A Little Less Conversation

World Cup v. DC United

2006-06-09T23:09:00.000-04:00

I'm totally and utterly engrossed into the World Cup therefore DCU coverage will be shotty for at least this weekend. It could also be due to the fact that I didn't pay for MLSnet.tv and that's the only way to see the game.

Speaking of the World Cup, Germany and (unfortunately cause Poland is in my group of teams in the office pool) Ecuador had strong performances. It will be interesting to see how England plays tomorrow morning.

If you aren't in a pool yet but want to start one here's an easy way to enjoy the Cup. Obviously it's useless to just choose the team that'll win because the Conventional Wisdom is that Brazil and Argentina will come out on top and the smaller games don't really matter. Ok here's what you do:

Get four people total (or eight people total with four teams apiece). Put all 32 teams in a hat and everyone randomly draws a team sequentially until all 32 teams have been picked. The goal is to add up all points earned by all your teams. The winner is the person who's 8 teams (or 4 in an eight person pool) had earned the most points total. This actually made the Ecuador-Poland game worth watching. And since it's drawn randomly it not only prevents people with more info from getting an upper-hand, it also allows for late comers to create a pool.

Ok. Real quick: DC-LA preview.

LA is going through a bit of turbulance in their organization right now. They lost to Chivas. Let me repeat...They lost to CHIVAS. I know Chivas is a better team but come on. DC is riding a wave of success and should take care of LA pretty handily. Even though it's in LA, I think DC has the composure to get past the fans and play their game. DC should watch for being overconfident and should grind out the game especially if they get a goal early. Take LA out of the game and wait for good chances at goal they will definitely be there. Our strength this game should be the defensive midfield if we control that and are able to make the pass to the offensive midfield then the runs and shots on goal will fall into place.

DC United 1: New England Revolution 0 :: Soccer Fans Everywhere: 0

2006-06-04T22:38:00.000-04:00

What an ugly game.

The game was uneventful except for a couple flashes to excitement from both teams. DC got the win which is all that really matter but I would've liked to have seen more from both teams.

The tempo was set early by the ref. The Revolution quickly realized that the ref was letting the teams playing more aggressive that usual. Normal fouls weren't called and fouls deserving yellow cards drew a simple whistle. He let plays go on even when there was no advantage. It was reminiscent of the Chicago game at RFK during the playoffs last year. Just ask Jaime Moreno how much the ref was calling. I felt like I was watching the first half of his career when the way teams contained him was to foul him hard. To be fair, I'd be upset if I saw my keeper and one of my defenders get completely embarassed by him.

The physical play seemed to benefit New England but they couldn't capitalize. They had periods where they were stringing 5+ passes together seting up a shot on goal but could not get past Troy Perkins. I thought he did an amazing job expect for the one cross he dropped near the top of the box and the almost goal that everyone in the stadium thought tied the game but was ruled offsides. Pat Noonan left the game relatively early with something it was odd because one minute he was dribbling through the defense, the next he just bent over hurt. It was strange and the outcome may have turned out differently for the Revs but that's how the game is sometimes. New England did have a good opportunity at the end of the game which was their highlight of the night. Cancela had a free kick right around the 92nd minute. It reminded me of last year when New England had a penchant for scoring game-winning goals at the very end of games. But again, this isn't last year and Cancela hit the ball straight at Perkins.

Defensively, it was a bit of a mess. There was a whole lot of stabbing at the ball with out following through and there were too many uncontested crosses. Like I said, Troy had another solid game. There is a world of difference between 2004 Troy, where he was good but still unsure of his role on the team, and 2006 Troy where he is steady and much quicker and more physical. He even seems to have a swagger, which all the good keepers need. Something unknown to the television viewer is that Nick Rimando was warming up in the goal prior to the game from around 7:10 until the team went back to the locker room. Troy on the other hand looked none too happy when he walked back to the locker room at around 7:15. It at least looks good that Novak is letting them compete for the starting position. It'll bring out the best in both keepers. Right now I feel Troy has played well enough to keep the starting position until he makes a drastic mistake. Nick should also learn how to sit on the bench as a #2. If DC has another Columbus-type game then I think he should get some playing time. But for the time being, he should accept that he's not the starter.

The biggest story of the game is Jaime Moreno's 101st goal. And it was gorgeous. A perfectly timed run combined with a sweet move that ended in a goal. Though, Jaime could have hit the ball a little harder because he gave the NE defender plently of time to clear the ball off the line. Fortunately for DC, he tried to be fancy instead of just blasting it off the line and the ball went between his legs. It may have been the slowest nutmeg I've ever seen. The move was nice, the finish could have been better. And the run was onside, no matter what anyone says. The farside defender kept him onsides. It's not Jaime's fault that the Rev defend collectively kept running upfield which made Jaime look offsides. It was a beautiful pass and Jaime has the experience to get past the keeper and get the goal.

Other offensive notables: Alecko Eskandarian had one of his patented break aways and had only Matt Reis to beat (which would have been the sweetest revenge) but his shot lacked the spin to get around him into the back of the net. The ball got past Reis but just missed. It was a gorgeous play that was left unfinished. Adu also almost came up huge with a volley that came from a cross (though I'm not sure that was his intention) from Domenic Mediate. The high cross fell in perfect line with Adu's favored left foot and his volley was a laser of a shot that Reis had no chance of saving but it hit the crossbar and the score remained 1-0.

Notes from the stadium: It was Armed Forces Appreciation day and I still become a six year old when I see the helicopters and humvees. The U.S. Army Drill Team performed during halftime which drew a bunch of ooh's and ahh's from the crowd.

All in all it was an ugly game that saw good chances for both teams but only Jaime Moreno could find the back of the net to reach 101. DC United is now undefeated in it's last five games (W-T-W-W-W).

Next up: Bottom feeder Los Angeles Galaxy. With even less threats than New England and Columbus, the rivalry may not present itself, then again, it is an away game.

Preview - Revs vs. DCU

2006-06-02T20:02:00.000-04:00

Obviously DC is riding a wave of success at the present moment. The hardest part about success is that you take it for granted. As long as DC doesn't think they can just walk all over the rest of the league, they should be fine. That being said, they have to know they can beat anyone in the league especially at home. Even one point would be disappointing for this team and its fans.

If I'm not mistaken, this is Alecko's first time facing Matt Reis. Ever since he was knocked out for the rest of the season a little less than a year ago, I know I've had special disdain for Matt Reis as a keeper. Nothing would please me more than a break away run by Alecko heading straight for the North goal and scoring a booming goal from about 20-25 yards out a la 2004 playoffs against the Revs.

New England enters the game with a L-W-W-L-T record over the last five games. From what I hear, they are not playing all that well. For some reason they are not clicking the way they did last year. Like the DCenters says, both DC and NE always pick up their games when playing each other, especially the team that had been struggling in recent games. The way to take out New England is to strike early and disrupt their game. Defensively, shutting down Taylor Twellman and making sure whenever Shalrie Joseph gets the ball there is someone immediately on him well ensure that the Revs' attack stalls.

For DC, they have to focus more on moving the ball up and down rather than left and right. Offensively, crossing runs by Alecko and Adu will effectively break down the New England defense. On set pieces, I think the quicker the better because New England seems to do better when they can get into position. Their weakness is when plays break down. Therefore, DC has to pounce on their mistakes. They shouldn't look for maintaining possession in those situations. Instead, they should head straight for the goal and let it rip. The follow-up of the shot from players like Gros are key for this to be successful. The New England defense seems to have lost its identity. They are confused and lose the players they are responsible for. Quick passes and crossing runs will be the key to winning the game.

It may or may not rain tomorrow night but it will be balmy and humid. Personally, I think that the forecast favors DC.

I'll be there rooting the team on. Hopefully this time I'll remember the camera. We should get three points. I'll say a 3-1 win for DC. Adu is long overdue for a goal, I think Jaime will get 101 and look for Alecko to get subtle revenge.

More from the Columbus-DCU Game

2006-06-01T21:55:00.000-04:00

There is a point where a team stops competing against other teams in the league and starts competing against history. We're not there yet but a couple more games like the Columbus game and we'll have to evaluate how this team ranks against the Golden Age of DCU. Right off the bat, if this year's team ends up being comparable to those classic teams it'll be without the first generation of legendary names such as Harkes, Agoos, Etcheverry, Lassiter, Diaz Arce, Pope, Sanneh, LLamosa and others. DC has consistently drawn players that aren't big international names but that fit into a system.

One of the reasons that I see that accounts for DC's early success is the way they play with the ball at their feet. Many DC players (when playing with conviction) are looking for the quick pass and as soon as the ball leaves their feet, they run into space. But above all else DC has the ability to shake off shoulder charges. Jaime is one of the best in the league at holding the ball and taking a challege from defenders while maintaining his composure. Many times last night Adu (who's pretty small) would shake off Columbus midfielder Rozental.
Alecko is at his best with a defender on his right arm running straight at the keeper lining a shot up with his left foot. Gomez and Gros also have the ability to keep a challenging defender at bay.

Gros also needs more accolades for his tireless efforts. He, above all other DC players, can run up and down the field and play consistently well on both ends. Not only does he have amazing endurance, he is one of the fastest players on the team. On more than one occassion he has tracked back from midfield to clear a ball out of bounds at the endline. A key move that shut down what little offense Columbus did have was to move Gros from the outside left in the first half to the outside right in the second half. Taking nothing away from Namoff and Adu's games, they could not contain Ngwenya in the first half. Unfortunately for Namoff, he had a mental lapse and left his man (Ngwenya) alone for a pretty good goal. Gros put a stop to all of that in the second half and had enough energy left over to grab himself a goal. To have the endurance to run up and down the field and contribute offensively and defensively, signals to me that we're looking at an sorely underrated player and as soon as the finer points of his game (such as his first touches and confidence striking the ball) are refined, he'll no doubt become an All-star, premier outside midfielder in the league.

Thing I missed: July 12th at RFK DCU plays run away Scottish Premier League Champions Celtic FC at 7:30 pm. You can count on the Celtic fans to show up and represent so we have to get out there and make sure our presence is felt.

If anyone has the video of the opening montage that they play right before the teams come out onto the field highlighting DC United's first ten years, please let me know.

Finally, little did I know that Olsen put out an instructional video in his younger days. Below is a teaser of just that video. Look at that shaggy hair.

What an Electrifying Game - Columbus:1 DC:5

2006-05-31T23:51:00.000-04:00

Every game I've attended before this, I've taken my camera and shot putting boring shots. This game could have changed all that and what do I do?? Forget the camera in the car. It's as if I was being punished for leaving it in the car. Needless to say no pics this time.

NOTE: This was written from what I remember from the game. Highlights aren't posted yet so the specific touches may be inaccurate but this is what I saw.

What an amazing game!!! Too bad it wasn't on TV. To anyone who missed the game: I'm sorry and I'll try to put everything into perspective. A lot of things happened and needless to say that DC dominated offensively and aside from a couple of mental lapses (one which led to the goal), the defense was solid.

Real quick: Columbus came out and tried to run up and down the sidelines like they did the last game. Only this time DC was ready and shut down the flanks for a majority of the game. Columbus had very good chances but they couldn't take advantage of the few defensive lapses. Ngwenya had a very good goal that capped a string of 5-plus passes for Columbus. That was the most dangerous they looked the entire game and, for the most part, the defense went out and did it's job.

Offense: so I may have underestimated our potency on offense. They went above and beyond everything I could have predicted offensively. Remember the breakdown of shots on goal from last game? Columbus: very few and DC: a whole lot. It was pretty much the same this game only they actually finished. FIVE GOALS...simply amazing. The first goal was going to be a through pass to Alecko who would have dribbled around the goalie for an amazing left footed shot. Unfortunately, Columbus's tenth-string goalkeeper went straight for Alecko's knees which drew a pretty obvious penalty kick and a yellow card. Guess who takes the penalty kicks for DC. Hint: he's been pretty much automatic from the spot for the past two seasons. That's right! Jaime Moreno setup the shot and converted for his 100TH GOAL!!!

The next goal didn't come until early in the second half. Christian Gomez took the corner. It was low, direct and aimed for the near post. Out of nowhere Alecko flew in and deflected the ball towards the goal. At first it looked like a straight goal but thinking about it again, it seemed like it bounced around a little and ended up being a Columbus own goal. But it all started with a perfect service from Christian Gomez for the second straight game. Alecko ran pretty much the same route as the KC game on the goal that was nullified by a phantom foul. He used the screen other DC players produced by just standing still to free himself from his defender and he had a clear header. Funny thing: during the celebration most DC players were pointing to Alecko's head and gesturing as if to say "you shouldn't use your head".

The third goal was almost Jaime Moreno's 101st. He received the ball deep in the Columbus box with his back to the goal. One defender was on his back and two were closing in. He took a couple touches away from goal, turned, and took a hard right footed shot on goal. The keeper did well to deflect the shot but the Crew defenders just stood and watched as Josh Gros performed clean up duty and scored a nice goal. Gros is all hard work and those types of goals are tailor-made for his work ethic. No matter what happens he finds a way to get it done.

At this point I thought DC would sit in a shell and protect their lead. Well they finally realized that the best way to win a game is to maintain pressure throughout the entire game. The fourth goal came via a classic-Eskandarian run. After a scare at the other end. Perkins played the ball to Gomez who then passed the ball straight down the field to Alecko that had to fend off his defender as another was seconds from getting in position. Alecko's strength and speed held off his man and as soon as he saw the left side of the net open, unleashed a rocket that the newbie keeper had no chance of stopping. It was gorgeous.

The last goal just summed up the night. After DC subbed out Gomez for Filomeno, I thought that Novak's plan was to slow down the game. But Filomeno wasn't having any of it. He picked up where Gomez left off. He was on a mission and he looked very sure on the ball. Adu started the play by taking a solid shot on goal that was fisted away by the keeper only to land at the feet of Lucio Filomeno about 3 yards away from goal. After fumbling a little bit, he got the ball into the position he wanted and finally scored that ellusive first goal. His celebration said it all. He took off his shirt and you could almost see him shaking the monkey off his back. The first goal is always the hardest and let's just hope that this is the first of many.

Last Columbus-DC game I said that DC played like the varsity team who takes playing the freshman team for granted and ends up getting embarassed. This time DC played like the varsity team that takes all competition seriously and crushed a weaker freshman Columbus team. DC is point blank the best team in the league; offensively and defensively. They are on a roll now and nothing in the near future looks to stop them.

P.S. It was a good showing from the fans. La Barra Brava was out in full force and as loud as ever. I noticed a new chant though (well new to me). They took the popular USMNT chant of "U S AAAAAA, U S AAAAAAA, U S AA, U S AA, U S AAAAAA" and replaced USA with United. I liked it and it's something everyone can chant. On our side their were four middle eastern? hispanic? men that were banging away at their drums and getting everyone in adjacent sections to clap and dance and chant in unison. They were having a blast and it was actually nice seeing some emotion from the middle sections on our side of the stadium. The atmosphere was exciting and as the goals piled up the entire crowd got more vocal and hungry for even more goals.

