincided with another happy event: the up-and-down defense hitting an up in the form of three consecutive clean-sheets and only six goals allowed in their last six games; mixed in all that were seven points of nine against higher-placed Eastern Conference rivals. In general, the trends are good; so long as the Crew keeps guys like Chad Marshall and Schelotto fit and productive they’re a plausible playoff team.
What Might Kill ‘Em: Injuries...or the possibility they'll wake up and remember they're Columbus. I kid, I kid. They’ve got great depth - in midfield in particular, even if it’s a bit green - but not a defense or forward. Take a hit there and this call goes pear-shaped fast.
8) Red Bull New York
Week 4 - y’know, back when no one could score on Red Bull and Dane Richards and Clint Mathis looked like God out there - well, that seems like ten seasons ago with the way Red Bull looks lately. A funny thing about that: it’s not so much that Red Bull simply sucks, but it appears they may just suck on the road - against competent teams, at least. The stretch of June and July games, in which Red Bull allowed 16 and scored only 10, featured six road games out of seven; the two wins they managed came against Colorado and a lucky one against Toronto. Seeing as they stay at home till the middle of August, we should all know a little more about New York by then. In the here and now, the injury-plagued defense draws a lot of commentary - and that is a problem - but there’s plenty more wrong with the Red Bulls, some related to aging Europeans fizzling on the wings. For all that, I get the sense that what’s becoming an annual struggle between Kansas City and New York will recur in 2007, only with a bigger potential prize: whichever team that gets things right soonest could easily bump New England or DC.
What Might Kill ‘Em: The comphrensive funk they’re now in could prove lethal. A lack of depth in defense is the chief structural problem, but they haven’t looked good much of anywhere. Could this be Arena’s first outright, no-safety failure? Will the New York market destroy another reputation? I'd pay to see that (because I'm a horrible, little man).
OK, since I don’t think the rest of these cats will make it, I’ll write shorter pieces for them. And do note the subtle difference in language: it’s no longer “what might kill ‘em,” but “What Might Let ‘Em In.”
9) Los Angeles Galaxy
If there's a fly in the ointment, it lives in LA. I thought they looked pretty good against KC - though that could be down to the Wizards approach buying them crazy amounts of space. Still, the difference between this game and how appallingly horrible they looked in losses to Colorado, Dallas, and the Crew recommends keeping an eye on this bunch. Unlike a number of teams below, LA has made trades to improve - or attempt to improve, anyway. They’re schedule might kill them in the end, but at least the cavalry has arrived.
What Might Let ‘Em In: It won’t take more than “good enough” form, a slip by Chivas, and continued horrible play from Colorado. Way stranger things have happened.
10) Toronto FC
I start the no-hopers list with the team most likely to defy the label. At least Toronto meets losses with determination, even anger; the rest of the remaining teams look flustered and harried. They’ve got the fight, but need to learn to win on the road. And, just to pass on a bit of advice: I don’t think playing both Colin Samuel and Danny Dichio is the answer.
What Might Let ‘Em In: A couple road wins would probably do it - especially if they come against the more vulnerable Eastern teams. Translation: they really needed to beat Chicago this past weekend.
11) Colorado Rapids...
....are in free-fall. Fire Fernando, dudes, your team hasn’t won since May. (Where’s Real Salt Lake when you need them?) On the upside, the main problem looks like offense: the wait for their last two-goal game goes back further still to April. At this point, it’s almost not a question that Clavijo is to blame: the man who excels at getting the most out of human reclamation projects has now built a team of them - and it shows.
What Might Let ‘Em In: The return of that mysterious Rapids/Raiders swagger. When they get in that “us-versus-them” mode, Colorado starts winning - ugly, yes, but winning all the same.
12) Chicago Fire
I don’t know anything about the Fire’s new coach, but I believe one thing to be true: Sir Alex Ferguson couldn’t make winners of this bunch. I kid, I kid. In truth, last weekend’s game against Toronto showed a lot about this Fire team: individual players found ways around the TFC defense, they played in beautiful balls to...to...no one. In one particular memorable (and sad) moment, Chris Armas capped a promising Fire move with a nearly perfect run into the area, but no one followed him, and no one was there to knock in an enticing, yet blind, cross. The thing is, that game was theirs for the taking.
What Might Let ‘Em In: Armas’ run wasn’t the only instance of good play going nowhere. Maybe Osorio will get the Fire’s attackers on the same page. There are useful players, but they’re misfiring to a degree where I want to hide the children.
13) Real Salt Lake
The odds would have to be biblical to make a bet on these guys to make the playoffs worth taking. The smarter bet might be on them beating Chivas’ worst-ever season. Bad, and unlikely to get better.
What Might Let ‘Em In: The Earth opening up and swallowing three teams from each conference. Points deduction for match-fixing among the teams above them. Perhaps a massive bribe to bring Jack Warner into the picture. In other words, it ain’t gonna happen.
MLS Week 13 Power Rankings
I'm pleased to report that all this weekend's results made sense to me on one level or another. I can't say the same for the rankings that follow, which blend inexplicable hostility and fits of indulgent favoritism with some chemicals I found on the shelf.
As always, last week’s ranking appears in parentheses immediately after this week’s ranking. So as to not misrepresent my judgment as entirely first-hand, here’s a key for my viewing: “@” means I watched a given team’s most recent performance in its entirety; “$” means I caught it through Quick Kicks, which provides extended highlights; “%” means I watched only the rump highlights available through MLSnet.com.
Here goes...and after the rankings, you’ll find a current listing of the standings for the permanent record.
1. (2) DC United (%)
They flip-flop with the Dynamo based solely on the fact that they won. Reports didn’t tell of a sterling performance, in spite of the score - and the team they beat (Colorado) doesn’t add to the equation. But a win is a win...
2. (1) Houston Dynamo (@)
...which is why DC tops Houston this week; worse, FC Dallas knocked ‘em around pretty good. This team needs to recover some sass after this weekend’s draw.
3. (5) FC Dallas (@)
Finally, Dallas is showing they can defend. The attack sputtered a bit while that came online, but they have options on the bench (Ramon Nunez; didn’t say it was a great option, but it’s a different look) and will improve more when guys like Kenny Cooper and Adrian Serioux heal. All in all, Morrow keeps bringing in players, so the ambition is very much there.
4. (3) New England Revolution (a good chunk of @)
If I could justify dropping these guys further, I would. I really, really would. Personally, I don’t think these guys are firing on half their cylinders.
5. (6) Kansas City Wizards (nada)
When giving up just one goal is cause for celebration, you know problems lurk. Still, they attack like demons - perhaps spazzy, half-blind demons, but demons all the same.
6. (7) Columbus Crew (a good chunk of @)
I can’t stop inching this team up the table - but so long as they’re winning, especially against Eastern Conference teams above them in the table, I don’t know why I would. I really like the statement of a win without Schelotto.
7. (4) Red Bull New York (a good chunk of @)
Even with defenders returning and one more acquired (Kevin Goldthwaite) they couldn’t keep out Columbus...let's underline that: Columbus. Moreover, they broke down even more. In fact, nothing went well for Red Bull, who haven’t won since June 6 and seemed to have forgotten how.
8. (8) Chivas USA (a good chunk of @)
My earlier over-enthusing over Chivas’ record leaves me a little gun-shy about rating them. Right now, I know two things about this team: they’re superb at home and they have a very special player in Maykel Galindo. I doubt that’s enough to carry them, but it’s probably good enough for the playoffs.
9. (9) Toronto FC (nada)
Sounds like they got lucky. But they’ve got some useful players and a good enough team to sit firmly on the bubble. They can go either way from here.
10. (10) Colorado Rapids (% + thank god - nada)
Does Fernando still have a job? More to the point, will he in one week? Two weeks? FC Rocky said it best with their lament over the Rapids inability to knock off a pitiful, flummoxed Chicago.
11. (11) Los Angeles Galaxy (idle)
Will the week off help? Not nearly as much as getting back Donovan. With Pavon coming and Beckham to follow, these guys look poised to make a move. A failure to do so...well...I think I’d just have to laugh.
12. (12) Real Salt Lake (idle)
Week 14 is your time to shine, little diamond.
13. (13) Chicago Fire (thank god - nada)
Turns out “Chicago” and “chaos” share more than just a couple letters. From what I read about their last performance, it was the worst of the season. This is a team in meltdown.
Now, the standings (official listings):
Eastern Conference
1. New England Revs: 22 pts. (6-3-4: 24 GF, 16 GA, +8; home, 3-1-2; away, 3-2-2)
2. Kansas City Wiz: 21 pts. (6-4-3: 24 GF, 19 GA, +5; home, 3-2-1; away, 3-2-2)
3. Red Bull New York: 21 pts. (6-4-3: 24 GF, 16 GA, +8; home, 4-1-1; away, 2-3-2)
4. DC United: 20 pts. (6-4-2: 22 GF, 17 GA, +5; home, 5-1-1; away, 1-3-1)
5. Columbus Crew: 18 pts. (4-4-6: 18 GF, 21 GA, -3; home, 3-1-4; away, 1-3-2)
6. Chicago Fire: 15 pts. (4-6-3: 12 GF, 19 GA, -7; home, 3-2-2; away, 1-3-1)
7. Toronto FC: 14 pts. (4-7-2: 15 GF, 22 GA, -7; home, 4-3-0; away, 0-4-2)
Western Conference
1. FC Dallas: 26 pts. (8-6-2: 19 GF, 21 GA, -2; home, 3-2-1; away, 5-4-1)
2. Houston Dynamo: 23 pts. (7-5-2: 16 GF, 10 GA, +6; home, 4-2-1; away, 3-3-1)
3. Chivas USA: 20 pts. (6-4-2: 17 GF, 12 GA; +5; home, 5-0-1; away, 1-4-1)
4. Colorado Rapids: 16 pts. (4-7-4: 14 GF, 21 GA, -7; home 2-2-3; away, 2-5-1)
5. Los Angeles Galaxy: 9 pts. (2-5-3: 13 GF, 16 GA, -3; home, 2-3-1; away, 0-2-2)
6. Real Salt Lake: 9 pts. (1-5-6: 11 GF, 19 GA, -8; home, 1-2-3; away, 0-3-3)
As always, last week’s ranking appears in parentheses immediately after this week’s ranking. So as to not misrepresent my judgment as entirely first-hand, here’s a key for my viewing: “@” means I watched a given team’s most recent performance in its entirety; “$” means I caught it through Quick Kicks, which provides extended highlights; “%” means I watched only the rump highlights available through MLSnet.com.
Here goes...and after the rankings, you’ll find a current listing of the standings for the permanent record.
1. (2) DC United (%)
They flip-flop with the Dynamo based solely on the fact that they won. Reports didn’t tell of a sterling performance, in spite of the score - and the team they beat (Colorado) doesn’t add to the equation. But a win is a win...
2. (1) Houston Dynamo (@)
...which is why DC tops Houston this week; worse, FC Dallas knocked ‘em around pretty good. This team needs to recover some sass after this weekend’s draw.
3. (5) FC Dallas (@)
Finally, Dallas is showing they can defend. The attack sputtered a bit while that came online, but they have options on the bench (Ramon Nunez; didn’t say it was a great option, but it’s a different look) and will improve more when guys like Kenny Cooper and Adrian Serioux heal. All in all, Morrow keeps bringing in players, so the ambition is very much there.
4. (3) New England Revolution (a good chunk of @)
If I could justify dropping these guys further, I would. I really, really would. Personally, I don’t think these guys are firing on half their cylinders.
5. (6) Kansas City Wizards (nada)
When giving up just one goal is cause for celebration, you know problems lurk. Still, they attack like demons - perhaps spazzy, half-blind demons, but demons all the same.
6. (7) Columbus Crew (a good chunk of @)
I can’t stop inching this team up the table - but so long as they’re winning, especially against Eastern Conference teams above them in the table, I don’t know why I would. I really like the statement of a win without Schelotto.
7. (4) Red Bull New York (a good chunk of @)
Even with defenders returning and one more acquired (Kevin Goldthwaite) they couldn’t keep out Columbus...let's underline that: Columbus. Moreover, they broke down even more. In fact, nothing went well for Red Bull, who haven’t won since June 6 and seemed to have forgotten how.
8. (8) Chivas USA (a good chunk of @)
My earlier over-enthusing over Chivas’ record leaves me a little gun-shy about rating them. Right now, I know two things about this team: they’re superb at home and they have a very special player in Maykel Galindo. I doubt that’s enough to carry them, but it’s probably good enough for the playoffs.
9. (9) Toronto FC (nada)
Sounds like they got lucky. But they’ve got some useful players and a good enough team to sit firmly on the bubble. They can go either way from here.
10. (10) Colorado Rapids (% + thank god - nada)
Does Fernando still have a job? More to the point, will he in one week? Two weeks? FC Rocky said it best with their lament over the Rapids inability to knock off a pitiful, flummoxed Chicago.
11. (11) Los Angeles Galaxy (idle)
Will the week off help? Not nearly as much as getting back Donovan. With Pavon coming and Beckham to follow, these guys look poised to make a move. A failure to do so...well...I think I’d just have to laugh.
12. (12) Real Salt Lake (idle)
Week 14 is your time to shine, little diamond.
13. (13) Chicago Fire (thank god - nada)
Turns out “Chicago” and “chaos” share more than just a couple letters. From what I read about their last performance, it was the worst of the season. This is a team in meltdown.
Now, the standings (official listings):
Eastern Conference
1. New England Revs: 22 pts. (6-3-4: 24 GF, 16 GA, +8; home, 3-1-2; away, 3-2-2)
2. Kansas City Wiz: 21 pts. (6-4-3: 24 GF, 19 GA, +5; home, 3-2-1; away, 3-2-2)
3. Red Bull New York: 21 pts. (6-4-3: 24 GF, 16 GA, +8; home, 4-1-1; away, 2-3-2)
4. DC United: 20 pts. (6-4-2: 22 GF, 17 GA, +5; home, 5-1-1; away, 1-3-1)
5. Columbus Crew: 18 pts. (4-4-6: 18 GF, 21 GA, -3; home, 3-1-4; away, 1-3-2)
6. Chicago Fire: 15 pts. (4-6-3: 12 GF, 19 GA, -7; home, 3-2-2; away, 1-3-1)
7. Toronto FC: 14 pts. (4-7-2: 15 GF, 22 GA, -7; home, 4-3-0; away, 0-4-2)
Western Conference
1. FC Dallas: 26 pts. (8-6-2: 19 GF, 21 GA, -2; home, 3-2-1; away, 5-4-1)
2. Houston Dynamo: 23 pts. (7-5-2: 16 GF, 10 GA, +6; home, 4-2-1; away, 3-3-1)
3. Chivas USA: 20 pts. (6-4-2: 17 GF, 12 GA; +5; home, 5-0-1; away, 1-4-1)
4. Colorado Rapids: 16 pts. (4-7-4: 14 GF, 21 GA, -7; home 2-2-3; away, 2-5-1)
5. Los Angeles Galaxy: 9 pts. (2-5-3: 13 GF, 16 GA, -3; home, 2-3-1; away, 0-2-2)
6. Real Salt Lake: 9 pts. (1-5-6: 11 GF, 19 GA, -8; home, 1-2-3; away, 0-3-3)
MLS Week 13: What I Learned from...
