Post-match: Nancy Crew Soccer Stories: The (River)Hound of the ‘Burgh - Crew @ Pittsburgh - USOC R16 - 5/24 7PM

Discussion in 'Columbus Crew' started by chr1st, May 18, 2023.

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What will be the result of the Crew's 5/24/23 LHUSOC match vs Pittsburgh?

Poll closed May 24, 2023.
  1. Win by two or more goals*

    36.4%
  2. Win by one goal*

    38.6%
  3. Win in extra time

    4.5%
  4. Win by penalty shootout

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%
  5. Lose by penalty shootout

    2.3%
  6. Lose in extra time

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%
  7. Lose by one goal*

    2.3%
  8. Lose by two or more goals*

    2.3%
  9. Young Pups - Crew get 3+ goals from 23-year-old or younger players (worth 2 points!!)

    11.4%
  10. “The clock sweats out each minute of what stoppage time is left to us.” - Philip Quinton

    2.3%
  1. Kyle Crew

    Kyle Crew Member+

    Feb 23, 2013
    Columbus, Ohio
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Apologies, he had 46 minutes pro experience before Wednesday.
     
  2. Kyle Crew

    Kyle Crew Member+

    Feb 23, 2013
    Columbus, Ohio
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    At full strength, as intended, as we’ve seen Nancy actually do this year (i.e., not my opinion):

    GK: Schulte, Room, Bush

    RWB: Farsi, Yeboah, Arfsten

    CB: Degenek, Moreira, Vallecilla, Quinton, Amundsen, Williams (one would imagine), Hughes

    LWB: Sands, Amundsen, Yeboah, Medranda

    CM: Nagbe, Morris, Zawadzki, ???

    AM: Zelarayan, Matan, Yeboah, Molino, Parente

    ST: Cucho, Ramierz, JRR

    Tell me that isn’t the depth chart when fit.
     
  3. TRUJDUB21

    TRUJDUB21 Member+

    Columbus Crew
    United States
    Sep 28, 2021
    Medranda hasn’t been healthy he is ahead of Yeboah if healthy at LB

    Molino hasn’t been healthy for years so it’s impossible to say but he would be ahead of Yeboah if healthy in my opinion

    Williams could fall anywhere between the 3rd CB or 5th but also hadn’t been healthy

    RWB has Yeboah actually played there ? Just shows how thin we really are and if Diaz was healthy much like Matan and Yeboah Im sure he would get a opportunity

    Also Sands is injured so he is off the depth chart and Amundsen is the starter in large part to Medranda not being healthy. Although even if he was healthy there is no guarantee either way.

    Degenek is hurt so he isn’t a starter right now , when fully healthy he would be a starter and we need him healthy asap


    But for the most part I agree with your list but injuries and a lack of depth are clear and evident.
     
  4. TRUJDUB21

    TRUJDUB21 Member+

    Columbus Crew
    United States
    Sep 28, 2021
    We did
     
  5. stanger

    stanger BigSoccer Supporter

    Nov 29, 2008
    Columbus
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    What color is the sky in your world?
     
  6. TRUJDUB21

    TRUJDUB21 Member+

    Columbus Crew
    United States
    Sep 28, 2021
    5 starters played in that match. 2 started the game. Yes we played mostly a young inexperienced squad and the subs came on way too late. Turf was probably a contributing factor. We still had good enough players to win but we didn’t.

    It doesn’t matter why or how you become a starter but Quinton & Vallecilla are starters

    Amundsen, Farsi & A Morris are also all starters
     
  7. eboe

    eboe Member+

    Columbus Crew
    United States
    May 23, 2006
    Columbus, OH
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Pretty f*cking sure that most of us here want us to go for the throat and try to win the hardware with St. Lamar on it. Especially since you win a few games and you're in the CCL. Don't try for 2 matches with a decent mix of actual good starters and backups and then decide to throw *gestures wildly at the lineup listing* whatever THAT was, out at a team that had already beaten one MLS side.
     
  8. eboe

    eboe Member+

    Columbus Crew
    United States
    May 23, 2006
    Columbus, OH
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    "Starter", it DOES matter why you're a starter, if you are a 3rd string nobody (pulled up from Crew 2 or a rescue player from another team), that means you are not the quality of the PREFERRED starting 11, and don't pretend like they are - the other three were used as subs and for the most part used far too late to be effective so your argument falls flat on face value.

    It's like you're trying to sell someone a 1992 Ford Fiesta with 300,000 miles with a sticker over the Ford logos that says "Honda" - It's a Civic, I SWEAR, TRUST ME BRO.
     
    Ball Kicker, stanger and Kyle Crew repped this.
  9. eboe

    eboe Member+

    Columbus Crew
    United States
    May 23, 2006
    Columbus, OH
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Losing to them AND having them end Eddie Gaven's career, all in 90 minutes.
     
