DC United v. FC Rocky Mountain High (aka Crapids)

Discussion in 'D.C. United' started by griffin1108, Apr 12, 2019.

  1. roadkit

    roadkit Greetings from the Fringe of Obscurity

    Jul 2, 2003
    Fornax Cluster
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I just watched the highlights. Well, I watched the second half too, so I also saw the lowlights.

    Birnbaum had a massive save, but considering the defense allowed two goals by leaving their two best players unmarked at the far post I'm saving my attaboys for later.

    It's a win, whatever. And the first time in like forever, right? Don't we have a ridiculously poor record playing there?
     
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  2. pr0ner

    pr0ner Member+

    Jan 13, 2007
    Alexandria, VA
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    The team has already doubled its 2018 road win total, so that's a plus, too.
     
  3. griffin1108

    griffin1108 BigSoccer Supporter

    Dec 5, 2003
    Virginia
    Robinson's "walkabout" that led to the chaos resulting in Kamara being unmarked was the last straw in a poor night for him. When Brillant came in, it was a sub of a defender for someone who should have been defending. I'm sure the guy is frustrated. He dropped out of college to play pro ball, he's in his 6th season and has 15 starts over that period. He is, as @shawn12011 would say, "a deck chair" and one that needs repainting and a new cushion as well.
     
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  4. Funkfoot

    Funkfoot Member+

    May 18, 2002
    New Orleans, LA
    I am really surprised Robinson is still on the team. He just isn't getting better. Pines has potential to be a starter one day. Outside of those 8 minutes, I thought DC looked pretty shit. But 3 points on the road, woo hoo.
     
  5. Petworth Posse

    Feb 24, 2009
    Club:
    DC United
    How exactly do you think a defender gets better if he doesn't get first team, in-game experience?
     
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  6. morrissey

    morrissey Moderator
    Staff Member

    Feb 18, 2000
    West Los Angeles, Calif
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    For DC players it means getting traded to another team with a coach that understands the concept of player rotation.
     
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  7. GumbyG

    GumbyG Member+

    DC United
    Mar 22, 2007
    Chesapeake, VA
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Robinson is a CB in a winger's body. A few guys made that work in MLS 1.0, but I don't think he has the kind of uncanny awareness to be one of those guys.
     
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  8. DangerMouse37

    DangerMouse37 Member+

    Jan 22, 2004
    WDC / Barra
    Ding ding ding. He has never impressed, but never really had the chance to impress. He and we as a team need a reboot -- for the better of both.

    Who knows if he has/had potential? After 6 years with this little playing time I'd be pissed if I were him.
     
  9. griffin1108

    griffin1108 BigSoccer Supporter

    Dec 5, 2003
    Virginia
    Then he should get it in Loudoun, not at DCU -- he's not MLS ready. I'm not sure folks are fully aware of how shit this roster has been over the last 8 years or so. Look at Opare -- everyone here liked him, but he looked sub-ordinary in Colorado. Opare is a reserve, a useful reserve, but a back up player. That's how LAG used him as well. Sometimes players just can't cut it no matter how many reps they get.
     
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  10. dcu n bntwn

    dcu n bntwn Member

    Jun 7, 2004
    Watertown, MA
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Giving credit where it's due, starting three center backs was a creative solution to the injury and schedule congestion problems. Olsen could have moved Arriola to right back and still tried to somehow put out a 4-2-3-1. He chose the back three and it got us the three points on the road.

    Watching the game, I was frustrated with the poor marking on the conceded goals. In retrospect, given the amount of defending that was asked of them, it is difficult to be too critical of the team defending inside the 18 yard box.

    Instead, my major criticism is the (usual) concern regarding our tactics used to defend the lead. For me, there is way too much time in the low block. This invites way too much pressure, and all it takes is one mistake to result in a goal. In addition, it surrenders all momentum to the opposing team. That is not helpful on the road. Again, overall kudos to the team for looking well organized in that low block, but it is just too much.

    We need more mid block defending and even a little high press thrown in to avoid defending so close to our own goal. We need to hold possession better, get more possession further up the field, and make the opponent a bit more hesitant to pour multiple players forward into our defensive 1/3. I think, we either need to use a speedy striker as a counterattack threat (to keep their back line honest), or find a strike with strength (good with hold up play with back to goal) as a outlet to relieve pressure. Collapsing into at low block and then passing it around in our own 1/3 when we have possession (sometimes resulting in turnovers in those dangerous areas) is not the answer.