...watching Houston v. Dallas from start to finish (albeit with powers of attention in inverse proportion to the intake of cheap whiskey), watching both Columbus v. Red Bull and Chivas v. New England in episodes interspersed by warp drive (e.g. I fast-forwarded through chunks of each), and not watching any of the remaining games, but reading a thing or two.
Here goes:
FC Dallas 0 - 0 Houston Dynamo
- I’ll start with 3rd Degree’s fiesta del links. If you don’t like what you read here, you’ll find plenty of options there...you may not like ‘em, but that’s OK.
- Unlike FCD’s Bobby Rhine, I didn’t find this game boring. Quite the contrary, it was one of those classic, tale-of-two-halves affairs, with Houston having the more menacing first half while FC Dallas (though not Carlos Ruiz) threatened more in the second.
- Turning to another talking point, I agree it was a physical game; to borrow from, and add to, another report, this was a "slow [kick-filled] chess match." Houston players throw in the charge (see link) that Dallas put disruption before play. There may be some truth to that; I can say that FC Dallas players quickly swarmed and commenced to kicking any Houston player attempting to hold or dribble the ball. And it looked like a violent version of the magnet ball of my youth.
- The more I see him, the more I like Arturo Alvarez. Great, slashing runs...too bad about the finishing.
- Ruiz is off this year. And, not to be uncharitable, but the “Extra Carlos” he’s bringing to the table isn’t helping his game.
- I keep reading this was Dallas’ third clean-sheet in the past four games. That’s good news - and the cobbled line-up they used to make this last one only adds to the feat.
- Dario Sala is one hell of a ‘keeper.
- Dwayne DeRosario still isn’t the player he was the last two years. The same goes for Brian Mullan.
- Zach Wells might be the best back-up ‘keeper in the league.
- Brad Davis did more for Houston’s offense than any other player; unfortunately, those came on set plays and the opportunities fell to defenders.
- All in all, the interesting piece to this game was Dallas’ new resilience on defense; that’s something to watch. They certainly out-muscled the reigning champs and, I’m guessing, had the better chance at winning. Maybe they do deserve first place?
Columbus Crew 1 - 0 Red Bull New York
- Did Columbus add fluoride to its water? Something changed.
- Ives Galarcep declared this a fizzle for Red Bull as opposed to something impressive for the Crew. I disagree. Columbus genuinely outplayed New York’s finest with better passing and movement and a robust defense. The Crew left deserved winners. The only thing missing was finishing and, oh, about half the final ball - in other words, the Crew played too many almost there final balls.
- People are talking a lot about Guillermo Baros Schelotto (as in this post from WVHooligan - which is worth reading on its own). Schelotto’s absence only makes this win the more remarkable.
- As noted by many, the Crew’s Kei Kamara was man of the match. He ate Hunter Freeman alive.
- Another report on the game did some good work on not only the Kamara/Freeman duel, but also Chad Marshall’s corralling of Juan Pablo Angel.
- And that last one left a few goals-in-consecutive-games streaks alive...which spared us all from another spate of “Angel” puns. (Yeah, knock off those puns, you assholes).
- Raves from me and decent notice from others acknowledged, I count Ned Grabavoy one of the most underrated midfield players in MLS.
- Let the record show that the presence of Rusty Pierce did not hurt the Crew this week. And Will Hesmer didn’t look so bad in goal...not that he had much to do.
- Northjersey.com turned in a solid-drab match report...may as well link to it.
Chivas USA 2 - 0 New England Revolution
- New England seems determined to support my low opinion of them. The most aggravating thing I’ve read so far are comments from New England players talking about how a failure in their "passing game" doomed them. Let them down?! By my count, it has worked only once this season: the win over LA god-knows-how-long ago!
- Now this game was boring, especially in the first half. Some kind of invisible barrier kept the teams confined in the middle half of the field. The Revs never got through - never came close, in fact - but Chivas chucked in two purty-as-a-picture finishes...though, significantly, both came from outside the area (I think - Galindo’s goal-of-the-week strike certainly did).
- Seriously, stop the voting: Galindo’s goal wins or I’ll lose the little faith I have left in democratic processes.
- Chivas’ home record (impressive for the second year running no less...dang it; the MLSnet.com remodel hasn't hit all the archived material yet) says something. Where the balance falls between them stifling teams and teams stinking up their joint I can’t say, but playing Chivas at home looks like one of the toughest draws of 2007. They ain’t much on the road, though...
- That stallion-esque home record certainly owes nothing to that morgue-like atmosphere. Dan Loney does a little dance on the reputation Chivas’ absent fans.
- Both teams fielded something less than their ideal first team, but, looking to the future, Chivas’ absences and suspensions are stacking up.
I’m took the rest of these last two under advisement....
Chicago Fire 0 - 0 Colorado Rapids
- Ah, my must-miss match of the week....so I did.
- Reports speak of a pretty underwhelming evening. Neither hometown paper had anything good to say, but the Chicago Fire Offside and FC Rocky both turned in scathing reports.
- The only controversy I can find, I had to concoct: Windy City Soccer says Roberto Brown’s late near-winner bounced off him, then off the post; the Denver Post only mentions the opportunity without dubbing it a ricochet...gasp!
- Overall, it’s hard to think of two teams I’d rather not watch this year.
Kansas City Wizards 1 - 1 Toronto FC
- This was probably the most eye-catching result this week - for me, anyway. Though, given my impression of KC’s defense, perhaps it shouldn’t have been.
- You want remarkable: check out the imbalance on shots. Down the Byline does a good job of putting those shots in perspective.
- Judging from the Toronto Star’s brief report, unlike KC, TFC did well with the few chances they had then weathered the storm with 10 men. Baby steps...making the road equation work will require some baby steps for TFC.
- I saw Michael Harrington’s name on the score sheet again - Carlos Marinelli’s as well. Gets a body wondering about Rookie of the Year...
Here goes:
FC Dallas 0 - 0 Houston Dynamo
- I’ll start with 3rd Degree’s fiesta del links. If you don’t like what you read here, you’ll find plenty of options there...you may not like ‘em, but that’s OK.
- Unlike FCD’s Bobby Rhine, I didn’t find this game boring. Quite the contrary, it was one of those classic, tale-of-two-halves affairs, with Houston having the more menacing first half while FC Dallas (though not Carlos Ruiz) threatened more in the second.
- Turning to another talking point, I agree it was a physical game; to borrow from, and add to, another report, this was a "slow [kick-filled] chess match." Houston players throw in the charge (see link) that Dallas put disruption before play. There may be some truth to that; I can say that FC Dallas players quickly swarmed and commenced to kicking any Houston player attempting to hold or dribble the ball. And it looked like a violent version of the magnet ball of my youth.
- The more I see him, the more I like Arturo Alvarez. Great, slashing runs...too bad about the finishing.
- Ruiz is off this year. And, not to be uncharitable, but the “Extra Carlos” he’s bringing to the table isn’t helping his game.
- I keep reading this was Dallas’ third clean-sheet in the past four games. That’s good news - and the cobbled line-up they used to make this last one only adds to the feat.
- Dario Sala is one hell of a ‘keeper.
- Dwayne DeRosario still isn’t the player he was the last two years. The same goes for Brian Mullan.
- Zach Wells might be the best back-up ‘keeper in the league.
- Brad Davis did more for Houston’s offense than any other player; unfortunately, those came on set plays and the opportunities fell to defenders.
- All in all, the interesting piece to this game was Dallas’ new resilience on defense; that’s something to watch. They certainly out-muscled the reigning champs and, I’m guessing, had the better chance at winning. Maybe they do deserve first place?
Columbus Crew 1 - 0 Red Bull New York
- Did Columbus add fluoride to its water? Something changed.
- Ives Galarcep declared this a fizzle for Red Bull as opposed to something impressive for the Crew. I disagree. Columbus genuinely outplayed New York’s finest with better passing and movement and a robust defense. The Crew left deserved winners. The only thing missing was finishing and, oh, about half the final ball - in other words, the Crew played too many almost there final balls.
- People are talking a lot about Guillermo Baros Schelotto (as in this post from WVHooligan - which is worth reading on its own). Schelotto’s absence only makes this win the more remarkable.
- As noted by many, the Crew’s Kei Kamara was man of the match. He ate Hunter Freeman alive.
- Another report on the game did some good work on not only the Kamara/Freeman duel, but also Chad Marshall’s corralling of Juan Pablo Angel.
- And that last one left a few goals-in-consecutive-games streaks alive...which spared us all from another spate of “Angel” puns. (Yeah, knock off those puns, you assholes).
- Raves from me and decent notice from others acknowledged, I count Ned Grabavoy one of the most underrated midfield players in MLS.
- Let the record show that the presence of Rusty Pierce did not hurt the Crew this week. And Will Hesmer didn’t look so bad in goal...not that he had much to do.
- Northjersey.com turned in a solid-drab match report...may as well link to it.
Chivas USA 2 - 0 New England Revolution
- New England seems determined to support my low opinion of them. The most aggravating thing I’ve read so far are comments from New England players talking about how a failure in their "passing game" doomed them. Let them down?! By my count, it has worked only once this season: the win over LA god-knows-how-long ago!
- Now this game was boring, especially in the first half. Some kind of invisible barrier kept the teams confined in the middle half of the field. The Revs never got through - never came close, in fact - but Chivas chucked in two purty-as-a-picture finishes...though, significantly, both came from outside the area (I think - Galindo’s goal-of-the-week strike certainly did).
- Seriously, stop the voting: Galindo’s goal wins or I’ll lose the little faith I have left in democratic processes.
- Chivas’ home record (impressive for the second year running no less...dang it; the MLSnet.com remodel hasn't hit all the archived material yet) says something. Where the balance falls between them stifling teams and teams stinking up their joint I can’t say, but playing Chivas at home looks like one of the toughest draws of 2007. They ain’t much on the road, though...
- That stallion-esque home record certainly owes nothing to that morgue-like atmosphere. Dan Loney does a little dance on the reputation Chivas’ absent fans.
- Both teams fielded something less than their ideal first team, but, looking to the future, Chivas’ absences and suspensions are stacking up.
I’m took the rest of these last two under advisement....
Chicago Fire 0 - 0 Colorado Rapids
- Ah, my must-miss match of the week....so I did.
- Reports speak of a pretty underwhelming evening. Neither hometown paper had anything good to say, but the Chicago Fire Offside and FC Rocky both turned in scathing reports.
- The only controversy I can find, I had to concoct: Windy City Soccer says Roberto Brown’s late near-winner bounced off him, then off the post; the Denver Post only mentions the opportunity without dubbing it a ricochet...gasp!
- Overall, it’s hard to think of two teams I’d rather not watch this year.
Kansas City Wizards 1 - 1 Toronto FC
- This was probably the most eye-catching result this week - for me, anyway. Though, given my impression of KC’s defense, perhaps it shouldn’t have been.
- You want remarkable: check out the imbalance on shots. Down the Byline does a good job of putting those shots in perspective.
- Judging from the Toronto Star’s brief report, unlike KC, TFC did well with the few chances they had then weathered the storm with 10 men. Baby steps...making the road equation work will require some baby steps for TFC.
- I saw Michael Harrington’s name on the score sheet again - Carlos Marinelli’s as well. Gets a body wondering about Rookie of the Year...
Top 5, 06.26.07: Bonus Cubans, Fire Coach Coming
In spite of a personal belief that it contains all the best stuff in the house, I decided "junk drawer" might sound like I was tossing out a bunch of surplus stuff. Yes..."Top 5" sounds so much more impressive...
- News that Chivas USA picked up the two Cuban national team players - Osvaldo Alonso and Lester Mor(e?) - who defected during this year's Gold Cup leaves me wishing that I'd watched more of the Gold Cup. In a side question, will Maykel Galindo ever stop giving to his team?
- All right, um, the rest-of-the-country's media: the Deseret News laid down the gauntlet with their complete history of Real Salt Lake trades. Not only do they name them, they manage to discuss them intelligently. Now, it's your turn...
- Soccer America reports that Chicago will announce their new coach early as next week...or, rather, that GM John Guppy would "like to make an announcement by the end of next week." Based on what's written there, Sunday's home game against the Colorado Rapids could be Denis Hamlett's sole game as Fire head coach. The way it's written makes one think Frank Klopas has as good a crack at the job as anyone.
- Call this 3A: speaking of Chicago Fire coaches, Luis Arroyave wrote a decent, somewhat personal, retrospective on David Sarachan's relationship with his little corner of the media.
- In run-of-the-mill trade news, the Toronto Star reports Mo Johnston finally got his (323rd) man: Collin Samuel has officially signed with Toronto FC. I don't know anything about Samuel and can't say how he'll do in MLS, but something in the Star's report leaves me wondering about the intensity of Mo's courtship: "Samuel, listed at 5-foot-9 and 175 pounds, scored 14 goals in 115 games with Dundee." Um....
- Finally, yeah, I admit it: I got a warm, fuzzy kick out of the "Futbol Meets Football" video clip featuring David "Show Pony" Beckham and Reggie "No Nickname" Bush. Hat-tip to Laurie at The LA Offside for posting it - and kudos for her bravery in admitting a soft spot for the segment as well.
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- News that Chivas USA picked up the two Cuban national team players - Osvaldo Alonso and Lester Mor(e?) - who defected during this year's Gold Cup leaves me wishing that I'd watched more of the Gold Cup. In a side question, will Maykel Galindo ever stop giving to his team?
- All right, um, the rest-of-the-country's media: the Deseret News laid down the gauntlet with their complete history of Real Salt Lake trades. Not only do they name them, they manage to discuss them intelligently. Now, it's your turn...
