First of all, I'd like to start out by asking if any of you have ever watched a soccer game? A real one? Yes, MLS games are fun, but when was the last time you watched a game that didn't include a "strike force" member? I applaud the MLS for creating such avid soccer junkies, but after reading some of your posts I seriously wonder as to what games you are watching... Next, I'd like to point out that I don't live in Boston so I don't get to watch the games in person, but a buddy of mine is on your team as well as a few other teams so I have that great mls package... Down to business...Fire Nicol? Are you crazy? He is the only thing keeping the Revolution in somewhat of a unit...who in the world could take the load of shiat (not always, but with injuries etc.) and make a winning team? Sampson? Di Cicco? Even Arena? In addition, Nicol has played in the soccer home land and knows more about soccer than all of you put together...maybe if the MLS weren't forcing him to start or play certain players and all players came to all practices then he could put out a squad that resembles a team... About the dispersal draft and players...when you guys go on and on about, who exactly was on the team that was an impact player? Serna is a whining baby that obviously wants out, update buddy, you aren't going to Europe...if anyone was interested you would have left long ago. Chacon is old, lazy and isn't willing to put in any type of work...players like Etcheverry, Valderama, and even Preki have earned the right to stand around and spray balls. You on the other hand don't do anything with the ball when you get it and haven't won a tackle in five years. Diallo...what a piece of work...bad players seem to find their way to NY and somehow all of them put together ends up working. Rooney, though a great guy that has put his time in, the end of the rainbow has come. Cullen and Heaps are just role players...you need hard working nitty, gritties...at least they don't think they are good, and by the way whoever complained about Clavijo picking him up, he does have that illusive "Rookie MVP" title under his belt...which once again gets back to my first point of the MLS being the AYSO of World Soccer. It will get there, but in the mean time we have to watch players like Wolde Harris, who give him credit, back in the day was pretty exciting. Wolde couldn't score a goal if his life depended on it. Downing, hmm, he was one of those brilliant kids who was on every youth national team known to mankind, had a less than memorable college career, and now is making progress toward a short MLS one. GK wise, Brown when healthy seems to be a pretty BIG force, Sommer looks like his sight is blurring with age. Llamosa is pretty solid and could really settle things if he gets healthy and has a few young guys to run for him. Pierce, temperamental, but good, as Franchino is fairly solid although he and Heaps hit balls into the forwards blindly, at all heights, not to the correct food of the forwards, and at some points the forwards are lucky to even get a knick on it. Fuller, mind hasn't been quite made up on him, somedays he looks to be a McBridesque target player, he gets Twellman in dangerous positions pretty often, he works hard, wins the air balls and gets fouled a lot, although not the quickest bird, but if his first goal doesn't come soon, the Wolde bug might be biting. Ralston, hands down is the best player out there. Great worker, great dribbler, he should be the captain. Twellman, while I'm going to go out on a limb and make a few enemies (not that I haven't already), but Twellman is a goal scorer. That's it. He will fade in and out of the game, not do anything for 90 min. and then score. Which is fine and brilliant for all intants and purposes, but all you thinking he is the next Michael Owen or Crespo, you are kidding yourselves. He isn't going to Europe and if he does he will be coming back very soon. He barely can keep the ball as a target player, and since his scoring streak has attempted to finish every ball or take someone on every time he gets within 25 yds. He is good, but he thinks he is too good, and when he gets in fights with players of his own team telling them they are old and sh--ty, ie, Rooney, and it is audible to the audience at home, I wonder if his head hasn't gotten a little too big. Oh, and hilarious that the little bro gets to train with them, someone asked if he will come play in New England...sure, maybe after he wins a starting spot at Stanford. The kid barely played last year. Lastly, the uni's are ugly as all hell. Your stadium is nice though. Don't get me wrong, I am a rev fan, but I think the fans are attempting to blame the wrong things for the losses. Who knows, can't wait to see the response...sorry about the length.
I am verrrry impressed by the depth of your unbiased "knowledge," now please crawl back into your hole and don't come back.
Your absurd comment that Twellman willl "fade in and out of the game" are sufficient to make it clear that your opinions are not worth noting. Sayonara.
