Henry stopped but time has expired. Loss, 2-3! Giving up the second goal in the 45th minute was the killer.
Man, I'd like to see a better camera angle. From the in-play camera, it seems hard to see that DeRo is offside when Najar plays that.
Has DCU ever won a game that Geiger reffed? Quick observations: DeRo is not a midfielder, he doesn't play defense and he let that little shit Ballouchy who has been given up on by both Salt Lake and Colorado look all-World. McDonald can't control or pass the ball. Look at Jakovic going forward and try to imagine McDonald doing that. Can't can you? Sit him and play the Dude. Sign Bosko now. If you have to cut Salihi to keep him, do it. DCU had no midfield presence with DeRo and Kitchen. Once Bosko came on, DCU had all the possession and got the second goal. Santos is up and down, but his upside is far more than Salihi's.
I wanted to blame him on the second as well, but I needed a better angle. I don't know what happened to their cameras that they were zoomed in so much.
It's the left back that's playing pretty deep at the time, several steps deeper than the two closest to DeRo. Crap - guess it doesn't matter anyway.
I don't know if I'm the first to say it, but I would like to see DeRo sit for a little while. His touch & passing have been crap, he hasn't hustled to get back onside - thus killing potential plays - and he's been an absolute turnover machine the last couple of matches. I don't know if the Canada NT matches have got to him, but he hasn't played well, since before them. I would let Boskovic start a couple of matches and see if that helps DeRo to recover, or possibly light a fire under him. Whichever one works is good. I'm not too particular. While I'm at it, Ben, please play Dudar with Jakovic - that is, if he's healthy. I love that Brandon has the speed to make up for some of his mistakes, but all he does is blast the ball to no-one in particular, and keeps turning it over to the other team, time after time. Oh, and one more thing, Ben, please play Andy Najar instead of Robbie Russell. Are you keeping Andy fresh for the Honduran Olympic team? WTF?
This game was thrown away based on clearly three things. 1. Olsen is not a major league coach I have been seeing this for the whole year, but it has been disguised by one of the deepest teams in the league. His poor decisions in player selection cost DC the game. He made a wrong decision by not starting Boskovic. He then waits for DC to give up three unanswered goals while watching NY absolutely dominate the midfield, and THEN puts in Boskovic. 2. DeRo is not an attacking midfielder DeRo had a howler of a game. He was absolutely terrible. Frankly, DP or not, I would have taken him off at the half. DeRo is out of form and has been for several games. He does not seem to have the fire, nor the legs to compete to control the middle. In the game tonight, he stood and waited for Barklage to beat him to the ball. It was also DeRo giving up on a ball in midfield that allowed the counter that NY scored on another. Ballouchi, a non entity this season for NY, was left with so much room in midfield that he looked like an All Star. 3. McDonald is a major liability McDonald has no positional sense and he can't make a basic pass. He looked absolutely lost out there and ANY type of pressure caused him to give possession away. I could see the confusion he was causing in the back with his ball watching and lack of focus that kept having Jakovic cover for him. Why anyone thinks that McDonald is a co starter with Jakovic is a mystery to me. We also learned tonight as if this were still in doubt for some that Boskovic is the real deal. Yes he is not the fastest player on the pitch and he does not run around like a chicken with its head cut off. Simply put he is a player with a terrific mind for the game and has an elegant and effective touch. He can dominate a midfield and take the game to another level. United would be crazy to let him go. United should have clearly come away with points from this game. Instead, we blew what could have been a SIX point swing.
I (still) think we should start a Bosko midfield with a Pontius/Salihi pairing up top. What Salihi couldn't accomplish in the first half because we ceded the midfield, I think he could have in the second with Bosko.
Any United forward, Salihi or Santos or -- hell -- even ol' Sneaky Pete Marino would be greatly advantaged with Bosko in midfield. Salihi was disadvantaged today because the team had no possession during his time on the field. That wasn't his fault and shouldn't reflect on his play. Santos looked better today because for most of his time he had the advantage of Bosko in midfield.
I got two tickets from Jimmy, at face value! Thanks! Even though United lost, it was a great game... RB were the better team for most of the game; however, we did miss a bunch goals.
I look at it this way...It took a (former) United player for RBNY to get one on us. So, really, it was a gift from us to them. Basically, a pity f$ck.