- Soccer America reports that Chicago will announce their new coach early as next week...or, rather, that GM John Guppy would "like to make an announcement by the end of next week." Based on what's written there, Sunday's home game against the Colorado Rapids could be Denis Hamlett's sole game as Fire head coach. The way it's written makes one think Frank Klopas has as good a crack at the job as anyone.
- Call this 3A: speaking of Chicago Fire coaches, Luis Arroyave wrote a decent, somewhat personal, retrospective on David Sarachan's relationship with his little corner of the media.
- In run-of-the-mill trade news, the Toronto Star reports Mo Johnston finally got his (323rd) man: Collin Samuel has officially signed with Toronto FC. I don't know anything about Samuel and can't say how he'll do in MLS, but something in the Star's report leaves me wondering about the intensity of Mo's courtship: "Samuel, listed at 5-foot-9 and 175 pounds, scored 14 goals in 115 games with Dundee." Um....
- Finally, yeah, I admit it: I got a warm, fuzzy kick out of the "Futbol Meets Football" video clip featuring David "Show Pony" Beckham and Reggie "No Nickname" Bush. Hat-tip to Laurie at The LA Offside for posting it - and kudos for her bravery in admitting a soft spot for the segment as well.
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Houston 4 - 0 Chivas: The End of the Affair?
Suddenly, my burgeoning love affair with Chivas USA looks misguided.
Put another way, the goal differential that wooed me suddenly look trivial against all those warnings about poor road form that others forwarded and that I ignored.
On the other hand, Houston is finally making the expected noise. In fact, it bears noting that both preseason favorites - the other being DC United - have rather abruptly resumed their anticipated roles, even if the return for either club isn't complete or definitive.
After that, the most eye-catching thing about last night's game: Brad Davis showing up. If he and Brian Mullan get back on their games, Houston will cause problems.
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Put another way, the goal differential that wooed me suddenly look trivial against all those warnings about poor road form that others forwarded and that I ignored.
On the other hand, Houston is finally making the expected noise. In fact, it bears noting that both preseason favorites - the other being DC United - have rather abruptly resumed their anticipated roles, even if the return for either club isn't complete or definitive.
After that, the most eye-catching thing about last night's game: Brad Davis showing up. If he and Brian Mullan get back on their games, Houston will cause problems.
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MLS Collective Rankings: Week 11
Good news: a couple more pundits came forward - or, rather, were discovered - this week, thus growing the Semi-Detached Pundit Collective (SDPC). The “new normal” established last week will carry over to this - e.g. the rankings below will show this week’s ranking, last week’s ranking, and each team’s scariness rating. It should be acknowledged at least that increasing the number of pundits could screw up the results. Then again, what do I care? I’m not a statistician...
Here are the new and - damn right! - improved sources for this week’s SPDC rankings:
It’s a Simple Game
The Other Football
Sideline Views (Luis Bueno)
Sideline Views (Andrea Canales) NEW!!
WVHooligan
My Soccer Blog
MLS Underground
ESPN
SI - Ryan Hunt
Fox Soccer Channel NEW!!
Soccer by Ives
And, once again, The DCenters Freezer (kinda like reverse rankings) merits honorable mention...wish I could figure out how to get them in here.
Now, on to the numbers:
1. Kansas City Wizards, 1.1 (last week: 1st - 1.3; SR: 5)
2. Red Bull New York, 2.6 (2nd - 2.8; SR: 6)
3. DC United, 2.7 (4th - 3.3; SR: 2)
4. New England Revolution, 4.3 (3rd - 2.9; SR: 8)
5. Chivas USA, 5.5 (7th - 6.8; SR: 1)
6. FC Dallas, 6.4 (5th - 5.5; SR: 9)
7. Houston Dynamo, 6.5 (6th - 6.1; SR: 4)
8. Toronto FC, 7.3 (9th - 8.9; SR: 3)
9. Colorado Rapids, 9.1 (8th - 7.9; SR: 13)
10. Chicago Fire, 10.3 (10th - 9.9; SR: 12)
11. Los Angeles Galaxy, 10.8 (11/12th - 11.6; SR: 7)
12. Columbus Crew, 11.5 (11/12th - 11.6; SR: 10)
13. Real Salt Lake, 12.9 (13th - 12.6; SR: 11)
Some observations:
- I need an explanation as to how anyone can rank Chicago above 12. As I discovered when compiling my power rankings, Chicago has been every bit as bad as Real Salt Lake over the past eight games (4 points earned for each). To make matters worse, a case can be made the Chicago is actually worse; RSL has managed a result in four games, while the Fire has done so on only two occasions. That arguably makes RSL the more consistent team. (So, why’d I rank RSL lower? Call-ups will return for the Fire and Blanco will come; RSL just gets back Freddy Adu...).
- This week’s big climbers are pretty obvious: Chivas USA and Toronto FC. I think Chivas is flying too low for people to notice, but they’re looking pretty solid.
- FC Dallas took a hit - and rightly so. That’s what they get for edging RSL and getting slaughtered by TFC.
- I know I was alone in folding last night’s Columbus win into my rankings (everyone else posted before it happened); I’m really wondering what that will do for the Crew.
- On a related note, I really wonder what that will do to KC’s rankings. It seems like no one notices the number of goals that team is allowing. As I said in my rankings, they’ve got the league’s fifth-worst offense - and the competition on that sucks.
- It should also be noted that Dallas is pretty dire on defense...I think they’re league worst.
- Boldest call of the week: My Soccer Blog put Toronto at #4.
- Craziest call of the week: Andrea Canales putting DC United at #6...and FC Dallas at #3.
Here are the new and - damn right! - improved sources for this week’s SPDC rankings:
It’s a Simple Game
The Other Football
Sideline Views (Luis Bueno)
Sideline Views (Andrea Canales) NEW!!
WVHooligan
My Soccer Blog
MLS Underground
ESPN
SI - Ryan Hunt
Fox Soccer Channel NEW!!
Soccer by Ives
And, once again, The DCenters Freezer (kinda like reverse rankings) merits honorable mention...wish I could figure out how to get them in here.
Now, on to the numbers:
1. Kansas City Wizards, 1.1 (last week: 1st - 1.3; SR: 5)
2. Red Bull New York, 2.6 (2nd - 2.8; SR: 6)
3. DC United, 2.7 (4th - 3.3; SR: 2)
4. New England Revolution, 4.3 (3rd - 2.9; SR: 8)
5. Chivas USA, 5.5 (7th - 6.8; SR: 1)
6. FC Dallas, 6.4 (5th - 5.5; SR: 9)
7. Houston Dynamo, 6.5 (6th - 6.1; SR: 4)
8. Toronto FC, 7.3 (9th - 8.9; SR: 3)
9. Colorado Rapids, 9.1 (8th - 7.9; SR: 13)
10. Chicago Fire, 10.3 (10th - 9.9; SR: 12)
11. Los Angeles Galaxy, 10.8 (11/12th - 11.6; SR: 7)
12. Columbus Crew, 11.5 (11/12th - 11.6; SR: 10)
13. Real Salt Lake, 12.9 (13th - 12.6; SR: 11)
Some observations:
- I need an explanation as to how anyone can rank Chicago above 12. As I discovered when compiling my power rankings, Chicago has been every bit as bad as Real Salt Lake over the past eight games (4 points earned for each). To make matters worse, a case can be made the Chicago is actually worse; RSL has managed a result in four games, while the Fire has done so on only two occasions. That arguably makes RSL the more consistent team. (So, why’d I rank RSL lower? Call-ups will return for the Fire and Blanco will come; RSL just gets back Freddy Adu...).
- This week’s big climbers are pretty obvious: Chivas USA and Toronto FC. I think Chivas is flying too low for people to notice, but they’re looking pretty solid.
- FC Dallas took a hit - and rightly so. That’s what they get for edging RSL and getting slaughtered by TFC.
- I know I was alone in folding last night’s Columbus win into my rankings (everyone else posted before it happened); I’m really wondering what that will do for the Crew.
- On a related note, I really wonder what that will do to KC’s rankings. It seems like no one notices the number of goals that team is allowing. As I said in my rankings, they’ve got the league’s fifth-worst offense - and the competition on that sucks.
- It should also be noted that Dallas is pretty dire on defense...I think they’re league worst.
- Boldest call of the week: My Soccer Blog put Toronto at #4.
- Craziest call of the week: Andrea Canales putting DC United at #6...and FC Dallas at #3.
MLS Week 11 Power Rankings (the last one posted)
Let it be established that each “Major League Soccer (MLS) Week” shall begin at 12 a.m. each Thursday till the end of the 2007 season...or maybe not. Damn those scheduling interns. The real problem is last night’s game, in which Columbus snuck a win over Kansas City (I told you the Crew would cause problems for some good teams; just didn't think it would match this week's); seeing as I can’t wash that one out of my mind, I’m just going to incorporate it below.
As always, last week’s ranking appears in parentheses immediately after this week’s ranking. So as to not misrepresent my judgment as entirely first-hand, here’s a key for my viewing: “@” means I watched a given team’s most recent performance in its entirety; “$” means I caught it through Quick Kicks, which provides extended highlights; “%” means I watched only the rump highlights available through MLSnet.com.
For the record, I like my top three; or, rather, I think I can justify my thinking on those. #4 - 6 is a bit of a mash-up - and it’s possible #6 may blow up in my face within 12 hours. I like #7. #8-11 are, essentially, inter-changeable. The bottom two, however, are solid.
Here goes...and after the rankings, you’ll find a current listing of the standings for the permanent record.
1. (2) DC United (didn’t see it, didn’t hear it...)
No, I haven’t seen these guys play in weeks. The thing is, DC is about the only team in the league doing well on both sides of the ball.
2. (3) Kansas City Wizards ($ + 1/2 of @)
Five MLS teams have allowed more goals than KC; trouble is, those teams suck (except, arguably, Dallas - but their defense sucks). If the goals dry up - as they did last night - the slipshod defense hurts this team.
3. (5) Chivas USA (%)
Chivas has earned the same number of points as DC - even if a weaker Western Conference has something to do with that - and the same argument for their ranking applies. Count tonight a “statement game” - or a cliché. While they can’t actually take over top spot in the West, a win would say just as much.
4. (1) Red Bull New York ($)
This team’s defensive problems are serious and don’t appear to be going away any time soon. I regret last week’s ranking error.
5. (4) New England Revolution (@)
Nice as it was to see Adam Cristman score two (though his leering come-hither to Pat Noonan must be blacked out to keep the skin from crawling) - hell, nice as it was to see Noonan look like himself - the Revs has issues. The luck that carried them through a few games nearly dried up last week; was the last drop sprinkled on Cristman’s first goal?
6. (6) Houston Dynamo (idle)
Some weeks you don’t have to do anything to hold steady. But, as with Chivas, tonight is statement time. Anyone else see a nice little rivalry blossoming between those two teams?
7. (9) Toronto FC ($)
Re-enacted The Burning Bed over a weary FC Dallas* and they look a safe bet to avoid the whole “worst team in history” tag. It’s time to see if they can make their hard-knock game work on the road. (*Such horrible analogies come to me all day, every day and, I assure you, the original edit was worse. My internal censor took a half-day.)
8. (7) FC Dallas (1/2 hour of @ + %)
Let’s see...they BARELY beat the league’s accidental comedy troupe and then got mauled by Canadians. Canadians! (kidding...I’m just warming up for tonight.) Were it not for the fact they play consistent .500 ball, they’d drop further.
9. (10) Columbus Crew (@ + 1/2 of @)
I stand firmly in the column that assumes this team is better than their record. Again, with the odds of the Crew picking up four points against their past two opponents, I really, REALLY wish I had a sports book nearby.
10. (12) Los Angeles Galaxy (@)
LA hasn’t given teams or fans cause to respect them this season. Yeah, they beat RSL...rah, rah. The best thing you can say about them is they’re trying to improve.
11. (8) Colorado Rapids (%)
These cats haven’t won since May. And, unlike LA, I’m not seeing them doing anything to improve. To make matters worse, Dallas’s on-off pattern augurs a win for the Colorado side this weekend.
12. (11) Chicago Fire (didn’t see it, didn’t hear it...)
Reduced to the quality of a college team by injuries and call-ups, why believe a new coach can turn things around. It took some math to realize just how bad things are in Chicago: they’ve taken 4 POINTS from their last 8 games. For the record, that’s RSL bad - literally. RSL has equaled Chicago for points over the past 8 games.
13. (13) Real Salt Lake (1/2 hour of @ + @)
Setting the standard for sucking in 2007 and building on a proud tradition.
Moving on to the standings (painstakingly recreated by Franklin Mint engravers from the current official ones):
Eastern Conference
1. Red Bull New York: 21 pts. (6-3-3: 24 GF, 15 GA, +9; home, 4-1-1; away, 2-2-2)
2. Kansas City Wiz: 20 pts. (6-3-2: 23 GF, 17 GA, +6; home, 3-1-0; away, 3-2-2)
3. New England Revs: 19 pts. (5-2-4: 21 GF, 14 GA, +7; home, 2-1-2; away, 3-1-2)
4. DC United: 17 pts. (5-3-2: 17 GF, 14 GA, +3; home, 4-1-1; away, 1-2-1)
5. Chicago Fire: 14 pts. (4-6-2: 12 GF, 19 GA, -7; home, 3-2-1; away, 1-3-1)
6. Toronto FC: 13 pts. (4-6-1: 14 GF, 18 GA, -4; home, 4-3-0; away, 0-3-1)
7. Columbus Crew: 12 pts. (2-4-6: 14 GF, 19 GA, -5; home, 2-1-4; away, 0-3-2)
Western Conference
1. FC Dallas: 22 pts. (7-6-1: 18 GF, 21 GA, -3; home, 3-2-0; away, 4-4-1)
2. Chivas USA: 17 pts. (5-3-2: 15 GF, 8 GA; +7; home, 4-0-1; away, 1-3-1)
3. Houston Dynamo: 16 pts. (5-5-1: 11 GF, 10 GA, +1; home, 3-2-1; away, 2-3-0)
4. Colorado Rapids: 15 pts. (4-5-3: 13 GF, 16 GA, -3; home 2-1-3; away, 2-4-0)
5. Los Angeles Galaxy: 9 pts. (2-4-3: 11 GF, 13 GA, -2; home, 2-2-1; away, 0-2-2)
6. Real Salt Lake: 6 pts. (0-5-6: 9 GF, 18 GA, -9; home, 0-2-3; away, 0-3-3)
As always, last week’s ranking appears in parentheses immediately after this week’s ranking. So as to not misrepresent my judgment as entirely first-hand, here’s a key for my viewing: “@” means I watched a given team’s most recent performance in its entirety; “$” means I caught it through Quick Kicks, which provides extended highlights; “%” means I watched only the rump highlights available through MLSnet.com.