I'm sorry to all of those who missed it but hopefully it's a taste of the rest of the season.

Next up: fledgling New England Revolution on Saturday at 7:30. It will be televised.

Columbus Comes for Dinner

2006-05-30T21:44:00.000-04:00

The worst thing that can happen on hump day is a bad day at work. After what happened two Saturdays ago I have a feeling that DC is going to be that tyrant boss that makes you (Columbus) wish you called in sick. Tomorrow night twenty-two guys will take the field and only half of them will be happy they get paid to play soccer.

After DC got embarassed (honestly, they did) by Columbus last match, DC should be looking to rebound and maintain the unbeaten home record. From what I've heard their second half against KC was pretty ugly, with a lot of defensive play and very little possession. I'm not bothered by that. At the end of the day, DCU came out of KC with an immensely productive half of play and the solidarity in the defense to withstand another half of unrelenting attack. DCU should feel good about the entire KC game and should go into Columbus ready to dominate.

The offense is the most potent in the league. DC has the most game changing players than any other team. Adu, Gomez, Moreno, Eskandarian, Gros, and even Erpen and Boswell have the ability to step up. It's only a matter of actually stepping up. Last game against Columbus, DCU could not step up in any form and failed to keep possession of the ball for even moderate stretches of time. It's not an exageration to say that DC's goal against Columbus was against the run of play.

Tomorrow night Columbus will again try to use the flanks to attack while making runs behind the defense. DC has to communicate. Defenders have to know where the attackers are and the only way to do that is to talk. DC is getting into a groove and they have to make sure not to become complacent. They took the game to KC and they have to again take the game Columbus. Get them on their heels from the beginning and they'll never recover. Columbus is injured and their attack is still too young to create a real threat under pressure especially at RFK.

Tomorrow night promises to be a good showing hopefully by both teams. MLSNet.tv will be showing the game but for the rest of us who didn't subscribe the only resort we have is to fight traffic and get our butts to RFK. I'll be there taking pictures (as bad as they may be) and hopefully I can get some good stuff.

Predictions? uhh...2-1 DC. Alecko and hmm...Gomez. Probably all wrong but might as well throw it out there.

98 & 99

2006-05-28T14:14:00.000-04:00

Before I begin I have to say that I didn't watch the second half of the DC United and KC Wizards game. When my DVR stopped recording the final score was DC-3 KC-1. I was upset enough that I let myself look at the TV screen when, in the back of my head, i knew that it was live action. I watched the first half and since that half ended 3-1 then I figured there was no reason to watch the rest. If something big happened let me know.

There is no better way to start the game than with a goal. Jaime Moreno's 98th goal began with him being offsides. He trotted back to be even with KC Defender Garcia and Gomez served the ball at the exact moment that Moreno broke back towards the endline for a beautiful goal. It was subtle but Jaime also paused for a split second that froze Bo Oshoniyi in the middle of his goal (not letting him chase Jaime) that freed up the near post. The service by Christian Gomez was absolutely perfect. At first glance it looked like a poor pass because it was so far ahead of Moreno, but it was also short enough that Oshoniyi didn't have the chance to come off his line. Moreno is faster and probably stronger than Garcia so he had the time to think and score.

Jaime Moreno's second goal came on an unfortunate (and blatently wrong call). Clyde Simms simply lost his footing and mishit the ball. The ref's angle, the way Simms fell, and KC Defender immediately throwing up his hands afterwards are my factors that contributed to the call. Usually when a defender throws up his hands like that, it means that he actually did make contact and doesn't want the call. I think if the defender just went along with it there may not have been a call. Either way I felt bad that United's second goal had to come that way. I know Moreno is automatic from the spot, so part of me wanted Moreno to purposely miss just as a gesture of good sportsmanship. The other part of me knows that purposely missing a penalty against the next top team in the East would not have made Coach Novak very happy. I probably would have discussed it first, run it by Novak, and acted accordingly.

The second goal did have repercussions. On Clyde Simms very next touch, he got tackled from behind in what was given a yellow but should have been a straight red. Simms was tackled in retaliation. The KC player never meant to get the ball, he came in from behind, and it looked like he made the kind of foul that potentially ends careers. Should have been a red card but wasn't. The teams should now be even right? Well apparently the ref had to make amends because he later took away what would have been a Goal of the Week by Alecko Eskandarian. Now everyone has made up for the poor call by the ref.

The only thing I have to say about the KC goal is that the defense has to do a better job of clearing the ball. Credit KC for the effort and having bodying in front of the box to clean up loose balls.

The final goal came right before half time from an Adu cross and Boswell header. It was textbook. Adu hit the ball low and hard and all Boswell had to do is tap it to slightly change its direction and it's in the back of the net.

For the first half, DC United dominated a team that should be one of the elite teams in the league. DC's offense was spectacular even without the goals. I really feel that Adu more than everyone else is getting comfortable in his role on the outside and is looking for his teammates more and more. Everyone was in a groove and United not only controlled the midfield but players were making dangerous runs behind the KC defense. KC really is a shell of itself without Josh Wolff, Eddie Johnson, and Jimmy Conrad. They came out flat, allowed a goal early and never recovered. United came out with a purpose and the effort was great.

Now all they have to do is repeat it against a team that they haven't beaten this season. This Wednesday the Columbus Crew comes to town. I'll be at RFK taking pictures and seeing the game from field level.

BTW-Catch the USMNT game on Friday? Convey was a terror. We need him on the field in some form or another. It's too bad that he doesn't play on the right because he would definitely start over Glass-Legs MaGee: Johnny O'Brien. Olsen had a quieter game but still effective. Slowed the game when necessary and put in a hard working effort all around.

How Do You Stop Beating Yourself?

2006-05-24T17:41:00.000-04:00

The world-wide stereotype of U.S. soccer fans are that they are passive. There is no fire, no emotion, when they are at soccer games. Obviously those of us who go to the games, especially DC United games, know different but common observers still believe the stereotype. Usually its the players themselves that show the passion.

Last night the roles were reversed. The atmosphere looked great (all red, white and blue) through the television broadcast, but the team itself was flat. This is a team that's supposed to transition into the upper tier of national teams. We're now expected to compete with teams like Italy and the Czech Republic. Unfortunately, against Morocco, the USMNT failed to step up to the plate and there was no spark. A few sparks came in the form of Bobby Convey (who I think need a lot of playing time) and Eddie Johnson but for the most part I was underwhelmed.

The reason I'm delving into this game is because how familiar it seemed. I saw this game before only I saw it last Saturday in Columbus. Watching this game reminded me of the DC United-Columbus Crew game. Both involved superior teams that could not penetrate the other teams defense and the superior team failed to excite. Both also were missing a key ingredient: Ben Olsen.

Don't get me wrong, Ben Olsen shouldn't start for the national team. I don't think his abilities will carry him for 60-90 minutes a game, but the team needs someone that can run ragged, throw his body around, and generally pick up the pace of the game. He's exactly what the team needed in the last 20-30 minutes. No offense to Pablo Mastroeni, but he slowed the game down and his passes were not on target. Olsen could have quickened the game and he isn't intimidated by anyone which would have definitely benefited the team. Out all 23 players on the national team, he's the only one who I see being able to instantly change the speed of the game. He plays with all heart and will always give everything he has. His experience also give him an advantage in that he's smarter on the ball. He can survey the field and get it either out wide or down the middle depending on the play. He also hasn't lost his power as was evidenced by his goal from distance earlier this year.

All this means that Bruce Arena would do well to give Ben Olsen more playing time. If the national team starts playing flat again, I would love to see Ben Olsen get into the game and I think he would instantly pick up everyone's game.

News from Around the Net

2006-05-22T18:51:00.000-04:00

Here's a look at the DC United-Columbus game from the Crew's point of view by Walter Wheeler.

Relatively old article by Jeff Carlisle spotlighting Alecko Eskandarian: Back with a Vengeance.

Awesome new MLS website launched by Adidas. The DC United section features Jaime Moreno. With good speakers the website looks sleek and sounds cool. Check it out.

Finally, Kyle McCarthy takes a look at early season trends in the MLS. It focuses on the disappointing and mid-table teams but hints at how DC and Dallas are playing (at least have the potential to play) at a higher level than the rest of the league. I would add Kansas City and even Houston to that list.

DCU 1: Columbus 1 - Post-Game Outlook

2006-05-21T18:45:00.000-04:00

According to a writer of the Mid-Atlantic Soccer Report, DC United, among others, are playing on a completely different level than the rest of the league. I whole-heartedly agree and certain games this year you've seen games that resemble a high school varsity team versus the freshmen (see DC vs. NYRB).

Watching the Columbus game I couldn't help but think that DC sometimes plays like they are the varsity team v. the freshmen. What I mean is that they are expected to win most games and play without any urgency because, well, they know the goal will come eventually. This game for example: They started the game flat as is they felt like they were going to just steamroll over Columbus without any effort.

It wasn't until right after the Columbus goal that DC showed what they are capable of. For their goal, which defines DC soccer, Jaime Moreno started with a gorgeous dibbling display and laid it off to Freddy Adu who ripped a low shot that GK Jon Busch couldn't hold on to and Christian Gomez was there for the clean-up goal. Team play, a little one-on-one, a hard shot and the follow-up if need be are things that define the DC offense.

DC seemed for a little while that the fire that they were playing with after the Columbus goal would lead to multiple goals for themselves. Unfortunately, they couldn't find that last pass to finish Columbus off and in the second half they just got tired.

Towards the end of the game I would've liked to see Jamil Walker come in for Jaime Moreno. I know he was having a great game, but he's always been prone to getting tired early. Everyone was tired and Jamil's speed could have been the deciding factor. I would've also like to see Domenic Mediate come into the game for...hmm...Christian Gomez. Adu and Gros were playing great and Gomez's touch was failing him at the end. Mediate would have been brought on for his fresh legs and ability to get forward (at least from what I saw last game).

The problem is that Novak can't keep changing the line-up. I understand if someone's injured but he can't change the roster every week because the players can't form an understanding of each others' playing styles.

Now the problem is also what it has always been: the defense. That first goal was a defensive mistake but more than that, it was a goalkeeper mistake. Troy Perkins was a step to slow in coming out to stop Joseph Ngwenya's goal. Ngwenya easily chipped the ball over Perkins for the goal. It's always easier said than done but Perkins should have stayed on his line and forced Ngwenya to not only beat a trailing Josh Gros, but also force Ngwenya to have to hit a tremendous shot to beat him. I think Perkins learned from his mistake because later in the half Jason Garey had a similar play but instead of coming out to meet him, Perkins held his position and forced Garey to shoot the ball. On that play Perkins made a great save. Some of you might think that Garey's shot was close to beating Perkins, but I say that I trust Perkins to save those shots more than I trust Perkins to come off his line and time it so that he can stuff the ball when the opposing forward already has control. If Perkins had come off his line to meet Garey, all Garey had to do was either chip the ball like Ngwenya or tap the ball towards the endline away from Perkins and use his speed to catch the ball and have a shot with a wide open net. All I'm saying is that while Perkins makes mistakes, it looks like he's at least trying to learn.

Now the defenders. When I look at the DC backline, I only see two true defenders. Bobby Boswell and Facundo Erpen are the only players that have the ability to shut a player down completely. Namoff (to me) is more of a defensive midfielder. He had an incredible game but still when I think of the defenders of DC, he doesn't come to mind. I wonder if DC would be better off putting him in Olsen's vacated position and acquiring another true defender.

That's another thing. Who will replace Olsen. It looks like there's a massive void in the midfield that DC is trying to fill. Whenever the opposing team has the ball it seems like everyone is covered except of a solitary player that Olsen would have pressured. DC looks like at times they are playing with ten men when the other team has the ball and they are scambling to chase down that extra man. I understand putting Filomeno in that position (offensive player to overwhelm Columbus) but Novak should've known that forwards generally aren't very good defenders and to put him in that position was borderline reckless. DC began to regain control of the game when Simms was able to help Carroll. In my opinion, Mediate in Namoff's position and either Simms or Namoff in Olsen's position may help the defense settle down.

To sum up this game, Novak didn't use his subs effectively (i.e. leaving Mediate and Walker on the bench), Novak's continually changing of the starting line-up disrupts the consistent play that DC United needs, and finally the DC players have to stop thinking they will win every game and actually start playing like they want to win every game. I know you are supposed to be happy with points on the road no matter how many, but would anyone out there be satisfied if we tied Real Salt Lake or Chivas or New York? I didn't think so.

Next game is a biggie at Kansas City on Saturday the 27th at 8:30 pm (ET). They will be seeking revenge and DC should be seeking to find their game against a World Cup depleted Wizards team.

Where We Stand

2006-05-16T18:17:00.000-04:00

So on Saturday I watched the game at my parents' house. Turns out that their cable was on the fritz and Comcast had no sound.

Either way I watched the game and boy what a game it was. Well the second half was forgetable but the first half had plenty of action.

Before I begin, here's the updated standings (adjusted):

Major League Soccer Table (Adjusted)
Rank	Team	Games Played	Total Points	Points/Game
1.	D.C. United	7	14	2.000
2.	FC Dallas	8	15	1.875
T-3.	Houston	7	13	1.857
T-3.	Kansas City	7	13	1.857
5.	New England	6	10	1.667
6.	Columbus	7	10	1.429
*7.	Chicago	6	7	1.167
*8.	Colorado	6	7	1.167
9.	Los Angeles	8	7	0.875
10.	New York	6	5	0.833
11.	Chivas	5	4	0.800
12.	Real Salt Lake	7	4	0.571

*Ranking based on goal difference

FC Dallas and Houston tied earlier in the day on Saturday (highlights of which I saw on SportsCenter) which left the door open for DC to claim first place. Overall I'll admit that the penalty that led to DC's second goal could have easily been a non-call. I think Alecko Eskandarian could have kept his feet and control of the ball in order to take a shot, but the replay also shows how he got shouldered off the ball from behind. I'm not 100% percent sure that the foul occurred in the box. Either way the ref saw it differently and it broke the mini-drought Jaime Moreno had.

Offensively: My favorite players today were Moreno, Eskandarian, Josh Gros and Domenic Mediate. I think the wings this game were extremely dangerous. Gros, with his ability to run all day long, has improved immensely both offensively and defensively. Domenic Mediate has finally gotten his shot and shown how dangerous he can be. Mediate even had a couple chances for a goal. Moreno found his touch and on more than one occasion held the ball with three defenders on him. Alecko definitely found the positioning needed and his goal was amazing. It was funny cause Bo Oshoniyi thought it hit the post and was still in play. The bewildered look on his face was priceless. The rest of the offense was comfortable and playing their game. DC controlled the midfield and the "wave" style of offense was definitely in full effect. Strong performance by everyone.

