KC v. Real Salt Lake: Pre-game thread

Discussion in 'Sporting Kansas City' started by hartley, Jul 12, 2005.

  1. KCFC

    KCFC New Member

    Sep 24, 2004
    Merriam, Kansas
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    Last time I checked, the National Team had a few better players than the KC Wizards, maybe you disagree with that also, not sure.

    Plus, I'm pretty sure Demarcus Beasley, Eddie Lewis, Steve Ralston, Cobi Jones, Bobby Convey, sometimes Frankie Heyduk plus others have been playing outside midfielder for years on the national team, maybe I have been watching different national team games than you, but I think the guy who plays by the sideline and crosses balls in is the outside midfielder. That's not a box midfield, it's just a 4-4-2 (with players occationally switching positions with each other like any normal game).
     
  2. Buzz Killington

    Buzz Killington Member+

    Oct 6, 2002
    Lee's Summit
    Club:
    Kansas City Wizards
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    No, we haven't had any reason for MLS to give us an allocation, we haven't had a hugely important player retire in a while, or miss the playoffs, so I would say that we don't have a "good foreign allocation" coming.
     
  3. KCFC

    KCFC New Member

    Sep 24, 2004
    Merriam, Kansas
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    what about Igor Simutenkov? Did we get Sealy to replace him?
     
  4. Merlin172

    Merlin172 Member

    Mar 16, 2000
    Kansas City, Kansas
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    Have you watched the National Team games over the last year and a half?

    We've played a 4-4-2 with a box midfield quite often. Most of the time it has Reyna and Mastro (or KZ, or Armas, or whoever) in behind Donovan and Beasley, who both pretty much have free roles. Sounds a whole lot like what the Wizards play with Diego and KZ, and Klein with a free role.

    And we aren't due an allocation until Preki retires.
     
  5. Merlin172

    Merlin172 Member

    Mar 16, 2000
    Kansas City, Kansas
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    Sealy was a draft pick.
     
  6. Buzz Killington

    Buzz Killington Member+

    Oct 6, 2002
    Lee's Summit
    Club:
    Kansas City Wizards
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    Beat me to it, he as our first round pick from Wake Forest.
     
  7. KCFC

    KCFC New Member

    Sep 24, 2004
    Merriam, Kansas
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    so then, aren't we owed an allocation for Igor?

    Yes, and I've watched every game except the current gold cup games and the problem is that klein is not half the player of beasley or donavon so it doesn't work for us, he is not fast enough to cover all of that ground; and often they play a 3-5-2 to allow donavon and beasley to roam. In a 4-4-2, their roaming is often just switching positions with people, because Beasley usually starts at outside left midfield. Plus, the games where Bruce put Donovan at outside right midfield, he hardly got the ball which is not a good thing for the national team.
     
  8. Merlin172

    Merlin172 Member

    Mar 16, 2000
    Kansas City, Kansas
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    Why would we get an allocation for Igor?
     
  9. KCFC

    KCFC New Member

    Sep 24, 2004
    Merriam, Kansas
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    was he not an allocation? or was he just a foreign signing? is preki our only "allocated" player? How many allocations do we get?
     
  10. Merlin172

    Merlin172 Member

    Mar 16, 2000
    Kansas City, Kansas
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    Those are questions that only the upper brass in MLS know the answers to. And they pretty much make up the answers as the go along (basically the same way they make up the player transfer rules as they go along.)
     
  11. Buzz Killington

    Buzz Killington Member+

    Oct 6, 2002
    Lee's Summit
    Club:
    Kansas City Wizards
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    No Preki is not an allocated player, we picked him up in the despersal draft from Miami. We'll get an allocation from him, because he's a good player and the way MLS works, it will give you an allocation if you loss a good player to injury, retirement, or if you suck.
     
  12. McGinty

    McGinty Member

    SKC/STL
    Aug 29, 2001
    Club:
    Sporting Kansas City
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    I believe we used an allocation to get Igor, but not every foriegn signing is an allocation. We didn't get one for him because he did not have a huge impact on the league as compared to someone like Donovan or El Pibe.

    First, Arena does not use a 3 man backline all too often.

