I haven't followed the team minute by minute this season....and I hate to start yet another thread about the kid....but what do you guys think about him not getting in this weekend? Good or bad, and how do you rate his progress for the season and what do you expect for next season? I figured I would go straight to the source and find out what the real fans than see him every week think. thanks.
After the whooping unleashed (not on purpose ) by Ziadie in the season final, it was best to not put him in. He had a sprained shoulder - probably due to Pope pulling him down and then of course by a brutal tackle. Yes Pope, I'm calling you a child beater! Although he did get DC two assists in that match I think DC pulled out of that match what they needed just fine without him. Freddy has essentially become a target for abuse, and somewhat of an expensive one.
He looks to be a good prospect especially in the midfield and NOT at forward. At this point in time he is not a complete player and has plenty of work to do..but you see the potential. He didn't play last weeke because United was in a position to protect a 1 goal then 2 goal lead in an away playoff game where novak opted for more expierenced players...Kovalenko and Stewart instead of Gros and Adu. Adu was also nursing a shoulder injury from the Zaidie incident from the week before, no need to risk him aggrevatiing it in a game where we need to take our 1 or 2 goal lead and protect it.
According to this article, Freddy wasn't available to play. http://soccernet.espn.go.com/report?id=167854&cc=5901 Don't actually know how accurate that is. He seemed to be warming up in front of us on Saturday night.
Yeah, I know he wasn't lighting the league on fire but he did seem to get a bit more comfortable playing mid later in the season. I assume that was due to getting much more space to operate and utilize his speed? How fast is he anyway? I assume his biggest issue going forward is size and experience as much as anything.
That Freddy made the 16-man away squad was an indication that he was able to play. You don't waste one of four slots (the fifth is for the backup GK) if you're not able to play. But with us holding on to a 1-0 lead in a physical game, Peter probably thought it was best to put in Gros rather than risk Freddy.
I'm sure he could have played but was still hurting anyway. The other fact is that MLS (as Jeff Bradley points out) in the playoffs are much like NHL playoffs--lots of grabbing and tactical fouls. A small, slight player who doesn't defend well isn't necessarily your first option off the bench--unless you're looking for someone to earn a free kick perhaps.
That makes sense, the physical play with an at least semi-injured freddy. I didn't know he was banged up at all form that flip. Looking back at the season, I think his minutes and points for the year were pretty good all things considered. He looked a bit lost to start the year and toward the end looked much more in control. Granted some of that was probably due to the position change.
Good point, forgot about that aspect of it. You wouldn't bring an injured player along even if it is Freddy Adu.
It was a tactical decision to not play Freddy.. We got up a goal relatively late (67th minute) and immediately took off a tired and cramping Gomez.. At this point, Nowak switched Dema back into his more preferred central midfield role and Gros went to the left flank.. Nowak could have subbed Freddy straight up for Gomez, which he has done in recent weeks, but Nowak decided to play defensive and protect the precious one goal lead that eventually got to two goals.. At that point, putting Freddy in would have been purely aesthetic.. Both Freddy and this team will move on despite the devastation of not playing in a playoff game.. Game tactics chose the path from Nowak..
More space to operate, yes, and less chance of him receiving the ball with his back to the goal and needing to hold off a defender. He's fast, but not like a Michael Owen of a Landon Donovan. He's more like Beasley. Quick to change direction and good at wrong-footing defenders, which makes him appear faster than he is. He doesn't yet have the stamina of any of those players, though, so he's less likely to use his speed to disrupt the other team's posession game. As the season has progressed, he's shown the promise that led to the hysteria, but predictably, he hasn't been able to sustain it for 90 minutes against grown men.
I have never seen Freddy run (in fact most of the time he jogs which is very anoying when you compare him to Esky)....He is quick with the ball at his feet and can dance and make quick cuts but I don't think he has sprinters speed.
I disagree. I've seen him run and he's fast. Very fast. He just doesn't usually have to use it. I agree that watching him job around is a bit annoying (compared to Esky, anyway), but when he needs it, he's got a rocket in his bum. --kravi
This bugged the hell out of me earlier in the season. Despite being a spry teenager, he never seemed to be going faster than a jog, except sometimes when the ball was at his feet. To be fair though, he seemed to become much more lively toward the end of the season. Maybe he was finally learning the pro game a little bit.
I like your posts but this isn't true. I think the hope is that he gets a bit older he will keep growing getting stronger AND faster. Right now, he is average at best for MLS. Last regular season game there was an interesting situation where Gaven and Adu were sprinting after a ball into the corner, all alone the two of them. Gaven was quite a bit faster, and I don't think of him as a speedster.
I don't know. I've seen him outrun several players when going after the ball (though granted I can't name any of them ). When he gets his head down and sprints he's fast. I don't think he's a speedster at all, you're right, but he's fast enough that I'd qualify him as above average. Average being completely subjective of course. I'm sorry I used superfast. I was using that subjectively (superfast for a 15 year old). Sometimes things in my head don't make it out onto the ether so well. --kravi