For the record, I like my top three; or, rather, I think I can justify my thinking on those. #4 - 6 is a bit of a mash-up - and it’s possible #6 may blow up in my face within 12 hours. I like #7. #8-11 are, essentially, inter-changeable. The bottom two, however, are solid.
Here goes...and after the rankings, you’ll find a current listing of the standings for the permanent record.
1. (2) DC United (didn’t see it, didn’t hear it...)
No, I haven’t seen these guys play in weeks. The thing is, DC is about the only team in the league doing well on both sides of the ball.
2. (3) Kansas City Wizards ($ + 1/2 of @)
Five MLS teams have allowed more goals than KC; trouble is, those teams suck (except, arguably, Dallas - but their defense sucks). If the goals dry up - as they did last night - the slipshod defense hurts this team.
3. (5) Chivas USA (%)
Chivas has earned the same number of points as DC - even if a weaker Western Conference has something to do with that - and the same argument for their ranking applies. Count tonight a “statement game” - or a cliché. While they can’t actually take over top spot in the West, a win would say just as much.
4. (1) Red Bull New York ($)
This team’s defensive problems are serious and don’t appear to be going away any time soon. I regret last week’s ranking error.
5. (4) New England Revolution (@)
Nice as it was to see Adam Cristman score two (though his leering come-hither to Pat Noonan must be blacked out to keep the skin from crawling) - hell, nice as it was to see Noonan look like himself - the Revs has issues. The luck that carried them through a few games nearly dried up last week; was the last drop sprinkled on Cristman’s first goal?
6. (6) Houston Dynamo (idle)
Some weeks you don’t have to do anything to hold steady. But, as with Chivas, tonight is statement time. Anyone else see a nice little rivalry blossoming between those two teams?
7. (9) Toronto FC ($)
Re-enacted The Burning Bed over a weary FC Dallas* and they look a safe bet to avoid the whole “worst team in history” tag. It’s time to see if they can make their hard-knock game work on the road. (*Such horrible analogies come to me all day, every day and, I assure you, the original edit was worse. My internal censor took a half-day.)
8. (7) FC Dallas (1/2 hour of @ + %)
Let’s see...they BARELY beat the league’s accidental comedy troupe and then got mauled by Canadians. Canadians! (kidding...I’m just warming up for tonight.) Were it not for the fact they play consistent .500 ball, they’d drop further.
9. (10) Columbus Crew (@ + 1/2 of @)
I stand firmly in the column that assumes this team is better than their record. Again, with the odds of the Crew picking up four points against their past two opponents, I really, REALLY wish I had a sports book nearby.
10. (12) Los Angeles Galaxy (@)
LA hasn’t given teams or fans cause to respect them this season. Yeah, they beat RSL...rah, rah. The best thing you can say about them is they’re trying to improve.
11. (8) Colorado Rapids (%)
These cats haven’t won since May. And, unlike LA, I’m not seeing them doing anything to improve. To make matters worse, Dallas’s on-off pattern augurs a win for the Colorado side this weekend.
12. (11) Chicago Fire (didn’t see it, didn’t hear it...)
Reduced to the quality of a college team by injuries and call-ups, why believe a new coach can turn things around. It took some math to realize just how bad things are in Chicago: they’ve taken 4 POINTS from their last 8 games. For the record, that’s RSL bad - literally. RSL has equaled Chicago for points over the past 8 games.
13. (13) Real Salt Lake (1/2 hour of @ + @)
Setting the standard for sucking in 2007 and building on a proud tradition.
Moving on to the standings (painstakingly recreated by Franklin Mint engravers from the current official ones):
Eastern Conference
1. Red Bull New York: 21 pts. (6-3-3: 24 GF, 15 GA, +9; home, 4-1-1; away, 2-2-2)
2. Kansas City Wiz: 20 pts. (6-3-2: 23 GF, 17 GA, +6; home, 3-1-0; away, 3-2-2)
3. New England Revs: 19 pts. (5-2-4: 21 GF, 14 GA, +7; home, 2-1-2; away, 3-1-2)
4. DC United: 17 pts. (5-3-2: 17 GF, 14 GA, +3; home, 4-1-1; away, 1-2-1)
5. Chicago Fire: 14 pts. (4-6-2: 12 GF, 19 GA, -7; home, 3-2-1; away, 1-3-1)
6. Toronto FC: 13 pts. (4-6-1: 14 GF, 18 GA, -4; home, 4-3-0; away, 0-3-1)
7. Columbus Crew: 12 pts. (2-4-6: 14 GF, 19 GA, -5; home, 2-1-4; away, 0-3-2)
Western Conference
1. FC Dallas: 22 pts. (7-6-1: 18 GF, 21 GA, -3; home, 3-2-0; away, 4-4-1)
2. Chivas USA: 17 pts. (5-3-2: 15 GF, 8 GA; +7; home, 4-0-1; away, 1-3-1)
3. Houston Dynamo: 16 pts. (5-5-1: 11 GF, 10 GA, +1; home, 3-2-1; away, 2-3-0)
4. Colorado Rapids: 15 pts. (4-5-3: 13 GF, 16 GA, -3; home 2-1-3; away, 2-4-0)
5. Los Angeles Galaxy: 9 pts. (2-4-3: 11 GF, 13 GA, -2; home, 2-2-1; away, 0-2-2)
6. Real Salt Lake: 6 pts. (0-5-6: 9 GF, 18 GA, -9; home, 0-2-3; away, 0-3-3)
MLS Week 10 Power Rankings...when I lose my mind...
I’m in a mood today and it’s going to affect what appears below. Yesterday’s mega project - the one in which I wrapped my head around where things are at the 1/3 point of the season - has me thinking a little differently about some Major League Soccer (MLS) teams. It’s mainly a gut thing, but I’m going to be thinking about the future as much as the present in what comes below. Anyway, that should explain some of the weirder calls I make below...
As usual, last week’s ranking appears in parentheses immediately after this week’s ranking. So as to not misrepresent my judgment as entirely first-hand, here’s a key for my viewing: “@” means I watched a given team’s most recent performance in its entirety; “$” means I caught it through Quick Kicks, which provides extended highlights; “%” means I watched only the rump highlights available through MLSnet.com. Later today, I’ll compare what I’ve got below with the other rankings I’ve found - though, as always, I compiled my rankings without reference to anyone else’s. And, wow, was this week’s viewing spotty.
In keeping with my tradition of blaming health/sleep-deprivation for any silly something that appears below, holy shit, are allergies kicking my ass. My eyes looked like fucking glazed donuts last night and I got two nosebleeds from the pressure in my head. I came across some site on the internet that matches your zip code to likely allergens; that’s where I learned that walnut trees are the likely culprit. So, if you live in the Hillsboro, Oregon area and you see a bald, alcohol-crazed dude taking an axe to a walnut tree, well, that’d be me. Motherfuckers must pay!
Ahem...at any rate, this week got a little messy. For the record, I’m thinking #1-4 are essentially interchangeable; the same goes for #5-8...and #10-13 for that matter. I have strong feelings only for #9.
Here goes...and after the rankings, you’ll find a current listing of the standings for the permanent record.
1. (2) Red Bull New York ($ + %)
Yeah, I know, I know. Why does a team still nursing a sore ass from the last weekend actually rise in the standings? It goes back to the project mentioned at the top: I think the Red Bulls are fundamentally sound. With Angel in the mix they’re scoring steadily and they’ve got a good defense when it’s actually on the field...then again, I won’t be surprised if this one goes sideways, though.
2. (3) DC United (%)
Sadly, I couldn’t get a great sense of this game from the highlights. I only know that DC is on a very good run. I expect it will continue - maybe not to the same degree, but I do think this team has rediscovered its rhythm.
3. (1) Kansas City Wizards (idle)
Again, why? And, again, it’s the project. I can’t get the goals their defense is surrendering out of my head. And it’s not like Eddie Johnson is going to score a hat-trick every weekend; that’s low-percentage stuff. Count this another dubious call, but it’s the one I’m making.
4. (5) New England Revolution (idle)
This represents the one time I go against The Project (I think I’ve referred to it enough to capitalize): New England simply has a good balance to its team. I stand by my belief that they’ve been more lucky than good, but a good defense plus a good-enough offense equals a decent team. The only question is whether they come around.
5. (7) Chivas USA (%)
Another hat-tip to The Project: Chivas’ fourth-place looks a whole lot different when you look at the details: two games in hand and the best goal differential and best defensive record in the West suggests to me they’ll creep up the table.
6. (8) Houston Dynamo (%)
It’s not so much the three consecutive wins (against so-far decent teams no less...OK, except Columbus) as it’s the fact the charge is being led by the bench. Kinnear should force the stars to fight to regain their spots. But the controlling factor here was how Houston played even when they were losing: pretty well, overall, and they created chances. If Ching won’t score them, maybe Ngwenya will.
7. (9) FC Dallas (@)
This was one of the harder ones. For one, I think their defense is killing them; for two, one fat, possibly disgruntled, guy plus one (cruelly) injured player leads their forward line. So, why put them so high (OK, kinda high)? I suppose it’s because they’re #1 in the West for a reason. A basically solid May got lost behind two untimely, consecutive losses (5/26 and 6/3).
8. (4) Colorado Rapids (%)
It took a long time, but I’ve finally given up on Colorado - not completely, but just about. I still think they have the players, but, without that ol’ home-field magic - and 2-1-3 at home ain’t “magic” - they’re in for another roller-coaster season. They’ll kick around a team or two, but I can’t think of them as contenders any more (and can’t say why I ever did).
9. (7) Toronto FC ($)
The fact they can still slip, even at home, keeps the question marks handy with this team. They’re one home game away from a long, long road-trip that should go a good distance to pegging this team in the standings. Speaking for myself, I’ve got a feeling it’s not going to go well (I’m guessing between 6 and 10 points out of 24). I’m starting to feel a bit skittish about rating them this high.
10. (13) Columbus Crew ($)
Welcome to my biggest, dumbest longshot. I don’t know why, but I’m thinking Columbus, who only need a little confidence, will blitz a few teams and soon - quite possibly starting with New England this weekend. If I had a friendly, neighborhood sports-book, I’d go drop a wad on that game. My personal theory is that New England somehow cornered some kind of fixed quantity of luck within the Eastern Conference, and Columbus somehow lost their entire portion. They'll turn things around - to the point of respectability, at least.
11. (11) Chicago Fire (%)
I’m perfectly sincere in the view that this team is one Chad Barrett goal away from being widely viewed as worse than Columbus. And, obviously, since I placed ‘em one spot below I think they are worse.
12. (10) Los Angeles Galaxy (@)
Watching these guys over a full game was an eye-opening experience last weekend; their uninterested, disjointed second half was bad as anything I had seen in MLS all year. They’ll improve with the return of several starters (not just Donovan, but Ante Jazic and Kevin Harmse), but the total lack of depth makes me wonder how much...can’t wait to see the Western Conference Toilet Bowl this weekend (in which these hacks will meet the team immediately below).
13. (12) Real Salt Lake (idle - and, boy, did they need it)
Again, they can’t win (neither can Houston...or LA, for that matter; it just feels different). Moreover, I can’t see things improving dramatically. I want to, but I can’t.
Moving on to the standings (current official ones):
Eastern Conference
1. Red Bull New York: 20 pts. (6-3-2: 21 GF, 12 GA, +9; home, 4-1-0; away, 2-2-2)
2. Kansas City Wiz: 19 pts. (6-2-1: 19 GF, 12 GA, +7; home, 3-1-0; away, 3-1-1)
3. New England Revs: 18 pts. (5-2-3: 18 GF, 11 GA, +7; home, 2-1-1; away, 3-1-2)
4. DC United: 14 pts. (4-3-2: 14 GF, 13 GA, +1; home, 3-1-1; away, 1-2-1)
5. Chicago Fire: 14 pts. (4-5-2: 11 GF, 16 GA, -5; home, 3-2-1; away, 1-3-1)
6. Toronto FC: 10 pts. (3-6-1: 9 GF, 16 GA, -8; home, 3-3-0; away, 0-3-1)
7. Columbus Crew: 8 pts. (1-4-5: 9 GF, 15 GA, -6; home, 1-1-4; away, 0-3-1)
Western Conference
1. FC Dallas: 19 pts. (6-5-1: 17 GF, 17 GA, 0; home, 2-2-0; away, 3-3-1)
2. Houston Dynamo: 16 pts. (5-5-1: 11 GF, 10 GA, +1; home, 3-2-1; away, 2-3-0)
3. Colorado Rapids: 15 pts. (4-4-3: 13 GF, 14 GA, -1; home 2-1-3; away, 2-3-0)
4. Chivas USA: 14 pts. (4-3-2: 13 GF, 8 GA; +5; home, 3-0-1; away, 1-3-1)
5. Los Angeles Galaxy: 6 pts. (1-4-3: 8 GF, 11 GA, -3; home, 1-2-1; away, 0-2-2)
6. Real Salt Lake: 6 pts. (0-3-6: 7 GF, 14 GA, -7; home, 0-1-3; away, 0-2-3)
As usual, last week’s ranking appears in parentheses immediately after this week’s ranking. So as to not misrepresent my judgment as entirely first-hand, here’s a key for my viewing: “@” means I watched a given team’s most recent performance in its entirety; “$” means I caught it through Quick Kicks, which provides extended highlights; “%” means I watched only the rump highlights available through MLSnet.com. Later today, I’ll compare what I’ve got below with the other rankings I’ve found - though, as always, I compiled my rankings without reference to anyone else’s. And, wow, was this week’s viewing spotty.
In keeping with my tradition of blaming health/sleep-deprivation for any silly something that appears below, holy shit, are allergies kicking my ass. My eyes looked like fucking glazed donuts last night and I got two nosebleeds from the pressure in my head. I came across some site on the internet that matches your zip code to likely allergens; that’s where I learned that walnut trees are the likely culprit. So, if you live in the Hillsboro, Oregon area and you see a bald, alcohol-crazed dude taking an axe to a walnut tree, well, that’d be me. Motherfuckers must pay!
Ahem...at any rate, this week got a little messy. For the record, I’m thinking #1-4 are essentially interchangeable; the same goes for #5-8...and #10-13 for that matter. I have strong feelings only for #9.
