The Helltown Score is about how well the team does when a particular player starts.
I take the average Points Per Game (PPG) earned per start and add it to average Goal Difference (GD) per start.
Helltown Score = PPG + GD
I use a FIVE game start minimum. You'll notice players with more starts towards the middle. That is natural as the Crew have played 19 games. Eddie and Andy are the team average here.
This is for 2012 only.
Helltown Score : Name : Games Started
3.60 : Carlos Mendes (5)
3.00 : Dilly Duka (5)
2.11 : Danny O´Rourke (9)
1.79 : Joshua Williams (14)
1.71 : Justin Meram (7)
1.67 : Sebastián Miranda (18)
1.60 : Bernardo Anor (5)
1.50 : Chris Birchall (6)
1.50 : Emilio Renteria (14)
1.50 : Nemanja Vukovic (10)
1.47 : Andy Gruenebaum (19)
1.47 : Eddie Gaven (19)
1.17 : Shaun Francis (6)
0.83 : Olman Vargas (6)
0.83 : Tony Tchani (12)
0.75 : Milovan Mirosevic (12)
0.73 : Chad Marshall (11)
0.60 : Kirk Urso (5)
0.57 : Eric Gehrig (7)
Here are the folks that don't have enough games...
4.33 : Cole Grossman (3)
2.00 : Jairo Obando Arrieta (3)
2.00 : Julius James (2)
1.33 : Ethan Finlay (3)
1.00 : Aaron Schoenfeld (3)
0.75 : Kevan George (4)
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Cole Grossman, Carlos Mendes and Dilly Duka are off to a rip-roaring 2012 start (especially Duka, who has done a 180 compared to last year). I've been playing around with this metric for over a year now and still think it is extremely valuable. Five games is a small minimum to go by but still enough to notice trend.
If I were to build a starting lineup off this metric I would cast aside the abritrary 5 game min and go with this:
Gruenebaum
Miranda, Mendes, James, Williams
O´Rourke, Grossman
Duka, Gaven, Meram
Arrieta
...and work from there.
The notable exception here is Mr. Marshall. Captain Marshall, as it is. I have a great deal of respect for him but his numbers, no matter how you slice them, don't rise to the top.
Let's compare him real quick to Josh Williams. Josh has 14 starts, Chad 11.
Points per Game
1.57 : Josh
1.47 : TEAM
1.18 : Chad
Goals for per Game
1.14 : Josh
1.05 : TEAM
0.91 : Chad
Goal Difference per Game
+0.21 : Josh
00.00 : TEAM
-0.45 : Chad
I don't want to pit these two players against each other. Nor am I attempting to make an argument to strip Chad Marshall of his armband (this would have disastrous effects, see recent twitter events as recorded by Gawker's Deadspin. Forgivable, but he did lead his teammates over a cliff).
What I am saying is that Chad, as captain, has immense responsibility regarding the success of this young club. He will be starting. He must get consistent results.
The Crew's chances at the playoffs and long term future depend more on this then any mid-season signing.
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Want to know how the Helltown Score looks if you go back to the beginning of last year?
4.33 : Cole Grossman 3
3.60 : Carlos Mendes 5
2.27 : Justin Meram 11
2.00 : Jairo Obando Arrieta 3
2.00 : Andy Iro 2
1.91 : Bernardo Anor 11
1.83 : Tom Heinemann 12
1.80 : Danny O´Rourke 15
1.79 : Joshua Williams 14
1.76 : Andy Gruenebaum 21
1.60 : Kevin Burns 15
1.59 : Joshua Gardner 22
1.57 : Eddie Gaven 46
1.50 : Chris Birchall 6
1.50 : Nemanja Vukovic 10
1.41 : Julius James 34
1.40 : Sebastián Miranda 53
1.38 : Emmanuel Ekpo 29
1.33 : TEAM
1.33 : Ethan Finlay 3
1.25 : Jeff Cunningham 4
1.23 : Dejan Rusmir 13
1.18 : Emilio Renteria 28
1.11 : Chad Marshall 44
1.08 : Andrés Mendoza 26
1.06 : Will Hesmer 33
1.00 : Aaron Schoenfeld 3
0.96 : Robbie Rogers 25
0.91 : Dilly Duka 22
0.83 : Olman Vargas 6
0.83 : Rich Balchan 18
0.75 : Kevan George 4
0.75 : Milovan Mirosevic 12
0.73 : Shaun Francis 11
0.69 : Tony Tchani 13
0.64 : Eric Gehrig 11
0.60 : Kirk Urso 5
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Sunday, July 29, 2012
Crew Rd. 19: Win, Again!
