Saturday Morning Previews
By: Dave |
1 Comment
From Kyle J McCarthy
Brad Knighton to get the start
Revs are lucky to have Knighton as backup. I thought he played well at the beginning of the season. Reis is a champ, but i’ve felt like he’s been on the decline. Glad Knighton is getting some more caps.
Category: Team News
Injury Report
By: Dave | Add Comments
Going into tonight’s game Rev’s should have a healthy roster, with the biggest question mark hanging over Edgar Jankauskus. From the Revs Blog
INJURY REPORT (As of Tuesday, September 1)
New England Revolution
PROBABLE: Brad Knighton (lumbar disc irritation), Kenny Mansally (L ankle sprain), Matt Reis (R leg contusion)
QUESTIONABLE: Edgaras Jankauskas (L adductor strain)
OUT: Chris Albright (L lateral meniscus tear/bone bruising), Taylor Twellman (Disabled List: concussion)
Kansas City Wizards
DOUBTFUL: Matt Marquess (knee strain)
OUT: Eric Kronberg (shoulder surgery), Kevin Souter (sports hernia surgery)
Category: Team NewsKnow Your Enemy – Seattle Sounders Vs. New England Revolution
By: Dave | 1 Comment
For this week’s preview of Seattle Sounders Vs. New England Revolution, I have teamed up with Sounders Offside blogger Stephen Rosenshein to bring you the latest information from behind enemy lines. You can check out my answers to his questions about the revs at the Seattle Offside or see below.
Daver: So did Fredy molest that chick or what? i know its old news, but I never heard the end of that story. I don’t want the official record. Your thoughts on what REALLY went down.
Steve: Basically, a woman claimed he sexually assaulted her in Bellevue (East of Seattle) and then showed up later at her home in Lake Sammamish. Well, having been to Bellevue myself more than once, I can tell you that most of what goes on at night clubs there could be considered sexual assault. Also, how did Fredy, a native of Colombia and recent arrival to the Seattle area even know where her house was or how to get there? The Sammamish area is a confusing mess of twisting roads and cul-de-sacs.
The police dismissed the case eventually because of a lack of evidence, which was good enough for me. Fredy comes from a place where the standards of conduct between men and women are vastly different, see here. As a young, successful and wealthy athlete in Colombia, he probably is not used to being rejected by whatever woman meets his fancy.
Clearly, something happened to upset the woman or give her the idea of reporting Fredy to the police. Whether or not it was full blown sexual assault or just Fredy getting a little pushy is left to our imagination. In the end, there was probably no way to prove that he had in fact shown up at the individual’s house and I don’t think soccer has reached the status in the USA where the players are exempt from or above the law (think MLB, NFL, NBA, etc.)
Fredy is great player, but I don’t think he is really a stand up guy or very heavy on character. I have nothing to back that up, it is just the feeling I get watching his body language on the field and his conduct behind the scenes.
D: What player is key to Seattle’s success this week?
S: Well, with Freddie Ljungberg mysteriously ailing from memory loss and dizziness, I think it important for Vagenas to step up like he did last week against the Galaxy. He drew a red card on Beckham and basically brought the same high energy, opponent-annoying game that he has every time he has been on the field. I think last week was his best game all year and if he can build on the performance it could go a long way in locking down the Rev’s talented midfield.
D: Qwest sold out this game and the Sounder fans have been one of MLS’ most feel good stories of the season (just beating out Beckham’s glorious return). What advantage does homefield give to Seattle?
S: Well, it is a loud, intimidating and vengeful crowd. If opposing players foul a Sounder a bit too hard, they certainly don’t forget anytime soon. A good example was Craig Weibel in the July 11th Houston Dynamo match. After being megged by Montero, he knocked Fredy to the ground. Every time he touched the ball the rest of the game he got 103 decibels of boos in his ear. It is a loud place and teams can’t communicate, something that could hurt New England with their young defenders.
D: Who are Seattle’s top play-makers and weakest links?
S: Steve Zakuani, Fredy Montero and Nate Jaqua are the top play-makers. Of the three, I think Jaqua has been amazing with the way he can start attacks by dropping off into the midfield or over to the flanks. I had no idea he had that in his game. Another guy who doesn’t get enough credit is James Riley. He is fast coming from the back and provides very good service from the wings.
The weakest link will be in the center defense, with Marshall out. Also, our discipline, or lack thereof, has been a major issue this year. Seattle has lost a fair amount of points because of silly, inopportune or just plain unnecessary red cards. Hopefully they can avoid such an incident in a very winnable game.
D: Sainey or Sanna Nyassi?