Here goes...and after the rankings, you’ll find a current listing of the standings for the permanent record.
1. (2) Red Bull New York ($ + %)
Yeah, I know, I know. Why does a team still nursing a sore ass from the last weekend actually rise in the standings? It goes back to the project mentioned at the top: I think the Red Bulls are fundamentally sound. With Angel in the mix they’re scoring steadily and they’ve got a good defense when it’s actually on the field...then again, I won’t be surprised if this one goes sideways, though.
2. (3) DC United (%)
Sadly, I couldn’t get a great sense of this game from the highlights. I only know that DC is on a very good run. I expect it will continue - maybe not to the same degree, but I do think this team has rediscovered its rhythm.
3. (1) Kansas City Wizards (idle)
Again, why? And, again, it’s the project. I can’t get the goals their defense is surrendering out of my head. And it’s not like Eddie Johnson is going to score a hat-trick every weekend; that’s low-percentage stuff. Count this another dubious call, but it’s the one I’m making.
4. (5) New England Revolution (idle)
This represents the one time I go against The Project (I think I’ve referred to it enough to capitalize): New England simply has a good balance to its team. I stand by my belief that they’ve been more lucky than good, but a good defense plus a good-enough offense equals a decent team. The only question is whether they come around.
5. (7) Chivas USA (%)
Another hat-tip to The Project: Chivas’ fourth-place looks a whole lot different when you look at the details: two games in hand and the best goal differential and best defensive record in the West suggests to me they’ll creep up the table.
6. (8) Houston Dynamo (%)
It’s not so much the three consecutive wins (against so-far decent teams no less...OK, except Columbus) as it’s the fact the charge is being led by the bench. Kinnear should force the stars to fight to regain their spots. But the controlling factor here was how Houston played even when they were losing: pretty well, overall, and they created chances. If Ching won’t score them, maybe Ngwenya will.
7. (9) FC Dallas (@)
This was one of the harder ones. For one, I think their defense is killing them; for two, one fat, possibly disgruntled, guy plus one (cruelly) injured player leads their forward line. So, why put them so high (OK, kinda high)? I suppose it’s because they’re #1 in the West for a reason. A basically solid May got lost behind two untimely, consecutive losses (5/26 and 6/3).
8. (4) Colorado Rapids (%)
It took a long time, but I’ve finally given up on Colorado - not completely, but just about. I still think they have the players, but, without that ol’ home-field magic - and 2-1-3 at home ain’t “magic” - they’re in for another roller-coaster season. They’ll kick around a team or two, but I can’t think of them as contenders any more (and can’t say why I ever did).
9. (7) Toronto FC ($)
The fact they can still slip, even at home, keeps the question marks handy with this team. They’re one home game away from a long, long road-trip that should go a good distance to pegging this team in the standings. Speaking for myself, I’ve got a feeling it’s not going to go well (I’m guessing between 6 and 10 points out of 24). I’m starting to feel a bit skittish about rating them this high.
10. (13) Columbus Crew ($)
Welcome to my biggest, dumbest longshot. I don’t know why, but I’m thinking Columbus, who only need a little confidence, will blitz a few teams and soon - quite possibly starting with New England this weekend. If I had a friendly, neighborhood sports-book, I’d go drop a wad on that game. My personal theory is that New England somehow cornered some kind of fixed quantity of luck within the Eastern Conference, and Columbus somehow lost their entire portion. They'll turn things around - to the point of respectability, at least.
11. (11) Chicago Fire (%)
I’m perfectly sincere in the view that this team is one Chad Barrett goal away from being widely viewed as worse than Columbus. And, obviously, since I placed ‘em one spot below I think they are worse.
12. (10) Los Angeles Galaxy (@)
Watching these guys over a full game was an eye-opening experience last weekend; their uninterested, disjointed second half was bad as anything I had seen in MLS all year. They’ll improve with the return of several starters (not just Donovan, but Ante Jazic and Kevin Harmse), but the total lack of depth makes me wonder how much...can’t wait to see the Western Conference Toilet Bowl this weekend (in which these hacks will meet the team immediately below).
13. (12) Real Salt Lake (idle - and, boy, did they need it)
Again, they can’t win (neither can Houston...or LA, for that matter; it just feels different). Moreover, I can’t see things improving dramatically. I want to, but I can’t.
Moving on to the standings (current official ones):
Eastern Conference
1. Red Bull New York: 20 pts. (6-3-2: 21 GF, 12 GA, +9; home, 4-1-0; away, 2-2-2)
2. Kansas City Wiz: 19 pts. (6-2-1: 19 GF, 12 GA, +7; home, 3-1-0; away, 3-1-1)
3. New England Revs: 18 pts. (5-2-3: 18 GF, 11 GA, +7; home, 2-1-1; away, 3-1-2)
4. DC United: 14 pts. (4-3-2: 14 GF, 13 GA, +1; home, 3-1-1; away, 1-2-1)
5. Chicago Fire: 14 pts. (4-5-2: 11 GF, 16 GA, -5; home, 3-2-1; away, 1-3-1)
6. Toronto FC: 10 pts. (3-6-1: 9 GF, 16 GA, -8; home, 3-3-0; away, 0-3-1)
7. Columbus Crew: 8 pts. (1-4-5: 9 GF, 15 GA, -6; home, 1-1-4; away, 0-3-1)
Western Conference
1. FC Dallas: 19 pts. (6-5-1: 17 GF, 17 GA, 0; home, 2-2-0; away, 3-3-1)
2. Houston Dynamo: 16 pts. (5-5-1: 11 GF, 10 GA, +1; home, 3-2-1; away, 2-3-0)
3. Colorado Rapids: 15 pts. (4-4-3: 13 GF, 14 GA, -1; home 2-1-3; away, 2-3-0)
4. Chivas USA: 14 pts. (4-3-2: 13 GF, 8 GA; +5; home, 3-0-1; away, 1-3-1)
5. Los Angeles Galaxy: 6 pts. (1-4-3: 8 GF, 11 GA, -3; home, 1-2-1; away, 0-2-2)
6. Real Salt Lake: 6 pts. (0-3-6: 7 GF, 14 GA, -7; home, 0-1-3; away, 0-2-3)
MLS at the Third: Where We Are Now
Naturally, individual results provide the pieces necessary to building the Big Picture in any sports league - but I've already covered first impressions of those in earlier posts (LINK, LINK, LINK). But with the 2007 season of Major League Soccer (MLS) officially one third completed, the time seems ripe to take a wide-angle view of the state of the league’s 13 teams - which teams are up, which are down, and which are merely holding steady...and which are wallowing in the muck.
It’s well worth noting that not all MLS teams have played 10 games at this point; for instance, FC Dallas has 12 games under their belt while the Los Angeles Galaxy has played a league-low 9 games. Details like that will be noted for each team along with their record and the total number of points so far. With the Eastern Conference being the stronger of the two thus far, starting in the East seems appropriate.
Here goes....(and, for the record, I'm most proud of the stuff on Kansas City, Chivas USA, and New England...maybe DC United and RSL)...
Red Bull New York, 6-3-2; 20 pts. (11 games)
If you told anyone - Red Bull fan or otherwise - that their team would lead MLS at Week 10, the response would have been a poorly-contained laugh or a pitying shake of the head. Credit Colombian forward Juan Pablo Angel - who has kicked his name onto the score-sheet in every game he’s played so far - for sharpening the Red Bull attack. Given that Red Bull defense started so strongly - they kept a collective clean-sheet for all of April; they weren’t too shabby in May either - it’s a little surprising that defense now looms as the biggest threat to their league-leading record. Blame injuries and midfielders playing as defenders for that. Once their back-line recovers, Red Bull should build on a solid start.
Rating: HOLDING STEADY...in a good place (e.g. #1).
Kansas City Wizards, 6-2-1; 19 pts. (9 games)
After sputtering out of the gate, the Wizards now see-saw between first and second in the East with Red Bull. Even as one can’t seriously talk around the standings, there’s something suspect about the Wizards rise to contender status. There is, undoubtedly, much to love about forward Eddie Johnson, who registered back-to-back hat tricks in Week 8 and 9; against that, though, the Wizards conceded five goals in those same games. But questions have hovered over KC from the beginning: their 4-0-2 (W-T-L) start didn’t impress due to two wins coming against an expansion Toronto FC still finding its feet and another to the Columbus Crew. Time will tell whether the offense - and Johnson - can keep banging in the goals and/or whether the KC defense will take away some pressure by keeping them out. Whatever happens, KC is playing some of the prettiest soccer in MLS right now. I'm serious. They've gone from being a team I wouldn't watch if I were in a coma to one whose name I look for on the schedule.
Rating: UP
New England Revolution, 5-2-3; 18 pts. (10 games)
As you read this, please keep in mind that I’m a Revolution fan - and a hard-to-please one at that. That said, the hard reality is that New England has been more lucky than good so far. A 4-3 home loss to the Wizards - in which New England only held their own on the back of fluky goals - suggested it, but a home draw to Real Salt Lake, who are widely regarded as the league’s worst team, confirmed it. New England has the pieces to compete in the correct, if uninspiring, proportions: a defense good enough to keep them in any game balanced with forwards capable of turning half-chances into goals. Too often this season, however, they have struggled not only to impose their game, but with something as fundamental as possession. What amounts to a rope-a-dope approach has worked so far, but it sure looks like a low-percentage game.
Rating: HOLDING STEADY...but flirting with the edge.
DC United, 4-3-2; 14 pts. (9 games)
DC didn’t win at all in April and, when the wins did come, it still took some convincing for even the truest of believers to hope for more than a dreaded “transition year.” But now, with a lone goalless draw (against the LA Galaxy in Week 9) planting a hiccup between three straight 2-1 wins and Week 10’s emphatic and dramatic win over Red Bull (noted above), the April funk seems to have evaporated. What has improved? It’s not like Ben Olsen’s hat trick will translate automatically to great things on offense; after all, this past weekend’s hat trick was Olsen’s first-ever and he’s an 8th-year pro. Still, they have clearly figured out something; the question is what and to what extent. No matter what it is, you can bet that every other team in the East is keeping close tabs on DC’s slow rise.
Rating: UP...no question, up.
Chicago Fire, 4-5-2; 14 pts. (11 games)
Like Red Bull, the Fire started with a 3-0-1 record. Basic math tells the tale that follows: 1 win, 5 losses, and 1 draw. Chicago is falling apart damned quickly and on both sides of the ball. This team’s persistent issue surrounds scoring, but that shortcoming ballooned into imminent doom during May when the Fire bled goals at a three-a-game clip. Chicago’s greatest hope comes in the person of Cuauthemoc Blanco, a Mexican midfield legend who will join the team after the ongoing Gold Cup. If he can’t turn around the offense, the Fire will again rely on Justin Mapp and Chris Rolfe - who are both quality players - to carry the load as they did to start the season; and thus the great hope reveals itself as a thin one. Rumors mention a Chilean star - Marcelo Salas, and it’s tempting to dub him a “former star” - joining the Mexican legend, but faith is in short supply.
Rating: DOWN...and nearing the muck.
Toronto FC, 3-6-1; 10 pts. (10 games)
When Toronto took the field for a May 12 contest versus Chicago one question stood out: when would TFC score their first-ever goal? Winning wasn’t part of the discussion back then. But something special started the 3-1 win that followed: Toronto’s irrepressible fans shouted on an improving and tough-as-nails team thereby making an away game at BMO Field an anxious occasion for visitors. Even after going 3-2-1 to turn around an 0-4-0 start, TFC still has quite a ways to go. The encouraging thing, however, is that they have started. When head coach Mo Johnston thinks he needs players, just goes and gets them: thus Danny Dichio and Jeff Cunningham joined the offense, while Marvell Wynne and Kevin Goldthwaite improved the defense. With the changes seeming to take, virtually no one thinks TFC will match the low-water mark set by Chivas USA’s in 2005.
Rating: UP...and they're the league bandwagon to boot.
Columbus Crew, 1-4-5; 8 pts. (10 games)
The unknown Crew player who kicked the corner flag out of the ground following his team’s 2-1 loss to the Houston Dynamo, said it all. Columbus’ chief accomplishment for the season so far amounts to alienating their fans and driving their coach mad. They can play well, even beautifully, all over the field...until the attacking third. At that point, well, no one can say what happens, but all agree it’s hard to watch. Nothing - neither trades, nor the acquisition of an Argetine legend (Guillermo Schelotto; MLS is big on legends this season) - seems up to fixing the problem and, to make matters worse, the once-mighty Crew defense is slipping as well. The standings say the Crew isn’t the worst in MLS, but, when you’re in the basement with the lights out, questions about how dark things are get academic pretty fast.
Rating: WALLOWING IN THE MUCK.
Moving now, to the Western Conference...
FC Dallas, 6-5-1; 19 pts. (12 games)
FC Dallas has mastered only one thing: book-ending confidence-building streaks with crushing losses. This habit plays havoc with perceptions; in spite of going 4-2-0 since the start of May and leading the West, a select sample of the punditry pegs them as the sixth-best team in MLS. Perhaps nothing better explains Dallas’ wayward path to the top of the West as the perfect balance they achieved in goals for and goals against: 17 on each side of the ledger, making them fourth in the league for goals for and second for goals against. Dallas’ young defense hurts them, which makes signs of offensive woes ahead - e.g. star forward Carlos Ruiz’s somewhat indifferent season so far, as well as the brutal and unfortunate injury to his partner Kenny Cooper - more ominous.
Rating: HOLDING STEADY...but definitely shaky.
Houston Dynamo, 5-5-1; 16 pts. (11 games)
What has happened to Houston so far shows that being last year’s champions only places extra emphasis on the phrase “last year’s” - as in, what have they done for Houston fans lately? By way of good news, Houston has (partially) atoned for a wretched early season by rattling off three straight wins; sadly, those had to compensate for the 2-5-1 record, as well as the long, long scoreless stretch, that came before. But the weirdest thing about all this is the fact that Houston picked up two of those wins absent notable starters like Ricardo Clark and perennial MVP candidate Dwayne DeRosario. Who needs star-power when you’ve got Joseph Ngwenya?
Rating: UP...but they had nowhere else to go.
Colorado Rapids, 4-4-3; 15 pts. (11 games)
Who knew “Colorado Rapids” was a synonym for “erratic?” To further complicate matters, the Rapids have ditched last year’s good-at-home, lousy-on-the-road formula; only three points separate their home 2-1-3 record from their away 2-3-0. Even the quality of the opposition doesn’t seem relevant: they’ll draw Real Salt Lake at home the week before beating Red Bull on the road. Baffling as they are, the Rapids have interesting players and a coach with an unbelievable eye for talent - which, unfortunately, doesn’t translate to getting that talent to perform on game day. The one consistent truth about Colorado is that they’ll likely remain inconsistent.