Jairo Arreita shines for the Crew in a reversal of fortunes on the reverse fixture.
1ST HALF
KC jumped on the Crew just as they did a couple weeks ago. In the 8th minute Kei Kamara leaped in front of Chad Marshall and knocked in a header in off a Graham Zusi service. The lead wouldn't last long though. 10 minutes later, just as Crew fans were pondering their next hashtagged Sack Warzycha tweet, Josh Williams charged into the middle of the field from the left and passed the ball beautifully forward to a breaking Arreita. He gathered, opened and knocked it in far post. In a few ways it was similar to last weeks goal that involved Williams, Jairo and Chris Birchall.
Refreshingly, Columbus stayed on the attack and were rewarded in the 34th minuted as Zusi gave one away to a waiting Arreita who punched home a goal of the week 25 yard bomb.
2ND HALF
Columbus performed their token attacking effort right out of the gates but nothing even remotely close came of it. After about 10 minutes they pulled back to defend only.
Sporting controlled the whole of this half, almost entirely in the Crew side of the field. KC are going to feel as if the gods were against them as they missed chance after chance right in front of goal. Andy Gruenebaum also had three magnificent saves in support of god hand that kept KC out of the net.
25 shots is what KC ended up with. 6 on target and 2 off the crossbar.
THE END WITH NOTES
• I'll start with Cole Grossman again this week. Three starts, three wins (at what amounts to basically CDM / stopper spot). Those wins? Seattle away, DC at home, KC away. He was flawless in his role save for the late tackle on Zusi last night (that earned him a 2nd yellow and subsequent ejection).
• Poor Dwight Burgess was left alone in the virtual space booth Fox Sports Ohio puts him in. He was just as hard pressed to tell what was going on because he is watching the same sloppy "HD" broadcast we are... One nugget was that we were treated to a Tommy Heinemann substitute graphic. Good job Tommy!! Anyhow, alone or with Duncan Oughton, Dwight still calls games as if he were a youth coach and not a play by play man.
Speaking of Oughton; he was actually at the game as a assistant coach. The live pregame interview with him, while out of sync, was great. Also, the Crew pulling him in as a coach during gameday is 100% approved by me. My understanding is that he is with the team all week in training so he should be there gameday.
• On Kei's 8th minute header... the way I saw it was that Chad Marshall fouled KC, Zusi spotted it up and Kei then beat Marshall for the goal. I've been down on Marshall all year. he's just not himself. In the paper this morning I read Williams post game quote where he took the blame for the goal, saying Kei was his man. I did see Josh marking Kei all game on set pieces but if Kei was his man on that play, who was Marshall marking? The thin air behind him? I admire Williams coming out and saying that. Accountability! Leadership!
• Arrieta's goals were fantastic. Two goals and an assist in his last two league matches. It's just what he needed to do after the recent "designated player" signing the club made. Perhaps it's motivation this player needs. If you look at a record of his matches you see that once he was approached by the Crew last winter (around the same time Olman Vargas was signed, the were to be a Costa Rican package-like deal) he stopped scoring altogether. I feel sort of bad for his former club... one foot out the door, so to speak. Maybe two.
• Warzycha's formation is evolving. He seems to be moving a little away from the overlapping right and left wing backs into a more 4-2-3-1 which sharply turns into a 4-3-3 in attack. If you look at the average positions of Dilly Duka and Justin Meram you actually find they played just as advanced as Arrieta.
I've seen this more clearly during the last Reserve and Friendly matches when Warzycha has Aaron Schoenfeld, Olman Vargas and Emilio Renteria playing in attacking positions.
1ST HALF
KC jumped on the Crew just as they did a couple weeks ago. In the 8th minute Kei Kamara leaped in front of Chad Marshall and knocked in a header in off a Graham Zusi service. The lead wouldn't last long though. 10 minutes later, just as Crew fans were pondering their next hashtagged Sack Warzycha tweet, Josh Williams charged into the middle of the field from the left and passed the ball beautifully forward to a breaking Arreita. He gathered, opened and knocked it in far post. In a few ways it was similar to last weeks goal that involved Williams, Jairo and Chris Birchall.
Refreshingly, Columbus stayed on the attack and were rewarded in the 34th minuted as Zusi gave one away to a waiting Arreita who punched home a goal of the week 25 yard bomb.
2ND HALF
Columbus performed their token attacking effort right out of the gates but nothing even remotely close came of it. After about 10 minutes they pulled back to defend only.
Sporting controlled the whole of this half, almost entirely in the Crew side of the field. KC are going to feel as if the gods were against them as they missed chance after chance right in front of goal. Andy Gruenebaum also had three magnificent saves in support of god hand that kept KC out of the net.
