Yes. I think it was subpar compared to NE and TFC. I don't think he's going to have any sort of alternating game issue really. The point is more that he needs to bring a TFC type performance, week in and week out.
He almost always does. The only reason he's getting noticed more is because of his 1 assist (pass before the assist pass shouldn't count, that's just a stat booster) and Mls published an article in him. He's consistent always does what he's supposed to do which is protect the back 4. he isn't flashy and won't show up on the stat sheet. But as long as SJ plays attacking and defensive mid, it Cronin hands down.
Kool I agree. Another solid performance by Cronin. I do enjoy a DM that has the skill to add something to the offense. Go Quakes...
Results warning: http://www.mlssoccer.com/matchcenter/2012-03-31-sea-v-sj/chalkboard It's been over 24 hours anyway, right? Look at the heat maps of Cronin and Baca (and also Wondo and Chavez). That's sooo much ground covered. Croninja!
He legitamately place the space of 3 players by himself. I'm thinking he could make it in the EPL on a bottom half team, no problem.
I just looked at Kyle Beckerman's heat map vs Portland for reference, and he (Beckerman) also covers a significant amount of ground, although it was less than Alonso, and more condensed centrally. Yeah, he'd definitely be able to make it, though I wonder how he'd do with the (somewhat) better officiating.
What's nice to me is that usually our fullbacks have by far the most actions out of all our players, in the 130 range... but this time they were in the 90's, even with Cronin and Chavez who were also in the 90's. Our mids did a lot of heavy lifting in this game.
It's great to see the sudden flood of Cronin love! He's clearly playing better than he did last year, so he's deserving of these recent accolades. Keep it up Sam! And I think that a big part of his "improvement" is that he's got faster players on the wings, and behind him. It frees him up to be more aggressive, more creative, and to move around a bit more. I like what I see from our team. Let's just keep on playing like this. 3-1-0 is what success looks like. It's early still, so a loss or two brings us back down to Earth. But a win or two would be equally great in the other direction! GO QUAKES!! GO SAM!! - Mark
I was pretty frustrated by Cronin's play last year and I almost thought I saw the second coming of Simon Elliot. The passes always went back to the defenders or keeper. I don't remember how many times I yelled at Buck Shaw "WTF, Pass the ball forward". That was actually not just Cronin but other Quakes midfielders too. Then this year Cronin did much better when he had guys with high work rate and speed sharing the midfield. Having a busy guy like Baca next to him, and a steady CB in Bernandez behind him, Cronin seems to have more confidence to keep and move the ball. The speed on the wings provides option to Cronin, but also outlet to the defenders. In the past, it would be like the defenders passed the ball to Cronin, Cronin passed it back to the defender and the defender kicked it up field. The other teams saw the weakness and just swamped the midfield, and Cronin could do very little with the ball. Another thing is with Lenhart up front holding or chasing down every ball, it gives Cronin and the other midfielders breathing room and a chance to move up. Last year the ball the defender kicked upfield aimlessly would come back right away and the midfielders would need to deal with another wave of attack. This is an improvement of the team as well as Cronin's. Something we are all glad to see. I was once very frustrated by Mulrooney, and over the years I saw how he developed into a great all-rounded CM. While Cronin may not be the exact same player, I hope he continues to develop and improve his game. On the same note, when Gjertsen first joined the team, he did so well and I thought he would become another Mullan. Well, for various reasons, it didn't materialize.
In my particular case, I've liked Croninja for a while, but I haven't really posted here much. He and Ring offer a nice contrast in options, where the former has beautiful passing and crosses, while the latter is more 'hardened' defensively and is better at keeping his shots on frame (both of course are good at breaking up opponent's plays). The Jury's still out on what JMA can do. Croninja!
Where are all those guys who were badmouthing Cronin just a bit ago? I suppose they will come up with great excuses for their opinions.
