Post-match: Jones/Yeboah Testimonial Match, Presented by Kalshi - Crew v Nashville - Match 4 - 3/14/26 6:15P

Ah, wait a second, did Frankie get canned, with no announcement from the club?

 

1) Pedantry requires me to point out that 13/7 is less than 2. It's four wins and a draw against mostly bad teams.

2) They showed in the first two games that they can score against bottom feeders and they now have Gomes to help the defense.

Four wins in the next seven feels like a realistic indicator that Rydström is adapting and that his philosophy is setting in. If they're at or under a PPG through 11 matches, that's enough of a sample to have some conviction that he isn't the guy.

 

I thought we'd never outdo ourselves after giving up the first home loss to Chivas USA but we've earned a place in history again! Big props to all the players who starved themselves today before the game! Without them, this lackluster, low blood sugar performance may not have happened.

 

19,960 is tonight's announced attendance.

— Massive Report (@MassiveReport) March 14, 2026

 

Felt like around 18k.

The regular stands pretty full. Nordecke had a lot of tickets left available

 

No Frankie
No Match Ignitor
No postgame sing-along

What is this?

 

Gomes looks legit so that was cool.

 

In the spirit of @Ch(Elsey) and her way of "fun-sizing" everything, let me add another one to the vocabulary:


"Bolshevik!"

 

Yeah, since weve gone defensive, the connectivity has been off. Part of it is none of the midfield double pivot can progress the ball on the dribble. Taha has to go pick up the ball, and is often tackled. Although, he looked stronger tonight.

Further, in buildup, the attacking 3, 4, or rarely 5 players are so far apart and disconnected, even when they get the passes and touches right to do ladders, we arent in positions to make the most of it. Arfsten looks bad without a tango partner and cannot play as an out-n-out winger. He looked so much better when we were running the relationism stuff in the first 2 games.

When we get the ball in the box, the 2 players there crash to the same post and no one arrives late to receive the cutbacks or far post reception. Happened twice when the press worked for herrara and taha. Need to cut it back, and there were opportunities. Players seem pressed to get the ball to wes. Lots of players doing too much too, Wes and Arfsten especially.

 

Rewatched the goal, and Camacho actually wasnt as much at fault as I thought. He stupidly left Espinosa to defend surridge who herrara (at CB, Moreira was caught at RB) didnt get inside of. Then he didnt defend. But Malte and slightly less so sean didnt cover Hany. Picard also pressed najar badly and left the shape open.

 

FWIW: That goal we saw? Goal number 25,000 in MLS history.

It's never good to be on the wrong side of history.

 

This team bores me.

 

Wes was coming back on defense some.

 

When they gave up the goal, and obviously the game, at the last second, my overwhelming feeling was disgust. Not at the team, but at myself for sitting through 90 minutes of futile, crap, boring soccer.

The fact that Nashville came into the Crew's building and were comfortable starting most of their bench, and having it work out just fine for.them, is only icing on the crap.

Tall out.

 

It’s a rare thing when I channel my inner @LaMacchia and claim I had a good time last night despite the loss. So don’t get used to it. Mostly, it’s because I got to hang out with my son and his girlfriend pre-game at Hofbrauhaus for 90 minutes and just enjoyed being out with them. Then, too, my expectations of the club are low this year, mid-table at best. It’s as though people can’t remember what it was like during those long-ago days in 2021 and 2022 when we missed the playoffs and act as though the Crew are God’s gift to MLS and deserve to be a top shelf club simply by the club’s existence.

I hate making qualitative statements about games I’ve watched in person. It’s so hard to really assess what’s going on. That said, I really liked what I saw from Gomes. Hopefully, he’ll be 90 minutes fit by next weekend.

But the chronic lack of a quality CB and Gazdag’s albatross-like weight are too much of a drag on the roster to sustain, will be taken advantage of by everyone we play this season until they’re addressed. We could field a team of journeymen quality players without too much effort. Guys like Chambost, Picard, Sejdic are a dime a dozen in MLS, yet they start or are first tier subs on this team.

As the new manager, Rydström will obviously be taking the heat for our performance, but this is largely Tall’s and Nancy’s roster. And Jimmy’s. The club’s been in a seller’s mood the past couple of years, unwilling to pay what it takes to replace like-for-like quality, instead focusing on cheaper, needle in a haystack guys that we somehow hope will blossom into all stars for us, despite being missed by the rest of the global soccer intelligentsia while playing in Azerbaijan or a lower French league.

There’s still quality on this roster. But unless the club honestly faces the qualitative disadvantage it’s placed itself in, roster quality wise, we’ll be partying like it’s 2021 or 2022 in here before long.

Anyway, I enjoyed last night. But I’ll be holding onto my money and not attending another match until the club proves they’re committed to trying to be competitive in this league.

 

There was a match igniter

 

The more I think about this line, the better it gets.

Well said.

 

But it wasn't the same. I'm sure the phrase "match igniter" was used, but yeah, the new thing is...strange. It'd be more appropriate in 2028.

And was SC there?

 

SC is reportedly dead. Just like the full pretzels from Ben's

 

It seemed odd to dump the whole part of the SC brand, but keep the mascot.

Now if they could bring the OG or second Crew Cat back, all would be good.

 

We suck.

If we wait till summer to dump Gazdag and sign a DP, the POs will be out of reach.

Abou Ali has been underwhelming.

It is still early, but I am starting to think that blowing it up and starting over could be on the cards for 2027 if not summer..

I do not trust Issa to do it, though.

 

Fun fact: Gazdag (6.5) and Ali (6.57) are very close in Fotmob ratings so far this season.

 

doom