Pre/PBP: Crew at Action-Drama TV Series SC (MLS Matchday 6 | Apr. 7, 2018 20:30 EDT)

We haven't allowed a goal yet in a road match. So maybe low scoring?

 

Crew are going to blow Shitcago out in their Shitcago slums.

Also, boo Tchani.

Double boo Gehrig.

 

Are we allowed to boo Gehrig in the stadium? He will likely be running, yes. But, Bridgeview does not qualify as down town.

 

It does if you're Precourt....

 

Normally I should say to myself "@Hamburgler03 will be there, what could possibly go wrong? Win by two."

However upon further review, I fear that the hangthadj 2018 revenge tour continues unabated and we see a Tony Tchani hat trick.

Lose by two.

 

I thought the tour derailed? Or was that your hype train?

Zardes will own Tchani.

 

That's unlikely to be a matchup given how Berhalter has utilized Zardes, mostly on the back shoulder of defenders making that final key run in. Tchani isn't a center back, ya know.

Though maybe after a turnover Tchani could be caught out in the same way our captain was when Kei Kamara completely bullied Trapp for the game winning header.

It's unlikely, but it would lead to a win for the good guys.

 

Tchani is a poor person’s D-mid on a shit team. If I had a ten-dollar bill for the amount of times he was caught out of position when he played (for far too long) for Crew, then I would be the local investor looking to save our team.

 

No. You wouldn't.

 

Artur > Tchani.

 

Lots could go wrong

But the won’t. Open bar for two hours Saturday before we bus to Bridgeview.

But we still lose by two or more

 

That's certainly not "open bar" in the same sense that that term means at weddings and corporate Christmas parties right? Just that the 31-Crew Supporter's bar will be open for business.

A man can dream just not that big I think.

 

We've been told it will be an open bar (more in the wedding sense than the "now open" sense). I haven't heard what is being "open" about it though.

 

This is bad news for the chances that @Hamburgler03 makes it into the stadium.

 

Notes on the open bar:

Brewdog

Domestics (Bud, Bud Light, Miller Lite, Coors Light, Old Style, PBR, Busch Light, Coors Banquet, High Life)

New Amsterdam (Vodka, Vodka Flavors, Gin)

Well rum, well whiskey, well gin

Mimosas & bloody marys

 

It seems @Draghignazzo will also be unable to make it out of the bar. Whoa Nelly!

 

Why the Columbus Crew Will Beat Chicago 3-0 on Saturday, April 7th 2018


Chicago and Columbus will meet at the quasi-neutral field site of Toyota Park in Bridgeview, Illinois. Columbus have been on the winning side of 3 of their 5 games, and Chicago are one of only 4 remaining teams in Major League Soccer to have failed to register a win yet this season.

Chicago Fire Analysis

Why do the score a lot of goals?

Schweinsteiger is a quality midfield general. Effective placement of set pieces. Good crossing ability. Their attack is very committed, and they follow up on rebounds with speed. Long story short though, this team would be in big trouble if they did not have Schweinsteiger.

Why do they concede a lot of goals?

Soft in center defense against the dribble. Their defenders are slow to react to crosses, and runs from deep. Defense tends to be compact and narrow. They are particularly susceptible to attacks that are able to change the point of attack quickly.

Their goalkeeper seems to rarely hold on to the ball. Even when he manages saves he often allows the rebound to fall in a dangerous area.

Their defense seems to be completely lost at times when dealing with crosses. This includes often looking lost or slow when marking and challenging on corners.

Tracking runners on the wing is a particular weakness of their defense.

How do they play?

When I look at Chicago I see a team that has absolutely no idea how to structure their lines. I see a lot of individual players trying to make a difference for their team, and as a result, they become very exposed! To illustrate this I’ll use some Average Position Charts from WhoScored.Com

Average Positions against Kansas City



Nothing quite says you can drive a bus through their defense like that enormous game right down the center between their two centerbacks. Also nothing says U7 Level soccer than their bunched up midfield/forward positions. Every man for himself out there!

Average position against Minnesota



Here you can particularly see the disorganization of the defense. Chicago really pushes a number of players forward, but not in an kind of orderly, or planned out way.

Ok we see some examples but what should an average position chart look like?



Here is an example from Manchester City. Players operate in planned areas defensively, have good coverage throughout the field, and have a variety of directions that they can attack from. When you see this many players pushing forward, it is can be understood as a clearly attacking style of play.

More importantly though on average position charts is the defensive organization. Here you see two wingbacks that have attacked on the flanks, and two central defenders that have minded their positions well. The team also played with a defensive midfielder that tended to stay back to secure the middle.