S: Sainey I guess, since he seems to play more than Sanna. He is one of the guys that showed up last year and really helped turn some eyes towards Africa as a place to recruit talent for the league. It seems to be extremely important going forward that MLS teams looks outside the US for exciting talent like this guy, at least until the youth systems start to operate a little better.
On a side note, it is amazing how similar they look. You probably couldn’t tell them apart if it wasn’t for Sainey’s hair and Sanna’s lack of hair. I like Sanna’s speed and I think he could start for a lot of teams in the MLS right now.
D:What’s your prediction for the game?
S: Sounders did it against LA on the road sans Freddie, they can definitely do it at home against a weaker opponent. 3-1 Seattle.
Steve: First of all, what is up with Sharlie Joseph’s ESPN picture? How do they know that is even him?
Dave: All I can say is that Shalrie is a G. That’s basically what he looks like. You know how they do in St. Georges
S: How do you think the Rev’s participation in the Superliga will affect them down the stretch? They have only played 18 league games (least in the MLS) but have also had 4 contests outside of league play. Is this positive or negative for the playoff outlook?
D: New Engalnd’s Superliga bid is a positive point for the team. Although they disappointed falling short from last year’s win, the international play gave younger players some good high intensity experience that will prove invaluable down the stretch, especially when considering injuries. Although the Revs got out to a weak start in MLS league play, they have played less games and have more time to play with a healthy Shalrie Joseph and recently acquired Jankauskus.
S: Are there any favorable matchups you think the Revs can take advantage of against Seattle?
I htink Shalrie Joseph will have an edge against Alonso, but I can’t stress enough the strength of NE rookie defender Kevin Alston who was drafted 10th overall in the 2009 SuperDraft. He is a solid in the defensive position, but is shockingly effective as an attacking back. Look for him to stretch the field for New England providing a offensive reinforcement from the wing.
S: Who are you most worried about in Seattle side, being that Ljungberg is sitting out?
D: Freddy Montero who is scoring just about .5 goals/app and Zakuani, MLS’ 2009 number one overall draft pick are the names that come to mind. I think if the Revs can keep these two offensive powers at bay, they will have a greater chance of pulling out a road win in Seattle.
S: Finally, as the only team yet to play the expansion Sounders, what do you think are the chances they can come away with an upset? Do you have a score prediction?
D: I don’t personally put a ton of weight on the Sounders as an expansion team. They are very strong and a serious threat, especially to a banged up Revs side who has proved very vulnerable and inconsistent thus far this season. I think the Sounders take this game 2-1 in a game that is hard fought. Look for great goal tending in this match keeping the score low despite a plethora of chances
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A few thoughts on this match:
I’ve been waiting for this matchup all season. I think it will be a good one!
The Revs are coming off an off week well rested. They will boast a full healthy roster with Shalrie Joseph and Jankauskus set to play.
The Revs most recent game resulted in a 2-1 loss to the LA Galaxy. Seattle’s most recent game ended in a 2-0 win over the Galaxy. A bad omen for NE I think.
**A big shout out to Steve from seattle.theoffside.com for his thoughts and collaboration on this post.
Some notes from Azteca
By: Dave | 2 Comments
I wasn’t THERE but I almost felt like i was. What an exciting atmosphere from Mexico City yesterday for the Mexico v. United States world cup qualifier. For anyone who doesn’t know, Mexico won 2-1. I predicted 3-1 and it could have easily been that bad if the US defense and Tim Howard had not saved face.
1. Telemundo had a wonderful telecast. Most US fans probably don’t speak spanish, but I do, and I thought they provided great build up and excitement with the tema “Momento De La Verdad”
2. USA needs to control the midfield. I didn’t think Mexico played that brilliantly. It’s easy to win when every time the opponent gets the ball they pass it back to you and give you another chance on goal.
3. Charlie Davies is a G. Great run, great finish. Sucks no one else showed up to play.
4. Even as a US fan, I love how scrappy and annoying those mexicans are. The way they tried to pick up Davies as he lay on the ground, hurt, was hilarious (some may say infuriating). I enjoyed the little fire it ignited on the field. They know the USMNT can lose composure at times and always seek to exploit that.
5. Why didn’t Jozie start?
Category: Team NewsUSA v. Mexico
By: Dave | Add Comments
A prediction – Mexico, full of confidence after wooping the USA B team last month and playing in the lofty fresh air of Ciudad de Mexico, will take the game 3-1. Hope i’m wrong.
Category: Team NewsJozy Altidore to Hull City – A twitter timeline of events
By: Dave | 5 Comments
Interesting to look at Altidore’s transfer through his tweets.