  10. TRUJDUB21

    TRUJDUB21 Member+

    Columbus Crew
    United States
    Sep 28, 2021
    What am I’m arguing ?

    my point is the open cup doesn’t matter very much because that trophy doesn’t mean very much compared to a shield or mls cup

    we have a bad roster which is very young and injuries have made us very thin on defense.

    you don’t risk Cucho & LZ ( Nagbe, Moreira or anyone who is not 100%) for a open cup trophy. If every team played their best XI maybe we could take it more serious but it’s not a great tournament and means more to some than others. Did I want us to win ? Yes was the team’s performance embarrassing? Also yes


    But In the grand scheme of things it’s not a big deal given our circumstances with that turf and this roster and our injuries. I do think we could have put out a better XI and conceded (in theory )a loss to Nashville which we will be hard pressed to win with our best XI. But the FO/team clearly values the MLS game more.
    I get it y’all don’t like it and don’t care if our best players are injured because that trophy means a lot to you even if we beat a bunch of USL teams and MLS b squads.

    I’m more focused on us being rested and beating Colorado with our best XI. The open Cup seems like a second tier trophy to me. Guess I’m a horrible guy and should repent.
     
  11. POdinCowtown

    POdinCowtown Member+

    Jan 15, 2002
    Columbus
    IMO someone who watches 34 Crew league matches can say whether the Crew are a good MLS team or not. You seemed to be saying that people had to watch the other teams to make that judgment. Even someone who doesn't watch a minute of MLS can look up the standings and see how we're doing. Yes, results matter. That's how coaches get fired or keep their jobs. Ask Herm Edwards about it.
     
  12. Kyle Crew

    Kyle Crew Member+

    Feb 23, 2013
    Columbus, Ohio
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Win now is the only option. OK.
     
  13. POdinCowtown

    POdinCowtown Member+

    Jan 15, 2002
    Columbus
    You no read too good
     
  14. Kyle Crew

    Kyle Crew Member+

    Feb 23, 2013
    Columbus, Ohio
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    You have literally only mentioned winning, results, and the standings in two full posts.

    Perhaps you should articulate yourself better if something other than results, winnings, or the standings matter.

    Because, for plenty of teams, things other than just results matter.
     
  15. hangthadj

    hangthadj Member+

    A.S. Roma
    Mar 27, 2001
    Zone 14
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    The wrong debate is being had here.

    The real question isn't whether Nancy played 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 starters. The question should be why didn't he play more, when we had an extra day to recover before a Sunday match.

    I said it before, and I'll say it again, you can put a handful of difference makers out there for the first 45-60 minutes to try to take the lead and then dictate the rest of the match and still give them rest before the weekend.

    Nancy didn't do that and essentially forfeited a chance at the quarterfinals of the Open Cup. If you are a fan who doesn't rate the Open Cup as important at all, you aren't the only one. But, that's also the argument that Nancy and the organization have made clear in how they treated the match. I'd have a lot more respect for all involved, if they just came out and admitted it.
     
    Tobias C, TRUJDUB21 and chr1st repped this.
  16. POdinCowtown

    POdinCowtown Member+

    Jan 15, 2002
    Columbus
    You said people couldn't judge whether the Crew were a good MLS team or not without watching other MLS games. I said they could fairly judge that by watching the Crew's season. Or for the lazy, they could just look at the standings. I've seen every Crew match this season and would judge them to be a middle of the pack MLS team. Oddly enough, the standings agree.
     
  17. Kyle Crew

    Kyle Crew Member+

    Feb 23, 2013
    Columbus, Ohio
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Because Cucho just returned from a two month injury a couple weeks ago. Why play him on terrible turf?

    Because LZ has had a nagging injury that’s caused him to miss a couple games already. Why play him on terrible turf?

    Morris isn’t in form, he was not good against Cincy, and the couple games before that.

    Because Farsi can’t play 90 minutes, every game, for the entire season.

    Darlington Nagbe turns 33 in a month or so, he can’t play 90 minutes, every game, for the entire season.

    Because Eddie Gaven having his career ended in Dayton wasn’t worth ThE pReStIgE oF tHe OpEn CuP.

    Nancy won 6-1 the round before with a reduced squad and everyone thought he was a god. He did it again this week and he’s a dummy for losing 1-0.

    Results or process, what’s more important right now? I have my answer, YMMV.
     
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  18. hangthadj

    hangthadj Member+

    A.S. Roma
    Mar 27, 2001
    Zone 14
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    Because we could have benefited from at least one of them for 45 minutes, and put ourselves in position to be in the quarterfinals of a trophied tournament? YMMV.

    A game against a lesser squad is a good opportunity for him to maybe regain his confidence.