Defense: Things looked much simpler to me. There was no fancy play and no one took any huge risks. From what I counted there were only three major mistakes. 1) Obviously Freddy Adu's foul that led to the KC goal. He had no business swiping at the ball. He was pushing the KC player to the endline and just slowing down and standing his ground would have made the play slow down enough for other defenders to get into position. It was a mistake and luckily it didn't cost the team the game. 2) The wide open net that Sealy (I think) could not seem to hit. After a tremendous save by Troy Perkins, Sealy was unmarked and had an wide open shot. I'm guessing there wasn't enough communication over man marking responsibilities. 3) In the second half Erpen fumbled a clearance which Perkins had to jump off his line to block. It was a goofy looking play and I understand that Erpen wanted to keep possession but in those situations, blasting the ball as far and as wide as possible is the goal. The three players who did exceptionally well were Carroll, Namoff and Perkins. Carroll and Namoff were solid and did not hesitate to throw their bodies to win the ball. Watching Perkins throughout the season, you can just tell how much he has grown. When he leaves his line he looks confident. There is no wavering. If the ball is in the air and he believes he can reach it will will go after it full force. His biggest asset is his length and if a ball hangs in the air too long he will grab it. He looks quicker and bigger when running towards the ball.

Kansas City looked weak with the absence of their World Cup call ups. All in all DC has shown that they should be fine during the World Cup. I haven't seen other teams but DC looks in good shape. They are currently undefeated after 5 games at home. The true test will be the next couple months where 10 out of 15 games will be played on the road beginning with Columbus next Saturday.

Saturday Night Clash

2006-05-11T19:10:00.000-04:00

The current MLS standings are a little wacky with the disparity in number of games played. Therefore I present the standings league-wide (no conferences) based on points per game:

Major League Soccer Table (Adjusted)
Rank	Team	Games Played	Total Points	Points/Game
1.	Kansas City	6	13	2.167
T-2.	Dallas	7	14	2.000
T-2.	Houston	6	12	2.000
4.	D.C. United	6	11	1.833
5.	Colorado	5	7	1.400
6.	Chicago	5	6	1.200
T-7.	New England	6	7	1.167
T-7.	Columbus	6	7	1.167
T-9.	Los Angeles	7	7	1.000
T-9.	Chivas USA	4	4	1.000
11.	New York	5	4	0.800
12.	Real Salt Lake	6	1	0.167

Now as you can see D.C. United is currently fourth in the league. It's a tight race at the top but if Dallas and Houston tie and DC wins, then we finally get sole claim of first place in the league. But any other situation and DC will have to be patient for their chance.

As far as Saturday is concerned, I expect DC to bounce back and play their game. Returning home and the prospect of a big early season win should light a fire under the DC United belly.

As of right now the weather conditions look clear and the temp should be in the mid-60s.

The only game I saw from KC is their game against Dallas a couple weeks ago. There was nothing terribly exciting from what I remember. So I'm assuming that KC can be taken out of the game early. If DC gets a quick goal and holds their offense and maybe gets another goal right before halftime then we should be in good shape.

The focus for this game should be basics.

Offensively: Simple passes. No back heels. Just one and two touch passes, nothing fancy. Look for open spaces. Everyone should keep their heads up looking for the next pass. We can obviously finish from anywhere on the field so don't be foolish on the ball. Freddy and Alecko have to get into positions to shoot the ball while the others crash for the rebound (I'm thinking about Gros). Jaime must be a factor. He's only shown up for maybe a game and a half. He needs a good game. Maybe an assist this time around.

Defensely: They have to learn to mark their man. Enough of this letting people get behind them. They must communicate better. If one defender moves up there better be talk about who is coming back to help and what everyone's responsibilities are. I'm assuming KC is fast so maybe Wilson should start over Prideaux then again that's a sacrifice since he's been playing well. Who ever is responsible for the defensive midfield should learn to stick their butt down and control that area. If KC has the ball 30-35 yards out, I should see a DC midfielder in his face, be it Gros, Carroll, whoever is in Olsen's place or even Adu or Gomez. This game should be all about talking to each other.

Result: I wouldn't be surprised with a draw (1-1 or 2-2). I think it'll be good as long as United can find their game again. If we lose or draw 0-0, I'll be disappointed because this team is built for goals and I'll know that the offense didn't have enough chances. Above all DC needs to focus on not making mistakes and they have to control the tempo. They will be at home and there should be a good crowd so there is no excuse for playing without any conviction.

Game Recap

2006-05-07T00:04:00.000-04:00

Everyone has to lose sometime. It's the way DC lost that bothers me. We were not beat by a better team. We were beat by our own careless mistakes.

How well did DC United stick to my "Keys for United"? In terms of patience, it looked to me that DC was rushing the ball around. I think there were too many long balls and players were trying to do too much with the ball. While they had good patches of play, for the game as a whole the team did not show it's willingness to let plays develop. The goal was one of those good patches and it started with Namoff and after four or five passes ended with Gomez sliding the ball into the back of the Colorado net.

This was also one of the few noticable moment that DC accomplished the second "key",controlling the midfield. For too much of the game they were letting Colorado kick the ball to the wings. While I don't think that Colorado controlled the midfield either, DC should have done better not letting themselves become disrupted.

My final "key" for the game was maintaining defensive positioning. You can obviously guess how well that one worked out. As a defender, you should never let the forward get behind you. On Colorado's second goal, not only was the forward behind the defender (Erpen?), the DC defender was maybe 10-15 feet away from the play and resorted to sprinting straight to the goal hoping for a deperation deflection. Also, Erpen came from across the goal box to defend the ball but instead fouled the Colorado player which lead to a successful penalty. I may be wrong but I didn't see the need for Erpen to: 1) come sprinting across the field, it looked like Bobby Bosell was about to handle it, and 2) leave his feet. I'm sure he'll get criticized for it and rightly so. He needs to understand that not every ball is a must win, especially when the risk was so high. I have no doubts that as soon as he left his feet, he knew that he had to chance to get the ball. Erpen needs to learn how to contain the man and body him off the ball in those types of situations.

Other observations?
I'm still confused as to why Jamil Walker started. Why tinker with a line-up that was working. The only explanation is that something happened during practice. Either way, DC began ok but not spectacular, which is a shame because Colorado was very sloppy to begin the game. I couldn't help but wonder what would've happened if Freddy Adu started on the wing with Alecko Eskandarian up top. Walker did not do anything particularly bad, in fact he had a couple chances, but my argument is for the sake of continuity. It broke up the flow that DC usually starts with. I like Walker in more of a super-sub role instead of starter. His speed works better when the defenders have already been running for an hour.

Also, something has to be said in terms of Jaime Moreno's form. Unfortunately, it seems that he's losing the ball much more often than usual. His touch is failing him and he can't quite make that one move that frees him from the defender. I wonder if there is a problem. Regardless, as a captain he should understand that the team comes first. If he finds himself dragging down the team, he should take himself out of the game and let fresh legs come in and pick up the slack. Jamil Walker would fit this role perfectly.

This loss means that United doesn't gain any ground towards catching Kansas City. Not only do we not gain ground, Kansas gains a point and Houston surpasses us with their win against Dallas. That means that there are four teams within two points of each other. Dallas and DC remain at 11 points, Houston has 12 and KC has 13. The bright spot is that after these four teams, the closest teams are still 4 points back.

Next week Dallas plays two games. One against stuggling Los Angeles and one against Houston. There's a good chance that they come out with 6 points total. I think they will get at least a point against LA. And the dagger is that no matter who wins the Dallas/Houston game someone will be ahead of us no matter what we do. If Dallas wins or ties midweek and they win next Saturday, then they will have either 17 or 15 points. If Dallas loses next Saturday that means Houston will have 15 points. This all makes next week's game against KC that much more important because we need 3 points to stay in the mix.

Have I said how glad I am that the league made the Supporter's Shield actually worth something?

DC United at Colorado Rapids Preview

2006-05-05T17:33:00.000-04:00

I haven't had a chance to catch any of the Rapids games this season so I'll focus on what DC needs to do.

The game is being carried by Comcast SportsNet at 9:00 PM ET and MLSLive.tv.

They are playing in Colorado and it'll be around 58 degrees with a 40% chance of rain.

Rain has been good this year for DC. A 4-1 thrashing two weeks ago against Red Bull NY and a 2-0 win against a strong Chivas team the second week of the season. Interesting that the even number weeks of the season have all been played in the rain and have resulted in wins.

Keys for DC:

Patience
Control the midfield
Maintain defensive positioning

Against a team like FC Dallas, patience will kill you (see the end of the first half). Colorado on the other hand does not seem to be that type of team. Instead of a relentless attack, DC United should look to string several passes together through the midfield. Gomez has to show up this game and be the general of the team. A controlled, patient attack should wear down the Colorado defense and allow the forwards to make diagonal runs behind the defense. The higher the number of passes strung together the higher the chance that Colorado will take chances and expose themselves. There should be enough room for Freddy Adu and Josh Gros to run at the outside defenders. I wouldn't be surprised if Adu gets a goal this game. Their patience will also reduce the number of careless mistakes (which seemed to be quite abundant last game). The defense should look to maintain its positioning and not run all over the place. It's not necessary against Colorado. Mark your man and the Colorado offense should become ineffective. If the opportunity presents itself then Erpen or Boswell should take advantage and move to the offense but they shouldn't force anything.

The rain hasn't seemed to affect DC that much this year but I have a feeling that this game will be sloppy and rather low scoring. The "keys for United" do seem a bit remedial, but in wet conditions, the team that executes the fundamentals the best usually comes out on top.

If both teams come out to play, DC United should win by one goal but dominate the game.

Familiar Faces and Stadium Atmosphere

2006-05-04T17:27:00.000-04:00

Like I said in a previous post, the crowd was electric during the game against FC Dallas. It may have had something to do with the following people:

I don't think there is anything more exciting in MLS than RFK after a DC United goal. Arguments can be made for other teams but when you see the stands bounce, the confetti flying from every part of the stadium and that enormous banner, you just get chills. Notice how the smoke rises from the stands over at La Barra Brava.

Here's La Norte's attempt at the flares. Wasn't as successful. The smoke kind of just gathered as a cloud in their section. Eventually the smoke moved onto the field. Needless to say, the humorless stadium security did not find it funny. I overheard that if they set off another one, the would remove the entire section. I told you, humorless.

Now for a couple familiar faces:

EL DIABLO
It's pretty easy to see why Marco Etcheverry earned the nickname. All the little girl wanted was an autograph.

Obviously I'm kidding about the story with the little girl. Marco actually signed autographs longer than any other player. In fact he was still signing while the teams were trotting onto the field.

John Harkes was an amazing player. He's also rumored to have a pretty good sense of humor. I think it has more to do with the fact that he kind of looks like Jim Carrey. While other people may not think so, I'll continue to stand by my assertion.

Honorable Mentions:
Bruce Arena in the vicinity as was Raul Diaz Arce. Weren't those first few seasons incredible?

In the news: The Washington Times has a pretty good article about DC soccer fans. The article does kind of hate on the Nats fans, but it is true that they don't really have much enthusiasm. I've never seen a Nats flag. It would be interesting to see what a baseball game would look like with the chants, flags, flares, and streamers in the background. At any rate, the article made me feel good.

The Announcement!

2006-05-02T18:45:00.000-04:00

UPDATE:
Goalkeepers
Kasey Keller, Marcus Hahnemann, Tim Howard

Defenders
Eddie Lewis, Oguchi Onyewu, Freddie Hejduk, Steve Cherundolo, Eddie Pope, Carlos Bocanergro, Jimmy Conrad(hmm...), Cory Gibbs

Midfielders
Landon Donovan, Clint Dempsey, Claudio Reyna, John O'Brien, Ben Olsen(!!!!!), Demarcus Beasley, Pablo Mastroeni, Bobby Convey

Strikers
Brian McBride, Eddie Johnson, Josh Wolff, Brian Ching (interesting)

Tune in the Pardon the Interruption for an interview with Bruce Arena (not expecting much but we'll see) on ESPN2 at 7:00 Eastern and on ESPN News at 7:00 some players will also be interviewed. (all via DuNord).

QUICK NOTES:

Hopefully I'll post more later but for now, Ben Olsen deserves this because of his heart, dedication and the fire he'll bring to a game as a sub. Good choice by Bruce Arena. If I see him and get to talk to him at a Fairfax hotspot, I'll buy him a drink. Ching is a surprise. I'm guessing that his size was taken into consideration over Twellman's potential. Jimmy Conrad was a surprise to me. I'm not sold on him just yet. I hope to be proven wrong but I just think at times he could be lulled out of a game. He's just doesn't give the impression of consistency that I get from the others, though if it were either him or Berhalter (sp?) I choose Conrad.

Bruce was watching, I saw him see it.

2006-05-02T16:00:00.000-04:00

Funny how the end of a semester leaves little time for everything else. I'll try to make this short and sweet.

I was at the game and the atmosphere was anticipatory. I felt like we were all waiting for a big win so that DC could be alone in first place. And I know that it was the decade's best celebration (or whatever it was called, pictures will be posted later in the week) but I can't help but wonder if the atmosphere had anything to do with needing every win to maintain first in the league. Right before the presentation, there was a video montage of the first 10 years. I almost forgot the time when even the upper tier of RFK was full. I wonder what will happen in a new stadium when we reach capacity. Will ticket prices rise? Maybe I'm getting ahead of myself.

Anyways, DC United came out of the gates firing on all cylinders. I said to myself before the game that we have to take them out of the game early and never let them back in it. FC Dallas has never been a team where we could just sit back and essentially outlast them by waiting for the counterattack.

United started the game really well. Passes were fluid, runs were in sync and the "wave" style of offense was being executed well. The United "wave" offense starts by the build up of a play either from the wing (Adu or Gros) or centrally (Carroll, Olsen, Gomez) and the ball ends up at the feet of the forwards. The forwards either turn and eventually shoot (first wave) or lay it off. Either way if it isn't a goal, the second wave (usually Gomez, Adu, Gros and occasionally Eskandarian if he's not part of the 1st wave) takes a shot on goal when the ball is laid off, as was the case for Ben Olsen's gorgeous goal, or passes it out wide for a cross back in. In the latter situation, the third wave comes into play. The third wave can include anyone from the first two waves and either Erpen or even Boswell on set pieces. Their role is clean up crew or on crosses heading the ball into the net, obviously. As a sidenote the term "wave" doesn't refer to waves of certain players, but waves of pressure. The main point is that if the first chance doesn't work there are players pouncing on the rebound to take a chance and there is a cycling (or waves) of lines of attack until a goal or we lose the ball. It's a little hard to grasp (and explain) in words but take note and look for it during the next game and it'll make more sense.

