So Claudio Reyna kind of blew up the team at the end of 2019 as he moved to Austin. Thanks.
#MLSisBack - July 14 - Orlando
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So Claudio Reyna kind of blew up the team at the end of 2019 as he moved to Austin. Thanks.
I'm going to give an unpopular opinion.
This team is going to be fine. We remain one of the best teams in the East, and we're going to be right there at the end if this season ever actually ends.
There, I said it. Now for my reasons.
1. We were just coming into match fitness when the season stopped, and even though we lost to Tigres 1-0, we pretty well bossed that game and their goal came against the run of play. Our inability to score has seemed unlucky more than anything else; it reminds me of the way last year started when nothing was going on the net. Then all of a sudden we had that breakthrough against Minnesota, and we were off to the races. I think something similar will happen this year.
2. I can't take much out of Thursday's game, other than we dominated it and should have scored two or three goals. We were unlucky again, but over the course of even a mid-sized season like this, that luck evens out. Thursday's game really was a glorified preseason game. No one is match fit, no one is actually ready for competitive games right now. If we don't get at least four points out of the next two games, I might start to be worried. But four points should be enough to get us into the knockouts, and since we're better than almost every team in the league I'm not too worried about seeding issues if we end up as a wild card. Hopefully we'll look better against Orlando, and our attack should rip Miami's defense into confetti.
This team is going to be fine. We remain one of the best teams in the East, and we're going to be right there at the end if this season ever actually ends.
There, I said it. Now for my reasons.
1. We were just coming into match fitness when the season stopped, and even though we lost to Tigres 1-0, we pretty well bossed that game and their goal came against the run of play. Our inability to score has seemed unlucky more than anything else; it reminds me of the way last year started when nothing was going on the net. Then all of a sudden we had that breakthrough against Minnesota, and we were off to the races. I think something similar will happen this year.
2. I can't take much out of Thursday's game, other than we dominated it and should have scored two or three goals. We were unlucky again, but over the course of even a mid-sized season like this, that luck evens out. Thursday's game really was a glorified preseason game. No one is match fit, no one is actually ready for competitive games right now. If we don't get at least four points out of the next two games, I might start to be worried. But four points should be enough to get us into the knockouts, and since we're better than almost every team in the league I'm not too worried about seeding issues if we end up as a wild card. Hopefully we'll look better against Orlando, and our attack should rip Miami's defense into confetti.
this, so much this. I was going to comment this but reached this post and feel just quoting this is good enough.
No game other than the ORL/Miami one scored more than one goal so far... We played pretty well against Philly - outstatsing them (which I know doesn't meant much unless you score) and I don't think we're in trouble yet. Sure, we've lost four on the bounce 0-1 but I think on the 14th we're going to pick it up.
We played Philly. We didn't play Cincinatti. Remember, the teams we played to start the 2020 season haven't exactly been the easiest:
San Carlos was a walk in the park
Crew - looking pretty good so far
Toronto - MLS Cup finalists
Philadelphia - Expected to be in the top of the conference.
When we play a Cincinatti-like team and do bad, then I'll worry... but we haven't yet.
As a member of Team Catastrophe, can I suggest that my team and Team Sunshine agree that there has been some poor luck and tough opponents, but that it's not bad luck that Heber has 1 shot in three league games, and 4 shots in the last 4 games all comps if you add in CCL? The man had a hat trick against San Carlos and has barely seen the ball since then, and if our best scorer can pour it in against second rate teams but barely touch the ball against decent competition then something is wrong?
He averaged 3.2 Shots per 90 last year. He never went 3 straight games played with 1 shot. Never went 2 games in a row with zero. He's not seeing the ball, and that's a team problem, not an Heber problem.
He averaged 3.2 Shots per 90 last year. He never went 3 straight games played with 1 shot. Never went 2 games in a row with zero. He's not seeing the ball, and that's a team problem, not an Heber problem.