    A counterpoint for this particular game is that we were playing with three center backs. The last thing we want is for those big guys to be caught too far up field and have to defend (having to run with attackers) in open space on a regular basis. So, pushing those guys upfield in a mid block or high press has some risk. I get that, but for me it's just too much low block.

    We need to figure out how to play with the lead now, or it will cost us later.
     
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  11. dcu n bntwn

    dcu n bntwn Member

    Jun 7, 2004
    Watertown, MA
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I hear ya. I thought there was an unwritten rule of no mid game center back substitutions, unless necessitated by injury. It usually just f's up the chemistry.

    I suspect Ben decided to go with the back 3 given the injuries and the three games in 1 week. Once he decided to go with the back three, he decided to go with Robinson. He probably figured that Robinson is a bit more athletic and has a bit more speed than Brillant.

    With the back three, there is often more open space exposed out wide. As a result, there are inevitably some moments during a game when the back line is caught upfield and the wide centerbacks are asked to run 1v1 with attackers. There are likely to be more of these moments when your team is pushing forward, searching for a goal with wide midfielders pushed up the field. Maybe Olsen thought Brillant would get killed in these situations. So, he went with Robinson.

    In the final stages of the game, Olsen was apparently content to sit back in a low block (see my criticism above). Once he made that decision, he may have thought that Brillant's weaknesses were less likely to be exposed and his experience/savvy would be useful to see out the game.

    I still agree with you, though. I think the sub should have been used elsewhere, with different tactics to see out the game.
     
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  12. griffin1108

    griffin1108 BigSoccer Supporter

    Dec 5, 2003
    Virginia
    In this game, Olsen's actual 4 subs that would have made any reasonable sense were: Brillant, Amarikwa, Canouse and Stieber. He's not putting either Ward or Yow into a one goal game on the road at altitude. He used the three correct subs. Stieber is a defensive liability and really doesn't fit into the way DCU plays. Bringing Amarikwa in earlier for either Acosta or Rooney would have made sense in my opinion, but the timing of that sub is a quibble. The other two subs were the only ones available. Segura was gassed, so Canouse was his replacement. Robinson was not very good and Olsen wanted more height to deal with crosses and corners, so enter Brillant. What other subs would you, could you, have made?
     
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  13. Funkfoot

    Funkfoot Member+

    May 18, 2002
    New Orleans, LA
    They could start me. I would improve, but I don't think I would ever be good enough. I think this is the same situation with Robinson. For the past two years I have been asking why they keep this guy if he isn't good enough to play.
     
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  14. GumbyG

    GumbyG Member+

    DC United
    Mar 22, 2007
    Chesapeake, VA
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Third game in a week, playing at altitude, and in a new formation, with all the inefficiencies that implies... I just figured this was the result of not having the legs to transition in numbers. The passing wasn't crisp or accurate for most of the game, either. I've written off the second half of that game.

    Everything else, 100%. For me the frustrating part was, it was Colorado, not Barca. It's mildly embarrassing. But again, circumstances. I found the LAFC game much more concerning.

    My criticism is Ben brought them all in two days before the game. I thought the common procedure was either a week at altitude or hours before the game?
     
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  15. dcu n bntwn

    dcu n bntwn Member

    Jun 7, 2004
    Watertown, MA
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    This is reply to the subs question:

    I don't want to beat a dead horse here. For me, the major issue is the game plan of sitting back in a low block for the last 30 minutes to close out the game.

    I get that we had lots of injuries and few players available. As I said above, this is likely why Olsen put out the back three. This was clever and we got the three points.

    However, it was not like we were being over run by brilliant approach play by Colorado and forced into a low block. It was pretty clear that we chose to play that way in the second half. In fact, I can recall several times that we actually cleared the ball, and Rooney tried to push up the field. He motioned with his arm for the other lines to push forward (into mid block), but they wouldn't.