Rating: HOLDING STEADY...on a roller coaster.
Chivas USA, 4-3-2; 14 pts. (9 games)
Chivas’ fourth-place position looks bad till you realize they sit only five points behind West-leading FC Dallas with two games in hand. They hit some of the weaker teams early (Real Salt Lake, Columbus, Los Angeles Galaxy) and hitt good teams in moments of weakness (DC United in early May - and they still lost), but look at the standings and you’ll see they’ve got the most respectable goal differential in the West: +5 where the next best team is rocking a +1. No, they’re not burning up the league in goals, but get this: they have the best goals-against average in MLS. Things will definitely get harder - though Chivas adjusted for this by adding a bit of defensive toughness in Paolo Nagamura and Shavar Thomas. And they could really use offensive support to help first-year revelation Maykel Galindo. But, all in all, Chivas has kind of snuck into the pack - and those two games in hand look an awful lot like an ambush.
Rating: UP...thanks to situational dynamics.
Los Angeles Galaxy, 1-4-3; 6 pts. (8 games)
Small wonder talk about David Beckham bailing on his MLS contract are flying: no one in their right mind would want to join the Galaxy at this point. They enjoy the same goal-a-game attack as Chicago and, with injuries stacking up fast their defense no longer appears up to keeping them in games. With Landon Donovan out of the line-up (Gold Cup - and possibly Copa America) LA goes from a team bitten by a misfiring bug to a downright average outfit. If you’re looking for a silver lining, here’s the best possible: their next three games are against Columbus, Chicago, and Real Salt Lake - and all of them are at home.
Rating: WALLOWING IN THE MUCK.
Real Salt Lake, 0-3-6; 6 pts. (9 games)
At least RSL is won one competition this season: they fired and replaced their coach before any other MLS team. They also beat the Chinese National Team - but that doesn’t help them in the league. What is there to say about the only team in the league still without a win? Nothing much more than, it can only get better...maybe...then again, all those draws could become losses. Unbelievably, RSL has enjoyed a mini-renaissance under rookie-coach (and MLS legend) Jason Kreis; he has taught them the art of tying, replacing the four-goal losses from the season’s early days with goalless draws. On the other hand, that’s just not enough. Barring a major, possibly even implausible, turnaround RSL looks likely to maintain its perfect, post-season-free record.
Rating: WALLOWING IN THE MUCK.
It’s well worth noting that not all MLS teams have played 10 games at this point; for instance, FC Dallas has 12 games under their belt while the Los Angeles Galaxy has played a league-low 9 games. Details like that will be noted for each team along with their record and the total number of points so far. With the Eastern Conference being the stronger of the two thus far, starting in the East seems appropriate.
Here goes....(and, for the record, I'm most proud of the stuff on Kansas City, Chivas USA, and New England...maybe DC United and RSL)...
Red Bull New York, 6-3-2; 20 pts. (11 games)
If you told anyone - Red Bull fan or otherwise - that their team would lead MLS at Week 10, the response would have been a poorly-contained laugh or a pitying shake of the head. Credit Colombian forward Juan Pablo Angel - who has kicked his name onto the score-sheet in every game he’s played so far - for sharpening the Red Bull attack. Given that Red Bull defense started so strongly - they kept a collective clean-sheet for all of April; they weren’t too shabby in May either - it’s a little surprising that defense now looms as the biggest threat to their league-leading record. Blame injuries and midfielders playing as defenders for that. Once their back-line recovers, Red Bull should build on a solid start.
Rating: HOLDING STEADY...in a good place (e.g. #1).
Kansas City Wizards, 6-2-1; 19 pts. (9 games)
After sputtering out of the gate, the Wizards now see-saw between first and second in the East with Red Bull. Even as one can’t seriously talk around the standings, there’s something suspect about the Wizards rise to contender status. There is, undoubtedly, much to love about forward Eddie Johnson, who registered back-to-back hat tricks in Week 8 and 9; against that, though, the Wizards conceded five goals in those same games. But questions have hovered over KC from the beginning: their 4-0-2 (W-T-L) start didn’t impress due to two wins coming against an expansion Toronto FC still finding its feet and another to the Columbus Crew. Time will tell whether the offense - and Johnson - can keep banging in the goals and/or whether the KC defense will take away some pressure by keeping them out. Whatever happens, KC is playing some of the prettiest soccer in MLS right now. I'm serious. They've gone from being a team I wouldn't watch if I were in a coma to one whose name I look for on the schedule.
Rating: UP
New England Revolution, 5-2-3; 18 pts. (10 games)
As you read this, please keep in mind that I’m a Revolution fan - and a hard-to-please one at that. That said, the hard reality is that New England has been more lucky than good so far. A 4-3 home loss to the Wizards - in which New England only held their own on the back of fluky goals - suggested it, but a home draw to Real Salt Lake, who are widely regarded as the league’s worst team, confirmed it. New England has the pieces to compete in the correct, if uninspiring, proportions: a defense good enough to keep them in any game balanced with forwards capable of turning half-chances into goals. Too often this season, however, they have struggled not only to impose their game, but with something as fundamental as possession. What amounts to a rope-a-dope approach has worked so far, but it sure looks like a low-percentage game.
Rating: HOLDING STEADY...but flirting with the edge.
DC United, 4-3-2; 14 pts. (9 games)
DC didn’t win at all in April and, when the wins did come, it still took some convincing for even the truest of believers to hope for more than a dreaded “transition year.” But now, with a lone goalless draw (against the LA Galaxy in Week 9) planting a hiccup between three straight 2-1 wins and Week 10’s emphatic and dramatic win over Red Bull (noted above), the April funk seems to have evaporated. What has improved? It’s not like Ben Olsen’s hat trick will translate automatically to great things on offense; after all, this past weekend’s hat trick was Olsen’s first-ever and he’s an 8th-year pro. Still, they have clearly figured out something; the question is what and to what extent. No matter what it is, you can bet that every other team in the East is keeping close tabs on DC’s slow rise.
Rating: UP...no question, up.
Chicago Fire, 4-5-2; 14 pts. (11 games)
Like Red Bull, the Fire started with a 3-0-1 record. Basic math tells the tale that follows: 1 win, 5 losses, and 1 draw. Chicago is falling apart damned quickly and on both sides of the ball. This team’s persistent issue surrounds scoring, but that shortcoming ballooned into imminent doom during May when the Fire bled goals at a three-a-game clip. Chicago’s greatest hope comes in the person of Cuauthemoc Blanco, a Mexican midfield legend who will join the team after the ongoing Gold Cup. If he can’t turn around the offense, the Fire will again rely on Justin Mapp and Chris Rolfe - who are both quality players - to carry the load as they did to start the season; and thus the great hope reveals itself as a thin one. Rumors mention a Chilean star - Marcelo Salas, and it’s tempting to dub him a “former star” - joining the Mexican legend, but faith is in short supply.
Rating: DOWN...and nearing the muck.
Toronto FC, 3-6-1; 10 pts. (10 games)
When Toronto took the field for a May 12 contest versus Chicago one question stood out: when would TFC score their first-ever goal? Winning wasn’t part of the discussion back then. But something special started the 3-1 win that followed: Toronto’s irrepressible fans shouted on an improving and tough-as-nails team thereby making an away game at BMO Field an anxious occasion for visitors. Even after going 3-2-1 to turn around an 0-4-0 start, TFC still has quite a ways to go. The encouraging thing, however, is that they have started. When head coach Mo Johnston thinks he needs players, just goes and gets them: thus Danny Dichio and Jeff Cunningham joined the offense, while Marvell Wynne and Kevin Goldthwaite improved the defense. With the changes seeming to take, virtually no one thinks TFC will match the low-water mark set by Chivas USA’s in 2005.
Rating: UP...and they're the league bandwagon to boot.
Columbus Crew, 1-4-5; 8 pts. (10 games)
The unknown Crew player who kicked the corner flag out of the ground following his team’s 2-1 loss to the Houston Dynamo, said it all. Columbus’ chief accomplishment for the season so far amounts to alienating their fans and driving their coach mad. They can play well, even beautifully, all over the field...until the attacking third. At that point, well, no one can say what happens, but all agree it’s hard to watch. Nothing - neither trades, nor the acquisition of an Argetine legend (Guillermo Schelotto; MLS is big on legends this season) - seems up to fixing the problem and, to make matters worse, the once-mighty Crew defense is slipping as well. The standings say the Crew isn’t the worst in MLS, but, when you’re in the basement with the lights out, questions about how dark things are get academic pretty fast.
Rating: WALLOWING IN THE MUCK.
Moving now, to the Western Conference...
FC Dallas, 6-5-1; 19 pts. (12 games)
FC Dallas has mastered only one thing: book-ending confidence-building streaks with crushing losses. This habit plays havoc with perceptions; in spite of going 4-2-0 since the start of May and leading the West, a select sample of the punditry pegs them as the sixth-best team in MLS. Perhaps nothing better explains Dallas’ wayward path to the top of the West as the perfect balance they achieved in goals for and goals against: 17 on each side of the ledger, making them fourth in the league for goals for and second for goals against. Dallas’ young defense hurts them, which makes signs of offensive woes ahead - e.g. star forward Carlos Ruiz’s somewhat indifferent season so far, as well as the brutal and unfortunate injury to his partner Kenny Cooper - more ominous.
Rating: HOLDING STEADY...but definitely shaky.
Houston Dynamo, 5-5-1; 16 pts. (11 games)
What has happened to Houston so far shows that being last year’s champions only places extra emphasis on the phrase “last year’s” - as in, what have they done for Houston fans lately? By way of good news, Houston has (partially) atoned for a wretched early season by rattling off three straight wins; sadly, those had to compensate for the 2-5-1 record, as well as the long, long scoreless stretch, that came before. But the weirdest thing about all this is the fact that Houston picked up two of those wins absent notable starters like Ricardo Clark and perennial MVP candidate Dwayne DeRosario. Who needs star-power when you’ve got Joseph Ngwenya?
Rating: UP...but they had nowhere else to go.
Colorado Rapids, 4-4-3; 15 pts. (11 games)
Who knew “Colorado Rapids” was a synonym for “erratic?” To further complicate matters, the Rapids have ditched last year’s good-at-home, lousy-on-the-road formula; only three points separate their home 2-1-3 record from their away 2-3-0. Even the quality of the opposition doesn’t seem relevant: they’ll draw Real Salt Lake at home the week before beating Red Bull on the road. Baffling as they are, the Rapids have interesting players and a coach with an unbelievable eye for talent - which, unfortunately, doesn’t translate to getting that talent to perform on game day. The one consistent truth about Colorado is that they’ll likely remain inconsistent.
Rating: HOLDING STEADY...on a roller coaster.
Chivas USA, 4-3-2; 14 pts. (9 games)
Chivas’ fourth-place position looks bad till you realize they sit only five points behind West-leading FC Dallas with two games in hand. They hit some of the weaker teams early (Real Salt Lake, Columbus, Los Angeles Galaxy) and hitt good teams in moments of weakness (DC United in early May - and they still lost), but look at the standings and you’ll see they’ve got the most respectable goal differential in the West: +5 where the next best team is rocking a +1. No, they’re not burning up the league in goals, but get this: they have the best goals-against average in MLS. Things will definitely get harder - though Chivas adjusted for this by adding a bit of defensive toughness in Paolo Nagamura and Shavar Thomas. And they could really use offensive support to help first-year revelation Maykel Galindo. But, all in all, Chivas has kind of snuck into the pack - and those two games in hand look an awful lot like an ambush.
Rating: UP...thanks to situational dynamics.
Los Angeles Galaxy, 1-4-3; 6 pts. (8 games)
Small wonder talk about David Beckham bailing on his MLS contract are flying: no one in their right mind would want to join the Galaxy at this point. They enjoy the same goal-a-game attack as Chicago and, with injuries stacking up fast their defense no longer appears up to keeping them in games. With Landon Donovan out of the line-up (Gold Cup - and possibly Copa America) LA goes from a team bitten by a misfiring bug to a downright average outfit. If you’re looking for a silver lining, here’s the best possible: their next three games are against Columbus, Chicago, and Real Salt Lake - and all of them are at home.
Rating: WALLOWING IN THE MUCK.
Real Salt Lake, 0-3-6; 6 pts. (9 games)
At least RSL is won one competition this season: they fired and replaced their coach before any other MLS team. They also beat the Chinese National Team - but that doesn’t help them in the league. What is there to say about the only team in the league still without a win? Nothing much more than, it can only get better...maybe...then again, all those draws could become losses. Unbelievably, RSL has enjoyed a mini-renaissance under rookie-coach (and MLS legend) Jason Kreis; he has taught them the art of tying, replacing the four-goal losses from the season’s early days with goalless draws. On the other hand, that’s just not enough. Barring a major, possibly even implausible, turnaround RSL looks likely to maintain its perfect, post-season-free record.
Rating: WALLOWING IN THE MUCK.
More MLS Week 10: Games Watched and Unwatched
Starting with the unobserved game (though I did watch the highlights)...
Chicago Fire 0 - 1 Chivas USA
- Having not watched this game, I can't judge the evening authoritatively, but...if those were the highlights, this one wasn't much.
- Based on what I saw, though, Chivas deserved the win. And it looked like Maykel Galindo, again, shined for the California side.
- Has Dave Sarachan been fired yet? Is he preparing a letter to the front office about "wanting to spend more time with his family?" If not, is there perhaps someone who can write this for him?
- Seriously, after starting the season 3-0-1, Chicago has gone 1-5-1, adding only four points over - wow - seven games. Four points out of 21 sucks.
- Worse, apart from a couple decent turns in dangerous places by Chad Barrett, they simply didn't look all that threatening.
- Grim, grim times in Chicago.
Turning now, to what I endured this morning...
FC Dallas 3 - 1 Los Angeles Galaxy
- Speaking of hot seats, I'm betting blisters are building Frank Yallop's ass.
- While neither team looked sharp - especially in the first half - LA was downriight DIRE. By the second half they were FEEBLE, TIRED...just awful.
- What separated Dallas from LA, though - or, rather, who - Juan Carlos Toja. His ability to shield the ball, keep his head up and make passes that maintain possession and switch the attack all at once just stood out on a men among boys level.
