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RSL -vs- DC United: Breaking it Down

Apr 7

Posted by kirsoccer in DC United, Real Salt Lake | 3 Comments

As we take a look at the upcoming match, I thought I’d break it down by position on the field. In order to do so, let’s look at the projected starters:

Real Salt Lake:
(4-4-2)

GK: Rimando;
DEF: Beltran, Borchers, Olave, Wingert;
MID: Beckerman, Morales, Johnson, Mathis;
FWD: Movsisyan, Findley

DC United:
(3-5-2)

GK: Crayton;
DEF: Namoff, Jakovic, Burch;
MID: Fred, Simms, Gomez, Olsen, Wallace;
FWD: Pontius, Emilio

Position breakdown:

Goalkeeping: this is a no brainer. None of DC’s keepers are even “average”. So this year it really doesn’t matter which one they trot out there, they will give up goals. Rimando won’t be confused for keeper of the year, but he’s fairly solid. ADVANTAGE: RSL

Defenders: I’m projecting the 3-man backline because they used it last week, and Soehn seems to like that formation. However, he was criticized for employing it last year after the 4-0 debacle they experienced at Rice Eccles. It also suits C. Gomez well, and emphasizes the possession style. Having said that, DC’s defense may prove to be a liability. I’m not impressed with Jakovic to this point. RSL on the other hand has a strong backline. ADVANTAGE: RSL

Midfielders: Probably a strength for DC, but RSL’s midfield is no slouch either. RSL’s midfield features a tireless engine in Will Johnson and a creative playmaker in Javi Morales, with Beckerman and Mathis proving to be solid as well. DC is glad to have the services of Christian Gomez and Ben Olsen back. Fred and Simms are also good complimentary players. Quaranta and McTavish could also play into the mix after being injured. The numbers with a 5th midfielder probably puts them over the top. ADVANTAGE: DC UNITED

Forwards: Emilio was on fire in 2007. With 2 goals in 3 games, is this a sign that he’s back? Pontius seems to be faring well as a rookie, but they’ll miss the suspended Moreno. On the RSL side, Findley is coming off of a hat trick, and Movsisyan proved to be a goal scoring threat a season ago, but hasn’t managed to find one yet this season. ADVANTAGE: RSL

Intangibles: Coaching, home field, style of play, momentum, depth. My leaning is slightly RSL’s way when playing at home, but it’s too close to call. ADVANTAGE: DRAW

So in my mind this match should go RSL’s way. Of course, it doesn’t always go as played. My bet: 2-1 RSL.

Clarification: a couple people have asked me about my picks on midfielders and forwards: the DC advantage for midfielders is because of the formation. The RSL advantage at forward is due to the absence of Moreno. I may have gone the opposite direction on both of these without those factors.

A Real World Review: April 28, 2008

Apr 28

Posted by kirsoccer in DC United, Fabian Espindola, Jason Kreis, Los Angeles Galaxy, Robbie Findley, San Jose Earthquake | 1 Comment

A Real World Review
A review of Week 5 in MLS
This Real World Update brought to you by: chronicrslnewb (aka Darin Hoopes)
This Weeks Match Results: 4-1 loss at DC United
Current Record: 1-3-1
Points: 4

Key Developments: RSL’s struggle to find results continues.

What’s right in the Real World:
There have been a few mistakes, but there is no question the defense is improved this year. Borchers deserves a great deal of credit here (I hadn‘t even heard of him before this year), but I also believe it is due to the defense being more organized. If you are going to build a successful team that will perform consistently over the long term I believe the defense is the best place to start. We still have a long ways to go, but the play of the defense leads me to believe we are headed in the right direction. In order for us to start getting results we cannot afford a step backward of any kind in this area. Rimando’s continued solid play is definitely worth mentioning here as well. He hasn’t had to do as much as last year, which is nice to see, but he has played well.

