What's the point? He would just sit on the bench like all our other DPs. Arnaud was not having a good game and was clearly exhausted in the second half, but Halsti did not sub in. WTF?
This is what worries me about playoffs. I think we have 99% chance of making them, but then a special player like Giovinco can turn up and knock us right out. He is one of the best players I have watched in MLS, if he isn't front runner for MVP then league is crazy.
I was thinking the same thing. It seems to me it's time to make Halsti the default starter and use Arnaud for depth, but that doesn't seem to be what Ben has in mind.
That drove me crazy the entire game. That made me question everything about the scouting and preparation for the game. My exact words when he scored the second goal were "THEY HAVE ONE ********ING GUY!"
I'll preface this short story by saying I could just be insane and it never happened. But, I'm pretty sure one of the "leaders" made a gesture at me like 'wtf is wrong with you' for booing Altidore loudly when he came on. I'm as American as the next, but this ain't Team USA. He was playing for the opposing team last night and is quite a good player, which makes him an enemy, so he gets booed. foh with that
When my brother started clapping for him, I smacked his hands and yelled "You don't clap for that $#!t!" I may have been in a mood.
I thought I remembered the late sub, but I had I had to look at the box score to see he even played. I forgot all about him. I don't remember him on the field during the goal.
He does not touch the ball and is behind all the defenders so he is not causing them to take him into account. They are out of position. Thus he becomes passive.
Recap highlight only shows one angle which shows him actively attempt interfering with #27 from making a play on the ball. If he stays out of the way of #27, I think there is a legitimate gripe. That said, DCU should have stayed onside in the first place and made the call easy on the sideline official. Having half the team ineligible to play the ball is difficult for any level of officiating. Also, Computer-Vision based offside rulings can't come soon enough.
I don't think we played *SUCH* a bad game, but we looked tired and Toronto played definitively better, even without accounting Giovinco, they were always first on the ball and basically conducted the dances for the whole game. Their defense was quite strong too. I guess playing a game every three days (plus travel) has a price to pay. I knew we were due for a home defeat soon or later, after the first half with Chicago, I thought that was then, but eventually we won, so I was really fearing this game. As I predicted, if you leave space to Giovinco, he'll cut thru' like a knife in the butter, and that's exactly what he did. But anyway, this is our first home defeat after 20 (home) games, I'd sign a contract for that.
Toronto forced our defenders to make a decision: Play them tight and risk being turned, or play them loose and have a better chance of slowing at cutting off the passing lanes. Giovinco turned Franklin when he was played close, and scored a long range cracker when he was played loose. As Sasho pointed out emphatically, he is a very special player. I think only Korb and possibly Rolfe have reaction times quick enough to guard him one on one. And yes, I think Halsti ought to have replaced Arnaud in the second half. Having two very good soccer brains (Rolfe and Halsti) on the pitch together might have helped just enough to earn a draw. I have a sick feeling that Ben is once again favoring the feisty, active type who gets stuck in rather than the calmer, more judicious player who might just give you a better chance for a good result.
Hope you guys don't mind a TFC fan chiming in here... As a perpetually abused Toronto supporter, I'm loathe to get too excited about *any* TFC team because it always ends in disappointment. However, as a (I assume?) closer observer of the team than you, they've really turned on the gas in the past 5-7 games, where I believe they are 5-1-1. You're absolutely right that they looked like a hot mess before that, and even Bradley looked kind of terrible. However, I suspect they've gotten more comfortable as a team, and figured out how better to serve guys like Giovinco, and have looked pretty dangerous since. Still not even close to comfortable with declarations like "best in the East" at ANYTHING, but I've become more optimistic that this roster will finally end our status as a perpetual disappointment. And watching Giovinco play against MLS-calibre defenders continues to be hilarious.
I'll cheer for him when he's wearing red, white and blue not red and white. It's the same thing when Landon Donovan played for LAG
Yes, those were the games I watched before I quit paying attention to TFC games when I could catch them on the tube. Same went for NYCFC and Orlando and the Metro Donkeys (even though their misery brings a grin to face).
Yeah. A bunch of people cheered for him when he came on. Those people need to stick their heads in a bucket of shit, pronto.
The magic of the internet fed me an ad on this game at blogger hosted site about as far from the topic of soccer as you can get. It fed this ad...today.
First time the team saw Giovinco, they will make adjustments. I agree with those who say he is the most dangerous attacker in the league right now. It was sloppy due to so many tired legs. A fatigued team, they need a break. I guess Halsti wasn't played in consideration of his national team. I just hope he becomes first choice after Orlando. Doyle started five games in a row? I think Olsen went to that well once to often. Is Aguilar that bad? I like Osorio from TFC, I've always liked him. He was a better version of Kitchen on Saturday. I think Hamid saves that second goal, possibly the first. Dykstra is fine, though, just not Hamid. For Orlando: Espi, Rolfe Pontius, Kitchen, Arnaud, DeLeon Birnbaum, Opare, Boswell, Franklin Hamid I think this is what we'll see and I think it has great possibilities for Pontius. With a stay at home like Birnbaum behind him, he can essentially become a third forward, the Pat Noonan role he was born to play. DeLeon does his bit with Franklin being the width on the right and it's a good balance. Anyway, not scared of TFC and expect three points in Orlando.
Espindola can do the same thing. He's not as good, but he can win a game on his own. Toronto looks very dangerous. And this was basically without Jozy and without Bradley. They're my biggest worry now in the East. NE is also good, but Toronto has the potential to be a lot better. There's nothing we can do about how good they could be. We need to get another player in this summer.