Sunday, April 09, 2006
Addicted to MLS Direct Kick
For the first time ever, I watched at least a portion of every MLS game on Saturday. Generally, I thought that the quality of play in most games was very high, seems like much higher than last year. I don’t know if the league just needed a year to adjust for expansion, but I was very pleased with the action (if it wasn’t a pleasant experience, I don’t know how I could have watched nearly seven hours of it!). I watched virtually all or at least half of these four games:.
Chivas – DC
Very tough day for soccer. It was cold and rainy with a very wet pitch. All of these factors denied us a look at JOB in MLS action as Bob Bradley chose to sit him rather than risk injury (wise choice). It also hindered play as both teams had trouble getting anything started. Chivas probably deserved better, but they just couldn’t finish in the final third and when they did, officiating errors took them away. I thought that both goals (the super delayed offside and the Garcia free kick which crossed the line) should have stood.
One thing that was interesting was to see the interaction between Nowak and Adu when he put Freddy in the game. Nowak is talking to him, patting him on the back, appearing to be encouraging him and Freddy gave him absolutely no acknowledgment. No nod of the head, no “yup, I gotcha coach”, absolutely nothing. I also noticed when the ESPN2 camera scanned the DC bench in the pre-game, Freddy took a towel and put it over his head. I think that the rift between coach and player could be appearing again.
Revs – Red Bull
One advantage of having MLS Direct Kick is that I was able to watch this match live. It was being carried on tape delay in the NY area (both MSG and Fox SC-NYC were carrying NHL) so I got the UPN coverage from a Boston area station. What made that even more interesting was that Alexi Lalas’ brother Greg was doing the color commentary. However, I always worry when a big crowd (35,793) like that sees a 0-0 draw as I wonder if any of the casual fans go home unsatisfied and think about not coming back.
It was an odd game as the Revs controlled for good portions of the match, but were just terrible in the final third. They also wasted a couple of opportunities by overpassing the ball as it appeared that they were trying to get Twellman a goal. Both Dempsey and Noonan passed up shots to dish to TT…perhaps they were concerned about TT’s World Cup chances now that Brian Ching is off to such a hot start.
While Red Bull appeared to be on their heels for long portions of the match, they were the more dangerous team as far as scoring opportunities were concerned. Buddle hit the post in the first half and several other players (Guevara, Djorkaeff and Henderson) came very close to scoring. Greg Lalas made a great observation about Guevara, he said that “sometimes Guevara plays the game too slow”. This was spot on as all night it seemed like he dawdled and held the ball too long before getting dispossessed by any one of the outstanding NE ball winners.
All in all, that’s still a good result for Red Bull and a nice start with their fan base.
Wiz – Dynamos
In the stands, MLS in Houston is off to a good start. They had another good crowd which was loud and spirited. In fact, after the Wiz stole a win, you could overhear the fans yelling things at the Wizard players. I think that this is great since it shows how much people care if they’re acting like that.
Some good 2nd half soccer with a couple of interesting things occurring. First, DeRo getting red carded for a forearm/elbow into Kerry Zavagnin’s gourd. It didn’t seem that bad at first, but it was probably the right call.
Second, Eddie Johnson went down near the sideline and when he didn’t receive the call, he got up and in the linesman’s face. He berated him and probably deserved a card for his thoroughly unprofessional behavior, but he got nothing. What he also didn’t get was another call for the remainder of the match. A few times, he was absolutely manhandled, but no whistle. I hope that he learned his lesson, but I’m afraid that he hasn’t. For such a talented player, you really hate to see him act like that.
BTW, I love the Dynamo kit. It’s very simple and reminds me of Holland’s look from the 70’s Total Football era.
Fire – Galaxy
Of all of the games, this one was the most enjoyable for me to watch. Even though it ended in a 1-1 draw, it had good build up as both teams showed very good skill as they worked up the field. Also, the Galaxy’s broadcast was the most professional of all the ones that I have seen so far. Max Bretos and Allen Hopkins made the match so much more enjoyable with their intelligent commentary and knowing when to let the action speak for itself. Really top-notch stuff.