What’s wrong in the Real World:
The midfield is having some struggles, but I’d like to talk about our greater struggles at forward. Deuchar and Findley continue to be an unproductive pairing. They are showing no signs of progress. You would have thought that Deuchar would be flicking headers for Findley to run on to, but it’s just not happening. I am baffled every time I see Deuchar running for a ball out wide while Findley is positioned in the middle. Findley still looks much better coming off the bench. He is not showing signs of developing into much of a multi-dimensional player at this point. He is frequently giving the ball away when he is isolated against a lone defender. How much longer will the coaching staff give him a chance to develop as a starter. I would have preferred to see Movsisyan get the start and then have Findley come in off the bench. I am really hoping that Espindola gets healthy soon.

A brief look at the week ahead:
San Jose Earthquakes at Real Salt Lake (LHUSOC) – During the DC United post game coverage on KSL Coach Kreis indicated that we would see some players get their first opportunity to play this year. No surprise there. I think it is likely that Cordoba and Seitz will be given a chance to start. A couple of other players should be given some game time as well. It will be interesting to see what the players will do with the time they are given. The team needs a solid win here.

Los Angeles Galaxy at Real Salt Lake – The Galaxy’s lineup is disjointed at best and their results should be inconsistent and streaky throughout the year. Donovan hit a hat trick on Sunday and also scored two goals in their previous match. LA will be coming into Salt Lake with some upward momentum. RSL’s offense has struggled to finish it’s chances in every game except the home match against DC. That gives added importance to the defense stepping up and keeping Donovan, Beckham and Co. in check to give our offense more time to give us a lead. Things could get ugly if LA scores first.

Final thoughts:
I seem to view every upcoming match as an important one that will reveal a lot about the character of the team. Well, guess what? I think the next three home games are very important, if not crucial, and will tell us a lot about what the rest of the season will be like. Some of the players, as well as Jason, appeared as though they had been emotionally kicked in the gut after the DC match. Up to this point it always appeared as though they still believed in themselves after every match. There are signs that they may have begun to question themselves. If they can pull it together and do whatever it takes to get a win in each of the next three matches it will be a very important step in developing this team‘s belief in itself. Ties are just not acceptable.
There was talk about RSL having turned the corner after the 4-0 win over DC at home. After this Saturday’s 1-4 loss at DC there has been talk of this being the same old RSL. I think the truth is somewhere in between. I have an overly optimistic history when it comes to RSL. However, I was not ready to say that we had turned the corner after the game against DC. I thoroughly enjoyed that game and it was a great feeling to win 4-0, but it was one game. I am not going to be throwing myself off the ledge after losing to DC at RFK either. Don’t get me wrong, I was unhappy. Every game is a big deal to me. Sometimes I wonder how healthy it is to be as hooked on RSL as I am. I do, however, agree with the idea that you shouldn’t get too high during the highs and you shouldn’t get too low during the lows. Our painful history over the past three years makes it especially difficult to be patient, but I still believe we are headed in the right direction. I know there will be people who disagree with me and I don’t have a problem with that. I don’t think that someone who says something critical about the team is somehow less of a fan. Whatever your opinion, one thing is clear. This team is going to have to prove they are for real by getting results.

Pregame Update: Saturday April 26, 2008

Apr 26

Posted by kirsoccer in DC United, Jason Kreis, Nat Borchers | No Comments

Real Salt Lake: Real braced to handle United’s fury -> Deseret News/James Edward
“They’re going to be out for us for sure … . I’ve already read some of the things they’ve been saying in the press and I know Tommy Soehn, their coach, has already lit a fire, they’re going to be ready for us for sure,” said Borchers.

Saturday morning thoughts, predictions -> DesNews Blog/James Edward
It’s game day, and like everyone else I’m very anxious to see how Real Salt Lake handles the inevitable pressure thrown its way by D.C. United.

RSL: Opponent looms United -> Salt Lake Tribune/Michael C. Lewis
We will get the full brunt of their frustration,” coach Jason Kreis said, “and the full brunt of their abilities.”