Back to the game- after the first goal the emotions were running high in the stadium and everything was going United's way. This was the time to go for the throat and suffocate Dallas's defense and hopefully go into the half with a 2 goal lead. Again, the way to beat Dallas is to hit them early, hard and often. We got the early and hard part down (Olsen's goal has teh potential to take the wind out of the opposing team). The trouble is that instead of an unrelently attack, we sat back and waiting for Dallas to come to us. When the only player in the attacking half of the field is Moreno and other players are only half-heartedly running into the attack, it does not bode well for the momentum of the game. Dallas's goal was as gorgeous as Olsen's. I keep wondering where Olsen and Carroll were when Ronnie O'Brien has that much room. I wonder if next time we'll leave him that open. Oh well. That was the game.

In the second half, the game calmed down and played out like two equal teams vying for first place. Both had great chances yet couldn't finish or were denied by the defense. It was a stand-off and no team could get the edge.

The result was a point apiece and both teams relinquishing first place to Kansas City who now holds first in the league by a point.

I'm being told that the US National Team announcement will be the next hour so I'm wrapping this up. Bruce Arena was obviously at the game and Olsen's performance was exceptional. I hope that he makes the team. Though he's not a starter, he's a leader in MLS and deserves a chance to show the world what he's made of.

The Game and the Man

2006-04-25T15:23:00.000-04:00

Better late than never, right? Man, quite an exhibition of skill and beautiful soccer was on display last Saturday.

Not only is DC United the flagship team and the dynastic team of MLS but they more than any other team I've seen play beautiful soccer. Everyone played great. No one overstepped his role and everyone was on the same page.

Our defense was on top of its game and Troy Perkins didn't embarass me. I'll go as far as to say that when Nick Rimando comes back he may not be automatically given back his starting position. The signature moment for the defense was at the end of the first half when Troy Perkins totally stuffed a Red Bull NY player (hard to tell from the replay). While the defense could have done better marking the player, it shows how in the crunch someone will step up and take the lead. Our defense is still learning what it needs to work on and what it can get away with. One of those things it can get away with is moving into the offense. Whether it be Boswell on set pieces or Facundo Erpen's sheer audacity anywhere on the field, the defenders are creeping in to worry the opposition. As far as Erpen's concern, I'm still debating whether he was aiming for a goal or was he just shooting towards the goal and he got a miracle goal. Those of you who play soccer know what I'm talking about when I say that when you're halfway between the goal and the midfield line, the last thought that goes through your head is "Gee I think I can score a goal." True we were up by 2 goals, and no one was really putting pressure on him but still. Though if he can make those (or goals similar to it) then all the better. How intimidating must that be for the other defense. You have at least 7 or 8 people who can consistently score or create goals.

On the offensive side, it was Alecko Eskandarian's day. Was anyone else getting annoyed by the announcers' constant chirping about how good and fast Marvell Wynne is? It felt pretty good that his mistake lead to the first goal. And that two other goals originated from his side. So the lesson? No matter how good the rookie is; how quick, physical, blah blah blah, he is still a rookie and can be beaten.

Does anyone else wonder what would have happened if Alecko started last season this way and didn't suffer a concussion? Personally, I think that Bruce Arena would be calling. His quickness, power and instinct makes for a good compliment to Eddie Johnson. He'd be a good sub and definitely shows the intensity that you need to bring to the World Cup. He bleeds his team colors, unfortunately he's still recovering. That being said, I'm still not convinced that Alecko shouldn't be on the team going to Germany. As it stands right now the four forwards are Brian McBride, Eddie Johnson, Taylor Twellman, and Josh Wolff. Twellman is similar to McBride and Wolff is Johnson's counterpart.

So here's my question: as it stands right now, who's a better forward and who would most help the national team, Josh Wolff or Alecko Eskandarian?

You can guess my bias, but seriously what is Josh Wolff's last contribution to the team? Arena can't bring in Brian Ching because his lack of form for one and also, he would be the third target striker. He's in the same mold as Twellman and McBride. So who accompanies Johnson? I don't think Arena has a choice but to have Wolff. I personally think that Esky is a better player but Wolff does have the experience, then again experience is nothing without the skill to use it with.

Side note: I'm out with my girlfriend in at the Coastal Flats restaurant in Fairfax and who should walk in? None other than Bruce Arena. He just has an air of confidence around him. So he was walking towards the outside bar, yet when we went out there he disappeared. The uncharacteristicly slow service that Saturday prevented us from asking him the status of the World Cup Roster, especially Ben Olsen's status.

Dude, Where's My Stadium?

2006-04-19T21:29:00.000-04:00

I haven't heard much being said lately about DC United plans for a new stadium (besides Mayor Anthony Williams seemingly empty promise during the first game of the season). There was a point over the break that I almost lost hope. It's great that the DCU front office is low-profile about the stadium except for the fact that it also leaves us non-investigative people in the dark.

Well since I don't want to do any research on actual school work, I present you with what I've dug up regarding the soccer specific stadium at Poplar Point.

Last I heard the obstacle to overcome was that the stadium site was owned by the federal government, which means that in order to be leased to build a stadium, it has to be owned by the District. In order to be sold/given to DC, Congress has to pass a bill.

On March 31, 2006 the Washington Business Journal ran its "Conversation with Kevin Payne." Here's the important excerpt:

How are things going with D.C. United's proposed new stadium?

The legislation is in the Congress. We don't believe there are any impediments. We believe it has cleared most of the hurdles in the House and the Senate. We've been and will continue to work with agencies of the city including the Anacostia Waterfront Corp. The AWC has recently begun the master planning process on the land, which we expect to be done expeditiously, and then we'll work together on the process of the ultimate land transfer and what the deal will be between us and the AWC. It is our hope that we will be playing in the new stadium either in 2008 or at the very latest in 2009.

How will that change the team?

It will change the business dramatically. We are in a situation at RFK where it is virtually impossible to make money. There are no suites. There are no club seats. Our share of big-game revenues are small [compared with what the team would get with a new stadium]. It is difficult to maximize day-of-game revenues because the concession facilities are antiquated. It is just a difficult place to do business.

The House Bill is called the Federal and District of Columbia Government Real Property Act of 2005 (H.R. 3699) It's a whole lot of contract and legal speak. I only skimmed through it and it all seems uneventful. It looks like the last action was done in February.

I dug a little deeper and found this. I know it's old but it's nice to see a government official say to the House Subcommitte on National Parks of the Committee on Resources that the Department of the Interior strongly supports the bill.

The Senate has its own version of the bill and the same government official made pretty much the same speech in front of the Senate.

Here you can find entire Anacostia Waterfront Initiative plans.

Here you'll see maps of the entire area for the National Park Service (not to mention another copy of the bill)

Here you can find the Senate hearing on the subject.

To sum up everyone is pretty much saying that giving the land to the District of Columbia would make everything better. The U.S. Government isn't using it and, in fact, since it's not in use, it's actually a detriment. So it seems to me that the bill has to go through the motions and there are no real problems in transferring the land.

As far as the next steps (building the actual stadium and whatnot), I can't seem to find anything. All those links above don't actually mention a stadium, but I couldn't imagine *not* building the stadium.

I'm sure I'll post more as more comes out but for now all I want to say is that when the stadium is build they better actually have seats that are field level. Right now we usually get tickets on the first row right where the players get sign autographs, but seriously it's maybe 15 feet away from the actual field, which will not do for the new place. I want to be scared that I'm going to get pummelled by a clearance, that's how close I want to be. Also there better be a section that has some give so that the entire section can bounce along with La Barra Brava. I don't think there is anything more intimidating than seeing a whole side of a stadium bouncing and chanting in unison (especially if it's only 5 feet away from the players). Also, I'd want better acoustics so that I can hear the other side of the stadium's chant. The goal should be to create a stadium atmosphere that, when I bring friends neutral to soccer, will penetrate their soulds and with awe and excitement.

Just a suggestion.

Sounds of the Game

2006-04-17T19:09:00.000-04:00

I say "sounds" cause after struggling to get a video feed for the first 15 minutes of the game on Saturday I gave up and settled for the audio feed. Did anyone else have their hopes of watching online dashed when about 3 minutes into the game the nice video link that's usually on the Sights and Sounds page on MLSNet (the 350K link next to the games) just disappeared. What made it worse was that the DC United homepage still had a "Watch Live" link. My hopes of watching one of the matches that we could see in the finals this year were dashed.

I also noticed something else. As I understand it MLS will charge $20.00 a year to watch the games that for the past two years were free. So far so good, I was actually thinking that one of the ways to increase revenue was to charge for the games. The only part that troubles me as a DC United fan (and more importantly a COX Cable subscriber) is that the games that will be shown online are the ones that aren't broadcast by ABC (fine), ESPN (ok), ESPN2 (check), and HDNET (huh?). That means that if ABC, ESPN, ESPN2 or HDNET are exclusively broadcasting the game then it will not be online.

I'm not 100% sure but I think that if ABC, ESPN, and ESPN2 aren't broadcasting the game then Comcast Sportsnet will carry the game. If these four don't broadcast the game then that usually means HDNET will pick it up. But if you are a COX subscriber, even digital cable (which I recently signed up for), you will miss the game. There is no incentive for me to give MLS my money if the only games that I will miss (the ones that are exclusively shown on HDNET) are not going to be online. If I'm wrong, please someone let me know. I may have to switch to satelite (COX btw is one of the only carriers in the country that doesn't carry GOLTV in their channel line-up, so it won't be hard to convince me to switch)

So this means that the game analysis will be brief cause it's hard to get perspective and see plays developing when (as great as he may be) the announcer can only focus on one player at a time.

Here's what I did notice: Josh Gros is maybe the best investment for the future of this team. As his minutes increase, he continues to gain confidence and more comfortable combining his strength and speed while maintaining his vision on the field. From the MLSNet highlights (which is a great feature), on the play that lead to the foul and his goal, the ball was passed in his vicinity by Troy Perkins and at first it looked like the defender would have no problem securing the ball. Out of nowhere Gros speeds by and is able to shoulder the defender off the ball and crosses the ball straight to Jaime Moreno. Gros also plays defense and can run forever. If he continues to improve like this he will in no time have English teams calling. His tenacity and work ethic would make him a perfect fit in England's Championship League or even Premiership.

You know whose name I didn't hear a lot? Troy Perkins. You know what that means? The defense held its own against maybe the most lethal scorer in the league. The backline shut down Houston's Alejandro Moreno and Brian Ching. Ching's disappearance was shocking because the biggest weakness for the DC defense was set pieces and crosses in general, which is Ching's expertise. To name any one player would be a disservice to the other defenders so for this game the collective defense gets my accolades. I will mention Perkins because I haven't been his biggest fan. For this game he did great. He got the shut out and from how it sounded he didn't have any nervous moments. This is one good way to gain confidence, especially since Houston will probably finish the season as one of the better offensive teams.

What more can you say about the offense? Like I've said before the number of weapons DC has is incredible. Ben Olsen and Josh Gros are great in the clean up roles, Adu and Eskandarian being able to score amazing goals, Christian Gomez and Jaime Moreno can create and finish goals with the best in the league. I wish Lucio Filomeno would get over the hump and score his first goal. He seems so close just a step too slow or a couple inches off. Regardless, it is hard to defend our offense and focusing on any one or two players leaves plenty of room for the others to exploit.

Up Next: Rematch of the homeopener. Red Bull NY welcomes DC United. Let's see if our potent offense can pick up where it left off during the second half of the last game, while our defense can better protect our half of the field.

Game Day in Pictures

2006-04-13T20:07:00.000-04:00

Last weekend's game was a bit of a contrast to the season opener. In the first game there were twice as many people and it was a gorgeous day. Last Saturday was cold and wet. There were more ponchos last weekend, though there was one guy without a shirt on in La Barra Brava. The one thing that stayed the same was the fact that the other team was well represented by their supporters. The game was sloppy so that leads to sloppy pictures. Enjoy!

This was the common scene in the stands. As the game started, more and more fans sat in the rain but for the most part you saw fans under shelter.

Unlike the last game I could actually hear the chants from La Barra Brava. This was interesting because at certain points in the game, especially when the Chivas fans were getting louder, our side of the stadium joined in on the other side's chants. It made for a pretty good feeling of solidarity.

The aforementioned Chivas fans. Needless to say that they were very upset when the refs didn't call the free kick a goal. Oh well, there's always next time. They should be commended for the support of their team (though I'm not sure if they support Chivas-Guadalejara or Chivas USA).

The greatest sight after a goal is that gorgeous flag.

Now for the team:

National team goalscorer: John Wilson & Clyde Simms
Ben Olsen

Reserve player: Christian Gomez
Brandon Prideaux

Man of the Match:
Jaime Moreno

Jaime Moreno via Google Video

2006-04-08T23:50:00.000-04:00

I don't know who this Matt Hilliard guy is but he's my new favorite person!
Here's a highlight video of Jaime Moreno. I could watch these videos all day long.
As he's approaching the league lead in goals, I can't help but remember my dad going on and on about how amazing this guy was going to be as we drove to his very first game as a D.C. United player about mid-way through the first MLS season. I remember hanging out with him and my dad watching golf of all things and how he loves my mom's cooking. He's just a normal guy, even coming to my high school graduation party.
It makes me proud to read everything that is written about him.

As a side note: it's amazing how many times Jaime absolutely embarrassed Matt Reis. Good stuff.

Fun with Google Video

2006-04-08T23:39:00.000-04:00

Every D.C. United fan has to check out this video by Matt Hilliard.
It shows Alecko Eskandarian's goals from the 2004 season. It's incredible and makes me excited for the day he gets his killer instinct and touch back to 100%.
If you have trouble viewing it go to Google Video to find out why. I think you'll need Macromedia Flash Player or something.

Game Day Report

2006-04-08T18:59:00.000-04:00

What an ugly game. The weather was cold and wet and the slick conditions made the ball hard to control. Keep in mind that the following is from my perspective at the game.

Bobby Boswell start.,Alecko Eskandarian started and Christian Gomez returned from serving his suspension. Clyde Simms, Freddy Adu and Brandon Prideaux all sacrified their spots. The first half of the game showed exactly what we are good at and exactly what other teams can exploit. First of all, a goal can come from anywhere as proven by lethal shots from Jaime Moreno, Alecko, and Lucio Filomeno. Ben Olson was just itching for a loose ball that he could get National Team type shot at. The weather was just bad enough to disrupt the shots and passes. Sometimes though it seems like they were trying to string together too many passes, which is a big flaw is teams that play beautiful soccer such as United.

The defense on the other hand seems like organized chaos. Just a lot of flailing, stabbing and sliding until we get the ball back. Erpen gambles just enough to win a majority of the balls but every once in a while will get beat and it's devastating, considering our keeper is losing his confidence by the minute. Boswell is too slow to get into the footraces that Erpen's gambling gets him into. Our worst defense came when the Chivas players decided to run straight at us. Our timing was off and they were able to put dangerous passes together. Ante Razov actually looks dangerous, which is much different than I'm used to seeing him. Paco Palencia is their main weapon and for very good reason. Our defense fought tooth and nail to contain them.

