Well. The attack didn’t have more bite. The only real chance in the 2nd half was Ruiz’s banger off the post. I’m not quite sure how we got the draw, but it’s a good result imo.
That is 3 games without a goal That’s not good But to trend from 6 goals against, to 1, then 0 is improving I want the back 3 back. I’m not a fan of what we saw tonight in an attacking sense - especially the first half
Chang also had that nearly point blank volley that would have scored if he hit it anywhere not directly at the keeper.
Watched this am. At least the D was solid - we always seemed to have bodies behind the ball. Yeah Ruiz was close but this is still a stolen point, and a positive after the debacle in NYC. Bring on the DPs…
See, I started with that broadcast and couldn't stand it. Maybe they evened it out when it appeared POR wasn't likely to get 3 points.
When I saw the starting lineup of this game I was really confused. I didn't know what Pablo saw from the back 4 to keep it instead of going to a back 3. I didn't think Orozco played so poorly in NYC that he should completely lose his spot with the return of Glad. Moving into the midfield, I was also confused to see Everton instead of Caldwell. I didn't think Everton had had good enough games to justify that. The move to have Meram and Wood and Chang AND Cordova was strange. It felt overly aggressive for a game in which I thought we'd want to be more compact. It played out as a 4-2-2-2 that shifted to a 4-2-3-1 frequently in defense and, honestly, it worked.... on the defensive side of the ball. The comment from James that Pablo has publicly said that the objective of road games is to get to half at 0-0 is very telling of what Pablo wants from this team. He deliberately said that they were going to learn from the playoff run of games in how to execute road games. It means, apparently, that we only want to play open soccer for a 20–30-minute spell. I can understand that in a playoff format, however, in the regular season it makes for games to be really slow and painful. What is interesting to note is that this objective (get to half at 0s) has happened in three of the five road games this year: SKC, cRapids, Portland. In those games we've come away with 2 points. In the other two road games: NER & NYC, we gave up a goal in the first half. Ironically, we came away with 3 points in those games. Back to the game: in the second half we had moments where we opened it up a bit more. Most typically this was on the counter. It also saw, IMO, much better play from Portland. To that point, their decision to sub off Blanco was moronic. Is he just not fit? Because that game was begging for his touch in the final third. Worked out for us. Bobby Wood did not have a good game Cordova had a good game - he actually earned MOTM honors on whoscored. That was good to see. I wish he would have hit that last chance instead of whatever that layoff thing was. The Ruiz miss has been discussed. That has to be on frame. Well inside the frame Apparently, Meram played well according to others (reading reviews/listening to folks)... I don't like him as a starter. I can barely stand him on the team. He is so wildly inconsistent. He has the form of a teenage wunderkid, not a "veteran" After an absolute howler in NYC and the USOC loss, this draw felt a big step in the right direction. This team desperately (still) needs someone in the final third that can make the key pass but I'll take a 0-0 draw on the road after what we saw I have zero faith that Fall will make any moves before the May 4th transfer deadline. I also am curious to see what roster mechanisms he's going to pull to make room for what is needed. We play the Galaxy next, at home, on Saturday... in the middle of the day. Ugh. Hopefully the opponent will give that game more of an edge
That was a better game for sure. Maybe if someone could actually finish once in awhile RSL takes 3 points in Portland. Chang is so frustrating. He seemingly has the talent but not the "skill" to be a difference maker. As much as we give Pablo crap, for "Pabloing" the ball out of the stadium game after game, Chang is just as or more anemic in putting away chances. He had a free header in about the 17th minute inside the 6 that he headed straight down and to the left hitting the defender in the feet instead of putting anywhere the keeper would have to make a save. And then the late chance he politely popped up to the keeper. Not great. He hustles but as my son has pointed out his eyes are almost always on the ground and consistently misses opportunities to put teammates in dangerous situations with a pass because he is looking at his feet. All in all I think that this was a spectacular result for this team. If only to help get their heads back on straight after the last week they, WE, suffered through. I was getting nervous that they were going to let PTFC steal the 3 points late and really do a number on their heads. As it was, keeping the draw might have been a better result than stealing three points, at least on the mentality side. Weird I know. I am really starting to like Cordova. The guy is good and looks like a quality team player. But can he finish? I certainly hope so because everything else looks good to me. He certainly hustled more than Wood did during the game. He is easy on the ball and makes smart, quick, accurate passes to teammates. If they can figure out who to actually pair with and work with him RSL could really have some quality up top some time soon. So far this season there have been a few players that have really stood out for me. Rather surprisingly. Marcelo Silva. They guy has been S-O-L-I-D. He has played every minute of the season except for the Nashville game he was not in the lineup. He has ONE YELLOW all season. ONE. I know, crazy! I am knocking on wood was I type this but damn the guy has been stellar. Pablo Ruiz. I didn't think he could do it but he is winning me over. Still a long way to go but unlike some of the other "young" players on the team I think he still has a higher ceiling to reach in his play and potential. Zach MacMath. I get that people really love Ochoa but I hope that David does well with the Mexican National team and RSL sells him for a ton of money before he runs out of "potential". To me Zach has earned the starting job and has "MacMathed" it up only a couple of times. I have heard people blame the NYCFC game on Zach and that is just utter nonsense. He was kind of responsible for 2 terrible goals but some how that is worse that the 4 that Schmitt effed up. Let Zach finally find a home and maybe we have a keeper for a few seasons while RSL develops a couple of real prospects in the academy. Ochoa doesn't want to spend his career here so let him go for a ton of money. RSL has seemingly settled into where they are going to be for the rest of the season without any player additions and upgrades. Right around the 6-9 area. Which could be incredibly tough to stay at considering that there are some really good teams, at least on paper, under them currently in the standings. Nashville, Portland, Colorado who just picked up Gyasi Zardes, Seattle, and FUKC. I am going to be very patient with this team for a few reasons. First, new owners. Lets see if what they are going to do with this team. The first window might not be the best one to judge them on, but come on. Being a bit aggressive in the first window would go a long way in getting fans behind new owners. A good FO would probably have a list a mile long on possible players to go after. Shouldn't be that hard, right? That's what she said. Second, I think that Pablo might be the coach for this team for awhile. As we have seen when they play with commitment and play strong team defense things go well for them. It's not a recipe that you can expect to win championships with but it gets you in the playoffs. Sometimes. Get Pablo some better players that buy into his system and there might be good chance that RSL ends up with a team with a great culture of playing smart futbol. Or not, but I think it's worth a shot. He has shown he can motivate non superstar players to believe in the process so hopefully that can translate with better players. Many times it doesn't but I think it's certainly worth a shot here. Thirdly, this roster is lightyears away from being an MLS Cup, CCL, or even a USOC, sadly, challenging team. I actually have more faith in Pablo than I do with Elliott Fall. There is a lot for this FO to do to get this team anywhere near contending. If they can get it right then I think Pablo can get it right. No matter how good Pablo is or can be may be determined by whether or not Elliott is up to the task at hand. So yea, I'm glad RSL got a result in Portland. Nicely done.
Well, holy poop! RSL midfielder Pablo Ruiz perseveres through tragedy OK. He gets a pass from me for hitting the upright. He's been getting closer to getting it on frame in the run of play each game!