United primed for win -> Washington Times/John Haydon
“This will be a good game to erase everything that’s been happening and really start over new,” defender Marc Burch said.

A View From the Other Side

Apr 25

Posted by kirsoccer in DC United, Fabian Espindola, Javier Morales, Kyle Beckerman | No Comments

DCU -vs- Real Salt Lake
Courtesy of BolivianFeugo (aka Andrew Esprella)

[Note: Prior to each match we intend to have the a preview of the match, provided by a supporter of the opposing team. This is the first such preview, and we thank Andrew for his contribution on short notice.]

First, let me start off by congratulating Real Salt Lake on their win at their home turf COMPLETELY dominating DC United. Two very strong points that I noticed with in the two first goals were 3 men, Fabian Espindola, Dema Kovalenko, and Kyle Beckerman. These are 3 guys that definitely knew how to play at their own house to their advantage, and to a weak backline which DC United decided to try out, which consisted of Dominic Mediate on the left, in the center Big Strong Gonzalo Peralta, and on the right Veteran Bryan Namoff. A 3 man backline can be very good IF it consists of 3 very strong Defensive minded players who can hold their ground, now MAYBE we could have slowed down the beating if Martinez (our strongest and most experienced defender) was in the back given his pace, and control over the game, and his clean tackles but Coach Soehn decided to rest him this game, along with our play maker Marcelo Gallardo as our boys deserved it after a tiring two-game series with Pachuca.

With that said, our weak spot in the game was the defense with an inexperienced Mediate… whom in my opinion should NEVER start in the back ever again, unless we are in some sort of crisis (god forbid). And Peralta didn’t have much of a game great game either, constantly getting roughed up by Deuchar yet being close to 6’3 and pretty burley for his size.

Beyond that we had nothing going for us, no fire in the front, nothing really working for us in our four-man midfield, beyond Moreno trying to act as the playmaker (experimentally put in the midfield), with his holding and touch, yet his long passes were a big problem that game because they could not produce what a Gallardo pass could.

The fact is we got dominated by a very strong at home squad with proven strengths in the midfield with Beckerman and Kovalenko. Also the strong, young Argentine contingent that is Espindola, Morales, and Mantilla I expect to play a big role in the rematch at RFK. We most definitely will be watching Espindola as he scored that great goal against us in Salt Lake, and given the other argentines respectable résumés I expect all players to be guarded heavily.

Looking at the records for both teams, with RSL having only 1 win (against us), 2 losses, and one tie this game in DC is very important for RSL as they need to work on the number sitting in their W column. The same goes with United (1-3-0), sitting last place in our division, we need a win to regain back the support from a lot of the fans because at this time many are very disappointed in play so far, as our team with our first DP that is Gallardo was expected to be the next coming of Marco Etcheverry, who so far has not quite lived up to the hype, by only seeing limited flashes of his ability. The bottom line is that Gallardo as our team’s engine is not failing but succeeding at what he does best, finding open players, opening up space, creating dangerous through balls for the forwards to finish. Truthfully it is not his fault that we have started out so bad, it comes down to how fresh our defense and offense is. It seems though that a lot of fans are having Gomez withdrawals, wishing that he was back in place of Gallardo, or trying to compare the two. The truth of the matter is that both are two different

Up front we are missing a very much needed Olsen who knew how to work the right side, with his passing, holding, touch, and creativity along with his decent strikes on goal. Instead because of injury we are left with a universal player who is Devon Mctavish, who as a temporary fix is nothing close to what Olsen brought to United, in any of the categories above mentioned. Up front also we are lacking finishing, with Moreno for a couple years now not being the same finisher he was in his past seasons with DC and more so a withdrawn forward that doesn’t score as much but can hold the ball and open up space for others. He seems to be getting a handle on Gallardo’s play which is good. What DC is lacking also is a very strong finisher that was Emilio last year, he happened to be at the right place at the right time to finish off those perfect opportunities up front. Well sadly it seems the league has finally caught on to his style of play, and are shutting him down, it also does not help that he came a little out of shape to Pre-season and seems to still be struggling with his fitness

