Obviously we're bottom of the conference at the moment, so something's wrong... here's my thoughts. GOALKEEPER Hartman: A-. Probably the main reason we have any points at all so far. Can't be faulted for anything, he even has an assist. DEFENDERS Califf: B+. Distribution's improved, and in general I haven't noticed him. That's probably a good thing for a defender. Lalas: B. Solid. One only wonders why Sigi doesn't play him more. Hendrickson: C-. The only reason I haven't marked him lower is that I'll give him the injury excuse. It's not his fault that Sigi's playing him every game. If he's not fit, then I don't want to see him playing 90 minutes. Hong: B-. Great distribution, but not the rock in defense that I'd hoped he'd be. Could still be getting settled in - I thought last night was his best game on the defensive end, though I didn't watch the second half. Doesn't look comfortable in midfield, seems to play much better as sweeper. Unfortunately, that leaves us with Hong and Lalas playing the same position. Has Sigi considered Hong at right back? I saw him play there for South Korea a couple times, and he looked pretty good. With Ezra unfit, Hong at right back might be the best way to get both him and Lalas on the field. Marshall: B-. Looks suspect. Not sure why. He just does. Hasn't shown any of what he did last season. Lewis: B (tentative). Hasn't played much, but didn't look half bad. We'll probably see more of him over the summer during the Confed Cup and Gold Cup. MIDFIELDERS Elliott: C. What happened to his dead-ball ability? Also, slacking on the defensive end. Looks a bit off to me. A game or two on the bench might be in order. Victorine: B. I don't think he deserves the slating that he's received on BigSoccer. Perhaps limited, but he's been one of the bright spots in our midfield so far, one of the few players getting in good touches and intelligent passes. Cienfuegos: B-. Still moving the ball around well, but seems to lack the killer instinct that we saw last year. Coming off injury - will probably get better. Jones: B-. Hasn't looked very dangerous this season, though one might attribute it to the fact that we seem to lose the ball before it gets anywhere near him. What's he doing taking so many corner kicks? Is it because everyone else is so poor on dead balls? Vagenas: C. He's been the Invisible Man every time he's played so far. Pineda Chacon: B-. Looked fairly productive when he played. Not sure why he's sitting. Ochoa: C+. Disappointing in his two outings. Retiz: I. Not enough minutes to tell. FORWARDS Ruiz: B+. Has done what is expected of him, or at least what he can do with the lack of quality service. Holds the ball fairly well when receiving far from goal. Albright: B+. Looks surprisingly good compared to last season. Not that I'm fully convinced yet, but he's actually made some good runs and kept his head up, and his touch has improved quite a bit. Glinton: C. I still don't see what everyone else sees in Glinton. He's fast and can dribble, but his finishing is atrocious. Can't seem to strike a ball decently over any distance. Moreno: C. Largely invisible. I've seen him in dangerous positions only 2 or 3 times. Bardales: I. Not enough minutes to tell. COACH Schmid: D. A few things mystify me: 1) why he keeps playing Hendrickson; 2) his relative lack of substitutions, especially early in the season when we had 2 Champions Cup matches to play, and especially when constantly on the road; 3) what's keeping Alex Pineda Chacon on the bench; 4) Earth to Sigi, change that midfield, it's not doing anything right now; and 5) what the hell are we doing on set pieces, we used to be dangerous!
I'll give it a shot...but I'm not going to do the player-by-player version as you did... Hartman has been solid. I think he was partially at fault for the Davis goal in the second Burn match, and yesterdays goal he should have saved it. He even said said so in the postmatch interview yesterday on the HDNet broadcast... EZ...has he passed a ball FORWARD all season? He has been a non-factor in the offense this year... Hong/Lalas... This is a bad situation. We didnt really have the need to upgrade Lalas, yet when they broguht in Hong obviosuly for the "draw" factor, we should have seen this coming. I havent been particularly impressed with Hong's distribution, seems to me, but he's done well for the most part on Defense, yet the difference between him and Alexi on the D hasnt been that much of an improvemnet, if any. Hong got toasted by Preki and partially yesterday vs Colorado...Lalas is much more of a threat in the air and in the box on set pieces... If there is any way we could get them both on the pitch in a cohesive manner, maybe with Thug Life missing time due to the CC we can work something out...it would be great, but I dont see how...if I had to choose, I would start Lalas. I thought Ochoa did very well in the destroyer mode...needs to work a bit on his distribution, but I think he should continue getting minutes Elliot has been awful...him missing the next few matches due to the CC might be a blessing if he can play well with the Kiwis Sasha has been one of the brighter spots out there Cobi, Fish, Albright and GG have had their moments. I thought Chris was excellent against KC, and at this point would prefer him back in the starting 11 instead of GG and use Gavin as more of a "joker" role late in games. thats all for now..
