Kansas City at Los Angeles (Sat. Jun 24th, 9:30PM CST) [R]

At least we get the team on short rest instead of being the team on short rest?

 

is gio still with the gals or is he in russia with mexican national team?

 

Russia

 

Good.

 

So are we a bad and mean club if we don't play him while injured?

 

Eh, we're not popular around the league for a wild variety of reasons. Unfortunately none of those reasons is that we win too many games.

 

Yeah, but we do win more than most.
I will admit there were some ugly seasons before rebrand number 2, but since? Only NYRB, LAG and Seattle have been more consistently good.
As for the other reasons, buncha whiners. Carefree, I say...

 

Opara. Damn.

 

F you Toledo and F you Smith, LA should b down to 10 and Feilhaber couldn't put pressure on his ankle.

 

Let's check in with Jillian...

 

If you want something exciting to happen in the game check in with Jillian.

 

Ike, Ike, get on your bike, and score us another one cause that's what we like...
Comprehensively great first half. Too bad Melia didn't quite pull off what would have been a stunning double save.
Is there word on Benny? fingers crossed, but that didn't look good. It was also an apparent LA tactic, they did that crap three times, scissoring the ankle after the ball is gone on Benny, Gerso and Ike. Should have at least one red.
Beyond that, Blessing's speed and high defensive pressure is pretty great. I like Medranda there, as well, but there were three occasions where I thought Blessing had just created a goal out of nothing (none came to be, but still). Blessing is find.
With Blessing and Gerso on the wings, wow, we are really fast. There was a moment when Gerso outran Boatang and I was thinking, this is a different look for SKC.
Dom was swallowed whole by the Belgian (wow, just forgot his name).
These were three great points. The LA announcers (MLS Live) kept making the point that LA plays better on the road, but it was still a good day's work.

 

SKC broadcast said during the game he had a shin contusion and an ankle sprain and was in a lot of pain.
This is how he made it back to the lockerroom though....

Strength and conditioning coordinator Mateus Manoel putting in extra work, with the piggyback for @b_feilhaber22! pic.twitter.com/K0VE58X4J3

— Nate Bukaty (@nate_bukaty) June 25, 2017

I think starting Blessing, with his pace, on the road where teams are more likely to come out of their shell more is a good move.

 

That was entertaining. I settled down into the couch and fully expected to pass out mid-way through the first half only to find myself fully engaged. Grab bag:
1) Gerso is good on the ball and brings the attack a look we've not had in a long time
2) Blessing and Gerso are fast - or at least not slow.
3) Geez Dom. 3A) Stay onside. 3B) For the love, put the ball on goal.
4) It's be said before, but how was Melia the pool keeper for the league?
5) Benny was carried off after the game. Ugh.
6) I almost swore when Ike was down after banging knees. Guy is MLS best XI.
7) GC roster should be out today. Hoping we have nobody called (not realistic, I know).
8) Zusi was good last night and keeps looking better at RB.
9) Can we please (pretty please) quit asking on the broadcast for people to vote our players to the ASG?

 

Good 3 points on the road. 2 goals I would have never seen coming, poor Diop was getting hounded pretty hard by his own fans the rest of the game (perhaps not undeservedly). Meanwhile Melia so close to save of the year and another great outing other than a couple errant long balls. We absorbed a lot of pressure the second half. Nervy after the late goal last week, but they finished it out well enough.

Doms finishing in fine form again last night. Particularly frustrating when the keeper is having such a howler. Anything on frame is dangerous.

Benny...might be out for awhile. Getting carried to the locker room doesnt seem a good sign. His ankle went all sorts of the wrong way on that challenge. Hope disco takes a look, not that it will help us any. Guessing we'll see Jimmy in the middle and more of blessing/salloi.

I'm getting more comfortable watching us play out of the back. Early this year I was puckered up pretty tight while we were passing around under pressure in our third. But pretty much everyone is looking like they're in control now. Seth is the only one of the back 6 that still seems happy to get the ball off his foot asap.

As mentioned already, it's really weird watching gerso/blessing winning footraces after the last couple seasons. I like it.

 

Seth always seems uncomfortable on the ball. It bugs me more on the offensive end and on breaks where he seems to make a negative pass 90% of the time rather than a cross or anything putting pressure on the defense. Any time the ball goes out to him on the wing that is where that offensive move dies and the ball is cycled back around through the back. That might be ideal in keeping possession but there are times when he can try to put people through or whip a cross in and instead the ball goes backwards.

 

Dom's finishing was off, but we complained a bit earlier this year and he went on a tear. He's a streak scorer, he just needs a second one this season, and then a third...
Question: By now, I know I am missing something. What did Salloi add in place of Blessing (who I grant was at the point he tends to come out, but he'd just created a really nice shot on target). Cobi, announcing for LA, was more than a bit baffled, so it wasn't just me. Still, what am I missing?
If we were trying to lock the game down, am I missing the defensive work he does? If we were trying to grab a third, is he putting in the off the ball work to free up space for others or something?
What I see is a player who isn't at ease at this level. I will admit, he's better than he was a month ago. maybe that's the point

 

Height for set-pieces was the rationale mentioned on the broadcast.

 

Blessing can't play 90, but Vermes didn't want to sacrifice a winger for a defensive sub at that point in the game. Salloi was legs. And while he's not as good as Blessing, I have thought he's been stepping up the last couple outings.

 

I'd thought he'd looked well in his start in the USOC.

 

Yeah, he looked healthy that game. Haha, I do agree, that open cup game was, goal aside, his definite highlight with skc.

 

I actually thought the USOC game drove home my thought that he has trouble getting into games that are already occurring. If he's in from the start he does better.

 

it could also be that minnesota was pure garbage that game and we were running rampant.