Another very enjoyable game, who are these guys? Agree that Howard had a vintage performance with Castillo and Price performing well as always. Agree that Nana and Smith showed well and Serna was a spark plug. One thing I saw was the Acosta wasn't as dominant this game ... was he getting marked out by SJ?
BTW. The stadium announcer really needs to get off instagram or whatever and pay attn to the game. Last night was a joke.
I assume it was someone other than Alan Roach last night? To state the obvious, Roach is usually really good (you don’t get picked to be the head English PA announcer at the World Cup if you suck).
Seemed to me like an example of the season. Some horrible moments and a few good ones. You can decide if the silent moments are horrible or good...
Not sure I agree on Boateng and Acosta. Boateng left it all out on the field last night and still managed a GWG. Seems like he is in the right spot and played well since the move back (last 2 games). Acosta was in a spot I might not have put him. I am guessing he was told to play back a lot more this game, a number of times I was wondering why coach would do that. Or he went against coach and was tired enough to play back. I suspect Hudson would have been all over him in that case, so can only assume it was a tactical decision. Agree on Tim, we got the good one this game. That is the one who reminds us who he can be. I also agree with the "fun to watch" comment. Even had we tied, the game was entertaining and fast moving. Not the bunker-ball-game-of-crap one might have expected from two low-level teams. rod.
I wondered that too when in the first half I noticed Acosta had barely touched the ball. I think some of it was just how often they were going up the left and Acosta started on the right side. They were definitely marking Castillo. When he'd get the ball on the wing, the mid on that side would drop down to cut off the inside so he couldn't cut across goal.
Yeah, weird that he announced Boateng had been subbed out when the numbers were 12 in, 94 out for the Rapids, and 16 in, 7 out for San Jose. And then he announced a yellow for dissent when we all just watched Salinas get the red card and loiter on the field...pause...then finally announced the red. Really stupid move by Salinas. Very visibly threw an elbow high at Serna, and right in front of the ref.
Hudson said the early sub was because of the energy that Dillon Serna brings to the game #Rapids96 #COLvSJ— Burgundy Wave (@Burgundywave) August 12, 2018
Not a technically or tactically great game but it was enjoyable, had some energy, and provided some late game drama for a much needed 3pts. Not much to complain about. Timmy stood tall and looked like Everton Timmy. Boateng, was MOTM, playing by with confidence in his natural position. Serna came in and did his job perfectly. I love, love Marlon at RB. He just needs to figure out how to contribute in the attack more. Acosta was serviceable even on an “off night”. Price cleaned up some messes. Smith was on lock down mode and got himself on the scoresheet. I’m trying forget we played a shitty SJ squad and just focus on our positives, blindly, without the opponent creeeping in the equation. Oh.....I didn’t realize how nasty of an elbow Salinas threw until seeing the highlights. It was hard to see from my seats. He got Serna in the jaw but an inch or two up or down and Serna could have really been hurt. Serna turns his head and that’s in the temple. Disgusting. Why did Salinas even react? Any idiot would know a “professional foul” was coming from Serna.
Another casual Saturday night for Jack Price 🧔🏻107 passes attempted 100 passes completed93% accuracy3 points#Rapids96 pic.twitter.com/41puq4w9dA— Ryan Madden (@Ry_Madden) August 12, 2018
Outside of the injured Axel, is there anyone on this roster who didn't start last night that people would want to start given their current form (I mean, obviously, a 2016 form Gashi would be nice)? Hudson has found the best 11, such as it is.
Pretty close. I'm not sold on Serna at the 10 but I'm not sold on anyone there. I still like Serna off the bench. But I guess if Boli is done, and with Gashi playing the way he is, really really have no strikers. That game was really close to being a 1-1 result vs the worst team in the league at home. It would be great if Nicholson could be freed to go back to right wing or even rightback. Is Acosta really unable to play the 10 in a 4-4-2 diamond better than others? I wonder about him there. Or maybe Gashi, but he did nothing last night...is he just totally cooked? It's hard to see him getting another soccer job after the Rapids. (Aside from USL.) I am also kind of serious wondering how Smith would do replacing McBean, if Sjoberg were healthy enough to play.
Serna was the game changer last night. He came on and instantly was an aggressive little pest. SJ had its hands full with him. I saw some things in his play that have been missing in several of his previous stints, including sharp situational awareness, ability to hold the ball under pressure, and a consistent forward-first attitude. Hudson made a good tactical decision (Yeah, I can't believe I just wrote that) to sub him in. Boatang looks like a different player when he isn't way out of position and can bring his skills to bear in the match. Howard had a really solid match. He looked 6 or 7 years younger last night. Having the ball in the shadow of SJ's goal for a chunk of the night must have been like taking a gulp from the Fountain of Youth. It's certainly better than match after match of being under constant attack, with no back line to help. I re-watched the Salinas straight red. That was a really nasty and intentional elbow. I hope DisCo enhances his vacation. Have I mentioned that I really don't like Salinas?
Serna wasn't a starter last night. The legend of Jackson is already an order of magnitude higher than his play deserves. And McBean is better than Boli only in that I'm not worried about Mcbean getting a red card every game.
With playing time Jackson will be an order of magnitude better than McBean. As far as Boli-more attitude out there never scares me.
I prefer Serna as a sub (but not necessarily in the 30th minute!) so by default Enzo is sadly the best option there.
I really don’t know what Jackson would do as a starter. I have my doubts. But I would love to see it. At least there’s a chance. As for Hudson’s sub of Serna for Enzo at 29 minutes, it had to be more than “energy.” No one subs there (you never know about injuries) unless you hate something you see on the field. Let’s see what Serna can do. Enzo will never be a 90 minute answer.
Enzo's a grinder. Love the effort, there's a role for a guy like that. He can press and play a complementary role out there--it's not like he's Wells Thompson. But if he's at the 10, it's a stop gap, that's it. It says a lot about USL that he scored 10 goals last season.
More or less, yes. And isn't it amazing the difference the tactical changed have made for the Rapids. Many of us thought it Hudson was set in his ways, particularly with the formation as well as selection. He must have been struck by lightning during the weather delay and the inspiration has put the Rapids in a good place. Now we have players in position and a formation where they can thrive. They look comfortable and confident for which they weren't prior to the FSL match. It appears that Boateng these last two matches were in a Rapids kit. He's confident and comfortable in his role and is making critical passes. Prior to the GWG he hit that short cross to Jackson - which was then put over the bar. And in the LAG match he put Castillo through which led to the cross which Nicholson buried. He's been like this in other matches, but it doesn't seem to get him consistent playing time. Compared to say, Martinez, his technical and tactical play is some of the best on the team. Maybe he's not a regular starter, but he sure is an instigator when he's on the pitch. And given the lack of options he should be getting a lot of time on the pitch,. regardless of the position he's playing. On a different note, the switch from the 3-5-2 to the 4-4-2 hasn't dampened the attacking role of the fullbacks. Boy do the Rapids depend on them to get into the attack. It's a lot of fun to watch.