Who Ate All the Lobster Rolls?

Battle of Algiers, less blood equal amount of tears

2010-06-24T16:58:00.002-04:00

So I’m writing this at 10:30 at night shortly after I watched the game. I had to wait until I got home from work to watch the game, I ignored texts and calls from families and friends, I prefaced all conversations to fellow soccer fans with “I haven’t watched the game, don’t tell me anything about it.” So after a shit day at work I settled down with a beer, dinner and my small MacBook screen to watch the game. Aside from the early scary shot off the crossbar by Algeria the US played heroically attacking, taking shots and just generally playing their hearts out. My heart started to break around the 85th minute thinking that, here the US is playing the best they’ve played all World Cup and they may end up going home with two goals dubiously recalled. Then a ridiculous throw by Howard, a pass, a deflected shot from Dempsey and the goal from Landon (I’m retiring the use of the name Landycakes for now, he’s earned it.) As the clock ticked down the final seconds I realized I had seen the best game of any sport I have ever seen. Better than Cal Ripkin beating Lou Gehrig’s record, better than the countless times the Sacramento Kings beat the Los Angeles Lakers and better than watching the Cal Bears stomp Stanford at the Big Game. It was the beautiful game.

Preview for USA /Algeria

2010-06-23T07:10:00.003-04:00

USA V England

So before the England game what were you're real expectations, hopes and dreams for the U.S.? If you're telling the truth, I think you expected a loss, hoped for a tie and dreamt of a win. Me, I was expecting a draw, hoping for a win and having nightmares about a pasting like the one the Czech Republic laid on us in our opening group match in 2006. And then the game started and 5 minutes in, the nightmare seemed to be happening in real life. A complete breakdown of the U.S. defense in the middle of the field, some quick passing from the Brits and Gerrard is in on Howard alone for the easy goal. Fortunately (well fortunately assuming you are U.S. fan) the U.S. settled down after that and kept the solid chances to a minimum the rest of the game. Meanwhile the U.S. generated some chances with Altidore flashing an open header wide. Then Dempsey hit his hopeful shot that the goalkeeper bungled into the net and the U.S. was tied going into the half. Things were much the same in the second half with Altidore unlucky not to put the U.S. up 2-1. The U.S. played a tough gritty game, but I don't think they played as well as they can.

USA V Slovenia

This game was definitely a game of two halves with the US having defensive breakdowns and miscommunications in the back leading to fast counterattacks and goals being scored by the Slovenians in the first half to the US taking control of the midfield and furiously attacking in the second half with Landon Donovan playing the best game I have seen from him in a while. And if we're going to be honest here the US came back from a 2-0 deficit at the half to score three goals in the second (yes 3 Mr. Coulibaly). As the English fans at the bar where I was watching say, "we were robbed."

USA V Algeria

To start off I would like us not to go down by a goal or two first which seems to be our curious strategy this World Cup. Aside from the world cup games themselves the US were down a goal first in six of their ten world cup qualifying matches. Perhaps it is to lull the opponent into a false sense of security thereby making it easier to score goals or perhaps it is a conspiracy with ESPN to make soccer seem more exciting to new fans thereby attracting more viewers. Second I think Maurice Edu proved in the last game (and during qualifiers) that he is the better option in the midfield, Torres just got knocked around by the Slovenians and Clark was a bit slow against the English. Thirdly Findley being unavailable for this game because of yellow cards is a plus since it will force Bradley to play the exciting goal scoring Gomez or Buddle. So let's go USA and advance to the Round of 16!

Five Things I learned from Day 1 of the 2010 World Cup

2010-06-12T10:37:00.002-04:00

1. France really really should have fired Domenech after Euro Cup 2008.

2. South Africa is leading the cup for best goal celebrations.

3. According to I believe Martin Tyler, Cuauhtemoc Blanco is not only one of the oldest field players this tournament but also he looks to be the heaviest. I love it!

4. Even the British announcers flub offsides calls.

5. Uruguay has a good chance of getting out of group.

So Group A predictions at the end of their first day of play I go for South Africa and Uruguay to get out of group. France implodes and Mexico continues to flub scoring opportunities which they will inevitably blame on the ball.

4 hours to Kick-Off

2010-06-12T10:27:00.004-04:00

If you're not pumped yet for the US-England match there is really not much I can do for you. But here are five us soccer commercials to help get you fired up.

1. The Tony Danza Productions fan made effort
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxBlpzVSOCQ

2. US Soccer's inspiring clip.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DrCZIFNdW6Y

3. Gatorade's Commercial with nice use of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDgEosqZGCM&feature=related

4. One of the many US Soccer commercials using "Over There"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCqZsFM7Sg8

5. Nike's awesome jab at the US right wing commentators who have a peculiar animosity towards soccer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MfRflwe1WXA&feature=related

Ozzie, Ozzie, Ozzie ---3-1,3-1,3-1

2010-06-06T15:44:00.005-04:00

Was the back line a little shaky at times, yes. Did Hahnemann miss a plethora of dangerous crosses, yes. But let's not miss the forest through the trees, the US Men's National Team soundly defeated a strong Australian team who had been on a winning streak .

In the lead up to the World Cup I had been more concerned with the front line and how we were going to be able to score goals which are necessary to winning, but now with the addition of lower profile players like Edson Buddle and Herculez Gomez to proven goal scorers like Jozy Altidore and Clint Dempsey scoring goals no longer seems like a concern for the Men's National Team. Indeed the play of Buddle against Australia not only alleviates the concerns over Altidore’s fitness after the minor ankle sprain. It may create an actual dilemma in Coach Bob’s mind as to who to start: Altidore or Buddle. And if Findley finishes his two golden opportunities or if Dempsey’s goal isn’t called back on a questionable offsides call, the score could easily have been 5 or 6 to 1 against a team that has a reputation for a strong defense. On the other hand it is becoming increasingly clear that once crowded back line that seems to be the weakest point of the team. In the first half only poor finishing on the Aussie’s part (particularly Kennedy) kept them from tying or going ahead. It was not the right and left back positions that were the issue this time, but the center backs. It did not appear that Goodson and DeMerit were on the same page. Clark had a better game then against Turkey, but there were still disturbing gaps in the middle of the park and the usual set of giveaways on bad passes. Bradley was not much better in the passing department. In the second half, the Onyewu/DeMerit pairing was much sturdier and the Aussies had far fewer solid chances. The commentators liked to pick on Onyewu as a the weak point but his play in the last two appearances (Turkey and Australia) has been very tidy.

While on the subject on the commentators, John Harkes, and Martin Tyler absolutely underwhelmed. US Soccer blogosphere has cheered their appointment with "at least they know soccer" but to me this is damning with faint praise. Harkes has consistently shown a lack of soccer awareness by touting the play of US players like Klejstan, and Ching while ragging on Dempsey and Bradley. You only need to look at the US starting lineup to see how prescient his commentary is. And while Martin Tyler may be British he was golf announcer boring. Although this will not be the case I would much prefer to hear Derek Rae and Adrian Healy announce the US matches, heck hire Greg Lalas and Jay Heaps who have done an excellent job covering MLS and are far more intelligent and entertaining than John Harkes.

Just for a moment, let’s talk about Herculez Gomez and Robbie Findley. With the few minutes Gomez has had, he has scored two goals and shown the ability to take his shots when they are there. This may seem obvious, but far too many times we have seen US midfielders and forwards pass up an open shot, try to make a perfect pass and give the ball away. The goal Gomez scored against Australia may have looked simple, but it wasn’t. He had to reach slightly behind him and yet still got enough power on the ball to drive it past Schwarzer before he could get down on the ground to stop it. Findley has shown far more class in his last two games then in any previous U.S. appearances or any of the MLS games of his I have seen. Perhaps he is poised for a breakout. I think there is a very good chance we see him starting alongside Buddle or Altidore against England.

Final thoughts- I think the back line needs to get it together to be able to face the speed and power of Wayne Rooney, Steven Gerrard and Aaron Lennon but it will be a strong US team that will face England on Saturday and a tougher match than England is probably expecting. So watch out England, the Yanks are coming!

Thoughts on the Last Stateside Friendlies

2010-06-06T12:05:00.010-04:00

After watching conversative Bob Bradley during qualifiers, we are now seeing Riverboat Gambler Bob. Robbie Findley? I defy anyone to say they predicted that. And no Brian Ching? Again I defy anyone to say they predicted that. Herculez Gomez? Edson Buddle? Two months ago they were off the radar. And yet they are in South Africa and Conner Casey isn't. Many predicted Klejstan would be on the squad ahead of Torres. Nope. Even Edu and Beasley could be considered surprises. After Beasley's disasterous outing in the Confederations Cup, most wrote off his national career. So again - what has turned Conservative Bob into Riverboat Gambler Bob? I have a theory and aren't you surprised? In qualifying the pressure is on. There is no room for error as not qualifying is not only unthinkable, but also career limiting. And make no mistake - Bob Bradley is an ambitious man. So why change course so drastically now? Well, Bradley is a student of the game of soccer. He was an assistant in 2006. And I am sure he watched all the games in 2002. What was the difference between those two squads and why were the results so different? A number of key players in the 2002 squad came out of nowhere. Wolfe, Beasley and Mastroeni for instance. O'Brien only 13 caps. In the 2006 squad most of the starters were all known entities with lots of experience with the exception of Dempsey and Onyewu. So who scores the only goal in 2006 for the U.S.? Dempsey. What would Bradley take from that? Maybe he gets the idea that the fellows with lots of caps have already shown all that they have. There won't be any surprises. That's good and bad. If your known entities are very very good - well you can count on they continuing to provide the kind of skill and inventiveness you have seen from them before. It they are just good, well you get what get. However, with the newbies, maybe just maybe you get a bit of inventiveness and guile that leads to something great. A Josh Wolfe run along the goal line with a great cutback pass to get the U.S. off on to a great start against Portugal. And the newbies might be too young or too green to understand the pressure they are supposed to feel. Sometimes pressure makes diamonds and sometimes it makes puddles of goo. So thats why I think Bob has turned into Riverboat Gambler Bob. To make it out of the first round and exceed whatever expectation Sunil Gulati has for him, he needs that inventiveness, that unawareness of the pressure that could lead to those moments of brilliance that lead to goals. And goals are what they need. So in light of that what are we too make of the performances against the Czech Republic.

Here is what I saw. Herculez Gomez is unafraid. Yes the goal he scored against the Czech Republic was set up nicely, but he scored it. How many times have we seen Ching back one off the crossbar or post in the same situation. Buddle throws his body around and sets up the first goal by going up against Petr Cech and beating him to the ball. He ends up with a bloody lip and a ticket to South Africa. Beasley proved he still deserves a place on the national team through an all out gritty performance against the Czechs. When he is playing well he torments the defense with his speed and draws fouls. Holden continues to press a case for a starting role. Pearce played his way out of the squad with a horrorshow performance. Onyewu looked rusty. Cherundolo was effective at times but was slow to close down a couple of crosses. Bornstein would have played his way off the squad were there any alternative at all at left back.

And against Turkey? Well, I don't think Spector starts. He pretty much ceded the starting job to Cherundolo. Not for the goal - he didn't distinguish himself and he didn't contribute anything on offense. The rest of the defense in the first half was meh.Turkey had way too many shots and only poor finishing prevented the score from being 3 or 4 to 0 in the first half. Not that the rest of the team distinguished themselves. The Bradley/Clark pairing was not effective and Donovan and Feilhaber just didn't play up to their respective billings. The second half was a completely different story. Findley and Torres opened up the offense, Findley with his speed and Torres with his passing. Onyewu came in for Goodson and the paring with Demerit brought back fond memories of the Confederations Cup. The U.S. outplayed the Turkish team and scored 2 goals and should have had 2 or 3 more. So what do we take from that? I think what we have known all along, that the US Men's team has a chance to shine in South Africa if they show up and play like they can or they could fade into mediocrity in the group round by playing without the daring and confidence they will need to succeed.

