I'm assuming Jara will join Mora on the injured list. And even though I think the McCann/Rodriguez sub was made just to get some more offense on the pitch McCann looked a little gimpy at the end. He actually had a good match, IMO. Arriola was a nomad tonight: left wing (something Ben said he wouldn't do), then left back (after Rodriguez came in ), then right back (after Jara left and Robinson came in at left back). And I agree Segura is not a striker; he hardly touched the ball in the first half, whereas Rooney would have matched Acosta for touches. I would much rather have seen more of Amerikwa. And yes, Acosta was not just poor, but a detriment several times during the match, as he forced the ball against impossible odds instead of making the more simple play.
That was the shittiest game that I've seen live. Olsen is a ********ing moron if he thinks that Segura is a forward, much less a striker. Amarikwa was fighting for the ball, and making forward runs, that he might have converted if he'd had more than 30 minutes to play. ********ing 60 minutes with Segura as a forward. Who is not in their right mind that does that? ********ing Olsen!
Terrible match last night. To me this match just highlights the obvious for me... Olsen is NOT a good coach. He is simply a motivator, nothing more. Our improved play last season was due to Rooney taking over the team and the excitement of finally playing in a new home, playoff chase, etc etc. The sooner Olsen and his staff are gone the better. This DCU team has talented players, but they have no idea how to harness/utilize said talent. No intelligent off the ball runs, no dummy runs, NONE of the wingers stayed wide to pull Montreal apart. Both DCU wingers kept cutting inside, allowing Montreal to stay compact and clog the middle...which is EXACTLY what they wanted. Stay wide, play the ball wide to open space in the middle. Make dummy runs to open space behind the runner, feed the space with the ball. Move the ball quickly. These are such basic tactics I can see watching the match for 10min. How can our coaches not see this? Its baffling...incredibly frustrating to watch.
an exhausted side, without it's best player, yeah coaching and tactics were clearly the issue last night.
Segura has never impressed me, no matter where he plays. Clearly there is no plan B for when Rooney is out.
This highlights my frustration with olsen as a coach. He's only decent if he has every piece. No coherent backup plan. Waiting until the 80' ish min to push forward, With tired legs, at home, against a mediocre opponent missing its best player is maddening. If you're not going to go for the win right away AT LEAST have a counterattack plan. It was like watching 2 teams who only needed a draw to advance in a tournament. 1st shot of the game was 53rd min (not on goal).
I think the closest either side came to scoring over 90 minutes was when Teîder passed the ball to Bush from the halfway line.
There may be a point there. But it does seem counter-intuitive to have offered Ben Olsen a contract extension through 2021 and not 2020 considering that he has been given quite a grace period with the previous stadium uncertainties.
The team was always going to be worse without Rooney. Everyone knew that and expected it. That said Montreal was without Piatti, we should have been able to do more than we did last night. Much more. The lack of a real striker who can hold the ball up, draw pressure and lay the ball off seems to be 100% lacking. I can't believe that in the preseason we thought this false 9 bull shit would work that we didn't pursue someone more credible somewhere is just appalling. I am not sure Amarikwa is the answer. I sure hope he's on a budget friendly number as opposed to the 275k he was on last year. The other thing I heard last night was that we went into the season with open roster spots? Is that true? That's no different than keeping Rolfe on the books. Typical DCU nickel and dime bull shit. We could have had some budget friendly 9 on the books to push for the backup striker role and perhaps get something out of whomever that ended up being instead of a guy who knows he's NEVER getting on the field unless Rooney has an issue.
And don't get me wrong, despite being the resident Olsen apologist around here , the starting and thinking that Segura is the backup striker is on Olsen. He is wrong and Segura is the deck chair I have called him.
Rooney, like all great players, will make other players look better. In Acosta's defense, last night he really had no one to play off of last night. Segura looked lost up front. Stieber's game really isn't about movement so much as well weighted long balls. Arriola stayed wide and was clearly charged with helping out McCann on defense (as was Moreno who always slid left when McCann ventured up field). Then again, it was two teams with tired legs, so you weren't going to get a very dynamic game regardless.
Rooney is an exceptional player that changes everything, yes, but without him we still had Acosta and Arriola and others presumably. Who did Montreal have without Piatti?
I guess but does that mean a season ending injury to Rooney or Acosta means a seasons end for us? Isnt that a bit nuts?
I think a season ending injury to a DP will put any team in a big hole. I also think with the amount of money invested in Rooney, DCU is particularly vulnerable to a collapse if he was injured. Part of that is the imbalance caused by his presence, the other on the fact the Olsen/Ashton would be unable to effectively coach a Plan B.
Arriola had a good game, I thought, despite challenges, and he was determined to press forward. Stieber, too, but he was almost always on the other side of the pitch from Arriola. However, until Amarikwa came on, it didn't seem like anyone else was interested in that game, including the officiating crew. There were some good runs being made, but the only people who could spot them AND play to them were either red carded last game, or not in possession of the ball when the run was made. Also, I really wish Hamid would work on his distribution.....