so much stink when Letoux was traded even to this day... but Califf....a distant memory? The boys (Okugo) have clearly filled the void rather well on the field....I wonder if he had any part in the locker room that is now missing good/bad. But as fans no one seems to miss Danny...personally I liked him on the field more than Letoux.
You alluded to the reason in your post. The defense, especially Okugo, have done an admirable job holding down the fort, and the additional of Soumare can only solidify that even more. Couple that with our latest captain getting the nod from the commish as an all-star, and I don't think there are many folks still gnashing their teeth over Califf's departure. The defense is just fine, if not better. If Califf were to be traded to DCU (or any other Eastern Conference team, especially one along I-95) I think there'd be a lot of hemming and hawing over that move. <segue> Le Toux being traded to RBNY just reopens old wounds, especially for a player whose primary position is putting the ball in the back of the net. Scoring goals, for most folks, is what makes the game truly exciting and is the one "tangible" stat that shows whether a player is good or not. It's one thing to see him play for another team, but when that team is a rival it makes the situation just that much worse.
Well............through 17 matches last season the Union scored 20 goals (6 of which came in the TFC match, and were held scoreless 5 times) and gave up 15 goals (5 Clean Sheets). Through 17 matches this season.............the Union have scored..................20 goals (Scoreless 5 times) and have given up 19 goals (5 Clean Sheets). So simply going off of those numbers it appears that we miss Califf on the field more judging by the increase in goals conceded.
Who would have guessed Okugo would do so well in defence? If he had not adopted so well, we'd be lamenting Califf a lot more. And of course, Nowak did not think he'd do well there, so the trade was made for the wrong reason. Can we subtract goals allowed when Lopez was on the field?
Fixed. Plus comparing goals scored vs goals allowed in this case is not accurate (statistically speaking) since Califf was here for at least some of the goals we conceded this year, while LeToux was not here for the (few) that we scored.
Only thing is that 3 of those goals Califf was also on the field for (Portland match, how did we lose to that team??!?!?!)......... but we could still take 3 goals off of that total As Califf did not play against Colorado and Chicago. The scary thing is that this group is only going to get better! Scary in a good way for us, and scary in a bad way for the rest of the league............. FYP LeToux only had one goal at the mid way point of the season last year, so in a way it is comparable.
Definitely agreed. I think Hackworth's commitment to a consistent lineup has really helped their chemistry too.
I don't know what to think about the captaincy and Valdes. It was awesome that he scored the other night to win the game. But he takes too many risks dribbling with the ball and I don't think he is level headed enough for the armband. Just some more props for Okugo...he has been great!
I miss Califf, but mostly as a figurehead, a face for the team, someone comfortable with the media and for being super fan-friendly. Many of us at the time understood he was not a standout player on the field but our (apparent) lack of other options left many worrying. And Amobi was there all the time. Guess we won't be seeing Chivas here this year but I bet Danny will get a warm reception when he comes.
I agree on the props for Okugo he has been very good as a CB. Ironically you mention Valdes taking to many risks dribbling as I think both him and Okugo sometimes go to far upfield. There are times; however, that it is really their only option as the midfield either doesn't show for the ball or are tightly marked. Valdes is definitely a very good CB for us though and I think the only real detriment is the language barrier. With that said though he is learning English which will only help the team. As to being level headed I think he has improved greatly this year from last. None of our Captains have been 'Level headed' and out of the three I think Valdes may be the calmest.
I think people got over it because relatively quickly we picked up what should be a better player at cb. All we got for Le 2 was a bag of monopoly money and arguably no real improvement at the position + no real explanation from the FO so some people are still WTF about it.
I think this is the reason we still see 2 DMs, so when Valdes/Okugo move up, Carroll and Gomez can track back and be sufficient cover.
Okugo makes the team of the week: http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/2012/07/17/team-week-wk-19-goals-galore-thats-not-all That will help us forget about Danny Califf.
Rather have to need to make a decision like that rather then 'Should we put party rock in?' Okugo has steadily improved each game back there and has shown that he deserves to play. Only problem is where and in place of who? If Gomez is being brought back cautiously then letting Okugo take Lahoud's spot would probably be a good move. Carroll is still the man to be in front of the defense and guessing you put Soumare in once fit then the only real option is LM/RM or what ever they designate Lahoud as.
It's a good problem to have. It's a long season. While I'm all for continuity, there will be injuries and suspensions (Valdes and Gomez will receive their 5th yellows soon). At the end of the year, we may well be saying that Okugo is the team's MVP. Where would the team be without him?
Isn't there some "good conduct" rule where a yellow card is removed from the total accumulation after a certain amount of time?
Yes. When you have 4, if you go 3 games without a caution, your number reduces to 3. Once you have 5, you are suspended for one game. You are then suspended for an additional game for every 3 additional yellows you receive. Valdes currently has 4 yellows. If he does not receive a yellow on Saturday, it will be reduced to 3. If he picks up a yellow on Saturday, he will be suspended for the next game. http://www.mlssoccer.com/mls-disciplinary-summary FWIW, McCarty and Lindpere both have 4. Hopefully, that will cause them to play cautiously on Saturday.
Valdes has been Yellow card free since the LA game I believe (Maybe Houston?)? If so, if he goes cardless in NY his card total will be lowered for good behavior by one.
Right. But I think it still is unlikely that he will get through the season without getting suspended once.
Okugo must play at this point. This will definitely be his last year in GA and the club will have his full salary on the books next season, so there's no financial motivation not to play him. Given how strong he's been in central defense, I don't see any reason to tinker with that, even if Soumare is fully fit. We're giving up very few goals and Okugo hasn't been at fault for any of them in my recollection. He's very difficult for attackers to beat one on one. If the coach does decide to play Soumare, then Okugo should take Caroll or Gomez/Lahoud's spot in the midfield. Okugo is just as good defensively as Caroll and offers much more on the attack, particularly with respect to his distribution and vision. Gomez likes to get forward and is good for poaching a goal in the 18 - something that I don't think Okugo is particularly good at - but his fitness has been questionable since the injury. I would start all three over Lahoud, who I really see as little more than a depth option. Califf is a good central defender. He's a bit slow, but he makes up for it with good positioning, strength, and aerial ability. He did very well paired with Valdes because Valdes's strengths covered Califf's weaknesses. Okugo's emergence and the Soumare acquisition covered the loss of Califf on the field, although I think a lot of us still miss Califf as a personality He's a great guy. Also, I know a lot of people here are really high on Soumare, but this guy is somewhat of a question mark in my mind. He still hasn't returned to fitness weeks after his signing, and he hasn't even appeared in the 18, let alone seen a minute of play.
Here's the MLS Rules for 2012:. I agree he'll eventually earn a suspension for accumulation of yellow cards, but it might not be for another few games (hopefully).
I think we're going to miss Califf's defense on set pieces, and as much as I think the Union are getting better, they're also going through a really soft part of the schedule. The strength-of-schedule rankings in MLS N&A have the Union at the top in terms of the opponents' strength for the remainder of the season, so I think we're going to see some setbacks along the way here. Soumare is going to have a role to play, for sure.