Speaking on our defense/Goalkeeper situation, we have replaced a somewhat shakey semi-inexperienced back line that was Bobby Boswell and an aging/slow Greg Vanney with a speedier Gonzalo Martinez, an ex. Colombian International and a Gonzalo Martinez coming from a strong Argentine Second division side being their captain to add strength to our defense. Both have their strengths over our early American counterparts, and in my opinion surpass them both in foot skill, touch, and defensive ability. But it seems that Marc Burch once considered a strong Offensive wing Defender with semi-decent defensive skill for being a converted forward, has completely lost any defensive vision or skill he had before. We have a hole in the back left and it seems to be a big problem that teams have figured out about. In order to come out with a good result it will largely depend on that left side being able to close down any threats.

On the goalkeeping situation it is the exact opposite compared to the defense, we have lost a veteran keeper that was Troy Perkins to Valarenga (Norway), who was a great fit for the MLS, very athletic, not scared of confrontational tackles with forwards and just all around very strong in the net. Now what did we replace Perkins with? Zack Wells, a 2nd string keeper for Houston Dynamo that happened to play pretty well versus a semi-strong Costa Rican Puntarenas, and going down fighting to last years CCC champ Pachuca in the next round. I so far have not been all that impressed with Wells. He shows a lack of Goalkeeping vision and intuition of how to keep himself positioned or when to go for the ball in that he seems fearful of possibly getting hurt. Although the last part is my own theory it very well could be true and just shows right now why DC fans miss Troy so much at this point, as he brought strength, leadership, to our backline with the defenders. That is also another issue that others haven’t really touched on, our 2 central defenders first language is Spanish and personally I feel although Carvallo went down in flames against RSL, is still deserving of a second chance to play at home and see how well he could do with our 2 strongest defenders understanding him completely.

The bottom line for this game is DC has to win it, or else more people will continue to lose faith, this will all fall on our forwards and Goalkeeper. We have to score in order to win this, and we have to stay strong in the back to not concede any dumb goals which could be prevented. As generic as that response sounds it is all true from my perspective.

With all that said, I for see Tommy Soehn fielding a very conservative 4-4-2 that has been proven to work so far this season:

——————————Wells——————————-

——-Namoff——–Peralta——-Martinez————Burch

——————————Simms——————————
Mctavish—————————————————-Fred
—————————–Gallardo—————————-
———————————————–Moreno———–
————————–Emilio———————————-

I don’t foresee Coach Soehn to gamble much this game unless we happen to maybe get a good lead going, I predict Franco Niell coming in at the 70-ish minute to replace Moreno or at the same time that could also be Santino Quaranta, who has been given the job of possibly replacing an aging Jaime Moreno as both play very similar. Personally I would like to see Tommy try Niell up front with Moreno working together up front to start, but I doubt that will happen as it seems we most likely will play it safe, I assume. I see the rest of the team staying in for the remainder of the game beyond those 2 subs depending on their performance.

This Saturday it seems that we will have a great and enjoyable game with two sides needing a win badly, and will be in for a dog fight for those 3 points. Although I predict a DC win (trying to think optimistically), I don’t think it will be anywhere close to easy.

Morning Update: Wednesday April 23, 2008

Apr 23

Posted by kirsoccer in DC United | 2 Comments

RSL ready to throw caution to the wind: THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE/MICHAEL C. LEWIS
“That’s a good idea,” he said. “You want to try to be that better team in the first part of
the game. You want to be the more aggressive, let them make the mistakes and let’s put the pressure on and have a brighter start. I think that will help us, in the long run.”

