Revs--LA 7/4--Pre Game Talk

[Soccer Doc]

LA is a much different team now that they have their new home. The Fish will be back off suspension.Revs have been inconsistant of late. this will be a tough match for the Revs.

A major question is who will be called up for the Gold Cup roster. I think TnT will not because of his health. Maybe Brown.

I think SN will go with a very defensively oriented lineup with TnT starting on the bench (His Viral Lung Infection will keep him from full participation for at least a few more weeks). I see Wolde getting the start as the sole forward with a 5 man midfield behind him. If Hernandez is back (if not JMM) I would start him along with Cullen, Joseph, Kamler and Ralston with Cullen being pulled for Vazsquez at 6o minutes and Wolde giving way to TnT. I would keep the same back line. I think JMM will play in midfield if Hernandez is still out shopping himself. If Hernandez is back and "motivated" I think JMM will be left home to rest his leg another 8 days.

Reise (if Brown called up)
Heaps, Llamosa, Pierce, Franchino
Ralston, Cullen, Hernandez (or JMM). Joseph, Kamler
Wolde

[JMMUSA8]

Twellman, Ralston and Brown are called up for Gold Cup only.

Califf will miss the game, hes on the roster for the Paraguay match.

[MouseyTongue]

Is Califf the only one on either side missing for the Paraguay friendly? As I understand it, Gold Cup camp call-ups start after the friendly right after this match....right?

[JMMUSA8]

yup, Califf is the only Galaxy player called up and hes listed for both Gold Cup and the Paraguay match, so Twellman could/should break free in this game.

[NewEnglander]

Put Cullen in only if you want to prove how useless he is in midfield and are playing for a draw. He reminds me of the bad old days with Brian Dunseth.

[soccertim]

Originally posted by NewEnglander
Put Cullen in only if you want to prove how useless he is in midfield and are playing for a draw. He reminds me of the bad old days with Brian Dunseth.

How does Leo remind you of Dunseth? Does he, when under no pressure, often kick the ball to the nearest opponent in our defensive third?

I'm not saying Leo should be starting, but unless Vazquez improves his defense in a hurry, I don't see a change in Nicol's rotation. Leo will start (especially on the road), and Joseph will play the whole game. Vazquez will come in around the 60th minute and hook up with Taylor.

[Soccer Doc]

I think we will see the same starters in LA as we did against the CRapids but configured more in a 4-5-1. I also think we will see the same substitution pattern with a still not healthy TnT and a still not game fit Vazsquez coming in off the bench at 60 minutes if we are looking for a spark.

I think the biggest roster question is JMM. Is he ready to play: will he get a start or come in as a sub? Due to the 16 man travel roster limit we will only be able to take either JMM or Jason Moore. I'm betting that SN will give Joe-Max another week to heal rather than push him before he's had time to heal and bring Jason.

Travel Roster:
Brown, Reise
Heaps, Franchino, Lllamosa, Pierce, Kante
Ralston, Cullen, Kamler, Joseph, Vazsquez, Jason Moore
Wolde, Noonan, TnT

George

[JohnnyRev]

Allbright has been hot -- three goals in the last two games. That makes his career goal per game average = 0.02. Maybe he's starting to fulfill his potential, but boy was he awful for DC in some of the Rev games.

I think we'll see fisticuffs between Ruiz and Rusty before the game is over.

[soccertim]

Originally posted by JohnnyRev
Allbright has been hot -- three goals in the last two games. That makes his career goal per game average = 0.02. Maybe he's starting to fulfill his potential, but boy was he awful for DC in some of the Rev games.

I think we'll see fisticuffs between Ruiz and Rusty before the game is over.

Ruiz doesn't do fisticuffs. Look for a few flying elbows when the ref's looking elsewhere...

[George Griffin]

I think we can be fairly sure that TnT won't start due to the lingering effects of his illness. With the large size of the LA pitch my guess is we will see Wolde as a lone striker backed up by a five man midfield of Noonan. Kamler, Ralston, Joseph and Cullen.

For me the big question mark is not the starting roster but the mind set of the team. What team will show up? Will it be the solid defending side of late 2002 or will the "on again---off again" bunch from 2003. So far this year we have seen our lads at their best and at their worst. Will the wackiness of the past four matches again be evident our has SN worked his magic and cleared out the cobwebs?

Revs 1 (Wolde)---LA 1 (The Fish)

George

[Jim Dow]

Given the acres and acres of space at HomeDep I should imagine Stevie will bunker in and ytry to keep shape above all else. This match will put a premium on speed and shape. If we get burnt with the former and/pr lose the latter the floodgates could open a la Rapids, if we can hold on both counts and nick a score I'd say 1-1 and run for the plane.

JIM DOW