Corrected version of my response: Your absurd comment that Twellman will "fade in and out of the game" is sufficient to make it clear that your opinions are not worth noting. Sayonara.
He's angry...he's opinionated...and he's spewing blame...yep, definetly a REVS FAN! Some good points that have been observed before by others, and some points that seem to come from having someone on the inside, and we always appreciate gossip & unverifiable accusations. Plus, I know we all admire your observations without having seen the team play in-person. Welcome, "Go Team". -john
You know what, there were some pretty on the mark points made in that commentary that I entirely agree with. Maybe he's a bit harsh and arrogant in the tone of his criticism, and maybe he's repoeating some observations already made, but he's not off his rocker my any stretch. It's also interesting to hear his comments about Twellman. Of course, he seems to be getting those second hand and there are always two sides to the story. Just remember the situation involving David Nakhid and Edwin Gorter a few years back. There's a classic case of one-sided reporting of a two-sided issue. As for those who bust on him for not watching the games in person: you can watch a game on TV and get just as good if not a better sense of what's happening than in the stadium. That's a weak point to try and bust him on. He's a newbie, so let's see if he contributes of if he's drowned out by the din of white noise. The Magpie
Not really trying to bust him hard on this point, just sometimes you can get an added glimpse into a players' hustle or frustration off the ball when you are there. Otherwise, I am with you on his post. -john
Some very valid points, just stated a little stronger than others. Some other opinions, that you can agree or disagree with, but that is about all we have left to do as Rev fans again this year. Since the on field product has "again faded before it ever became obvious that it was lit"- we are again left with stating our opinions and views of what it will take to make us the team we have been waiting to have as our team since Day 1. Jon
Yes, we are the idiots, but you think that Garber or one of his Marketing Henchmen calls up Nicol and tells him who to play. riiiight. Well, that's reason enough to complain. Let's get a classy kit like the one we wore in 1996. Oh, and I figured it must be Ralston who is allegedly your bud, since he's the only one you didn't trash. Or maybe Tony "Cement Boy" III. Tom
While GoTeam makes a few good points, almost all of them have been made many times before by the "flaming idiots" on this board. I love all of the new guys who come onto the boards assuming that the people who post here don't know anything about football in Europe or South America, and don't understand that the MLS isn't the best league in the world. Should I tell him that many of us watched the World Cup, and not just the games involving the US, or should we spring that on him later? As for his points, first of all, we all wish that Fuller was McBridesque. I don't think so. Also, while Twellman isn't the most complete forward in the league, most of the reason he disappears from the game is because we can't maintain posession. Instead of coming back and trying to get the ball, he stays in the forward half of the field, with his usual contingent of two or three defenders. If he comes back into our half, so do they, and our defense will be under that much more pressure. While I doubt that the MLS tells Nicol who to play, I suspect that somone above him does. That would explain why Serna got to play without practicing and why he's trying to build up Hernandez, as the main reason behind both moves seems to be trying to justify the trade. I would agree with GoTeam that Nicol doesn't appear to be the problem. He's had Rusty for 3 games (when he was trying to get into shape, Llamosa for one or two, and Serna for about the same, and no semblance of an attacking midfield. It's not his fault that the players out there make these big mistakes. When FC was here, there were constant complaints about the team being in the wrong formation, or players being in the wrong spot, or the wrong players being on the bench. The calls for formation changes now are usually slight, like sweeper/stopper instead of flat, or the like, and there's been very little call for players on the bench (as if we had some) to be starting, other than whether to start APC and where to start him. Would anyone care to comment where this team, with these injuries, would be if FC were still here?
This guy has valid points. Of course I disagree about Twellmen but for the rest: Nicol probably has had the least chance to succeed of any Rev head coach. To think that Big Frank, Zenga, Rongen and Clavijo were given so much time to show how little they could accomplish... The only two guys on the pitch for the Rev the other night that would definitely start on other MLS teams were Ralston and Twellmen. [Note: Chacon might under the right circumstances] Franchino and Heaps don't cross the ball. They just kick it in a general direction and hope. Sommer, while not at direct fault for goals does look slow, baffled, and confused. The Sommer that played in the EPL very likely would have gotten a hand on goal number 2 the other night. There were other near misses where he didn't look sharp either. Chacon does not match the system that Nicol wants to play. Yet, he has started the last two matches. Why? Is Nicol operating with-in a system where he can't even decide who does and does not play? Chacon might fit on a team that played with a mid-field. The Revs have by-passed the midfield. He does not belong out there. Rooney seems to get worse with each passing game.