As for the game, it came down to LA being up 1-0 when an excellent combination between Cornell Glen and Donovan unleashed Ned Grabavoy into the clear. Unfortunately, Grabavoy overran the ball and a few minutes later, the Fire had drawn even. It has to be disappointing for LA to only have one point after two home games. Considering they had to play in Champions Cup, they should be sharper than they are right now. (George)
Chivas – DC
Very tough day for soccer. It was cold and rainy with a very wet pitch. All of these factors denied us a look at JOB in MLS action as Bob Bradley chose to sit him rather than risk injury (wise choice). It also hindered play as both teams had trouble getting anything started. Chivas probably deserved better, but they just couldn’t finish in the final third and when they did, officiating errors took them away. I thought that both goals (the super delayed offside and the Garcia free kick which crossed the line) should have stood.
One thing that was interesting was to see the interaction between Nowak and Adu when he put Freddy in the game. Nowak is talking to him, patting him on the back, appearing to be encouraging him and Freddy gave him absolutely no acknowledgment. No nod of the head, no “yup, I gotcha coach”, absolutely nothing. I also noticed when the ESPN2 camera scanned the DC bench in the pre-game, Freddy took a towel and put it over his head. I think that the rift between coach and player could be appearing again.
Revs – Red Bull
One advantage of having MLS Direct Kick is that I was able to watch this match live. It was being carried on tape delay in the NY area (both MSG and Fox SC-NYC were carrying NHL) so I got the UPN coverage from a Boston area station. What made that even more interesting was that Alexi Lalas’ brother Greg was doing the color commentary. However, I always worry when a big crowd (35,793) like that sees a 0-0 draw as I wonder if any of the casual fans go home unsatisfied and think about not coming back.
It was an odd game as the Revs controlled for good portions of the match, but were just terrible in the final third. They also wasted a couple of opportunities by overpassing the ball as it appeared that they were trying to get Twellman a goal. Both Dempsey and Noonan passed up shots to dish to TT…perhaps they were concerned about TT’s World Cup chances now that Brian Ching is off to such a hot start.
While Red Bull appeared to be on their heels for long portions of the match, they were the more dangerous team as far as scoring opportunities were concerned. Buddle hit the post in the first half and several other players (Guevara, Djorkaeff and Henderson) came very close to scoring. Greg Lalas made a great observation about Guevara, he said that “sometimes Guevara plays the game too slow”. This was spot on as all night it seemed like he dawdled and held the ball too long before getting dispossessed by any one of the outstanding NE ball winners.
All in all, that’s still a good result for Red Bull and a nice start with their fan base.
Wiz – Dynamos
In the stands, MLS in Houston is off to a good start. They had another good crowd which was loud and spirited. In fact, after the Wiz stole a win, you could overhear the fans yelling things at the Wizard players. I think that this is great since it shows how much people care if they’re acting like that.
Some good 2nd half soccer with a couple of interesting things occurring. First, DeRo getting red carded for a forearm/elbow into Kerry Zavagnin’s gourd. It didn’t seem that bad at first, but it was probably the right call.
Second, Eddie Johnson went down near the sideline and when he didn’t receive the call, he got up and in the linesman’s face. He berated him and probably deserved a card for his thoroughly unprofessional behavior, but he got nothing. What he also didn’t get was another call for the remainder of the match. A few times, he was absolutely manhandled, but no whistle. I hope that he learned his lesson, but I’m afraid that he hasn’t. For such a talented player, you really hate to see him act like that.
BTW, I love the Dynamo kit. It’s very simple and reminds me of Holland’s look from the 70’s Total Football era.
Fire – Galaxy
Of all of the games, this one was the most enjoyable for me to watch. Even though it ended in a 1-1 draw, it had good build up as both teams showed very good skill as they worked up the field. Also, the Galaxy’s broadcast was the most professional of all the ones that I have seen so far. Max Bretos and Allen Hopkins made the match so much more enjoyable with their intelligent commentary and knowing when to let the action speak for itself. Really top-notch stuff.
As for the game, it came down to LA being up 1-0 when an excellent combination between Cornell Glen and Donovan unleashed Ned Grabavoy into the clear. Unfortunately, Grabavoy overran the ball and a few minutes later, the Fire had drawn even. It has to be disappointing for LA to only have one point after two home games. Considering they had to play in Champions Cup, they should be sharper than they are right now. (George)