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I don't think you can put this just on the team. Heber had the worst score in ASA's receiving metric for any starting player last game.
There was nothing inevitable about PV and Dome quitting when they did. It's not as if Dome left in predictable fashion. PV's departure for Nice could have been easily prevented by three or four Nice games going the other way in some alternate timeline. Then he stays through the playoffs and then what?
And there was nothing inevitable about PV and Dome not winning anything - both men built teams who had the talent to win it all. Dome's team in particular should have been a damn dynasty.
We're constantly told it's smart for MLS teams to embrace their place in the global football food chain. Surely it makes even more sense for that to apply to coaches (who deal in the results business and can't move upwards without sustained success) more than it does to players (who are capable of shining in otherwise awful teams).
Bottom line, if more coaches like PV and Dome* want to come here as a stepping stone, win a lot of games, build a title contender and then maybe leave, I'm happy to go along for the ride. Sounds like a good deal to me.
* I'm not sure Deila is in this category
Agreed, IF they actually win titles. However, not a fan if they keep bailing prematurely and then starting over again. Also agree about Deila, don't think he is.
This doesn't change your Heber point, but I'm seeing some very different numbers from ASA. Have they reassesed the game perhaps since that Tweet went up?
First of all, I think the Outfield chart is using "Normalized over 96 Minutes" figures, which I get as a choice but should always be stated, otherwise it makes Thorarinsson look much worse because it appears that he was able to accumulate so many negatives and tie for the worst +/- in just 5 minutes of play. But that aside, here are the tables I get right now for NYC in that same game, first regularized for 96 minutes
and here the raw, actual score based on actual minutes played.
We're definitely pulling the same game because the minutes per player match, but the ratings do not match at all. As one of the more extreme examples, the Outfield chart shows Mackay-Steven at negative .07 while mine show a positive of either .09 or .40. Something is very off. Even if they reassesed, for GMS to flip that much would mean that same day ratings are not to be trusted at all.
Yeah, players are more likely to get injured with the race back to play soccer and not enough time in training. We've just lost 1 of our 3 best players. He had 20 assists in 2019. We're fucked. Not getting out of the group. Not making whatever playoffs MLS does this year. Dome for 2021. That's what I want!
yep when i saw the initial tweet after the first game i said were not seeing him or the rest of the group stages.
IIRC we only have one win ( and a few draws) when he is not playing. welp wait till 2022 season see what we got cuz nothing is going to happen from now till then
An acquaintance who knows people at Celtic says Deila is considered quite erratic personality, partly due to being a bit too happy to hit the bottle. No idea if this is true, but I wouldn’t be surprised.
He wasn't that great this season so far anyway. in 2019, he started out fairly strong doing his usual stuff, but this season, he's been half his usual self.
All this means is one of the other guys will have to step it up. Parks will have to fill the role or Gideon or better yet, Nico! I would love to see Nico step in and become the defacto Maxi replacement. Maxi being out doesn't mean we're done for. We still have plenty of fire power. Some youth and exuberance in the midfield might do us some good.
I fell like a doomsayer when it comes to this team and relying on an aging MAXI (who should give up penalty taking duties) is one of my bullet points.
That said I don't want the team to be a train wreck but who conducts this team on the field when Maxi is not playing?
Is Mitrita the best replacement at that role?
Gedion should stay in the hotel drawer and Medina is cold or funky but not funky cold medina like a good Tone Loc hit.
nico is not that though. hes closer that that deeper mid field role get the ball and pass it up but by no means a 10 or CAM. Gideon i think technically is supposed to be that but he kept losing the ball too easily last game. the way ronny is playing i think he probably sees medina there.
In prime masochistic fashion I still want to watch the ORL-NYCFC game. I had cut the cord radically during the pandemic, relying on Prime and Netflix. I got Sling, which is supposed to have ESPN, ESPN 2, etc. right before our first match. But now this one's supposed to be on TUDN and Twitter. What the hell is TUDN? Is Twitter free? Advice please.
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