Watching the Revs from a Skybox

2010-05-01T17:02:00.001-04:00

As a season ticket holder you get a few perks. A special line to go through, discounts at the merchandise store from time to time and this year we got the opportunity to watch the game from a skybox. When first presented with this opportunity I was fairly iffy on it, I like being amongst fans who are cheering and yelling at the refs (like myself) and didn’t know what it would be like up in a skybox. On the plus side the offer came with free food and non-alcoholic beverages. So after dithering for a few days, my wife and I decided what the heck. We had never seen a game from a skybox before, so why not.

Iit was like watching the game in someone else’s living room that you didn’t know that well. You couldn’t always tell who had the ball (well except for Larentowicz and Wells Thompson and it wasn’t easy to pick out what was happening when a lot of bodies were around the ball. In addition, we had the Comcast Revs broadcast on several T.V. and there was an 8 or 9 second lag, so you would see something on the field and then here it described in the background several seconds later.

During halftime Matt Reis came up to visit and he was very cordial to everyone – especially the kids that were there. If getting autographs appealed to me that would have been a great perk. All in all, I much prefer watching from my seats in section 106.

As for the game itself, I was already worried about facing a midfield combo of Mastroeni and Larentowicz and when the starting lineup was announced with no Sharlie Joseph, I had a sinking feeling. As the game played out it became clear that our midfield couldn’t handle theirs. Still, we had some chances early on but a chance that went begging led to a Rapids Goal. Dube missed yet another gift wrapped scoring opportunity and the Raped hit on a counterattack with Ballouchy hitting a bouncer past Burpo that I think he should have done better with. Shortly after that Nyassi won a free kick and Perovic hit a marvelous free kick into the upper right hand corner that the Rapids goalie could do nothing with.

Dube had another golden opportunity towards the end of the half but hit a harmless header to the goalie. The Revs again had chances in the second half but could put nothing away. Colorado got a goal off a great holdup play by Casey who managed to bring down a ball with Gibbs or Barnes draped all over him (I couldn’t tell from the skybox) and laid off a perfect pass to Mastroeni that he blasted into the net. After that it was all over but the shouting.

So what’s next for the Rev’s? One thing is clear – without Joseph, the combination of Niouky and Phelan is not the answer. Me – I favor putting Perovic in Joseph’s role and playing either Tierney or Mansally on the left side. We will see what Nicol comes up with in tonight’s game.

Shaky against the Quakes

2010-04-24T16:36:00.002-04:00

courtesy of revolutionsoccer.net

Clearly I jumped the gun on the end of the Rev's potential scoring woes and on the emergence of Schilawski. No goals for the Rev's and a fairly invisible game from Schilawski. Joseph once again proved his value to the Rev's by not being on the pitch. Without Joseph the Revs lost the midfield battle and therefore the game. One might quibble with the first goal (and I do - Chris Tierney was flattened in the play that San Jose got the ball and although I have not since a good enough replay to tell for sure, it appeared the goal scorer was offside), but one cannot quibble with the notion that San Jose controlled the midfield and that Bobby Convey ran rampant through the Rev's defense.

The pairing of Perovic and Schilawski did not seem to work well. Perhaps it is the fact that Perovic has simply not played enough with his new teammates. And since the midfield was losing the battle there was not a lot of linkup between the defense and the forwards. Without Joseph, Niouky was not as effective and was back to spraying passes as he did in the first game of the season. Phelan was his usual self. Bite in the midfield, but an inability to make that springing pass.

The second goal came off a corner kick by Convey on which Ike Opara threw Barnes to the ground to get into position to get the clinching goal. Opara had another open header in the first half which he hit over the goal and the San Jose attack generated significantly more chances then the Rev's attack did.

The defense showed troubling gaps against San Jose and the Rev's were lucky not to be down a couple of goals at halftime which was primarily thanks to Burpo who came up several good stops to keep the Rev’s close. Either San Jose is better then last year or the Rev's defense isn't as good as I though they were. It was interesting to read some commentary about how good Cannon was in this game and no mention of Burpo who made the more difficult stops. Cannon made stops on shots right at him and was saved by a San Jose player (Convey?) being at the right place on a header by Barnes.

So what will happen in tonight's game? Well Joseph will be back and that can do nothing but improve chances. On the other side of the ball will be our old friend Laurentowicz. It will be interesting to see how things go on the first 50-50 ball between them. I am a bit worried about this game. Colorado is a better team then they were last year and if Schilawski and Perovic are still not on the same page, I don't know if the Rev's will generate scoring chances. And hopefully I haven't jinxed Schilawski with my over effusive praise in my last post.

Home Opener

2010-04-24T16:28:00.003-04:00

courtesy of revolutionsoccer.net

Well, in my preview post for the home opener with TFC game I predicted Kenny Mansally would start and Joseph would not. Well fortunately for the Revs, Steve Nicol did not listen to me. When the Revs marched onto the field, who is the first one out? Joseph. And who is nowhere to be seen? Mansally. The game almost started with a Revolution bang when Joseph managed to get his head on a Nyassi cross and direct it towards the goal from an awkward angle. Dube in an attempt to knock it in while sprawling on the ground managed to knock it over the goal. I am still not sure (after watching the Comcast rebroadcast of the game on Sunday) that the ball wouldn’t have gone in on its own without any assistance from Dube for a quick one goal lead. Later in the half Nyassi scuffed a shot when he was alone in front of the goal with a fairly wide open goal in front of him and the goalie out of position. And then TFC gets a goal out of nothing when a partial clearance goes out wide and Garcia (Garcia!?) sends in a cross that De Rosario manages to head just inside the post. It was a great header and as always whenever De Rosario has the ball, it causes me unease. Toronto had the lead going into the half and with a Preki coached team I looked forward to a foul fest in the second half.

Well I hadn’t counted on the rise of Schilawski and the shambolic TFC defense. Two minutes into the second half, Nyassi and Dube played a beautiful bit on one touch soccer which led to a cross that Schilawski almost couldn’t help but knock into the goal. It woke the crowd and seemed to inspire the Revs. Shortly after that Schilawski stripped Garcia walked in on goal and calmly slotted the ball back the TFC goalkeeper on the near post. This was a poachers goal and finished in a way that –dare I say it – reminded me of Twellman (imagine the sound of knocking on wood). Then shortly after that Joseph sends a beautiful through ball down the right to Dube who hits a perfect cross that Schilawski sends into goal with a tricky side footed volley. As Schilawski walks to the flag he points at Dube with a wry grin. I liked that. He even had a chance for a fourth goal after another beautiful splitting past, but the ball seemed to get stuck on the turf and Schilawski couldn’t find the purchase to go around to the goalie or slot it past him. But that was not the end of the scoring. Nyassi pounced on an errant back pass from a TFC defender (not Garcia this time) and rocketed a shot that Frei got a hand on to no avail. Perovic came on for Dube and almost scored in his debut. He was taller then I expected for some reason but showed quality in his brief sting. Although advertised as a midfielder it seems as if Nicol wants to try him at forward. The rest of the game was uneventful and the Revs finished off the 4-1 win with little resistance from TFC.

So what do we take from this game other then the fact that the Toronto defense may well be the worst in the MLS?

Well the midfield tandem of Joseph and Niouky has the potential to be the best midfield pair in the MLS. Niouky was very tidy in the game and not only did the dirty work expected of a defensive mid, but made a lot of nice little passes to get out of trouble and start attacks. In the first two games it was almost as if he was trying too hard to impress. He was spraying passes to no one in particular and had some bad giveaways in the middle of the field on the wrong side of the halfway line. In this game while he had a couple of errant passes, none were on the wrong side of the halfway line.

The Revs defense had a chance to be really good. Gibbs continues to impress as does the rookie Sinovic. When Barnes is healthy Nicol will have a nice dilemma. He has 5 quality backs with four spots.

The Forward position may not be as threadbare as I was worried it would be.
So what do I think in lieu of the first 3 games? Well I hesitate to draw too much from games against two clubs that are clearly struggling but I think that Dube and Schilawski have the potential to better a better forward tandem then anything we saw from the Revs last year. I have seen far more fluidity in the attack this year and the Revs may have the personnel to play the kind of possession and attack oriented soccer that they played with while going to the MLS cup 3 out of 4 years. For the past two years they have played a gritty almost ugly kind of soccer that got results but didn’t generate the attacking fluidity we had come to associate with the Revs.

So on to San Jose who went into Chicago and beat the Fire at home after starting with two fairly dreadful games. Let’s hope the Revs draw confidence from this win and continue to play with steel in back and center midfield and attacking fluidity on the wings and up front.

One last note – with the win against TFC, Steve Nicol reached the 100 win mark – only the 3rd coach in MLS to reach that milestone. He has made the playoffs every year he has coached the Revs. In some ways, I think he did his best job last year when he got a battered Revs team that simply didn’t have the same level of talent on the field as the other team on many nights into the playoffs. LA and Real Salt Lake (and their respective coaches) deservedly got most of the press last year, but Nicol quietly did a better job – or so says I.

Home Opener Preview

2010-04-10T15:59:00.002-04:00

photo courtesy of revolutionsoccer.net

Tonight is the home opener for the Revs playing against TFC. Given that TFC is now coached by Preki, I suspect that TFC will be as dirty a team as Chivas was last year - which means the potential for injuries. Given that, I expect Nicols to start Phelan and Niouky in the center midfield as they will certainly match the predicted physical play of Toronto. The only change I expect for the starting lineup is Mansally in place of Schilawski.

I hope the weather is nicer then last year's opener which as I recall was brutally cold. Earlier this week, we had some unseasonably warm days, and I was hopeful that would continue for tonight’s game. But alas the weather made one of its usual New England right turns and it was quite chilly this morning. As I type this, it is sunny, but I know it will be cold and windy tonight - just like we New Englanders like it!

So here's hoping for early goals, a large fan turnout and a complete pasting of TFC by our Revs.

Last Week's Game in Brief

2010-04-10T15:50:00.003-04:00

photo courtesy of revolutionsoccer.net

So one again a day late (well several) and a dollar short (well blogs are free so maybe not). At any rate, several things stood out in last Saturday's game for me. The first was the fantastic debut of Jay Heaps as the color man for the Revs. At one point during the game he spoke of how as an defender when the attacker gets close your blood begins to boil. At another point, after the ref (Baldomero Toledo) gave a warning to Alston for grousing about a call not made, Heaps sympathized with his former teammate. So even though I miss Greg Lalas (the smarter Lalas), I do like Heaps.

Interesting to note that the Revs started the same lineup as the first game. I don't remember if that happened once last year.

Overall the defense looks good. Gibbs continues to impress and once Sharlie gets back on the field, the midfield will be strong as well. But Nicols will have to make some tough lineup choices pretty quickly. Where does Barnes fit in? You can't displace Gibbs, he is playing way too well. Osei is also playing well as is the rookie Sinovic and of course Alston. Then you add in the arrival of Perovic (assuming he is as good as advertised) and you have a pretty congested center midfield with some interesting possibilities. You can photo courtesy of revolutionsoccer.net

go defensive (as the Revs did in the first two games with Niouky and Phelan), you can go attacking (Joseph and Perovic) or some combination. On the wings, it looks like Tierny has earned a consistent starting position on the left and based on his performance in the first two games is probably the best choice.

Lastly what a great (and surprising) display from Kenny Mansally. In 21 minutes he scores two goals, the second of which was a great individual effort that left two D.C. defenders looking for their shorts and the goalkeeper standing flat footed in admiration. So who starts up top against TFC in the home opener? My guess is Dube and Mansally. Even though Nicols tried to fashion Mansally into a back to the goal attacker for the past two years, it is clear that is not his forte. If he and Dube can form the partnership they weren't able to two years ago, the Revs could finally start to generate some goal scoring opportunities to go with their defensive strength. If so, then my fear that the Revs don't make the playoffs this year quickly goes away.

Make Your Voice Heard!

2010-03-30T17:53:00.004-04:00

No I'm not talking about the US Census though you should fill that out as well. I'm talking about the US Soccer 2010 Fan Survey where you get asked all important questions about what you think about there membership and my favorite question where you indicate if the reason you watch US Soccer matches on the television rather than attend is because of the commentary you get to hear on the television broadcasts. At the very least you're entered in a drawing for US Soccer Gear.

http://www.ussoccer.com/Social/2010-Survey.aspx

Blake's Random Rants and Musings

2010-03-30T07:43:00.004-04:00

Blake here again with rants and thoughts about MLS.

