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.
Showing posts with label Toronto FC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Toronto FC. Show all posts
MLS Week 14: Part the First
No collective power rankings this week; with the midweek schedule so fat and plentiful, all other schedules seem messy and sideways. Speaking of which, hope everyone had a good 4th of July. Like the schedule, mine was messy and sideways and dealt heavily with children, fireworks, and some locus of fear and admiration of the latter.
Amid all that mess - and a 94-degree day passed in an irresponsible mix of baking and gin - I managed to catch a couple games as well as all the results of Major League Soccer’s (MLS) Week 14, Part One. Thoughts on those two games - and four teams - follow; I’ll also throw in the few thoughts I had on the other results.
Let’s do this chronologically...makes as much sense as anything, right?
FC Dallas 2 - 0 Chivas USA
- Is it just me, or is Dallas finally building a respectable home record? Nope, they’re actually doing it.
- I have to confess I checked out of this one early; Dallas had the lone goal and Chivas didn’t look much like scoring one as the second half dragged on. Needing to see Dallas’ second provided the excuse to watch the highlight reel MLS put together, a production that made Chivas look the better team. I didn’t quite see that in real time: Chivas certainly did create the better openings early, but this was a pretty tight game.
- Dallas eventually, and gradually, took the upper hand; maybe the heat played a role.
- Nice as it was to see Ramon Nunez again (I told that dude he was still alive...have to find a way to collect on that one) and he scored a peach, but the Dallas player I’m enjoying the most lately has got to be Arturo Alvarez. What he does well isn’t showing in the numbers, but he’s doing as much as any Dallas player to shake up the opposition.
- The same can’t be said for a lumbering, long-shooting Carlos Ruiz.
- The most remarkable thing about Dallas’ late form, though, is the improvement in the defense. I’ll be damned if that half-cobbled back four isn’t gelling.
- Or is that gelling only apparent? Did Dallas’ D simply benefit from Chivas’ road woes? Based on how well FCD’s team defense held up against Houston at the end of June, I’m inclined to call it real (and that goes double given the match report to follow).
- The couple openings Chivas found over the top aside, they turned in a pretty unremarkable performance.
- All in all - and I curse them for this - Dallas has me thinking they have a shot again. Dallas has come to the table bluffing so many times that all signs of progress or promise feel like more of the same. On the other hand, Serioux ought to help stabilize the back - and he’s coming soon - Cooper will be back before long, and they’ve got some Brazilian or another in the pipeline, not to mention two of the best foreign recruits in Juan Toja and Pablo Ricchetti. So, damn them, but I’m starting to think Dallas is fer reals again.
- As for Chivas...I’m still trying to get a good bead on them. My present opinion tells me there’s something missing....but what?
Houston Dynamo 4 - 0 Red Bull New York
- Gimme a second, here. I’m helping New York get Houston’s foot out of its ass...
- The emblematic moment of this game for me came at some undetermined moment, perhaps in the second half (damn, cheap gin), when Dave van den Bergh got stood up on Houston’s right, attempted and failed on a short series of fakes, then ended the play by, essentially, giving up and bouncing the ball of the Houston defender; I swear I could feel the lazy, baffled frustration of that kick through the screen.
- The big thing here: Red Bull cannot defend set-pieces...either that, or Houston is just that good on them (their performance against Dallas tells me they’re not). It was just atrocious. And maybe it was the (horrendously cheap, probably toxic) gin working/talking, but I swear I could see the Houston players slip away from their marks on each goal; I mean, you could just see the goals happen in real time, something I can’t normally do in a scrum of players. But, here, the gaps opened so wide.
- Defense aside - the steady collapse of which a blind man totally unfamiliar with soccer could see - something bigger afflicts the Red Bulls. They looked a mess going forward, just a patchwork of soft, wayward passes and dead-end movement off the ball. We’re talking serious misfiring.
- It makes you wonder if MLS’s New York franchise will butcher another reputation. The Bruce suddenly looks less like a genius.
- Speaking of which, I don’t get Markus Schopp. Why he’s starting over Dane Richards - who, the line-up tells me, never got on the field - I’ll never know. Schopp looks slow and grumpy, like a past-it athlete uncle at a family reunion who seems more interested in pointing out your short-comings and sweating than in playing the game.
- I’m a confirmed Clint Mathis whore, so take this with a grain of salt: I thought New York improved once Mathis came on. Then again, that could be a factor of Houston taking their boot off the Bulls’ necks.
- Speaking of Houston, that defense is seriously something. Provided they pick up chances at the other end and put ‘em away, Houston is looking like a powerful outfit again. The scarier thing is that no one particularly stood out; solid all 'round.
- Well, except Stuart Holden, but that’s only because he’s a rookie. Then again, when he scored Houston’s fourth, I bet I wasn’t the only one who thought, “Was that DeRosario?” On the other hand, I might have been (stupid gin....).
- What’s happened to Red Bull? Counting from June 2, they’ve gone 1-4-1 in league play - and, if memory serves, that one win was a fortuitous one against Toronto. Is it just the defense? After all, they scored ten goals during that stretch, which ain’t a bad haul. Whatever it is, they’re definitely yesterday’s darlings.
- On the other hand, since I read this, let the record show that someone (Ian Plenderleith, actually) talks more about Houston's success than Red Bull's failures in analyzing this game.
I only caught the highlights on the rest of these, so I’ll embed MLSnet.com’s match reports under the scores...may as well give you something better than snark to read...
Kansas City Wizards 0 - 1 DC United
- OK, except this one. For some reason, the video didn’t want to work for this game. Here’s a question, though: why don’t I mind? Why does DC so utterly fail to interest me?
- Whatever I think, they’re doing pretty damn well.
- Anyone else get the sinking feeling we might end up with the final predicted in preseason: DC v. Houston? But I don’t wanna pull for Houston!
- Oh yeah, I should mention KC. Anyone have them pegged at #1 any more? More importantly, are they still playing pretty? They need something to redeem their recent, shaky run.
Colorado Rapids 0 - 0 Columbus Crew
- It’s games like this that make me thankful I dropped the Columbus Crew beat for The Offside.
- I genuinely pity anyone who feels compelled to follow Colorado in 2007. They could at least do you the courtesy of sucking outright.
- On the Crew’s side of the ledger, the highlights suggested they had the better of the game. Whether or not that’s the case, this isn’t a bad result for them...keeps the unbeaten streak going at least.
Real Salt Lake 1 - 2 Toronto FC
- Hey, Toronto picked up their first road win...sort of. Well...it was RSL. Does that even count?
- Seriously, does it? Let’s just say the jury on that one is still out.
- RSL, on the other hand, probably just reclaimed 13th spot in everyone’s rankings (except Dan Loney’s, that is).
Los Angeles 2 - 0 Chicago Fire
- I thought LA’s penalties looked suspect, particularly the second, which can be safely filed under “phantom." Turns out, I wasn’t the only one. You can file Ain Plenderleith’s column on those under “incensed.”
- Like Chicago needs more bad luck/bad vibes/bad play. Against that, though, the highlights didn’t record a single instance of the ball leaving Chicago’s half of the field....all right, maybe one instance, but that’s it.
Amid all that mess - and a 94-degree day passed in an irresponsible mix of baking and gin - I managed to catch a couple games as well as all the results of Major League Soccer’s (MLS) Week 14, Part One. Thoughts on those two games - and four teams - follow; I’ll also throw in the few thoughts I had on the other results.
Let’s do this chronologically...makes as much sense as anything, right?
FC Dallas 2 - 0 Chivas USA
- Is it just me, or is Dallas finally building a respectable home record? Nope, they’re actually doing it.
- I have to confess I checked out of this one early; Dallas had the lone goal and Chivas didn’t look much like scoring one as the second half dragged on. Needing to see Dallas’ second provided the excuse to watch the highlight reel MLS put together, a production that made Chivas look the better team. I didn’t quite see that in real time: Chivas certainly did create the better openings early, but this was a pretty tight game.
- Dallas eventually, and gradually, took the upper hand; maybe the heat played a role.
- Nice as it was to see Ramon Nunez again (I told that dude he was still alive...have to find a way to collect on that one) and he scored a peach, but the Dallas player I’m enjoying the most lately has got to be Arturo Alvarez. What he does well isn’t showing in the numbers, but he’s doing as much as any Dallas player to shake up the opposition.
- The same can’t be said for a lumbering, long-shooting Carlos Ruiz.
- The most remarkable thing about Dallas’ late form, though, is the improvement in the defense. I’ll be damned if that half-cobbled back four isn’t gelling.
- Or is that gelling only apparent? Did Dallas’ D simply benefit from Chivas’ road woes? Based on how well FCD’s team defense held up against Houston at the end of June, I’m inclined to call it real (and that goes double given the match report to follow).
- The couple openings Chivas found over the top aside, they turned in a pretty unremarkable performance.
- All in all - and I curse them for this - Dallas has me thinking they have a shot again. Dallas has come to the table bluffing so many times that all signs of progress or promise feel like more of the same. On the other hand, Serioux ought to help stabilize the back - and he’s coming soon - Cooper will be back before long, and they’ve got some Brazilian or another in the pipeline, not to mention two of the best foreign recruits in Juan Toja and Pablo Ricchetti. So, damn them, but I’m starting to think Dallas is fer reals again.
- As for Chivas...I’m still trying to get a good bead on them. My present opinion tells me there’s something missing....but what?
Houston Dynamo 4 - 0 Red Bull New York
- Gimme a second, here. I’m helping New York get Houston’s foot out of its ass...
- The emblematic moment of this game for me came at some undetermined moment, perhaps in the second half (damn, cheap gin), when Dave van den Bergh got stood up on Houston’s right, attempted and failed on a short series of fakes, then ended the play by, essentially, giving up and bouncing the ball of the Houston defender; I swear I could feel the lazy, baffled frustration of that kick through the screen.
- The big thing here: Red Bull cannot defend set-pieces...either that, or Houston is just that good on them (their performance against Dallas tells me they’re not). It was just atrocious. And maybe it was the (horrendously cheap, probably toxic) gin working/talking, but I swear I could see the Houston players slip away from their marks on each goal; I mean, you could just see the goals happen in real time, something I can’t normally do in a scrum of players. But, here, the gaps opened so wide.
- Defense aside - the steady collapse of which a blind man totally unfamiliar with soccer could see - something bigger afflicts the Red Bulls. They looked a mess going forward, just a patchwork of soft, wayward passes and dead-end movement off the ball. We’re talking serious misfiring.
- It makes you wonder if MLS’s New York franchise will butcher another reputation. The Bruce suddenly looks less like a genius.
- Speaking of which, I don’t get Markus Schopp. Why he’s starting over Dane Richards - who, the line-up tells me, never got on the field - I’ll never know. Schopp looks slow and grumpy, like a past-it athlete uncle at a family reunion who seems more interested in pointing out your short-comings and sweating than in playing the game.
- I’m a confirmed Clint Mathis whore, so take this with a grain of salt: I thought New York improved once Mathis came on. Then again, that could be a factor of Houston taking their boot off the Bulls’ necks.
- Speaking of Houston, that defense is seriously something. Provided they pick up chances at the other end and put ‘em away, Houston is looking like a powerful outfit again. The scarier thing is that no one particularly stood out; solid all 'round.
- Well, except Stuart Holden, but that’s only because he’s a rookie. Then again, when he scored Houston’s fourth, I bet I wasn’t the only one who thought, “Was that DeRosario?” On the other hand, I might have been (stupid gin....).
- What’s happened to Red Bull? Counting from June 2, they’ve gone 1-4-1 in league play - and, if memory serves, that one win was a fortuitous one against Toronto. Is it just the defense? After all, they scored ten goals during that stretch, which ain’t a bad haul. Whatever it is, they’re definitely yesterday’s darlings.
- On the other hand, since I read this, let the record show that someone (Ian Plenderleith, actually) talks more about Houston's success than Red Bull's failures in analyzing this game.
I only caught the highlights on the rest of these, so I’ll embed MLSnet.com’s match reports under the scores...may as well give you something better than snark to read...
Kansas City Wizards 0 - 1 DC United
- OK, except this one. For some reason, the video didn’t want to work for this game. Here’s a question, though: why don’t I mind? Why does DC so utterly fail to interest me?
- Whatever I think, they’re doing pretty damn well.
- Anyone else get the sinking feeling we might end up with the final predicted in preseason: DC v. Houston? But I don’t wanna pull for Houston!
- Oh yeah, I should mention KC. Anyone have them pegged at #1 any more? More importantly, are they still playing pretty? They need something to redeem their recent, shaky run.
Colorado Rapids 0 - 0 Columbus Crew
- It’s games like this that make me thankful I dropped the Columbus Crew beat for The Offside.
- I genuinely pity anyone who feels compelled to follow Colorado in 2007. They could at least do you the courtesy of sucking outright.
- On the Crew’s side of the ledger, the highlights suggested they had the better of the game. Whether or not that’s the case, this isn’t a bad result for them...keeps the unbeaten streak going at least.
Real Salt Lake 1 - 2 Toronto FC
- Hey, Toronto picked up their first road win...sort of. Well...it was RSL. Does that even count?
- Seriously, does it? Let’s just say the jury on that one is still out.
- RSL, on the other hand, probably just reclaimed 13th spot in everyone’s rankings (except Dan Loney’s, that is).
Los Angeles 2 - 0 Chicago Fire
- I thought LA’s penalties looked suspect, particularly the second, which can be safely filed under “phantom." Turns out, I wasn’t the only one. You can file Ain Plenderleith’s column on those under “incensed.”
- Like Chicago needs more bad luck/bad vibes/bad play. Against that, though, the highlights didn’t record a single instance of the ball leaving Chicago’s half of the field....all right, maybe one instance, but that’s it.
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, 06.29: Better Copa Chatter; DC Win, The Shirt
Behold, the Web's bounty...
