Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Monday, July 11, 2011
Much Needed Catching Up
After missing several weeks, jumping right back in is a precarious task, but I will brave the frigid water of blogging...and in the smoldering heat of summer and get back in the saddle. Even before going on hiatus, I went away from previewing and then reviewing matches. I expect to continue that discontinuity for the most part. However, the season is looking pretty good for United after a couple of trades.
Despite my personal belief that DeRo is one of the league's best midfielders, this trade was a real shock. Early in the season, Dax's energy was much needed in the center of the field, but after the first month, what he was delivering was something less than what was expected or needed. In fact, he started to remind me of the section in Soccernomics where Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski discuss the tendency to over-value redheaded players. Specifically, they state that redheads stand out on a soccer field differently from players with black or blond hair. Scouts and other players see them more and can more easily pick out what the redheads do. Sure there are great soccer players out there with red hair, but Dax is just "pretty good".
If you compare DeRo and Dax's successful passes last Saturday to each other, the difference between them is clear. DeRo is involved all over the field and his passes are distributed pretty evenly. In contrast, Dax's passes, were almost all from the defensive middle to either the wings or full backs. Even DC's defensive midfielder Clyde Simms moved around the field more and distributed the ball more broadly than Dax. I do not know how Dax will pan out in New York, but it may be to his benefit to play under a guy like Kyle Beckerman (at RSL) at some point; a tough center-mid playing in a withdrawn position.
The addition of Brandon McDonald is also welcome, and has shorn up our defense the last few weeks. At 25, he provides some experience and greater physicality than our injured young roster. I still feel Julius James got screwed in the off-season and suspect our defense would have been better earlier if we had kept him. However, in MLS we do not need to dominate the table, just fight to make the play-offs; preferably high enough in the table to avoid the mid-week wild card round. With the international transfer window opening on 14 July, we will see if United selects one more player to shore up the defense in order to make up for injuries.
The more things change, the more they stay the same. Coming up on the All-Star break, DC United are again plagued with a boatload of injuries. I will not harp on this too much, but we now have Blake Brettschneider's on the injury report with a concussion. I wonder if along with the cliche journalists and soccer geeks once repeated like a mantra ("DC United plays with a certain style"), we will soon start to hear sexy new catch phrases such as "wounded like United" or better yet "get yer head injury on".
Despite my personal belief that DeRo is one of the league's best midfielders, this trade was a real shock. Early in the season, Dax's energy was much needed in the center of the field, but after the first month, what he was delivering was something less than what was expected or needed. In fact, he started to remind me of the section in Soccernomics where Simon Kuper and Stefan Szymanski discuss the tendency to over-value redheaded players. Specifically, they state that redheads stand out on a soccer field differently from players with black or blond hair. Scouts and other players see them more and can more easily pick out what the redheads do. Sure there are great soccer players out there with red hair, but Dax is just "pretty good".
If you compare DeRo and Dax's successful passes last Saturday to each other, the difference between them is clear. DeRo is involved all over the field and his passes are distributed pretty evenly. In contrast, Dax's passes, were almost all from the defensive middle to either the wings or full backs. Even DC's defensive midfielder Clyde Simms moved around the field more and distributed the ball more broadly than Dax. I do not know how Dax will pan out in New York, but it may be to his benefit to play under a guy like Kyle Beckerman (at RSL) at some point; a tough center-mid playing in a withdrawn position.
The addition of Brandon McDonald is also welcome, and has shorn up our defense the last few weeks. At 25, he provides some experience and greater physicality than our injured young roster. I still feel Julius James got screwed in the off-season and suspect our defense would have been better earlier if we had kept him. However, in MLS we do not need to dominate the table, just fight to make the play-offs; preferably high enough in the table to avoid the mid-week wild card round. With the international transfer window opening on 14 July, we will see if United selects one more player to shore up the defense in order to make up for injuries.
The more things change, the more they stay the same. Coming up on the All-Star break, DC United are again plagued with a boatload of injuries. I will not harp on this too much, but we now have Blake Brettschneider's on the injury report with a concussion. I wonder if along with the cliche journalists and soccer geeks once repeated like a mantra ("DC United plays with a certain style"), we will soon start to hear sexy new catch phrases such as "wounded like United" or better yet "get yer head injury on".
Friday, July 1, 2011
Friday, May 13, 2011
Sunday, May 8, 2011
United Tie Aganist Dallas: A Respectable Result
Maybe the expectation this week was lower than it was for other games, but DC's tie against Dallas feels pretty good. Dallas came to RFK after a week of rest after beating LA Galaxy at home 2-1. But United was starting it's third game in nine days, and had expended a lot of energy in its 2-1 victory over Seattle (and their arrogant fans) on Wednesday. It was with this in mind that a tie over Dallas was a welcome result.
