Columbus 2nd Leg ECS - Postmatch

A non-game comment.

There was a mess up the moment of silence and national anthem. The singer began the anthem before the PA announcer said thank you. It was very, very odd.

also the bracelets weren't that great -- they tried, but it's just hard to make the stadium dark enough for the effect to be that noticeable. I give the club a lot of credit for trying something new, though. Always working to improve the game-day experience.
 
The sub patterns made no damn sense to me. We spent what felt like 30 mins in the 2nd half passing the ball back and forth casually in our own end... it got to the point where I thought we might have needed to remind the boys that we needed one more goal.

The Pirlo sub was simply for a send-off, don’t try and spin it as anything else. Part of me thinks this might have been a front office order to Patrick Vieira, so we make it look like we care about legends and respect players of his status, etc. It might make a difference when recruiting future players.

Other than that, a fun season and progress over last year, but we need to shore up our roster. We need more attacking players and we need to replace Pirlo with a bonafide finisher.
 
Our second half strategy:

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also the bracelets weren't that great -- they tried, but it's just hard to make the stadium dark enough for the effect to be that noticeable. I give the club a lot of credit for trying something new, though. Always working to improve the game-day experience.

It's because they had the video board on. And the lights from the concourses.
 
It's because they had the video board on. And the lights from the concourses.
It also would have been cool if they picked a couple of songs to flash the lights to. Coldplay does this a ton for their concerts, and it would have been really cool to see one of those songs play for our entrance. I like that they tried though.

Another change to make to the pregame ritual... change the way the smoke stacks get activated. Maybe instead of a goofy guy with a button, extend the metaphor and have it be done with a sledgehammer, a drill, or at least a hard hat with a button/switch or something. Oh, and make the smoke blue, of course.
 
So Fake Jew Thanks for the like to my comment above !! But the Motza Ball you served me tonight has left a very bad taste in my mouth and tears in my eye's ! There's No Fkn Way you'd get a Meatball from me that could ever be as bad !! Just Saying !!
 
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It also would have been cool if they picked a couple of songs to flash the lights to. Coldplay does this a ton for their concerts, and it would have been really cool to see one of those songs play for our entrance. I like that they tried though.

Another change to make to the pregame ritual... change the way the smoke stacks get activated. Maybe instead of a goofy guy with a button, extend the metaphor and have it be done with a sledgehammer, a drill, or at least a hard hat with a button/switch or something. Oh, and make the smoke blue, of course.
Mario and Luigi, dressed in orange and blue respectively, should emerge from a sewer and punch a cube with a question mark on it to activate the pipes. And the smoke should come out colored and with some actual force. The way it just kinda drifts out is anti climactic and flaccid.
 
Mario and Luigi, dressed in orange and blue respectively, should emerge from a sewer and punch a cube with a question mark on it to activate the pipes. And the smoke should come out colored and with some actual force. The way it just kinda drifts out is anti climactic and flaccid.
We’d get hit with copyright infringement lawsuits for sure... we’d probably name them Eti and Had.
 
I'm watching a tape of the match and there's a clear handball on the 41' inside the box of Columbus after a whiff by Villa. No penalty was called and it didn't go to VAR. The more I'm watching this, the more the referees fucked up tonight.

And Allen Chapman was the VAR.
 
I'm watching a tape of the match and there's a clear handball on the 41' inside the box of Columbus after a whiff by Villa. No penalty was called and it didn't go to VAR. The more I'm watching this, the more the referees fucked up tonight.

And Allen Chapman was the VAR.

MLS really needs to evaluate how VAR is used. "Clear and obvious" is too small a span of items to be reviewed -- the league needs to do a better job making sure the fans know something is being looked at. The way to do that is to have the referee go to the tape for more questionable decisions. Even if you're never changing your call, at least give us the lip service.
 
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Am I the only one who doesn't care if Columbus moves they don't show up for their team until the spotlight is on them that is bs. The loss is more gutting bc we showed we are clearly the better side when we don't fuck up. It should be a big offseason, there needs to be accountability for not getting out of the semifinals two years in a row. Kreiss was out after a poor finish, maybe its time for another shakeup, or do they open the budget and sign a DP on the right side of 30 and start preparing for the end of the Villa reign.
 
It really sucks that we can look this good and be going out because Callens got punished on an innocuous, everyday gesture, and the ref tonight was too weak to book any of the Columbus players for the egregious timewasting. I'm disappointed that so many people are still blaming Callens for that, and disappointed that Meram didn't receive his trophy.

Hats off to the boys in blue. Everybody stood up and played their fucking socks off. Can't hate on Jack for going himself. He's 6 inches away from megging Steffen and sending us to the Eastern conference finals. The past few weeks we have been lamenting our tendency to avoid shooting in order to get the ball to Villa. You get that in your head and you are gonna err the other way for a little while. In the long run it will pay off. Hindsight bias is a thing, too.

The way the subs played out were understandable but ultimately mistakes. You could make a case for Pirlo given how much trouble we were having playing through their lines, but as others have said, he needed more minutes. I think the #VieiraOut stuff is recency bias. His player development and ability to drill a system are amazing for a second year coach. As I and others have said in the past, his flaws are correctable. We should always be considering alternatives but I don't think it's a problem.

Everything else I either agree with it has been said. In order to feel something other than sadness or anger, I started listing out things that happened this season that I will remember forever and be grateful for:
  • Brillant, perpetual scapegoat, copping a boot in the face and scoring against Chicago.
  • Jonathan Lewis is a highlight factory. The equalizer against New England. His goal on starting debut against LA. His play yo Villa against Chicago. I legit wonder if he will be the additional goalscorer we need next season.
  • Villa, head in hands after his backpost winner against Seattle.
  • Villa, head in hands after the final whistle blew at home to Chicago.
  • Villa's second against Red Bulls in the 3-2 at Yankee Stadium. Villa is God.
  • Maniacally laughing after Villa bombed on Andre Blake.
  • That Harrison chip where the ball was rotating on an axis that ran directly into the lens of the camera.
  • All the away days and playing pickup drunk and otherwise inebriated.
  • Sweat looking like he was in a waking dream right after scoring against the Red Bulls at RBA.
  • All the people I've met and conversed with whom I would never have had any reason to talk to before this club came along.
Thanks NYCFC.
 
MLS really needs to evaluate how VAR is used. "Clear and obvious" is too small a span of items to be reviewed -- the league needs to do a better job making sure the fans know something is being looked at. The way to do that is to have the referee go to the tape for more questionable decisions. Even if you're never changing your call, at least give us the lip service.
I hate that the Ref goes to a screen like its the NFL, wish they went the rugby method, make the signal open the line of communication with the TMO and the TMO gives the decision on what he sees. For more clarity you let the TV audience hear the conversation between the TMO and the Ref