    I think we need to mix our defensive schemes when we have the lead, if possible. In that spirit, I would like to see subs that help us do that. For me, the timing of the subs is important and not a quibble. If you are trying to apply more pressure a bit further up the field, the Canouse sub is a good one given the players available. As I mentioned above, I think the attacking sub is also very important. So, I would like to have seen the Amarikwa sub earlier. He came in at the 93rd minute, as a time killing sub. For me, it is the Brillant sub that should be last sub or not at all.

    If we are not sitting back in a low block weathering the storm as a tactic, hoping that the other team can not break us down and hoping for zero mistakes, the Brillant sub is not necessary. I think that this plan will be a problem against good teams. Especially, in a road game that we are fortunate enough to be defending a lead.
     
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  16. song219

    song219 BigSoccer Supporter

    Apr 5, 2004
    La Norte
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    Vanuatu
    You'd think Rooney knew better.
     
  17. griffin1108

    griffin1108 BigSoccer Supporter

    Dec 5, 2003
    Virginia
    I was distressed by the low block as well. I just think they were gassed from the altitude and fixture congestion. DCU had 8 minutes of brilliance (or Crapids ineptitude) and ground it out for a victory. Don't look know but DCU's road record is better than its home record -- and when was the last time you could say that?

    I really don't think folks understand the effect of altitude on how the game will unfold for the visitor. I saw my orthopedic surgeon today for a follow up on my recent knee surgery. He was a consulting surgeon at the '94 World Cup and was amazed at the fitness levels of the players in general. His view about the Crapids was that at that altitude, they should win almost every home game because of their conditioning advantage. The fact that they don't would suggest how poor that roster is and how suspect their coaching and FO are.
     
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  18. song219

    song219 BigSoccer Supporter

    Apr 5, 2004
    La Norte
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    Vanuatu
    A highlight no one is really mentioning is Rodriguez running through 3 Rapids like they were OTCs.
     
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  19. pr0ner

    pr0ner Member+

    Jan 13, 2007
    Alexandria, VA
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    He did get nominated for Goal of the Week.
     
  20. griffin1108

    griffin1108 BigSoccer Supporter

    Dec 5, 2003
    Virginia
    And has run into the Atlanta hype machine.
     
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  21. song219

    song219 BigSoccer Supporter

    Apr 5, 2004
    La Norte
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    Vanuatu
    So Atlanta is being Atlanta Seattle Toronto.
     
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  22. Hedbal

    Hedbal Member+

    Jul 31, 2000
    DC
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    How was Kamara left totally alone on the serve that led to his goal? He had a hand up waving for the service and nobody reacted to the ball while it was on its way to him. Robinson took up a position four or five yards away and never reacted to the service. Sure, maybe he wasn't his mark, but so what? Robinson ended up marking nobody.
     
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  23. griffin1108

    griffin1108 BigSoccer Supporter

    Dec 5, 2003
    Virginia
    As best I could tell, Robinson wandered wide (without marking/pressuring Feilhaber). Pines slid to cover the space vacated by Robinson and then Birnbaum slid to cover for Pines. The closest DC defender unoccupied was Moreno who was a good 5 yards off Kamara (and given the video angle, I don't know if there was anyone wide he was watching/covering for a far post run). So, essentially, once Robinson drifted into no mans' land the back line got out of sorts and Feilhaber, who was unmarked and unpressured, had time to put the ball right to Kamara. I would put the breakdown on Robinson, someone with better coaching chops might disagree.
     
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  24. griffin1108

    griffin1108 BigSoccer Supporter

    Dec 5, 2003
    Virginia
    Looked at the replay again, Moreno failed to slide to cover Kamara. He had no one on his flank to worry about, instead he appears to be looking at covering a late run from midfield and just ignores Kamara. Now is that a Moreno fail? or a Robinson fail? or a cumulative fail? I always hate to put the finger on someone for not doing emergency defending when the folks who are supposed to be doing their jobs don't.
     
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  25. Don't Tread on Me

    Aug 11, 2010
    Charleston, South Carolina
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    "Give some credit to D.C. They went to Colorado short-handed, on short rest and playing a few players out of position. They went down early, and ran out of gas late, but they still came away with a 3-2 win. This is the kind of result that teams who eventually pick up silverware find a way to get."

    That's Matt Doyle over on majorleaguesoccersoccerdotcom. Gotta agree with him. Why all the hand-wringing over a road win? Alternatively, who here is surprised by a Ben Olsen-coached team bunkering with a lead?
     

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