MLS Cup Playoffs - November 23 - Red Bulls (Home)

[ZYanksRule]

Jovan showed little, but had the least time to show anything. I’ll disagree on Fernandez - he always did something, even if his team defense was erratic.

I like Wolf as a player, but let’s be honest - his output was lacking the second half of the year. Maybe some rest would have helped and would have given chances to others.

Cushing desperate is at the heart of my biggest complaint. This team spent a ton of money on young players but had a desperate coach more concerned with stopping goals than scoring goals bury them on the bench. The coach doesn’t match the squad. We can disagree, but I’d rather watch young potential - even if it fails - than Sporting Kansas City.

I agree with you that we should have been more developmental this year. We were never winning MLS Cup this season, so maybe the right move was to go more developmental. But we play in New York and there is pressure to win. The organization never would have accepted another season without postseason soccer, and Nick had too much pressure to win in order to actually be more developmental.

I understand your point that he should have played those guys more in the regular season, but we'd have been screaming bloody murder if we weren't getting results because he was playing ineffective players. The fanbase and organization demand wins.

Nick's job was to put the players on the pitch who had the best chance to win games. I had absolutely no criticisms of who he played this postseason run.

And let's also be honest. Nick dragged this team to the conference semifinal -- he's not going anywhere. Many of us (myself included) still have some reservations about whether he's the right man for this job, but it was a successful result to the season despite losing to the Red Bulls. He's not going anywhere.

 

[KevinJRogers]

I understand your point that he should have played those guys more in the regular season, but we'd have been screaming bloody murder if we weren't getting results because he was playing ineffective players. The fanbase and organization demand wins

Anyone in Nick's chair would have had the same damned if you do, damned if you don't dilemma. It's inevitable.

I couldn't help but think of a story in the Chris Matthews book All Politics is Local. Tip O'Neill's best friend was a fellow congressman from Boston (I can't remember his name) who said:

"If I stay in Washington, they say I'm too snooty to come home. If I come home, they want to know why I'm not in Washington doing my job. If I wear a nice suit, they think I'm on the take. If I don't, they say I dress like a slob and I'm an embarrassment. If I go to church on Sunday, they say I'm a hypocrite, and if I don't, they say I'm a heathen. You just can't win."

It just comes with the territory, I guess. Anyone in a position of authority is going to get the same business. I give him credit for having clear ideas, executing them, and producing a very decent result in a challenging transition year.

And I should add, personally, I still think had Malachi not gone down and we had that super pacey, super smart, super energetic left wing, we would have been a nightmare to deal with by the last third of the season. He'll be back. The trio of forwards we brought in got gently blooded this campaign and should be ready for more action in 2025. Mounsef and Zo are known quantities.

We're solid everywhere else and should be able to spackle any issues in the next churn. And we managed to fight through to a conference semifinal with what we had at hand, and while we got beat, we didn't exactly get blown out.

I'm feeling pretty good.

 

[Brooklyn Blue]

I agree with you that we should have been more developmental this year. We were never winning MLS Cup this season, so maybe the right move was to go more developmental. But we play in New York and there is pressure to win. The organization never would have accepted another season without postseason soccer, and Nick had too much pressure to win in order to actually be more developmental.

I understand your point that he should have played those guys more in the regular season, but we'd have been screaming bloody murder if we weren't getting results because he was playing ineffective players. The fanbase and organization demand wins.

Nick's job was to put the players on the pitch who had the best chance to win games. I had absolutely no criticisms of who he played this postseason run.

And let's also be honest. Nick dragged this team to the conference semifinal -- he's not going anywhere. Many of us (myself included) still have some reservations about whether he's the right man for this job, but it was a successful result to the season despite losing to the Red Bulls. He's not going anywhere.

Fair points.

I’m not sure I agree that he dragged the team to the conference semi-finals. I believe a case could be made he made it more difficult. He parked the bus twice in Cincy and Freese kept us alive in the third game, saving us.

He also DID NOT SUBSTITUTE UNTIL MINUTE 74 today. Down 2-0, what was the rationale? He also dropped an attacker for an 8. Why?

Cushing clearly does certain things well. I just believe he is a poor fit for this team’s construction. A conservative coach that hasn’t developed young attackers needs a different roster and a different job.

 

[ZYanksRule]

Fair points.

I’m not sure I agree that he dragged the team to the conference semi-finals. I believe a case could be made he made it more difficult. He parked the bus twice in Cincy and Freese kept us alive in the third game, saving us.

He also DID NOT SUBSTITUTE UNTIL MINUTE 74 today. Down 2-0, what was the rationale? He also dropped an attacker for an 8. Why?

Cushing clearly does certain things well. I just believe he is a poor fit for this team’s construction. A conservative coach that hasn’t developed young attackers needs a different roster and a different job.

Perea was brought on to be a winger, which is another example of how little Cushing trusted Ojeda, Jovan, and Julian.

I think it's a fair question to ask whether Nick helped or hurt overall. I also think Cushing has made a conference final, a conference semifinal, and a League Cup quarterfinal as NYCFC head coach, so he's clearly doing something right in knockout competitions. We overachieved in Leagues Cup AND twice in MLS Cup Playoffs under him. I don't think that's an accident

I'm so conflicted, because I do agree with you that he's a lousy developmental coach which makes him a lousy fit for this roster. All things being equal, I don't think he's the coach who will bring us our second star. But I'd be shocked if NYCFC fired him after the results of this season.

I think the only way he's fired is if David Lee is upset with how Cushing used the players he signed; if there is a poor working relationship between the two of them, kind of like what happened in Philly.

 

[KevinJRogers]

I think the only way he's fired is if David Lee is upset with how Cushing used the players he signed; if there is a poor working relationship between the two of them, kind of like what happened in Philly.

If you count his time as the interim coach, Nick is our longest-tenured gaffer. It would be truly shocking were he to be fired at this point in the project, after getting us so far.

I'm so conflicted, because I do agree with you that he's a lousy developmental coach which makes him a lousy fit for this roster.

I know you and Brooklyn Blue and a few other people have expressed the same sentiment. I can't agree. But it's the middle of the night so I'll save it for my tea time tomorrow.