- Since I couldn't see the game (which is not Comcastic), I read reports on the U.S. loss till they all sounded the same - e.g. man, did we lose and why, Eddie Gaven, why? A couple stood above the others, though. Dan Loney's reply to a reader email on "what it all meant" says what I wanted to say earlier...only better (Dan Loney Says It Better?). So, good thing I posted the video...
The best detail line I saw came from Jen Chang's analysis on his ESPN blog, in the section on Eddie Johnson. For what it's worth, I concur with this statement: "...[Johnson] still remains too much of a one-trick pony for me. He's great at running onto through balls, but that's about it." The elaboration from this point, particularly on EJ's hesitancy, is worth the gander too.
- DC United jumped on the Colorado Rapids Argentina-style last night (i.e. late, and by the same score), but the thing that caught my eye was Fred's evangelical celebration. Now, neither The DCenters or The Offside Rules took offense at Fred's choice of celebration - and they're absolutely correct in that; The Offside Rules took it a step farther by questioning the referee's decision to issue a yellow card. Yeah, Fred's free to don that shirt, but it just sticks in my craw that a player would catch all kinds of hell - and, likely, bad publicity - for showing a t-shirt with the message "There Is No God." Just makes me cross, the way free speech works sometimes...bet the player who wears an aggressively atheist shirt would get fined to boot...
- Anyone have any idea why MLS Newsstand is stuck on Monday? Did they move it? All I know is I'm not about to go back to checking all those damn regional papers.
- Is it just more or is this the wildest season for trades in MLS history? Fox Soccer has a useful feature recording all but the most recent trades.
- Finally, I don't do previews any more (I'm actually going to try something new shortly) but I still admire them when they're done well. And the one Wiz turned in for The Real Salt Lake Offside wonderfully frames this weekend's game between Real Salt Lake and Toronto FC. Give this man a job in the marketing department.
(#########)
- Since I couldn't see the game (which is not Comcastic), I read reports on the U.S. loss till they all sounded the same - e.g. man, did we lose and why, Eddie Gaven, why? A couple stood above the others, though. Dan Loney's reply to a reader email on "what it all meant" says what I wanted to say earlier...only better (Dan Loney Says It Better?). So, good thing I posted the video...
The best detail line I saw came from Jen Chang's analysis on his ESPN blog, in the section on Eddie Johnson. For what it's worth, I concur with this statement: "...[Johnson] still remains too much of a one-trick pony for me. He's great at running onto through balls, but that's about it." The elaboration from this point, particularly on EJ's hesitancy, is worth the gander too.
- DC United jumped on the Colorado Rapids Argentina-style last night (i.e. late, and by the same score), but the thing that caught my eye was Fred's evangelical celebration. Now, neither The DCenters or The Offside Rules took offense at Fred's choice of celebration - and they're absolutely correct in that; The Offside Rules took it a step farther by questioning the referee's decision to issue a yellow card. Yeah, Fred's free to don that shirt, but it just sticks in my craw that a player would catch all kinds of hell - and, likely, bad publicity - for showing a t-shirt with the message "There Is No God." Just makes me cross, the way free speech works sometimes...bet the player who wears an aggressively atheist shirt would get fined to boot...
- Anyone have any idea why MLS Newsstand is stuck on Monday? Did they move it? All I know is I'm not about to go back to checking all those damn regional papers.
- Is it just more or is this the wildest season for trades in MLS history? Fox Soccer has a useful feature recording all but the most recent trades.
- Finally, I don't do previews any more (I'm actually going to try something new shortly) but I still admire them when they're done well. And the one Wiz turned in for The Real Salt Lake Offside wonderfully frames this weekend's game between Real Salt Lake and Toronto FC. Give this man a job in the marketing department.
(#########)
Junk-Drawer, 06.26: USL-1 Pot-Shots; RBNY/TFC Trade
I need a clever lead for this stuff...though that would probably up the "rip-off factor" of du Nord too far past tolerances.
Well....carry on, then...
- A nice little snippet from a United Soccer League Division 1 player (the Portland Timbers' Tom Poltl) on the depth of quality in Major League Soccer (MLS) appeared in The Oregonian's preview for tonight's Open Cup match:
Thoughts on this? Here's mine: as much as I like my Timbers, and even Poltl, throwing in the "after four to six players" line is like a one-legged man saying he could win a race if he had his other leg; those four to six players are there and that's the difference. For all that, he's right that USL-1 teams can compete with MLS clubs; it's just the winning part that gets tricky...
- Nearly everyone has heard by now that Red Bull swapped defenders with Toronto FC; Kevin Goldthwaite went South, while Todd Dunivant went north. For interested parties, commentary both bemused and thorough is out there. After reading the second of these, I'm not sure Red Bull did so bad.
- Steve Davis did his usual breakdown of the weekend's action for MLSnet.com and, let me tell you, the man does sharp analysis; I'm looking at the stuff on what Yallop did to LA's line-up, the stuff on Columbus' left-back situation, and his notes on KC v. Columbus in particular.
- I'm probably alone in thinking that the Copa following so closely after the Gold Cup is the only reason Hugo Sanchez hasn't lost his job - but there it is. Some heavy-hitting outfits (LINK and LINK) Sanchez' seat ain't about to cool off either.
- I don't normally go in for player profiles, but 3rd Degree's piece on Juan Carlos Toja is just so....so....damn cute. It also paints the picture of a very admirable pro. Seriously, Toja looks like one of the acquisitions of the off-season right now.
Well....carry on, then...
- A nice little snippet from a United Soccer League Division 1 player (the Portland Timbers' Tom Poltl) on the depth of quality in Major League Soccer (MLS) appeared in The Oregonian's preview for tonight's Open Cup match:
"The main difference between the leagues is that MLS players get paid to train year-round, said Tom Poltl, a Timbers midfielder who has spent time in MLS training camps in Los Angeles and New England. After the first four to six players on an MLS roster, Poltl said, USL-1 teams 'can compete with them without a doubt.'"
Thoughts on this? Here's mine: as much as I like my Timbers, and even Poltl, throwing in the "after four to six players" line is like a one-legged man saying he could win a race if he had his other leg; those four to six players are there and that's the difference. For all that, he's right that USL-1 teams can compete with MLS clubs; it's just the winning part that gets tricky...
- Nearly everyone has heard by now that Red Bull swapped defenders with Toronto FC; Kevin Goldthwaite went South, while Todd Dunivant went north. For interested parties, commentary both bemused and thorough is out there. After reading the second of these, I'm not sure Red Bull did so bad.
- Steve Davis did his usual breakdown of the weekend's action for MLSnet.com and, let me tell you, the man does sharp analysis; I'm looking at the stuff on what Yallop did to LA's line-up, the stuff on Columbus' left-back situation, and his notes on KC v. Columbus in particular.
- I'm probably alone in thinking that the Copa following so closely after the Gold Cup is the only reason Hugo Sanchez hasn't lost his job - but there it is. Some heavy-hitting outfits (LINK and LINK) Sanchez' seat ain't about to cool off either.
- I don't normally go in for player profiles, but 3rd Degree's piece on Juan Carlos Toja is just so....so....damn cute. It also paints the picture of a very admirable pro. Seriously, Toja looks like one of the acquisitions of the off-season right now.
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)
Tyrone Marshall Is SO Friggin' Innocent
Hold on a sec....I'm in the process of picking my jaw off the floor after reading this gem from new Toronto FC defender Tyrone Marshall (LINK):
Never mind the injury: was Tyrone Marshall the last defender between Cooper and the goal? Yep. That's a red-card foul, right? Fold in the cheap-shot/professional nature of the thing and you've got your three-game suspension. No mystery there.
(#########)
"[Kenny Cooper] broke his leg, which is unfortunate, but I don't think the tackle itself was a red-card foul. At the time the referee took out his yellow card and then he had a conversation with the linesman and he came back and gave me the red card."
"If it was an inch higher it would probably be a little shakeup and that's it, but on the tackle, our shin guards collided. It's unfortunate."
Never mind the injury: was Tyrone Marshall the last defender between Cooper and the goal? Yep. That's a red-card foul, right? Fold in the cheap-shot/professional nature of the thing and you've got your three-game suspension. No mystery there.
(#########)
MLS Week 10 Collective Power Rankings
I’m not 100% certain of this, but it appears that the shiny allure of the Gold Cup has momentarily distracted Ives Galarcep from compiling power rankings. No matter, the roster of (unwittingly) drafted pundits remains at eight for this week, thanks to Sports Illustrated’s Ryan Hunt getting in his numbers a day earlier than usual.
And thus, the Semi-Detached Pundit Collective (SDPC) has rendered judgment on Week 10 of Major League Soccer action. And, once again, I’m adding a little feature. A guy named Pat Eyler, who runs On Soccer, came up with a pretty cool mechanism for tracking the state of MLS play; he calls them the Scariness Ratings. Because the formula for ranking differs so much - e.g. he uses math, while the rest of us go rummaging around the obscure corners of our asses - they don’t quite work with everyone else’s. Still, I’m of the opinion that Eyler could be on to something that may or may not be more useful that what the rest of us have. On the chance he is, I’m going to slip Eyler’s scariness figure (kinda like Beyers for horse racing) into the data-dump; the number for each team will follow the initials SR. And here’s a link to Eyler’s Scariness ratings.
I will once again acknowledge where each team stood in last week’s rankings parenthetically.
Moving on, here’s the source material for this week’s SPDC rankings:
It’s a Simple Game
The Other Football
Sideline Views (Luis Bueno)
WVHooligan
My Soccer Blog
MLS Underground
ESPN
SI - Ryan Hunt
A couple other rankings systems deserve honorable mention: The DCenters Freezer (kinda like reverse rankings) and Who Ate All The Cupcakes by-conference rankings.
Finally with the SDPC’s numbers:
1. Kansas City Wizards, 1.3 (last week: 1st - 1.1; SR: 3)
2. Red Bull New York, 2.8 (2nd - 2.0; SR: 5)
3. New England Revolution, 2.9 (3rd - 3.1; SR: 7)
4. DC United, 3.3 (4th - 4.4; SR: 1)
5. FC Dallas, 5.5 (6th - 6.9; SR: 6)
6. Houston Dynamo, 6.1 (9th - 8.4; SR: 4)
7. Chivas USA, 6.8 (8th - 8.0; SR: 2)
8. Colorado Rapids, 7.9 (5th - 5.1; SR: 10)
9. Toronto FC, 8.9 (7th - 7.1; SR: 9)
10. Chicago Fire, 9.9 (10th - 9.0; SR: 11)
11/12. Los Angeles Galaxy, 11.6 (11th - 11.3; SR: 12)
11/12. Columbus Crew, 11.6 (12th - 12.0; SR: 13)
13. Real Salt Lake, 12.6 (13th - 12.6; SR: 8)
Some observations:
- Last week, I focused on numerical rises and falls, but this week changes in placement are also catching my eye. For instance, look at what happened with Houston: from 9th to 6th in one week’s time (their numbers moved around a lot as well). Roughly the same thing happened with Toronto, albeit going the other way. Funny how one result can change perceptions so sharply - though that’s often a case of building on a streak (as with Houston) or in dashing expectations (as with Toronto and winning at home).
- OK, I admit it. I single-handedly skewed KC’s ranking by placing them third; everyone else has them at 1st. Let’s just say I’m holding judgment till I see what their defense does.
- While we're on the subject of outlying calls, here are some notable ones. I kinda lead the pack with, not only with the KC call, but with how I see Columbus, Red Bull, and Chivas USA; we'll see how those pan out in the weeks ahead. I also hate the Fire more than anyone else. Some other weird ones: ESPN has bought in the least on DC's rise; My Soccer Blog is alone in not considering Chivas playoff material...and, well, that's it. So, yeah, I wasn't kidding about me leading on weird calls.
- Speaking of consistency - and I’m part of the group this time (take that, epperley!) - Colorado was very nearly a universal #8 - and thus, “if the season ended today,” the final playoff team. Sorry, TFC.
- The second and third spots are worth a glance as well. Red Bull’s drop makes some sense (though I think it’s exaggerated...we shall see...), but more curious is New England’s little rise on an idle week.
- No less curious is Dallas’ rather impressive hop - especially that 1.4 in points.
- Returning to the Scariness ratings, I think the most interesting thing with those will be the extent to which they’re predictive; keep an eye on Chivas for that. And Real Salt Lake for that matter.
(########)
And thus, the Semi-Detached Pundit Collective (SDPC) has rendered judgment on Week 10 of Major League Soccer action. And, once again, I’m adding a little feature. A guy named Pat Eyler, who runs On Soccer, came up with a pretty cool mechanism for tracking the state of MLS play; he calls them the Scariness Ratings. Because the formula for ranking differs so much - e.g. he uses math, while the rest of us go rummaging around the obscure corners of our asses - they don’t quite work with everyone else’s. Still, I’m of the opinion that Eyler could be on to something that may or may not be more useful that what the rest of us have. On the chance he is, I’m going to slip Eyler’s scariness figure (kinda like Beyers for horse racing) into the data-dump; the number for each team will follow the initials SR. And here’s a link to Eyler’s Scariness ratings.
I will once again acknowledge where each team stood in last week’s rankings parenthetically.
Moving on, here’s the source material for this week’s SPDC rankings:
It’s a Simple Game
The Other Football
Sideline Views (Luis Bueno)
WVHooligan
My Soccer Blog
MLS Underground
ESPN
SI - Ryan Hunt
A couple other rankings systems deserve honorable mention: The DCenters Freezer (kinda like reverse rankings) and Who Ate All The Cupcakes by-conference rankings.