    Last year, we essentially played a box midfield. We didn't have true wide players. And I will tell you Klein was absolutely awesome last year. He was on his way to his best MLS season and contending for MVP honors (in my opinion anyway). Not only was he still dangerous in terms of moving off the ball and getting open behind the defense, but he was also the playmaker with Preki and Simutenkov out.

    Contrary to popular belief,Klein is not just a storm down the flank, get to the endline and whip in a cross type of player. He's at his best when he gets to move inside. The box is an excellent use of his skills. He is free to move inside and is not shackled by the defensive duties of playing wide in a 3-5-2

    Outside is the key word there. There were games where Arena put him out there with someone like Mathis playing as an attacking midfielder. Donovan got stuck out wide and unable to work his magic effectively, just like what happens to Klein if you don't give him the freedom to work all over the field. However, go back to the friendly against Mexico in 2004. That was when Arena first used a box midfield with Donovan playing as an attacking midfielder with Beasley, and Donovan had a blinder (yes I'm using a British term, but I like it). The US, unlike most games against Mexico, just dominated the play.
     
  13. Merlin172

    Merlin172 Member

    Mar 16, 2000
    Kansas City, Kansas
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    Exactly McGinty.
     
  14. Redfoot

    Redfoot New Member

    Dec 19, 2002
    Indianapolis
    Club:
    Kansas City Wizards
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    Yep I was thinking the same thing.
     
  15. staubio

    staubio New Member

    Nov 9, 2004
    Kansas City, MO
    Club:
    Kansas City Wizards
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    It wouldn't take a formation change to throw Klein up top and let him work his magic. Why doesn't he get to play there instead of on the wing? No other good options?
     
  16. KCFC

    KCFC New Member

    Sep 24, 2004
    Merriam, Kansas
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    Klein is better running at players than with his back to the goal, but he really doesn't have the foot skills to play attacking mid. His best position is an outside mid who cuts inside for shots on goal.
     
  17. Redfoot

    Redfoot New Member

    Dec 19, 2002
    Indianapolis
    Club:
    Kansas City Wizards
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    Like KCFC said he's better running at people with the ball than with his back to goal and I think up top he would be a bit starved of service.
     
  18. Merlin172

    Merlin172 Member

    Mar 16, 2000
    Kansas City, Kansas
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    Klein provides 70% of our service to the forwards. He would definitely be starved of it.
     
  19. McGinty

    McGinty Member

    SKC/STL
    Aug 29, 2001
    Club:
    Sporting Kansas City
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    I could see Klein playing as a forward in a 4-3-3 like O'Brien does with Dallas. Or you could put him in the hole behind the two frontrunners. Either way, you could put Gutierrez, Zavagnin and Alexander Victorine* as holding midfielders.

    *Sasha is the slavic nickname for Alexander, making it even stranger that his birth name is Sasha.
     
  20. Redfoot

    Redfoot New Member

    Dec 19, 2002
    Indianapolis
    Club:
    Kansas City Wizards
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
  21. IowaBoy

    IowaBoy Member

    Jul 23, 2003
    Des Moines
    Club:
    Sporting Kansas City
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    RSL losing in extra time to Minnesota isn't exactly a good sign for them.

    Then again, neither is giving up 6 goals to the Thunder, no matter the result.
     
  22. Redfoot

    Redfoot New Member

    Dec 19, 2002
    Indianapolis
    Club:
    Kansas City Wizards
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    From what I found out on the RSL board they played quite a few of their starters as well.
     
  23. McGinty

    McGinty Member

    SKC/STL
    Aug 29, 2001
    Club:
    Sporting Kansas City
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    Not to say that Matt Taylor is an awful soccer player, but makes you think that his performance against Real wasn't all that superlative.

    Their game against Minnesota seems to underscore the fact that RSL miss Eddie Pope, making a less than stellar defense even worse, and they are awful away from Rice-Eccles.
     
  24. BenC1357

    BenC1357 Member

    Feb 23, 2001
    KC
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    This team is realing. We should win this game easily.
     
  25. misterbean17

    misterbean17 New Member

    Jun 1, 2004
    Fayetteville, NC
    Re: KC v. Real Salt Lake [r]

    Wow

    Losing to an A-League team that featured a few of our castaways (Alberts, Brunt)

    Maybe it will be in the bag after all
     

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