Game by game season recap so far for Freddy after 14 games. 7 appearances, 4 starts, 3 sub, 296 minutes and 1 goal. @ Fresno.......DNP Reno.......DNP Swope Park.......DNP Sacramento.......Started, 51’ San Antonio.......Started, 45’ @ Real Monarchs.......DNP Tulsa.......DNP @ Colorado Springs.......Started, 63’ Real Monarchs.......Sub, 20’ @ LA Galaxy II.......Sub, 25’ Colorado Springs.......Started, 64’, GOAL @ Phoenix.......DNP Seattle 2.......Sub, 28’ @ Swope Park.......DNP
Correct you are sir, started and went 65 minutes in a 1-0 win over St. Louis. He looked pretty good. Not involved in the goal, although upon further review of his participation in the celebration... It appears still holding off on the IPAs. That’s Raul Mendiola next to him, of LA Galaxy upbringing. I really liked Mendiola as a prospect with LA, and now he’s performing for the Lights, scoring the winner last night. Eric Avila has joined too, a few weeks ago, along with James Murphy on loan from LAFC. Daigo Kobayashi is playing great and even Ochoa is scoring goals. Carlos Alvarez gives Las Vegas 4 midfielders who all take responsibility to keep the ball and use it well. The Lights are looking like a much better team. Omar Salgado joins soon. Very, very different type of game for Freddy in terms of what he was asked to do tactically. It was a change of formation from 4-3-3 (which in application was a messy 4-5-1 with a formless midfield, in a league where every team has a plan and the Lights really haven’t had one) to a completely effective 3-4-3, and he stayed on the left side the whole time, opposite of the inaccurate graphic below, mostly serving crosses and keeping possession. Totally unrecognizable from the team they were putting out a couple months ago. With this midfield they can keep the ball, and in due course get it to Freddy’s feet with space for him to work. He stayed wide...and he was actually dangerous wide, creating several quality chances and taking on defenders when it looked on. Very purposeful and I have to credit Isidro Sanchez for an idea that worked (Maybe suspended Chelis is still choosing the lineup from the press box?) and for putting Freddy in a spot where he can just carve up small space and serve balls in. It allows him to be aggressive with less risk than being in the middle with no defined objective. He didn’t make any game-breaking plays, but it’s a nice, clear, role for him, where he’s set up for success, staying on the left up there. The four midfielders behind him means he can play to his strengths. Freddy serves a great ball. He puts it in places where goals will happen and he got off a bunch of crosses that looked dangerous, made a couple hustle plays and helped his midfield keep the ball nice and easy. Little perfect touches, almost never giving the ball away. Just an occasional mistake here and there. He’s still missing a little edge to his game though. Hopefully that comes. So. It was hot. As it often (but not always) is in July...110 all day and 105 at game time. The yellow smoke bombs just lingered in a hazy cloud like the atmosphere of Venus. I went down to the strip yesterday afternoon. It’s about 10 degrees hotter there than where I live on the west side of town and I hardly ever go down there in the summer unless it’s for great food (David Chang’s Momofuku in the Cosmo...order the Pork Ramen, it’s not on the menu but they’ll make it for you and it’s $17. It’s so good.) God it was hot. It was just one of those summer days where if you live here, you know what you’re in for. And 6,651 still showed up, because you just deal with it. But if you’re outside for a while you get light-headed, your body depletes and it takes a long recovery. If I go for a 2-3 mile run on a day like this I’m done for the rest of the day with a headache and a gallon of water by my side. So he still can’t move too well, can’t cover ground. He has no hum in his motor. That’s his big downside at the moment. But if Freddy can sorta run in that heat for 65 minutes whipping balls in and passing cleanly, then he’s getting somewhere. Four road matches in a row now. OKC on Wednesday.
The game is on ESPN News tonight. Good to see they're carrying the most import soccer matchup of the day.
Yeah so Freddy went the full 90 minutes in hot and humid Oklahoma City in a 6-4 loss. Mendiola had a hat trick. Freddy was involved in three of the LV goals. Assist off a short corner to Alvarez: Hope you didn't blink ...... but if you did, here's another look, as @FreddyAdu feeds Carlos Alvarez for a laser of a 15th minute equalizer - his team-leading 5th goal of 2018!#OKCvLV | @PlazaLasVegas pic.twitter.com/1LLApjFWFV— Las Vegas Lights FC (@lvlightsfc) July 12, 2018 Secondary assist on a nice little low cross (second goal in clip): Found ourselves down 4-1 in the second half ... and you thought we'd quit?Raul Mendiola said otherwise ... TWICE. Mendiola now has 4 goals in our last 3 matches.See both strikes again ... ⬇️ ... #OKCvLV | @PlazaLasVegas pic.twitter.com/vJ2WewoAHW— Las Vegas Lights FC (@lvlightsfc) July 12, 2018 And here on the final goal he starts the play with a simple pass in midfield to Murphy: Overall wasn't our night, but in the closing seconds, Raul Mendiola caps the first Hat Trick in club history ... #OKCvLV | @PlazaLasVegas pic.twitter.com/wp4S0Q4maq— Las Vegas Lights FC (@lvlightsfc) July 12, 2018 His energy level was great. About the 80th minute after OKC made a sub and shored up the midfield he camped out wide, but for most of the game he drifted centrally, was very useful in possession, sprinted forward on runs....generally continued the incremental progress he’s shown all season. One of the 2-3 best players on his team for sure and worth his 90 minutes. The Lights little 3-4-3 experiment was lit up like that lacquered-up alter Owen Wilson whittled in Meet the Parents. They looked like a team playing with no fullbacks and tiny little center backs because they were. They carried Two(!!) keepers on the bench and only three field players because there was nobody else. They had four players injured, three incoming transfers ineligible (who can all play against Rio Grande this weekend) and Julian Portugal, who subbed in for Freddy against St. Louis on Saturday? Well... He left the team mid-week after he was promoted at his day job. Oh, USL. I’m having fun watching it though. There’s all kinds of fun players and oddities. OKC has Alex Dixon, a quality little winger and apparently a USL lifer of some kind. FC Dallas 4th overall superdraft pick Ghanaian Francis Atuahene from the University of Michigan is a fun player. And for no apparent reason...Atiba Harris! Oh yea... Freddy got in a fight! He fouled Jose Barril (kind of a mellowish Carlos Ruiz type of guy) who then fouled Freddy and stomped on his leg when he was on the ground. Freddy got up all pissed off (rightly so) and shoved him pretty hard a bunch of times. I was afraid he would get sent off but instead the ref just handed out about five yellow cards. I think Fred got one. Good times.
The @lvlightsfc will try to sell Olympic sprinter Usain Bolt on Las Vegas being the right place to start his soccer careerhttps://t.co/I84fe40bxN— Las Vegas RJ Sports (@RJ_Sports) July 20, 2018 New teammate for Freddy?
Coach’s Decision. He’s healthy. Lights acquired a few players that became eligible this week so there’s more competition for spots. Ochoa plays so Salgado playing with him could take out a midfielder. Mendiola and Alvarez are lock starters and Kobayashi, Murphy and new addition Guzman Jr. are all even with Freddy or possibly above him on the depth chart. We’ll see.
Wow! Things are looking pretty dire for poor Freddy. :/ From your reports, it sounded like Freddy was acquitting himself fairly well when he got playing time. I guess this will be a good test of his character: we'll see whether he has the guts to work hard and fight for playing time.