Fisher's grown on me a lot but Deleon can dribble better, defend better, pass better, tackle better, and he scores clutch goals. And he'll never ever get out-hustled.
NDL has his warts...................Fisher has a few more warts, not many more but more.............................if he is fit NDL should start.
I'm fine with poachers. We had Steve Rammel and Jaime Moreno at the same time. Clearly there can be room for both. (Granted, I don't think there's a place for Rammel in the current iteration of MLS, per se, but for his time....) Between Fischer and NDL, man...That's a game by game decision depending on who's on the other team's left side. If they're on the slow and aggressive end, Fischer, and if they're on the fast/open and/or fast/aggressive end, NDL.
I feel sorry for Mattocks - he's having a career year and the team brings in one of the all time greats. And defying most predictions here, Rooney is fit enough to go the full 90 minutes. But if he thinks he should be starting ahead of Rooney, he has his head way far up his ass.
I really don't think there was a match when we could have rested Rooney, assuming he was willing to play. We needed every point we could get to even have a chance at the playoffs. And 10 goals at the season mid-point seldom translates to 20 at season end, although maybe he could have done it.
As long as it's not Stan ********ing Rogers, I'll be fine with it. That would do nicely, Señor Funk. Those, too. Just don't touch Stan. Thumbs up to Morrisette and Murray (though many wouldn't know she was Canadian), and I agree about Downie. And thanks for not mentioning Rogers.
I really miss that show. Good comedy that made me laugh. Always loved how Rafa Benintez was always eating pies during his segments. Jose was the star though
Some see warts, others see beauty marks, hehe. Let's see if NDL's crosses find Wayne rather than the beer man in the 20th row.
The difference between Fisher and NDL is that Fisher knows his limitations when he gets near the box. More often than not he'll look for the safe pass to whoever is closest to him. This keeps possession and gets the ball to the game changers. NDL too often would try some ambitious dribble or shot and lose possession. NDL may be slightly more talented but Fisher is more reliable in the mental aspect of the game. I know that's a low bar compared to NDL, but when given a choice I would always lean towards the player with higher soccer IQ.
Watching him on the field and seeing him being interviewed by the News 8 crew a week or 2 ago, he seemed fairly grounded. By that, I mean that I didn't see the type of body language that some players who are pissed off tend to display. He seems to be behaving admirably for someone in his position.
Mattocks is a fierce competitor who plays with a lot of heart and attitude. There's a place for him in this league, just not sure if this United team is the best fit for him as a starter. As Acosta said, we're playing the beautiful game, and Mattocks' balls to the wall style isn't a perfect fit. In some ways his abbreviated season may work in his favor. Somebody's going to want a guy who scored 10 goals in half a season. Before closing the books on this match I want to gush some more about the great game and great goals. It's true, this wasn't a 5-0 game. It was more a 3-1 or 4-2 game. But what's not to like about that? Four of the five goals were exquisite, and Rooney's "soft" goal was harder than it looked and set up by Arriola's kamakize sprint at the keeper. While a playoff spot has yet to be earned, there's a reason the frontrunners are looking over their shoulders. In the past month we've kicked Atlanta's ass and would have done the same to RBNY absent a brilliant BWP performance.
Thanks - see it now (repeating here for completeness): https://www.washingtonpost.com/spor...ason-with-knee-injury/?utm_term=.1a473b60521d
You, my friend, are smokin the chronic. I have a buddy who teases me pretending that he likes NDL and has a season ticket near me. So when NDL was playing, we both focused on NDL's every pass, every ball he "received," every decision the guy made for the last three years. I've watched on video after the matches. I've never studied a player as much as I have NDL. First, balls die when they go to him at an alarming rate. He either misplays them initially, kicks them to the other team, delivers a ball that goes out of bounds, etc. He has one of the worst first touches in DC United history. His decision making is painful to watch. It's extremely unusual to see him attempt a clever pass let alone make one. And worse, he has not developed. Ben admitted as much at an event I went to and I asked Ben about his development and he was clearly frustrated with NDL about this. That's why he was moved to fullback (although I would have traded him at that point). Once at fullback, he's been suspect rarely making spectacular defensive plays. His wing attack pales in comparison to Fisher. Fisher has 1 goal, 1 assist in 24 games for United. NDL has 1 goal and 1 assist in his last 61 games played for United spanning back to 2016. You may get excited over a great goal he posted 6 or 7 years ago. And he hustles. But I don't.
A more simple way of looking at the situation with Fisher's injury. You can have one player on the field either NDL or Stieber. Do you really think we're better w NDL on the field than Stieber? Slot Arriola in temporarily as RB and add Stieber at RM. End of story.