I am somewhat new to watching Fire games, but I have seen enough to think that Damani Ralph and Ante Razov do not see eye to eye with one another up front. I do not think they particularly like one another. When they are on a run I see both players making negative gestures and facial expressions while the other takes a shot. I just don't think they play the best together. I am not sure Razov feels Damani is taking all the attention, or if Ante is just getting old and is not as good, but I see a bit of a rift between the two. In addition, I think Selolwane played well on Saturday and I look forward to seeing more of him in that second striker position.
Code: 2003 CHICAGO FIRE STATISTICS (15-7-8, 53 pts.) THROUGH GAMES OF OCTOBER 26, 2003 UNF POS PLAYER GP GS MIN G A PTS SHT SOG 9 FWD Ante Razov 26 25 2270 14 6 34 119 67 8 FWD Damani Ralph 25 22 1985 11 6 28 91 36 7 MID DaMarcus Beasley 22 20 1969 7 5 19 45 16 Any questions?
The stats do not lie, but I am just looking at what I see on the field this year. Maybe I am crazy for thinking that, but it is just something I noticed.
If you watch an strike partnership in the world, there are times when they give eachother "dirty looks". If one wanted the ball and the other took a shot, well then someone is gonna be pissy. As the stats show, they are the best, and probably will be again this year if Ante comes out of his funk. There is nothin to worry about, I'd rather them be disappointed with not being able to take a shot, then not caring if they get the chance or not.
I'm going to have to agree somewhat that neither looks to pass when they get the ball near the box. Ralph tries to bull his way through defenders rather than pass. A lot of times ralph does get through those defenders and scores. I think if he can be taught to pass the ball more they couldn't just try to surround him.
I agree and have said before that Damani tends to hold the ball too long. But then again, every once in a while it pays off with a brilliant goal. So whose to say he should stop. Maybe he can just pick and choose better. It's hard to criticize a guy who seems to have such a knack for special goals. Ante passes better then Damani and will look for teammates a bit more but as any other forward will shoot first if they feel they have any chance. As for the two of them together. I think their fine. I don't see any animosity either way. One forward always thinks they have a better shot then the other forward. It's completely normal.
And yet, according to the previous statistics they both had more assists than Beasley last year. Does that say that Beasley is a bigger ball hog than either of them? And if you look a little further in the statistics you will notice that only one person on the entire team has more assists than either Ante or Damani. And that only by one. Maybe perception and reality are two different things.
No it just means Beasley is not a great passer. Stats are deceiving. I know from watching Fire games Razov and ralph act more individually than as a great give and go passing tandem.Six assists each for the season is not a large number.
Of course not, how many more assists would beasley have if he wasn't knocked to the ground on half of his touches? I think what the original poster saw was late in the game on saturday, ante was unmarked in the center of the penalty area and damani took an open shot at a bad angle instead of passing. ante was visibly upset that damani didn't pass but almost anyone would've taken the shot if they were in damani's spot.
Ah, but is that a large number for a striker? Code: BUDWEISER SCORING LEADERS 2003 MLS FINAL STANDINGS REGULAR SEASON TOTALS PLAYER TEAM GP GOALS ASTS PTS Preki KC 30 12 17 41 Carlos Ruiz LA 26 15 5 35 Ante Razov CHI 26 14 6 34 Taylor Twellman NE 22 15 4 34 John Spencer COL 27 14 5 33 Landon Donovan SJ 22 12 6 30 Mark Chung COL 29 11 6 28 Damani Ralph CHI 25 11 6 28 Brian McBride CLB 24 12 3 27 Pat Noonan NE 28 10 7 27 Edson Buddle CLB 21 10 4 24 Brian Mullan SJ 30 6 9 21 DaMarcus Beasley CHI 22 7 5 19 Marco Etcheverry DC 25 6 7 19 Clint Mathis MET 22 9 1 19 Jeff Cunningham CLB 21 5 7 17 Brad Davis DAL 26 6 5 17 Brian Kamler NE 28 6 5 17 Igor Simutenkov KC 21 7 3 17
Maybe there is not a rift between the two, but I am going to keep my eyes open and really focus on these two in the next couple games.
Three some with two guy huh? No, I don't think that is something I am looking into. I think that is something you would be much more familiar with being from the great State of Oklahoma. I can't remember if it is homosexual three-somes that makes Oklahoma what it is today or if it is just the freakishly high amount of inbreeding that happens there. It is one of them. Either way, great place to live!
Congrats, for your 33 post you have chosen gay-smack, and making fun of Seagroves. May you live a long life here on Big Soccer, just consider taking it somewhere other than the Fire forum.
Yeah, you are right. Mr. Seagroves has been posting for a while, I better keep my mouth shut. What is that? I bet I got it coming for me now. Wow, this sucks. Should I go elsewhere. I have no desires to bring up homosexual banter, but he was the one who initiated the post about the three somes. I guess because I have only posted 34 times I can't defend myself. I would prefer to stick to the Fire on this message board too!
your negative repping can't hold a torch to mine. and i've never even really said anything bad. inconclusion: reps are stupid
Hey, thanks for the Welcome! I appreciate it! Any more negative feedback is welcomed. By the way, what makes you so special around here?
Mike, What makes you think I want to start a thread about promotion and relegation? I am perfectly content to chat about the Fire and other soccer related issues. Now, let's try to stay on topic. Is that okay by you Mike? Do I need your permission to do things around here?
No, but the fact that Mike often uses proper grammar, complete sentences, and ideas that aren't retarded DOES mean that people take him more seriously than you.