This has been bothering me for some time, Has Jason lost control of RSL? Seems to me that the team we have been told is the most talented in MLS has really lost its way. Teams all over the world have seen their successful coaches lose control of their teams after very successful seasons. It is often a matter of respect for the coach, does Kries still have the respect of his players?
Kreis plays the same players no matter what they do on the field. how can a player truley respect a coach that allows that to happen. No way Gil should have been subbed off for Steele and Javi isn't a 90 min player anymore. Sabo is good for 1 thing and 1 thing only, headers.
Warning: I'm pissed off. Has Kreis lost it? Well he is losing it if its not lost yet. But its not all on Kreis. The players have to make better decisions, and be faster. Oh and if we can get Checketts to write some big fat checks to the MLS Ref association that would help immensely.
Why blame JK for RSL losing to a better team 3 times in a row? With the exception of Espy, KB5 is the only player on this team with a fighter's heart. He tried to set the example for the rest tonight. What did they do? Nothing. They folded. While it has some notable weaknesses, RSL has a talented team for MLS. But its obvious to me that SJ and a couple of other teams are more talented. Blame it on the coach if you want to. But when pretty well payed professional athletes can't get up for a game this big, then the problem lies with them; not the coach.
I blame JK for one huge thing: teams know how to beat us. Speed on the wings kills us and we don't have the answer for it. That lies squarely on the coaching staff to have us prepared for. The diamond isn't dead, but for some teams its incredibly ineffective. We need a tactic adjustment for teams like SJ that will kill us on the wings all day.
I think this is the bottom line. The braintrust needs to train this team for some alternate formations to use against teams that have figured out how to break down our development of tempo (passing along the back line) and to close down Beckerman (the key to getting the ball forward from the back line on most plays).
I'm also rather sick of having a big target forward like Sabo up there, but then playing a system/style that doesn't compliment him. We are pretty bad at crossing the ball in. It typically takes us like 5-10 warmup crosses just to actually get one to Sabo's head. The diamond inefficiencies are the biggest issue I'm having, as well. We are so predictable. We are so narrow. We are so slow. It's frustrating to sit and watch RSL get beat by the same thing, over and over again. Oh, and NOBODY on this squad should feel like they have great job security. The performances this season are hinting at this team getting blown up - and not in a slow manner.
I am only quoting your sentiments here because I agree with all of them. I tweeted that I knew how this game was going to go. It just seems when they go out there I can tell... #IknowIamnotspecial I said it before when JK had his press conference and he stated: I wouldn't want to be a player on my blah blah blah... that he was going about it the wrong way. I got flamed. Cool. But look at the results since then (I am not a big enough geek to pull them out, but I know they are bad.) I would not advocate for him being fired, or anything that extreme. I don't think you have to blow up the team given the talent level either, but yes, to answer the OP question, he has lost this team. He lost it in the CCL final in my opinion, for most of them. Not his fault probably, but it is the way things go. I wish I had a good suggestion to fix it - I don't, just not soccer smart enough, but I hope JK is as smart as I hoped he was. So far, he looks like a mid-table coach unable to get his guys ready for very big games.
I just don't see how you came up with this. A couple of weeks after that game Javi's ankle was broken, and he still isn't close to being the Javi before that event. If ya'll remember, early in his tenure Jason tried several formations, trying to find one that worked. The diamond was the one that did. It worked because it took full advantage of Javi's skills. When Javi went down, Jason kept it, knowing that Javi would, one day, be back. He keeps it for that reason. I think he has no choice but to stay with it through this season. All this to say that I don't believe he has lost the team. Everything is built on 1) A solid back-line, and 2) Javi. The back-line is a shadow of what it once was. Javi isn't Javi. I think it boils down to these two points.
And since teams have figured that out and how to counter it, that would logically mean it's time for a new formation/strategy right?
Not particularly. If we had had our 2nd or 3rd CB instead of a brand new 4th, I think we might have been alright defensively last night. A different attacking strategy might have been good to see. The one thing I think can be coached up is our defending on set pieces deep in our end. We've had issues with those all year.
I agree. And it also seems like 3 players just converge on Javier , because he isn't getting the ball out to another player quick enogh so therefore the offense is taken away. Also we have no crosses or shots from Johnson or Gil, or javier. We do need another gameplay not just the diamond .
Creativity in the midfield, the ability to play the ball out to the wings, crosses back into the box for your target striker. All things RSL seems to be lacking. Javi is being hacked and triple teamed, talented players not seeing time, Valasquez. Non talented players seeing too much time, Steele. All issues, but what I really want to know is does Kreis still have the respect of his team? And is he still able to teach, coach and motivate these players anymore? To me our young coach is starting to look like a real young coach.
Our passing efficiency under pressure often flounders, especially when we're playing our 14th guy+. The movement isn't there like it has been in many of our better performances.
I think this observation can't be over-emphasized. SJE's front line pressured our backs and GK into tons of turnovers. Additionally, down the field, it looks like our guys receiving opasses sort of wait for the ball to get to them. It allows defenders with speed to cover ground and intercept the ball before it arrives to the intended receiver. These are my elementary takes on this subject. Probably perception more than reality.
movement is so underrated in this sport. Honestly, it's the real reason why Barca/Spain are so damn good. They all move, always, off and on the ball. RSL, on the other hand, can be seen stagnant quite often. Watch the game tonight for proof. When we get the ball to an outside back, both the forwards stay in their spots. They don't make diagonal or switching runs. The midfield builds triangles but then does nothing to move them/use them. It's really one of the most irritating parts of a "Jason Kreis" team. If this guy is such a stickler about conditioning and effort, why do we seem to have so little of it?
Couldn't agree more, I refer to 'when the passing has to stop', you need a plan B which is not just pump high balls to the box in the last ten minutes if you are not winning. I don't think Jason is in the Mourinho class but in making substitutions he's trying to change the shape of the team to counter some failure in RSL or strength in the opposition in order to gain a result. Jose has been known to make double substitutions in the first half if the starting line up wasn't doing the business. This in fact is Jose's talent, spotting the key influences in a match [whilst under way] and making tactical adjustments with or without substitions to regain advantage To make such changes doesn't mean that the worst performing player has to ome off, to play different tactics you may need players with different attributes Jason's doing ok, if the players can't recognise changes to create wins out of losses then that's their ignorance In fact Jason is doing amazing for a player in his first managerial position and a forward at that. This must also reflect well on the rest of the coaches and the club management and administrative teams
I find it interesting that you used Mourinho as your comparison. I remember listening to the weekly "Coach's Corner" (or is it Coaches Corner?) on KALL700 when Jason first was put in as the coach. He said he was constantly reading about other coaches, reading tactical books, etc. Know which coach he was really intrigued by and reading up on? Mourinho. Maybe he's taken pages from Jose's book.
Can't really go wrong learning from guys like Mourinho, Ferguson, and Guardiola. They all employ different tactics, but they're certainly the best in the world and great people to take notes from.
I agree. I just found it funny/ironic that gretnapie compared Jason to one of the guys he was studying. He must've learned something from all the books and biographies he was reading.
We can all learn from great coaches - I like Mourinho in particular because he has inmatch vision as well as the usual management and tactical skills [and budget]
Sorry, I can't let any discussion of Jose Mourinho pass without posting my favorite youtube video of all time: Jose Arrogantio and his star striker, Didier Peskovic.
Very good selective video, definately amusing Unfortunately his track record means that a certain amount 'Arrogantio' has to be tolerated if not is justified
Just watched Special 1 tv, thanks for the reference "15" I had not seen it before. I guess the better you are the more open you are to satire... even me