Finally with the SDPC’s numbers:
1. Kansas City Wizards, 1.3 (last week: 1st - 1.1; SR: 3)
2. Red Bull New York, 2.8 (2nd - 2.0; SR: 5)
3. New England Revolution, 2.9 (3rd - 3.1; SR: 7)
4. DC United, 3.3 (4th - 4.4; SR: 1)
5. FC Dallas, 5.5 (6th - 6.9; SR: 6)
6. Houston Dynamo, 6.1 (9th - 8.4; SR: 4)
7. Chivas USA, 6.8 (8th - 8.0; SR: 2)
8. Colorado Rapids, 7.9 (5th - 5.1; SR: 10)
9. Toronto FC, 8.9 (7th - 7.1; SR: 9)
10. Chicago Fire, 9.9 (10th - 9.0; SR: 11)
11/12. Los Angeles Galaxy, 11.6 (11th - 11.3; SR: 12)
11/12. Columbus Crew, 11.6 (12th - 12.0; SR: 13)
13. Real Salt Lake, 12.6 (13th - 12.6; SR: 8)
Some observations:
- Last week, I focused on numerical rises and falls, but this week changes in placement are also catching my eye. For instance, look at what happened with Houston: from 9th to 6th in one week’s time (their numbers moved around a lot as well). Roughly the same thing happened with Toronto, albeit going the other way. Funny how one result can change perceptions so sharply - though that’s often a case of building on a streak (as with Houston) or in dashing expectations (as with Toronto and winning at home).
- OK, I admit it. I single-handedly skewed KC’s ranking by placing them third; everyone else has them at 1st. Let’s just say I’m holding judgment till I see what their defense does.
- While we're on the subject of outlying calls, here are some notable ones. I kinda lead the pack with, not only with the KC call, but with how I see Columbus, Red Bull, and Chivas USA; we'll see how those pan out in the weeks ahead. I also hate the Fire more than anyone else. Some other weird ones: ESPN has bought in the least on DC's rise; My Soccer Blog is alone in not considering Chivas playoff material...and, well, that's it. So, yeah, I wasn't kidding about me leading on weird calls.
- Speaking of consistency - and I’m part of the group this time (take that, epperley!) - Colorado was very nearly a universal #8 - and thus, “if the season ended today,” the final playoff team. Sorry, TFC.
- The second and third spots are worth a glance as well. Red Bull’s drop makes some sense (though I think it’s exaggerated...we shall see...), but more curious is New England’s little rise on an idle week.
- No less curious is Dallas’ rather impressive hop - especially that 1.4 in points.
- Returning to the Scariness ratings, I think the most interesting thing with those will be the extent to which they’re predictive; keep an eye on Chivas for that. And Real Salt Lake for that matter.
(########)
Marshall to TFC, Buddle to LAG - Hmmm...
Though I've got to be the last guy to comment on this trade, the essential weirdness of it compels me to comment on it.
As all y'all already know, the Los Angeles Galaxy and Toronto FC completed a trade today that sent defender Tyrone Marshall to the latter in exchange for sending forward Edson Buddle to the former. By now, I've read views that like this from LA's point of view or that like it from Toronto's (albeit with heavy dissent in the comments). As for me, I'm elsewhere on this...as in, why did this trade happen at all?
Toronto does pick up some defensive depth, but, as everyone points out, they're getting a player who seems past it - if not well past it (at least Marshall is not suspended...at least not yet anyway). I've been pretty impressed with Toronto coach Mo Johnston's more recent moves (e.g. Cunningham for Eskandarian, as well as bringing in Wynne and Kevin Goldthwaite), but does Marshall constitute a genuine improvement on their current crop of defenders? If so, not by much.
Going the other way, LA - a team that can't score reliably - picked up a forward....who can't score reliably?
I don't get it...
(########)
As all y'all already know, the Los Angeles Galaxy and Toronto FC completed a trade today that sent defender Tyrone Marshall to the latter in exchange for sending forward Edson Buddle to the former. By now, I've read views that like this from LA's point of view or that like it from Toronto's (albeit with heavy dissent in the comments). As for me, I'm elsewhere on this...as in, why did this trade happen at all?
Toronto does pick up some defensive depth, but, as everyone points out, they're getting a player who seems past it - if not well past it (at least Marshall is not suspended...at least not yet anyway). I've been pretty impressed with Toronto coach Mo Johnston's more recent moves (e.g. Cunningham for Eskandarian, as well as bringing in Wynne and Kevin Goldthwaite), but does Marshall constitute a genuine improvement on their current crop of defenders? If so, not by much.
Going the other way, LA - a team that can't score reliably - picked up a forward....who can't score reliably?
I don't get it...
(########)
MLS Week 10: Observations on Games I Didn't See
First of all, I can't believe it's already Week 10. Where does the time go?
As all y'all know, Major League Soccer's (MLS) Week 10 is already two games old. Andd here are the two results, with some quick-and-dirty notes on each:
Toronto FC 1 - 2 Red Bull New York
- Try to ignore another "angel" pun in the headline. I know...just do your best.
- I'm not sure what to make of Juan Pablo Angel - and I don't mean as to whether he's a good player or not because, clearly, he is. My concern is whether he's exposing the level of play...or maybe he's just that sneaky. Whatever it is, the guy has six goals in five games...he's starting to make the league look bad.
- Even if they rode Angel's back to the victory, I'm still impressed by teams winning in Toronto.
- The previous line looms large because, at least judging by the Quick Kick highlights, Toronto looked like the stronger team on the day. And how close to Ronnie O'Brien go to equalizing right at the end?
- Andy Welsh is growing on me. He seems tireless out there.
Houston Dynamo 2 - 1 Colorado Rapids
- It wasn't till I realized this game played in Houston that I could stop thinking about how low I would have to move Colorado in the ol' power rankings. A road loss to Houston ain't that bad.
- On the flipside, though, does this mean Houston is finally waking up.
- If Stuart Holden can crack a goal like the winner, hey, it could be.
- As admitted above, I didn't watch this one - and I only caught the short(-bus) version of the highlights. As such, there wasn't a lot I could gleen about Colorado's performance. It's significant enough that they lost, but, still...it feels a little thin for passing judgment.
- In truth, the same goes for Houston.
(########)
As all y'all know, Major League Soccer's (MLS) Week 10 is already two games old. Andd here are the two results, with some quick-and-dirty notes on each:
Toronto FC 1 - 2 Red Bull New York
- Try to ignore another "angel" pun in the headline. I know...just do your best.
- I'm not sure what to make of Juan Pablo Angel - and I don't mean as to whether he's a good player or not because, clearly, he is. My concern is whether he's exposing the level of play...or maybe he's just that sneaky. Whatever it is, the guy has six goals in five games...he's starting to make the league look bad.
- Even if they rode Angel's back to the victory, I'm still impressed by teams winning in Toronto.
- The previous line looms large because, at least judging by the Quick Kick highlights, Toronto looked like the stronger team on the day. And how close to Ronnie O'Brien go to equalizing right at the end?
- Andy Welsh is growing on me. He seems tireless out there.
Houston Dynamo 2 - 1 Colorado Rapids
- It wasn't till I realized this game played in Houston that I could stop thinking about how low I would have to move Colorado in the ol' power rankings. A road loss to Houston ain't that bad.
- On the flipside, though, does this mean Houston is finally waking up.
- If Stuart Holden can crack a goal like the winner, hey, it could be.
- As admitted above, I didn't watch this one - and I only caught the short(-bus) version of the highlights. As such, there wasn't a lot I could gleen about Colorado's performance. It's significant enough that they lost, but, still...it feels a little thin for passing judgment.
- In truth, the same goes for Houston.
(########)
MLS Week 9 Collective Rankings
With one exception, Sports Illustrated’s Ryan Hunt, the Semi-Detached Pundit Collective (SDPC) has rendered its somewhat baffled judgment on Week 9 of Major League Soccer’s 2007 season. Since I don’t have time for a lot of commentary today, here’s the short version: dude, it’s a mess.
Perhaps to compensate for the loss of Msr. Hunt’s contribution, this week’s collective rankings adds a feature: a parenthetical acknowledgement of where each team stood in last week’s rankings.
Moving on, here’s the source material for this week’s SPDC rankings:
It’s a Simple Game
The Other Football
Sideline Views (Luis Bueno)
Soccer by Ives (Ives Galarcep)
WVHooligan
My Soccer Blog
MLS Underground
ESPN
Und jetz, der rankings!
1. Kansas City Wizards, 1.1 (last week: 2/3; 2.8)
2. Red Bull New York, 2.0 (last week: 1st; 1.1)
3. New England Revolution, 3.1 (last week: 2/3; 2.8)
4. DC United, 4.4 (last week: 6th; 5.4)
5. Colorado Rapids, 5.1 (last week: 4th; 3.9)
6. FC Dallas, 6.9 (last week: 5th; 5.1)
7. Toronto FC, 7.1 (last week: 8th; 8.9)
8. Chivas USA, 8.0 (last week: 7th; 7.4)
9. Houston Dynamo, 8.4 (last week: 9th; 9.4)
10. Chicago Fire, 9.0 (last week, 11th: 10.5)
11. Los Angeles Galaxy, 11.3 (last week: 10th; 9.9)
12. Columbus Crew, 12.0 (last week: 12th; 11.3)
13. Real Salt Lake, 12.6 (last week: 13th, 12.9)
OK, really, some quick comments:
- There's fairly real buy-in for DC's improvement and, appropriately, a more subtle buy-in for the more subtle improvements occurring with Real Salt Lake; Houston also gets honorable mention, but that could have as much to do with the lousy West and picking up their first win in ages.
- The bigger climbers, though, include: the Chicago Fire (for an aggregate improvement of 1.5!?); the Wizards (1.7); and, the winners by a hair, Toronto FC (1.8). Holy crap. Maybe they are playoff-bound.
- The big losers: the Rapids 1.1 is a pretty big drop, as was the 1.4 slap put on LA; but that 1.8 hurt the Collective put on Dallas says the most.
All for now. Gotta go.
Perhaps to compensate for the loss of Msr. Hunt’s contribution, this week’s collective rankings adds a feature: a parenthetical acknowledgement of where each team stood in last week’s rankings.
Moving on, here’s the source material for this week’s SPDC rankings:
It’s a Simple Game
The Other Football
Sideline Views (Luis Bueno)
Soccer by Ives (Ives Galarcep)
WVHooligan
My Soccer Blog
MLS Underground
ESPN
Und jetz, der rankings!
1. Kansas City Wizards, 1.1 (last week: 2/3; 2.8)
2. Red Bull New York, 2.0 (last week: 1st; 1.1)
3. New England Revolution, 3.1 (last week: 2/3; 2.8)
4. DC United, 4.4 (last week: 6th; 5.4)
5. Colorado Rapids, 5.1 (last week: 4th; 3.9)
6. FC Dallas, 6.9 (last week: 5th; 5.1)
7. Toronto FC, 7.1 (last week: 8th; 8.9)
8. Chivas USA, 8.0 (last week: 7th; 7.4)
9. Houston Dynamo, 8.4 (last week: 9th; 9.4)
10. Chicago Fire, 9.0 (last week, 11th: 10.5)
11. Los Angeles Galaxy, 11.3 (last week: 10th; 9.9)
12. Columbus Crew, 12.0 (last week: 12th; 11.3)
13. Real Salt Lake, 12.6 (last week: 13th, 12.9)
OK, really, some quick comments:
- There's fairly real buy-in for DC's improvement and, appropriately, a more subtle buy-in for the more subtle improvements occurring with Real Salt Lake; Houston also gets honorable mention, but that could have as much to do with the lousy West and picking up their first win in ages.
- The bigger climbers, though, include: the Chicago Fire (for an aggregate improvement of 1.5!?); the Wizards (1.7); and, the winners by a hair, Toronto FC (1.8). Holy crap. Maybe they are playoff-bound.
- The big losers: the Rapids 1.1 is a pretty big drop, as was the 1.4 slap put on LA; but that 1.8 hurt the Collective put on Dallas says the most.
All for now. Gotta go.
MLS Week 9: Power Rankings + Standings
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.
By way of general commentary, I only want to say to the teams ranked from, oh, #3 to #10: you disgust me. Wait. There’s one exception to that: Toronto FC. You guys are OK. As for Chivas USA, I’ll give you guys a pass if you’re nice to me. The rest of you, though, SHAME! SHAME!! Can’t you just do something to help make sense of this damn league? A meaningful streak? Start sucking in earnest? SOMETHING?!
In news not relevant to what comes below - though it will affect the quality - I fell asleep standing up on the train today (not completely, mind, but I did drop my book).
Here goes...and after the rankings, you’ll find a current listing of the standings for the permanent record.
1. (1) Kansas City Wizards (2/3 @ + $)
It’s not the win against the previous #1. It’s not even the EJ hat trick; it even seems fair to call it a little fluky given it has never happened before. It’s the way the Wizards played, the ball movement, the pressure; it’s the way they controlled the game. See below.
2. (2) Red Bull New York (2/3 @ + $)
How close did I come to leaving Red Bull at #1? I started typing the entry. That I couldn’t follow through tells me something. But I also can’t shake the feeling that last weekend’s (very good) game didn’t tell observers enough about the two teams. Injuries play a role as well. Bottom line: I’m just not 100% sure KC is really the better team. They were last week, though, and that’s why they’re higher.
3. (5) DC United (&)
DC is the one-eyed man in the Land of the Blind; I don’t seriously think they’re the third-best team in the league right now. But they have managed one thing those below have not: consistency. If and when they figure their shit out, that puts them in a better position.
4. (3) Colorado Rapids (1/2 @ + $)
In spite of watching a lot of this one, I didn’t internalize the Rapids performance until the FC Rocky blog framed it proper (which is down just now). The Rapids are a good team, but something is missing. And that missing “something” bit them on the butt last Saturday.
5. (4) New England Revolution ($)
An element of the arbitrary informs power ranking. But, by way of showing it isn’t totally arbitrary, I restrained myself from further punishing New England for Saturday’s goalless tie with the team that, often as not, shows as the worst in the league. The next couple games should fill in some blanks about this team - and, on current form, the complete picture could go either way.
