Westside Watch Party - Sunday, 8/8... TODAY!!! O'Brien's Irish Pub & Restaurant 2226 Wilshire Boulevard Santa Monica, CA 90403 (SW corner of Wilshire Boulevard. and 23rd Street) Black & Gold Supporters, come out and cheer on LAFC as they take on the Earthquakes under the flight path into Norman Y. Mineta International Airport!!! Join your fellow diehards at Official LAFC Bar Partner O'Brien's Irish Pub & Restaurant. O'Brien's is home to delicious food, a great selection of craft beers and cocktails, and a phenomenally friendly staff. O'Brien's has long been the host of raucous watch parties for the likes of World Cup, UEFA Champions League, and Premier League competition. Now, they're inviting the Black & Gold Faithful to make their home away from home in Santa Monica. Let's FILL the two outdoor patios with over-the-top energy befitting the club that brought top flight football to the Heart of Los Angeles. Help us recreate The 3252 at 2226!!! JUMP for LA Football Club!!!
Seems to me we planned on moving Rossi and Atuesta last summer/offseason but decided to wait until Covid economy became more predictable. The conveyor belt has stopped moving. Now we have players who expected a move that are not focused on performing here. It says something when Crisostomo and Fall come in and play like every touch/play matters and the focus is on another level compared to the regulars. Not upset with the front office as much as they had an aggressive plan (replace Zimmerman with Murillo wasn't a bad idea, but covid messed up the logistics and timing) that got blown up by an unprecedented disruption to normal operations. If its true that there are ongoing discussions between the club and European teams for our players leading into the deadline, you have to imagine they are going to take what they can get for Rossi/B-Rod/Atuesta, and play guys who want to be here. The big mistake the FO made was Vermeer. No excuses there. Not to mention the changes to roster rules which make blowing up the squad and rebuilding more appealing from cap perspective (we never got a conclusive answer if our young players would be grandfathered into the new U-22 initiative). The advantage we have over our neighbors in Carson is we are rebuilding a squad that has value (compared to cutting a bunch of players no one wants). Should give us more tools to use. How does everyone feel about Vela in his contract year? Vela seems motivated enough but with Rossi and Atuesta struggling he is trying to do everything himself. Maybe a minor squad refresh gets him going but can't justify the highest paid player in the league being replacement level so far this season. I feel more inclined to stick with Bob and believe in him as a Vermes level foundation of the club.
So much movement out West. 🧐 pic.twitter.com/oRkvFzyyrO— Major League Soccer (@MLS) September 13, 2021
I've got two tickets for the traffico game tomorrow Section 230 Row G Seats 1 and 2 plus a lot 13 parking pass. Give me a shout if you're interested in buying.
----------------- Didn't take long for AS sports to say Bob to TFC. Personally, I felt too many changes and injuries doomed this year. I think there still could be improvement in goal, defense needs a very, very large upgrade. Yes, flash and goals are nice, but goal and defense win more games I feel over longer period of time. I think Zimmerman and Kay were let go wrongly for whatever reason an Rosi was a big hurt along with the timing of Vela's injuries. I think they have been on a slight downhill ever since they lost that Champions League Final (after leading) in Orlando. Note- this comes from a LAG fan since day one and I see LAG similar issues= leaky defense etc. Bob may be out, Vanney just got in, so will give him a bit of time to see if he can mold the team the way he had it in TFC. Almost ironic then if Bob ends up at TFC.
Yeah I don't know if those reports have been confirmed. I wouldn't be surprised if teams want him. I would personally trust Bob to fix it. Look at Vermes at SKC. If they fired him when they missed the playoffs two years ago...anyway I know many fans feel differently. But this year was brutal on the injury front. If you told me we would get less than half a season out of Segura, Atuesta, Rossi, B-Rod, Vela....Arango looks good. Bring in two DPs to replace Vela and Rossi and get healthy we will be competitive. Who would you hire if Bob isn't back?
---------------- Good question on coach. I think LAG is good with Vanney based on what he did in Toronto. I think he needs more time to mold the team his way. Fraser doing an incredible job in Colorado, but hasn't been coaching really long. Would he jump to say LAFC if the $$ are there? I would try an American coach or former player since they would know the quirks of MLS. I guess what persons who have their licenses or working on them and maybe who are currently assistants or have other positions within teams. OR I don't know about USL-C, if any successful coaches who would want to make the jump up?
I would send a big bag of money to Jim Curtain or Vermes.... I think our assistants Razov or (Kenny) Arena, maybe Cherundolo could be in the running too, but none are proven. The real question is how confident is the FO that a new hire would be an improvement and if they think Bob is the best option...do they outbid TFC/Chicago to keep him?
And it has been. New coach. New players. New DoF. On paper, the team looks much improved. But honestly, I don't follow all of MLS so I cannot say for sure. So I ask y'all. What are our prospects for this season? I am excited.
I'm very happy. We added all-star level talent at GK, LB, CM (x2). Also RB should be solid with better depth up top. Assuming we bring in another 'win now' DP up top or in the midfield and can stay healthy we should be near the top of the west. Important to note that Escobar, Acosta, Ilie, Hollingshead, Tajouri-Shradi and Crepeau are all veterans with success within the league. We should be much less naive than we looked last year...
-------------- I agree, when Acosta is in the zone, he is good. Look at his service kicks in the last WCQ window. Hollingshead should be steady, not sure if he is Zimmerman level and haven't seen enough of Crepeau- maybe our Canadian friends can tell us more. I would think our defense should vastly improve simply because of who the new coach is. Just hope he lets the offense play
New kit is going to take some getting used to but initial thoughts are bleh. I didn’t get the last kit but I guess I can get it now on clearance. Lol
Mike Conti@MikeConti929 MLS Attendance this weekend… Atlanta: 42,547 Charlotte: 32,018 Nashville: 28,226 New England: 26,421 LAFC: 22,022 Austin: 20,738 Dallas: 19,096 Vancouver: 17,709 NY Red Bulls: 17,107 DC: 15,194 NYC (Citi Field): 15,031 San Jose: 14,077 Montreal: 14,068 Minnesota: no report
=============== Nice to see good crowds in Dallas and New England. I saw clip of game in Minnesota and looked like a full house.
Can anyone explain the whole Mamadou Fall name and why there is another name Mbacke on the back of his jersey. That is not even his last name on the jersey.