Real Salt Lake: Team keeps looking for right mix at forward: DESERET NEWS/JAMES EDWARD
“When Real Salt Lake finally signed the target forward they were seeking in the final month of the preseason, it naturally raised another important question: Who would be Kenny Deuchar’s best strike partner option, Robbie Findley, Yura Movsisyan or Fabian Espindola?

Four games into the season, the answer to that question is still unknown.”

PRAYERS FOR CASSAR’S FAMILY -> JAMES EDWARD’S BLOG

United’s Start Has a Familiar Look: WASHINGTONPOST.COM/STEVEN GOFF
Defender Gonzalo Peralta (knee) and defender-midfielders Devon McTavish (foot) and Domenic Mediate (hamstring) sat out practice yesterday. “They are making progress,” Soehn said. Peralta and McTavish also missed Monday’s session. . . .

RSL -vs- DCU: Apr 12, 2008

Apr 12

Posted by kirsoccer in DC United | No Comments

A win! A win! A win! Sorry, but I can’t hide the excitement.

I don’t want to give a match report, there are or will be plenty of those out there. But here are some of my thoughts on tonights 4-0 victory over DC.
  • After 1 goal on 28 shots in the first two matches, we netted 4 goals on 11 opportunities tonight.

  • A four goal differential in a game is our highest ever.

  • We have a positive goal differential (+2) for the season. When was the last time we could say that?

  • What was DC’s strategy? Did they underestimate us? Their lineup and formation was horrible.

  • Can we resist the temptation to point to this game as an indicator that we are a good team? I think we need to chalk this one up mainly as a bit of a fluke. However, there certainly were some good signs. Let’s see if we can carry this into the match next week against Toronto.

  • The crowd atmosphere was excellent tonight. A lot of chanting, and yelling.

  • I think this will more or less lock the lineup in until we are either forced to make a change due to injury (or other absence) or until it proves ineffective. This is good news for the anti-Talley crowd as Sturgis should retain this starting spot next week.

  • I loved the use of Deuchar in this match. He seemed to be causing DC fits, and I think he really got into their heads.

  • Is it too early to say we’d be in the playoffs if they started today?
Here are a couple of pics taken from my seat (click to enlarge):


Practice Update: April 11, 2008

Apr 11

Posted by kirsoccer in DC United, Nick Rimando, Practice Updates | No Comments

My first day before game practice, here are my two words to describe it: Intense and Short.

Although it only lasted about an hour, here are my observations:

  • A drill with six aside, that emphasized tight passing and then taking an accurate shot at the end. Each team was in a small square and tried to make 6 one-touch passes in a row and then kick it into the small square at the other end in order to score a point. *Note: it seems like we have concentrated a lot on tight passing drills. Hopefully it will pay dividends this season.*

  • An 8v8, small field drill with players surrounding the field (sidelines and endlines). These players assisted whoever had the ball, and helped to keep this gam moving. This became a fast-paced game like you’d see in indoor soccer and had everyone focused on quick build-up, good finishing and maintaining form. Was quite intense. A couple of players were pretty vocal about their teammates on this one. I heard several comments that I won’t repeat here. This is the accountability that Lagerway talked about.
  • Finishing – everyone took turns receiving a pass from the coach and tried to finish. There were some pretty impressive shots. Olave, Cordoba, Bomma, Morales – all hit some high quality shots. However, there was a stretch when Rimando was in goal where nobody even put the shot on net. He said “Do I even need to be here?” Next thing you know, he was in the line with the players taking the kicks and he blasted one past Reynish and said “that’s how you do it”. It was a pretty funny moment at the end of practice.

  • Brennan Tennelle was running during practice and didn’t participate in the drills. Yura participated fully, but was icing down his left (I think) knee afterward.

  • There was a group of kids there watching practice, and when the players came out after practice they were swarming for autographs. You’ll see a couple of pictures of this.