aren't those grades for the field players a bit high considering the team has an F so far (no fault of hartman's certainly) - granted, i've only seen them three times but they were awful each time
GOALKEEPER Hartman: A-. Probably the main reason we have any points at all so far. Can't be faulted for anything, he even has an assist. My Grade - agree DEFENDERS Califf: B+. Distribution's improved, and in general I haven't noticed him. That's probably a good thing for a defender. My Grade - agree ( but i'm suspicious ) Lalas: B. Solid. One only wonders why Sigi doesn't play him more. My Grade - agree ( no quickness anymore ) Hendrickson: C-. The only reason I haven't marked him lower is that I'll give him the injury excuse. It's not his fault that Sigi's playing him every game. If he's not fit, then I don't want to see him playing 90 minutes. My Grade - D- ( Worst Galaxy player ) Hong: B-. Great distribution, but not the rock in defense that I'd hoped he'd be. Could still be getting settled in - I thought last night was his best game on the defensive end, though I didn't watch the second half. Doesn't look comfortable in midfield, seems to play much better as sweeper. Unfortunately, that leaves us with Hong and Lalas playing the same position. Has Sigi considered Hong at right back? I saw him play there for South Korea a couple times, and he looked pretty good. With Ezra unfit, Hong at right back might be the best way to get both him and Lalas on the field. My Grade - B+ ( pretty much agree ) Marshall: B-. Looks suspect. Not sure why. He just does. Hasn't shown any of what he did last season. My Grade - agree Lewis: B (tentative). Hasn't played much, but didn't look half bad. We'll probably see more of him over the summer during the Confed Cup and Gold Cup. My Grade - Incomplete ( see signs of Dante Washington in him ) MIDFIELDERS Elliott: C. What happened to his dead-ball ability? Also, slacking on the defensive end. Looks a bit off to me. A game or two on the bench might be in order. My Grade - D ( Is strictly playing on his rep now ) Victorine: B. I don't think he deserves the slating that he's received on BigSoccer. Perhaps limited, but he's been one of the bright spots in our midfield so far, one of the few players getting in good touches and intelligent passes. My Grade - D+ ( he's Invisible ) Cienfuegos: B-. Still moving the ball around well, but seems to lack the killer instinct that we saw last year. Coming off injury - will probably get better. My Grade - agree ( can we put his head on Victorines body? ) Jones: B-. Hasn't looked very dangerous this season, though one might attribute it to the fact that we seem to lose the ball before it gets anywhere near him. What's he doing taking so many corner kicks? Is it because everyone else is so poor on dead balls? My Grade - C- ( He's getting lazy & predictable ) Vagenas: C. He's been the Invisible Man every time he's played so far. My Grade - B- ( without Cien, he has no one of vision to pass to ) Pineda Chacon: B-. Looked fairly productive when he played. Not sure why he's sitting. My Grade - Incomplete ( he needs in Fast ) Ochoa: C+. Disappointing in his two outings. My Grade - C- ( There's nothing of wonder there ) Retiz: I. Not enough minutes to tell. My Grade - same ( although he's slower than I thought ) FORWARDS Ruiz: B+. Has done what is expected of him, or at least what he can do with the lack of quality service. Holds the ball fairly well when receiving far from goal. My Grade - same Albright: B+. Looks surprisingly good compared to last season. Not that I'm fully convinced yet, but he's actually made some good runs and kept his head up, and his touch has improved quite a bit. My Grade - same Glinton: C. I still don't see what everyone else sees in Glinton. He's fast and can dribble, but his finishing is atrocious. Can't seem to strike a ball decently over any distance. My Grade - C- ( great goal... great runs... great speed but he's bizarro DMB ) Moreno: C. Largely invisible. I've seen him in dangerous positions only 2 or 3 times. My Grade - D ( absolutely nothing impressive about this guy... A league player at best ) Bardales: I. Not enough minutes to tell. My Grade - D ( He and Moreno should both be in the A league ) COACH Schmid: D. A few things mystify me: 1) why he keeps playing Hendrickson; 2) his relative lack of substitutions, especially early in the season when we had 2 Champions Cup matches to play, and especially when constantly on the road; 3) what's keeping Alex Pineda Chacon on the bench; 4) Earth to Sigi, change that midfield, it's not doing anything right now; and 5) what the hell are we doing on set pieces, we used to be dangerous! [/B][/QUOTE] My Grade - Fail ( and thats not harsh either, we've got 4 points out of a possible 24, that equals about 17% of 100... if this were a test he'd fail ) Thusly, if he doesnt turn this around... he like EZ,Simon,Sasha,Cien and maybe a few others should be finding other places to pursue their careers.