6. (8) Toronto FC (1/2 @ + $)
I don’t think anyone wants to play this team at home. And as much as people look at their road form, a trip back through MLS history to see where the cutoff for the playoffs comes - especially the two 30-game seasons (LINK and LINK) - says something. Yeah, I know; different playoff format and all that, but that could help Toronto if the West keeps sucking. At any rate, on current form, they’ll take 18 of the 30 points at home; add that to their current 10, that takes you to 28 - and that doesn’t look so bad against the 33 point “haul” that got one team into the playoffs a few years back. They may not need that much on the road.
7. (7) Chivas USA (@)
Idle this week. With so many uninspiring performances from teams above and below, it seems wise to check in later with this bunch.
8. (10) Houston Dynamo (nada)
I’ve heard tell of first-half flatness and that fits their profile so far. A win does make them look somewhat capable, though. Shame it has to come before half the team starts playing elsewhere. By the way, is there a Fire Kinnear movement afoot? I’d be shocked, but thought I’d check.
9. (6) FC Dallas (nada)
Straight .500 soccer just isn’t impressive; under a more “real world” format, they wouldn’t be a playoff team playing as they are. Maybe dropping them so far as this goes too far (probably does, in fact), but there’s something about this team that leaves me skittish.
10. (9) Los Angeles Galaxy (&)
Seriously, guys. Can I join the team? It’s not like you don’t need the players. I’m pretty bad in front of goal, but that’s apparently all right out LA way.
11. (13) Chicago Fire (@)
Oh, hey. Is that you, Mr. Sarachan? You’re still here? Wow. OK, I’ve already praised Chad Barrett’s goal - great stuff and crucial in the game - but I’m not sold on this team’s capacity to build on last week’s win. Too bad they have Chivas next weekend...send more tea leaves, guys.
12. (12) Real Salt Lake ($)
Inching, biting, clawing...I’m embarrassed by the extent to which I’m buying into the Kreis program. True, they’re not winning; in fact, they have yet to win. But improving things on one half of the field - and the correct half - at least lays the foundation.
13. (7) Columbus Crew (@)
Seriously, if Barrett doesn’t score that goal last Sunday, Columbus’s second was coming; and who knows what would have happened then? Still, the Crew don’t play in an alternate universe; they play in this one...where things are going very, very badly. It must be maddening to look and play better, but...but...dang. In their defense, things wouldn’t look so bad if they played in the West.
Moving on to the standings (current official ones):
Eastern Conference
1. Kansas City Wiz: 19 pts. (6-2-1: 19 GF, 12 GA, +7; home, 3-1-0; away, 3-1-1)
2. New England Revs: 18 pts. (5-2-3: 18 GF, 11 GA, +7; home, 2-1-1; away, 3-1-2)
3. Red Bull New York: 17 pts. (5-2-2: 17 GF, 7 GA, +10; home, 4-1-0; away, 1-1-2)
4. Chicago Fire: 14 pts. (4-4-2: 11 GF, 15 GA, -4; home, 3-1-1; away, 1-3-1)
5. DC United: 11 pts. (3-3-2: 10 GF, 11 GA, -1; home, 2-1-1; away, 1-2-1)
6. Toronto FC: 10 pts. (3-5-1: 9 GF, 16 GA, -7; home, 3-2-0; away, 0-3-1)
7. Columbus Crew: 8 pts. (1-2-5: 6 GF, 10 GA, -4; home, 1-0-4; away, 0-2-1)
Western Conference
1. FC Dallas: 16 pts. (5-5-1: 14 GF, 16 GA, -2; home, 2-2-0; away, 3-3-1)
2. Colorado Rapids: 15 pts. (4-3-3: 12 GF, 12 GA, 0; home 2-1-3; away, 2-2-0)
3. Chivas USA: 11 pts. (3-3-2: 12 GF, 8 GA; +4; home, 3-0-1; away, 0-3-1)
4. Houston Dynamo: 10 pts. (3-5-1: 7 GF, 8 GA, -1; home, 2-2-1; away, 1-3-0)
5. Los Angeles Galaxy: 6 pts. (1-3-3: 7 GF, 8 GA, -1; home, 1-2-1; away, 0-1-2)
6. Real Salt Lake: 6 pts. (0-3-6: 7 GF, 14 GA, -7; home, 0-1-3; away, 0-2-3)
By way of general commentary, I only want to say to the teams ranked from, oh, #3 to #10: you disgust me. Wait. There’s one exception to that: Toronto FC. You guys are OK. As for Chivas USA, I’ll give you guys a pass if you’re nice to me. The rest of you, though, SHAME! SHAME!! Can’t you just do something to help make sense of this damn league? A meaningful streak? Start sucking in earnest? SOMETHING?!
In news not relevant to what comes below - though it will affect the quality - I fell asleep standing up on the train today (not completely, mind, but I did drop my book).
Here goes...and after the rankings, you’ll find a current listing of the standings for the permanent record.
1. (1) Kansas City Wizards (2/3 @ + $)
It’s not the win against the previous #1. It’s not even the EJ hat trick; it even seems fair to call it a little fluky given it has never happened before. It’s the way the Wizards played, the ball movement, the pressure; it’s the way they controlled the game. See below.
2. (2) Red Bull New York (2/3 @ + $)
How close did I come to leaving Red Bull at #1? I started typing the entry. That I couldn’t follow through tells me something. But I also can’t shake the feeling that last weekend’s (very good) game didn’t tell observers enough about the two teams. Injuries play a role as well. Bottom line: I’m just not 100% sure KC is really the better team. They were last week, though, and that’s why they’re higher.
3. (5) DC United (&)
DC is the one-eyed man in the Land of the Blind; I don’t seriously think they’re the third-best team in the league right now. But they have managed one thing those below have not: consistency. If and when they figure their shit out, that puts them in a better position.
4. (3) Colorado Rapids (1/2 @ + $)
In spite of watching a lot of this one, I didn’t internalize the Rapids performance until the FC Rocky blog framed it proper (which is down just now). The Rapids are a good team, but something is missing. And that missing “something” bit them on the butt last Saturday.
5. (4) New England Revolution ($)
An element of the arbitrary informs power ranking. But, by way of showing it isn’t totally arbitrary, I restrained myself from further punishing New England for Saturday’s goalless tie with the team that, often as not, shows as the worst in the league. The next couple games should fill in some blanks about this team - and, on current form, the complete picture could go either way.
6. (8) Toronto FC (1/2 @ + $)
I don’t think anyone wants to play this team at home. And as much as people look at their road form, a trip back through MLS history to see where the cutoff for the playoffs comes - especially the two 30-game seasons (LINK and LINK) - says something. Yeah, I know; different playoff format and all that, but that could help Toronto if the West keeps sucking. At any rate, on current form, they’ll take 18 of the 30 points at home; add that to their current 10, that takes you to 28 - and that doesn’t look so bad against the 33 point “haul” that got one team into the playoffs a few years back. They may not need that much on the road.
7. (7) Chivas USA (@)
Idle this week. With so many uninspiring performances from teams above and below, it seems wise to check in later with this bunch.
8. (10) Houston Dynamo (nada)
I’ve heard tell of first-half flatness and that fits their profile so far. A win does make them look somewhat capable, though. Shame it has to come before half the team starts playing elsewhere. By the way, is there a Fire Kinnear movement afoot? I’d be shocked, but thought I’d check.
9. (6) FC Dallas (nada)
Straight .500 soccer just isn’t impressive; under a more “real world” format, they wouldn’t be a playoff team playing as they are. Maybe dropping them so far as this goes too far (probably does, in fact), but there’s something about this team that leaves me skittish.
10. (9) Los Angeles Galaxy (&)
Seriously, guys. Can I join the team? It’s not like you don’t need the players. I’m pretty bad in front of goal, but that’s apparently all right out LA way.
11. (13) Chicago Fire (@)
Oh, hey. Is that you, Mr. Sarachan? You’re still here? Wow. OK, I’ve already praised Chad Barrett’s goal - great stuff and crucial in the game - but I’m not sold on this team’s capacity to build on last week’s win. Too bad they have Chivas next weekend...send more tea leaves, guys.
12. (12) Real Salt Lake ($)
Inching, biting, clawing...I’m embarrassed by the extent to which I’m buying into the Kreis program. True, they’re not winning; in fact, they have yet to win. But improving things on one half of the field - and the correct half - at least lays the foundation.
13. (7) Columbus Crew (@)
Seriously, if Barrett doesn’t score that goal last Sunday, Columbus’s second was coming; and who knows what would have happened then? Still, the Crew don’t play in an alternate universe; they play in this one...where things are going very, very badly. It must be maddening to look and play better, but...but...dang. In their defense, things wouldn’t look so bad if they played in the West.
Moving on to the standings (current official ones):
Eastern Conference
1. Kansas City Wiz: 19 pts. (6-2-1: 19 GF, 12 GA, +7; home, 3-1-0; away, 3-1-1)
2. New England Revs: 18 pts. (5-2-3: 18 GF, 11 GA, +7; home, 2-1-1; away, 3-1-2)
3. Red Bull New York: 17 pts. (5-2-2: 17 GF, 7 GA, +10; home, 4-1-0; away, 1-1-2)
4. Chicago Fire: 14 pts. (4-4-2: 11 GF, 15 GA, -4; home, 3-1-1; away, 1-3-1)
5. DC United: 11 pts. (3-3-2: 10 GF, 11 GA, -1; home, 2-1-1; away, 1-2-1)
6. Toronto FC: 10 pts. (3-5-1: 9 GF, 16 GA, -7; home, 3-2-0; away, 0-3-1)
7. Columbus Crew: 8 pts. (1-2-5: 6 GF, 10 GA, -4; home, 1-0-4; away, 0-2-1)
Western Conference
1. FC Dallas: 16 pts. (5-5-1: 14 GF, 16 GA, -2; home, 2-2-0; away, 3-3-1)
2. Colorado Rapids: 15 pts. (4-3-3: 12 GF, 12 GA, 0; home 2-1-3; away, 2-2-0)
3. Chivas USA: 11 pts. (3-3-2: 12 GF, 8 GA; +4; home, 3-0-1; away, 0-3-1)
4. Houston Dynamo: 10 pts. (3-5-1: 7 GF, 8 GA, -1; home, 2-2-1; away, 1-3-0)
5. Los Angeles Galaxy: 6 pts. (1-3-3: 7 GF, 8 GA, -1; home, 1-2-1; away, 0-1-2)
6. Real Salt Lake: 6 pts. (0-3-6: 7 GF, 14 GA, -7; home, 0-1-3; away, 0-2-3)
MLS: Big Week 9 Wrap - Red Cards, Hat Tricks, Injuries!
Major League Soccer: Dispatches from Week 9
Welcome to the second edition of one man’s off-the-cuff impressions of Week 9 of Major League Soccer’s (MLS) regular season. On a big picture level, it is tempting to express varying degrees of surprise at some of this week’s results - see the New England Revolution v. Real Salt Lake below - but when that same statement holds for each successive week, is surprise a rational response?
That’s a bigger question for another day. But one event of very present concern is the CONCACAF Gold Cup, which kicks off this week (yippee!). The United States holds the title at present and calling up the personnel to defend it will certainly hit MLS clubs, though some (say, New England) more than others (FC Dallas). But call-ups from other countries - e.g. Canada and Guatemala to name two - adds some hurt to a team or two.
Now, on to the reports on Week 9. The “hand” at which each game was viewed (e.g. first, second, etc.) appears below the score.
Toronto FC 2 - 1 Colorado Rapids
(Watched all of first half; Quick Kicks highlights for the rest)
- For those who have never visited, Quick Kicks puts a title on each clip of their highlights, typically featuring phrases like “Gomez Rips It,” or “Eskandarian Run,” or “Cunningham fouled.” When it comes to Toronto games, I swear titles containing variations on the word “foul” out number the rest by 2-to-1.
- That said, the ref for this game seemed a bit whistle-happy, especially in the second half.
- And no incident spoke to this so much as the ejection of Toronto defender Kevin Goldthwaite. There was no physical incident I could see, so I’m guessing Goldthwaite said something nasty to the ref. Then again, speculation of this sort is just one of the benefits of writing this without reading anything...
- Turning to the game, the big picture take away is significant: Toronto has advanced to the point where a road draw against them constitutes a decent result. That’s pretty big.
- Marvell Wynne, who may not be the best player in the world, showed - again - what straight-up speed can do; his assist on TFC’s first was top drawer.
- I wonder who many cards Danny Dichio picked up in England; that dude is, um...physical.
- On the other side of the ball, Colorado showed they are a competitive team; they had chances to equalize at the end - even if they tended to the random variety - but they’re good enough to press at the very least.
- Conor Casey still looks a bit lost - a weird transition for a Yank in MLS. But his through-ball that set up Herculez Gomez’ (excellent) goal? Again, top drawer.
New England Revolution 0 - 0 Real Salt Lake
(Quick Kick highlights)
- A surprising result on paper, but the goalless draw makes a lot of sense given two general trends: 1) Real Salt Lake’s new emphasis on tightening their defense; 2) a theory that New England’s place in the standings doesn’t match their on-field performance.
- To rephrase that last point, New England has defended well enough, if only by using ‘keeper Matt Reis as a back-stop time and again, and their strike-force has been precise, opportunist, and not a little lucky. But that’s all the available sunshine: apart from the game against Los Angeles, however, they’ve been sloppy in possession and have generally failed to take the game to anyone.
- For Real, though, picking up a point on the road - and against what is, really, a solid New England team - should be cause for quiet celebration...very quiet, given the team remains winless.
- Perhaps it should be quieter still given the impression from the highlights of New England knocking and knocking on and around the goal-mouth, but failing to score. Forward Taylor Twellman hit the crossbar at least once (twice, I think), but the action generally looked one-way.