There were a couple of good moments in the game. For one, at the beginning of the game Josh Gros sat deeper in the mid-field. He was almost a right defender while Erpen and Boswell were in the middle. The two of them are very complimentary with Erpen's flamboyent style and Boswell's hard as a rock style. I wonder if we would be better served with four defenders, the only problem is that one of the central midfielders would be sacrificed. Has anyone else noticed Carroll's offensive mentality? He's still good at his position but every once in a while he'll push up and actually hold the ball and take players on trying to create offensive plays. I think that it's great and I want to see more of it.

Now for the goals. That first goal by Jaime was a little lucky. Due to the aforementioned slick conditions Brad Guzan couldn't hold on to the ball and it skid past him and trickled into the goal. It was a nice way to shut up the Chivas fans in the stands. As for the Chivas "goal", at no point did the entire ball cross the goalline. The ball hit the crossbar bounced straight down then right back up and hit the crossbar again only to bounce out. Now I understand the complaints of the Chivas community (read whining) since it looked like a goal to the naked eye. But the physics doesn't really seem to make sense. There would have to be insane amounts of top-spin (or bottom-spin I'm not sure) on the ball to make it so the ball went into the goal and bounced back in a way that when it hit the crossbar for the second time it would bounce out. But maybe I'm being apologetic. The second goal on the otherhand was too much for Guzan. Jaime's rifle of a shot was blocked by the Chivas keeper but the ball was wet enough to continue in the direction of the goal and it just fell in. Seriously in the stands it looked gorgeous. And the fact that Freddy and Jaime had other chances speaks to how the game could have ended in a rout.

All in all, DC dominated the first half, Chivas dominated most of the second half and DC dominated the last five minutes, including extra time (which if you remember was a weak spot last season). Our defense may be in trouble when we face the better teams such as Houston, KC, or NE, but our offense has the potential to always keep us in the game.

**CORRECTIONS**
1) Turns out Jaime's first goal was not on his strike but a ricochet off of Guzan. Still his courage to get in front of the clearance and redirect it into the goal is pretty impressive.
2) The non-goal by Chivas did not hit the crossbar a second time. It only hit the crossbar after the shot and as Jason S points out in the comments had so much spin that it bounced away from the goal. Watching it on video, I can't help but wonder why Troy didn't even jump for it. It seemed as though he thought it was go over the goal.

Pictures and Post-game Conversations

2006-04-06T15:16:00.000-04:00

Hey everyone, just wanted to show you guys what I was talking about when I said that the atmosphere at RFK Stadium during D.C. United games is one of the best U.S. soccer has to offer.

On the left, you can see that the ref just award Red Bull NY a freekick. If you look closely, you can see that our fans on the other side of the stadium do not really care for the ref's opinion. Is it just me or does anyone else prefer "Red Bull New York" instead of the "New York Red Bulls"?

On the right you can really see how full the stadium is without the glare of the sun. Now you can pretty much fill in the rest of the stadium and the parts of the upper deck and you can imagine what the entire stadium looked like. This picture is from the second half right before the first goal. We were firing on all cylinders and the everyone knew that the goal would come soon.
This is a picture of our side of the stadium, the quiet side. I'd say most of the "soccer moms" and their families have tickets on this side. Unfortunately (or fortunately if trying prevent a huge brawl), all the Red Bull fans were also on this side. If you look closely, in the shadows, you will notice the Red Bull Fans cheering in unison. They dominated the sound for the first half of the stadium. But the stadium roared after Alecko's goal and our "quiet" side came alive. Proud of our team, we were not to be disgraced in our own house. For the rest of the game, the entire stadium was itching for more goals and ready to explode with excitement. I don't remember hearing much out of the Red Bull fans after that.

So after the game a lot of people stay to get autographs. Well what I'm about to describe is the reason I think Alecko Eskandarian is something special and why (for me) Freddy Adu has a long road ahead of him. Both players had good games (even though it was Freddy's foul that led to the first goal) and neither had anything to be ashamed of.

Alecko was gladly signing autographs and going through the normal routine, it was awkwardly quiet so I decided to make a little joke. I said, "hey, why don't you facebook us?" alluding to the website popular among the collegiate contingency that joined me at the game. He has a profile and everything but apparently never responds. Well, he explodes into laughter that is infectious because everyone started laughing. He went on for a long time after signing autographs.

Freddy on the otherhand seemed burdened by having to sign autographs. At one point he complained over how far away the fans were located from him on the field (due to a separation for the baseball setup). He seemed frustrated that the fans would locate themselves at a place where he would have to lift his arms and reach to give autographs. I may be wrong be he seems like a bit of a "diva". I don't see him ever being the type of player like a Christian Gomez or Jaime Moreno or even Alecko.

Those three players show passion and desire. They not only love the game, but they love the uniform the put on. They are what makes the game great. Not just great play, but great attitudes.

So What Did I Miss?

2006-04-04T08:31:00.000-04:00

After a long rest I come back and what do I find? An MLS team in Houston with a neutral yet somehow not quite right name, no team in San Jose, teams wanting to sprout up in Milwaukee, Toronto, and PA.

And what do I find when I go to the DC United game on Sunday? We're not playing the same mediocre Metrostars from NY/NJ. We're instead playing what seems to be a dominant (at least initially) Red Bull team from strictly NY with about 750 loud fans in tow.

It's been quite a hectic past couple weeks seeing as how I go to the newly minted Cinderella team of college basketball George Mason University. It was fun actually walking on campus and seeing some school spirit from people (myself included). But alas all good things come to an end and it was a devastating loss to a good but remarkably annoying Florida team.

I was excited to get back to MLS soccer. With players getting healthy and more time for the team to gel, I wanted to see what was missing at the end of last season. I most wanted to see Alecko's game fitness.

Even though the field is hideous due to the baseball setup and even though there were Red Bull fans in the stadium, the atmosphere was incredible. La Barra Brava and El Norte were in full force even though the only thing I could hear from the seats behind the bench were the Red Bull fans. I brought three new people to the game and they loved every minute of it. I firmly believe that RFK should be the standard by which American soccer stadiums and fans should be judged. My favorite were the group of Good Ole Boys in Nascar caps cheering loudly for Jaime Moreno. Maybe the MLS demographic is changing?

Now for the game:
I have always been a fan of Nick Rimando as a starting goalkeeper and have never been sold on Troy Perkins. For all of Troy's size, Nick is starkly quicker and has much better instincts. When I watch Nick play I don't get nervous (only on crosses). With Troy I not only get nervous during crosses, I get nervous when the ball gets played back to him from defense, when he's catching a routine ball shot straight at him, and definitely when runs off his line. I'm not saying he's a bad player but I just think he'll have to do better to convince me he's a true starter.

I'm hard pressed to blame the first Red Bull goal off a free kick on the keeper. That was just an incredible shot. The foul by Freddy Adu should have never happened. It was a stupid, retaliatory foul and should never have happened. The second goal, however, was completely the Troy Perkins fault. There is no excuse that you as a professional goalkeeper should drop the ball especially knowing that there are opposing players near you.

At half-time the score was 2-0 and I was wondering whether the Red Bull fans would get what they came here for. Chants of "en su casa (in your house)" and "dos a cero (Two to zero)" pierce the soul, especially at the season/home opener and especially after the 4-0 thrashing we suffered.

Does anyone know what the starting formation was? My guess was 3-1-2-2-2, essentially a 3-5-2 setup. Obviously that didn't work and Peter Novak knew that the line up had to change. He substituted Clyde Simms (who played well but DCU needed more fire power) for Alecko Eskanderian. With that sub, the lineup morphed from what it was to something of a modified 3-4-3 with Alecko, Jaime and Lucio as strikers.

With the addition of Alecko, DC United had so much offense that it simply overwhelmed the Red Bull defense. I was glad to see that he didn't shy away from running at the defense and taking on players. His first shot was a complete rocket that reminded me of the pre-concussion Alecko. His goal was an absolute striker's finish. Hanging around the goal and stabbing the ball into the back of the net. Alecko showed that he's not afraid to throw his body into it.

I think that while the defense and keeper need more work (somehow Facundo Erpen and Bobby Boswell have to be able to play on the field together), our offense will have a lot of firepower. Adu, Moreno, Eskanderian, Gros (who ran his defended into the ground and I feel he's completely underrated), Christian Gomez, and Lucio Filomeno all have the talent to make this team not only potent but exciting to watch. The problem will be how to get them all on the field together and playing as a collective instead of talented individuals.

With my newly purchased half season pass, I'll be back and providing analysis of DC United as a team and. Hopefully you guys are happy to see me and hopefully I can add something to the conversation.

Last Post of the Year

2005-12-30T10:36:00.000-05:00

Holidays are fun aren't they? Well this will be the last post of the year and I don't expect to get back into it until maybe the 3rd or 4th of January. As a parting gift, the English newspaper the Independent (Online Edition) has an article titled "The Top 20 Players Outside the Premiership".

The point of interest is number 13 on the list: our very own Bobby Convey.

Now the article does say that it's not necessarily the best players but those that show the most promise, one who'll essentially give teams the most bang for their buck. This article is written ahead of the opening of the transfer window that is 2 days away.

Bobby is the only American on the list and only one of two foreigner. The article states that he is a better winger than US National team teammate Eddie Lewis but that Eddie has a better all-around game. Bobby has certainly set himself up to make it onto the USMNT World Cup roster.

As a former member of DC United, Bobby has improved his game by leaps and bounds. I remember when he was part of DCU during the wilderness years. It sucked watching him struggle and knowing he had more to give. I'm proud to know that Bobby started his pro career in DC and hopefully gained a lot from this team.

Other interesting notes...he could be pursued by Liverpool (though I think if/when Reading makes it into the Premiership, he should stick with the team that got he helped get there) and he's only 22!!! I'm talking about him like he's a seasoned veteran. He has a long career ahead of him and it looks like he can only get better. It begs the question: how young is our national team? As much hope there is for this World Cup, I think the most promising players maybe have a few more cups to prove themselves in. It's a question I'll explore further next year.

Hope everyone has a Happy New Year!!!

Which DC United Player is Having the Best Week?

2005-12-15T21:39:00.000-05:00

That distinction goes to Nick Rimando.

Steven Goff reported that "DC has exercised its option on veteran goalkeeper Nick Rimando's contract".

Turns are that Mr. Rimando has also gotten married and is currently on his honeymoon according to this SI article. He married former Washington Freedom forward Jacqui Little in a ceremony performed by Ben Olsen!! I wonder if he shaved...

What's the 411?

2005-12-14T20:35:00.000-05:00

Ok so maybe the DCU info isn't as interesting as I may have hinted it to be. Well either way it's only info that would interest hardcore DC United fans. Ok so here it goes:

Since Peter Novak's system consists of 3 defenders (and it doesn't seem to be changing anytime soon), at the end of last season he was put in a bit of a predicament. Peter Novak had to choose between two pretty good central defenders (i.e. Bobby Boswell & Facundo Erpen) while pretty much leaving the outside defender positions to Bryan Namoff and Brandon Prideaux. To be perfectly honest, as overall defenders Boswell and Erpen are at least a couple levels above Prideaux and Namoff. Not only that but Erpen and Boswell are only 22 (7 and 4 years younger than Prideaux and Namoff) and have a long-term possibility with the team. So Peter Novak had to bench at least one defender with endless potential.

Now my unconfirmable source tells me that there are plans to make Erpen the starting center back and, instead of benching Boswell, transitioning him to the right back. And out of left field to be the left back? John Wilson!

Crazy, I know. But after I noodled it, it seems to have a possibility to work. This rainbow coalition of defenders as a group have the mobility to keep up with teams and the size to match up against pretty much and offensive this league can throw at them. Think about it. John Wilson has a propensity to run up the flanks. No problem Erpen shifts to mid-left and Boswell to mid-right. Set pieces are neutalized because of Boswell's size and Rimando can relax and stay in position. I think it may work if they can play together and can read each other well.

What do you think, crazy ramblings? or legitimate possibility.

also...Lucio Filomeno was still heavily nursing his knee during the games he played. That same source says that he's much MUCH better than any of us think. Word has it that if he's healthy for next season, he will not even last a second season in the MLS (cause he'll go overseas or to the high quality teams of South America). I don't know about this one but it's a possibility.

The Perfect Draw

2005-12-10T20:05:00.000-05:00

Now you're probably wonder what on God's green Earth am I talking about. Well turns out, IMHO, that we've got a pretty good World Cup Draw. Sure I'd want to be in Spain's group or in France's group but drawing Italy, Czech Republic and Ghana is ideal for where we are as a team.

What better test of how far we've come as a nation than playing the same two teams we played in the '90 World Cup group. We got thoroughly thrashed by the Czech Republic (well Czechoslovakia) and Italy to a lesser extent. They really didn't think much of us then. And although the US team is getting recognition as a "solid team", the Italians and the Czechs pretty much think that the battle will be against themselves. Go here and here.

So while it's understood around the world that this is the hardest or second hardest group, there are a lot of people out there who don't really doubt that Italy and the Czech Republic will survive. Now if that's not motivation I don't know what is. The United States has the chance to surprise the world. Our first game is against the Czech Republic and we could make a huge statement with a win. We are the underdogs once again and I think we're good in that position.

If there's any potential national team player that doesn't have their adrenaline pumping at this very moment, then they should get cut right now. If there's any national team player that doesn't believe the US can control each one of the round-robin games then they should be cut too. The US needs teams that are willing to step it up and play with their hearts on the field. If at any point during the games, the opposition tries to intimidate our players (much like the Germans in '98) then I full expect a nice, composed goal to shut them up (from anyone: McBride, Donovan, Beasley, whoever). These teams are not unbeatable and certainly have their weaknesses. It's going to be exciting to see who steps up to exploit them.

In the coming weeks and months I'll be commenting on who exactly we are playing, including Ghana (I won't forget them and it'd be stupid to overlook them), I'll look at how the games should go, the history of the teams and what that means for this World Cup, I'll look at the most likely national team players and what they bring to the table, and I'll talk about what we can expect if we do make it to the knock out rounds (hint: playing Brazil doesn't bode well for any of the group teams).

BTW- keep your eyes peeled for a little (and at the present moment) unreliable insider information that could change the look of DC United's backline.

As I have finals looming the inform may be slow in coming, be patient you won't be disappointed.

DC United News

2005-12-06T19:04:00.000-05:00

Freddy Speaks! After a long hiatus Freddy Adu has spoken to the media. Not really much new information. DC certainly doesn't want to give him up to another team (I think even Peter Novak understands that Freddy's development relies on being in DC). Though, for me the most interesting part of the article is the last paragraph:

Meantime, Adu's international image is about to receive a major boost. He confirmed that he has been invited to play in an international charity match in Duesseldorf, Germany, on Dec. 22 to raise money for poverty-relief efforts. The captains of the two squads will be Real Madrid superstars Ronaldo of Brazil and Zinedine Zidane of France.