- Returning to LA's second half, the rot is growing fatal. Either this team is utterly demoralized...or they just plain suck. How many passes went miles off target, and how many straight to Dallas players? With their players rarely connecting, LA got steamrolled by opposition doing quite a bit of misfiring of their own.
- A real mystery to me came with why Yallop didn't sub out Tyrone Marshall, who was clearly hobbling, far sooner. In a sense, the clumsy and brutal tackle that wiped out Kenny Cooper was an accident waiting to happen. Limping and straining for twenty minutes prior - at least - Marshall knew he couldn't keep up...and so he fouled him. Cooper paid an awful price for that.
- Oh, the irony of the Joe Cannon trade. It's not that the talk of him being the "missing piece" for LA hasn't proved accurate; it's only that, instead of helping the team maintain wins, he's preventing LA from suffering blowouts.
- After Cannon, if there was a man of the match for LA, it was - sadly - Nate Jaqua. Martino might get honorable mention, but he was largely anonymous. Jaqua could at least hold up the ball in Dallas' third.
- On the Dallas goals, even if the first might have been offside (I didn't think it was) and call for the PK that made the second was harsh, Dallas was simply the better team.
- To be clear, though, that's not saying much. Dallas had their share of high, searching (read: wayward) balls.
- At least Dallas improved as the game went on. Pablo Ricchetti, especially, pushed into the attack to great effect in the second half - so maybe Steve Morrow deserves some credit for making adjustments at the half, I don't know. One sequence in the second half, though, where Dallas just danced through the LA midfield and rushed onto their defense - this was the sequence that ended with Kenny Cooper running onto a pretty back-heel from Michael Saragosa - revealed the extent to which one team improved as the game progressed, while the other collapsed.
- I feel sorry for David Beckham. Really. The English press may be piping a lot of bullshit about MLS hurting Beckham's game, but, badly as LA is playing, they may yet have a point.
Chicago Fire 0 - 1 Chivas USA
- Having not watched this game, I can't judge the evening authoritatively, but...if those were the highlights, this one wasn't much.
- Based on what I saw, though, Chivas deserved the win. And it looked like Maykel Galindo, again, shined for the California side.
- Has Dave Sarachan been fired yet? Is he preparing a letter to the front office about "wanting to spend more time with his family?" If not, is there perhaps someone who can write this for him?
- Seriously, after starting the season 3-0-1, Chicago has gone 1-5-1, adding only four points over - wow - seven games. Four points out of 21 sucks.
- Worse, apart from a couple decent turns in dangerous places by Chad Barrett, they simply didn't look all that threatening.
- Grim, grim times in Chicago.
Turning now, to what I endured this morning...
FC Dallas 3 - 1 Los Angeles Galaxy
- Speaking of hot seats, I'm betting blisters are building Frank Yallop's ass.
- While neither team looked sharp - especially in the first half - LA was downriight DIRE. By the second half they were FEEBLE, TIRED...just awful.
- What separated Dallas from LA, though - or, rather, who - Juan Carlos Toja. His ability to shield the ball, keep his head up and make passes that maintain possession and switch the attack all at once just stood out on a men among boys level.
- Returning to LA's second half, the rot is growing fatal. Either this team is utterly demoralized...or they just plain suck. How many passes went miles off target, and how many straight to Dallas players? With their players rarely connecting, LA got steamrolled by opposition doing quite a bit of misfiring of their own.
- A real mystery to me came with why Yallop didn't sub out Tyrone Marshall, who was clearly hobbling, far sooner. In a sense, the clumsy and brutal tackle that wiped out Kenny Cooper was an accident waiting to happen. Limping and straining for twenty minutes prior - at least - Marshall knew he couldn't keep up...and so he fouled him. Cooper paid an awful price for that.
- Oh, the irony of the Joe Cannon trade. It's not that the talk of him being the "missing piece" for LA hasn't proved accurate; it's only that, instead of helping the team maintain wins, he's preventing LA from suffering blowouts.
- After Cannon, if there was a man of the match for LA, it was - sadly - Nate Jaqua. Martino might get honorable mention, but he was largely anonymous. Jaqua could at least hold up the ball in Dallas' third.
- On the Dallas goals, even if the first might have been offside (I didn't think it was) and call for the PK that made the second was harsh, Dallas was simply the better team.
- To be clear, though, that's not saying much. Dallas had their share of high, searching (read: wayward) balls.
- At least Dallas improved as the game went on. Pablo Ricchetti, especially, pushed into the attack to great effect in the second half - so maybe Steve Morrow deserves some credit for making adjustments at the half, I don't know. One sequence in the second half, though, where Dallas just danced through the LA midfield and rushed onto their defense - this was the sequence that ended with Kenny Cooper running onto a pretty back-heel from Michael Saragosa - revealed the extent to which one team improved as the game progressed, while the other collapsed.
- I feel sorry for David Beckham. Really. The English press may be piping a lot of bullshit about MLS hurting Beckham's game, but, badly as LA is playing, they may yet have a point.
Ah, It Was Guevara
The folks at MLS Underground posted what looks like a plausible explanation to the clusterf*@# that is/was the Amado Guevara trade. Turns out Amado refused the move. And before you blame Canada, it sounds like Mo Johnston was the issue (whose idea was it to force a reunion anyway?).
At any rate, there's something in there about Guevara considering only FC Dallas or a return to Honduras as well. Fun trade stuff, isn't it?
Here's more from LA Soccer News, the source that broke this story by getting the crucial part correct - e.g. that Chivas traded Guevara to TFC (so, it was correct, but affected by an Act of Guevara; by the way, are those always red card offenses?). And, from what they're reporting, it looks like Paulo Nagamura is still headed to Chivas.
UPDATE: Sideline Views has a couple good pieces on the Guevara situation: first, there's some speculation on the tactical adjustments to cover the (let's face it, small-ish) hole Guevara left behind; second, there's a nice post of memorable Guevara moments.
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At any rate, there's something in there about Guevara considering only FC Dallas or a return to Honduras as well. Fun trade stuff, isn't it?
Here's more from LA Soccer News, the source that broke this story by getting the crucial part correct - e.g. that Chivas traded Guevara to TFC (so, it was correct, but affected by an Act of Guevara; by the way, are those always red card offenses?). And, from what they're reporting, it looks like Paulo Nagamura is still headed to Chivas.
UPDATE: Sideline Views has a couple good pieces on the Guevara situation: first, there's some speculation on the tactical adjustments to cover the (let's face it, small-ish) hole Guevara left behind; second, there's a nice post of memorable Guevara moments.
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Guevara Gone?
Thanks to a Bloglines feed to Sideline Views, which took me straight to LA Soccer News, which seems like a "mother ship" of sorts to that blog, I'm able to pass on word/rumor of Amado Guevara going (way) north to Toronto FC. Coming the other way, Paulo Nagamura and "a draft pick."
Holy poop. Assuming this is true, I can't help but think they'll be writing articles like the one Ives Galarcep turned in to his day job in LA papers in the near future.
All I can say is Guevara never seemed to settle in LA, at least not on the field. One more thing: I can't see Guevara doing any better in Toronto under Mo Johnston than he did under Preki. Lord knows they need creativity up Canada way, but how's Guevara going to mesh with, say, Ronnie O'Brien? Carl Robinson? (Don't know what his ego is like, but I have a fair picture of Guevara's). Alecko Eskandarian (who also seems to have a fuse)?
On Chivas' side of the ledger, they're losing a player who gave every impression of being locker-room cancer; they also got (another) gritty player in Nagamura. Had Guevara ever managed to participate in the Chivas attack, I'd write something about the Goats having to change their style...obviously, that's not necessary here.
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Holy poop. Assuming this is true, I can't help but think they'll be writing articles like the one Ives Galarcep turned in to his day job in LA papers in the near future.
All I can say is Guevara never seemed to settle in LA, at least not on the field. One more thing: I can't see Guevara doing any better in Toronto under Mo Johnston than he did under Preki. Lord knows they need creativity up Canada way, but how's Guevara going to mesh with, say, Ronnie O'Brien? Carl Robinson? (Don't know what his ego is like, but I have a fair picture of Guevara's). Alecko Eskandarian (who also seems to have a fuse)?
On Chivas' side of the ledger, they're losing a player who gave every impression of being locker-room cancer; they also got (another) gritty player in Nagamura. Had Guevara ever managed to participate in the Chivas attack, I'd write something about the Goats having to change their style...obviously, that's not necessary here.
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Week 4 Picks
Curse my duplicity! Had I stuck with the pick I sent over to the Real Salt Lake Offside, I would not only have pegged the damn score, but would be sitting pretty on a 10-11 record. Instead, I called a tie (well, fuck you too Hunter Freeman) and now look the fool with a 9-12 mark. Well, may as well do some more damage while I’m here. And, seeing as I don’t feel like finding the ground rules again, I’ll just note the most significant of them: I don’t call specific scores, just the results.
Oh, and I posted a more considered preview (e.g. high-falutin’) for Write On Sports and, thanks to my day “job” with The Crew Offside, I elaborated on the particulars of that game in that space. Moving on....
Toronto FC v. Kansas City Wizards (preview)
Watching TFC play thus far recalls a dogfight matching a shih tzu puppy against an adult bull terrier on a cocktail of crank and steroids. With my stomach barely holding as is, TFC needs any kind of positive from their home opener - a goal will do - or I don’t think I’ll be able to bring myself to continue watching them. Seriously, though, can you see them winning this? The shih tzu gets the once-over twice...or even thrice. WIZARDS WIN.
Columbus Crew v. DC United (preview)
On one level, DC’s panic-prone defense seems just the remedy for the Crew, who needed assists from Shalrie Joseph’s hand and the hole in James Riley’s foot to score for the first time last week. On another, the Crew defense hardly inspired confidence against the Revs either. As such, I’m seeing a fretful, perhaps even high-scoring, affair - and seeing how that favors the visitors, Columbus gets the worst of it: DC WINS.
Los Angeles Galaxy v. Chivas USA (preview)
Ah, the SuperClasico. I almost hate the league for filling this weekend with so many viewing options. Expectations seem pretty high for this one, though I’m a little dubious as to why. LA’s been pretty punchless thus far and Chivas has struggled against defensively stout outfits, a description I believe applies to LA. This call will leave everyone about as satisfied as I expect the game will: A DRAW - though I’m pulling for a Chivas win.
FC Dallas v. New England Revolution (type faster, you interns)
Dang me, this stuff is hard, y’all. Put it this way: New England may have the tools, but they were more opportunist than good against a wobbly Columbus without being opportunist enough. Going the other way, they’ve got enough holes and FC Dallas has the players to exploit them - especially at home: FC DALLAS WINS.
Houston Dynamo v. Chicago Fire (type faster, you interns)
There are two kinds of heavyweight fights: a Mike-Tyson-style beat-down that ends before it starts or those god-awful affairs featuring to big, sweaty dudes throwing slow, heavy punches between extended grapples (factually, there are more kinds of heavyweight fights, but bear with me). This game has the words “labored” and “1-0” written all over it. I’m going to say HOUSTON WINS, but that’s only because I predicted a bad year for the Fire and a good one for the Dynamo.
Real Salt Lake v. Colorado Rapids (OK, it's a Monday game)
Will my wife leave me if I watch four games in one weekend? Will she threaten to? You may find out Tuesday morning ‘cause I’m damned curious about this game and mainly to see Colorado, in whom I still possess a kind of half-absurd faith. But for reasons for which I cannot account, I think John Ellinger picks up a reprieve on this one as the Rapids’ road woes bite again: REAL SALT LAKE WINS - and the doubting time begins (or maybe continues) in Colorado.
Oh, and I posted a more considered preview (e.g. high-falutin’) for Write On Sports and, thanks to my day “job” with The Crew Offside, I elaborated on the particulars of that game in that space. Moving on....
Toronto FC v. Kansas City Wizards (preview)
Watching TFC play thus far recalls a dogfight matching a shih tzu puppy against an adult bull terrier on a cocktail of crank and steroids. With my stomach barely holding as is, TFC needs any kind of positive from their home opener - a goal will do - or I don’t think I’ll be able to bring myself to continue watching them. Seriously, though, can you see them winning this? The shih tzu gets the once-over twice...or even thrice. WIZARDS WIN.
Columbus Crew v. DC United (preview)
On one level, DC’s panic-prone defense seems just the remedy for the Crew, who needed assists from Shalrie Joseph’s hand and the hole in James Riley’s foot to score for the first time last week. On another, the Crew defense hardly inspired confidence against the Revs either. As such, I’m seeing a fretful, perhaps even high-scoring, affair - and seeing how that favors the visitors, Columbus gets the worst of it: DC WINS.
Los Angeles Galaxy v. Chivas USA (preview)
Ah, the SuperClasico. I almost hate the league for filling this weekend with so many viewing options. Expectations seem pretty high for this one, though I’m a little dubious as to why. LA’s been pretty punchless thus far and Chivas has struggled against defensively stout outfits, a description I believe applies to LA. This call will leave everyone about as satisfied as I expect the game will: A DRAW - though I’m pulling for a Chivas win.
FC Dallas v. New England Revolution (type faster, you interns)
Dang me, this stuff is hard, y’all. Put it this way: New England may have the tools, but they were more opportunist than good against a wobbly Columbus without being opportunist enough. Going the other way, they’ve got enough holes and FC Dallas has the players to exploit them - especially at home: FC DALLAS WINS.
Houston Dynamo v. Chicago Fire (type faster, you interns)
There are two kinds of heavyweight fights: a Mike-Tyson-style beat-down that ends before it starts or those god-awful affairs featuring to big, sweaty dudes throwing slow, heavy punches between extended grapples (factually, there are more kinds of heavyweight fights, but bear with me). This game has the words “labored” and “1-0” written all over it. I’m going to say HOUSTON WINS, but that’s only because I predicted a bad year for the Fire and a good one for the Dynamo.
Real Salt Lake v. Colorado Rapids (OK, it's a Monday game)
Will my wife leave me if I watch four games in one weekend? Will she threaten to? You may find out Tuesday morning ‘cause I’m damned curious about this game and mainly to see Colorado, in whom I still possess a kind of half-absurd faith. But for reasons for which I cannot account, I think John Ellinger picks up a reprieve on this one as the Rapids’ road woes bite again: REAL SALT LAKE WINS - and the doubting time begins (or maybe continues) in Colorado.
Suspensions: Herron...Kljestan?!
