C'mon Damir . . . No goals in 21 games, combined, from Baird and Plata (8 goals each in 2018) has really hampered us.
He's super rusty but still did a couple of nice things. Baird, though? I can't recall a single thing.
Well, RSL again fails to defend the RioT against a Western team. And how about minutes 85-90 and our inability to clear the ball. It was almost comical and we were very lucky to not be punished.
His obscenity laden outburst when Toia headed a sky ball to an opponent instead of controlling it actually made my jaw drop in surprise.
In his post-game Petke said he pushed the team too much in practice this week. He also said the organization has made it clear to him that the upcoming tournament and Tigres match are extremely important.
Went to this one with my Oregonian brother-in-law and his wife, and my wife, and my 2-week-old daughter in the fancy seats. (The 2-year-old slept over at the cousin's) This game sucked, but I was entertained by the little one for long stretches. Holy hell did Olum kill this game dead! Pretty good move by Heath . Our bonehead defensive lapse nearly gave the game away. I've gotta admit, Gregus (#8) for MNUFC really gave us fits all night. His positioning was exquisite. He almost had 2 goals and an assist. He disrupted a lot of our game. Good player. Plata was bipolar in his affect on the game. Almost created 2 goals, but his defensive absence really left us exposed in the counter-attack. Baird didn't do much in this game, but I don't think it's his fault. The ask on him is not at all to his skillset. The kid sure busts ass, but not his fault when he's sandwiched between a couple guys 30% bigger than him with no room to move and very few dynamic runs being made around him to draw off attention. Honestly, it looked like the tactic for putting him in was to move Kreilach back and the get Plata in to stretch the field, but at the cost of Rusnak . Baird is being used as a decoy, not a foil. It ultimately didn't work, especially after Olum came in. Their GK, Mannone, is really good. Very impressed. Quintero should have seen a yellow at some point in this game. KB5 did not commit a yellow card offense! Everton Luis is great. As 15 to 32 has said, weird purchase at his age and the direction of the club. But if we can figure out our shit in the meantime, he's a great pickup. I really enjoy his play. Silva was dead to me. Now? ??? ????? ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
So is anyone else concerned we have a coach that’s still trying to figure out how to coach and practice the team during the week? I guess he’s only been coaching like five years now so it’s ok. Takes time to figure this stuff out. Also, will Mike be on the bench for this or does he have to be in class for the Tigers match? Asking for a friend.
1) Petke called the game “uninspiring” then proceeded to explain that he pushed the guys too hard in the heat last week...thus, no legs against the Loons. 2) Someone asked him about Saturday’s game against FCD. Petke cut them off and said, ‘Can’t think about that one yet. We play Tigres on Wednesday first. The organization has made it clear to me, they have emphasized the point, that this is an important game for the club and the tournament is important. We will put everything into winning the game’. It was his way of saying that if it was up to him the Tigres game would be treated like a friendly so that he could focus on FCD, which, to him, is a more important game. Without saying it directly, he’s just giving us a heads-up that the FO has stepped in, changed the team goals mid-season, and have made it much harder to get a result in Dallas.
I doubt that the team has changed goals in the middle of the season with the Tigres match midweek. Maybe the team said, “hey mike, make sure you’re not off doing something else for this game. It’s not like it’s the USOC or anything. If the team had goals for the season they can’t really be reaching any of them can they? Also, 3 games in 8 days and you’re already complaining you pushed them too hard for the first one? WTF? Excuses, excuses. EMBRATSU
I'm pretty solidly in the Petke out camp. And for those who say we need a new FO first, while agree that would help, look what Almeyda has done with an arguably less talented team.
HOLD ON. LET ME CLARIFY SOMETHING!! I am a part of this organization. It is not a mandate. It is a collaborative decision. I am not mad that you wrote this because it’s what I said and how I am interpreting it reading it back. Just want to be clear https://t.co/flzQandf2I— @petkemike (@petkemike) July 21, 2019 I think Petke is really in over his head with this club.
Petke is enough to ensure the midtable drama year to year. Enough success to tease but not enough substance to be a contender. I expect to always be a mid-table team with him. I hope that he doesn't lead RSL into the cellar again before he is moved on.
The first 10 or so minutes of this game were wildly entertaining. Both teams were playing open and fast and I thought we were in for a really good game. But then someone must have told the players they were having too much fun and/or it was a firework game because at about minute 15 the pace of the game drastically changed. More than that, the quality in the game completely disappeared. How many times did each team give the ball up under zero pressure? Did everyone go to the Baird school of first touches? It was awful. From minute 15-45 I nearly fell asleep. The midfield battle in this game wasn't one of those good ones where tactics were amazing or anything, it was just bad soccer. I have a really hard time understanding our tactics. Petke has decided he wants to get the ball to the wing players and does so by having his outside backs hit ridiculously long diagonal passes. If the wing player is able to settle under pressure, they are then asked to find a way to beat a player or two. This works when our wide players are on and/or the opposing defenders aren't good. When the opposing team has good outside backs, though, we tend to lose our entire attack. Further, we seem absolutely afraid of using the center of the pitch to build up our play. I can't think of an attack that honestly started in the middle and stayed there for more than a pass or two. Every pass into the middle is answered with a diagonal one wide Which, don't get me wrong, we need to use our width and our talented players we have out there, but we're completely skipping our AM and forward in this tactic. Or rather, we're asking them to play spots that they just don't look comfortable in. Rusnak, in particular, has to drift wider and wider each game to see the ball. That or he's as high as the "forward", if you can call Kreilach that, and the lack of a center midfield attack becomes that much more prevalent. Back to this particular game: number 8 for Minnesota was really really good. His shot that lead to the corner that they scored on deserved a goal itself. Nicky had no idea where that deflection was going. Missing Herrera is killing this team. We don't have pace on the wing that he provides on a more delayed run. Lennon isn't terrible, but he's not good. Toia is off and got exposed more than once. I don't like Kreilach at the forward position. He's proving what was known last year: against decent teams he isn't good enough. Dropping him to the 10 and moving Rusnak wide doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me, either. Hey, Plata played. He looked like a guy who hasn't played. That cross field pass he tried to hit was brutal to watch. I'm so annoyed with how the club has handled that whole thing. I have money on Plata moving for free once his contract expires to a Mexican club. Marcelo Silva has improved, but it's pretty obvious that his teammates don't like him. I've never seen so many people just not care when he was hurt and hardly celebrate the goal with him. Kudos to him for a good game and a well taken goal, though. These are the type of games that separate playoff teams from non-playoff teams. Minnesota managed the game well and didn't' allow us to make up any room on them in the standings. In fact, I'd argue that, if there had to be a winner, it should have been them. That's damning. This whole "focus on the Tigres match" situation is hilarious. This club couldn't manage a lemonade stand well...