Criticizing a team because they surrendered a lead seems silly. Two goals scored and three goals allowed is two goals scored and three goals allowed, regardless of what order you do it in - and goals scored in minute 1 are worth the same amount as goals scored in minute 90. If the order of goals had gone Catolica-DC-Catolica-DC-Catolica, how would that have made it a better performance by DC?
Hell yeah. That game was delicious. Big crowd, shocked into silence, then bringing their team back into the game with the chanting and the singing. DC's defenders holding off the vaunted Catolica attack following the two shock DC goals, at least until the final breakdowns (thanks Freddy!). Catolica changing the complexion of the game with a substitute at just the right time to get that first goal before half-time. You knew that Catolica understood the process of pulling back a three-goal deficit. Gomez playing his guts out on that huge field. MLS needs more big fields like that to open our game up. Reminded me of Home Depot Center before they moved the lines in. There's nowhere to hide on a field that big...you will be exposed. Sigi's comments about stamina were idiotic but go to the heart of why MLS/American Soccer faces such difficulties in South America. (I credit Sigi's comments about the rhythm of the game, though. Boy, he is passionless. Give me Ray Hudson anyday.) Stamina won't win you games if you can't keep the ball. Stamina can go away when you're under unexpected psychological pressure, like you see in a packed South American stadium. Our American system encourages running full-out for pressure all over a small field, knowing you've got a sub coming soon (in college/youth). Compare the square footage of the field in Santiago versus Spartan Stadium. Pressure and exertion have to follow the dictates of the match...scoreline, time remaining, etc. That said, DC's back three were magnificent, magnificent. One mistake will kill you, though...that missed slide tackle ruined a perfect first half. This is the last frontier for MLS, at least in our lifetimes. Winning on the road in South America and Mexico. Tactical comments, quibbles really: I thought that Nowak wasted a sub by taking out Walker so early. I said so to my wife as the second half began. I didn't think Quaranta had the stamina/speed/guts to stretch the field, hold the ball, defend or trouble Catolica on attack, at least to the degree that Walker was doing. Quaranta exposed his lack of confidence in his weaker left foot by not taking that touch inside on his breakaway. I agree also that Simms would be a better third sub than Adu. Adu didn't seem to understand that Moreno wasn't going to be able to bail him out this time. The youngster needs to hold the ball better and attract fouls. It's a tactical game in SA. Damn shame Gomez got hurt. He earned that win. The whole team did, really. Heroic effort that unfolded like a Shakespearean tragedy. You could feel the third goal coming. No team can defend like that for thirty minutes nearly straight. (And the Revs can start taking these tournaments more seriously before they have the right to complain about DC's loss. Your boys weren't there and hadn't earned the right to be there.)
I'm a DCU fan and criticizing them for blowing a good lead is not silly. If there is a valid reason for criticizing any team, is it for losing and blowing a lead. We should be able to kill off a 2-0 lead to win the game. Why play the game if it's "okay" to lose a game where you had the upper hand and have a chance of winning? What's silly is this, "oh we scored 2 goals, I guess we did okay" attitude. We had this game and we blew it, that's silly. Also, so you are saying that being up 2-0 is the same as being down 0-2 because it doens't matter in which order the goals are scored? You think it's easy to come back from 0-2? I would guarantee that that game last night would have been a lot diffetent of DCU went down 0-2 early. Catolica would have just shut the game down, kept possesion and killed the game off, which is what we didn't do.
I agree, I am not proud of DC, when they only needed to tie to go through and still couldn't hold that, its nothing to be proud of. However, for a good portion, DC was playing good.
DCU players going to south america? Well even if the clubs are interested, don't really think the players would be so about it. The only exception would be Gomez, who did mightily well. (I'm sure the lower-tier teams from Chile, wouldn't mind a player who almost single handedly took out Catolica in their own stadium, on a Copa Sudamericana match, to boot.) He & MLS might get some offers, and possibly go back to Argentina, but I doubt it. Then again, you never know. Last point: You know yeah DCU did let a 2-0 lead slip away, but do you realize had we played some of the other clubs in S. America, we could have advanced a few rounds. Not too bad, but I'm sure that this game gave a lot of the up-and-coming players playing NCAA-1, USL, some confidence. Loosing 4:3 aggreagate sure is better than loosing 5:1 aggregate. We're on our way baby!
I thoroughly enjoyed the game. DC played their hearts out. They just ran out of gas. Despite the criticism in some posts, I thought Rimando did well. Yes, he's too short to catch a lot of high balls, but, my God, he was jumping all night long. Those last two goals were not his fault at all. Freddy comes in and, I thought, tackled the ball away o.k., but he gets called for a foul which results in the second goal. That was the turning point. The last goal was a killer, but it seemed almost inevitable. You can't stand up to the constant pressure forever. A great game. A tough loss to swallow, but aside from a lack of depth and maybe finishing, I thought DC played very well. I see DC in the MLS Cup game against San Jose.
