It's not a coincidence that this happened when we no longer had all four starters in the lineup Pete (was worried about depth at the beginning of the season and more worried now)
Before, we collapsed against Cincinnati on 4/18/26, giving up goals in the 79th minute (F*ck you, Evander) and the 88 minute own goal.
Need to fact-check this, but here’s how I see it: we lost the Open Cup playing with two left-footed fullbacks, lost to Cincinnati without making subs, and lost today because the late substitutions came too late to change the game. Depth isn’t the issue. The bigger problem right now is the manager waiting too long to make adjustments or use game-management tactics. The players aren’t the main concern. We just got outplayed by a group of teenagers. Tough to hear, but that’s the reality right now.
Who the F scheduled this for mid-afternoon!!!! I had my day all planned out with my son's baseball game and hockey practice, only for my son to inform me that the game was starting as he was getting dressed in the locker room for hockey. Why did we not have a 7:30pm game? I might have even attended. I've missed the last 3 games now, of course, all losses. Blame it all on me even though it is on GGG and the Fire. Did we get Lewy yet? I think we need him now. I should open up a bottle of Malort now that my evening is ruined.
What does this mean? I read the description, but it seems when your rating is higher at every single position shouldn't you do better than a 3-1 loss?
Well...this game was hot garbage. The wind was terrible. The passing sucked or at least it wasn't clicking (and that pass from Brady to D'Avila that led to the penalty was a hospital ball). The off ball motion was poor and the Fire looked tired. NYRB outran the Fire. The defense was an issue. The manager refuses to use his bench in a timely manner and certainly isn't rotating starters much. The number of *ALMOST* goals in this run of losses is stacking so high it's like an all you can eat pancake buffet. Cuypers header denied by amazing save. MHS hits the crossbar (at least I think it was him?), Bamba scores but offsides. Puso Dithejane jukes 2 dudes and slots the perfect shot around the keeper only to be denied by an amazing goal line clearance. Shots 17/9 Shots On Goal 5/4 Corners 6/3 Passing accuracy 82%/73% Possession 59.5%/40.5% If the Fire were winning I wouldn't complain about GGG and his subs but he's just not subbing early or often enough. What happened to "trusting the kids"? Did Klopas get to him? In other news, good to hang with @bunge for a bit and meet @overlap_old_coach and put a face to the screen name. Also of importance is that I was present at the last two games which were losses so maybe I should STFU and get back to Kentucky and stop jinxing this squad. Clearly this is my fault.
I rolled in late in the lot, had a water and went inside. Didn't really do the whole "hang" as I was so NOT motivated this morning. 1:30 kickoff was difficult for me. Sorry I missed you.
Not here to say “I told you so.” I’m just so sad that this is how the season is going. My anger has dissipated to familiar Fire apathy. If D’Avila can make so many errors, lose multiple games and not get benched then this is both an indictment of MLS and the Fire’s roster construction. He and Bamba really have not worked out. Let’s stop talking about Lewandowski. The Fire need someone better in midfield if D’Avila is the best we have no matter how badly he plays. I’m not prepared to pin my hopes on Franco and his new ACL. Yeah we’re not in the wooden spoon race, but being better than dog shit isn’t something I’m going to get emblazoned on a t-shirt with pride.
In my view, this is the Fire roster right now: Everyone in green is a dependable MLS level starter. Almost (but not quite) a full starting 11. When healthy...which we're not. Everyone in orange is a solid sub. You don't want too many of those guys out on the field at any given time, but one or two won't kill you. Late in the game against tired starters you can win with them, but you're still rolling the dice. Note that Bamba is playing at "decent sub level." We can't have that. He NEEDS to turn green. Everyone else is not up to MLS talent. Some are young and some homegrown and so I'm happy to have them on the roster. The youngsters may not be totally ready yet, but they might be soon. Two weeks ago I might have put Dje in the orange - but he's playing poorly and I don't trust him now. If you're wondering why Berhalter isn't subbing, this is why. Especially when the starters aren't available, he hasn't got a lot he can depend on. Depth is a big problem for this team, especially when we are trailing. Half the roster can't be counted on. Pete (knows a lot of you guys really like Oragel, but he's been more an issue than a solution under Berhalter's system)
First- if Fire have 2 wins and a draw in next three matches, all of us on the sideline will say different things about the players and GGG.. Second- If all the various opinions of “ the real problem is” were compiled, there would only be a small number everybody agrees on. (This is Ok.) Third- The Fire game plan needs high energy play to succeed.
Absolutely. Pete (would like nothing more than to have to post apologies to Dje and Bamba in 2 weeks)
In times like these, it can help to remember we have more points than most of the other Eastern conference teams and we captured 3 points from the team with the most points. Frustrating stretch, but I’m hopeful GGG will use the film (notably on defense) to help the players improve and get back to frustrating other teams.
Not saying you or other posters were wrong ( or right) in your ideas, just saying it is hard not to be influenced by recent results when commenting on players and coaching strategy.
In times like these, it does not help (but is important) to remember that we've dropped points in four games to Eastern conference teams that are below us (Cincinnati twice, Columbus, DC). Three of those have been at home.
Yep. One would think they would have figured it out by now. I wonder if the relatively space crowds in the huge stadium, and subsequent (lack of) atmosphere has any bearing on it. I have long wondered what the "home field/pitch/court advantage", beyond familiarity, really means. Weird that this weekend only five home teams won: Portland, Dallas, Montreal, New England, & New York City.
Sometimes think maybe the supporter groups are a substantial factor. Do they work together? What is the relationship with the team? How dedicated to team are they? Is possible that Fire is weak in this area? If true, how to change the culture? Unfortunately, on a worst case scenario, it may take a couple years in the new stadium before this changes (if this is a significant part of problem).