It probably went into motion on Aug 2, when he says he is going on a little trip. He then responds to one of his followers saying, “if i told u [where] it wouldn’t be a surprise. lol” …Looks like a presser for tomorrow at 2:30 (England time i suppose?)
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Following
Category: Team NewsLA v. Barca
By: Dave | 14 Comments
Pretty entertaining game tonight from the Rose Bowl where the Galaxy played Barcelona in the first game of the new phase of Euro preseason in USA. Barcelona won 2-1 in front of a 93,200+ person crowd.
The biggest story out of this game has to be David Beckham winning some support from fans (albeit, not in their home stadium) through an impressive free kick goal and a good all around effort. Also, he received a much fairer and objective analysis of the situation surrounding him and Galaxy fans from the Fox Soccer announcers than he did from the MLS announcers at the All-Star game last week.
Early in the 1st half, Beckham went to take a corner and was pummeled by boos. In fact, it seemed he was booed by some segment of the crowd each time he touched the ball. Until he scored. The announcers rightly commented on the booing urging fans to get over the past, and focus on what could potentially be a long career with LA. I also want to give them credit for predicting that the crowd might change their feelings about Beckham if he scored, which they did. I heard mostly cheers when Beckham left late in the second half.
I will add one caveat: it did occur to me that Beckham would try harder in this game, against the best club in all of soccer, than he would in any regular season MLS game. It will be interesting to see if he shows the same hustle in winning balls, playing defense, and striking free kicks as he did today throughout the season.
Lastly, to tie this in to the Revolution, the Galaxy face off against the Revs this week in Foxborough. The game tonight gives us some idea of what to look for. Landon Donovan is scary right now. He is playing some of his best soccer and Beckham looks determined to be a good teammate and prove himself a bit to the fans – which make Landy Cakes an even greater threat. Look for the back line to have their hands full with a Galaxy team that is playing well and will be taking some confidence from their narrow 2-1 defeat to Barca.
Category: Team NewsToronto v New England 8/1
By: Dave | Add Comments
Happy August Everybody!
Kyle McCarthy posts expected starting XI on Twitter
kylejmccarthy TFC (4-2-3-1, R to L): Frei; Brennan, Serioux, Garcia, Wynne; Cronin, Robinson; Barrett, Vitti, De Rosario; Gerba
kylejmccarthy N.E. (4-4-2, R to L): Reis; Alston, Osei, Barnes, Heaps; Nyassi, Larentowicz, Ralston, Mansally; Jankauskas, Dube
Fredy Montero
By: Dave | 1 Comment
My favorite MLS player!
The little colombiano es super bakano and just had a nice strike at goal. I hope he sticks around the MLS, and I’m happy for Seattle that they get to have him while it lasts.
Category: Team NewsMLS Against Becks? Or simply Pandering to fans?
By: Dave | 7 Comments
Watching the MLS Allstar pre-game, I found it amazing that the analysts, paid by MLS I assume, are speculating about why Beckham got into the altercation with the Galaxy fan last week.
Rob Stone starts it off asking John Harkes “whats gotten into Beckham that he is showing such thin skin?”, and Harkes goes on to say that Beckham started off on a bad foot by wanting to stay at AC Milan and shouldn’t be surprised at the negative reception from some L.A. fans. Then he starts talking about David “underestimating the passion of the fans in this country.”
He’s joined in this line of thought by Alexei Lalas who goes on about how Beckham should concentrate on the play on the field and not the fans, and then reiterates the “passion” of Galaxy fans.
Julie Foudy then says the big one, “it makes me wonder, is this some sort of exit strategy?”
Perhaps this is some kind of MLS strategy of exiting Beckham while saving face, and big upping the fans for their stubbornness and lack of understanding of football norms all at the same time. The way all the announcers are ganging up on him, all with the same thoughts and ideas, is reminiscent of the way political news organizations attack someone under the false pretense of “news” or “analysis” *(fox news). I’m not particularly fond of Beckham, but I don’t like how they are doing him in this pregame. It will be interesting to see how long Becks lasts in the MLS, right now it looks like neither party is happy, and both may be looking for a way out.
UPDATE:
MLS Commissioner Don Garber was interviewed about Beckham at halftime and was much more level headed (as expected), defending him, saying he’s building the league and trying to bring his team to the championship. He also said that he has heard from Beckham that he wants to go back to Milan and play for England and also that he wants to play the rest of his career in MLS. Well, which one is it? I’m skeptical of the latter, but i’m glad to hear Beckham get a fair shake.
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