- With only six points to their credit, RSL is in genuine trouble.
- The past few weeks without a result haven’t done the Revolution any favors either, especially with three key starters - Twellman, midfielder Steve Ralston, and defender Michael Parkhurst - departing for the Gold Cup. Given that, a turn-around in form, 1) seems unlikely, or, 2) if it does come, the departed players will come back to a different team.
Kansas City Wizards 3 - 2 Red Bull New York
(Viewed 2/3 uninterrupted; the rest TiVo-style)
- Two big talking points for this game of the week: 1) the harsh ejection of Clint Mathis, which left Red Bull down for just shy of 60 minutes; 2) Eddie Johnson’s second, consecutive hat-trick.
- Mathis was ejected for an elbow to KC midfielder Kerry Zavagnin’s throat; after watching that - shoot - six times or so, it looks for the world like Mathis is using his arms to push off. He’s doing so clumsily, but he’s certainly not taking a swing at Zavagnin. Scratch the “harsh” above; this was a flat-out bad call.
- The “good” in this game came with Johnson’s hat-trick, comprised as it was of three great goals: the first, a high-degree-of-difficulty lob over Red Bull ‘keeper Jon Conway; the second a sharp-angel tap-in that came from a smartly-timed run; the third, a cool finish after finding space and meeting a beautiful diagonal pass from Sasha Victorine. Taken together, it was simply magnificent. If Johnson’s lacking in confidence by now, he’s pathological.
- While Red Bull can point to the man down as an excuse for the loss, no similar defense can explain the serial defensive breaks at the beginning of the second half that let one KC player after another in alone on Conway’s goal; count Red Bull damned lucky they kept the score close.
- To give credit where it’s due, not only did Red Bull open the scoring with a beauty of their own, but they fought back pretty well toward the end.
- On the other hand, KC looked very impressive even against a full-sided Red Bull. They move and pass well and show a rare ability to actually breakdown the opposition. In all seriousness: KC looks for real.
- The larger tragedy of this game, though, is what it couldn’t tell us: e.g who is the better team between Red Bull and the now-league leading KC Wizards. That sending off mucked up everything - that it was unjustified only makes thing worse. The ref owes every MLS fan a pint.
Los Angeles Galaxy 0 - 0 DC United
(Brief, as in just over 3 minute, highlights)
- The most remarkable thing in this one was the number of hamstring injuries that occurred; that, in itself, says something about the game.first, Ian Russell for LA, then Tyrone Marshall (LA again), and, finally, Fred for DC United. Don’t know that any of these have been diagnosed or the length of any lay-offs determined.
- The highlights showed a scoreless draw preserved by desperate, yet timely, defending on both ends of the field. Then again, if those highlights are to be trusted, the chances didn’t look like golden.
- - The two injuries to LA mean they're in serious trouble in terms of depth. The list of hobbling players keeps growing while Gold Cup call-ups (Landon Donovan to the U.S., Ante Jazic and Kevin Harmse to Canada; then there's the Copa America...) and makes an already high hurdle for the months of June and July look a lot like a wall.
Houston Dynamo 2 - 1 FC Dallas
(nada; unavailable at time of writing)
- Another result that would surprise someone fixating on the standings - but this one adds up pretty readily. Why?
- FC Dallas has been grimly playing toward .500 record since the beginning of the season; this amounts to them finding their niche.
- Besides, Houston has dominated Dallas historically - brief as said history is.
- Also, in spite of a maddening scoring drought, Houston has been hammering away at opposition defenses over the past two, three games; the problem seemed more one of misfiring on goal than of failing to create the chances.
- Good to see Ricardo Clark’s name in lights; he shined pretty brightly through the Dynamo’s April/May woes.
- On the downside, Clark is another player headed off for Gold Cup duty, as is forward Brian Ching (who, based on current form, will barely be missed); also leaving, but for the Canadian national team, is Dwayne DeRosario (see Ching).
Columbus Crew 2 - 3 Chicago Fire
(Watched game from 22nd minute forward; caught Quick Kicks this morning)
- In spite of its many, many limitations - which begin with the participating teams - this wasn’t a bad game to watch.
- That’s not to say it was a good game; neither team looked sharp, the play seemed labored more often than not, and, with one exception the goals were pure scrap. Goes to show that excitement trumps quality on the right day.
- After noticing another pretty bit of minutiae - in this case, the Crew’s Danny O’Rourke shifting his body just so to throw a defender and complete a simple, yet wholly crucial, possession pass - I took a tipsy little mental journey back through the game’s better points: Chicago’s Willian Oliveira twisting the Crew’s Duncan Oughton this way and that with menacing redirections as he charged toward the Crew goal; the Crew’s Guillermo Schelotto shielding the ball for 25 yards with a Fire player fixed to his side and yanking at his jersey for the distance. They don’t show on any statistics sheet, but such moments of brilliance or simple fighting perseverance define 9 games out of 10; they’re also what make the game worth watching closely.
- I’m pleased to report the Goal of the Week came in this unlikely affair. After a Crew corner, Chicago forward Chad Barrett took the ball just above his penalty area and ran with it the length of the field to score a back-breaking third Chicago goal. More than the speed and composure that made the goal possible, the goal stood out for what it did to the game - the Crew was slowly, but clearly gaining the upper hand in the ten minutes before - and for what it meant to Barrett as a player. Just beautiful. I’m very glad I caught it in the moment.
- The crucial thing this game revealed: Chicago has just a bit more to them than Columbus - and that’s appalling, unnerving news for the Crew. Will the knives hovering over Chicago coach Dave Sarachan come out now for head coach Sigi Schmid?
All for this week - though there’s plenty more to discuss...like Goldthwaite's red card....
Welcome to the second edition of one man’s off-the-cuff impressions of Week 9 of Major League Soccer’s (MLS) regular season. On a big picture level, it is tempting to express varying degrees of surprise at some of this week’s results - see the New England Revolution v. Real Salt Lake below - but when that same statement holds for each successive week, is surprise a rational response?
That’s a bigger question for another day. But one event of very present concern is the CONCACAF Gold Cup, which kicks off this week (yippee!). The United States holds the title at present and calling up the personnel to defend it will certainly hit MLS clubs, though some (say, New England) more than others (FC Dallas). But call-ups from other countries - e.g. Canada and Guatemala to name two - adds some hurt to a team or two.
Now, on to the reports on Week 9. The “hand” at which each game was viewed (e.g. first, second, etc.) appears below the score.
Toronto FC 2 - 1 Colorado Rapids
(Watched all of first half; Quick Kicks highlights for the rest)
- For those who have never visited, Quick Kicks puts a title on each clip of their highlights, typically featuring phrases like “Gomez Rips It,” or “Eskandarian Run,” or “Cunningham fouled.” When it comes to Toronto games, I swear titles containing variations on the word “foul” out number the rest by 2-to-1.
- That said, the ref for this game seemed a bit whistle-happy, especially in the second half.
- And no incident spoke to this so much as the ejection of Toronto defender Kevin Goldthwaite. There was no physical incident I could see, so I’m guessing Goldthwaite said something nasty to the ref. Then again, speculation of this sort is just one of the benefits of writing this without reading anything...
- Turning to the game, the big picture take away is significant: Toronto has advanced to the point where a road draw against them constitutes a decent result. That’s pretty big.
- Marvell Wynne, who may not be the best player in the world, showed - again - what straight-up speed can do; his assist on TFC’s first was top drawer.
- I wonder who many cards Danny Dichio picked up in England; that dude is, um...physical.
- On the other side of the ball, Colorado showed they are a competitive team; they had chances to equalize at the end - even if they tended to the random variety - but they’re good enough to press at the very least.
- Conor Casey still looks a bit lost - a weird transition for a Yank in MLS. But his through-ball that set up Herculez Gomez’ (excellent) goal? Again, top drawer.
New England Revolution 0 - 0 Real Salt Lake
(Quick Kick highlights)
- A surprising result on paper, but the goalless draw makes a lot of sense given two general trends: 1) Real Salt Lake’s new emphasis on tightening their defense; 2) a theory that New England’s place in the standings doesn’t match their on-field performance.
- To rephrase that last point, New England has defended well enough, if only by using ‘keeper Matt Reis as a back-stop time and again, and their strike-force has been precise, opportunist, and not a little lucky. But that’s all the available sunshine: apart from the game against Los Angeles, however, they’ve been sloppy in possession and have generally failed to take the game to anyone.
- For Real, though, picking up a point on the road - and against what is, really, a solid New England team - should be cause for quiet celebration...very quiet, given the team remains winless.
- Perhaps it should be quieter still given the impression from the highlights of New England knocking and knocking on and around the goal-mouth, but failing to score. Forward Taylor Twellman hit the crossbar at least once (twice, I think), but the action generally looked one-way.
- With only six points to their credit, RSL is in genuine trouble.
- The past few weeks without a result haven’t done the Revolution any favors either, especially with three key starters - Twellman, midfielder Steve Ralston, and defender Michael Parkhurst - departing for the Gold Cup. Given that, a turn-around in form, 1) seems unlikely, or, 2) if it does come, the departed players will come back to a different team.
Kansas City Wizards 3 - 2 Red Bull New York
(Viewed 2/3 uninterrupted; the rest TiVo-style)
- Two big talking points for this game of the week: 1) the harsh ejection of Clint Mathis, which left Red Bull down for just shy of 60 minutes; 2) Eddie Johnson’s second, consecutive hat-trick.
- Mathis was ejected for an elbow to KC midfielder Kerry Zavagnin’s throat; after watching that - shoot - six times or so, it looks for the world like Mathis is using his arms to push off. He’s doing so clumsily, but he’s certainly not taking a swing at Zavagnin. Scratch the “harsh” above; this was a flat-out bad call.
- The “good” in this game came with Johnson’s hat-trick, comprised as it was of three great goals: the first, a high-degree-of-difficulty lob over Red Bull ‘keeper Jon Conway; the second a sharp-angel tap-in that came from a smartly-timed run; the third, a cool finish after finding space and meeting a beautiful diagonal pass from Sasha Victorine. Taken together, it was simply magnificent. If Johnson’s lacking in confidence by now, he’s pathological.
- While Red Bull can point to the man down as an excuse for the loss, no similar defense can explain the serial defensive breaks at the beginning of the second half that let one KC player after another in alone on Conway’s goal; count Red Bull damned lucky they kept the score close.
- To give credit where it’s due, not only did Red Bull open the scoring with a beauty of their own, but they fought back pretty well toward the end.
- On the other hand, KC looked very impressive even against a full-sided Red Bull. They move and pass well and show a rare ability to actually breakdown the opposition. In all seriousness: KC looks for real.
- The larger tragedy of this game, though, is what it couldn’t tell us: e.g who is the better team between Red Bull and the now-league leading KC Wizards. That sending off mucked up everything - that it was unjustified only makes thing worse. The ref owes every MLS fan a pint.
Los Angeles Galaxy 0 - 0 DC United
(Brief, as in just over 3 minute, highlights)
- The most remarkable thing in this one was the number of hamstring injuries that occurred; that, in itself, says something about the game.first, Ian Russell for LA, then Tyrone Marshall (LA again), and, finally, Fred for DC United. Don’t know that any of these have been diagnosed or the length of any lay-offs determined.
- The highlights showed a scoreless draw preserved by desperate, yet timely, defending on both ends of the field. Then again, if those highlights are to be trusted, the chances didn’t look like golden.
- - The two injuries to LA mean they're in serious trouble in terms of depth. The list of hobbling players keeps growing while Gold Cup call-ups (Landon Donovan to the U.S., Ante Jazic and Kevin Harmse to Canada; then there's the Copa America...) and makes an already high hurdle for the months of June and July look a lot like a wall.
Houston Dynamo 2 - 1 FC Dallas
(nada; unavailable at time of writing)
- Another result that would surprise someone fixating on the standings - but this one adds up pretty readily. Why?
- FC Dallas has been grimly playing toward .500 record since the beginning of the season; this amounts to them finding their niche.
- Besides, Houston has dominated Dallas historically - brief as said history is.
- Also, in spite of a maddening scoring drought, Houston has been hammering away at opposition defenses over the past two, three games; the problem seemed more one of misfiring on goal than of failing to create the chances.
- Good to see Ricardo Clark’s name in lights; he shined pretty brightly through the Dynamo’s April/May woes.
- On the downside, Clark is another player headed off for Gold Cup duty, as is forward Brian Ching (who, based on current form, will barely be missed); also leaving, but for the Canadian national team, is Dwayne DeRosario (see Ching).
Columbus Crew 2 - 3 Chicago Fire
(Watched game from 22nd minute forward; caught Quick Kicks this morning)
- In spite of its many, many limitations - which begin with the participating teams - this wasn’t a bad game to watch.
- That’s not to say it was a good game; neither team looked sharp, the play seemed labored more often than not, and, with one exception the goals were pure scrap. Goes to show that excitement trumps quality on the right day.
- After noticing another pretty bit of minutiae - in this case, the Crew’s Danny O’Rourke shifting his body just so to throw a defender and complete a simple, yet wholly crucial, possession pass - I took a tipsy little mental journey back through the game’s better points: Chicago’s Willian Oliveira twisting the Crew’s Duncan Oughton this way and that with menacing redirections as he charged toward the Crew goal; the Crew’s Guillermo Schelotto shielding the ball for 25 yards with a Fire player fixed to his side and yanking at his jersey for the distance. They don’t show on any statistics sheet, but such moments of brilliance or simple fighting perseverance define 9 games out of 10; they’re also what make the game worth watching closely.
- I’m pleased to report the Goal of the Week came in this unlikely affair. After a Crew corner, Chicago forward Chad Barrett took the ball just above his penalty area and ran with it the length of the field to score a back-breaking third Chicago goal. More than the speed and composure that made the goal possible, the goal stood out for what it did to the game - the Crew was slowly, but clearly gaining the upper hand in the ten minutes before - and for what it meant to Barrett as a player. Just beautiful. I’m very glad I caught it in the moment.