I find this part interesting: Good for Yallop pushing Cronin to play more physically, that's been a part of his improvement. I also suspect having Alexandre and Ring around has pushed Cronin to "get stuck in", as that's how both of them play against him in practice (I'm guessing here, based on their style of play that we've seen). Offensively it's not clear if Salinas and Chavez are the reasons why Cronin is passing better, but I suspect they are at least part of it. Their speed and energy help to give more outlets to pass to and occupy the defense so Cronin has a bit of room. I think it all builds on itself, once Cronin gets more comfortable and confident then he looks to pass forward more, and the more he passes forward the more the defense has to honor that and he has more room to operate.
I think you are correct on all of these points. Sam still doesn't play very physically. Mostly he takes the ball without even tackling the other player. Still, it's clear that his play has improved a lot this season. I've always been a fan, but he's really stepped up this season. Maybe he's hoping for another shot at the Nats? Oh, and the broadcast tagged Sam for MotM against the evil Flounders. Kind of surprising that, but deserved recognition all the same. GOOOOO QUAAAAAAKES!!!!!! - Mark
I've seen Cronin make kind of forced tackles in the past (though not necessarily this year), which is not necessarily good either, because they tend to be poorly-timed and can lead to cards or they are otherwise late and ineffective. But as long as he can learn to work it into his game in a natural way, it's a good thing. Funny (well to me anyway) sidenote about Cronin is that sometimes when he has to make a long sprinting run, I notice that he'll put his head down, like a little kid watching his feet to see how fast he's going. I'm fairly confident that putting your head down isn't helpful to your pace, though Sam has a pretty big head. Maybe he's trying to minimize wind resistance .
JazzyJ and Mark - good point about the "physicality" of Cronin's play. I really shouldn't have used that word, what I meant was something more on the lines of working harder on defending and harrassing the other team. He still rarely goes in for a hard tackle, but it seems like he is getting better at using some contact to push other players off the ball or holding them off if he has the ball. Using the OptaStats terminology, I bet he has more key defensive plays (Interceptions, Tackles, Recoveries, Clearances) this year than he has in the past. But mostly I think the improvement is his passing. It seems he gets rid of the ball more quickly and more often going forward, which does two things - it helps create transition offense, and it helps to keep the opposing central midfielders more on their heels and not able to attack as much.
Cronin justly rewarded with making SBI's team of the month. He is playing his best soccer for us since he got here hopefully he keeps it up: http://www.soccerbyives.net/soccer_by_ives/2012/04/sbi-mls-best-xi-of-the-month-march.html Wondo and Muma Bernardez also make the first team; Busch on the second team
I like that Sam is not a dirty player. Could you imagine having a thug like Alonso or Kovalenko on our squad? Sam cuts off passing lanes, he pressures whoever has the ball, even if just to slow him down or turn him, he usually steals the ball with a toe poke, often sending the ball to another of our players. And he covers a lot of ground. Sam's passing has always been good. For a while there, Frank had him passing backward almost exclusively, but even in his first game with us, he was distributing beautifully out of the back. He's also often a one or two touch passer. Sam knows what he wants to do with the ball before he gets it. And his passing touch is usally very good. And a pretty hilarious 3-4-3 lineup there too! I love it! These best eleven sides rarely contain either a formation that makes sense, or has every player in their best or usual spot. These ought to be a 4-4-2 lineup (maybe a 4-3-3) and the d-mid should be a d-mid, the guy at right mid should be a right mid and so on. Cronin and Beckerman playing wides outs? Seriously? GOOOO QUAAAAAKES!!!!! - Mark
Cronin is playing better and more consistently this year than in the past. I didn't watch him much when he played in Toronto, so I can't say what he did there, but in his time with the Quakes he's showed glimpses of being able to make good forward passes. But it's only been glimpses, nothing consistent over a game or from game to game. So far this year, he's been much more consistent - not sure why, but it's a good thing to see.
"Q&A: Catching up with Sam Cronin" (SJEarthquakes.com - Friday, 4/13/12) (Thearon W Henderson / Getty) GO SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES!!! -G
But, imo he goes to ground too much, which is risky. I think he has been red carded each of the last two years for a studs up challenge.
Even by his own admission he's a more defensive-minded player, but Cronin's goal against LA over the weekend is a good reminder that he can also provide offensive productivity. ESPN did a good job of illustrating how the whole play developed on his goal and what a good run he made.