I'd be emberassed for you if you were proud of anything DCU has ever done since you have Fire listed on left.
Agreed with everything until this paragraph. Take away Gomez and possibly moreno, i dont think any other players would strike any intrest from south american clubs.
That may be okay for some, but I for one don't mind cheering a fellow MLS team when they're playing an international match. I think such competitions ultimately help the league as a whole.
DC has a good chance and threw it away. But thats football, they were pinned in their own half for a long time and you can only hold out for so long. I guess one could say they had a good showing overall. Better luck next year. Now back to business. I still hate DC.
Come to think of it, Kansas City is responsible for the only two bright spots since the 2000 Champions Cup: 1. First victory on South American soil (Barcelona SC / 2001 Copa Merconorte) 2. The only team to eliminate a Mexican side (Santos Laguna / 2002 Champions Cup) since...wait for it...1998
This performance and resulting moods and lessons remind me so much of the USMNT in the early 90s. Being almost there, for Americans, usually means that you get there eventually. Not that we're there yet. I think we can all agree that it is probably a good idea for MLS teams to be involved in Sudamericana and Libertadores, and for the USMNT to be involved in Copa America. It requires the kind of growing up that we need.
Yep! That's what's all about. A league. A team. Will never grow if it does not get involved in actual play, in actual competions. In order to grow. You need to win. You need to learn from your loses. But. Hey. We are not the only ones. Other South American teams/leagues have gone through that. Some are still in the beginning stage. For me...it's worse to say "Geez. I wish MLS was involved in that copa." that to say "Geez, DCU lost to UdeC in Chile." ....and oh...yeah...copa is over... I Still Hate the DCGallinasUnidas.
Proud of a collapse. No - I don't think so. Yes they showed well for a while there - but they finished awful. MLS is still a few years away from a respectable showing in any meaningful international tournament. To quote my own self in my 3rd Degree column:
I haven't read the whole thread yet ... so I'm probably not the first to say this, but please please please, send Kovalenko south.
You know, what you're saying makes sense, but the Supporters Shield winners from the past few years have been awful the next year: 2004 Cbus Next year: last in conference 2003 Chicago Next year: last in conference 2002 Gals Next Year: fourth in conference 2001 Miami Next year: playing horribly in New England I think, with MLS's system, it's nearly random who will be good next year.
Ah that's foolish. Regardless of how you make the playoffs, you can pretty much be sure that the MLS champ is the best in the business by the final whistle of the final match. Nobody's proud of a collapse, there, Sherlock, we're proud of our team making it to the tournament, fighting hard against a better side over two matches, and putting their hearts into it. Deep breaths and perspective help all problems. But on one point you're right - MLS is a few years away from a strong showing in an international tournament. That's okay too. Ten years old, man. The league will get there.
Enough with the forced parity crap. MLS needs to tweak the salary cap a bit and allow the formation of a few "super clubs" that are strong year in and year out. Super Club #1: Alexi Lalas and his MetroStars Super Club #2: The SuperHoops of Dallas Super Club #3: who cares
But what do you mean by "best"? The team that would win the most games out of, say, 32 games? Champion means "best in the championship game" but it doesn't necessarily they're the best team to represent the league. That said, who's going to come up with a better formula?
Exactly. Dc fans now know how it felt to be a Revs fan when DC came from 2-0 down to beat them 4-0 with less than 10 minutes left back in July 2003. Surrenduring a lead like that makes you want to just dump all over the losing team because it's obvious that they completely suck and have zero players with skills. Not to mention a coach who sucks so bad he should be taken out and shot. Thank God for you the Fire have never surrendured a lead and lost a game.
I wonder. Do you think any of the fans of the other teams in this tournament who lost and didn't advance are going through this same degree of self-flagellation? Questioning if their league and teams are "good enough"? Well? Are they? No. They're PO'd they lost but I doubt they're wondering if their league or team will be 'good enough to compete in 10 years." As a matter of fact, I would guess very few people outside of hardcore fans in the US and Chile really give a flying fvck about this game, beyond a mild curiosity over the result so they know what team their side might be playing. Guess what - I was one of those hardcore fans but I'd be hard pressed to even name any of the other teams in this tournament. If you think the futbol/soccer fans of South America are going to wander around the streets of Buenos Aries or Santiago a month from now discussing how bad MLS teams suck, you're crazy. Most people won't remember this game a month from now. Me included.