Having seen Joel Lindpere of the Red Bulls now hit two great strikes for goals (one the exhibition match against Santos and the second in the Red Bulls opener at their new arena), I think he is going to be a great player for the Red Bulls - who look miles better then last year unfortunately.

Why or why did ESPN hire Max Bretos? Seeing him doing the halftime studio show for the opener for ESPN was jarring to say the least. At least Heaps has retired so I won't here him describe Heaps as from New Hampshire instead of Longmeadow, Mass where he went to high school. But that probably does mean if I happen to drop by CBS scene after a game he will be there with his bouncer entourage. Really ESPN? Max Bretos? You couldn't find anyone else? What did Rob Stone do to be confined to the role of sideline reporter? And keeping John Harkes? Paring Harks and Bretos is the soccer equivalent of Dumb and Dumber. At least at Fox, Bretos fit in with the other MLS announcing mediocrities.

What is it about Philly teams? Is there some requirement that they be thugs and bullies? It seems that the Philadelphia Union have taken the Broadstreet Bullies example to heart based on their performance against Seattle in the MLS season opener. They may be a dirtier team then Chivas under Preki. I don't remember Nowak's D.C. United teams being that thuggy, but then again they had better players. I guess if the other team is more talented, the best approach is to foul, foul and foul again. On a plus side, the ref issued early yellows and even doled out a Red in the first half. If we see more of that from the refs this season, perhaps that kind of play will diminish.

And finally a stadium rant.

O.K. the Red Bulls now have a great soccer stadium. Hey Kraft’s - where is the vaunted rivalry between New York and Boston. The Red Bulls now have one of the best soccer stadiums in the MLS. Aren't you challenged? Are you willing to stand by and let that go? Build a soccer specific stadium. Put it close to a T stop and see your attendance grow. Or continue to hold game in cavernous Patriots stadium with the football lines come pre-season and the Patriots cocoa mugs come football season. But if you don't, please don't tell us fans how important the Revs are to you.

Rev's Season Opener

2010-03-30T07:32:00.006-04:00

photo courtesy of www.revolutionsoccer.net

Blake here,

So here was the Revs starting lineup for the first game of the season against the LA Galaxy:

Phelan, Alston, Shilawski, Dube, Nyassi, Niouky, Tierney, Sinovic, Gibbs, Osei, Burpo

Just out of curiosity, I went back and dug up the starting lineup for the opening game last year against San Jose:

Reis, Tierney, Heaps, Barnes, Alston, Thompson, Joseph, Larentowicz, Nyassi, Mansally,Dube

So if you're counting that's 4 players (Tierney, Alston, Nyassi, Dube) who started in both season openers. That's a fairly significant change. Now in fairness when Barnes, Joseph and Reis are healthy they will be starting and Osei was a consistent started by the end of the year. Still, I hope this doesn't turn out to presage a trend that emerged last year when I don't believe the Revs started the same lineup in two consecutive games the whole year. And with two new starters in the back line, you might worry that set pieces could present a problem. Sure enough in the fifth minute, Buddle scored on a header off a free kick that Nyassi gave away needlessly. I couldn't tell who lost Buddle on the free kick but in the halftime highlights, it looked like maybe Sinovic let Buddle get to the inside. There were a couple of other scary moments on free kicks in the first half as well.

In the second half, the Revs looked better and Shilawski and Tierney both delivered great passes that Dube converted into... nothing. Damn, I miss Twellman. At a minimum he puts away one of those chances if not both. As for the rest of the team, Phelan did nothing to suggest that he is an adequate replacement in midfield. He sprayed passes mostly to LA and other then that wasn't much of a presence. Niouky, a new player from Senegal at times looked good, but had several bad giveaways on the wrong side of the halfway line. Nyassi still seems to wait too long to make the pass. His speed gives defenders fits but until he learns to make the pass before he has dribbled into a situation where he loses the ball, he is still more promise that actual danger.I was impressed with Gibbs. The last few times I have seen him play for Colorado, he seemed a shadow of the player who at one time was an automatic selection for the U.S. National Team. If he has recovered from all the knee injuries and can play at that level again, I may not hate the Kraft’s quite so much for trading Larentowicz .

On a side note, has anyone noticed that the Kraft’s have traded or released a couple of players who trialed with European clubs - think Noonan and now Larentowicz. If Twellman hadn't been such a huge name, I wonder if they would have traded or released him after he tried to join Preston.

So what did we learn from the opener? Not much. Without Sharlie Joseph, the Revs are a different team (well duh!). They will have trouble scoring (that is different from last year how?). The Revs play better in the second half of games (a Nicol trademark). Fox soccer announcers make my teeth hurt (no change there either). It will be interesting to see how they fare against D.C. at D.C., historically a bad place to travel for the Revs and perhaps more so after the 4-0 shellacking they took at the hands of K.C.

Back to Blogging - The National Team Plays Holland

2010-03-17T09:40:00.007-04:00

Blake here. So I know I am late to the blogging party after the Holland game and no doubt everything that could be said has been said. And yes it seems like this blog has been on sabbatical for quite some time. In my defense, I have none.

So Holland and the U.S. The standout player in the first half was Stuart Holden until the vicious tackle by De Jong. On the replay of the De Jong tackle, it is pretty clear it was intentional. No one has remarked on this, but the ball is already out of reach when De Jong begins his slide. Then he clearly kicks Holder aiming for the ankle. FIFA won't do anything of course because De Jong plays for Holland and Holden plays for the U.S., but that should have resulted not just in a red card, but in a several game suspension.

In the second half it was DeMarcus Beasley, really!I think we have seen the resurrection of DeMarcus Beasley's corpse. Presumed dead after the disastrous Confederations Cup in Africa last summer, he was the best player on the pitch in the second half for the U.S. tormenting the Dutch back line. Bedoya was also a revelation, he created chances with great runs and opened up space. I would like to see more of him.

And where was Landon? The darling of the Everton supporters was invisible in this game. I can’t think of a single play he made that had any impact on the game. Landon rarely shows up to play against "better teams", to put it another way if he's not the prettiest girl at the ball he doesn't dance.

Now for who stood out for the wrong reason, how many catastrophic mistakes does Bornstein get? The tug on the jersey in the box was the kind of mistake that loses games. And it's not like Bornstein has done anything near enough to earn the benefit of the doubt for that kind of mistake. What happens if he makes a mistake like that in June? He may be faster then Pearce, but Pearce provides much better service and seems to be much smarter positionally. This is one of Bradley's blind spots much like Arena's with Agoos in 2002 and Reyna in 2006.

So what did we learn? Well, we learned that the U.S. can go toe to toe with the Dutch. Yes the Dutch won 2-1 but one of those goals was a penalty and the other a deflected shot (Bornstein again). In the second half the U.S. was taking the game to the Dutch and I am sure that was a pretty nervous team in the final 10 minutes. The U.S. still has trouble building through the middle and we still don’t have a replacement for Charlie Davies. Robbie Findlay is not ready and Eddie Johnson still can’t play at the speed he needs or take advantage of chances that come his way. Johnson has the skills I think, but lacks the necessary arrogance to impose his will. A telling side note – in a game earlier (much earlier) in the Premier League, he come on late in the second half for Fulham. He makes a great play to steal the ball and has a clear shot on goal, but rolls in just wide. What happens if he makes that shot? Does his confidence explode? He would be the hero of the game and no doubt get more playing time with Fulham. But the chance and the opportunity goes begging. That I think is the story of Eddie Johnson.

Links

2009-10-18T20:44:00.004-04:00

Revolution Soccer Blog explains the complicated playoff scenarios for the Revs.

The Original Winger has a video of US National Team Fans celebrating the win at CBS Scene here.

Oh ladies, Cosmo had picked Taylor Twellman as one of the 51 Sexiest Bachelors. Link comes complete with cheesy boy band type photo and banal quotes.

Charlie Davies has been moved out of the intensive care. US soccer has a whole section of their website for updates on how he is doing and fans can email him at charliedavies9@yahoo.com

Scene and Heard

2009-10-18T20:28:00.002-04:00

A couple of additional notes about watching at CBS Scene.

First about the broadcast - the closed circuit broadcast was pretty poor. The picture was not sharp and they would show 7 or 8 consecutive replays and then cut back to the game and you had no idea what you missed. The broadcasters doing the English broadcast were great though. I don't know who they were, but ESPN should hire them and replace Harkes and Delacamera immediately. They were incisive and knew the game. They pointed out things that Casey was doing well that Harkes for one would have missed. He would have moaned about how Casey wasn't chasing the ball enough - just like he always does about Dempsey. I am not sure what Harkes looks for in a soccer player, but I think it must involve constant pointless running around. At any rate listening to announcers who really knew soccer was refreshing.

Second being at CBS Scene meant I saw some soccer celebrities. At the table across from our booth Max Bretos (of FSC) was sitting with two bouncer looking guys who I can only assume were bodyguards. He must be worried that some Massachusetts fans were going to rough him up for constantly referring to Jay Heaps as being from New Hampshire when everyone knows he grew up and played high school soccer in Longmeadow, MA. And rather then actually watch the game, he was constantly talking on his cell phone or texting. The only time I heard cheers from his table was when Honduras scored their first goal. It just confirmed my already low opinion of him from listening to his announcing idiocy on FSC. And then during one of the trips to the restroom I was standing in line next to Greg Lalas who announces for Channel 38. I was tempted to ask him why he got all the brain in the Lalas family, but decided that wasn't a good idea. I am sure they were other NE soccer celebrities there (our friend Herb mentioned he had talked to Mike Burns), but alas, I would not know most of them from Adam.

US score a coup in Honduras

2009-10-18T20:21:00.004-04:00

First, I want to thank the Krafts or whoever was responsible for getting CBS Scene at Foxboro to purchase the closed circuit broadcast for the U.S. Honduras game. Without that I would not have been able to see one of the best games the U.S. has ever played.

So once the New England Revolution game was over we trooped down to the entrance for the closed circuit viewing party. We met a new friend in line (Herb) who was gracious enough to offer the one member of our group who didn't have a reserved seat, an extra seat he had. We then heard that the upstairs was open and all went upstairs and the 5 of us squeezed around a booth. It was an interesting way to watch the game.

Honduras started out a fast and were carrying the attack to the U.S. The U.S. however had the best chances in the first half as Bocanega hit an open header over the crossbar and Davies scuffed a rebound over everyone with an empty net in front of him after drawing a great reaction save from the goalkeeper on a header of a Holden cross. Casey (yes that Casey) looked good in the first half and was doing a nice job as the target forward. He has much better control then Altidore and seems to have better footwork then Ching. Having seen him play against the Revs and against Everton in the MLS all star game, I was wondering if he could translate that to the bigger stage of the National team. He had some appearances under Arena before he was injured and had some moments in the Confederations Cup and Gold cup, but not as a starter. So it was somewhat of a surprise to see him start. I have felt that with a full game he would wear down defenders and begin to create space. And in the second half that is what happened. But first we had to have the classic CONCACAF reffing call of a foul on Onyewu for what replays showed were a clear dive by the attacker. The Honduran converted, but unlike the game against Costa Rica, it seemed like the goal pissed off the U.S. players and they started to take the game to Honduras. Casey got a classic Casey goal using his size to hold off the goalkeeper and head the ball into the net. The thing I like about Casey is he uses his size intelligently. He doesn’t throw elbows, he doesn't grab, he positions. His second goal showed off his footwork. Then Casey draws a foul and Donovan hits a great free kick to put the U.S. up 3-1 and I am thinking we've got this.

Of course not. Honduras pulls back a goal after no offsides was called with three players at least two feet offside. But, hey this is CONCACAF, if the U.S. doesn't get a few bad calls it wouldn't be right. And then Holden commits a bonehead handball foul in the box (similar to the bonehead foul he committed against Holland in the Olympics) and the Hondurans are awarded (rightly) a P.K. Fortunately Pavon skied it over the crossbar and it was all over but the shouting. The U.S. came back from the goal deficit to score 3 in a row and dominated play for long stretches of the second half.