DC defended well despite playing Dejan "Tacklem' From Behind" Jakovic at centerback, and Josh White, who is inexperienced. The midfield was instrumental to the defense too, because they were able to control possession for large chunks of the game. Even better, for the second straight game, the midfield and forwards linked up well and posed a real threat. Andy Najar again played his game, retaining possession, moving the ball, and distributing dangerously to Charlie Davies and Joseph Ngwenya. DC's best chance was probably in the waning minutes of the game, when a point blank header from Fred should have scored DC's go-ahead goal (pictured above). But an incredible save by Dallas's goal keeper, Kevin Hartman preserved the tie for them.
One more notable point to make has nothing to do with either team, but with referee Baldomero Toledo whose propensity for bad calls or missed calls often makes him the center of a game's attention. This was not the case last night. There were missed calls, and phantom foul calls, but it was not unusually poor and none of these were cause for either team (or their fans) to cry foul.
DC defended well despite playing Dejan "Tacklem' From Behind" Jakovic at centerback, and Josh White, who is inexperienced. The midfield was instrumental to the defense too, because they were able to control possession for large chunks of the game. Even better, for the second straight game, the midfield and forwards linked up well and posed a real threat. Andy Najar again played his game, retaining possession, moving the ball, and distributing dangerously to Charlie Davies and Joseph Ngwenya. DC's best chance was probably in the waning minutes of the game, when a point blank header from Fred should have scored DC's go-ahead goal (pictured above). But an incredible save by Dallas's goal keeper, Kevin Hartman preserved the tie for them.
One more notable point to make has nothing to do with either team, but with referee Baldomero Toledo whose propensity for bad calls or missed calls often makes him the center of a game's attention. This was not the case last night. There were missed calls, and phantom foul calls, but it was not unusually poor and none of these were cause for either team (or their fans) to cry foul.
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Olsen's Army Answers Call
The start of this week was tough for DC. After losing three straight games in disgraceful fashion, the boys answered the call on Wednesday, beating Seattle 2-1. Seattle came to RFK (a venue where they have never lost) chasing first place in the western conference, to play a team that had given up 11 goals in the last three games. Under pressure to show signs of life, Olsen rallied his team and ramped up pressure to a level that had not been seen all season. The result was a sucker-punch of a match that gave Seattle more fight than they were expecting.
Many of the players exceeded expectations for them for this game. Charlie Davies scored a goal with an assist from Josh Wolff. In the second half, he returned the favor for Wolff's goal. Both of these came off of balls slotted through by Andy Najar whose technical ability was in top form. The defense gave up only a single goal (on a deserved penalty kick). What about goalie Bill Hamid? His play was outstanding, and kept DC in the lead in the closing minutes of the game.
The most important thing about this game may be that when pushed into a corner, Olsen was able to rally his team. As poor as the squad played against the Houston, this week they were in sync. On Monday, Olsen's practice was intense by all accounts. It included a lot of yelling and the team's reaction could well have responded less positively. This was in stark contrast to last year's team, which was demoralized by this time last year and was unable to rally when then-coach Curt Onalfo recited his mantra that the team would have to "Dig a little deeper", after each game.
If United continue to perform well over the course of the season (even if they miss the playoffs), Olsen's effort this week will stand as a defining moment for the coach. "Game 8? Oh yeah, that's the game Benny showed what he could do."
Many of the players exceeded expectations for them for this game. Charlie Davies scored a goal with an assist from Josh Wolff. In the second half, he returned the favor for Wolff's goal. Both of these came off of balls slotted through by Andy Najar whose technical ability was in top form. The defense gave up only a single goal (on a deserved penalty kick). What about goalie Bill Hamid? His play was outstanding, and kept DC in the lead in the closing minutes of the game.
The most important thing about this game may be that when pushed into a corner, Olsen was able to rally his team. As poor as the squad played against the Houston, this week they were in sync. On Monday, Olsen's practice was intense by all accounts. It included a lot of yelling and the team's reaction could well have responded less positively. This was in stark contrast to last year's team, which was demoralized by this time last year and was unable to rally when then-coach Curt Onalfo recited his mantra that the team would have to "Dig a little deeper", after each game.
If United continue to perform well over the course of the season (even if they miss the playoffs), Olsen's effort this week will stand as a defining moment for the coach. "Game 8? Oh yeah, that's the game Benny showed what he could do."
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
DC United's Growing Pains
Everyone understood at the beginning of the season that this would be a tough year for DC United. Coach Ben Olsen warned about it. Commentators noted the club's lack of experience regularly. Fan sites expressed positivity that this year's team would be better than last year's (setting the bar extremely low). So a rough spot early in the season, with 27 matches left is not something to be alarmed about. What is more interesting is how the players and coaches deal with this adversity.