This will give Freddy a taste of what he could become and hopefully get him refocused. I wonder if the game'll be shown on tv. I know it's only a charity march but if you are 16 years old and were invited to play with multi-player of the year award winners, wouldn't you play your heart out?

In other news, DCU is set to host the 2006 MLS Openning game, against the Metrostars no less. It should make for an interesting match since the Metros' "new look" wants to show the league that they are tired of being the whipping boys. DC also wants to prove that not only is the Freddy thing over with but that the Fire game was a fluke and won't happen again. Should make for an interesting match.

Major League Soccer's Progress and Plans

2005-12-01T18:11:00.000-05:00

I think I need to come up with better titles for these posts.

Anyways, our beloved MLS has finished it's tenth season. Where have we been? Where are we going? What do we represent to the rest of the world? Is MLS the young kid with talent that everyone else is watching and waiting for the day where the student become the teacher? Or is MLS more like that kid who isn't good enough for the team, that everyone rolls their eyes at because they will slow the game down, that gets picks last and that no one will give the ball to during the game?

Watching the league for quite some time I feel that MLS has gone through some stages. The first few seasons of the league saw the Legends. Most every team had huge names, John Harkes, Marco Etcheverry, Brian McBride, Carlos Valderama, Tab Ramos, Eric Wynalda, Alexi Lalas, (young) Preki, etc. This was an excellent start. Watching these guys play in a US league laid the foundation for MLS's die-hard fans. From now on it'll pretty much always have the same base number of fans. As a league I believe the play was, not better, but different. I think a lot of the players knew what was at stake and tried to entertain more than win. The image that MLS portrayed was (to me) that it was a strong-ish league because of the recognizable names. That internationals could probably play here when they lose their touch in the other leagues around the world. It was too new to know exactly whether this was a fly-by-night operation or whether MLS meant to be the US soccer league that would stand the good years and the bad.

I think it was around year 5 where the second, current stage began. All the legends began to retire and leave the league. It would seem that without them the league would falter somewhat. Not only did they start to retire but European teams began picking our best players. The good thing is that fans around the league stayed loyal to their team with or without those players. This current stage relies on the domestic players to carry the league. Our better players from the first stage played well enough to go to Europe, where the money is. The play has gotten sloppier, less fluid, but that's to be expected since these domestic players didn't get to play against the big names, thereby building their skills. Also the teams in the league didn't have enough time be develop soccer programs that would build those skills. Unlike stronger leagues around the world, MLS teams don't have their own soccer academies, don't have their own youth leagues, and barely have their own places to play. A majority of these new domestic players seem new and fresh, kink of like blank slates. Eventually these players will come to define MLS.

I believe at this point we are still in this stage although now we have pretty good programs. Teams around the league have reputations and I've noticed that many players show their pride for their team. Another thing I'm noticing more and more, is the joy of simply playing the game they love. Aside from your Amado Guevara's and Frankie Hejduk's, many of the top players exhibit joy when they play or not play as Christian Gomez did when suspended during a game against the Metrostars. Slowly this joy and passion will bring more and more people into the league.

I think that MLS will soon come to a crossroads as to where we want to go. One direction is to continue as a domestic league much like the Mexican league where most of the players will be from the domestic country. We already have such a diverse population that I feel that the teams wouldn't become homogeneous. This is most certainly to lead to our own American brand of soccer. Though I believe that the level of play would develop more slowly but that financially, the league'll be more stable considering the price of ticket sales. On the other hand there is method two. The Real Madrid approach (not their performance at the moment, but the makeup of the team). It is understood that many of the players are not from the same country the league is based in. This has much more risk but like every risky thing in life, it has the potential for great rewards. The league could come to the brink of bankruptcy buying up international stars to instantly put more butts in the seats. The reward could be seeing ticket sales skyrocket much like when European teams toured the US over the summer. More ticket sales will help the teams recuperate their initial investment and the subsequent earnings could be used to acquire more international players. The risk is that American fans may not act the same way as European fans. Will Americans go to the game that is dominated by players born somewhere else? It would buck the trend of all the other sports in this country. Though baseball has quite a few foreign born players and is still popular. And could the initial investments ever match what European teams are willing to pay? The League could go broke trying to compete for players that American fans will not be willing to see.

Quite a conundrum, no?

Personally, I like a mixed future. A domestic-based league with some international stars. The stars could bring in more niche people while a domestic league would add more foundational fans that will stay loyal to the league and teams no matter what. This pretty much describes me as a fan. I live and die by how DC United performs. If they have a crappy game, I could care less how the other teams around the league did. Another example would be all this talk of NY or LA getting a huge name like a Beckham sometime in the distant future. While I'm in awe for his skill, when his team comes up against DC, I hope DC crushes them. Right now my favorite player in the world is Ronaldinho but were Barcelona to move to the US, my allegiance will always be with DC. As stadiums are built and the league expands and becomes financially solvent, the fans will steadily grow and the big names can only help.

We also have to keep in mind the development of the fans. I believe much of the passion for the international league is based on the fact that the love for their teams are passed down from generation to generation. A die-hard Chivas de Guadalajara fan probably is born to die has Chivas fans. In the US, we are approaching a time where the first generation fans will/are having kids that will not know a time where MLS does not exist. Imagine, 10 years from now, your kids putting on the Black and Red and traveling to Poplar Point to watch DC play. Or ten years from now, Fox carries the game and the Washington Post (if newspapers still exist) run headlines about the game and team gossip. Surely this is a little ambitious but not impossible. Furthermore, these kids of current fans will not have the stigma that the only "good" soccer is played elsewhere. These kids will go to the soccer-specific stadiums and grow to love the sport.

Sportswriters can talk about anything they want about soccer in the US. They can knock it as a niche sport and can say that the world cup isn't even truly in the public's consciousness. I'll have to disagree. I think we'll see something special this upcoming summer. At least from my co-workers, I know there will be a lot of us who'll try to cut out early. I know that I'll try and install a television with some sort of connection to the games. And I feel that MLS will benefit. These 4 year fans will begin looking at MLS to see what we are made of. I hope that they won't be disappointed and I hope that the players understand that a lot more people will be watching them.

At least that's what I hope. It'll be interesting to see how the league develops.

BTW- if you haven't messed around with Google Video, be sure to check it out. I've semi-solved my lack of European/La Liga soccer deficiency by typing in the team or player that I want to see and watching the highlights.

Bored at Work?

2005-11-23T09:48:00.000-05:00

It's the day before Thanksgiving and things are generally slow at work, aren't they? Are your eyes tired of reading all the soccer news out there yet you can't actually bring yourself to get any work done? Well I have the solution. I present:

Soccer Games courtesy of Mousebreaker.

Below are different links to different games involving soccer all found on Mousebreaker.com. These three are my favorite. Among those not listed are games involving assuming the role of Manager of a EPL team. You'll quickly find out that there's a European/English influence (i.e. it's an English site). The other games aren't half bad distractions either.

5-A-Side Football

Bumperball

Euro 2004 Volley

Enjoy.

Dreary Day in No. VA.

2005-11-22T10:14:00.000-05:00

For a look at the difference between the two stadium plans in the DC area read: Metro Briefs
I'm starting to think that the DCU stadium may be up before the Nationals stadium. Anyone want to comment on what the name should be? the Bruce Arena?

Mark Purdy runs a blog for the The Mercury News and asks why is Houston the leading candidate for the next MLS city. Raises some interesting points though I wonder how accurate they are.

In world soccer news, I apparently missed the most exciting game in quite a while. I don't know about anyone else, but I've been dying to see Ronaldinho play on tv for wuite some time. Everyone talks about how spectacular he is and the amazing things he can do. This will change once I get satellite and then I can truly know what people are talking about when they mention other leagues around the world. Cox cable doesn't necessarily lend itself to football in the traditional sense and were it not for Comcast SportsNet (notice it isn't Cox SportsNet) and occassionally ESPN2 I'd be obviously to all things soccer. God Bless technology.

United to Evaluate the Team

2005-11-18T14:13:00.000-05:00

Jimmy LaRoue, Ian Plenderleith and Chris Webb all weigh in as to what went wrong with DCU and what they need to do to fix it.

Personally, some of their criticism of players and the team is a little harsh but they nail it on the head when Ian writes that the team was "infuriatingly inconsistent". The one feeling that I remember throughout the entire season is complete elation followed by stunned disappointment. The 3 guys view range from getting rid of everyone (Ian) to pretty much keeping the core the same and trading the rest for better players. For my take on what the players need to do during the offseason go here.

One point that I did find interesting is the suggestion that the team or maybe the attacking players looked tired towards the end of the season. Thinking back on the season I have to whole heartedly agree. I think that keeping his players fit and active during the offseason should be a primary concern for Peter Novak. I also agree that Jaime Moreno should get more days off. Though he would have to give up the arm band, I kind of like the idea of giving him time to recoop. I think subbing him out early or subbing him in late every once and a while would help him keep his fitness during the latter parts of the season. I wonder how everyone is going to stay active during this offseason, not everyone can go train with English teams.

I don't want to harp on who should stay or go cause that's not my job and frankly I don't think it really matters who we pick up in the offseason because it doesn't depend on the individual players (note: this statement does not apply if DCU wins the Mega Millions and goes out and buys Ronaldino). The one criticism I have of the article is that they state to keep a player or to trade him but there seems to be no goal in the trades other than improving that position's talent. The amount of talent each player on your team has doesn't count for very much unless you have cohesion. I know I've said it before but I don't think I can emphasize it enough. If you don't understand your teammates or you think you are above them, or they don't trust you, you might as well stay home cause you'll get blown out. Look over season for a perfect example. Chealsea and Real Madrid have arguably the best players with the most name recognition. But where Real Madrid fails is their lack of team mentality at times. Chelsea always plays as a team. Each player on that team knows what the entire team is trying to do throughout the gaem and knows how he fits into that scheme. This cohesion/team mentality is especially true with DC. Does anyone remember Jaime Moreno's last Goal of the Week? or how about Brian Carrolls first goal of the season against Chicago at Chicago? The only reason those goals happened was because of team play and understanding where your teammates are. In short, I hope DC doesn't get rid of players just to improve talent but actually seeks out players that will fit the DCU philosophy.

So Much Going On

2005-11-17T10:37:00.000-05:00

The off-season has just started and there are say a million stories out there to talk about...so let's get crackin'.

I want everyone right now to go over to the DCenters right now and catch up on the latest news regarding a DCU stadium. I only issue with the apprehension on the part of the residents of that part of DC is that (barring some amazing alternative), what could consistently bring in as much money as the soccer stadium? Maybe an online petition or something would help convince some people. I also wonder if the stadium would have a sponsor or would it be called the DC United Park or something. Point being, if the sponsor is a phone company, maybe a deal to provide wireless internet for the surrounding neighborhoods would help the process. I would love to be at the second town hall meeting to see exactly what alternatives the former mayor is contemplating. If anyone out there does find out let me know.

Looks like Brian Carroll is training with the Blackburn Rovers, turns out the Rovers have a penchant for DCU players. Ryan Nelson has made himself at home in Blackburn after an amazing year in 2004 for DC. I don't think (read: hope) Carroll will be as fortunate but the off-season training/experience will do him good, he may even sharpen his skills.

Ives Galarcep of ESPN discusses the current MLS Playoff format. I think there are some good points in there. I also like how, unlike some other articles, this one doesn't outright bash the current system.

Chris Duncan of the AP sheds light into Houston as a soccer town regardless of San Jose's future. I think it's sad that San Jose could move, especially considering they played the first game in MLS history in San Jose. My ideal would be a reorganization of the team's front office and better marketing/community outreach to get butts into those seats. It's looking more and more like Houston will be joining the league which I hope would happen around the same time as Toronto so that there remains a balance in the conferences.

Turns out the MLS teams released 49 total players on Tuesday and by yesterday no one has been picked up. The most notable name I think is DJ Countess. Wasn't he one of the Goalies of the Year? I'd like to know the logic behind that one. As for DC, two names stand out: Nana Kuffour and Kenny Arena. I remember there being an article in the Post that said that Kuffour was the next big thing if he could be more disciplined on the field. Kenny I think was an easy choice considering his injury. This is a tough business. As far as no one being picked up yet, I wonder if it feels the same as getting picked last for a team as a kid. Don't worry guys you are all special to me.

And finally, Barcelona president is interested in expanding his franchise to the US. I think it's great bringing in more money and the brand name is awesome, but I hope the MLS treads lightly cause I don't want my league to eventually look like other leagues' division 2. But this one is good, if for no other reason than Barcelona could someday tour the US much like Chelsea and Real Madrid did. If DC ends up playing them, you can start the line for tickets behind me.

MLS Playoff System

2005-11-16T09:41:00.000-05:00

Now that the playoffs are over and the L.A. Galaxy took care of business, it's time to look at the system and whether this is truly the type of system we need.

First of all, I think the playoff system in any sport was designed specifically for the reason that the team on top for the season could be knocked off. Has any ever heard the saying that we like to build up heroes only to watch them fall. The problem is that usually there are a lot of teams in the league that the playoff teams are usually only the very best. Right now instead of the playoffs being the best teams in the league, it's more like the not-worst teams in the league.

The first major problem with MLS is that it is caught in a limbo between a playoff system like basketball and baseball and a system like football. Does a one and done system fit better than multi game playoff series? The league has to weigh it's finances. It seems that our fan base as a league is only growing slowly. This is because during the season the supply of tickets matches the demand, at the current prices. I say there's an equilibrium because during the playoffs, ticket prices rise while all other factors pretty much stay constant. The problem is that a rise in prices consequently decreases demand for tickets, which has been shown during the playoffs for many teams. This means that teams could potentially further decrease individual ticket sales if the factor of whether or not the team will advance is spread out over several games. This is the multi-game playoff series scenario. I don't know how much I like this scenario. It seems that the sports using this system lend themselves to having games played every other day, instead of each weekend. MLS could start playing Wednesday night playoff games but that just may not be fiscally sound.

In a one and done scenario, the league gets to take advantage (or at least not lose as much) of the fans flocking to the stadium to advance in the playoff. There's no waiting until game 2 or 3 or 5. Just one game to determine the winner. I would say like the Revolution v. DCU conference championship game in 2004. That is a textbook example in favor of this system. Two teams battling it out, no one willing to give up and it all comes down to one shot. Of all the games I've seen in MLS, that was my favorite. That one game showed exactly what this league is and the passion our fans have. It was worthy of being called The Beautiful Game. Anyways, that type of passion is hard to sustain over a long series of games and so the Knock-out system takes the upperhand. The main disadvantage is that the playoffs wouldn't last as long thereby shortening the marketing time and the impact a marketing campaign would have on the general public.