25 shots is what KC ended up with. 6 on target and 2 off the crossbar.
THE END WITH NOTES
• I'll start with Cole Grossman again this week. Three starts, three wins (at what amounts to basically CDM / stopper spot). Those wins? Seattle away, DC at home, KC away. He was flawless in his role save for the late tackle on Zusi last night (that earned him a 2nd yellow and subsequent ejection).
• Poor Dwight Burgess was left alone in the virtual space booth Fox Sports Ohio puts him in. He was just as hard pressed to tell what was going on because he is watching the same sloppy "HD" broadcast we are... One nugget was that we were treated to a Tommy Heinemann substitute graphic. Good job Tommy!! Anyhow, alone or with Duncan Oughton, Dwight still calls games as if he were a youth coach and not a play by play man.
Speaking of Oughton; he was actually at the game as a assistant coach. The live pregame interview with him, while out of sync, was great. Also, the Crew pulling him in as a coach during gameday is 100% approved by me. My understanding is that he is with the team all week in training so he should be there gameday.
• On Kei's 8th minute header... the way I saw it was that Chad Marshall fouled KC, Zusi spotted it up and Kei then beat Marshall for the goal. I've been down on Marshall all year. he's just not himself. In the paper this morning I read Williams post game quote where he took the blame for the goal, saying Kei was his man. I did see Josh marking Kei all game on set pieces but if Kei was his man on that play, who was Marshall marking? The thin air behind him? I admire Williams coming out and saying that. Accountability! Leadership!
• Arrieta's goals were fantastic. Two goals and an assist in his last two league matches. It's just what he needed to do after the recent "designated player" signing the club made. Perhaps it's motivation this player needs. If you look at a record of his matches you see that once he was approached by the Crew last winter (around the same time Olman Vargas was signed, the were to be a Costa Rican package-like deal) he stopped scoring altogether. I feel sort of bad for his former club... one foot out the door, so to speak. Maybe two.
• Warzycha's formation is evolving. He seems to be moving a little away from the overlapping right and left wing backs into a more 4-2-3-1 which sharply turns into a 4-3-3 in attack. If you look at the average positions of Dilly Duka and Justin Meram you actually find they played just as advanced as Arrieta.
I've seen this more clearly during the last Reserve and Friendly matches when Warzycha has Aaron Schoenfeld, Olman Vargas and Emilio Renteria playing in attacking positions.
Saturday, July 28, 2012
Predictions: KC v Crew
The Crew are down in KC tonight to take on Sporting. Games Starts 8:30 PM EST, 7:30 PM Central, and 9:30 PM local time in Buenos Aries, Argentina.
GAME NOTES
• Crew just played KC a couple weeks ago at home and lost.
• Unconfirmed report: Milovan Mirosevic and Danny O'Rourke didn't make the trip for Columbus
• KC missing big names this week: Aurélien Collin (face factures), Roger Espinoza (Olympics), and Chance Myers (groin).
• Crew club disruption due to new high profile signing (Fredrico Higuain) last night.
PREDICTIONS
365bet.com knew something others didn't last week (odds on Crew win) so we'll start with them. Leaning heavily towards a KC win. Looking like 1:0 or 2:0 for Sporting. Normal likelihood odds of draw in MLS (11/4).
Drew Epperley at WV Hooligan has it as a 1:0 KC win. "Columbus will keep this one tight but I don’t like their chances on the road," says Mr. Epperley.
Goal.com game preview scribe Zac Lee Rigg isn't calling the game and not enough voting on the fan vote to call this one anything other than close.
"Kansas City's quality in attack will give them a victory in front of a big home crowd." - Aaron Katzeman, Massive Report game preview. There is some optimism in the fan poll this week, but not enough votes to clearly call it.
WinDrawWin is gushing with Sporting! 56% chance of win for KC. Highest I've seen this year.
On top of covering the Higuain signing, Adam Jardy takes the time to peer into the crystal ball enough to call this one a Draw. He says it'll happen "if the Crew can eliminate the mistakes that hindered" the Crew last time out against KC.
Side note... buy the Dispatch paper, the website is atrocious. Michael Arace has a good piece on Higuain in today's paper as well.
MY THOUGHTS and PREDICTION
Looks like this one is leaning greatly towards KC. I'm not sold.
KC is a very stout club this year. Only 21 players have seen MLS league minutes for them (best in the league) compared to 26 for Columbus (25 is league median). The reason I mention this is because, well...
Stability: teams with concrete starting lineups and healthy players win in this league. Sporting, RSL, Chicago, Houston all keep the number of guys seeing minutes down (less than 23) and are near the top of the table.
