Who is optimistic now! xtomx, I hate to bother you and I know you have a busy week but another thread ASAP would be much appreciated. Plus, the Fire are 1 - 0 in the playoffs when you do an early thread. No pressure and much appreciated. tia
I think Philly is gonna get punched in the face Sunday. Orlando looked like they never got off the bus because the Fire backline is legit. A veteran presence that didn't rattle after a hard fought first half against Orlando. They kept the young midfield organized and were rarely out of position for a quick counter.
Waterman has been a solid addition! Best part is how much he has shifted Jack from having to cover for whoever is next to him to providing support for him to cover more ground. And they have begun to feed off of each other's energy. Last night GGG made the most effective halftime tactics adjustment that I've seen from him all season. They shifted from trying to navigate a parked bus to drawing their block up the pitch and began playing balls in over the top. Despite only about 50% of the well timed runs being rewarded (many were looked off) it broke the game open! As much as gaining and losing Franco was meaningful, I'm extremely pleased with the growth of the sense of team. There were plenty of 'opportunities for improvements' but no one can say they didn't fight for each other! So nice to see everyone trying to match Hugo's tempo and passion! Papa Joe and GGG have things going in the right direction!
Calvo still playing and still looking better for national team than he does for his club. His stay at Fire ended because he repeatedly exceeded the “Screwup Limit”. Coaches (and many fans) will tolerate only so many blatant foulups by any player. The limit is much higher for forwards and declines as you move to back of formation. Allowable Screwup Limit for goalies is extremely low and CBs only slightly higher. Good plays by Calvo were overwhelmed by his screwups.
Possibly. But the screwups were perceived to be his, for right or wrong, and were a significant factor in his departure, IMO. Difficult to remove emotion from perception of a player and screwups elicit negative emotional responses. Negative emotion usually more heavily weighted than positive. A few bad experiences are more heavily weighted than they should be. Examples are many including loss avoidance bias in financial markets, fear of flying despite better overall safety record, etc. Many studies have shown this to be true.
Y'all are both correct. -Dumb mistakes generate deeeep doubt and fear. -Kappelhoff's play faded hard after 2017 and the options were 'never available and young' Teran, 'good depth and not a starter' Omsberg and 'not really a CB' Pineda to pair with him. Had 2022 Czichos been added in 2020 they could have been the best duo in the league!
So in summary (and this being the optimistic thread) with Waterman and Elliott on the Fire, the 2025 MLS Cup is a lock for the men in red. Nice.
I agree wholeheartedly but would just like to point out that even if studies back up the fact that emotion affects decisions doesn’t mean it’s intelligent.
No Franco, no Oregel and maybe no Zink. But I'm feeling very optimistic. Fire win 1-0 Saturday. Guti with a golazo!
Joe Chatz apparently thinks Zinck could be available for minutes Saturday. That idea definitely belongs in Optimism thread. Wish I could think that is possible.