Of course the league could eliminate the playoff system all together. This would certainly save the league money and the league wouldn't have to compete with other sports league for quite as long (which could also contribute to the decrease in ticket sales for the playoffs). This would also increase the meaning of individual games during the season. The best team would win. No slacker mentality that Landon hinted at during interviews. I wonder if it would be better for the league keep the conferences or put everyone in one large group. It would certainly make for an exciting beginning to the season. It has a lot of potential. But will American fans who are used to a champion decided by one game be able to be drawn in to a league that decides the champion over the entire season? The problem is that there is a lot of risk and it could turn out that not enough fans show up to the regular season games to warrant eliminating the playoffs all together. Though it must be said that Nascar is very popular and all they ultimately have is a points race. On top of that all that, the long term plans of the league selling the MLS Cup much like the Superbowl will never happen. Again, a give and take scenario. If the playoffs are eliminated, I would like more of an emphasis on the US Open Cup. More marketing and more television exposure. I feel that some type of tournament is good for soccer and including the USL can only help. It would distinguish the Cup from the playoffs and the extra marketing would do well for the USL.

Personally, I think that either soccer should be more like football in terms of organization and playoff system, but I'm not adverse to eliminating the playoffs just to see how it goes. Either way the continual change isn't good for anyone. Fans don't know what to expect. I think it's best to get the growing pains out now and which ever system works best use it and stick with it through thick and thin. It can't be financially sound for the league to continually change how the post season looks. Consistency breeds growth and above all other factors that should be MLS's motivation.

DC United News

2005-11-12T11:34:00.000-05:00

Here's the latest on DCU:

Freddy Adu and Christian Gomez were fined by the league, $500 and an extra $750 respectively. Certainly not the $20k and $5k that two Redskins players have to pay but I think MLS is at least sending the message. I think Freddy's was pretty much what it should be. I remember the foul looked pretty bad on replay. Maybe it was some sort of catharsis. One hard foul like that certainly releases tension that the player might have. Even though DC lost bad Freddy might have finished the game feeling a little better. I think the fine Gomez received was more lenient than if another player, say Dema Kovalenko, were the person spitting in CJ Brown's face. Like I've said before, I believe Christian knows he was in the wrong and I hope that that's the last time we see something like that from such a role model player.

The DC United front office wins some awards. Good for them. I now know that the effort someone puts in sending me all the emails for game ticket purchases and season ticket sales are being recognized. I'm proud of our front office. Maybe it's just me but I feel like ours is one of the better front offices in the league. They usually have a low profile, but it will go to bat 100% for its players and staff.

Don Garber (MLS Commish) says that he think Freddy's not going anywhere. For the same reasons I said in my Freddy post last week that Freddy for his own sake needed to stay in DC, Garber says that Freddy can't just go to any team that'll give him playing time, he needs the DCU program.

And finally:

MLS announces All-Time Best XI. Long time DC fans will see some very familiar faces. 5 of the 11 players have been or are linked to DC United in some fashion. The perennial Jaime Moreno deserves to be there. After all these years he is still producing and still going strong. Marco Etcheverry definitely deserves to be on the list. No one was more dangerous on a free kick than Marco. Every ball within 35 yards of the goal seemed to have the potential to be a goal and defenders knew that. He was a major part of the first 3 championships. Now coach Peter Novak makes the list. His leadership on the field and relentless tenacity has been translated from his player days to his coaching days. Eddie Pope makes the list and for good reason. He was solid on the backline and his headers during set pieces helped our defense clear balls and helped our offense score goals. The last DCU player on the list is Jeff Agoos. While he played for DC, he was a rock on defense, literally. I remember one game where a player on the other team ran straight into him and just bounced off.

Rant and the Sense of Calm

2005-11-11T01:00:00.000-05:00

It's been quite a while since my last post. Sorry for the hiatus, school piled on this week. Stupid school getting in the way of the good stuff.

So let me get right into it. D at the DCenters links to an article by Scott Soshnick of Bloomberg News. It's easy to just write him off and call him a JACK@$$ and as true as it may be he makes some points that should be addressed. Let's look at it point for point.

First I was kind of surprised that he knew about Christian Gomez's apology, I truly wonder how he found out.

His premise is that MLS is and will always be a niche-sport, not even capable of holding American soccer fans' attention. He goes so far as to say that soccer as a sport, in America, is declining. But I think a true look into his intentions come at the end of his article.

I wonder if he believes that starting a league that will last over a long period of time is not like an easy bake oven? You can't just put players on the field, put out a press report and expect sold out FOOTBALL stadiums. Speaking of which wasn't it thirty years ago that a football game was preempted for Heidi. Ten years is nothing in the traditional business model. I would've hoped someone who works for Bloomberg News would've taken some econ/business classes in school. I address where we are as a league in future post but a quick preview: I say that we are slowly, methodically building our fan base in order to keep them coming for years and years. To compare the MLS Cup to the Superbowl is like trying to compare the Superbowl to the World Cup. They're different we have to share football stadiums. We don't have as much money as the NFL. A fair comparison is to look at leagues with similar revenues and show the progression from there. League attendence is steadily climbing. 3 of the past 4 years has seen the league break the 15,000 mark. Expect next year to be a significant jump due to the World Cup. Even to compare the MLS Cup television ratings to its inaugural season is unfair because ratings obviously would be higher the first time around with the initial excitement of a first champion. The one thing I realized was missing was the fact that MLS will receive a rights fee from ABC/ESPN. Thereby instantly boosting revenue/stadium-building/quality programs and players. Money buys everything the more money the better quality and the more fans which causes more money and even better quality and more fans. Do you see my point? If in 10 more years the league is stagnant then the guy has an argument but is current trends continue that won't be the case.

To rebut his more superficial arguments: unless I missed the news conference I always thought MLS wasn't in the bill is because there's no evidence that steroids are pervasive in the league. I didn't think Congressmen felt that MLS didn't have enough fans to regulate their players. Interesting if true but if it is I'm calling my congressmen and asking for my taxes back.
The Freddy and LeBron comparison is odd. Lebron = 18 y.o. bigger than the league average. Freddy = 15 y.o. smaller than league average. Now for the bonus trivia: which one has the hardware? I don't remember the Cavaliers even making the playoffs. And I'm pretty sure the NBA has been slowly declining since Michael Jordan's retirement. Now how did LeBron help the league? Exactly. No one player saves a league, it's stupid and to think Freddy was supposed to save MLS is naive. MLS doesn't need saving.

This guy's article is one in a long line of soccer bashing articles. One article does not change minds. This one will be forgotten by next week and let's hope that the next one has better arguments.

Weekend in Review

2005-11-07T23:40:00.000-05:00

So turns out I was 2 for 2 in calling the winners but missed on pretty much everything else.

LA v. Colorado

What can I say that hasn't already been said. Seems like the media loves to hype up Landon. Well, I guess it's not hype if he actually gets the job done. Reading my previous post I said that Mastroeni will match up against Landon the same way he did in the FC Dallas game against Ruiz and that I didn't know if it would neutralize Landon. Turns out he matched up against Landon exactly like he did against Ruiz, by letting his man get two goals. Watching the first goal again, I'm amazed at 2 things. One, that after all these years Cobi still has all that skill. It reinforces a post I'm working on regarding the MLS and the quality of the players who started this league (among other things). The second part of the goal that struck me was the sheer speed that Landon has. His run started about 5-7 feet away from Mastroeni and he ended up 2-3 feet ahead of him and with a goal (shot on his left foot). There was nothing Joe Cannon could do to stop the shot either, short of standing 2 feet to his left and letting it smack him in the face (much like Benton's shot straight at Hartman's face). The second goal is just sheer insanity. The Colorado defenders were so scared of Landon's skill that they had no choice but to just leave their feet and throw their bodies at him. And the finish was beautiful. After such a long run, having the strength and energy left to wrap the ball around Cannon into the side netting is pretty amazing. He did show that he's mortal after the goal when he collapsed in exhaustion. I was out of breath after watching that play. On Colorado's part, I think that they were not polished enough to challenge the Galaxy's experience. I think that next year with the same group might get them better results. It just seemed throughout the entire game that the Rapids were overwhelmed.

Prediction: Galaxy 2 - Rapids 1
Result: Galaxy 2 - Rapids 0

New England v. Chicago

Well this game certainly didn't go as expected. Apparently the two teams expected something different as well. That was quite possibly one of the worst goals I've ever seen. Then again a goal's a goal and the Fire would have killed for a goal like that. There's not much to say about this game except that Shalrie Joseph is a monster on the field and Clint Dempsey showed flashes of how good he can be. Taylor Twellman was abused the entire game and could never stay on his feet. The only Fire player that looked like they were taking the game seriously was Thiago but the fact that one of the people guarding him (Joseph) is 4 feet taller than he is, Thiago needed help. The red card on Herron just sealed the deal. It seemed this week it was the Fire that imploded. It makes me think just how distract DC was or how focused and lucky the Fire were. Each team had its chances but neither team really took advantage except for Clint Dempsey's lone goal. The one stand out aspect of this game was the fouls by both teams. They were hard and deliberate. That could have inhibited any type of scoring because taking that many knocks, an offensive player would want to be completely sure he will get a clean strike on goal before risking an injury. All in all, I'd say that this game seemed to have more emotion but the LA game was more entertaining. I did enjoy how they only opened the on camera half of Gillette Stadium to make it look like a lot of people showed up. On a side note, the refs take a lot of heat from the players especially during the playoffs but the refs for this game should be given credit. A lot of their calls were spot on, especially the Fire goal that was negated because of an offsides call. It was the correct call. And does anyone know what happened at the end of the game? the Fire players were on a tirade.

Prediction: NE 3- Chi 1
Reality: NE 1 - Chi 0

Congradulations to the Galaxy and the Revolution, IMO they deserve to be in the MLS Cup. Look for my outlook on how the teams match up and who should win. This game will be a lot harder to call.

MLS Playoff Picture - Sunday

2005-11-04T13:07:00.000-05:00

On Sunday live on ESPN2 at 3:00 pm, the Chicago Fire will play the New England Revolution at Gillette Staduim in Foxborough, MA. It'll be a gorgeous 68 degrees, partly cloudy with about 10 MPH winds.

The Fire are coming off a HUGE, HUGE, unexpected blowout against DCU. Winning by 4 goals, while shutting out the defending champions on their home field can't help but give your team confidence. The Chicago critics did not have them making it this far and it appears that Chicago will be facing longer odds this weekend. They have the confidence and should have an us-against-the-world mentality. That's very powerful and could pose problems for the Revs.

The Revolution, for their part, just played one of their best halves of the year. They saw just how potent they can be without any help from Taylor Twellman. Their defense is pretty solid and they still have Matt Reis as their keeper. To be honest, I think the only problem will be not taking the Fire too lightly. The one Revolution player that I think will have to have a good game to help his team advance is Taylor Twellman. He didn't show up for the Metros series but I think his ability to get a touch on the ball to score a goal will be crucial against the Fire.

During the MLS season, the Revs won both games at home by shutting out the Fire and in fact, the Revs have only allowed one goal against the Fire, including away games. I emphasize during the MLS season because during the US Open Cup the Fire won 3-2 in NE. It should be interesting to see how the Fire will respond. Most notably they are missing Chris Armas but that didn't slow them down last game. NE will miss Khanu Smith and after that huge game it could affect the outcome.

My prediction: Revs should control the match long enough to put the game away. Of the two matches this weekend this one should go to the higher seed. Of the teams left, the Revs have showen the consistency to make it to the MLS Cup.

Revs 3 - Fire 1

(again I repeat my previous disclaimer that I have no experience so take my prediction with a grain of salt)

Here's to a good weekend of soccer.

MLS Playoff Picture - Saturday

2005-11-04T09:39:00.000-05:00

After all that DC analysis it's time to look at the remaining MLS teams.

Who would've thought at the beginning of the playoffs that there would be 3 upsets and the Revolution would have to play a truly second half to stay alive? I certainly didn't.

In the Western Conference the Colorado Rapids will play the Los Angeles Galaxy in Colorado at 9:00 pm on Saturday. Since I'd based in No.VA. I'll be sticking to my laptop and catching the feed on MLSNet.

For the Galaxy-Rapids games there are a few keys that I think are important to predict the winner.

First is to ask which team has the most momentum. Both teams knocked out the higher seed, but the Galaxy simply dominated San Jose. The first leg of the home and home series in Los Angeles was ugly for SJ. They were outplayed. It looked like the Galaxy did their homework and were prepared for all of San Jose's weapons. The days leading up that game all I heard was how Landon Donovan was ready to carry the team on his shoulders and that he wouldn't let his team down. I think the rest of the Galaxy players fed off that confidence and they all believed that they could beat SJ. Colorado had to go to Pizza Hut Park to defeat Dallas, and were it not for a missed PK by Carlos Ruiz, the Rapids would be watching the playoffs. I think that they feel more relieved than confident and that could play a major factor. Advantage: Galaxy.

The venue might also not favor the Rapids, maybe this time around the atmosphere will play to their advantage but if their last home game is any indication, the Rapids will need much more. Though Los Angeles lost both games and hasn't scored a goal at Invesco Field this season, playoffs change everything (ask us DCU fans). You can bet both locker rooms will emphasize those stats. Given that this may feed into the Galaxy's confidence, look for them to come out firing on all cylinders. Home field advantage: Neutral.

Weather: though I haven't done enough research, I would believe that cold weather would favor the Rapids more that the Galaxy. On Saturaday the weather should be clear and in the low 40's. Pretty cold but maybe not enough to make a difference. Slight advantage: Rapids.

What about the players themselves? For Colorado I think Jovan Kirovski would want nothing more than to eliminate his former team and is a person that could be a key for the Rapids. I think Jeff Cunningham and Dedi Ben-Dayan are also players to look for. On defense Mastroeni should be matched up against Landon much like he was against Carlos Ruiz. Yet to be determined if this will truly neutralize Donovan. For the Galaxy I think Gomez, Vagenas and Cobi will need big games because Donovan may be slowed down and Joe Cannon will centainly be on his game. The X-factor for me in this game may be Chris Albright. I could see situations where he can make a run from defense to add an attacking player.

Prediction: Galaxy 2 - Rapids 1

as these playoffs will be my first formal predictions/ in-depth analysis, look for me to quite possibly be totally off base.

Thank You!

2005-11-03T19:56:00.000-05:00

First off I just want to thank everyone who's mentioned this place in their blogs or who've commented on the posts. I think it's great!! Being the new kid on the block I'm glad the neighborhood has welcomed me with open arms. This weekend I'll figure out how to do the blog roll thing/edit my template so I can give my appreciation to all the soccer blogs out there.