DC does not have reliable offensive playmaker. Charlie Davies though leading the race for the Golden Boot, has been better in drawing goal kicks than scoring in the run of play. Attacking midfielder and team captain Dax McCarty his served as the proverbial engine to make the team go. But he has not been the creative player that teams need in that position. Moreover, he's been losing about a million balls per came. To make matters worse, DC seems to have lost Branco Boskovic to an ACL injury, leaving him sidelined for four to six months. Over the last 2-3 games Bosko played, he alone provided an offensive spark, getting several quality shots on goal and scoring twice in Open Cup game last week (where he was later injured). Options are now limited, and it is unclear how Coach Olsen will address the midfield-especially since the team was believed to possess a strong midfield at the start of the season.
During the off-season, Onstad agreed to come to DC United to help develop the extremely young defense. However, an injury to goalkeeper Steve Cronin forced Onstad to come out of retirement to play in goal for several games. In week one the defense looked strong and reliable. By week 4, serious cracks were starting to show. United have allowed 11 goals in the last three games. Now that Onstad has returned to coaching, is it possible he will be able to rebuild the defense's ability and restore some of their confidence? Before that, DC will have a very difficult home game on 4 May against Seattle, followed by a home game against Dallas. Whether Onstad is able to start guiding the defense down a brighter path remains to be seen.
According to Washington Post reporter Steven Goff, Coach Olsen spent much of the practice on Monday 2 May yelling. Unlike during other weeks with short rests between games, United a a full two hour long practice. Throughout the practice, Olsen often stopped the team to reinforce learning points and video footage on the team's website shows him running up behind Charlie Davies and yelling at him about what looked like making a run off the ball. Is the yelling a sign of desperation? Clearly, if DC lose on Wednesday, the team could start to lose faith in their leader and as we saw in 2010, once the team loses faith in the coach the season is done.
DC United's players, coaches, management and (dare I say it?) fans, need to stick to their guns this season. Unlike in other leagues, salary restrictions in MLS require that the team endure a patient building process over a few years. Dallas FC, New York Red Bulls and especially Real Salt Lake are good examples of the process. If Coach Olsen turns the team around by the end of the 2012 season, he will have done precisely what was expected of him. But he will never get a chance to achieve that goal if he is forced to resign in the middle of this season.
DC does not have reliable offensive playmaker. Charlie Davies though leading the race for the Golden Boot, has been better in drawing goal kicks than scoring in the run of play. Attacking midfielder and team captain Dax McCarty his served as the proverbial engine to make the team go. But he has not been the creative player that teams need in that position. Moreover, he's been losing about a million balls per came. To make matters worse, DC seems to have lost Branco Boskovic to an ACL injury, leaving him sidelined for four to six months. Over the last 2-3 games Bosko played, he alone provided an offensive spark, getting several quality shots on goal and scoring twice in Open Cup game last week (where he was later injured). Options are now limited, and it is unclear how Coach Olsen will address the midfield-especially since the team was believed to possess a strong midfield at the start of the season.
During the off-season, Onstad agreed to come to DC United to help develop the extremely young defense. However, an injury to goalkeeper Steve Cronin forced Onstad to come out of retirement to play in goal for several games. In week one the defense looked strong and reliable. By week 4, serious cracks were starting to show. United have allowed 11 goals in the last three games. Now that Onstad has returned to coaching, is it possible he will be able to rebuild the defense's ability and restore some of their confidence? Before that, DC will have a very difficult home game on 4 May against Seattle, followed by a home game against Dallas. Whether Onstad is able to start guiding the defense down a brighter path remains to be seen.
According to Washington Post reporter Steven Goff, Coach Olsen spent much of the practice on Monday 2 May yelling. Unlike during other weeks with short rests between games, United a a full two hour long practice. Throughout the practice, Olsen often stopped the team to reinforce learning points and video footage on the team's website shows him running up behind Charlie Davies and yelling at him about what looked like making a run off the ball. Is the yelling a sign of desperation? Clearly, if DC lose on Wednesday, the team could start to lose faith in their leader and as we saw in 2010, once the team loses faith in the coach the season is done.
DC United's players, coaches, management and (dare I say it?) fans, need to stick to their guns this season. Unlike in other leagues, salary restrictions in MLS require that the team endure a patient building process over a few years. Dallas FC, New York Red Bulls and especially Real Salt Lake are good examples of the process. If Coach Olsen turns the team around by the end of the 2012 season, he will have done precisely what was expected of him. But he will never get a chance to achieve that goal if he is forced to resign in the middle of this season.
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