- The crucial thing this game revealed: Chicago has just a bit more to them than Columbus - and that’s appalling, unnerving news for the Crew. Will the knives hovering over Chicago coach Dave Sarachan come out now for head coach Sigi Schmid?
All for this week - though there’s plenty more to discuss...like Goldthwaite's red card....
Late, Outomiass* Week 8 Picks
I had grand plans for this post, truly grand. But life and work got to humping my leg some time yesterday and distracted me from seeing to this business. With only 45 minutes or so separating me from the kick-off of the weekend's action, however, I'm just going to lay down my outomiass (*mean "out of my ass") picks for Week 8 and call it good.
Here, quick as can be, is what I'm seeing in this weekend's games.
New England Revolution beats Kansas City Wizards (my guess, 1-0)
Columbus Crew loses to Toronto FC (another 1-0, or rather, 0-1 to TFC)
DC United loses to the Houston Dynamo (another one-goal game)
Colorado Rapids make The Richard feel like home over the LA Galaxy (2-1)
Chivas USA continues to suck while FC Dallas guts out another cheap-y (0-2)
And, on Sunday, I'm thinking that even the Chicago Fire can't lose to Real Salt Lake; the Fire posts a nearly unwatchable 1-0 win.
(#######)
Here, quick as can be, is what I'm seeing in this weekend's games.
New England Revolution beats Kansas City Wizards (my guess, 1-0)
Columbus Crew loses to Toronto FC (another 1-0, or rather, 0-1 to TFC)
DC United loses to the Houston Dynamo (another one-goal game)
Colorado Rapids make The Richard feel like home over the LA Galaxy (2-1)
Chivas USA continues to suck while FC Dallas guts out another cheap-y (0-2)
And, on Sunday, I'm thinking that even the Chicago Fire can't lose to Real Salt Lake; the Fire posts a nearly unwatchable 1-0 win.
(#######)
Cunningham to Toronto: Sure Looks Official
I can't link to it, but if you go to MLSnet.com any time soon, you'll see that the Alecko Eskandarian thing involved shipping Jeff Cunningham the other way. I'm guessing there will be a full article before too long...maybe I'll pick at that tomorrow morning...
(Whoops, never mind; an article popped up while I was gabbing.)
Now, I wonder if and how LA enters into this one.
Here's another question: if you could be either player, which would it be? Hmmm...a city with a buttload of buzz, crazy seat-cushion throwing fans, a couple recent wins to brag about, and field turf? Or a place with fans slumping to morbid depression thanks to a total lack of wins, either real or prospective, a new, untried coach, a management team widely regarded as incompetent, and, again, field turf?
I'm feeling like we should all do a whip-around to get Alecko a care package.
(########)
(Whoops, never mind; an article popped up while I was gabbing.)
Now, I wonder if and how LA enters into this one.
Here's another question: if you could be either player, which would it be? Hmmm...a city with a buttload of buzz, crazy seat-cushion throwing fans, a couple recent wins to brag about, and field turf? Or a place with fans slumping to morbid depression thanks to a total lack of wins, either real or prospective, a new, untried coach, a management team widely regarded as incompetent, and, again, field turf?
I'm feeling like we should all do a whip-around to get Alecko a care package.
(########)
Week 7: Quick Hits
Here are some quick, undiluted first impressions left by Week 7’s action, talking team by team as they come to me - I’ll fill ‘em in later with some reading. Anything with an asterisk means I caught at least one of a given team’s game in full.
Toronto FC - I don’t know what I would have written had Toronto managed to knock off DC United over the weekend; three straight wins, no matter the circumstances, makes more an impressive streak. They didn’t win that third game, of course, but, judging by the highlights, Toronto both looks and seems like a real team all of a sudden. That could be function of having two more wins than Real Salt Lake...
DC United - Still not sold. Sure, in beating Toronto on the road, they succeeded where two teams once perceived as competent - the Chicago Fire and the Houston Dynamo - failed. Moreno looks older than dirt. I like the guy plenty, but, my word....
New England Revolution* - Yeah, they won, but I hate them for making me watch that pile of shit. Awful, ugly performance the quality of which was best described by the exasperated raspberry coach Steve Nicol blew when asked to assess his team’s performance in a sideline interview. A performance that distasteful warrants dropping the Revs in my power rankings on aesthetic grounds at the very least.
Red Bull New York - The match report (which I cheated and read) showed an even game, statistically speaking. The highlights, however, showed Dane Richards rip past Rusty Pierce like a rusty gate, a defense that contained the Crew’s “attack”* fairly well and an offense that punished mistakes. Given the Crew’s defense over the past few weeks, the four goals scored might say something; but this could also be an aberration, a la the Crew’s performance against New England a ways back. So, good game, but count Red Bull another team on which I’m reserving judgment.
Houston Dynamo* - Wow. That’s all I’ve got, really. Wow. Why the hell can’t these guys score? I’ll confess to nodding off/finding the hairs on my stomach more interesting than the action on the field, but dubbing the Houston attack anemic does a disservice to the adjective.
Columbus Crew - *I’ve got a theory on the Crew’s offense: they’re not pulling the same direction. Put another way, different players have different ideas about the way to get their team scoring goals and that plays out on the field with errant passing, mistimed runs - just a general grabasstic mess with too many generals freelancing it. Mmmm....”generals” doesn’t correctly communicate the level: let’ go with corporals.
FC Dallas* - Maybe it was RSL, maybe it was the late night and serial Pabst-swilling, but I liked what I saw last night out of FC Dallas. Most impressive were signs the defense might be gelling and maturing, as well as how quickly this team turns around and transitions from defense to offense; they literally get the ball and - POW! - the team as a whole faces forward with their heads up. Two wins in as many games also tell a happy story. A couple other random observations: as the commentator said after Chris Gbandi scored, that’s the goal of the week - see if you don't agree (thanks, as always, to Climbing the Ladder)...
...continuing, tough-ish call on the PK, though I see how it happened, but that’s the only significant blemish I caught in an otherwise composed performance; between his awareness and ability to ride tackles and play out of trouble, Juan Toja looks like the real deal. In spite of years of bitter, bitter experience and the bias that grows therefrom, I like what I see in Dallas...again.
Real Salt Lake* - Worst team in the league, no question in my mind. They’re USL Division 1 material at this point. As such, I really want them to play the Portland Timbers in the U.S. Open Cup...
Chicago Fire - While I didn’t see all of Thursday’s game between Chicago and Dallas, the last 20 minutes showed a Fire team ALL OVER the visitors from Dallas. Mapp, especially looked dangerous. Still, they didn’t win, never mind draw this game and that’s just got to feel like a shot to the pills. Put another way, whatever is wrong with these guys, it’s sort of fer reals. If I had to name the problem, I’d say they’re missing a blunt-instrument kind of player like Nate Jaqua, e.g. someone who can make good on goal-mouth scrums.
Colorado Rapids - Didn’t watch them play, but they do seem to be settling into the erratic profile so familiar from seasons past.
Kansas City Wizards - This is the team I forget about most often this year; used to be Colorado, but they became interesting starting in 2006. I think we’re still a few weeks from having the data to make a decision on this bunch.
LA Galaxy - Didn’t see it, but I’m definitely surprised by this past weekend’s draw with Chivas, who I rate about as highly as “Oh Boy” Alberto Gonzales.
Chivas USA - Honestly, between these guys, RSL, and even Houston, the West looks no better than half-good right now.
All righty. I’m off to see what else I can learn about all this stuff; if all goes according to plan, I’ll wrap up that by the end of the day.
Toronto FC - I don’t know what I would have written had Toronto managed to knock off DC United over the weekend; three straight wins, no matter the circumstances, makes more an impressive streak. They didn’t win that third game, of course, but, judging by the highlights, Toronto both looks and seems like a real team all of a sudden. That could be function of having two more wins than Real Salt Lake...
DC United - Still not sold. Sure, in beating Toronto on the road, they succeeded where two teams once perceived as competent - the Chicago Fire and the Houston Dynamo - failed. Moreno looks older than dirt. I like the guy plenty, but, my word....
New England Revolution* - Yeah, they won, but I hate them for making me watch that pile of shit. Awful, ugly performance the quality of which was best described by the exasperated raspberry coach Steve Nicol blew when asked to assess his team’s performance in a sideline interview. A performance that distasteful warrants dropping the Revs in my power rankings on aesthetic grounds at the very least.
Red Bull New York - The match report (which I cheated and read) showed an even game, statistically speaking. The highlights, however, showed Dane Richards rip past Rusty Pierce like a rusty gate, a defense that contained the Crew’s “attack”* fairly well and an offense that punished mistakes. Given the Crew’s defense over the past few weeks, the four goals scored might say something; but this could also be an aberration, a la the Crew’s performance against New England a ways back. So, good game, but count Red Bull another team on which I’m reserving judgment.
Houston Dynamo* - Wow. That’s all I’ve got, really. Wow. Why the hell can’t these guys score? I’ll confess to nodding off/finding the hairs on my stomach more interesting than the action on the field, but dubbing the Houston attack anemic does a disservice to the adjective.
Columbus Crew - *I’ve got a theory on the Crew’s offense: they’re not pulling the same direction. Put another way, different players have different ideas about the way to get their team scoring goals and that plays out on the field with errant passing, mistimed runs - just a general grabasstic mess with too many generals freelancing it. Mmmm....”generals” doesn’t correctly communicate the level: let’ go with corporals.
FC Dallas* - Maybe it was RSL, maybe it was the late night and serial Pabst-swilling, but I liked what I saw last night out of FC Dallas. Most impressive were signs the defense might be gelling and maturing, as well as how quickly this team turns around and transitions from defense to offense; they literally get the ball and - POW! - the team as a whole faces forward with their heads up. Two wins in as many games also tell a happy story. A couple other random observations: as the commentator said after Chris Gbandi scored, that’s the goal of the week - see if you don't agree (thanks, as always, to Climbing the Ladder)...
...continuing, tough-ish call on the PK, though I see how it happened, but that’s the only significant blemish I caught in an otherwise composed performance; between his awareness and ability to ride tackles and play out of trouble, Juan Toja looks like the real deal. In spite of years of bitter, bitter experience and the bias that grows therefrom, I like what I see in Dallas...again.
Real Salt Lake* - Worst team in the league, no question in my mind. They’re USL Division 1 material at this point. As such, I really want them to play the Portland Timbers in the U.S. Open Cup...
Chicago Fire - While I didn’t see all of Thursday’s game between Chicago and Dallas, the last 20 minutes showed a Fire team ALL OVER the visitors from Dallas. Mapp, especially looked dangerous. Still, they didn’t win, never mind draw this game and that’s just got to feel like a shot to the pills. Put another way, whatever is wrong with these guys, it’s sort of fer reals. If I had to name the problem, I’d say they’re missing a blunt-instrument kind of player like Nate Jaqua, e.g. someone who can make good on goal-mouth scrums.
Colorado Rapids - Didn’t watch them play, but they do seem to be settling into the erratic profile so familiar from seasons past.
Kansas City Wizards - This is the team I forget about most often this year; used to be Colorado, but they became interesting starting in 2006. I think we’re still a few weeks from having the data to make a decision on this bunch.
LA Galaxy - Didn’t see it, but I’m definitely surprised by this past weekend’s draw with Chivas, who I rate about as highly as “Oh Boy” Alberto Gonzales.
Chivas USA - Honestly, between these guys, RSL, and even Houston, the West looks no better than half-good right now.
All righty. I’m off to see what else I can learn about all this stuff; if all goes according to plan, I’ll wrap up that by the end of the day.
Week 6 Power-Rankings Round-Up (check my math)
As I was about to explain in long-hand form the collection of 9+ power rankings I pulled together to study, it occurred to me that a mathematical method of some sort could make sense of it all more efficiently. It turns out all those math teachers who swore I'd use what they taught me were right...though it's also likely they didn't entertain the possibility I would misapply the tools they provided.
Call that my caveat for this post: I'm not totally sure that what I've done is mathematically valid, but it seems good enough - and that's why I'm posting.
By way of source material, I found power rankings posted on nine different sites - the "+" that appears above came about because, due to the format - which splits Eastern and Western Conferences - I can't use the rankings from Who Ate All the Cupcakes; but I like the author's stuff well enough to give him a shout-out regardless.
The other nine, however, appear below. After listing them, I'll redo the power rankings by placing all 13 MLS teams in the order of the average ranking they received across all nine outlets/blogs. Here's a list of the source material:
It's a Simple Game (mine obviously - LINK)
Sports Illustrated (Ryan Hunt) LINK
WVHooligan LINK
Soccer by Ives LINK
Sideline Views (Luis Bueno) LINK
Orlando Sentinel LINK (bonus for great format)
My Soccer Blog LINK
MLS Underground LINK
Finally, ESPN, the grand-daddy of them all: LINK
And now, here's how MLS's 13 teams stack up when you average the scores awarded to each of the teams by all nine outlets; for poops and giggles, I listed the high and low figure for each MLS club.
1. New England Revolution: 1.0 (Yep, they were the universal #1)
2. Red Bull New York: 2.7 (best, 2; worst, 4)
3. Kansas City Wizards: 3.9 (best, 2; worst, 6 - big spread on them)
4. Colorado Rapids: 3.9 (best, 2; worst, 7 - still bigger spread)
5. Houston Dynamo: 4.7 (best, 2; worst, 7 - ditto)
6. FC Dallas: 5.3 (best, 4; worst, 7 - 5 heavy; I gave the 7)
7. Chicago Fire: 7.6 (best, 6; worst, 10 - 7 heavy; I gave the 10)
8. Los Angeles Galaxy: 8.2 (best, 5; worst, 10 - pretty random; I gave the 5)
9. DC United: 9.7 (best, 8; worst, 11 - small range, wide variety)
10. Columbus Crew: 10.6 (best, 6; worst, 11)
11. Chivas USA: 10.8 (best, 8; worst, 13 - 10, 11 heavy)
12. Toronto FC: 11.9 (best, 10; worst, 13 - 12, 13 heavy)
13. Real Salt Lake: 12.6 (best, 12; worst, 13 - pretty conclusive)
So, there you have it. That may or may not give a handy snapshot of the conventional wisdom. I suspect it does, even if the ranges on some teams is a worry.