Major League Soccer (MLS) disciplined Columbus Crew forward Andy Herron this morning to the tune of a four-game suspension and a $3,000 fine. Seeing as I already wrote about this in another space, I'll send persons interested in reading about it to that space (short version: Herron got off light, but I'm still OK with it).
Seeing as a suspension of some sort was a given with Herron, that's done and dusted. But something in the same press release has me thinking a bit:
Those interested in a second look can find video to all of these incidents. My video feed is boned, so I'm currently unable to review the Kljestan "incident," but this still strikes me as harsh. I'm OK with the fine - I'd even be comfortable if they doubled it so long as they withdrew the suspension, or keep the fine and suspend him for one game, as if it had been a red card - but that's a pretty stiff punishment for a bad foul in the run of play. And it was a bad foul, no question. I like Andy Williams plenty and respect him more (especially how huge a mensch he is for even playing given everything) and this is definitely tragic. But I don't think the simple existence of the injury has a role in setting the punishment.
UPDATE I entirely accept the possibility that my take on the Kjlestan incident doesn't make sense - and if I find out Sacha didn't visit Andy in the hospital (barring accidents of travel, etc.) I'll rescind the statement entirely. In any case, a couple other people weighed in on this, so I thought I'd link to them: Ives Galarcep and Steve Goff, though with the latter, I'm pointing more toward the comments.
Seeing as a suspension of some sort was a given with Herron, that's done and dusted. But something in the same press release has me thinking a bit:
"The disciplinary committee also suspended Chivas USA defender Sacha Kljestan two games and fined him $1,000 for a serious foul play."
[SNIP]
"In the Kljestan incident, although the referee saw the incident and exercised his on-field judgment not to award a red card, a serious injury to Williams resulted. In this circumstance, the committee reviewed the play and concluded that the challenge was an unequivocal red card offense and egregious. Therefore, the committee decided to suspend Kljestan two MLS Regular Season games and fine him $1,000."
Those interested in a second look can find video to all of these incidents. My video feed is boned, so I'm currently unable to review the Kljestan "incident," but this still strikes me as harsh. I'm OK with the fine - I'd even be comfortable if they doubled it so long as they withdrew the suspension, or keep the fine and suspend him for one game, as if it had been a red card - but that's a pretty stiff punishment for a bad foul in the run of play. And it was a bad foul, no question. I like Andy Williams plenty and respect him more (especially how huge a mensch he is for even playing given everything) and this is definitely tragic. But I don't think the simple existence of the injury has a role in setting the punishment.
UPDATE I entirely accept the possibility that my take on the Kjlestan incident doesn't make sense - and if I find out Sacha didn't visit Andy in the hospital (barring accidents of travel, etc.) I'll rescind the statement entirely. In any case, a couple other people weighed in on this, so I thought I'd link to them: Ives Galarcep and Steve Goff, though with the latter, I'm pointing more toward the comments.
Week 3: Mess o' Match Wraps, Power Rankings, Video
Holy crap did I read (or skim) a crapload of soccer crap today. Crap, crap, crap - by which I intend to express my amazement and appreciation that there's so much good content out there as opposed to commenting on the content itself.
At any rate, I'll start with the general stuff and work my way down to individual game reports. The idea is to get as many perspectives as humanly possible and to add that to what I mentioned in my Week 3 power-rankings. Before ceasing to talk about me, though, I may as well flag the weekly summary I sent over to Write On Sports (who could use more contributors, by the way); I led that piece with my one-man effort to sow doubt in the Houston Dynamo camp. I think they're another team laboring under too-great expectations this season (all y'all know the other one).
Enough about me, though. Let's see what everyone else had to say about Week 3.
General
Since they started the trend, I'll link to ESPN's power rankings first; unlike me, they had the guts to place Red Bull New York first. A couple blogs chucked out power rankings as well: Luis Bueno turned in a tidy effort for Sideline Views (and matched my top three on the way, while avoiding my peculiar attachment to Colorado) while Who Ate All the Cupcakes made the Herculean effort of comparing all 13 MLS teams to professional wrestlers. I can only applaud.
Others, both professional and amateur, went for regular wrap-ups of the weekend's action: Soccer America turned in their usual pair of wraps, one a general summary, the other a barebones data dump of goals, cards, and (the motherfrickin' sorry) attendance. Ian Plenderleith, of USSoccerplayers.com also touched on the (sorry, sorry) attendance, but he also added more good stuff about some dodgy officiating and those wonderful quotes that athletes often give when pressed for answers. Mike H of My Soccer Blog rounds out the summary category with a comprehensive offering of his own.
Dan Loney, who seems to have fallen between my two categories out of spite, has to float between them for the sin of writing (quite well, actually) about only two of Week 3's games.
Finally, before turning to the games themselves, let's plunk a video compilation of Week 3 goals to recharge your batteries (courtesy of Climbing the Ladder, of course.
Back to it now, in the order in which they surprised me...
FC Dallas 3 - 1 Colorado Rapids
If you want "just the facts," it's hard to beat MLSnet.com's traditional match reports. But I learned so much from the labors of others: Bill Urban's nice perspective piece on just how much Colorado and Dallas hate one another is a good starting point. But this one contained some lovely details: there's FC Rocky's appreciation for Jovan Kirovski's goal in spite of the handball that made it possible, as well as Dallas coach Steve Morrow's righteous frustration that his team gave up the goal, handball or no. Ramon Nunez gets some nice love from the Dallas Soccer News who flags that his first on the day is up for goal of the week as well as telling the inspiring story behind his start - Dax McArty picks up some kisses in that one too. Meanwhile, fans out Colorado way take a different view of Nunez.
My favorite detail from this game, though, comes from a passage in the Denver Post's write-up on this game. And I flag this for two reasons: one, because it gets to my theory that Brandon Prideaux is the weak spot on the Rapids' back line; two, because it says, "That guy looked like a doofus" without saying it explicitly:
Red Bull New York 1 - 0 Houston Dynamo
I think the best piece of coverage I saw on this game showed up in the Houston Chronicle in the form of the third paragraph quote from coach Dominic Kinnear: it shows he gets the scope of the problem.
But the big story here is the essential shock of writing "the first-place Red Bulls" - as Ives Galarcep pointed out on his blog. Pieces in other spaces point out that this isn't so much a surprise, between the play of kids like Dane Richards and Josmer Altidore, or even the team's defensive solidity. Martha, who writes for the Red Bull Offside, throws many of the players much love (though emphatically not John Wolyniec, who should be OK seeing as he picked up some love from Red Bull Rising, who turned in a very impressive review), but I also want to thank her personally, for using the word "bitches" in a way that makes me feel more comfortable expressing myself in a similar manner.
Really, hard as it is to get one's head around the idea of the New York area having a team to brag about, it's kind of fun at the same time....even if you know that somewhere down the line, they'll absolutely implode in a totally unpredictable way.
Chivas USA 4 - 0 Real Salt Lake
It's the magnitude of this one that shocks: this one could have been still uglier and it left a few RSL fans wondering whether their guys stopped trying. Oddly, pundits, even Chivas players, found time to pick at their performance in the rout. As I see it, Chivas took their foot off the gas a bit, but, by the 75th minute, they stomped their foot on RSL's neck so damn hard that I expect the latter's recovery from this trauma to continue for a couple of weeks; so, no, I don't get the complaints.
The best thing I read about this game, though, the referee broached the subject of the "towel rule" - as in asking whether RSL wanted to throw it in:
After that, it's equal parts joy and pain: the "pain" comes from the seriously unfortunate injury to Andy Williams and a budding, perhaps media-inspired, goalkeeping controversy that grows from Nick Rimando's second dodgy performance; the only thing to make this worse is the fact Rimando may hold onto the job due to "back-up" Chris Seitz's likely absence this summer. The "joy" side is pretty obvious: Ante Razov's 100th goal in MLS; LA Soccer News cranked out a pretty good sidebar on Razov "the man."
Chicago Fire 2 - 1 Kansas City Wizards
Good God. It's like a disease, all this typing, so I have to stop (and start on this earlier next week). So, quickly as I can, here are some resources from the game that surprised me the least this weekend - and I stand by what I've said in a couple places now; there's something ominous about Chicago, even if no one in the Chicago area seems terribly interested in seeing it.
- Luis Arroyave: good stuff on Barrett, Rolfe, and Armas.
- ChicagoLand Soccer News turned in a good, general report.
- As did Windy City Soccer LINK
- The Kansas City Star's report flagged some key stuff about how Chicago played Eddie Johnson, so that should interest a coach or two.
- Down the Byline, a site I don't cite enough, turned in a good report from a KC perspective.
So, yeah, I petered out a bit toward the end. Hope it was good for someone out there ('cause I'm spent).
At any rate, I'll start with the general stuff and work my way down to individual game reports. The idea is to get as many perspectives as humanly possible and to add that to what I mentioned in my Week 3 power-rankings. Before ceasing to talk about me, though, I may as well flag the weekly summary I sent over to Write On Sports (who could use more contributors, by the way); I led that piece with my one-man effort to sow doubt in the Houston Dynamo camp. I think they're another team laboring under too-great expectations this season (all y'all know the other one).
Enough about me, though. Let's see what everyone else had to say about Week 3.
General
Since they started the trend, I'll link to ESPN's power rankings first; unlike me, they had the guts to place Red Bull New York first. A couple blogs chucked out power rankings as well: Luis Bueno turned in a tidy effort for Sideline Views (and matched my top three on the way, while avoiding my peculiar attachment to Colorado) while Who Ate All the Cupcakes made the Herculean effort of comparing all 13 MLS teams to professional wrestlers. I can only applaud.
Others, both professional and amateur, went for regular wrap-ups of the weekend's action: Soccer America turned in their usual pair of wraps, one a general summary, the other a barebones data dump of goals, cards, and (the motherfrickin' sorry) attendance. Ian Plenderleith, of USSoccerplayers.com also touched on the (sorry, sorry) attendance, but he also added more good stuff about some dodgy officiating and those wonderful quotes that athletes often give when pressed for answers. Mike H of My Soccer Blog rounds out the summary category with a comprehensive offering of his own.
Dan Loney, who seems to have fallen between my two categories out of spite, has to float between them for the sin of writing (quite well, actually) about only two of Week 3's games.
Finally, before turning to the games themselves, let's plunk a video compilation of Week 3 goals to recharge your batteries (courtesy of Climbing the Ladder, of course.
Back to it now, in the order in which they surprised me...
FC Dallas 3 - 1 Colorado Rapids
If you want "just the facts," it's hard to beat MLSnet.com's traditional match reports. But I learned so much from the labors of others: Bill Urban's nice perspective piece on just how much Colorado and Dallas hate one another is a good starting point. But this one contained some lovely details: there's FC Rocky's appreciation for Jovan Kirovski's goal in spite of the handball that made it possible, as well as Dallas coach Steve Morrow's righteous frustration that his team gave up the goal, handball or no. Ramon Nunez gets some nice love from the Dallas Soccer News who flags that his first on the day is up for goal of the week as well as telling the inspiring story behind his start - Dax McArty picks up some kisses in that one too. Meanwhile, fans out Colorado way take a different view of Nunez.
My favorite detail from this game, though, comes from a passage in the Denver Post's write-up on this game. And I flag this for two reasons: one, because it gets to my theory that Brandon Prideaux is the weak spot on the Rapids' back line; two, because it says, "That guy looked like a doofus" without saying it explicitly:
"In the 29th minute, Nuñez took a pass from Dax McCarty and dribbled around Brandon Prideaux at the top of the goalkeeper's box, causing Prideaux to fall while trying to change directions, before placing a shot inside the left post from 12 yards out."
Red Bull New York 1 - 0 Houston Dynamo
I think the best piece of coverage I saw on this game showed up in the Houston Chronicle in the form of the third paragraph quote from coach Dominic Kinnear: it shows he gets the scope of the problem.
But the big story here is the essential shock of writing "the first-place Red Bulls" - as Ives Galarcep pointed out on his blog. Pieces in other spaces point out that this isn't so much a surprise, between the play of kids like Dane Richards and Josmer Altidore, or even the team's defensive solidity. Martha, who writes for the Red Bull Offside, throws many of the players much love (though emphatically not John Wolyniec, who should be OK seeing as he picked up some love from Red Bull Rising, who turned in a very impressive review), but I also want to thank her personally, for using the word "bitches" in a way that makes me feel more comfortable expressing myself in a similar manner.
Really, hard as it is to get one's head around the idea of the New York area having a team to brag about, it's kind of fun at the same time....even if you know that somewhere down the line, they'll absolutely implode in a totally unpredictable way.
Chivas USA 4 - 0 Real Salt Lake
It's the magnitude of this one that shocks: this one could have been still uglier and it left a few RSL fans wondering whether their guys stopped trying. Oddly, pundits, even Chivas players, found time to pick at their performance in the rout. As I see it, Chivas took their foot off the gas a bit, but, by the 75th minute, they stomped their foot on RSL's neck so damn hard that I expect the latter's recovery from this trauma to continue for a couple of weeks; so, no, I don't get the complaints.
The best thing I read about this game, though, the referee broached the subject of the "towel rule" - as in asking whether RSL wanted to throw it in:
""It's worse when the game is in extra time and you get asked if you want the full extra time," RSL coach John Ellinger. "How would you feel?"
After that, it's equal parts joy and pain: the "pain" comes from the seriously unfortunate injury to Andy Williams and a budding, perhaps media-inspired, goalkeeping controversy that grows from Nick Rimando's second dodgy performance; the only thing to make this worse is the fact Rimando may hold onto the job due to "back-up" Chris Seitz's likely absence this summer. The "joy" side is pretty obvious: Ante Razov's 100th goal in MLS; LA Soccer News cranked out a pretty good sidebar on Razov "the man."
Chicago Fire 2 - 1 Kansas City Wizards
Good God. It's like a disease, all this typing, so I have to stop (and start on this earlier next week). So, quickly as I can, here are some resources from the game that surprised me the least this weekend - and I stand by what I've said in a couple places now; there's something ominous about Chicago, even if no one in the Chicago area seems terribly interested in seeing it.
- Luis Arroyave: good stuff on Barrett, Rolfe, and Armas.
- ChicagoLand Soccer News turned in a good, general report.
- As did Windy City Soccer LINK
- The Kansas City Star's report flagged some key stuff about how Chicago played Eddie Johnson, so that should interest a coach or two.
- Down the Byline, a site I don't cite enough, turned in a good report from a KC perspective.
So, yeah, I petered out a bit toward the end. Hope it was good for someone out there ('cause I'm spent).
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