A couple of additional notes - for all those saying Holden should start for Dempsey (and I have seen many) Holden has a penchant for silly fouls. The one against Honduras (which fortunately didn't cost the U.S.) the one against Holland in the Olympics - which cost the U.S. a chance to advance out of group play and there have been others. He is a wild card in a bad way. For those who say we should have qualified a while ago, this was the strongest Hexagonal I have seen. Usually there are at most 3 good teams, but this year one could make the argument that there were 5 good teams. So now we go into the Costa Rica game with no pressure.

The Revs Aren't Allright

2009-10-18T20:11:00.002-04:00

courtesy of revolutionsoccer.net

The Revs this year have had their moments that have recalled the grittiness of past teams. The 1-0 defeats of both Houston and Seattle on the road were examples of that. The three match winning streak going into the home game vs. K.C. was another example. But every time the team seemed to be putting something together, an injury, untimely red card or a desultory performance seemed to derail them once again. Twellman returns to the Revs lineup just twice - once to score his 100th and 101st goals of his career - and shortly thereafter, the team announces he is back on the injured list for post concussion syndrome symptoms and he doesn’t play again this year (and may never play soccer again). Ralston once again is put out of the lineup with an injury for a foul that was not called. Last year it was K.C.'s Hercules Gomez with a stud's up two footed tackle (for which no card was issued) this year it was Osvaldo Alonso of Seattle giving Ralston a shove as he went up for a header which apparently everyone in Gillette stadium but the center ref saw. And of course there was the K.C. game in which Joseph got a red card 22 minutes into the match - a red card with the USSF stated on their web site should not have been given. But does MLS rescind the one game suspension? No - of course not. So the Revs went to L.A. to play Chivas and lost 2-0 and played one of their poorer matches. Then against the Rapids on Saturday, Laurentowicz isn't starting and Heaps is out. The Revs managed a draw playing a makeshift lineup and even thought they were up a man for 30 minutes I was happy with the draw. So I was hopeful coming into Saturday night's game against Columbus, but worried. The only goal was scored by Columbus on a free kick by Padula in which Reis and Osei performed an Alphones and Gaston routine as neither made a play on the ball and it bounced (bounced!) into the net. Well it was that kind of night and the Revs seemed unable to generate any scoring changes in the second half. Once again they went up a man in the 69th minute, but as before against TFC and Colorado could do nothing to capitalize. Even if the Revs make the playoffs (and playing Chicago home and away and away to Columbus does not leave me hopeful), I don't see them making it past the first round. For whatever reason this year the club seems to lack something.

The Cranky Donkey

2009-09-07T19:14:00.006-04:00

The title does not refer to the writer of this blog post after the Kansas City game but is instead a hilarious volkswagon ad featuring our own Steve Ralston. Check it out at the Offside Rules below

The Offside Rules

Javier Morales is a close second for my favorite of these ads!

or on youtube. For some reason the link above doesn't seem to be working for me.

The Cranky Donkey

Douchebag Ref of the Week Award

2009-09-07T18:24:00.004-04:00

Yes to our two readers I realize that this is not a weekly feature but with the premier league back on and world cup qualifiers I'm sure that this can be a more frequent article.

So this week's award goes to Jasen Anno, the official for the Kansas City versus New England Revolution game on Saturday.

Congratulations are definitely in order to Mr. Anno. He really worked hard for this honor, not only did he give an absolutely asinine red card to Shalrie Joseph early in the first half, he also missed a very obvious hand-ball by a Kansas City defender in the box when the Revs were just down by one, this was in addition to his inability correctly identify when to call a foul and when to call advantage which is typical of many MLS officials. Hint to Mr. Anno, if the team has to pass the ball back to their defenders to keep possession after a foul that is not as advantageous as giving them a free kick on the 25 yard line.

Although complaining about MLS officials is like complaining about the weather in New England in January I feel this game merits this special mention because impact in totality of the very bad calls by Mr. Anno in reality cost New England the game. Yes, they the Revs need to mark better in the back and yes they need to figure out an offensive stragey that works in Dube and Jankauskas as Dube and Jankauskas and not as Taylor Twellman stand-ins but when you take away a player 20 minutes into the game for a foul that was maybe a yellow and ignore fouls throughout the game then not call an intentional and obvious handball in the box then the Revs not only have to play hard against Kansas City but against the constant free kicks and thuggy fouls and that is not how the game of soccer is supposed to be played.

MLS Goal of The Week

2009-09-07T18:18:00.003-04:00

I'll write about the crushing home defeat in a bit but in the meantime both Dube's and Jankauskas's goals are up for consideration for MLS Goal of the week. Let's get something positive out of that game so vote for one of them below. Jankauskas was leading as of the writing of this post.

Goal of the week

A Gold Cup to Remember – And Have Nightmares About

2009-08-16T20:33:00.004-04:00

Blake Here:

So how about that Gold Cup? There have only been a few sporting events that left as bad a taste in my mouth as that one did in the end. The 69 Super Bowl when the Jets beat my beloved (and heavily favored) Baltimore Colts 16-7. The 69 World Series when the Mets beat my beloved (and heavily favored) Baltimore Orioles 4-1. The famous Kings-Lakers series when David Stern called the refs after the third quarter of the sixth game and told them “Make sure the Kings Lose”. And now this. Losing to Mexico. On home soil. For the first time in 11 years. 5-0. 5-0! Are you kidding me – that was perhaps my lowest moment as a U.S. National team fan. Worse then going out in the first round or the World Cup in 2006 and knowing we could have done better. Worse then all those defeats in Azteca in qualifying. But in the end perhaps not entirely unexpected. We had seen signs of cracks in this team. Going down 2-1 to Haiti in group play. Giving up goal early in the 2^nd half to Panama. And seemingly after each game, additional members of the squad released. Steve Cherundolo released back to Hannover 96. Freddie Adu released back to Benfica. Charlie Davies released to his new club Sochaux. Benny Feilhaber released back to AGF Aarhus. And so in the finals we are playing a team of which a grand total of 3 maybe 4 have a chance of traveling to South Africa should the U.S. National Team qualify. Those 3 would be Ching, Pearce and Holden with Robbie Rogers having an outside chance. And if anyone says what about Kenny Cooper, despite scoring 2 goals, he demonstrated again why Bradley doesn’t call him in on a regular basis. He came in against Mexico and did what?

The worst part about the game was that every time the U.S. wasted a scoring chance against Mexico in the first half (and their were 5 or 6 chances simply wasted) the feeling of dread gnawing at my stomach got worse. And then the horrible penalty call was made. As Greg Seltzer (of No Short Corners and Soccer365 blogging fame) put it “since when is being elbowed in the mouth a penalty foul?” Which takes me back to that infamous Kings-Lakers game 6 when Mike Bibby was given a foul for hitting Kobe’s elbow with his face. In both cases I knew the gig was up if for completely different reasons. Once the foul was called and the PK made, the air went out of the U.S. National team and they looked collectively like a deer in the headlights. Defenders almost colliding trying to mark their men, Mexican players with time in the middle to take a nap and then keep dribbling. It was an astonishing collapse. And after the game they had an interview with Brian Ching and he could barely contain his anger. Now I am not a big Ching fan, but that anger was what this whole team needed after the PK. I don’t want to hear about tired legs and B team or C team. This is Mexico. We haven’t had a loss that bad on home soil since 1985 (a 5-0 drubbing by England). And to Mexico? Our biggest and most hated rival? And the worst part of it all was having to listen to the egregiously bad FSC announcers. I tried watching with the sound off, but just like being unable to look away from a bad accident, I kept turning the sound back on.

And what exactly was Bob Bradley doing with the team roster. Increasing the level of difficulty for each match by letting good players leave? Thumbing his nose at all his critics and saying “I’ll show you – I’ll get to the Gold Cup final with a sandlot team and recreate the “Bad News Bear”? I recognize that this is not a sanctioned tournament and particularly for the European players being in camp for pre-season is important. But Jay Heaps? And I am a NE Revolution fan. I love Jay – but he is not a right back for the national team. If you’re going to bring in a Revolution player to get beat for goals why not Kevin Alston? He at least has speed to cover for his mistakes (and they would be many). And he has potential for 2014. Or course as the Marvell Wynne experiment proved, that might have turned out to be a worse disaster. But really 5-0, 6-0, 7-0? At that point, what is the difference? Why not Geoff Cameron? After watching him in the MLS All Star game, he has some definite potential. Why not Edson Buddle? Why not Jeff Laurentowicz? If you’re going with the sandlot team lets go all out. Now it is nice that Jay Heaps got 4 caps with the National Team, but I don’t think he’ll be telling his grand kids the story of the 5-0 defeat at the hands of Mexico.

So what if anything good came out of this Gold Cup. Well – we did get to the finals with a sandlot team. We gave Stuart Holden and Robbie Rogers a taste of what it’s like to play in a high stakes final in front on a hostile crowd. We gave Sam Cronin some baby steps in the national team mix. We gave Heath Pearce another 6 games to work out his kinks (and hopeful land a playing gig in Europe). And maybe with any luck the game will leave such a bad taste in the collective mouths of the U.S. National Team that they will take it out on Mexico in Azteca.

And as bad as it was – at the end of the day on Sunday I was able to shrug it off and go cook dinner because I am 40 years older then the kid who was crushed when his favorite teams lost in 69 and bad as the ref was, he did not steal the game like the refs did in that infamous Kings-Lakers game 6.

A tie that felt like a loss and a tough win away

2009-08-16T20:26:00.003-04:00

Blake here

Well the Toronto game was irritating although less irritating then it might have been. With the Revs having yet another starting lineup with Heaps back and the new striker (Edgaras Jankauskas) healthy. Have the Revs started the same lineup for two games in a row once this year? As it turned out we would get a chance to see Edgaras Jankauskas for a full a game. I have to say I was generally impressed. For a big man he has really good footwork. Unfortunately (though not unexpectedly) he didn't always seem on the same page with Dube and Ralston and there were a couple of times in the first half where it seemed he was looking for the pass which wasn't there, rather then his shot. Still and all, I look forward to seeing more of him. I think once he gets on the same page with his teammates, he will be much more productive.

The Revs actually started well, but the extremely physical challenges by Toronto seemed to take the starch out of the Revs attack. Then again when you're getting kicked in the back of the leg every time you receive the ball and calls are only made on the most egregious fouls, that's not surprising. The center ref (Terry Vaughn) seemed to have decided he would only call fouls when he could issue a yellow card. Ali Gerba in particular was a beast - and not in a Conner Casey use your body and physical strength to control the ball and generate chances way, but in a I'm going to knock you down or throw you out of the way and since Terry Vaughn is the ref it won't get called kind of way.

The second half started much the same with Joseph replacing Dube at the start of the second half. Chad Barrett picked up a second yellow in the 50th minute and with a man advantage for 40 minutes, well, I believed the Revs would pick up a couple of goals and get the win. But for the first time in three games the introduction of Joseph did not have the desired effect. It seemed as if he and Jankauskas kept getting in each others way. Chances were wasted and every decision in the final third seemed the wrong one. After Barret was sent off Videra replaced Osei as the Revs went to a three man back line, but still the attack faltered in the final third. It seemed as if everyone was having a bad decision night. Laurentowicz had more then a few chances for one of his trademark blasts from outside the penalty area but passed them up. Mansally took pointless shots when he had viable targets in the box for a cross. And Ralston, Joseph and Jankauskas all seemed more interested in an assist then a goal. Finally Heaps combined with Joseph and Jankauskas with Jankauskas scoring the tying goal. But a second goal proved elusive and the Revs had to settle for a tie. With a man advantage for 40 plus minutes this felt like a loss.