Talk at y'all tomorrow.
(#########)
Call that my caveat for this post: I'm not totally sure that what I've done is mathematically valid, but it seems good enough - and that's why I'm posting.
By way of source material, I found power rankings posted on nine different sites - the "+" that appears above came about because, due to the format - which splits Eastern and Western Conferences - I can't use the rankings from Who Ate All the Cupcakes; but I like the author's stuff well enough to give him a shout-out regardless.
The other nine, however, appear below. After listing them, I'll redo the power rankings by placing all 13 MLS teams in the order of the average ranking they received across all nine outlets/blogs. Here's a list of the source material:
It's a Simple Game (mine obviously - LINK)
Sports Illustrated (Ryan Hunt) LINK
WVHooligan LINK
Soccer by Ives LINK
Sideline Views (Luis Bueno) LINK
Orlando Sentinel LINK (bonus for great format)
My Soccer Blog LINK
MLS Underground LINK
Finally, ESPN, the grand-daddy of them all: LINK
And now, here's how MLS's 13 teams stack up when you average the scores awarded to each of the teams by all nine outlets; for poops and giggles, I listed the high and low figure for each MLS club.
1. New England Revolution: 1.0 (Yep, they were the universal #1)
2. Red Bull New York: 2.7 (best, 2; worst, 4)
3. Kansas City Wizards: 3.9 (best, 2; worst, 6 - big spread on them)
4. Colorado Rapids: 3.9 (best, 2; worst, 7 - still bigger spread)
5. Houston Dynamo: 4.7 (best, 2; worst, 7 - ditto)
6. FC Dallas: 5.3 (best, 4; worst, 7 - 5 heavy; I gave the 7)
7. Chicago Fire: 7.6 (best, 6; worst, 10 - 7 heavy; I gave the 10)
8. Los Angeles Galaxy: 8.2 (best, 5; worst, 10 - pretty random; I gave the 5)
9. DC United: 9.7 (best, 8; worst, 11 - small range, wide variety)
10. Columbus Crew: 10.6 (best, 6; worst, 11)
11. Chivas USA: 10.8 (best, 8; worst, 13 - 10, 11 heavy)
12. Toronto FC: 11.9 (best, 10; worst, 13 - 12, 13 heavy)
13. Real Salt Lake: 12.6 (best, 12; worst, 13 - pretty conclusive)
So, there you have it. That may or may not give a handy snapshot of the conventional wisdom. I suspect it does, even if the ranges on some teams is a worry.
Talk at y'all tomorrow.
(#########)
TFC v. Dynamo: for the record...
I'm still catching up; for example, it took three hours of (highly) sporadic effort to clean out my bloglines inbox.
So, all future posting will come tomorrow. Till then, though, I'm calling the Toronto FC v. Houston game - of which I have not seen even the current score - at a 1-0 win to Houston. Call it a replay of the home loss to Kansas City.
Well, I'm off now to see whether that has already fallen apart...
(######)
So, all future posting will come tomorrow. Till then, though, I'm calling the Toronto FC v. Houston game - of which I have not seen even the current score - at a 1-0 win to Houston. Call it a replay of the home loss to Kansas City.
Well, I'm off now to see whether that has already fallen apart...
(######)
Week 6: Power Rankings + Standings
I won’t lie: my week has been so thoroughly fucked up it makes a $20 whore look positively chaste (sorry, horrible analogy). But I’m soldiering on with power rankings and, later, I’ll compare those with everyone else’s to give an approximation of how observers see teams stacking up. I won’t even peek at those, however, till after I’ve written and posted what appears below.
As usual, last week’s ranking appears in parentheses immediately after this week’s ranking. So’s as to not misrepresent my judgment as entirely first-hand, the following key shows the distance of my observations: “@” means I watched a given team’s most recent performance in its entirety; “$” 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) New England Revolution (@)
I’ll have something up elsewhere stating my belief that New England showed itself to be the first “good” team in the 2007 season. The logic here is pretty simple: they’re the only team doing fairly well on both sides of the ball and taking care of business both home and away. The question is whether they can keep it up - I mean, how often to forwards have the rebound fall perfectly?
2. (3) Houston Dynamo (idle)
As much as inching an idle team up the table seems a little silly, the other teams did it to themselves. I’m not sold on this bunch yet; having only one rock-star offensive game makes this a highly precarious #2 ranking.
3. (1) Red Bull New York (&)
It’s not losing to the Rapids so much as it’s, y’know, everything: the draw to RSL, the Open Cup thing, a key player (Claudio Reyna) who seems too fragile to last, etc. Clint Mathis says they’re slipping; the question is can they turn it around?
4. (6) Colorado Rapids (& + &)
During their two-game Week 6, Colorado showed two things: a kind of resilience and proof that they have not grown out of their penchant for erratic play. They do have the weapons, though, even if Dan Gargan isn’t one of them.
5. (5) Los Angeles Galaxy (@)
Call me crazy - and I’m sure Frank Yallop would - but I liked a lot of what I saw out of these guys against New England. I’d go so far as to say they’d beat - let’s do a quick count - seven, even eight teams in this league playing like that. Cannon is still a force and signs of life from Martino mean plenty for this group.
6. (4) Kansas City Wizards ($)
This isn’t bad as it looks. To begin, I still think this is a playoff team. And from the sounds of it, they outplayed Dallas. But they DID lose.
7. (8) FC Dallas ($)
Based on what I read and saw, Dario Sala hauled their butts through this one - then again, a ‘keeper like that counts for something. Nice to see Cooper score again, while Abe Thompson’s performance shows they have a little depth. Also noted: even the Kansas City paper had nice things to say about their defense. They do ride their luck a little, but they’re also looking good enough...to do what? Well...
8. (10) Columbus Crew (@)
The Crew may owe me the two hours of my life I spent watching this, but there’s no denying this team can defend. But - damn! - do they have a toothless attack, even with the new editions. Still, one-half competent puts them ahead of the teams below.
9. (9) DC United (idle)
Seems appropriate to let their ranking idle as they did. They looked better in Week 5, but have to show a bit more in coming games to get back into the Land of Playoff Contention.
10. (7) Chicago Fire (@)
The Fire gets hit with the Big Drop this week, not because they were Toronto’s first victims, but in the way they’ve lost over the past two weekends. Take away Chris Rolfe and they go from a one-man to a no-man offense. That’s bad enough, but it’s nothing next to the ever-fraying defensive displays; the way this team positively WILTS against counter-attacks renders them almost incapable of chasing a game.
11. (13) Toronto FC (@)
Well, that was fun. I think I wrote this before, but I could have sworn these teams swapped jerseys at the half. Still, I’ll note as everyone did the nice atmosphere on the day and all that. We’ll see tonight (well, and in the future) whether or not Toronto has figured out playing in MLS.
12. (12) Real Salt Lake (&)
As much as I’m hearing decent things about the changes introduced by new coach Jason Kreis (two forwards?? - gasp), these guys still don’t have a W to call their own. Till they get one....well, maybe I’m being more generous to them than I am to the guys below. Still, one doesn’t need the -8 goal differential to know TFC remains a struggling team.
13. (11) Chivas USA (@)
Is it Preki’s fault? Hell, I dunno. What I do know is, the (hungover, Sunday park club) mistakes that defense made would have been ruthlessly punished by any team other than Houston. And with their attack essentially drying up, these guys don’t have much going for them.
Moving on to the standings (official ones here):
Eastern Conference:
1. New England Revs: 14 pts. (4-1-2: 14 GF, 7 GA, +7; home, 2-0-0; away, 2-1-2)
2. Kansas City Wiz: 12 pts. (4-2-0: 11 GF, 6 GA, +5; home, 2-1-0; away, 2-1-0)
3. Red Bull New York: 11 pts. (3-1-2: 8 GF, 4 GA, +4; home, 2-1-0; away, 1-0-2)
4. Chicago Fire: 10 pts. (3-2-1: 7 GF, 8 GA, -1; home, 2-0-0; away, 1-1-1)
5. Columbus Crew: 7 pts. (1-1-4: 4 GF, 4 GA, 0; home, 1-0-3; away, 0-1-1)
6. DC United: 4 pts. (1-3-1: 6 GF, 9 GA, -3; home, 1-1-1; away, 0-2-0)
7. Toronto FC: 0 pts. (1-4-0: 3 GF, 11 GA, -8; home, 1-1-0; away, 0-3-0)
Western Conference
1. Colorado Rapids: 11 pts. (3-2-2: 9 GF, 9 GA, 0; home 1-1-2; away, 2-1-0)
2. FC Dallas: 10 pts. (3-3-1: 9 GF, 10 GA, -1; home, 1-2-0; away, 1-1-1)
3. Chivas USA: 7 pts. (2-3-1: 9 GF, 7 GA; +2; home, 2-0-0; away, 0-3-1)
4. Houston Dynamo: 7 pts. (2-2-1: 4 GF, 3 GA, +1; home, 1-1-1; away, 1-1-0)
5. Los Angeles Galaxy: 4 pts. (1-2-1: 6 GF, 6 GA, 0; home, 1-2-0; away, 0-0-1)
6. Real Salt Lake: 3 pts. (0-3-3: 6 GF, 12 GA, -6; home, 0-1-3; away, 0-1-0)
As usual, last week’s ranking appears in parentheses immediately after this week’s ranking. So’s as to not misrepresent my judgment as entirely first-hand, the following key shows the distance of my observations: “@” means I watched a given team’s most recent performance in its entirety; “$” means I caught it through Quick Kicks, which provides extended highlights; “&” means I watched only the rump highlights available through MLSnet.com.
Here goes...and after the rankings, you’ll find a current listing of the standings for the permanent record.
1. (2) New England Revolution (@)
I’ll have something up elsewhere stating my belief that New England showed itself to be the first “good” team in the 2007 season. The logic here is pretty simple: they’re the only team doing fairly well on both sides of the ball and taking care of business both home and away. The question is whether they can keep it up - I mean, how often to forwards have the rebound fall perfectly?
2. (3) Houston Dynamo (idle)
As much as inching an idle team up the table seems a little silly, the other teams did it to themselves. I’m not sold on this bunch yet; having only one rock-star offensive game makes this a highly precarious #2 ranking.
3. (1) Red Bull New York (&)
It’s not losing to the Rapids so much as it’s, y’know, everything: the draw to RSL, the Open Cup thing, a key player (Claudio Reyna) who seems too fragile to last, etc. Clint Mathis says they’re slipping; the question is can they turn it around?
4. (6) Colorado Rapids (& + &)
During their two-game Week 6, Colorado showed two things: a kind of resilience and proof that they have not grown out of their penchant for erratic play. They do have the weapons, though, even if Dan Gargan isn’t one of them.
5. (5) Los Angeles Galaxy (@)
Call me crazy - and I’m sure Frank Yallop would - but I liked a lot of what I saw out of these guys against New England. I’d go so far as to say they’d beat - let’s do a quick count - seven, even eight teams in this league playing like that. Cannon is still a force and signs of life from Martino mean plenty for this group.
6. (4) Kansas City Wizards ($)
This isn’t bad as it looks. To begin, I still think this is a playoff team. And from the sounds of it, they outplayed Dallas. But they DID lose.
7. (8) FC Dallas ($)
Based on what I read and saw, Dario Sala hauled their butts through this one - then again, a ‘keeper like that counts for something. Nice to see Cooper score again, while Abe Thompson’s performance shows they have a little depth. Also noted: even the Kansas City paper had nice things to say about their defense. They do ride their luck a little, but they’re also looking good enough...to do what? Well...
8. (10) Columbus Crew (@)
The Crew may owe me the two hours of my life I spent watching this, but there’s no denying this team can defend. But - damn! - do they have a toothless attack, even with the new editions. Still, one-half competent puts them ahead of the teams below.
9. (9) DC United (idle)
Seems appropriate to let their ranking idle as they did. They looked better in Week 5, but have to show a bit more in coming games to get back into the Land of Playoff Contention.
10. (7) Chicago Fire (@)
The Fire gets hit with the Big Drop this week, not because they were Toronto’s first victims, but in the way they’ve lost over the past two weekends. Take away Chris Rolfe and they go from a one-man to a no-man offense. That’s bad enough, but it’s nothing next to the ever-fraying defensive displays; the way this team positively WILTS against counter-attacks renders them almost incapable of chasing a game.
11. (13) Toronto FC (@)
Well, that was fun. I think I wrote this before, but I could have sworn these teams swapped jerseys at the half. Still, I’ll note as everyone did the nice atmosphere on the day and all that. We’ll see tonight (well, and in the future) whether or not Toronto has figured out playing in MLS.
12. (12) Real Salt Lake (&)
As much as I’m hearing decent things about the changes introduced by new coach Jason Kreis (two forwards?? - gasp), these guys still don’t have a W to call their own. Till they get one....well, maybe I’m being more generous to them than I am to the guys below. Still, one doesn’t need the -8 goal differential to know TFC remains a struggling team.
13. (11) Chivas USA (@)
Is it Preki’s fault? Hell, I dunno. What I do know is, the (hungover, Sunday park club) mistakes that defense made would have been ruthlessly punished by any team other than Houston. And with their attack essentially drying up, these guys don’t have much going for them.