Repped for the Pete Marino reference. Crew fan here, not trolling just wanted to make an honest contribution. Just thought I'd add that a few weeks ago on our "other teams' news" thread, I wondered why McDonald had been handed such a huge new contract back in August after just a handful of appearances. It is certainly the largest raise I've ever seen within the league since the players' union started publishing the data, though I stand to be corrected on that. It is also larger than the raise Wondo got after he won the Golden Boot for the first time. I just don't get it at all.
That was a fantastic game to watch. Up and down, with good play all around. Of course I'm only speaking of the second half in United's case. Losing this game is trivial to me, United was never going to go undefeated the rest of the way. The fact that United found their mojo in the second half when it appeared to be dead and buried after an abysmal first half made me love them all over again. Salihi can't seem to play with his back to goal, in the first half he just wasn't an option to pass to. Santos tries to do too much oftentimes, but he can play that role certainly. Boskovic on the 'left'? Yes, definitely. Only because he seems comfortable there. He gets to whatever spots he is needed from that position, and as long as Woolard and Kitchen can cover, he's a crazy consistent weapon, not to mention the possession game he gives, the one that was completely absent in the first half. It was clear to me that, finally, McDonald was instructed at half time to square the ball and get the eff out of the way. About 15 games too late for my taste, but better late than never. Kitchen became much less passive as a result and, although he was outplayed by McCarty, gave a respectable showing in the second half. The quicksand United had been running in disappeared in the second half. United actually started pressing the ball and all that open space for NY closed up, causing average players like Ballouchy and Cooper to return to the norm. Finally, NY's best players were DC castoffs: Barklage and McCarty (Miller had a nice game also).
Really? You're blaming Olsen because DeRo couldn't hold the ball or hit the broad side of a barn tonight (not to mention getting outplayed/hustled by Dax). It was a tale of two halves. They won the first and we won the second but it wasn't enough for a point. Too many wasted opportunities. And this time we got beat by the guys we released. Frustrated as the rest but we could have salvaged a point. Good: Pontius comes to play and knows how to dent the net. Hamid, save after save after save keeps us in games. Kitchen came to play but they moved the ball so quickly in the first half he was not able to be effective. Bad: DeRo needs something. Rest, a kick in the pants, ball control drills, I have no idea. We had one winger who actually attacked tonight and that was Cruz. Nick is no longer fearless. I want the rookie of the year candidate back. Russel gets the ball inside their 18 with 3 runners in front of goal and skies it. Ugly: Woolard was a turnover machine when they pressured in the first half. MacD needs to understand when he has time to control and pass as opposed to panicking and clearing the ball 25 yards to the other team. Good game, frustrating from our vantage point but still good. Was good to see us compete with a team flying on the field. Made us pick it up a notch. Move forward guys! Vamos!
I'll just say what I've said many times before: the team plays better soccer with Boskovic on the pitch. I was happy to hear Russ Thaler say that a new contract was in the works. I don't know if he was simply speculating or had inside information, but I sure hope it comes to pass. To me, Ben's biggest lapse as a coach is failing to see the quality Boskovic brings to the game. Maybe Ben expects everyone to play like he did - balls out up and down the pitch (Danny Cruz is our best exemplar of that style of play). But vision, deft ball skills, and splendid passing make Bosko an essential element for a team that wants to possess the ball and win games.
During the broadcast, the announcers said Olsen wanted DCU to dominate other teams. They won't do it with DeRo in midfield. They need Bosko or someone very much like him. Put DeRo up top where he doesn't have to play defense, drop Pontius to midfield and let DeLeon sit and figure the game out. Rotate Santos and Salihi with DeRo, put Bosko in the midfield, alternate Cruz and Najar situationally and see what happens.
I like Danny Cruz and Maicon Santos as squad players, but they don't belong anywhere near the field when it comes at the expense of Boskovic, Najar, or even Salihi. Salihi was given no opportunity tonight because he is frankly not going to be effective on a team that never has the ball. That diamond 4-4-2 killed any hope of sustained possession, and Danny Cruz at RM killed any hope of decent service from an entire side of the field. I would love to see stats on how many minutes Boskovic and Salihi have spent on the field together, and how much success we have had in those minutes. I understand that guys like Cruz and Santos may be "efficient" or "hard-working", but good D.C. United teams have always been technically superior to the opposition, and that is going to be difficult to achieve while those two are preferred in the lineup.
After the match, Benny rolled down the window of his car and thanked me and a couple buddies (who were waiting on a sidewalk) for coming. Very proud to be part of Olsen's army.