Unstable teams (teams that wrongly throw people at a problem, ie. losing): Montreal, Philly, Portland, Dallas (all have had 27+ players see MLS minutes).
Columbus falls slightly on the poor side of stable. Staying healthy isn't by luck. It's through proper training and having the right trainers, physicians and doctors (available or on staff). I despise the phrase "caught the injury bug". I also despise the fact that Columbus has chosen the wrong time to get experimental with their lineups even when enough players are available to back fill positions.
The lineup experimentation Warzycha and Co. has created a degree of instability with this year's club. You can see that in the game to game level of play. For example: their level of play two weeks ago vs. KC wasn't poor but the lineup change directly lead to both the loss (2 goals off mistakes) and to injury (Benardo Anor and almost Josh Williams).
Were this anywhere but in KC, I would expect a draw or Crew win because KC are missing three of their key cogs. But that wishful thinking and doesn't get us anywhere. Just like I wish Columbus would make a impactful signing instead of one with too many questions as to the quality of player.
As it is, this game is at home for KC. Blue Hell, as they say. I expect a handcuffed Crew and a KC win. Going to take some individual Crew brilliance to, at the very least, pull this one up to a draw.
Justin Meram has been close and his confidence is returning. Eddie Gaven is in form. Emilio Renteria has looked great playing out wide in a Reserve match and against Stoke. Are Aaron Horton and/or Ben Speas going to get a chance to be special again?
Whose it going to be?
GAME NOTES
• Crew just played KC a couple weeks ago at home and lost.
• Unconfirmed report: Milovan Mirosevic and Danny O'Rourke didn't make the trip for Columbus
• KC missing big names this week: Aurélien Collin (face factures), Roger Espinoza (Olympics), and Chance Myers (groin).
• Crew club disruption due to new high profile signing (Fredrico Higuain) last night.
PREDICTIONS
365bet.com knew something others didn't last week (odds on Crew win) so we'll start with them. Leaning heavily towards a KC win. Looking like 1:0 or 2:0 for Sporting. Normal likelihood odds of draw in MLS (11/4).
Drew Epperley at WV Hooligan has it as a 1:0 KC win. "Columbus will keep this one tight but I don’t like their chances on the road," says Mr. Epperley.
Goal.com game preview scribe Zac Lee Rigg isn't calling the game and not enough voting on the fan vote to call this one anything other than close.
"Kansas City's quality in attack will give them a victory in front of a big home crowd." - Aaron Katzeman, Massive Report game preview. There is some optimism in the fan poll this week, but not enough votes to clearly call it.
WinDrawWin is gushing with Sporting! 56% chance of win for KC. Highest I've seen this year.
On top of covering the Higuain signing, Adam Jardy takes the time to peer into the crystal ball enough to call this one a Draw. He says it'll happen "if the Crew can eliminate the mistakes that hindered" the Crew last time out against KC.
Side note... buy the Dispatch paper, the website is atrocious. Michael Arace has a good piece on Higuain in today's paper as well.
Looks like this one is leaning greatly towards KC. I'm not sold.
KC is a very stout club this year. Only 21 players have seen MLS league minutes for them (best in the league) compared to 26 for Columbus (25 is league median). The reason I mention this is because, well...
Stability: teams with concrete starting lineups and healthy players win in this league. Sporting, RSL, Chicago, Houston all keep the number of guys seeing minutes down (less than 23) and are near the top of the table.
Unstable teams (teams that wrongly throw people at a problem, ie. losing): Montreal, Philly, Portland, Dallas (all have had 27+ players see MLS minutes).
Columbus falls slightly on the poor side of stable. Staying healthy isn't by luck. It's through proper training and having the right trainers, physicians and doctors (available or on staff). I despise the phrase "caught the injury bug". I also despise the fact that Columbus has chosen the wrong time to get experimental with their lineups even when enough players are available to back fill positions.
The lineup experimentation Warzycha and Co. has created a degree of instability with this year's club. You can see that in the game to game level of play. For example: their level of play two weeks ago vs. KC wasn't poor but the lineup change directly lead to both the loss (2 goals off mistakes) and to injury (Benardo Anor and almost Josh Williams).
Were this anywhere but in KC, I would expect a draw or Crew win because KC are missing three of their key cogs. But that wishful thinking and doesn't get us anywhere. Just like I wish Columbus would make a impactful signing instead of one with too many questions as to the quality of player.
As it is, this game is at home for KC. Blue Hell, as they say. I expect a handcuffed Crew and a KC win. Going to take some individual Crew brilliance to, at the very least, pull this one up to a draw.