GoTeam is dead on. pretty good - but harsh assesment of reality - including TnT. TnT is not Ronaldo, but he is a great scorer in this leauge. I give GoTeam style points for being arrogant & telling it like it is. And not bitching about the price of cheeseburgers.
I am not a flaming idiot. My wife never lets me play with matches, though I'm pretty good once the grill is lit. Does the rant in question address those of us who are just idiots, or do I have another dose of common sense coming my way as the representative of a different class of imbeciles?
Actually GoTeam is scary perceptive. Somehow he knows (and I don't know how he does it): A) That I actually am a flaming idiot. B) That I have not ever seen a soccer game (at least a real one). I got hooked on the Revs several years ago when ESPN2 interupted a pickup truck race I was watching to show the game. Well now that the charade is over, I'm still not sure what supposed to be so controversial about the post - other than the flaming idiot part. Of course, I imagine that's part of what makes me a flaming idiot ...
Well to reiterate, very good post, just a little over the top. That is saying something coming from me! I like to say things how I see them. I don't agree with some of the personal stuff. I think many of us forget what good futebol is watching the product on the field, but we aren't all ignorant to how the real game is played. Twellman is trying to put up numbers for himself. He isn't a great all around player, but then again this is his first year. I don't think he will be a great European scorer, but that isn't what we need. We need someone who can score when given the opportunity. Too often when passes come to him his first touch travels about 6-8 yards from his foot. He needs some seasoning and a midfield to get him the ball where can use it. Fuller is a shame. He gets pushed around and lives on the turf. He needs to add strength if he wants to play that back to the goal style. His header for a goal that did not count was very nice, but that is about it so far. Rooney spends far too much time yelling at others for their failures. He needs to actually do something of merit. I would think his teammates are tuning him out and asking him to SHUT UP!!! The guys serving balls are just goint to get our guys killed up front. Too often they are in places that only the defense can get, along with throwing a nice elbow at our front one or two! Twellman and Ralston are truely the only weapons we have and are starting to show the signs of wear from all the attention from the defense. Good views just a little hot.
Damn, I love a good cat fight. This isn't a real "fur-ball" yet but the BS Rev contingent has enough Psychos to boost this thread into something of lasting beauty. Go for it!
I keep thinking Twellman is going to be maimed when he comes back to midfield to receive a pass and pass it back to the defender. Also the long balls to Twellman in the first half Wednesday night were a waist of time. What was he supposed to do against three defenders? Chacon was useless. When Fuller came in, at least he was able to knock the ball down and occasionally get off a pass. That's more than Chacon or Harris did in the first half. As previously stated, Chacon is a "luxury" player. Miami could afford that luxury, but the Revs can't.
Hey GoTeam - Share some of your enlightenment with me. How is it that Nicols' experience makes him better than Stapleton or Zenga? If he is such a savant what is he doing over here as a Boston-Bulldog leftover? Couldn't someone in the EPL use him? How is it that trading Williams and playing Rooney helps with the distribution to the forwards? What exactly has building his team around Rooney accomplished? How many of these real soccer teams you watch play without a central playmaking threat? Do their coaches also count on unskilled players to make attacking entry passes? How many coaches would continue to play a central midfielder with one goal and one assist after 1300+ minutes and uncountable goals against? Could this team play worse defense with something other than Nicols' 7-man stand-in-front and watch system? Sure this team has plenty of injuries and its fair share of mediocrity but the whole league is like that so why are we so much worse off? Exactly what has Nicols done that demonstrates his coaching prowness? Thank goodness someone with your experience and insight has finally arrived to help us understand!
Steve Nicol played soccer? Wow, that changes everything. Here I thought he was incompetent but now that I know he played, the bad coaching decisions must be someone else's fault!
ProTip: When introducing oneself to a forum, it is best that one not come off as an arrogant jerk in said introduction.