On the other hand the win in Houston against a Dynamo team that hadn't lost at home all year was the kind of tough gritty win that the Revs used to specialize in. The defense was solid all game an in the closing minutes Alston found Ralston with a beautiful pass splitting the defense and Ralston chipped it over Onstad for an easy tap in by Dube. Onstad had kept Houston in the game while the Revs back four (Alston, Barnes, Osei and Tierny) shut down the Houston attack all game. The injection of Joseph at the start of the second half seemed to spark the Revs offense and they were able to get some much needed points on the road. With a couple of games in hand, if the Revs can get full points from those games, they are right in the thick of the playoff picture potentially holding down one of the two automatic conference games.

U.S. vs. Brazil - The U.S. team is even more dreadful then the refs

2009-06-21T15:10:00.004-04:00

Blake here:

So as the game was going on I was taking the following notes:
* So Brazil gets a foul call on nothing and score off the resultant free kick. Another phantom foul is called at 10:00 minutes. Again the U.S. is playing against both the opponent and the ref. Meanwhile no fouls called on the other side when Donovan and Altidore are taken down. Its not that those are necessarily fouls, but if the ones against Brazil are called then those should be called too

*Why is Beasley in the game? An egregious giveaway on a corner, Brazil is off to the races and it is goal #2.

*Another harsh red card - clearly a yellow -but a red? And ESPN of course isn't even following the action and misses the issuance of the Red card completely. Can't ESPN send anyone to South Africa? After seeing when the card was giving, it is clear that the ref was influenced by the length of time the Brazilian player spent on the ground.

*3-0. The game is basically over and the U.S. is done in the Confederations Cup. The U.S. haven't really showed anything in this game - unlike the game against Italy. I don't really understand starting Beasley. He hasn't had a good game in ages and if you want to roll the dice, why not roll the dice with Adu or Feilhaber. I am not a fan really of either, but Beasley isn't the player he was 3 or 4 years ago before the knee injuries and the arguments against starting Adu (he can't get playing time or make the bench for his club team) apply equally right now to Beasley. But there is no one really on the bench besides those two that can offer creativity on offense.

*And where is Donovan in this game. Unlike the Italy game, Donovan has offered nothing all game long. As I say this he takes a free kick and it is too high. Can we please find someone who is good on free kicks?

*Dempsey taken down - no call. Clearly the refs in this tournament don't think the U.S. belong and they are not going to get any calls.

*Bornstein gets wiped out - foul but how is that not a card. The double standard gets clearer and clearer. They refs in the Italy game and this one are making the MLS refs look far less bad.

Now after sitting and stewing on this game for a few days and reading the various forums ripping the U.S. Men's team for a lack of heart and Bob Bradley for, well, everything, I have a few thoughts. What happens in the Italian game if Italy scores early on a bogus call? Does the U.S. team quit like it seemed to do against Brazil? Or did the bogus foul call which lead to a the goal just confirm to the U.S. players that they were once again playing 11 on 12? And were they just a bit intimidated by Brazil where they clearly weren't against Italy. Or perhaps it was giving up that early goal. In a way I think it was similar to what happened when the U.S. gave up the early goal to Costa Rica in Saprissa. In both cases, the U.S. has a history of futility and perhaps that was in the players minds. Going down a goal so early made the task perhaps seem insurmountable. And going down on a completely bogus foul call. Then Beasley has the dreadful giveaway - not just the giveaway but hanging his head. The U.S. were fortunate not to be down more then 2-0 going into the half.

So when the second half starts, the U.S. are looking better - they create some chances (Casey and Altidore work a nice give and go, but Altidore, just like the change he wasted against Italy, wastes this one as well. At least put the ball on frame. Then of course the harsh red to Kljestan and the game is basically over. With 10 minutes to go, the U.S. picks it's collective head up and his the crossbar twice, but by then, it is too little too late. Unless the players really start to believe they can come from a goal down against the world's best, they won't.

Again, I don't understand the substitution pattern or the starting eleven. Down 2-0 why not roll the dice with Adu? Yes he hasn't gotten off the bench for his club team, but he has proved in the youth world cup tournaments that he is able to step up in big competitions. Why start Beasley at all? How has he earned a start? And to all those who think Dempsey isn't trying or didn't try till the end, those of us who watched him play for the New England Revolution know this. He may disappear for awhile, but the guy always generates scoring opportunities in the game. He also played well in defense heading a number of corners and frees kicks out of danger from his own penalty area. Yes, I am biased, but Dempsey is the only player on the U.S. Men's team who has scored a brace against Chelsea. Something Robinho can't say and something I don't think anyone on either Brazil or Italy can say (which isn't quite fair as they rarely play against Chelsea - but still).

Thanks to Egypt (who the U.S. team plays next) there is still the slimmest mathematical chance the U.S. can advance. Brazil needs to beat Italy by 3 or 4 goals and we need to beat Egypt by 3 or 4 goals and we would advance on goal differential. A slim change to be sure and I would be happy with a win of any kind. Egypt is clearly a very good team having played Brazil to a standstill and beaten Italy.

U.S. vs. Italy or why does the U.S. always start 11 vs. 12.

2009-06-21T14:56:00.002-04:00

Blake here:

This match will rankle for a while. The U.S. was playing well against Italy and could have (and probably should have) scored two goals in the first 30 minutes. Italy had a chance and in the 30th minute the ref changes the course of the game by issuing a Red card to Ricardo Clark on a foul that nine times out of 10 draws at worst a yellow. Later in the first half the an Italian defender elbows Donovan in the head and gets a Yellow. A Yellow? For an elbow to the head? When Clark gets a Red for his tackle? If one is a red the other is a red. But the U.S. keeps fighting. Altidore draws a PK on a foul the could have drawn a Yellow (which would have been the Italian's second yellow). Replays show the Italian defender kicking Altidore once he is past. If Clark got a red card shouldn't that have been at least a yellow? Donovan puts the PK away and the U.S. is up 1-0 while down a man.

The Italians substitute the mercenary traitor Rossi in at the 58th minute. Dempsey gets trapped on the sideline and tries to make the pass to Feilhaber in traffic who has his pocket picked by Rossi. Rossi walks in and blasts a shot into the net from 30 yards and the Italians are tied 1-1. At this point the U.S. has been playing a man down for over 30 minutes. The midfielders have been chasing the action and Bradley has made no substitutes. Undoubtedly tired legs contributed to Rossi's ability to dibble unchallenged as he did. Fifteen minutes later the Italians took the lead with a long shot by De Rossi (the Italian defender who famously hit Brian McBride in the 2006 World Cup).

And yet the U.S. is still attacking. Donovan gets crushed in the box - but no call from the Chilean ref. It is as if there were two different standards in this game. He is willing to alter the course of the game and give a harsh red to Clark - but doesn't give the penalty here when it would likely lead to the equalizer. It is o.k. to make harsh calls against the U.S., but not o.k. to do the same to the Italians. Given the fact that the U.S. probably don't have the same level, having to play 10 against 12 (the center ref) makes it that much harder. Finally the U.S. gets caught in a counter pressing for the equalizer and the mercenary traitor Rossi scores a third.

Many may disagree, but the U.S. wins if the sides are even. We created better scoring opportunities and outplayed them while the sides were even. That said, I think Bob Bradley's substitution pattern was curious. Why bring Beasley on at all? I understand the Bradley coached him in Chicago and has a soft spot for him - and certainly Bruce Arena was no stranger to playing players past they expiration date (Jeff Agoos, Eddie Pope, Claudia Reyna), but Beasley has not played well for the U.S. team in a long time - probably since the game in 2006 against Italy. The problem was that with Clark red carded, Bob had no true defensive mids on the bench. Torres doesn't qualify, Adu doesn't qualify so perhaps Beasley makes the most sense. Unfortunately after Beasley was announced and before he could get in the game, the Italians scored the go-ahead goal. If you look at the midfielders Bradley brought, I just don't understand the philosophy. With Edu hurt and Mastreoni having played his way off the team, why not bring in Stuart Holden, or Jeff Laurentowicz. In the game - if you're going with defense - why not bring in Pearce and move Bornstein to left mid? Why not play Califf as a defensive mid? Perhaps he closes down the mercenary traitor Rossi and the thug De Rossi. Where it the tactical preparation? If you are a man down and up a goal going into halftime, why not play for the win or tie? But Bradley doesn't make a move until the first goal is in and while he is preparing to make a move the go ahead goal is scored.

Yet with all that - if the ref calls the P.K. for the foul on Donovan, I think we escape with a tie. And that's why this match will rankle for a long time. The ref essentially took the game away from the U.S. and gave it to Italy.

Red Bull Crush

2009-06-15T07:50:00.004-04:00

Blake Here:

For the second straight game, the weather at Foxboro was delightful. The Revs lineup featured a lineup that I think we will see most of the time when Twellman is not on the field. The backline appears to have stabilized with Alston – Osei – Barnes – Heaps. The midfield lineup was Nyassi – Phelan – Laurentowicz (apparently recovered) – Mansally. Ralston and Joseph up top with Reis in goal. The first half was a back and forth game and both sides generated chances. The Revs broke through in injury time with Heaps (Heaps?!?) scoring the goal – and not off a header. With that assist it is clear whatever slump Joseph was going through is now over. He had his best game of the year. And although we didn’t know it at the time, that goal at the end of the half was the beginning of a rout.

Twellman came on for Phelan at the start of the second half with Joseph dropping back into the midfield which gave the Revs the lineup I think is probably the best in the league. The Revs came out firing on all cylinders and scored 3 goals in the first 20 minutes of the half. The first was off a great bit of work by Heaps (yes Heaps!). After losing the dribble near the end line Heaps hustled to pick the defenders pocket and then sent in a perfect cross which Ralston headed in for the goal. Shortly afterward Joseph sent one of his great long balls to the far post for Twellman to knock in for the third goal. Ralston fed Twellman for the fourth goal. If Twellman hadn’t decided to try and return the favor to Ralston, I think he could have had 2 more goals. It was great to see Twellman get a goal – which turned out to be his 100^th MLS goal. Reis got his 50^th shutout and Heaps played in his 300^th game in the MLS while scoring a goal and getting an assist. I can’t remember the last time Heaps had a goal. All in all a great night for Revs fans. The Rev next travel to Kansas City and we will get a chance to see if the Revs are ready to go on one of their runs. After that it will be time to defend their SuperLiga title and I will be in my usual seats in section 106 watching each of those games.

One question I have on this game though. How much did Red Bulls pay Kraft so they could send a couple of parachutists (in Red Bull parachutes) to deliver the game ball? Although one was wearing a Revs uniform, it was irksome to see Red Bull parachutes drifting down into Foxboro. And then after the game – they were giving out cans of Red Bull outside the stadium. As the victory was a crushing defeat for the Red Bull, I accepted the gift while refraining from crushing the cans right there. I hope the Kraft’s got good money, because if the Revs had lost, that would have been salt in the wound.

Dempsey’s Redemption

2009-06-15T07:44:00.002-04:00

Blake Here:

What is it with the U.S. team lately? Giving up goals in the first 5 minutes on a regular basis isn’t really a good tactical approach. Sure it makes a victory that much sweeter – but it also leads to 3-1 blowouts on the road. And Dempsey? One of my favorite U.S. national team players and one of my favorite Revs players? What the heck were you thinking? That was quite the gaff. Still, where were Clark and Mastreoni? When Clint turned the ball over, the whole midfield was basically empty. Luckily unlike the game in Saprissa though, the U.S. didn’t fold up their tent and quit. They had the better of the play the rest of the half and should have gotten the penalty when Clark was taken down in the box. The Mexican ref basically was forced to call the handball penalty in the second half – to ignore that would have been to make his allegiance all too clear. Although to be fair, I have to say he is one of the less biased refs in CONCACAF when doing U.S. games. Unlike the infamous Peter Pendergast. Still, I don’t understand why CONCACAF doesn’t get CONMEBOL or UEFA refs for the qualifiers. It might cost more, but you avoid the whole suspicion of refs influencing results to benefit their home country.