UPDATE 8:21PM: I forgot to mention how I came up with the title/url. I'm not not an Elvis fan but it doesn't come directly from the song. Does anyone remember the commercial from the last World cup where teams of 3 comprised of soccer stars from around the world played on a ship? It's called the Secret Tournament. I think it's one of the greatest commercials ever. Well a new version of the Elvis song plays in the background. BTW this site has 5 pages worth of commercials. I also recommend the "2 Seconds" commercial, it pretty much sums up American soccer and it ushered in the new Nike Soccer campaign. You'll need Quicktime.

Have Fun!

Freddy's Future (and past)

2005-11-03T12:37:00.000-05:00

Freddy Adu is a talented player, I'd be hard pressed to find someone who truly thinks otherwise. He has shown his talent throughout the entire season. For me, his talent culminated during the stoppage time game winner in LA during the summer, during the Real Salt Lake game, and, maybe most promising, filling in for Christian Gomez during the game in the Meadowlands against the Metrostars (a game memorable for Bob Bradley's subsequent firing and Christian Gomez cheering on the team from the stands).

Moreso in the Metros game than in the others, Adu was composed in the midfield and was able to coordinate the players around him. I could see this somewhat during the RSL game as well. This is the strongest evidence of what he could eventually be if he continues to develop and the main reason why DC should keep him.

His game does have it's weaknesses; mainly his lack of consistency and defensive abilities. Sometimes he looks lost and doesn't seem to know where to go with the ball or who to give it to. I would go as far as to say that at times it looks that the game is moving too fast to him. It could be that he's become a favorite target for fouls and that a lot of his first touch is focused not on a quick pass but on avoiding a hard foul. But keep in mind that this weakness is sporadic.

A more serious concern is his defensive abilities. I can't quite remember the last time Freddy had a solid defensive performance. I think that this is a part of his game that will have to catch up to the rest of his game if he wants a chance at the major clubs in Europe or even on the National Team. I think that alot of times, too many people put too much focus on the glamorous side of soccer, the goals, the fancy moves, etc. I'm not sure that Freddy can consistently win the midfield.

It's all about consistency and defense for Freddy. I think Peter Novak has it right strategy in slowly developing him. I mean honestly he has probably 18-20 more years in his career not to mention he already has 2 years of experience. He has a lot of time to develop and rushing it can only be dangerous. Obviously it's frustrating for him especially because he knows he can help his team.

I hope he remembers that a lot of people are watching him and, I'm sure, are asking about his progress. Bruce Arena is watching. The European teams are definitely ready to try him out once he becomes eligible. Peter Novak isn't stupid. He knows Adu's potential and where he is likely to end up. In the short run it hurts DCU to not train him and make certain that he can be consistent on the field. In the long run, Novak knows that no matter where he goes, Freddy will have to work his way up the ranks to prove himself on a European team and to do that he must be able to maintain his composure and Freddy must know the fundamentals. I have faith that Novak is developing Adu and pushing him into the player that will succeed in those leagues. Again he has until he's 18 to even be eligible let alone be on the first team, let alone see any playing time and much less start.

I would hope that Freddy understands that DC is the best place to learn and to develop as a player (even if the on field experience is slow coming). I wouldn't be surprised if he were traded but I would be disappointed, not because we'd lose Freddy, but because I don't see another team in the league that would be able to teach Freddy to reach his potential. Most teams that would go after him the hardest are the teams that want a quick fix. That's not the environment that would help Freddy.

As he gadually grows as a player and matures as a person, Freddy Adu will become a leader able to carry his team. He will be a player who can dictate the tempo of the game, who makes everyone around him better by his mere presence. I firmly believe that in 5-10 years Freddy will be an international name that will bring the pride and passion of all US soccer fans. But only if the process continues gradually and methodically (and in DC).

DCU Off-season improvements

2005-11-02T18:35:00.000-05:00

Well in my opinion there is only one fundamental flaw in the DCU roster: the defense. While it has been good throughout the year, I feel that there is not enough consistency or even depth to make it dominate as it did in the past (Eddie Pope, Carlos Llamosa) or even last year (Ryan Nelson, Mike Petke). The defense is comprised of versatile players that can play different positions and that may be the problem. Of the defenders on the DCU roster only Bobby Boswell can play his position and his position alone (Facundo Erpen can play center or right back). Some may argue the opposite of my point but I believe that those players who are dedicated to one single position are those who can stay consistent throughout a season. Personally I would like to see some effort in acquiring defenders. Bring back Mike Petke (or a defender of his caliber). I always thought that he was a solid defender. I believe that Petke on the left, Boswell (if his composure and vision of the game develop in the offseason) and Erpen (if he can handle it) or Wilson on the right would solidify the back quite well.

Nick Rimando through all his faults is a solid goalkeeper anyone who says otherwise is reacting emotionally to a bad game. Does anyone remember the first leg of the Chicago Series? If not watch the highlights and tell me he didn't save our butts from ourselves (Prideaux). There have been several games, including this one, throughout the season that has exemplified this. I felt that Rimando didn't make as many gutsy moves in the box last year. Could it be that he had more confidence in his teammates last year? I certainly did and I was only watching them play on tv. I think a more solid, cohesive backline will let Rimando relax and not feel he has to make those types of saves.

There are minor flaws and things DC needs to look at for the future. In the midfield, the flanks have to be cleaned up. Some weeks Dema can dominate the opponent while other weeks he just doesn't show up. Santino's the same way. Josh Gros is pretty consistent but his passes are not as crisp as maybe Santino's. During the off-season, Dema has to learn to keep his shots down. Many times he tries to rocket a shot from outside the box and it doesn't even come close to being dangerous. Just put him in an indoor soccer field and have him only hit balls from about the midline. I think Santino needs to gain more weight. He looks frail. I think maybe 15 lbs. would help him out, especially if he could keep his speed. Josh Gros has to continue to develop his skills maybe hook up with Christian and Jaime during the off season and practice drills. Speaking of Christian Gomez, I think that he just has to stay fit. When you are voted team MVP and seen around the league as one of the most dangerous central midfielders, I don't think you should change your game too much. I will address Freddy in a future post.

The Forwards: Jaime needs a true goal scorer up top with him. I don't believe that DC will get rid of him since he's contributed so much to the team for the last two years but they have to keep in mind his age. Jaime's skills are best utilized when he has another forward who has enough sense to be able to get a part of his body on the ball to put it into the net. The other forwards on the roster are not there yet. Hopefully the doctor reports are right and Alecko will be healthy by December. It'll be interesting to so how much he can recover by the start of next season and whether his play will be affected. Lucio Filomeno is still too new for me to even know how to evaluate him. Personally the most dangerous combination was Jaime and Alecko. I guess we'll just have to see what happens.

Christian and CJ Brown

2005-11-02T10:10:00.000-05:00

I am glad and relieved that Christian Gomez apologized. I think his reputation as one of the classiest players in the league was certainly hurt and watching it I couldn't believe that it was him. Every player deserves being given the benefit of the doubt at least once. This apology will help repair his image and since this was so out of character, I feel that he will be forgiven by the fans. I certainly have.

But how many DC fans hate CJ Brown now? I also remember Jaime Moreno and him tussling quite a few times throughout the season. On Sunday though he was as annoying as ever. When you clearly have your opponent beat you don't laugh in their face. Obviously he is not one to back down but that sarcastic grin/trying to give Gomez his hand had to irritate more people than just myself. I almost felt good about Lucio Filomeno's foul that earned him a yellow card. Either way I think it's good to get the blood boiling. It adds to the rivalry.

Besides all teams have that player. Dema anyone? Since Dema's on our side I love seeing him run to protect a teammate and get into an opponents face. Part of me likes it when players egg him on because I think he plays better. So I'm sure that Chicago fans were enjoying CJ's antics. I can't wait 'til the rematch next year.

Watch for my proposed improvements to see how I think DC will become stronger next season.

Before I Continue

2005-11-02T09:06:00.000-05:00

After my first day of posts, I felt that I should acknowledge all the other blogs that I've been reading for the past several months. The DCenters is, as far as I can tell, the first DC United dedicated blog. He provides great insight into DCU and it very creative with all his posts. I especially loved the Nationals/DCU comparison. I also pretty much read most of the same blogs listed in his blogroll. I would go as far as to say that his blog inspired my decision to start my own.

That being said, I hope to provide my own voice and perspective into the world of DC United, MLS (since DCU fell to show up) and the USMNT. The more voices out there, the more readers, and the more readers, the more likely people are to becoming fans. I hope to be able to transfer the passion I have for the game onto the screen and into my readers (as few as there may be at the moment).

I urge all readers to go over to his blog and show your support, it's a great site.

What Went Wrong

2005-11-01T19:30:00.000-05:00

DCU's most valuable players didn't show up, anyone who's appeared on the national team was probably looking forward to getting called up for the USMNT match against Scotland, DCU's stoic midfield lost his cool and got tossed, and the defense including the goalkeeper could not get organized.

It was a bad start when your cental defender gets injury and you have to use one of your subs so early. Credit the Fire for taking advantage of the change and never allowing the DC backline to ever get settled and relaxed. Though hindsight is 20/20, before the first goal I felt that there was something wrong with the lineup. There was no cohesion. After the first goal it seemed even more evident. Passes couldn't be strung together and it looked like every offensive player was trying to do to much on his own while the defense was doing everything it could to just clear the ball. One thing I don't remember seeing much of was overlapping runs. Not many players made overlapping runs and if they did they usually weren't fed the ball. I would like to know how much communication there was between the players because it seemed that no one was talking to each other.

Looking at individuals:
Jaime Moreno - has been struggling for a couple of game. I believe the Fire did their homework and marked him very closely and always knew where he was. The only time he did get the ball was well outside the penalty box. For long stretches he couldn't pay to get the ball, but the few times he did get the ball he did usually create opportunities but no one was there for the finish. That leads to:
Jamil Walker - He is fast, really fast but I think after all the rain the past few weeks, he couldn't take advantage of his speed. He quickly became ineffective. Since he isn't a true goal scorer yet, his first touches got away from him. On a dry field with open space, it doesn't matter because he can quickly recover using his speed, but on this day he came up short.
Santino Quaranta - I thought he began the game well but trailed off the map as the game went on. It seemed that the Fire defense was vulnerable when he streaked down the right flank and cut into the center of the field right outside the box. The couple times he tried it, it looked like the defense was just watching him. The problem is that it seemed that as soon as the Fire went up 2-0, he quit. I would've personally liked to see Josh Gros in that position. He has been consistent the entire year and never quits.
Christian Gomez - for some reason he couldn't get anything started. Why? I have no clue on this one. How to improve? I don't know, it just seemed like he was off his game and never got on.
Dema Kovalenko - Hard working as usual but I think on this occasion he tried to hard. One lesson I was taught was that you can't always go full speed. You have to calm down and let the play build up. I think Dema could've used this lesson.
Brian Carroll - I thought he had a good game overall and arguably was the best DCU player on the field.
Ben Olsen - I felt that he was anxious to get on the field and had a bit of Dema's affliction throughout the game. He tried to hard, went to fast and tried to do too much on his own.
Defense as a whole - No one played well enough to be distinguished from the group. No one could keep an assignment. There was no help. Fire players were open quite a few times with no defender in sight. The clearances were sloppy and passes out of the back were lazy.
Nick Rimando - Usually makes great decisions and has saved DCU's butt several times but on this day he just couldn't decide where to go and was left in no man's land. He also seemed a step slower than normal. I have always been impressed with how quick his reflexes are but he seemed weighed down.
Subs - too little too late. Freddy is a good player but not a magician. and Lucio Filomeno is too new to mesh well in such a high pressured situation.

All in all the first goal against DC took the breath out of them and they never recovered and the Fire never relented. Credit the Fire for a really good game on their part. They played the same way they played against DC during the regular season, scoring pretty much the same number of goals. DCU just didn't match their intensity and became frustrated and lost their composure in the end. The Fire dominated the game, got under the DC players' skins and did what they needed to do.

I firmly believe that this was one really bad game. We have to remember this isn't the same team from last year. Had all the competitions happened a year ago the results would be different. This team simply isn't as good. Certain things have to change but not a restructuring of the entire team.

Yet to be posted: changes for the offseason, look at this weekends games, miscellaneous soccer stuff.

Sunday Recap

2005-11-01T18:51:00.000-05:00

A sad day for DC sports indeed. At 1:00 the Redskins v. Giants. promptly at about 1:02 the Skins were in trouble after giving up 57 yards to Tiki Barber. The rest of the game went pretty much the same way and ended with a 36-0 drumming. But that was all ok because at 4:30 on ESPN2, I knew DCU would make up for it and dominate the Chicago Fire.
Little did I know that the DCU players were also mourning the loss of Wellington Mara and didn't even have the heart to score a goal for honor. Watching your team lose 4-0 on their home field in the playoffs as defending champions is quite a surreal experience. It was embarassing and the worst loss in quite a while. Those who say they'd rather lose by a blowout than a close margin have never gone through the humiliation that occurred to all DC fans on Sunday. After a close loss, no one predicts a complete overhaul of the team during the off season.
Two weeks ago, not one person was talking about any rift between coach Peter Novak and Freddy Adu and if any was, no one was listening. Wasn't it only a month and a half ago that we were averaging 3 goals a game for quite a few games? Didn't DCU have a long summer stretch where they did not lose? Did Freddy's comments really throw the team into a downward spiral? Or were there more fundamental problems?

First Inaugural Post

2005-11-01T18:22:00.000-05:00

A little about myself:

I am 21 (about to be 22) and I have been following Major League Soccer (more specifically DC United) ever since the first season. That pretty much means that I've grown up with MLS and DCU.
My learning about MLS occurred during a conversation with a friend who had heard from his soccer coach that there would be a new national soccer league and that the DC area would get a team. I was rather excited and when I told my dad, he had a surprise for me. He said that he already knew and that he'd be on the DCU staff as a translator. Being that I was 11 at the time, I flipped out with excitement...but it got better. He also said that the family goes to the games for free.
Because of his outgoing personality, he quickly became good friends with all the hispanic players: Raul Diaz Arce, Marco Etcheverry, Mario Gori and, after his acquisition midseason, Jaime Moreno. My family helped them get used to the area. We went to Raul's daughter's first b-day party, helped Marco decorate their first house, my parents attended Mario's wedding, and we still keep in touch with Jaime.
I attended the very first game at RFK, sat through the long stretch at the beginning of that season where they didn't win a game. Sat in the DCU van that picked up Jaime's family from the airport where we went straight to the first game Jaime played. I watched as the team awoke and dominated the rest of the league.
During the seasons where DCU failed to make the playoffs I must admit that my passion wained, all the old players had retired or had been traded. But after I heard that Jaime was coming back to DC and they acquire Freddy Adu, I became interested again and decided to go to the first game where the reemergence or Jaime was clearly evident and Alecko Eskanderian proved that he was a true goal scorer.
I decided to start this blog to add another voice to the soccer blogosphere and because after reading all that has been written about DCU and MLS over the past week and a half, no one could help but have a reaction.

That pretty much sums it up. Maybe that wasn't as brief as I thought. More real stuff to come.