Justin Meram has been close and his confidence is returning. Eddie Gaven is in form. Emilio Renteria has looked great playing out wide in a Reserve match and against Stoke. Are Aaron Horton and/or Ben Speas going to get a chance to be special again?
Whose it going to be?
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Robert Huth v. Columbus Crew
Still working through the Stoke City / Columbus Crew match... Now, keeping in mind that I'm six and a half feet tall, one thing that struck me was the size of Stoke players. It's something that you hear all year long watching the club but seeing them live was impressive.
I think it was Ryan Shawcross that pulled Josh Williams (listed at 6'2" 192 lbs) backwards on a corner so hard that his legs flipped up as if he was doing a bicycle kick.
Josh alluded to that play when speaking with the Columbus Dispatch's Adam Jardy after the game:
“I tried to head it and all of a sudden he grabbed my neck and it ended up looking like a bicycle kick,” he said. “That wasn’t planned at all. That was going to be a regular header and I thought I got ripped down. I’ve got to look back at it but that’s got to be a PK. I was already a little contorted and he ripped me (down).”
Matt (mossrobot, go there) mentioned in an email exchange that he was "surprised Shawcross didn't get a red card." I'm surprised as well. That statement could follow just about every Stoke game for me, I guess. Tony Pulis has these guys programmed such that, when they foul... you know it.
I've been messing around with 8-bit inspired stuff for some time now. This particular photo stuck me as one to go with. Robert Huth is huge, big like an end boss on some forgotten Sega Master System game. So this felt natural enough. I just didn't go full 8-bit with it (using GIMP).
I've always thought that Eddie Gaven had the tools to play just about where ever he wanted if he (and his agent?) were ambitious enough. During the Stoke friendly he was very active and looked very comfortable. Part of me wants to believe that he wanted to spark the interest of Stoke. Eddie only played in the first half but he found himself in excellent spots. He's often overlooked because of his demeanor but against Stoke he looked inspired.
Make no mistake. Eddie Gaven is the shinning gem on this club. He is at the peak of his powers and will be for a few more years. I'll know all I need to know about you if you don't list Eddie amongst the best. Not just on the Columbus Crew but in Major League Soccer.
This illustration has him at the feet of a massive Robert Huth. That seems to run a bit contrary to what I've written here about Eddie but in a strange way fitting.
A rusty but full strength Stoke side controlled the first 45 of this match. It could have easily been 2 or 3-0 at the half but it wasn't. All of the Crew side played hard. I don't know, somehow this illustration tries to capture what Columbus ran up against over and over. But you know what? They didn't stop running up against Stoke and their giants. The got up and tried again, again and again.
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"If you step on the field thinking you’re just going to survive, don’t go step on the field.”
- Robert Warzycha, during a moment of unusual clarity after the Stoke City friendly. It's exactly the type of approach you better take going up against Stoke. Preseason or not.
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Ben Speas Goal v. Stoke City
Almost 9,000 on hand to watch a friendly. Good stuff. It seems the closer the Crew gets to fielding a side filled with regional players the fuller Crew Stadium gets. It doesn't hurt that those players are playing well either.
Talked a bit about Ben Speas at the end of my last post. From what I've seen of him confident that he'll be a good MLS player in the attacking half of the field if given the chance.
Monday, July 23, 2012
All Ohio, Major League Soccer
1. California (60)
2. Colombia (33)
3. Texas (24)
4. Canada (23)
5. Ohio (17)
That's more than vaunted footballing states such as Florida (16), New York (15) and New Jersey (11). Also more than Brasil (16), Jamaica (12) and Mexico (10).
There's an Ohioan on 12 of the 19 MLS clubs.
16 of the 17 Ohioans have seen MLS minutes this year. The only one not to have seen time? Ben Speas (Stats, Inc has Aaron Horton coming from Connecticut).
MLS Ohioans have averaged 921 minutes to a man. That's good enough for 2nd best state/country in the league with over 10+ players.
My fellow Virginians have seven players averaging 1002 mins per game. FYI. PSA.
Ohio produces Goalkeepers and Defensive players. If you were to compile a list of 2012 Ohio All-stars at those positions it would look like this (my MLS player ratings are in the right hand nav of this blog):
GK: Troy Perkins : Springfield, Ohio : POR
D: Justin Morrow : Cleveland, Ohio : SJE
D: Marc Burch : Cincinnati, Ohio : SEA
D: Austin Berry : Cincinnati, Ohio : CHI
D: Josh Williams : Copley, Ohio : CREW
On the bench you would have Dallas 'keeper Kevin Hartman. At central defensive mid; Danny O'Rourke, Ben Zemanski and Chris Rolfe. In other words, not many would score on this club.
