Post-match: San Jose Earthquakes - Toronto FC (Saturday, 2/29) postgame thread [R]

I mean, if you're going off this one performance, Andy Rios actually scored. Hoesen did next to nothing. Granted, he shouldn't be playing out wide. He is not fit for that role at all.

 

If it takes six games to work this out we’re screwed.

We were supposed to “benefit” from the consistency of having the same squad plus just couple of new guys. Instead we looked like gagh. Other than Alanís we had no new players on the pitch. Where’s that consistency, bro? OK, so we didn’t have Flo or Judson out there. Presumably they both would have helped. (Flo in for Kashia and Judson in for Magnus.)

I just don’t see how this new scheme is supposed to help. We’re either playing a 4-4-2 or we’re playing a 4-3-3 or we’re really in a 4-5-1, but it doesn’t look like 4-5-1.

https://matchcenter.mlssoccer.com/matchcenter/2020-02-29-san-jose-earthquakes-vs-toronto-fc/lineup
This might not be correct, and I’ve seen plenty of examples where MLS had it wrong, but it looked this way to me, at least some of the time.

We didn’t have enough control in the center of the pitch, even though TFC pretty much let us. We just looked poor all the way around.

I’m just as down on this season today as I was last week.

GO Quakes!!
Fisher OUT!!

- Mark

 

I showed up 1 hour before the game, entering the VIP gate; there were still a large stack of unopened boxes being given out. I then walked passed the main gate and there was also a large stack of unopened boxes.

If I don't show up at least an hour before for these things, I usually don't receive the item. I certainly didn't expect to get one this time, but I did.

 

This feels right to me.

https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2020...s-golazo-josefs-acl-more-full-week-1-analysis

 

Well, it was a nice happenstance that I lined up so early. Met a guy ahead of me in line from India attending his first ever game. Got him a Quakes kit from the gift shop so he had something to represent. I've now given Quakes kits to visitors from England, France, Turkey, Japan and India. The British and Japanese guys are now good friends as well as Quakes fans.

 

Did anyone really get the sense that they were person-marking more than average in that game? It certainly didn't feel that way for a lot of it. I always thought more was made of this than the reality would have suggested, but it is true that individually they struggled to win challenges that they needed to win.

More worryingly for me, though, is just how careless they were with the ball. Had they not given the ball up so cheaply so often, things might have tipped in the Quakes' favor a bit more.

 

I have a feeling that MA might not have pushed them this much in pre-season, maybe in an attempt to improved on the lack of stamina at the end of last season. Also remember that while most are repeat players you have a new formation and two new forwards who almost spent zero time playing together last season.

 

Not true. The Sharks regularly have full arena giveaways where every ticketed fan entering the arena receives the promotion. For this season they have 2 bobblehead nights, 5 "Shirsey" nights, 1 t-shirt night, and a Sharks clear bag/magnetic schedule night.
https://www.nhl.com/sharks/news/sharks-announce-2019-20-promotional-schedule/c-308695550

 

Vela?

His deft chip of the goalie is going to win it.

 

Atlanta had a goal in there to vote on... that will win.

 

Never!

 

I told my wife that their GK Coach looked like Jon Conway. She didn't think so. LOL.

 

Black & Azul discuss the new formation employed Saturday, among other things, which they say had been in the works for about 10 days:

 

Anyone see the Vela highlight? Rumor is that Vela’s goal was pretty good as well.

 

I watched the game on TV. Vela's goal was nifty but pales in comparison to Alanis', especially considering the circumstances surrounding it. A 95th minute last kick that needs to be perfect and is ought to win. In a just world it would.

 

My apologies. Earlier I stated 4-3-3
But actually it was more like this
4-2-3-1 with Ericksson as box to box #8
CM

———Vega
TT Kashia Alanis Lima
—————JY
——Erickson
Espinoza Vako Hoesen
———Andy

 

Do you think a taller keeper will make a save eg DeGea ?

 

A taller keeper might have saved both Vela's and Alanis' shots, yes.

 

I've only gotten through the first 60 mins (and first SJ goal) on my DVR. Here's my first complaint: the replay cut out minutes 8-13 and played commercials instead! Lousy commercials to boot. And uverse has no other replays scheduled, so I have to suffer watching this recording.

Anyhow, now I understand Greg Vanney's snide comment about when does SJ not play sloppy? We looked a lot sloppier than TOR, who also looked sloppy.

But as someone noted early in this thread, the quakes looked so flat, like playing was a slog, a chore. And they started the season playing regular soccer, no more attempted tiki-taka (or as Alan Gordon calls it, toka-toka ). As someone else noted, it could have been Dom-ball.

It seemed like TOR's second goal came after Yueill made a bad pass to Hoesen, and I was shocked to see that Lima and a couple other players seemed to just give up on catching up to Laryea. Only Danny tried, and he was the furthest away. No one tried to protect against a rebound.

I just thought, that's a really bad way to start the season. It's only the 51st minute and you're not going to try to make up for an error, if it's not your own error?

 

I watched them all... Vela's was beautiful. I also really liked Pavon's, which was a cracker and I tend to like goals from play rather than free kicks.

I'm a homer so I still voted for Alanis

 

Just to be clear, the PK call wasn't soft, it was WRONG. VAR is supposed to help catch things like this. But as usual, not for the Quakes.

 

Enlarge this to full screen and watch several times. Focus on EQ #25 Rios and watch as Altidore locks his two arms around Rios' left arm. When I watched from the stands (Section 107) it looked to me like a Rios left arm hold around Altidore's midsection to bring him down in a dumb-decision, obvious and unnecessary PK. However, watching the video from the Quakes Twitter feed, I'm now convinced it was a deliberate Altidore dive and grab of the arm the referee would not be able to see:

hmmmmm 🧐 pic.twitter.com/QL5QYnyIrq

— San Jose Earthquakes (@SJEarthquakes) February 29, 2020

 

Don
You operate on a different level!
Thanks for bringing forth important points that may have been overlooked.
Alanis will get my vote!

 

Well. That was disappointing. Not the result, not the two goals, but how we played. The Quakes came out flat and had no rhythm. it looked like they were thinking rather than playing. What happened to the off the ball movement? Contrast to Toronto who looked in synch and only struggled with execution in the final third.

This was not what I expected from a team who had played together a year. Where to start?

Forwards
Rios had a terrible first half. We needed him to check-in and utilize Vako more often. Nope, poor decisions and even worse execution. Stupidly put himself in a position to get the PK called against him. The goal doesn't take away from a bad game. I liked Vako in the middle, but nobody was getting him the ball. Espinoza got an assist, but seemed neturalized by Morrow (didn't want to go at him).

Midfield
Danny is not an outside midfielder. If he plays the position, he needs to get forward more. Tried to give Toronto a goal and a horrible pass. Yeull was ineffective and gave the ball away on the second goal. Magnus was playing the wrong position.

Defense
Lima had his usual game. Had one nice shot and tripped over the ball multiple time. Crosses were ineffective. Tommy could have kept Toronto offside, but that would require him to think quickly. Alanis was MOTM, but was a little too passive in the first half. Kashia looked in better shape and more confident staying with the forwards.

Subs were OK. If I was Toronto, I would be disappointed that they tied the game.

 

Got a couple of minutes into the discussion when the statement is made that the Quakes haven't had a centerback like Alanis. Except we have. His name is Jeff Agoos. Stopped watching...