    Sure, we have 34 regular season MLS games as well.

    Nobody is suggesting he does. Those who might suggest so, or are using falling back on this straw man argument probably forget that he was already benched this season!

    Getting closer to sating the quiet part out loud.

    I, and I'm sure many others missed the deification ceremony of Wilfried Nancy. He was made a God for beating Louden United?

    I have mine too. But, I don't think it's as simplistic as you are making it out to be.The process is most important, results are also important. Throwing away a chance at the quarterfinal by objectively choosing to sit near every starter can be part of a "process" but that doesn't necessarily mean the decisions made in that process were sound or correct decisions. Just labeling something process doesn't give carte blanche to decisions that can prevent positive growth for a team or organization.

    You named 5 players that were kept out, and there are just as valid reasons to play even 1-2 of them to give us a better chance to win than keeping all 5 out. You've said before it doesn't matter to you if we make the playoffs as long as you see progress this season. If you don't consider advancing in the Open Cup, having the possibility of playing a meaningful final or semifinal as valuable for this club and it's culture, I wish you'd just say that. For me, there is at least as much value in that as going into decision day in 10th or 11th place and needing a handful of results to go our way after rotating a few players out to keep them fresh for the sake of "process." YMMV.
     
    Minnman repped this.
  19. Kyle Crew

    Kyle Crew Member+

    Feb 23, 2013
    Columbus, Ohio
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    There was progress in the Open Cup. We haven’t won two games since 2014. This final game might have left a bad taste in people’s mouth, and I understand why, but we had the best Open Cup run in a decade this year.

    I’m usually on the negative side of this argument, but I’m looking at the positive here, not the negative.

    This feels almost like the World Cup debate again. I expected the US to advance and then lose the first knockout game. That’s been damn near the standard since 2010. I wasn’t really shocked we lost, though it seems a lot of other people were and they expected better, though I’m really not sure why, beyond blind patriotic hope.
     
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  20. KCbus

    KCbus Moderator
    Staff Member

    United States
    Nov 26, 2000
    Reynoldsburg, OH
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    #320 KCbus, May 28, 2023
    Last edited: May 28, 2023
    Especially since we've already lost one starter, Sands, to a turf injury recently. That was probably fresh in Nancy's mind. Cucho and LZ are worth too much to this club to risk their health on a bad surface against an opponent that you should be able to handle with backups.

    Yeah, anytime you send the bench guys out there, you're gambling. Fair enough. But like you said, when you beat the last minor league opponent 6-1 with the same strategy, it's not an unreasonable thing to do.

    I think it's also just time to admit that no matter how much we might love it, MLS coaches don't put a high degree of priority, as a whole, on the LHUSOC. It's not what people buy tickets to see, it's not what owners hire and fire over, and it's not what attracts eyeballs.
     
    TRUJDUB21, Bill Archer and Kyle Crew repped this.
  21. POdinCowtown

    POdinCowtown Member+

    Jan 15, 2002
    Columbus
    The Loudon game was the outlier in our LHUSOC run this year. The USL eastern conference has 12 teams and we struggled to beat current 9th place team Indy, blew out 11th place team Loudon, then struggled vs 4th place team Pittsburgh. We probably shouldn't have assumed that Crew2 level players would do well when facing a better USL side which had just knocked off NE Revs.
     
    catfish9 repped this.
  22. hangthadj

    hangthadj Member+

    A.S. Roma
    Mar 27, 2001
    Zone 14
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    We won two games against lower side opponents and were eliminated by a lower division Pittsburgh Riverhounds, like we were eliminated by lower division Detroit City FC before or FC Cincinnati before, just in a later round.

    I'm not sure why we choose the World Cup comparison. The Pittsburgh Riverhounds are not the Netherlands, and there is no lower division opposition that's close to the Netherlands. As much as I typically respect and understand where you are coming from, this was easily your most nonsensical argument in some time.
     
  23. TRUJDUB21

    TRUJDUB21 Member+

    Columbus Crew
    United States
    Sep 28, 2021
    Matan must have been injured. I think with our injury situation and that turf the Crew did the right thing as much as I don’t like it. Unfortunately the guys we played were not a good fit nor were they very enthusiastic to play (maybe the turf ?)
     
  24. MFRONE

    MFRONE Member+

    Jul 24, 2000
    Columbus, Ohio
    Club:
    Columbus Crew
    Cincinnati played Acosta 90 minutes yesterday after playing 2 games in the previous 7 days. Rest and rotation is a bull shit excuse from Nancy.
     
    chr1st repped this.
  25. TRUJDUB21

    TRUJDUB21 Member+

    Columbus Crew
    United States
    Sep 28, 2021
    Did he play on shitty Pittsburgh turf ?
     
    TKyle repped this.

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