The Columbus Crew are right in the middle of all this talent. Admittedly, the Crew are good and identifying talent, but can't develop it. It could be said that their eyes are also bigger than their stomachs. How so? Here are a few examples using the few I mentioned above:
Justin Morrow (official 2012 MLS All Star) was passed up by the Crew in favor of Bright Dike a couple years ago (Bright is bouncing around, still). Columbus picked up Burch in 2006-07 where he rode the pine. From there he put in work with DC, he's now back with Sigi in Seattle and is a major contributor to their success.
Austin Berry's path is more direct. He was identified and snatched up by Chicago early on and Chicago pulled the trigger on him just one pick ahead of his Chicago Premier teammate, Ethan Finlay.
Ohio is lacking in the attacking positions, but that just so happens to be the beauty of a sport that relies so much on the gooey inner workings of its players.
Ohio is precisely representative of her soccer playing product.
New products being forged from a land known for her old manufacturing majesty just might be producing objects of high enough quality to spread across the oceans. Just in a slightly different world of export. Just might. Just maybe.
The United States has struggled in the global marketplace that is soccer. Perhaps it is destiny that the places that made this country industrially great in the past, make great soccer players in the future.
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I've got one player breaking the Ohio defensive player mold here though. A Mr. Ben Speas. I've seen him play now a few times in scrimmages and reserve league matches. He is an attacking threat that has a future playing in MLS at a high level. Let's hope it's with Columbus.
Stoke in Columbus
It takes the right music and the right scotch to get me talking about Stoke City. Since I have neither at the moment so I'll just say that I'm excited that Stoke will be playing my hometown team here in Columbus tomorrow night. I can't imagine a better (or a more strange, randomly occurring) event for me.
Stoke's history (both club and culture) is required reading and the Potters recent success under Peter Coates and Tony Pulis provide a blueprint that Columbus Crew could build further upon.
#1 Stoke City fan (in the USA)
Stoke's history (both club and culture) is required reading and the Potters recent success under Peter Coates and Tony Pulis provide a blueprint that Columbus Crew could build further upon.
#1 Stoke City fan (in the USA)
Sunday, July 22, 2012
Crew Round 18, Win Over DC
There was a combined total of 30 shots taken between DC and Columbus, but Chris Birchall's goal right after the break ended up the only goal for either side.
Another big crowd on hand in Columbus. 17k+.
1ST HALF
Columbus looked to be in control and DC never quite looked comfortable. United's Chris Korb, another Northeastern Ohio boy, appeared to be the man on a mission but his team didn't seem to be able to muster up quality in front of goal.
United's open style of play helped the Crew look better than in games previous but Columbus couldn't find that finishing quality either.
2ND HALF
Straight off the whistle the Crew came out aggressive and was able to grab one not more than 2 minutes in. Josh Williams found Arietta in the middle who forwarded pretty on to Birchall for the finish. Two quick ground passes right up the middle, one touch, shot... goal. Direct and good.
DC turned up the pressure from there and created excellent chances, but again, the quality to finish just wasn't there. Once the 75th minute arrived the game turned into little bursts of energy here and there. Chris Korb and Long Tan had great chances right at the end but this game didn't deserve those to go and they didn't.
THE END
• Cole Grossman deserves special recognition. His play (before his leg tightened up) was excellent. Two Cole starts, two impressive wins (Seattle and DC). He's looked better than Milovan Mirosevic in a number of ways. We'll chalk that up to being more familiar with Robert Warzycha's system... for now.
• Chad Marshall looked a lot more active and energetic than last week (until he went down with, sigh, an ankle injury).
• Beside Marshall was Carlos Mendes, who easily played his best game of the year for the Crew. He looked like a MLS top tier defender; understated, intelligent and aggressive.
• On United's side; Chris Korb's future will be bright if keeps playing like this.
• Dilly Duka had one of those games that makes everyone get excited about his future. I want to see 5 games in a row during the meat of a season. This season, preferably.
• Speaking of former Generations Adidas players; No Tchani in the starting XI for the first time in a while.
• Important to note again that DC's style of play helps opposing teams look better in the middle (DC practically abandons the middle third during large swaths of the match). The Crew get another shot at KC, a club that handcuffed them last time, this weekend. We shall see if Warzycha gives this bunch another chance.
Another big crowd on hand in Columbus. 17k+.
1ST HALF
Columbus looked to be in control and DC never quite looked comfortable. United's Chris Korb, another Northeastern Ohio boy, appeared to be the man on a mission but his team didn't seem to be able to muster up quality in front of goal.