Anyway, after that initial gaff, Dempsey played one of his better games for the Red, White and Blue. He sprang Spector on a couple of nice runs (one a clever backheel), earned fouls in dangerous positions and whistled a couple of 30 yard shots over the crossbar. And of course he rose up to knock Donovan’s corner back into the mix for Bocanegra to hammer home with a diving header. Then he helps kill off the match by making runs to the corner to kill the clock. A lot of folks think he whiffed on the past from Feilhaber in the second half, but he had to stretch for that ball. It was just a little too far. A little closer to him and he puts in the back of the net like he did he his first in the brace he scored against Chelsea during his premier league season.

And I think we may have found a left back. Jonathan Spector also had a very good game. The contrast between him and Wynne was like night and day. He was dangerous coming forward and was solid on defense. Clark was also excellent. I don’t know why Mastreoni got the start after his dreadful game against Costa Rica and I looked in vain for him on that initial Honduras goal. Alitdore and Casey were o.k. Altidore clearly shows the effects of not playing. His first touch was seldom controlled and as a result he was never able to turn on his defender and make a run towards goal. Casey missed an open look in the first half (off a Dempsey header) and although he did a better job holder the ball with the first touch, was unable to make connecting passes. Donovan had a much better game than against Costa Rica and hammered home the penalty with authority. Why he still takes all the free kicks is beyond me though. He makes maybe 3 out of 10 good free kicks. Most of the time he doesn’t get it over the first defenders and as a result free kicks in dangerous areas are wasted. This should be our strength. With our height and the number of players who can score off the header (Casey, Altidore, Onyewu, Bocanegra and Dempsey against Honduras), we have to take better advantage of those opportunities. With better free kicks, I think the U.S. gets another goal or two. Bornstein while much better then Beasley had a couple of giveaways in the defensive half that could have been disastrous.

They showed a lot of heart and grit against Honduras and this was the first comeback victory for the U.S. since 1985. I want to see that heart and grit for a whole game on the road. I am no longer as nervous about qualifying and clearly the tie at El Salvador looks a lot better after Mexico’s loss there – but it was a game we could have and should have won. If we roll over against Mexico at Azteca like we did against Costa Rica, then I don’t see how we can even pretend we could make a run to the quarters (or beyond) like we did in 2002.

Why are all Central America Players Such Fakers and Who Should Start Against Honduras

2009-06-09T18:09:00.003-04:00

This was written before the game but I was out of town all weekend and didn't check my e-mail to post it sorry.--Jenni

Blake here.

A couple of things happened in the game against Costa Rica that I just couldn’t leave unmentioned. I have seen a lot of comments on Charlie Davies kicking the Costa Rica player in the groin but when I saw that play happen it sure didn’t look like he was anywhere near the groin area. Replays were pretty inconclusive. Later there was a foul against a U.S. player (I don’t remember who) and the Costa Rican player went down clutching his face. Replays in this case clearly showed that the foul was a kick to the shin in an attempt to get the ball and no where near the player’s face. Not only that, but he doesn’t start clutching his face until the center ref looks in his direction. In both incidents the Costa Rican player either embellished or outright faked an injury. Amado Guevara got suspended a couple of games in the MLS for that kind of antic, but you can be sure FIFA and CONCACAF will do nothing. And it is wrong. Until such stuff gets punished with suspensions, players will continue to do it and soccer will never challenge the big 3 in the U.S. And Costa Rica? You’re up 3-0 at that point. You don’t need to pull such antics and it makes you look bad.

So who should start against Honduras? At this point, our midfield is depleted and our back line looks shaky, old and inexperienced quite a combo and it takes real talent (or lack thereof) to pull that off. All that said, here is who I would start:

Howard

Spector – Onyewu – DeMerit – Bocanegra

Dempsey – Clark – Donovan – Torres

Casey – Davies

I could go with Kljestan in place of Clark, but then who is your midfield destroyer. And I just don’t see how you can play Mastreoni, but I am sure Bradley will. As for the forwards, Altidore just isn’t going to be able to go full speed just 3 days after playing 90 minutes as he hasn’t played a match with his club team all year. Potentially you could put Adu in place of Davies, but again, he hasn’t played a match with his club team all year. Casey and Davies have both been scoring often for their respective club teams.

I went back and forth on the back line and could just has easily gone with Spector – Onyewu – Bocanegra – Bornstein (or Pearce) but that would mean throwing a newbie into a World Cup qualifier cauldron or rolling the dice on Pearce. Neither seems palatable, but then neither does having Bocanegra there either. Whoever Bradley puts there, if the defense plays as poorly as it did against Costa Rica, then we lose and are now sitting in fourth place with the hardest part of our qualifying to come (at Mexico, at Honduras, home to Costa Rica). At any rate, I will be perched on my coach with my jersey, hat and scarf and hopefully will be a happy fan come the end of the game.

Si se puede?

2009-06-04T21:32:00.002-04:00

As I was watching the debacle unfold (Costa Rica up 1-0 within 2 minutes and 2-0 before the quarter hour), a couple of things occurred to me: 1. Is it possible that playing in the English Premier League has made Dempsey both a better and worse U. S. National team player. The better is easy to see – his composure on the ball, his ability to make clever passes and his ability to hold the ball and not lose it. The worse is those very same clever passes. On more then one occasions Dempsey would make a quick pass to a space that on his Fulham team a forward would be headed to. However on the U.S. team (at least on this night) no one was making those runs to the spaces he put the ball. I counted at least five occasions where this happened in the first half and then gave up. 2. Torres has great composure when dribbling, makes nice passes and nice attacking runs. He has no right foot. I don’t think he touched the ball more then twice with his right foot. I am not clear how he does it but he manages to dribble in either direction with only one foot. I still don’t understand why Bradley took him off at the beginning of the second half. Why not take Mastreoni off? 3. Mastreoni may have gotten old overnight. He looked terrible in this game. He was slow, out of position, and was partially responsible for each of the first 2 goals. 4. John Harkes is beginning to grow on me as an announcer. After replays of the third goal showed Bradley getting beaten, Harkes made the very valid point that Bradley had already chased the ball down three other times leading up to that play to force passes. Where were the other midfielders? Where were the defenders? 5. This is the second time in a row that the U.S. has looked flat and/or uprepared for an away game. They were able to come back and tie against El Salvador but they never appeared in the game against Costa Rica. Part of me wants to blame Bradley, but part of this has to fall on the players. How can they come out flat for a game of this magnitude? You are playing for your country – if you can’t get up for that why are you playing for the National team? 6. It is becoming ever clearer that Landon disappears in tough games away from the U.S. This makes him a liability in those game, because no coach is going to leave him on the bench, but when he disappears for those long stretches its as if the U.S. is playing a man down. I have said this before but for a guy who claims to want a leadership role on this team, he does not act or play like it in critical game.

So now the U.S. has a couple of days to prepare for another tough qualifier. At least this one will be on home soil and on grass, but the U.S. will be without Bradley which is fairly critical given that Edu is out with an injury and Mastreoni is apparently done. They are also without Kljestan which hurts but not as much. So the U.S. now has questions in the midfield to go with the ongoing questions at right back, left back and forward. I pronounce myself officially concerned that the U.S. could conceivably miss out on qualifying for the World Cup. I don’t think it will come to that but if I’m Bob Bradley, I have to think that if I don’t beat Honduras, I am out of a job…

Debacle in Saprissa Re-Cap

2009-06-04T21:25:00.003-04:00

First of all – what was I thinking in saying Marvell Wynne should start at left back. Did I forget that playing well at left back for the MLS is relatively easy given the propensity of teams to go for hulking forwards instead of speed? Did I forget that playing a qualifier on the road is probably the worst place for a young player to make his first U.S. National Team? Did I forget that Sparissa stadium is perhaps the toughest place for the U.S. to play in CONCACAF? Yes, yes and yes.

Many are saying that Bradley showed guts in starting a lot of the youngsters on the road. Well only if satisfying insane idiot bloggers like myself is a sign of courage. Seriously – how do you start a newbie at left back and a guy at right back who not only doesn’t play right back, but hasn’t played competitive soccer since December against Costa Rica in Saprissa Stadium. Now given Bradley’s options perhaps he didn’t have many choices, but a have to believe that Spector’s experience in the Premier League is worth more than Wynne’s MLS experience. At right back, why not put DeMerit as a center back and push Bocanegra to right back – a position he plays for Rennes in Ligue 1 in France. I can’t quibble with the rest of the lineup given the options and I thought Torres played the best of anybody on the U.S. team in the first half. But that raised the question – when Ching went down, why not bring another target forward like, oh I don’t know, Conner Casey? As it was he went with Altidore, Donovan and Dempsey in what was ostensibly a 3 forward attack. The problem with that is that Landycakes never plays forward even when he is one. And Dempsey has been playing midfield for Fulham all season. When a team only has a couple of days to train together, moving folks into positions they don’t usually play just doesn’t strike me as a great idea

All carping aside, this was always going to be a tough game. It was moved up in the schedule to accommodate the Confederations Cup and many of the U.S. players (and not just MLS players) had games over the weekend for their club teams. In addition those in the European leagues (excluding Scandanavia) were coming off the end of a long season. That coupled with the appalling turf surface at Saprissa made this a very difficult game going in. Then when the veterans don’t show up, well you get a 3-1 posting that wasn’t that close.

Who I Think Will Start, Who Should Start and Who Should Really Start Against Costa Rica

2009-06-02T19:21:00.006-04:00

photo courtesy of US Soccer.

Blake Here

So the U.S. has a couple of tough matches over a four day period. The first is at Saprissa Stadium in Costa Rica – a place that has been not been friendly to say the least. The U.S. has never won in Costa Rica and has never even gained a point at Saprissa Stadium. Having watched the U.S. only manage a draw on the road against a vastly inferior El Salvador side, I am very concerned about this match. The U.S. needs to come out with a lot more intensity then they did against El Salvador if they want to have any hope of managing a draw let alone a win. Given the fact that the savior against El Salvador is out (Hejduk), Altidore’s lack of experience and Pearce’s poor play over the last two games, here is what I think the starting lineup will look like:

Howard

Spector – Onyewu – Bocanegra – Bornstein

Dempsey – Bradley – Mastroeni – Beasley

Donovan -- Ching

And here is the lineup I would like to see given who is in the National Team camp:

Howard

Wynne – Onyewu – Demerit – Bocanegra

Dempsy – Bradley – Donovan – Torres

Altidore – Davies

And here is who I would like to see if I could pick from the entire U.S. Player pool:

Howard

Wynne – Onyewu – Parkhurst – Bocanegra

Dempsey – Bradley – Donovan – Torres

Casey – Altidore

I saw Casey against the Revs a couple of weeks back and he was a beast. Big, physical and with a nice touch. I think I and every other Revs fan in the stadium breathed a sigh of relief when he was subbed out. He had a couple of call ups while Arena was coach and got some limited minutes. I liked what I saw then and he has improved greatly since then. As for Parkhurst, as a Revs fan I have a great fondness for Parkhurst. He is always overlooked because of his slight build, but no U.S. Defender since Pope in his salad days reads the game better. And the drop off in the Revs defense since he left is all too apparent. I though about Feilhaber and Kljestan but Kljestan looked terrible in his last full start and has not looked all that great on the field for Chivas in the MLS. Feilhaber disappeared after that wonder goal against Mexico in the Gold Cup, but his creativity is something the U.S. could use. I know that many would select Adu, but if he can’t get any playing time for Monaco in France, then he doesn’t have what it takes to crack the U.S. midfield. With the exception of Donovan all the midfielders I have selected play on teams in leagues that are considered (and rightly so) far superior to the MLS and not only hold spots on these clubs but also made positive contributions to their teams' standings. I know Wynne hasn’t played overseas yet, but his speed makes up for a lot of mistakes and until Alston from the Revs is ready, he is my pick.

I think we will know within 15 minutes whether or not the U.S. is likely to get a good result. If Costa Rica scores in that first 15 minutes, I think the U.S. loses. If the U.S. scores in that first 15 minutes, then I think they have a chance to walk away with a victory which would be a great achievement for this team. If it is 0-0 I will be nervous as a cat. I will be nervous as a cat the whole game anyway unless the U.S. goes up 3-0 or down 3-0. I look forward to the game and hope to be able to post on a historic victory.

