Atlanta - Postmatch

Why was Tata wearing a sub pinny?

Because his polo and shorts were the exact same colors as his players. He was basically wearing their uniform, down to the gold stripes on the shoulders.
 
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So today’s match confirms the AudiIndex is total crap. TMac was credited with 8pts off of (1) successful pass in the opposition’s half and (1) successful pass in final third. However, he didn’t play a minute of the match - his butt never left the bench.

I’d screenshot it if I knew how to post the pic via my phone.

Holy fuck, you're right...
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So one thing that was obvious from this game is how much ATL has tailored their game for the plastic track that they play on at home. They looked to shoot balls over the top and run under them and most of them went either harmlessly long and/or out of play. They are so direct and NYC pressed them to not let them break out. Ring was absolutely massive in this aspect.

No “MLS frontrunner” (yeah, I read the MLS soccer article fawning over them) should look like they couldn’t get the ball out of their own half for the last 40 minutes after Martinez scored.

Oh, and as much as it sucked that curving cross from Gressel was so good. Martinez is an arrogant SOB, I’m amazed he came back to life after being horribly injured (nice faking there wanker) in the first half. I hope karma bites him in the ass big time, he’s due.
 
On Wednesday I received an email from Molly Hartman, Molly Hartman, the team's Club Access service rep. It said to go to the Ketel One Lounge starting 11:00am today to receive a complimentary branded portable USB. I thought that odd, since I don't have access to the Ketel One Lounge.

Twenty minutes later I got another email saying to visit the Delta Suite starting at 11:00AM to receive a complimentary branded portable USB. This made more sense, though nothing in this second email from Molly Hartman, Molly Hartman indicated that it was a correction, though the text about which lounge to go to was in a different font color.

So today I went to the Delta Suite and was given a t-shirt.

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Ring was immense today. For a guy who's banged up, he's unbelievable. Such a gamer.

Couldn't have done much more in this game, one of the more dominating performances we've seen in a while. I really hope these teams find a way to face off in the playoffs, that would be an unreal series.
 
So one thing that was obvious from this game is how much ATL has tailored their game for the plastic track that they play on at home. They looked to shoot balls over the top and run under them and most of them went either harmlessly long and/or out of play. They are so direct and NYC pressed them to not let them break out. Ring was absolutely massive in this aspect.
Description of Atlanta’s tactics last week:

http://nycfcforums.com/index.php?posts/248200/
 
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Faded thoughts.

Ofori had his best game to date, but I thought Isi was amazing as an 8/10 with Maxi and Ring playing behind. With Herrera out, I'd love to see Medina and Isi trading time in the center, even with Ofori gaining in confidence.

Honestly, the criticism of Villa for me is laughable. Re: chances, Guzan and the post shared honors as MoTM. You might say he put too many at Guzan but he got off his line like a man possessed. Villa also created 3 or 4 chances for others through pure skill and determination. I wouldn't be surprised if the chances he laid on for Medina and Maxi would have been assists if they weren't at the point where Guzan had them psyched out.

If we could have Tinny's spirit and Salaam's ability on the ball we would be so money.

Lastly, and this is bittersweet - Vieira turned on some flexibility today. Started in a 3-5-2, morphed into a 4-3-3 and became a 3-3-4. Great subs, perfect timing. Even played Lewis. He's gotta be trolling us.
 
One thing on Berget as I read through this.

I agree with the people who say he does good things out there -- he does. He's in good spots, he asks questions of the defense. He's probably one of the tactically smartest players we have.

However, he's a striker with 1 goal and 0 assists in 12 starts. This is a results business, and that's not good enough. He needs more to show for his minutes. Medina has significantly cooled lately, but at least he's given some production. Strikers need more than 1 goal in 12 starts.

So I agree that he's doing good things, and I agree that he's helping more than he's hurting, but at some point he's going to have to score some goals.

EDIT: And on Villa -- the dude had 10 shots today. He outshot the entire Atlanta team 10-6. He was outstanding, and deserved at least a goal, if not 2. All over the damn field.
 
One thing on Berget as I read through this.

I agree with the people who say he does good things out there -- he does. He's in good spots, he asks questions of the defense. He's probably one of the tactically smartest players we have.

However, he's a striker with 1 goal and 0 assists in 12 starts. This is a results business, and that's not good enough. He needs more to show for his minutes. Medina has significantly cooled lately, but at least he's given some production. Strikers need more than 1 goal in 12 starts.

So I agree that he's doing good things, and I agree that he's helping more than he's hurting, but at some point he's going to have to score some goals.

EDIT: And on Villa -- the dude had 10 shots today. He outshot the entire Atlanta team 10-6. He was outstanding, and deserved at least a goal, if not 2. All over the damn field.


But has Berget played as a CF? He hasn't.
 
The outlet drop kick that Johnson sent to Lewis where he outran Parkhurst for the ball, left Parkhurst absolutely winded and spent. Parkhurst then moved over to the opposite touchline (the 3rd base side) away from Lewis, shifting positions with another CB. I was really surprised the team didn’t take note and try to exploit it - Parkhurst was so vulnerable to being outrun, but all of the play down that side was our methodical short passing. I’m not a big proponent of having players switch sides, but this was the one time it seemed prudent to flip Lewis over, clear out the area for him to go 1v1 on a break, and let Johnson or Callens send balls over to top to him - kinda the same tactic Atlanta uses with Martinez.