United's open style of play helped the Crew look better than in games previous but Columbus couldn't find that finishing quality either.
2ND HALF
Straight off the whistle the Crew came out aggressive and was able to grab one not more than 2 minutes in. Josh Williams found Arietta in the middle who forwarded pretty on to Birchall for the finish. Two quick ground passes right up the middle, one touch, shot... goal. Direct and good.
DC turned up the pressure from there and created excellent chances, but again, the quality to finish just wasn't there. Once the 75th minute arrived the game turned into little bursts of energy here and there. Chris Korb and Long Tan had great chances right at the end but this game didn't deserve those to go and they didn't.
THE END
• Cole Grossman deserves special recognition. His play (before his leg tightened up) was excellent. Two Cole starts, two impressive wins (Seattle and DC). He's looked better than Milovan Mirosevic in a number of ways. We'll chalk that up to being more familiar with Robert Warzycha's system... for now.
• Chad Marshall looked a lot more active and energetic than last week (until he went down with, sigh, an ankle injury).
• Beside Marshall was Carlos Mendes, who easily played his best game of the year for the Crew. He looked like a MLS top tier defender; understated, intelligent and aggressive.
• On United's side; Chris Korb's future will be bright if keeps playing like this.
• Dilly Duka had one of those games that makes everyone get excited about his future. I want to see 5 games in a row during the meat of a season. This season, preferably.
• Speaking of former Generations Adidas players; No Tchani in the starting XI for the first time in a while.
• Important to note again that DC's style of play helps opposing teams look better in the middle (DC practically abandons the middle third during large swaths of the match). The Crew get another shot at KC, a club that handcuffed them last time, this weekend. We shall see if Warzycha gives this bunch another chance.
Saturday, July 21, 2012
Predictions: Crew v. DC
#3 in the East, DC United, will be visiting Columbus tonight to take on the 6th place Crew. Game starts at 7:30 PM EST and the weather looks to be perfect. Clear and in the 70s. Game on!
GAME NOTES:
• Starters missing for each team due to Red Card suspension (GK Hamid DC and ST Renteria for Crew).
• DC is a goal scoring Juggernaut this year, averaging almost 2 goals a game.
• 8 of 19: # of games DC has scored above 2 goals in a game
• 0 of 17: # of games Crew has scored above 2
• Neither team scored in their last game
• Crew not scoring in 35% of games, DC 21%
• DC had a midweek game at Houston. It was not pretty for them and was their worst loss of the year (4:0)
• Warzycha making a habit of losing 3 in a row? It has happened twice in the last 25 games. Before that it only happened once in the previous 92 (dating back to when he first took over).
PREDICTIONS:
No prediction from Goal.com's Keith "dead-on" Hickey this week, but the fan poll in his preview shows a lean towards DC. Only 17% think the Crew will pull this one off. 66% think DC will win this sucker.
Finally some separation from the MLSsoccer.com "Pick 'Em" bunch. After everyone hanging around 40% accuracy most of the year, their Managing Editor has fallen behind. The consensus is a Win for DC or Draw (no one picking the Crew this week).
Bet365.com is again going with the home team here. 11/8 odds in favor of the Crew, 2/1 for DC. Noticing a trend here at this site. Home team. Interesting that a Draw is least likely... Because;
WinDrawWin says there is a large stake on 2:2 Draw. Neither club has drawn in a while. Crew haven't in last 4, DC in last 7. That is unusual.
The neighbors over at Pitch Fest (Jenn Eyer) have the Crew going down 1:2 and the fan predictor at the Crew's SB Nation site has 70% of the folks going with DC. In the accompanying article, Aaron Katzeman has DC winning 2:0.
Lastly, WV Hooligan's Drew Epperley has DC winning this one out by the same score Katzeman's got. 2:0.
MY PREDICTION, CONSENSUS:
DC has a strong club this year but tends to not play well in Columbus. I like that Justin Meram will likely be in an attacking role. He's creative but on the ball he relies on confidence. Had he not been grossly mishandled over the past month, he would have buried both his close chances last week.
Looking like Meram's partner will be Jario Arrieta. If this happens I expect Meram to be spending time dropping back and helping in the middle while Arrieta looks to poach one up top. I think poaching is the only way Arrieta will score in this league right now as he is unable to get open or find the right spots in attack (this includes the time I saw him play in the reserve game against NE Revs).
Adam Jardy has Josh Williams returning to CB along sided Chad Marshall and Nemanja Vukovic and Sebastian Miranda returning to Right and Left Backs. Speaking of Jardy... he has a generally optimistic outlook on today's game, calling this one a possible "turning point" if things fall into place. He qualifies that statement with "big ifs" though.