  • The crowd of media was a little bigger for this than preseason practices. I assume that’s a function of it being nearly gameday, and that there was a chance to get a glimpse of DC>

  • DC came in for their practice and I snapped a couple of pics, but their practice was closed and I didn’t catch any of them afterward for pics.
Here are a few pics (click to enlarge):



Player Profile: Carey Talley

Mar 26

Posted by kirsoccer in DC United, FC Dallas, Kansas City Wizards, Real Salt Lake | No Comments

Carey Talley


Position: Holding Midfielder
Date of Birth: August 26, 1976 (31)
Place of Birth: Memphis, TN
Height: 6 ft 1 in
Weight: 181
Previous Clubs: FC Dallas, Kansas City, DC United
National Team Exp: United States (U-17, U-20 & U-23)
Jersey Number: #3
Current Status: Senior Roster
How Acquired: Trade with FC Dallas

Personal summary: Carey was born in Memphis. Married to Kirsten with a son named Max.

Professional summary/highlights: Drafted by DCU in 1998. Played 4 seasons for DCU and was a key contributor in all but his rookie season. Played right back and defensive mid for KC during 2002 and 2003 seasons. Played only part of one season with Dallas before breaking a rib. Has been a key member of RSL for the last 3 seasons.

Webpages/Myspace/Facebook:

Youtube/video links: Galaxy goal, Crew goal, Chivas goal, Player Profile (must see – w/ Dunseth), AYL Double Talk (must see – w/ Borchers)

Other links: MLS Player profile: Carey Talley/MLSnet, Wikipedia Page: Carey Talley/Wiki

Keepin It Real Expectations for 2008: This one took me a long time to arrive at this conclusion, and I’m sure many RSL fans are jumping for joy over this, but I believe Carey will be a starter especially early in the season. I actually like much of what Carey brings to the table with this group of players, and his leadership should not be underestimated. I think the poor performance of Cordoba and the seemingly lack of a good fit for Kovalenko have precipitated this move.

Fans Scorecard Ratings: Talley Rating

Interesting Fact/tidbits/quote: Is a fan of the show “The Office”. Is wicked on Call of Duty 2.

Player Profile: Nick Rimando

Mar 21

Posted by kirsoccer in DC United, New York Red Bulls, Nick Rimando | No Comments

Nick Rimando


Position: Goalkeeper
Date of Birth: June 17, 1979 (28)
Place of Birth: Montclair, CA, USA
Height: 5 ft 10 in
Weight: 184
Previous Clubs: DC United, Miami Fusion, UCLA
National Team Exp: United States – 3 Caps
Jersey Number: #18
Current Status: Senior Roster
How Acquired: via trade with NYRB (initially trade with DCU)

Personal summary: Married to Jacqui Little who played in the WUSA for the Washington Freedom. Wedding was performed by teammate Ben Olsen.

Professional summary/highlights: Drafted by Miami Fusion in 2000 and took over starting job from Jeff Cassar in rookie season. Helped the Fusion win the Supporters Shield in his second season. Selected by DC United in 2002 allocation draft after the Fusion were contracted. Lost the starting job to Troy Perkins in the 2004 season, after suffering an injury at the end of 2003. Regained the starting job and helped DC win the MLS Cup. Traded to Real Salt Lake prior to the 2007 season. Named club MVP, after leading the league with 146 saves.

Webpages/Myspace/Facebook:

Youtube/video links: Profile interview with Dunseth (must view): Rimando/Dunseth, Rapids match 2007: Save of the Year, AYL Double Talk (with Chris Wingert)

Other links: MLS Player profile: Nick Rimando/MLSNet ; Wikipedia Page: Rimando/Wiki

Keepin It Real Expectations for 2008: Will start 90% of matches. Will be challenged less as RSL midfield holds ball better, and defense is much improved. Will still have great year, and be in the running for GK of the Year.

Fans Scorecard Ratings: Rimando Rating

Interesting Fact/tidbits/quote: During the 2007 hosted teammate Alecko Eskandarian as a housemate.