And now my favorite average position chart from the Fire this season…



This is from the Fire’s last match, and amazingly also happens to be the game where they managed their only point so far this season. I’ll show you why this worked out ok for them in a second, but first let me explain why this is also a horrible map!

Three, narrow defenders. Nobody marking on the flanks (note earlier when I noted they are extremely susceptible to crosses of any kind). 5 Players bunched up. No clarity between the midfield and attacking lines. Two wide players pushed wide in no man’s land. Good luck Defending with this line up! It is a recipe for failure at the back.



On the other hand Portland lined up like this against them. This is an attacking style popularized in the late 1800’s. If you are interested in learning a bit about the history of tactics in soccer, check out “Inverting The Pyramid.” It basically explains in a broad historical (and often quite dry scope) why teams no longer push everyone forward, and instead elect to have defenders… you know… to keep the other team from scoring.



So needless to say Chicago’s… game plan? … if we can call it that worked well enough to earn a point, because Portland’s game plan was over 100 years old, and was basically the worst possible game plan ever invented.

AND

Chicago still could not win the game.

Columbus Crew Analysis

Mentally, how does the team react to their first loss of the season. I don’t see any reason to believe that a side which has played with the mental fortitude that took them inches from knocking off Toronto in last year’s playoffs would allow one loss to throw off their game.

Where have the Crew been successful this season?

The Columbus Crew have been particularly adept at changing the direction of attack. They also like to switch their outside wings from side to side (Santos and Martinez flip sides a lot!). Additionally we like to push our wing backs up the flanks to create overlaps and hit crosses in for Zardes and Friends to tap in.

Columbus should find plenty of opportunities to exploit a lackluster defense at Chicago. They can do this both from set pieces as well as from the run of play. They just need to keep their foot on the pedal, keep the pressure on Chicago, and they have every opportunity to kill off the game in a lopsided way!

Why I think the Defense will fare better this time around…

Our lineup looks promising in this matchup. Defensively I think Trapp and Artur can work together to neutralize the creative and technical threat posed by Schweinsteiger. Also, many of Chicago’s goals this season have come from goalkeeping errors where the keeper has parried the ball back into dangerous areas. I have faith in Steffen to limit these kinds of errors. Finally, I think that our midfield will be able to control this game, which in turn will limit opportunities for Chicago.

Keys to the Game

· The Crew must keep defensive organization and structure. They need to neutralize the sheer number of players that Chicago will commit to the attack, and take Schweinsteiger’s creativity out of the game.

· Chicago need hire Bastian Schweinsteiger to manage the team and play with some semblance of a game plan.

· Columbus need to control the ball in the midfield, limiting turnovers in transition, and stay focused and determined if they get a lead.

The Edge

Columbus will win this game, and I truly believe the opportunity is there for 3-0 Columbus Victory. This Chicago team looks disorganized, and completely out of sync as a unit. As long as the Crew does not become their own worst enemy here, keeps their shape and discipline, this should be a long night in… errr relatively near Chicago.

My Projected Lineup


---------------------Steffen---------------------

Valenzuela* – Abubakar– Mensah – Afful

---------------- Trapp – Artur ----------------

------- Santos – Higuain – Martinez -------

--------------------- Zardes --------------------


*Valenzuela did not start last game, and looked disinterested when he got subbed in last time out. I expect Berhalter to go back to him in this match, but I suspect there was more to it than he let on in postgame press conferences, and that Valenzuela may be struggling in training or with fitness. He would be my biggest question mark going in as far as the lineup looks.

 

Rep for including Inverting the Pyramid. And for a 3-0 win.

GGG should throw a donut on the field every ten minutes to neutralize Schweinsteiger.

 

I predict I will futz with my TV aerial for the bulk of the first half, then give up and go back to catching up on The Americans...

Lose by two.

 

Good job there is this thread.

The Crew seem more bothered about this eMLS Cup thing than an actual proper game.

 

At first I thought you were joking...

 

Ok, you've gone and done it now. You've created an expectation. I look forward to your analysis each week.

Thanks for taking the time to write them up.

Based on the very different average positioning plots for each of Chicago's games, it's hard to say exactly how they are going to line up. Whatever it is, they won't be very familiar with it which bodes well for us.

For comparison, do our center backs look really wide like that? They do push up and wide when we have the ball as Trapp sags back into the deep middle. Obviously when they are deeper they are closer together.

I like the idea of a bounce back from defeat, fire in their bellies, Chicago behind the woodshed kind of beating. Let's GO!