The job tonight for the Crew is simple. Limit DC to one goal or less and put two by the patched up defense and back up keeper DC has in there (Joe Willis). DC's confidence was busted last game. Columbus must rattle their cage early and often.
I think the Crew can pull this one off. I would prefer Olman Vargas against DC because he can find space and he has a habit of dropping back to support the midfield (the Crew will need that). Even if it is 30 yards out, at least Vargas can get the ball (looking at you Schoenfeld and you, Finlay).
As it is... DC lets the game flow which will help Columbus play an attractive game. Fans and Supporters will be pacified by that.
Going to call a 4 goal draw here. 2:2.
---------------
Here I was writing about a positive result against a top team and I pop over to the Crew.com to read that Arrieta and Vargas possibly starting up top? What? How long has it been since they regularly played together, couple years right? and Williams over Miranda at RB? Who will be in he middle?? HUMAN SACRIFICE, DOGS AND CATS LIVING TOGETHER. LOCUSTS, HAILSTORMS, BOILS AND DARKNESS. ARRRGGGH.
GAME NOTES:
• Starters missing for each team due to Red Card suspension (GK Hamid DC and ST Renteria for Crew).
• DC is a goal scoring Juggernaut this year, averaging almost 2 goals a game.
• 8 of 19: # of games DC has scored above 2 goals in a game
• 0 of 17: # of games Crew has scored above 2
• Neither team scored in their last game
• Crew not scoring in 35% of games, DC 21%
• DC had a midweek game at Houston. It was not pretty for them and was their worst loss of the year (4:0)
• Warzycha making a habit of losing 3 in a row? It has happened twice in the last 25 games. Before that it only happened once in the previous 92 (dating back to when he first took over).
PREDICTIONS:
No prediction from Goal.com's Keith "dead-on" Hickey this week, but the fan poll in his preview shows a lean towards DC. Only 17% think the Crew will pull this one off. 66% think DC will win this sucker.
Finally some separation from the MLSsoccer.com "Pick 'Em" bunch. After everyone hanging around 40% accuracy most of the year, their Managing Editor has fallen behind. The consensus is a Win for DC or Draw (no one picking the Crew this week).
Bet365.com is again going with the home team here. 11/8 odds in favor of the Crew, 2/1 for DC. Noticing a trend here at this site. Home team. Interesting that a Draw is least likely... Because;
WinDrawWin says there is a large stake on 2:2 Draw. Neither club has drawn in a while. Crew haven't in last 4, DC in last 7. That is unusual.
The neighbors over at Pitch Fest (Jenn Eyer) have the Crew going down 1:2 and the fan predictor at the Crew's SB Nation site has 70% of the folks going with DC. In the accompanying article, Aaron Katzeman has DC winning 2:0.
Lastly, WV Hooligan's Drew Epperley has DC winning this one out by the same score Katzeman's got. 2:0.
MY PREDICTION, CONSENSUS:
Looking like Meram's partner will be Jario Arrieta. If this happens I expect Meram to be spending time dropping back and helping in the middle while Arrieta looks to poach one up top. I think poaching is the only way Arrieta will score in this league right now as he is unable to get open or find the right spots in attack (this includes the time I saw him play in the reserve game against NE Revs).
Adam Jardy has Josh Williams returning to CB along sided Chad Marshall and Nemanja Vukovic and Sebastian Miranda returning to Right and Left Backs. Speaking of Jardy... he has a generally optimistic outlook on today's game, calling this one a possible "turning point" if things fall into place. He qualifies that statement with "big ifs" though.
The job tonight for the Crew is simple. Limit DC to one goal or less and put two by the patched up defense and back up keeper DC has in there (Joe Willis). DC's confidence was busted last game. Columbus must rattle their cage early and often.
I think the Crew can pull this one off. I would prefer Olman Vargas against DC because he can find space and he has a habit of dropping back to support the midfield (the Crew will need that). Even if it is 30 yards out, at least Vargas can get the ball (looking at you Schoenfeld and you, Finlay).
As it is... DC lets the game flow which will help Columbus play an attractive game. Fans and Supporters will be pacified by that.
Going to call a 4 goal draw here. 2:2.
---------------
Here I was writing about a positive result against a top team and I pop over to the Crew.com to read that Arrieta and Vargas possibly starting up top? What? How long has it been since they regularly played together, couple years right? and Williams over Miranda at RB? Who will be in he middle?? HUMAN SACRIFICE, DOGS AND CATS LIVING TOGETHER. LOCUSTS, HAILSTORMS, BOILS AND DARKNESS. ARRRGGGH.
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