Only two comments: If APC can't make the roster when Fish is suspended, how can he earn any grade at all? Give him an "F" so far. I would be a little more generous in grading Ochoa. His outing against Colorado was only fair, but in the Dallas game I thought he was the best mid-fielder on the team.
Eight games ago you and I would have been of the same mindset. I've changed my tune recently, and only because the Gs have been so impotent (direct attack and creativity of attack) on offense that I would have been happy to see a fan chosen from the seats to come in and give 'er a go. I think Glinton has a suspect first touch and concur that he can't finish very well, in spite of the highlight reel goal against Dallas. If his speed and dribbling skills can distract defenders from Ruiz for even 1 second, I'll take it at this point in the season. Overall, I would be happy just to see the Gs play a game with anything resembling conviction. Very, very disappointing. The win/loss record is just a product of the work effort. Fix the latter, and the wins will come.
Here are my observations: GOALKEEPER Hartman: A... As definately shown that he is in an elite class. It is a shame that he doesn't get more recognition at the National level. DEFENDERS... Overall A- Califf: A-.... has been very solid all season long. The back 3 in general have done a great job considering they are getting virtually no support. Lalas: B.... Pretty solid all season. Although, I have to wonder if there is a lack of communication between him and Bo that has made any attempt to play Bo as a D-mid not as successful as they could be. Hong: B-... Has played very well as a Sweeper. He reads the game and anticipates very well. Somewhat dissapointing when playind D-mid. Marshall: B+... Once again a strong member of a strong backline. The back 3 and Hartman... are the only saving grace at this point in the season Lewis: Incomp... hasn't seen a lot of playing time. I do suspect we will be seeing alot of him while Califf is gone. MIDFIELDERS... Overall D Elliott: C... Has had a couple of decent matches, I think he is definately better suited as a D-mid. Was asked to step it up this season, was not able to deliver. Victorine: D... Addes nothing positive to either the attacking third nor the defensive third. Plays the games very SOFT, cannot stand up to physical challenges, lacks the ability to take on opposing defenders 1 vs 1, his crosses are usually high looping balls to nobody and is just plain slow. Hendrickson: F----...He is by far the worst player on the Galaxy, maybe the entire MLS. He has been late when making challenges (incidentally, this is why he got the Red Card against Dallas, although I did think it was harsh). Constantly out of position defensively. Holds the ball to long offensively and ends up losing it or passing to nobody. His has looked completely uninspired all season... NEEDS TO SIT DOWN Cienfuegos: B-.... Proves again that is still by far the best play maker on the team. It really is a shame that he cannot be surrounded by a good Mid-field to protect him against hes defensive liabilities, similar to what they tried to do with Valderama that last couple of seasons. Jones: C... Not really sure what to make of Cobi this season. Has dissapeared for long stretches this season. Still has been instumental in rare flashes of offensive presence. Vagenas: B-... Personally, I think he may be the most underated player on the Galaxy. When in the lineup he stabilizes our horrendous midfield and is a good distributor of the ball. However, staying healthy seems to be a problem for him judging from the last couple of seasons. Albright: B+... I think he should be starting instead of EZ. Has shown great hustle every time out. One of the few players to be able to say this. Adds speed, something this team lacks. His defensive pressure created the goal against New York. Finishing of course