At the risk of quoting that classic line, "I don't need you to make me look like an ass", what did RSL do other than signing Jason Kreis as their coach? - He's the one thing that turned that team around - If he hadn't been their coach, the West Conference would have had a different cellar dweller And, yeah, Columbus, AND THEIR PROMOTED ASST COACH couldn't win games down the stretch when they needed to - They dumped the end of the regular season and their CCL games and then stunk up AT HOME giving up a TWO GOAL first half lead
People seem to gravitate toward RSL when disputing Kevin's critique of MLS play - but KP never said that RSL was one of the teams that consistently played the ugly 9-man-defensive soccer (like Colorado and NE do), he simply used RSL as a one-game example - when they played us here in Oct (sep? who knows it was last season, I've moved on to 2010 ), which was true. Commenting on that game led into his more general tirade about the other ugly teams. At least how I recollect it, actual reality may vary. I think the best thing RSL did to turn their team around was to bring in Garth Lagerway.
Good question here re: how much of the credit for RSL's success goes to Kreis and how much to Lagerway. I have no shame in admitting that I was baffled when RSL said they were taking DC's TV color commentator (most famous for his use of the line "Sweet creamery butter") to be their GM. When you look at the solid talent they've assembled, though, that team is no joke.
Also interesting for those of you looking to bolster the argument for your favorite candidate to be United's next head coach: Kreis is a high-profile example of a player moving directly to the head coaching position on the same team. Now that he's having some success, does that make it easier to make a case for someone like Ben Olsen or Jaime Moreno?
Yes. I've heard this from their players. Lagerway set out to develop a professional organization in direct opposition to the original set up for the expansion team. It appears that he has done so. As for the match, the sCrew looked like DC United - all individual plays, no team effort, a lot of urgency from individuals but no one reacting to it. How O'Rourke avoided a red card is a mystery? That was a late challenge that never had a chance at the ball... And why Fake Moreno didn't get a second yellow for diving must be chalked up to the referee trying to be nice to the sCrew. As for Kreis as a model, RsL isn't exactly a team that I think of as very successful. They've had exactly two decent seasons. Call me when they win something...
He's having success NOW. As I remember, there were some significant growing pains when he first took the job.
The truth of the matter is no one knows how ANY person, ex-player or seasoned coach will do until he gets into the dynamics of the roster and implements his style and philosophy. People around here throw out names of people they want to be coach and others that shouldn't come anywhere near close to the sidelines. The question is how will they do? The answer is who the hell knows?
Exactly, who would have thought that a French coach plying his trade in the J-League would be able to lead an English team to their most successful time since the 1930's...
Which brings me to an interesting thought. In lieu of KP's comments say he has Coach A in his office for an interview and says, Coach we play this style of soccer here in DC. Coach A says, see ya...I'm the coach we play my style or I don't coach (sound familiar Redskin fans ) Then later he brings in Benny Olsen and says, Benny we want you to be our next HC. You have to play this style of futbol. Benny says, right KP, I'm on it. WTF just happened?
Mostly coming from a lack of useful players on the squad, IMO. He had a few big names and the rest weren't up to snuff. Since then he's done a lot to build up the mid-level talent and instill a great work ethic and attitude. He seems to have the same kind of mental makeup as Nowak - intense, driven, with a hatred of losing - the same traits that made him a great player.
What else did they do? Sign Garth Lagerway as their GM, so that Kreis had some players to coach that didn't suck. *ONE GOAL* first half lead. They went into the game down a goal.
Heh. It's a catchphrase some of their supporters use, and have for years and years, to refer to their club. Massive = huge = important = dominant etc. I don't know when or why it started, but they've had "Massive Club" signs around for a long time.
I think it's also supposed to be a bit ironic also. Its kind of striking back at those who looking down on Columbus for it being a small city as compared to the other cities in Ohio & beyond.
Massive choke job. I don't know how else to characterize being the Supporters Shield winner and defending MLS Cup champion and being thoroughly outplayed by the lowest seeded team in both legs of the series. They have too much quality to let that happen. I'll put it down to inexplicable roster decisions by the coach and very poor defending in both legs. This is the price they pay for having coasted into the playoffs. They played like crap for the last few weeks, and they found it impossible to turn it on again.
I think I heard similar things to those last two sentences in 2006 and 2007 about a different team. But yeah, I didn't watch the first leg, but defending killed them last night. Hejduk can take a lot of blame for both of RSL's first two goals last night. Even in his old age, he's played better than that in the last 12 months. But he was bad last night.
You take out defending MLS Champion, this post would have worked in 2007. Bootsy C beat me to the post
True enough, but we didn't come to the end of those seasons with the accomplishments of this Crew team. Yeah, he was bad. I was also pleasantly surprised by Toledo's refereeing. I think he's too whistle-happy most of the time, but I thought he did a decent job last night. You could make a case for the Williams penalty, but I've seen that not given as often as given. I am now in the position of rooting for NE against Chicago, only because I really like Shalrie Joseph and I'd like him to do well.
But sadly it also applies to how the 2004 MLS Cup winners blew up in 2005... From 2005 to 2007, DC United was the model of how to take a good team to a bad end in the playoffs.