Douchebag Ref of the Week Award First Installment!!!!!!!!

2009-06-02T18:56:00.005-04:00

A few words, when my dad and I discussed setting up this blog it was after watching yet another poorly officiated Revs game. Poor referring in my opinion is one of the biggest obstacles to MLS being a respected league world wide. In discussion of the game and the future blog I threw out the idea of a weekly award to be given to the most horrendous referee of MLS that week. It is now with great pride I bestow our first Douchebag Ref of the Week Award to Mr.Hilario Grajeda photo courtesy of www.examiner.com

5 reasons Mr. Grajeda truly earned this award on Saturday

1. More handballs than an under-6 soccer game and no calls for any of them
2. Very particular about where throw-ins were taken.
3. Missed an obvious penalty kick call when Taylor Twellman was unceremoniously taken out in the box.
4. Called nothing when Osei was pushed by a DC player, twice, right in front of him.
5. Managed to get the Fort to boo him for every whistle he blew past a certain point in the second half.

Vote Matt Reis for Save of the Week

2009-06-02T18:05:00.004-04:00

photo courtesy of the New England Revolution official site

Save of the Week for Matt Reis!

According to MLSnet.com Matt Reis has been nominated for best save of the week of May 25-May 31 so cast your vote now at the link above.

The Return of Twellman

2009-06-02T07:54:00.008-04:00

Blake here

For the first time at a home game this year, the weather was neither cold nor wet. The Revs had a lineup similar to the TFC game with one change being Nyassi replacing Thompson after the horror show at Toronto.

At around the 25^th minute, Larentowicz took a soccer ball to the face from about 10 yards away, Larentowicz went down and although it was clear he wanted to stay in the game, the medial staff took him into the locker room. This set the stage for the return of Twellman. There was a standing ovation when Twellman entered the game and it seemed the Revs began to play with more intensity. Twellman had two chances within the first 5 minutes after entering; both headers and both within easy reach of the goalie Wicks. I think some rust was showing particularly with the first, because I have seen him in the past power headers like that past the goalie. Still,it was great just seeing him stick his head in for the attempts after the horrific punch he took from the L.A. Galaxy goaltender last year. D.C. also seemed to pick up the intensity as well and in the 36^th minute after hitting the crossbar twice Fred (Not the good Fred who played for Brazil in the 2006 World cup, but the MLS Fred…) put one in the back of the net. The half ended with D.C. up 1-0 .

Stevie Nichols made a substitution to start the second half putting Mansally in for Tierny. An interesting substitution and it paid off as Mansally seems much more comfortable in the midfield then he did as a target forward. Midfield is the position he plays for the Gambian national team and Nichols use of him as a target forward was I think based on a lack of options for forward. Mansally played a key role in the Rev’s first goal which started with a nice knock down header to Ralston by Twellman (isn’t it nice to have a true target forward). Ralston laid it off to Mansally who made a great cross that Sharlie Joseph drilled in the far corner of the net. On that play the goalie came out and knocked Twellman down. Scary moment for the Revs fans but after a few minutes down of the ground Taylor got up and seemed little worse for the wear.

Play continued back and forth which each team generating chances. Around the 80^th minute of so a ball was served into Twellman at the edge of the box. Twellman flicked the header up to turn and go towards goal and was flattened by Wicks. No call. A clear foul and the Revs were incensed as this was way too close to how Twellman got his concussion last year that put him out until now. Twellman was down for a few minutes and Heaps picked up a Yellow for arguing as did the D.C. Goalie Wicks. Why Wicks was yapping was beyond me. He got away with one and should have just shut up and stayed out of it. But then D.C./Revs games always seem to have at least one or two near brawls. Needless to say the Revs fans were incensed and Wicks and the Ref came in for some verbal abuse. The Revs fans however got a lot happier with the Ref in the closing minutes of the game as D.C. was called for a foul in the box when Namoff pulled down Twellman in the box. I have to say that this call was iffy, but after the non-call on Wicks (and the non-call on Namoff’s handball in the box in D.C.) it seemed to be justice. Ralston put away the penalty and all that was left was a few tense moments and a lot of whining from the D.C. United players. And with that a very happy crowd of Revs fans gradually filed out of the stadium.

photo courtesy of the Official New England Revolution website.

Where Thompson tarries, Guevarra makes marry

2009-05-25T21:39:00.003-04:00

On the upside this was one of the better and more exciting soccer games the New England Revolution have played of late, the downside of course is that they lost 3-1 to Toronto.

The Revs started the first half strongly with shots from Steve Ralston and in the 12th minute Shalrie Joseph scores on a beautiful header shot off a nice crisp cross into the box by Chris Tierney. The following minute was the only time the Revs were winning this match as a poorly marked Amando Guevara rockets in a goal at around 13:02.

The Revs miss a couple of scoring opportunities in the remainder of the half most notably when Joseph has the ball in the box one on one with the keeper and took one too many touches. Lucky for the Revs so did Toronto.

After the half Dwayne De Rosario scores in the 68th minute after Emmanuel Osei and Jay Heaps run into each other while trying to mark Danny Dichio. Guevara decides to destroy any ounce of hope of a late comeback for the Revs by hammering in his second goal off a free kick that bounced of the notorious Toronto turf past Matt Reis into the goal.

So the Revs are now in a distant 4th in their division and have not won a game since their home opener but I am still hopeful for the season. Moving Tierney into the midfield has been a positive change and will allow for more scoring opportunities, as will the eventual return of Twellman. The Rev's defense has been shaky on communication and marking but it has also been switched up nearly every game. I think the current line-up of Alston, Barnes, Osei and Heaps has shown the most promise and will work they just need to learn how to work together. Something I'm hoping will be done by next Saturday.

Now a few words for Mr. Wells Thompson who is not my most favorite Revs player at the moment. In one of my stupider jobs it was once stated that any criticism should be sandwiched between two compliments to make it more likely to be accepted by the person being critiqued.

Your crosses have improved, Thompson you caused both of Guevara's goals to be scored one by your inattentive marking and one because you commit stupid and needless fouls right outside the box, um you look good in dark blue?

Till Saturday!

When a tie is way better then kissing your sister.

2009-05-15T22:08:00.003-04:00

Blake here:

Before last Saturday’s game with Chicago, I was dreading another RSL-like blowout. The Revs played some of their worst games last year against Chicago and were beaten 3-0 on more then one occasion, one of which I had the misfortune to see in person. So with the Revs starting yet another lineup and playing in Chicago, I had my doubts. The lone Chicago goal was a bit of a fluke after a corner kick into the box ended up dropping at the feet of Conde who blasted it home. Sharlie Joseph after 2 consecutive poor games was playing well in the striker role. Still going into the second half I was wondering how the Revs were going to score.

Well the Revs answered the question shortly into the second half after a nice bit of possession led to a Larentowicz shot from just outside the penalty area. Not a great shot, but it ended up at the feet of Joseph and he blasted it home for the goal. All that was left was for Reis to make the game saving diving stop of a McBride header and the Revs escaped Chicago with a point – something that didn’t happen last year.

It was an interesting lineup with Nichols going with a back four that had Alston back on the right side and Heaps on his customary left side with Tierney playing in front of him as left side midfielder. The latest entrant to the Revs lineup was Emmanuel Osei who had a very good game, aside from a few nervous making moments dribbling around in the box (something I am sure Coach Nichols will speak to him about). Overall Osei played calmly and colloborated well with Barnes. Ralston came in for Dube late in the game which was good to see, in his first two minutes he immediately set up two scoring opportunities. It was interesting to see Nyassi not in the lineup, but he has not been playing well lately.

So what will be the lineup for the Rapids? Tough to say. If Ralston is fully recovered, I think he starts. The back line (assuming no new injury nicks) will likely be the same. That leaves the midfield and forward positions. Is this the game we see Twellman? Does Nyassi make it back into the lineup? Did Tierney play well enough as Left-mid to get another run-out (I say yes)? At any rate I think it is likely that we will see yet another different starting lineup, the seventh in eight games. I will be in section 106 cheering them on.

Well at Least it Wasn't 6-0

2009-05-07T20:38:00.002-04:00

Blake here:

It was a grey and dreary game which was appropriate for the grey and dreary weather. The Revs started yet another lineup with Steve Nichols going with his preferred 3-5-2 formation. Given the torching of Chris Tierney by Real Salt Lake in the last game, I can understand why. Igwe moved over to Tierny’s spot with Heaps managing the right back position and Barnes in the middle. The game started fairly slowly like the slow drizzle that was falling on us while we watched the game from our seats in section 106. Around the 25^th minute, Stuart Holden of Houston unleashed a long shot that I was so sure Reis would save, I turned away. When I looked back the ball was in the net. What the heck happened? On the replay it looked like Reis simply let the ball go through his hands. The blunder seemed to deflate the Revs and when Reis “saved” a gently rolling header later in the first half there was a derisive cheer from the home fans. The only scoring opportunity the Rev had was on a nice free kick from Larentowicz into box that Sharlie simply mistimed his jump on and the chance was squandered.

Around 13 minutes into the second half, Ching scored a header of a corner kick and that was pretty much the game. A bright note for the Revs was the debut of the Cameroonian striker Stephane Assengue 20 minutes into the second half. He almost converted a half chance with a wicked volley and was certainly more of a force then either Dube or Mansally. Also, it was good to see Twellman at least make the substitutes bench. The sooner he can get back on the pitch, the sooner the Revs attack will perhaps show some life. After 2 straight defeats in which the Revs generated few scoring opportunities, it is clear that neither Mansally nor Dube can fill that goals scorers role. And it is even more clear how much Ralston is missed when he isn’t on the pitch.

Here’s hoping for more offense the next time.

Always Look at the Bright Side of Life

2009-05-01T21:25:00.003-04:00

5 positive things that happened in the Revs-RSL Game 4/26

1. Videira had his first start of the season and in the second half was the only player on the Revs side that looked like a professional soccer player, his passing was good as was his ball control.

2. Heaps won almost every challenge in the air.

3. Larentowicz had a crackerjack of a shot from distance in the 2nd half.

4. If Movsisyan didn’t have a tendancy to wait tll he was on the goal line to take a shot revs would have been down by 10 easily.

5. OK 5 positive things about the game may have been stretching it so enjoy this video instead.

Slaughter in Salt Lake

2009-05-01T21:10:00.003-04:00

Blake here:

Apologies to our myriad fans for the lateness of this post on the Real Salt Lake fiasco (the two of you know who you are). As a longtime Rev fan this last result was difficult to take. After a fairly desultory first half that ended as a 0-0 tie with the only real scoring chances turned in by Real Salt Lake, the second half turned into a debacle. The second half actually started pretty brightly for the Revs with Nyassi whipping in a cross that Mansally just missed. However, it went downhill quickly after that. First Olave was completely unmarked and powered a header into the goal off a great corner from Morales. Shortly thereafter on another corner, Mathis scored off a great volley that Revs announcer called before it happed. Mathis was standing at the top of the box towards the far side of the goal waving his hand with no one within 10 feet of him. Sure enough the cross comes in and he blasts a beautiful volley that Knighton had no shot at. The scored stayed at 2-0 until the 70^th minute when it appeared that the Revs started to tire. In the next 20 minutes RSL scored four more goals, the first by Movsisyan off a great splitting pass by Mathis.

This was without a doubt the worst half of football I have ever seen the Rev’s play. It rivals the abomination that the Revs turned in against Joe Public last year in the CONCACAF Champions league. At least I didn’t pay to see this one as I was watching from my couch rather than sitting in the stands in a slow drizzle. I don’t know whether it was the altitude, the early travel schedule or yet another starting lineup, but the Revs never showed any fight in this one. I will be sitting in the stands on Sunday hoping they bounce back...

It's Brilliant Like

2009-04-25T18:30:00.002-04:00

To keep you entertained until the game tonight. Go Revs!

Recap of the D.C. United Revolution game

2009-04-19T20:43:00.005-04:00

photo courtesy of the New England Revolution website.