Moving on to the standings (official ones here):
Eastern Conference:
1. New England Revs: 14 pts. (4-1-2: 14 GF, 7 GA, +7; home, 2-0-0; away, 2-1-2)
2. Kansas City Wiz: 12 pts. (4-2-0: 11 GF, 6 GA, +5; home, 2-1-0; away, 2-1-0)
3. Red Bull New York: 11 pts. (3-1-2: 8 GF, 4 GA, +4; home, 2-1-0; away, 1-0-2)
4. Chicago Fire: 10 pts. (3-2-1: 7 GF, 8 GA, -1; home, 2-0-0; away, 1-1-1)
5. Columbus Crew: 7 pts. (1-1-4: 4 GF, 4 GA, 0; home, 1-0-3; away, 0-1-1)
6. DC United: 4 pts. (1-3-1: 6 GF, 9 GA, -3; home, 1-1-1; away, 0-2-0)
7. Toronto FC: 0 pts. (1-4-0: 3 GF, 11 GA, -8; home, 1-1-0; away, 0-3-0)
Western Conference
1. Colorado Rapids: 11 pts. (3-2-2: 9 GF, 9 GA, 0; home 1-1-2; away, 2-1-0)
2. FC Dallas: 10 pts. (3-3-1: 9 GF, 10 GA, -1; home, 1-2-0; away, 1-1-1)
3. Chivas USA: 7 pts. (2-3-1: 9 GF, 7 GA; +2; home, 2-0-0; away, 0-3-1)
4. Houston Dynamo: 7 pts. (2-2-1: 4 GF, 3 GA, +1; home, 1-1-1; away, 1-1-0)
5. Los Angeles Galaxy: 4 pts. (1-2-1: 6 GF, 6 GA, 0; home, 1-2-0; away, 0-0-1)
6. Real Salt Lake: 3 pts. (0-3-3: 6 GF, 12 GA, -6; home, 0-1-3; away, 0-1-0)
Week 6: Games Seen and Unseen
I had grand plans about how I’d lay out this review of the past weekend’s super-duper action. Reports and reviews were browsed and bookmarked, commentary and quotes noted.
And then I ran out of time. So here for your (possible) edification and amusement, are some random, unsupported thoughts on Major League Soccer’s Week 6...except for that midweek freak of a game between...ah, I don’t even care. (Settle down with the scheduling, you MLS pogues.) I’ll start with stray thoughts on the two games I didn’t see.
Tomorrow, maybe the next day, I’ll work out that whole power-ranking thing to in the hopes of bringing some kind of coherence to these ramblings.
Kansas City Wizards 1 - 2 FC Dallas
I won’t lie: this result had me practicing my best whoops and hollers for use of mocking people who saw the Wizards as a bona fide contender; yeah, put me in the “but look at who they’ve played column.” But one article, citing as it did the breakdown on shots, etc. - not to mention the now-high probability that Juan Carlos Toja used his hand to control the ball just before scoring - has me thinking it’s wise to let opinions on the Wizards steep for another week or two. And, when you get right to it, the same applies to FC Dallas - though it’s worth noting that Dario Sala had a hell of a game.
I see a lot of Kansas City Wizards labels on my sitemeter, so here’s a personal note to them: I have nothing against your team; my life is simply easier when I don’t have to think about them.*
Red Bull New York 0 - 1 Colorado Rapids
Caught this one (as well as the one above) through highlights only - and not the good ones (Quick Kicks), mind you, but the crappy, truncated little buggers. What can I say? Colorado looks like they’re still unpredictable as a major loon off his/her meds. The more significant thing is what this does to Red Bull’s stellar, early-season rep.
Nice goal by Nico Hernandez, who, for some crazy reason, I really like.
Moving now to the games I did see...
Toronto FC 3 - 1 Chicago Fire
In no particular order...
- Holy crabcakes! Three goals? If the Columbus Crew hadn’t scored, TFC would have hauled them down on the goal count in just one game. Yikes. Speaking of....
- What the hell is wrong with Chicago? Until last week, every mention of the Fire usually included some phrase on their “solidity.” But for the second week straight, these cats got roasted when chasing the game. The first half was what it was, but the second looked a whole hell of a lot like the defensive collapse against the New England Revolution the week before. Toronto scored an appropriately scrappy first, but the second two? Kevin Goldthwaite and Maurice Edu (who played his balls off) could have held a friggin’ seminar in the space they had in the Chicago area.
- Seriously, Chicago’s defense was so bad the thought that the teams had switched uniforms at the half entered my mind.
- I mentioned the status of Maurice Edu’s balls, but would give Kevin Goldthwaite (of all people) man of the match. Ronnie O’Brien deserves honorable mention.
- The shouting match between Matt Pickens and Danny Dichio looked pretty intense - and small wonder with talk of biting (weird).
- Chicago...I dunno. Without “reviewing the tape” - and for both games - I’m not sure I can explain why they’re open to the counter like 7-11 is to stoners. My first guess is an aging midfield. But their defenders are dying under those even-number break-aways.
Columbus Crew 1 - 1 Chivas USA
(* Now, if I could stop thinking about this team...that'd be a relief)
I covered this for my day job - and have the psychic scars to show for it. Why, oh, why did I volunteer to follow the Crew? (No, I remember; I’m “from Ohio and thought they’d be interesting.” HA!). I think I’ve got enough over there to cover here, but want to add one delicious tease: as tentative/ineffectual Eddie Gaven has looked this season, was it just me or did Chivas look more comfortable AFTER he left the game? Sure, he mustered only the one shot - straight at Brad Guzan, but a hard shot all the same - but the paths to the goal dried up when he left just after the 60th minute till that last-minute flurry at the end of the game. Could this be a case of doing good while seeming bad?
Los Angeles Galaxy 2 - 3 New England Revolution
I think the LA Times put it best when they said that anyone who caught this game got their money’s worth. For me, this was the best game of the season and, heart-broken as LA fans and players might be (and pissed off to the point of making trades as their coach may be), LA nearly got a point from a game in which they were fairly roundly outplayed. I may be alone in this, but I think that ain't bad. They can turn this around (then again, I thought the same last year...)
Other notes...
- I intend to elaborate on this elsewhere, but I think New England finally showed as the First Good Team of 2007. I’ll give The DCenters their point - that this doesn’t quite make them the team to beat - and I know they’ll have off games, but they look like the real deal.
- Turning to LA, you know who looked great last night? Kyle Martino. That’s so nuts to me I wouldn’t have believed it if I didn’t see the game myself. But that was a wonderfully taken goal and he was everywhere else besides. LA’s man-of-the-match, hands down.
- Cannon worked very hard and has every right to be pissed at the guys in front of him.
With those awards handed out, I can now indulge my urge to praise the Revs - at length.
- Adam Cristman: It wasn’t so much the goal as it was all the great work that preceded it - in this game and the game against Chicago. If he’s not the strongest player on the team this side of Shalrie Joseph, he’s close. That man wants this career like nobody’s business. And, so far, he’s earning it.
- Steve Ralston: I already posted on him, if only indirectly. He’s doing so friggin’ much for this team.
- Khano Smith: He’s made me a believer, at least in his ability to make one player’s life hell. Just ask Chris Albright, who had to cope with his tireless running.
- Michael Parkhurst: Best...damn...defender in MLS. I think I’m serious about this....wait...yeah, I am. How many pockets did this kid pick last night? How many times did he shield the ball from much, much bigger players? He’s like butter back there.
- Matt Reis: He succeeds when Parkhurst fails; just a hell of a one-two.
- Taylor Twellman: If I need to tell you, I’m guessing you’re not watching. Then again, there’s the whole thing about the gods smiling: how many times does the ball bounce off the crossbar straight back at the same player? When you’re hot you’re lucky (or is it “When you’re lucky, you’re hot”?)
- Shalrie Joseph: Like a gigantic blue-and-black, dreadlocked blur in the middle of the field; he’s more of an entity than a man, a spot on the field that reads “There be monsters here.” What I’m getting at is I don’t even notice the guy any more; I just see attacks breaking down in the center of the field just above the Revs’ defensive third.
- James Riley: I’m still not comfortable with Riley.
And then I ran out of time. So here for your (possible) edification and amusement, are some random, unsupported thoughts on Major League Soccer’s Week 6...except for that midweek freak of a game between...ah, I don’t even care. (Settle down with the scheduling, you MLS pogues.) I’ll start with stray thoughts on the two games I didn’t see.
Tomorrow, maybe the next day, I’ll work out that whole power-ranking thing to in the hopes of bringing some kind of coherence to these ramblings.
Kansas City Wizards 1 - 2 FC Dallas
I won’t lie: this result had me practicing my best whoops and hollers for use of mocking people who saw the Wizards as a bona fide contender; yeah, put me in the “but look at who they’ve played column.” But one article, citing as it did the breakdown on shots, etc. - not to mention the now-high probability that Juan Carlos Toja used his hand to control the ball just before scoring - has me thinking it’s wise to let opinions on the Wizards steep for another week or two. And, when you get right to it, the same applies to FC Dallas - though it’s worth noting that Dario Sala had a hell of a game.
I see a lot of Kansas City Wizards labels on my sitemeter, so here’s a personal note to them: I have nothing against your team; my life is simply easier when I don’t have to think about them.*
Red Bull New York 0 - 1 Colorado Rapids
Caught this one (as well as the one above) through highlights only - and not the good ones (Quick Kicks), mind you, but the crappy, truncated little buggers. What can I say? Colorado looks like they’re still unpredictable as a major loon off his/her meds. The more significant thing is what this does to Red Bull’s stellar, early-season rep.
Nice goal by Nico Hernandez, who, for some crazy reason, I really like.
Moving now to the games I did see...
Toronto FC 3 - 1 Chicago Fire
In no particular order...
- Holy crabcakes! Three goals? If the Columbus Crew hadn’t scored, TFC would have hauled them down on the goal count in just one game. Yikes. Speaking of....
- What the hell is wrong with Chicago? Until last week, every mention of the Fire usually included some phrase on their “solidity.” But for the second week straight, these cats got roasted when chasing the game. The first half was what it was, but the second looked a whole hell of a lot like the defensive collapse against the New England Revolution the week before. Toronto scored an appropriately scrappy first, but the second two? Kevin Goldthwaite and Maurice Edu (who played his balls off) could have held a friggin’ seminar in the space they had in the Chicago area.
- Seriously, Chicago’s defense was so bad the thought that the teams had switched uniforms at the half entered my mind.
- I mentioned the status of Maurice Edu’s balls, but would give Kevin Goldthwaite (of all people) man of the match. Ronnie O’Brien deserves honorable mention.
- The shouting match between Matt Pickens and Danny Dichio looked pretty intense - and small wonder with talk of biting (weird).
- Chicago...I dunno. Without “reviewing the tape” - and for both games - I’m not sure I can explain why they’re open to the counter like 7-11 is to stoners. My first guess is an aging midfield. But their defenders are dying under those even-number break-aways.
Columbus Crew 1 - 1 Chivas USA
(* Now, if I could stop thinking about this team...that'd be a relief)
I covered this for my day job - and have the psychic scars to show for it. Why, oh, why did I volunteer to follow the Crew? (No, I remember; I’m “from Ohio and thought they’d be interesting.” HA!). I think I’ve got enough over there to cover here, but want to add one delicious tease: as tentative/ineffectual Eddie Gaven has looked this season, was it just me or did Chivas look more comfortable AFTER he left the game? Sure, he mustered only the one shot - straight at Brad Guzan, but a hard shot all the same - but the paths to the goal dried up when he left just after the 60th minute till that last-minute flurry at the end of the game. Could this be a case of doing good while seeming bad?
Los Angeles Galaxy 2 - 3 New England Revolution
I think the LA Times put it best when they said that anyone who caught this game got their money’s worth. For me, this was the best game of the season and, heart-broken as LA fans and players might be (and pissed off to the point of making trades as their coach may be), LA nearly got a point from a game in which they were fairly roundly outplayed. I may be alone in this, but I think that ain't bad. They can turn this around (then again, I thought the same last year...)
Other notes...
- I intend to elaborate on this elsewhere, but I think New England finally showed as the First Good Team of 2007. I’ll give The DCenters their point - that this doesn’t quite make them the team to beat - and I know they’ll have off games, but they look like the real deal.
- Turning to LA, you know who looked great last night? Kyle Martino. That’s so nuts to me I wouldn’t have believed it if I didn’t see the game myself. But that was a wonderfully taken goal and he was everywhere else besides. LA’s man-of-the-match, hands down.
- Cannon worked very hard and has every right to be pissed at the guys in front of him.
With those awards handed out, I can now indulge my urge to praise the Revs - at length.
- Adam Cristman: It wasn’t so much the goal as it was all the great work that preceded it - in this game and the game against Chicago. If he’s not the strongest player on the team this side of Shalrie Joseph, he’s close. That man wants this career like nobody’s business. And, so far, he’s earning it.
- Steve Ralston: I already posted on him, if only indirectly. He’s doing so friggin’ much for this team.
- Khano Smith: He’s made me a believer, at least in his ability to make one player’s life hell. Just ask Chris Albright, who had to cope with his tireless running.
- Michael Parkhurst: Best...damn...defender in MLS. I think I’m serious about this....wait...yeah, I am. How many pockets did this kid pick last night? How many times did he shield the ball from much, much bigger players? He’s like butter back there.
- Matt Reis: He succeeds when Parkhurst fails; just a hell of a one-two.
- Taylor Twellman: If I need to tell you, I’m guessing you’re not watching. Then again, there’s the whole thing about the gods smiling: how many times does the ball bounce off the crossbar straight back at the same player? When you’re hot you’re lucky (or is it “When you’re lucky, you’re hot”?)
- Shalrie Joseph: Like a gigantic blue-and-black, dreadlocked blur in the middle of the field; he’s more of an entity than a man, a spot on the field that reads “There be monsters here.” What I’m getting at is I don’t even notice the guy any more; I just see attacks breaking down in the center of the field just above the Revs’ defensive third.
- James Riley: I’m still not comfortable with Riley.
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