MetroStars @ Wizards - pregame

Metros 2 (Guevara 17', Clark 54')
Wizards 2 (Simutenkov 40', Preki 85')

I get the feeling Galvan will start over Lisi.

 

4 am morning of the game and 2 posts?!? Seriously? By the other threads all MET has to do is trot out 11 guys and get at least a point at 9pm Central. It might happen, but KC is better than you think, even if they don't play well. BTW, KC has not generally played well in the finishing dept. yet (Preki aside). Klein is out, but the rest will be there.

With MET Nats traveling midweek, it being a road game, KC's scoring at home, Pope out, Wolff healthier, Igor in, and Wolyniec suspended etc., it seems at the very least like MET will be signifigantly less defending on set pieces. McGee will have to run :90 - has he done that to good effect yet? Does Guevara defend? He'll have to. I have not seen either on the SO package yet.

Meola might gift one and KC might give up another well-earned for the 2. MET might give up 3. Here's what will happen:

*KC will dominate play for a :25 stretch. By "dominate" I mean it will seem that MET can't touch the ball. It will not be MET "playing badly", just KC doing what they have against everyone this year.
*There will be :10 minutes the other way
*If KC's minutes happen last, KC will win.
*Preki will lose someone who closes him that one important time
*Howard will make 3 outstanding saves
*KC attackers will put 3 other "sitters" somewhere other than in net
*It will be a good game to watch, better if MET screws up tacticly and offers an "open" game. Not likely.
*Don't drink too much. This one will get very interesting come coach's time mid second half.

 

Why is Addo being left off the bench? You think with Pope out we might need him as a sub.

 

Excerpt from the New York Post, Saturday 6/7:

Rookie defenders Kenny Arena and Tim Regan can step in for Eddie Pope, but since Regan is more comfortable at outside back, Bob Bradley will start Arena while Argentine newcomer Juan Forchetti gets acclimated.

"I knew there'd be Confederations Cup, so my goal from the beginning was to compete for a backup role when Eddie left. Now it's here and I'm ready for it," said Arena, who has known Bradley since the rookie was one year old. "I haven't shown I can do anything yet, I have a lot to prove." Forchetti admitted, "It's taken longer than I thought because of communication problems. I felt it was going to be sooner, but I'm beginning to understand better. I'm hoping I'll be starting soon."

Rookie Mike Magee will start up front for Mathis, but who'll join him with Jaime Moreno hurt and John Wolyniec suspended? Midfielder Amado Guevara can move to forward and Argentine Jose Galvan can step into Guevara's playmaking role.

The long-term challenge is replacing Tim Howard. Backup Paul Grafer starts in the interim, but Bradley met with Jonny Walker on Monday and the Colo Colo keeper could be a front-runner when he becomes a free agent this month. Reading's Marcus Hahnemann isn't interested in leaving England and San Jose still owns Joe Cannon's rights. When they asked for Ricardo Clark in return, Bradley sniffled, "Whatever. When they talk like that, you just tell them to get lost. That discussion was ridiculous. They can go jump in the lake."

 

Did Addo ever hammer out his contract? He may still be hanging around without one. Anyone recall if he re-signed at the beginning of the season?

 

Another thread indicates that Mathis will be spending the afternoon in LA for the HDC opening, then parachuting onto the pitch in KC just as the whistle blows.

 

I heard he's going to sprint to KC from LA to prove his fitness.

 

Bradley sniffled? Does he have a cold or are his allergies kicking up?

 

If this was England, he would get front page with a red nose.

 

i dont know about you, but i have always liked Preki and respected him; one thing i have a feeling that Howard is going to have yet again another fascinating game, but at the same time i feel a Preki goal will sneak in but still the metros win 2-1 with goals by Mathis and Magee/Jolley

 

My last two predictions of road losses resulted in road wins, so I'll suggest we lose 2-0 again.

Realistically, I think our streak is in jeopardy without Pope, and I don't like the idea of Arena going a full 90 against very experienced attackers like Preki and Simutenkov. That being said, Meola has been beatable all year, it looks like father time (or mama's cooking) is catching up with him. KC should really win tonight as Metro offense hasn't been great lately, and our defense is due for a let down against what can be a solid offense when all of their pieces are working.

Real question is attendance. The place always looks like it has 3,000 people there. Can they do better with the top team in the league (standings-wise anyway) in town?

 

I'll go out on a limb and make a prediction of a 3-3 draw. Offense will be the name of the game in this match, but I can't see a clear cut winner coming out of this one...

 

If the game is going our way at the half. Mathis may come out at striker at the 45th minute or replaced by the 60th minute by Gavan, and we see what happens after that if anything.

 

This is one of the most over-the-top predictions I have seen this year. The Wizards aren't Real frigging Madrid, you know, but you claim they'll dominate possession for half hour stretches of the game?

I actually think it's likely that the Metros won't win this game, for a host of reasons, but one of them won't be scintillating possession play that will make the Metros look like suckers for nearly thirty minutes at a time.

 

Well, what do you know, it happened. What a shock.



Haig, I would recommend the SO package so you can actually see the other games in the league. You might be able to get a more informed opinion instead of stupidly using the phrase "over the top" for something that has occured regularly.

 

You really think Kansas City controlled possession for long stretches? TWICE they had eight or ten passes-- mostly knocking it around the back-- before losing it on a bad pass (what about that great pass to change fields that ran away from the left half?).

Otherwise, it was pedestrian stuff. KC easily outplayed the Metros-- don't get me wrong-- but your "prediction" doesn't gibe with what really happened.

The Metros lost, which is what I expected, but if you saw enough to take out of the game that KC dominated possession for half-hour stretches, you're either delusional or a liar. Or-- I'll assume this one-- you're a halfwit who doesn't know what "possession" means.

 

Does insulting the intelligence of someone you have not met equate to power in your world? For the record I never posted "half-hour". That's you rounding up for dramatic effect - another tactic of the powerless, but whatever. I will admit that :20 might have been more appropriate.

The game I saw in person was the same one I saw on tape later. Several extended periods of KC holding possession and running people ragged. I'm sorry it surprises you to such a high degree. It's nothing more than KC has done to teams all year. The proof might be that KC has 7 diferent guys with both a goal and an assist this season. That is pretty much an indicator of the team's overall ability to possess, pass, create, and finish. Again, I would reccommend the SO package so you may see some of these things for yourself.

Even without it you should have been able to tell that KC can score just from standings. They have pretty much put up 2 on everyone regardless. The best 3 Ds statisticly in MLS are MET, CHI, and dc. KC has averaged 2 GF/game through 4 against those 3 teams. This includes scoring 2 on a team that had previously only allowed 5 goals in 8 games. At some point it isn't just a coincidence.

Metros will get a chance later in their house to even the series.