is still suspect, which why I think he is better suited as wide midfielder. Pineda Chacon: F.... If he cannot even make it to the bench... he is not only wasting a roster spot, but a Senior International spot as well. He either needs to start producing or released so that we can find someone to fill the SI slot that does produce. Ochoa: B-... I thought his play against Dallas was fantastic. He did make much of a presence against Colorado, but I suspect this was in large part due to Colorado attacking the flanks where Victorine and especially EZ were vulnerable. Retiz: Incomp... I would like to see him get more PT FORWARDS Overall B- Ruiz: B+... Once again the offense. Really needs someone to step up and become enough of a threat to force the defense to make adjustments. Glinton: B-... Shown some potential. His speed is certainly going to help open things up for RUIZ. Needs to do better with the ball in the 18 yard box. Moreno: C... Better suited as a late game sub than a starter. COACH Schmid: D.... I really do not understand his game management. He continues to play EZ, Elliott and Victorine. I have never felt he was very good at developing younger talent, which is why I think you are seeing Mullan and Ching play so well in San Jose after they left. With the exception of his first draft Califf, Vagenas and Victorine... what player has Sigi drafted that is receiving significant playing time. And with the exception of Califf... has there been a player that Sigi has drafted that really improved their game. For that matter... is there any player that has really improved their play since they have been with the Galaxy.
As much as we all want to hit the panic button already, we have to remember that during last year's championship season we had 7 points after this many matches as well, and that was including home games. There is no need to panic - YET. It is looking rather ugly though on the offensive end - losing to Colorado still smarts. Hopefully the coming home party will also be the coming out party for the team. I figure the week off will have helped Ruiz a bit to catch his breath after a very busy start to the season, along with his Guatemala Gold Cup qualification matches. We'll bounce back.
I don't know why you guys couldn't bounce back. You have arguably one of the more talented lineups in the league, yet you look like absolute crap. Perhaps some more changes are needed, changes that Schmidt hasn't made(or is unwilling to make.) Hartman's been your real bright spot as he's off to another good season, but it's just hard to figure out what's wrong with this team.
Re: Re: Re: Grading the team to date [R] Except on the Riot Squad boards. Man, they're nasty over there now.
Other than having some players who may not be as good as they were (i.e., Elliott and EZ), I can only think it comes down to the mental aspect: motivation and focus. Neither of which we seem to have at the moment.
It's interesting for a Rev Fan to see that APC hasn't faired any better in LA than he did in New England. For a guy that was the MVP in 2001 it's amazing that he can't find his way into the line up for a team that is winless and whose midfield is struggling. As a Rev he didn't fit into Nicols system. What's the problem in LA? If he didn't fit into your coaches system why did he sign him? George
All excellent questions. I have no inside info, but here's my guess: Over the years, LAG has picked through the scrap heap of other teams' cast offs. Some have blossomed (Ezra) others have fizzled (Winston Griffiths). APC was a risk going in, but with his MVP year not that far behind him he was worth a shot. Sometimes these things don't work out. LAG had to get rid of Matt Reis. Salary cap did not admit of having two quality keepers and it was a strain on team chemistry. Don't know what options they had - maybe there were no better offers for Matt and LAG went with one that had some upside potential. So far it looks like a bomb. ("Bomb" here used in the old pejorative sense and not as in "He's the bomb.")
Answer Because Sigi thought he was getting KFC not APC..... But that obviously didnt stop the Sigmeister from eating APC that is why no one has seen him 6 weeks. mmm fingerlickin' hounduran good !!! Ole'
About the whole dropping 20 points, if we go by the old win at home, draw on the road and you're set, then really we've only dropped 4 points, which isn't so bad really =) (I just keep telling myself this.....)