Both can be true, IMO. I think they go hand-in-hand. An important point and a slight psychological lift. I’m
I'm a Rapids fan in NoVA as well ... you can thank the USAF's assignment folks deciding I needed move from Colorado!
.@DiegoRubio_ gets the start for @LaRoja tonight vs. Paraguay 👏 https://t.co/9UKjOoXbxe— Colorado Rapids (@ColoradoRapids) March 27, 2023
🚨 46' Cambio en Chile:➡️Alexis Sánchez⬅️ Diego Rubio🇨🇱 1⃣ ➖ 2⃣ 🇵🇾#VamosChile #VamosLaRoja pic.twitter.com/sDD49wV4yC— Selección Chilena (@LaRoja) March 28, 2023
💪 😃 ¡Gran triunfo, muchachos!📷 Carlos Parra pic.twitter.com/tRIrBiwf2s— Selección Chilena (@LaRoja) March 28, 2023
Darren Yapi is in the XI today for @USYNT as they face Serbia 👀 https://t.co/NIRlK4risN— Colorado Rapids (@ColoradoRapids) March 28, 2023
Worst season starts through 5 games in team history: 2003 - 1 point, 3 goals scored 2013 - 2 points, 5 goals 2019 - 2 points, 6 goals 2023 - 2 points, 2 goals (BTW, based on our 20X3 records, expect the beginning of 2033's season to suck)
I imagine they’ll be available for selection, and will play this weekend: Both @DiegoRubio_ and Darren Yapi return from international duty as we prepare for LAFC this weekend.Your News & Notes from Week 6 📰— Colorado Rapids (@ColoradoRapids) March 29, 2023 Rubio played 45min for Chile on Monday, and Yapi played 62min for the US U-20s yesterday (Tuesday), so they probably won’t go a full 90 (especially with Rubio’s injury recovery, no need to pressure that too much!), but they at least didn’t log a TON of minutes before Saturday’s contest with LAFC
Worth noting that through 2 games, Rapids 2 has scored twice as many goals (4) as the Rapids have scored through 6 games (2). Also worth noting that we are dramatically underperforming our xG (per fbref's stats, I'm not sure what the MLS uses), while we are slightly outperforming our xGA. Rapids have an xG of 8 and an xGA of 9.4. On the season, we've scored 2 and allowed 8. So, we're clearly not exactly doing great from an underlying numbers perspective, but we should be doing much better. If you take out the Seattle spanking, we're at 6.8 xG and 5.4 xGA. In that stretch (post Seattle), while we've only scored twice in five games, we've also only allowed 4, with two clean sheets. So, I'm not saying we've righted the ship - especially because we simply aren't scoring those expected goals, and we seem to have a medical training team that has injuries pretty much weekly - but I am saying that there's reason to hope that we might make something of this season yet.
Worst season starts through 6 games in team history: 2003 - 1 point, 3 goals scored 2019 - 2 points, 7 goals 2023 - 3 points, 2 goals (We got our first win in game 6 in 2013)
Jeez…. I listened to the ExtraTime pod today, and I didn’t realize were underperforming our xG’s by 6! Wow. If that doesn’t scream we need a finisher, i don't know what does.
Our group for the USOC draw tonight. We can't be drawn against another MLS team in thisr ound (FSL): Mountain Colorado Rapids (MLS) Las Vegas Lights FC (USLC) New Mexico United (USLC) Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC (USLL1) Phoenix Rising FC (USLC) Real Salt Lake (MLS)
Wouldn't mind getting an away game to Phoenix. Normally can only catch the Rapids here in AZ when they were doing the preseasons in Tucson.
Draw is live on YouTube right now. They are also announcing who has applied to host and who met hosting requirements
Rapids will host Northern Colorado! FSL travels to Vegas and New Mexico hosts Phoenix in the other two matchups.
I watched the Switchbacks v Hailstorm game last night. Hailstorm looked really good ... strong press and quick counters. If there had been VAR, they would've won in regulation. I don't know the Switchback's roster well enough to see if they fielded a weakened roster. This should be a fun matchup
This has potential to be an extremely embarrassing part of an already embarrassing early portion of the season. I’m ALL for this draw, to be clear. I love it. But now the pressure is on for the Rapids. You have to win this game. Losing early in the Open Cup is bad enough (and something the Rapids have PLENTY of experience doing), but losing to a team that’s only 2 years old, plays in a 3rd division league, and their stadium is only a 1.5hr or so drive away - that’s uh, that’s not good. NoCo Hailstrom will probably be chomping at the bit to take it to us and smack us around. And given our Open Cup track record, and our current lack of scoring - things are not trending well for this one.
Speaking of New Mexico - how is the Rapids local advertising game? I haven’t been to Colorado in some time, but both Phoenix Rising and New Mexico United have a good presence in their communities. I live in the Phoenix area and there are billboards, etc, around where they play, as well as occasional TV spots. New Mexico however has advertising presence all over the state. I’m there quite often for work and am usually in different cities all over - and there’s tons of billboards, flyers, etc, in various places.
It does feel a bit that way, but unless the envelopes were marked it was actually random. And they missed some obvious other matchups in other regions (cross-Charlotte matchup for example).
So I think we're seeing how the Rapids will be playing for a while, possibly for the rest of the season. 5 at the back. Sit deep and counter and try to steal a goal or 2, which is more likely with Rubio back. Fraser has no illusions about our lack of quality in the attacking third, so we're not playing to maintain possession there because we just don't have the players to do it. Fortunately, we had Good Lalas Saturday, but more matches with him in the middle and Wilson and Keegan next to him will mean more goals conceded. I don't want to see Max or Nicholson play any more. Neither of them adds anything except effort. Get Bassett back healthy. Throw Markanich in for Nicholson and let him learn.