Blake here,

New England has started off the season pretty brightly given the injuries they have been coping with. Last night’s game against was the third different starting lineup in four games. The game started well for D.C. with Ben Olsen forcing two saves from Knighton in the first 20 minutes. In the 20^th minute the Revs should have gotten a penalty kick when DC United player Namoff clearly intentionally handles the ball in the box. I don’t know where the referee, Jair Murrufo, was but the call was obvious on the first go-around and more so on the replays. Announcer John Harkes tried to cover for his old teammate, but there could be no doubt. Two more bad calls from the ref follow and the half ends 0-0.

The second half started better for the Revs. In the 50^th minute Ralston crosses the ball off a throw-in to the back side post where Joseph headed it in for the 1-0 lead. Murrufo continued to make curious calls and miss obvious ones. At one point two D.C. United players collided and he called a foul against New England. Later Emilio threw Heaps down on a D.C. United corner kick and no call was made. Hand balls in the box and throwing people down are apparently not fouls. I missed that when I took my ref classes but that was a few years ago so perhaps the rules have changed.

Late in the game (injury time) with D.C. pressing for the goal, Fred (a second half substitute) has the ball in the corner by the Revs goal, shadowed by Nyassi. Fred flops and Murrufo makes the call. I had a feeling that was going to cost the Revs and sure enough Jaime Moreno hit a great free kick towards the back post where Ben Olsen made a great effort to get to it and head it into the goal off of Phelan. I give full credit to Moreno and Olsen. It was a great play. But the opportunity that gave rise to it shouldn’t have been given at all.

Perhaps I am mistaken, but it does not seem like the refereeing in MLS is getting better and in fact it sees to be getting worse. As the Revs weren’t playing last week, I satisfied my MLS fix by watching the Chivas/LA Galaxy game in which the ref gave out 3 red cards and 7 or 8 yellows. One of the red cards was off a second yellow on an obvious dive by Landon Donovan. (Is he taking diving lessons from Christiano Renaldo?) And in the game against D.C. United Murrufo makes 2 bad calls which effect the outcome of the game directly - the non-call on the obvious hand ball in the box and the phantom foul on the Revs that lead to a goal. Ah, but as they say, that is part of the game.

At the end of the day the Revs were outplayed in the first half and D.C. was outplayed in the second half. The draw was a fair result all-in-all.

A couple of final thoughts: Without the efforts of Knighton (who was man-of-the-match for me) the Revs are down at least a goal going into halftime. Barnes was again a tower of strength in the backline and I though Igwe had one of the best games I have seen him play. I hope that Wells Thompson develops a better sense of timing, I like his defensive work, and his dribbling has improved but when he goes forward he is still making one dribble too many and losing the ball. As a Revs fan I am very happy Sharlie Joseph is still with the team, but how can he not be in Europe. He is ready for that next challenge. Another Rev that is ready for the next challenge is Larentowicz who just keeps getting better. Lastly (and I think I speak for all Revs fans here) I hope that Twellman is able to come back soon at his usual form. It is clear that the Revs don’t have an answer at the forward spot yet. Dube and Mansally have their moments, but neither seem to be able to get in scoring positions the way Twellman does.

That’s all for now.

Thoughts and Reflections on the T&T game

2009-04-08T21:55:00.006-04:00

Blake here,

After thinking back a bit more on the U.S. Men’s team match against T&T I still don’t know what to think. The away game against Costa Rica on June 6^th will be a much better indicator of where the U.S. is as a team. We have never beaten Costa Rica on their home field (a fact which doesn’t get mentioned a lot unlike our lack of success against Mexico) and a win there would be a truer indicator of our dominance in CONCACAF claimed by so many fans and commentators. Yet another home win against T&T? Even a dominant one? Not so much. As for the players, one of the things that has become apparent is how much Dempsey’s game has been improved by his time in the English Premier league. He is much quicker with the pass and far less likely to lose the ball in traffic. He seems to always attract two or three defenders and rarely gives the ball away. In addition his defense has improved significantly. When he was with the Revs, he wasn’t necessarily a weak link on defense but was certainly not one of their stronger players on defense. Plus he was prone to the occasional yellow when he would get beaten on defense and take the player down to prevent a fast break. Now he is a much more complete player and rarely seems to get caught out of position. Bradley has improved significantly as well. Although he did pick up one of his trademark foolish yellow cards against El Salvador, against both Mexico and T&T he played a complete controlled game. It will be interesting to see how he does in the hostile climates of Costa Rica and Mexico for the away games in those countries. And what to think about Altidore? He has his champions and certainly played as complete a game as you could expect against T&T for a kid his age. And his goal in the El Salvador game obviously was critical in sparking the comeback. But the image of him getting shoved out of the way by Hejduk prior to Hejduk scoring the tying goal just sticks in my mind. A true goal scoring forward would not have let that happen. It was, well, Landon-like. Now if he starts and scores a brace against either Costa Rica or Mexico on their home fields – well maybe then I might jump on the Altidore bandwagon. Until then I will be cautiously hopeful…

Blake here with some thoughts on the Revs so far

2009-04-08T21:28:00.005-04:00

photo courtesy of the official New England Revolution Website

After watching the first three Revs games (two on television and one in the bitter cold in Gillette) I have a few observations.

First, although I am not sure how, the Revs need to find a way to have Kevin Alston on the field. He was the best Rev’s player on the field against San Jose and shut down Darren Huckerby to the point that San Jose switched him over to Tierny’s side in an effort to free him up. I don’t know if you keep Chris Albright off the field because he brings a lot to the table as well so there is a dilemma here.

Second, for not being on anyone’s radar, I am impressed with Darrius Barnes. He is strong in the air, fast and provides an attacking throw in option the Revs didn’t have before. Another reason, by the way, that Alston needs to be on the field. His attacking throw-ins into the box against San Jose provided a few goal scoring opportunities which were hard to come by in that game.

Third, when Ralston is in the lineup, the Revs are a completely different team. I think Ralston is perhaps one of the most underrated players in the league. When he entered into the game Saturday night, the game was transformed. The Rev’s played with their customary attacking style and quickly regained the lead. When I think back on the players that New England has lost (Dempsey, Parkhurst, Noonan) overseas and the amount of injury time suffered by some key players such as Twellman, Castro and even Joseph, the one player whose loss last year eliminated any hope of advancement in the playoffs was Ralston. Finally, any team that has Joseph and Larentowicz in the midfield will be a tough team to play.

Talking about the Revolution

2009-04-05T19:51:00.001-04:00

The weather was beyond cold, the refereeing was atrocious and the Revs managed to eek out a win after a truly ugly first half, all in all not a bad way to start off the home game season for 2009-2010.

Let’s just jump in and discuss the first half and get it over with. The back line was incredibly shaky with marking pretty non-existent. Lucky for the Revs, Knighton was up to the challenge of playing goalkeeper for a team that consistently let Van den Berg cross the ball across the goal. While Knighton may not be as conservative a goalkeeper as Reis, he kept the Revs in the game last night and will make this Revs fan a little less nervous about Reis’ injury status. With regards to the offense the passing game that the Revs play so beautifully was MIA.

The subbing in of Ralston for Tierney at halftime along with what were undoubtedly some choice words from Nichols to his team gave us a truly entertaining second half. Nyassi charged out and scored the first home goal of the season a little over 10 minutes into the first half off a beautiful pass by Joseph and then almost immediately went on a run and scored again. The referee Silviu Petrescu called the second goal back Petrescu called back goals in the second half like he gave out yellow cards in the first, often and without reason. The official second goal scored by the Revs was off a professionally taken pk by Ralston given for a pull down in the box.

The real standouts in the second half for me were Larentowicz who played hard for every ball in the middle and made excellent passes and Barnes who seemed to control and direct the back line better once it was reduced to three.

All and all it looks like the Revs will be fielding a great team and I’m looking forward to watching them in hopefully above freezing temperatures the rest of the season.

-Jenni

The Road to South Africa is Paved With the Goals of Frankie Hejduk?

2009-04-05T19:15:00.002-04:00

photo courtesy of US Soccer

Blake here

I wanted to offer a few thoughts on the U.S. Men’s team performance against El Salvador and T&T. First having read a few of the commentaries on the first game, I just want to know – how much does Landon shell out to soccer journalists? I didn’t see a rating less then 6.5. This is the guy who is supposed to be our best player and he has no influence on the game. None. I remember nothing about his performance in either half and for a guy who claims the mantle of leadership and talks about being a leader – well, that just isn’t going to cut it. He is the Alex Rodriguez of the Men’s national team. All stats and chokes in the clutch. Second – is their a more up and down player then Frankie Hejduk? He makes 7 or 8 bad crosses in the game against El Salvador and then makes one perfect cross and it results in a goal. He follows that up by shoving Altidore out of the way to score the typing goal. Plus every time he goes in for one of his two footed tackles you just cringe, usually he manages not to take the guy’s legs out and get the red card, but how long can that last. Third – could a player who has scored three goals in a friendly have had a worse game that Sacha Kljestan did against El Salvador – oh wait – I forgot some of Eddie Johnson’s games, my bad. And yet I read countless posts on other sites from folks who seem to think that the only way the U.S. will do well in South Africa (assuming we qualify – knock on wood) is if he is playing. No doubt now that Jozy Altidore has had his hat trick we will hear the same thing about him. (Oh wait, we already have. Has everyone already forgotten the lesson of Eddie Johnson?)

For the first 75 minutes the El Salvador game was the worst non-friendly I have seen the U.S. play since the first round games in Germany in 06. Once the El Salvador players started diving and wasting time, the U.S. team woke up and Frankie Hejduk made a deal with the devil (kidding – I think). Two ways we could have won the game, if Ching puts that shot 5 inches either way it’s the third goal or if the ref had given the 15 minutes of extra time. We timed the goalie’s injury, it was over 11 minutes plus all the other injuries El Salvador players were feigning all over the field. The big question is, how could they have played like such crap for 75 minutes? Had they played the first 75 minutes like they did the last 20 we win 6 or 7 to 0. I have seen some of the other commentators blame Coach Bradley for this. Perhaps – but sometimes players play badly. What you can fault him for is his preference for Califf to replace Onyewu as opposed to some other choices such as Parkhurst who played a few games in the Gold Cup in 2007and looked good not to mention his excellent record with the New England Revolution. Or maybe that just Bradley’s sneaky way of getting him capped with the U.S. so he would never play for Ireland?

Against T&T the U.S. looked great but really it was the same as the qualifier against T&T in the last qualifying round on U.S. soil. Yes, Jozy gets the hat trick (although that third goal shouldn't count) and once again we had a slew of opportunities.

The team is in first place in their group and Mexico has two losses. And yes I have read all the usual arguments about Mexico playing 3 of their toughest games in the first three – but they have 2 loses and one win out of those three. And they haven’t played Costa Rica in Costa Rica and they still have to play the U.S. in Azteca. A game Bradley very badly wants to win. It would be one more thing he did that the great Arena did not do. So, while the U.S. didn’t have the toughest three games and certainly the tie to El Salvador cannot be seen as anything other than a poor results – it was a tie. Not a loss.

That said, we still have issues at Right and Left Back. If Hejduk is still in the rotation in South Africa – well I don’t think reaching the quarterfinals is likely. The same can be said for Pearce. And we have the Landon aka Rodriguez problem. It’s impossible to sit him, but if you’re expecting him to be the leader (or counting on it) then disappointment will be the order of the day. Plus, I for one, am not sure we have solved our striker issues. I like Ching (in spite of myself – as a longtime Revs fan) but he is a workhorse. He creates the opportunities and does all the dirty work of the target, but we need another forward to use those opportunities created. Is Altidore the answer? Well, let’s not be hasty. I can remember when Eddie Johnson was the answer. They are both sitting on the bench for teams playing in the second division of glamour leagues in Europe. Everyone else is worried about finding that #10, but I am not too concerned about that. We have a lot of midfielders who can play both ways and make passes, Bradley, Dempsey, Donovan – when he is awake in the game, and Mastroeni. There is also a host of possible youngsters including Edu, Torres, Kljestan. And yes I have left Adu off that list. I just don’t see him handling the physical play.

Well that’s all for now. Until the next post.