Recaps from: An American's View, Goff, PPP, DCenters, Edgell Supporters, and Fullback.
My recap is a bit more critical than DCU deserves, perhaps, but these are pertinent points so I'll make em.
In brief: United needed to create more chances in the box, find each other better on the ground, and talk to each other better on defense. These things are nothing unusual, but it's disappointing that we're still dealing with these kinds of problems well into the middle of the season.
Who had a good game? Carroll did well to slow DeRosario and showed himself to be a really intelligent defensive mid. He deserves DCU's MoM tonight, if anyone does. (BDR disagrees.)
I'm really concerned about how McTavish will fit in on the wing now that Boswell is back. McTavish is a good right back, but Boswell doesn't seem to realize that when McTavish is heading forward (like all good wing backs should) he should be pinching over for cover. Vanney does this for Gros. I'm praying that either McTavish learns the right back spot pretty well or Boswell starts showing the potential to become a great center back, because otherwise I'm inclined to put McTavish back in the middle. Yikes.
Am I the only one that thinks Gomez has lost chemistry with the rest of the offense? There are times now when he passes but no one's there to receive, or he makes a pass that kills the momentum, or chips for a run when no one's running. It makes me think that he's a bit lost. Maybe when Jaime gets back Gomez'll look like the reigning MLS MVP, but right now it looks like our young guns are going in a different direction than he is. I'm looking at Gomez' current form and the fact that we're still waiting to use our DP slot and I'm really starting to wonder where Gomez will be by the start of next season.
You know what? Let me go a little bit deeper: I really think Olsen, Gros, and Gomez are still working off the Jaime/Esky system of attack even though Fred, Emilio, and Addlery are working with a completely different dynamic. Where the hell did our chemistry go? We never built momentum and I never got the feeling that we'd capitalize if we did. We seemed almost senseless out there and we're hardly connecting up front at all, as far as I'm concerned. I guess I'll chalk it up to the heat: we had similar problems in Kansas City, but with better results.
For all our problems on offense, it seemed like Houston had the same issues. The game was won on a lucky redirection from Ching, off a shot that Carroll could have closed down or Perkins could have saved. The best they got was lucky. Gomez punished the post and Emilio should have punished the net early on rather than making Onstad look like a hero. Houston really didn't have anything we didn't have; tit for tat. Don't think our performance deserved more than a point though. None seems about right.
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Other notes:
- I wonder how much DCU will improve once Jaime gets back.
- I don't miss Erpen any more, and I wouldn't trade him back for Vanney.
- Let me give credit where credit is due: Olsen and Boswell deserve a lot of applause for joining back up with DC so soon after the Copa. First-class dedication. We really appreciate it, boys.
- A few days ago I read that Osorio (the one who just got hired for Chicago) was briefly considered for DCU's head coaching position before Soehn got the job. If this season finishes the way it started, that little tidbit is going to haunt me for a very long time.
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3 comments:
you make a good point about the chemistry. it's hard to pinpoint exactly who or what the problem is, but we are definitely not all on the same page offensively. i can understand the problems on defense (and in just two games they appear to be improving a bit) but this far into the season fred, olsen, gomez, and emilio should be clicking on the attack.
The chemistry is extremly important and I am curious why Gomez can't find Emilio yet? I would be interested to see Fred work a little more in the middle and serve up our forwards. When it comes to Moreno... I might be the only saying this but 3 goals, all on PK's in addition to that he looks so slow out there and seems to give the ball away more than keeping within the team.
That's true, but I think it would also be true to say he's recaptured a little bit of the magic, simply based on his performances in the Copa America recently. (He certainly outclassed the EJ/Gomez/Davies, at least.)
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