Another tough match. Revs badly need a win Llamosa nd JoeMax out Rusty Questionable Noonan and TnT with midweek match Pepe and Kante coming off injuries The Fish and LA on fire We may have a depleted squad but thats when a team can be most dangerous. I think SN will go with the same lineup as last week except we will see Pepe in place of JMM. I doubt that Kante will get the start and we will again see Kamler and Joseph in Central defense. If Pepe isn't fully fit we might see Richie Baker get his first start. We have a rather thin bench we have enough to make a match of it. Revs by 1 Is Felix Brilliant on the roster or not
There is no way that the Galaxy should lose this one. Riddled with injuries, and our two best players travelling thousands of miles to sit on the bench midweek. The good news is the Galaxy have to travel cross-country to get here, and it's at the Razor. The fans will definitely have to be in good voice, give these guys a lift. I somehow think the Revs will play very cynically, and go for the draw. 1-1 (Noonan) (we should just call him NORM)
This is what I'd go with based on who is and who is likely to be available: GK: Brown RB: Heaps CB: Joseph CB: Kamler LB: Leonard RM: Ralston DM: Dempsey AM: Cancela LM: Franchino FW:Twellman FW: Noonan I'm sorry folks, but I don't want Kante in the starting line-up, even if it means having to play Kamler in the back and pulling away from his usual position. We're going up against a better offense than Metro, and probably the best offense in the league at this point in the Galaxy - we need experience, composure, and players who going to think on their feet. Can't say I'm entirely happy with what Franchino brings to the table from an attacking standpoint if he's to start wide left, but I don't mind having someone who can disrupt the play in midfield, especially in how L.A.'s doing more to push the ball wide than they have in the past. If Franchino had work to hold the ball up, that gives the Revs defense more time to get into position and defend as a unit. I doubt Twellman or Noonan will be greatly affected by tonight's match - I really don't expect either to play. Speaking of Taylor, he needs to rediscover his "pissiness" that seems to be lacking at the moment. By this, I mean his confident energy he's put to good use in the past, energy that is key to finishing. It's there, he may be a bit frustrated, but once he finds it the Revs will be in better shape on offense. I predict a close match, and I'm going to go out on a limb and say the Revs will get their first victory of the year: 2-1 win with goals coming from Twellman, Cancela (pk) and Ruiz (pk).
A win would be a huge moral booster. I think Doc is right, Kante sits this one out and possibly Rusty. If Rusty is fit then the midfield of Ralston, Dempsey,Cancella and Kamler is what we should see with Heaps,shalrie,rusty and Franchino(should be marshal) and noonan and twellman up top. Marshal's speed is needed in the back...sorry joey,,,have a seat. 2-1 Revs........Kirovski, Ralston, Twellman scoring
the home team in this series hasn't lost in awhile. LA still hasn't won an away game. Therefore, 2-1 win for the Revs, two goals by Twellman.
I was feeling pretty pessimistic about this one until I remembered that with Califf out, Albright, Suarez, Marshall and Broome will be their back four. Califf may be a hoodlum, but without him, LA will be exposed. Suarez in particular has never been able to mark Twellman. I'm looking for a physical game and a shoot-out with 4-5 goals or more with at least one PK. Does anyone know why Hong isn't playing?
Based on today's injury report (Kante likely, Pierce doubtful) I think Nicol will go with Kante and Kamler in central D, with Joseph back in his usual spot. Kante needs to be paired with a veteran to guide him (he has very little pro experience). The chemistry between him and Pierce was VERY bad - I think he can do much better with a calmer, more supportive partner. The difference in NJ was that the whole defense was much more disciplined. It wasn't the absence of Pierce or Kante, per se, but the back 4 was much more focused. Leonard may some really bad passes, but overall he played pretty well - particularly defensively. And Heaps was much more disciplined. The wing midfielders were coming back to double and support the outside defenders. The weakness was through the middle of midfield, where Moore and Dempsey did little to slow down Gaven-Clark-Guevara from advancing right up the gut. That's where we need Joseph - even more than on defense. I would have Leonard at left def., Dempsey at left mid, but Nicol won't. He'll have Franchino at left mid (Dempsey as supersub). If we play with Kamler and Joseph in cdef, we'll be conceding possession and hoping to cash in on the counter - a dismal prospect for a home game.
The Revs aer going to have to slow the game down. At the HDC it was way too wide open, they just don't have the speed to run with those guys imo. I hope that they can play compactly and not giveup too many chances because if Ruize manages to juke one of our defenders out of his socks again I think I'm going to go insane.
Interesting to see how many different lineups are posited above This says to me that there is no easy or obvious answer to the Revs current roster woes and makes me MEGA HAPPY that we have SN as a coach. He's shown the ability to mix and match and to get the best mix on the field for any given match. This one and next weeks match against the Crapids are exceptionally challanging. We desperately need a win or two. We are playing with a depleated roster and the cavalry may take a while to get here to releave our embattled bunch. My guess is that SN will go with the more experienced players if he can but won't hesitate to move Joseph back to CB, at DMF play Dempsey and sit Kante if he's not shown signs in practice that he's learned how to keep his feet when defending. I'm wondering if this is the week we see Richie Baker? Since his ankle injury he's been very low on the radar but if now fit and anywhere as good as we've been lead to believe he could be a breath of fresh air. Has Brilliant signed or not?
I'm sorry, for national security reasons, we cannot disclose the contract status of Mr. Brilliant. However, rest assured that he remains in a secure undisclosed location.
For the record I'd like to see Ngwenya play. I thought he was a player we should have traded up to get. Maybe Joey can work out something with Ruiz so I get my wish.
Wall, meet Head. Head, meet Wall. I'm sure you'll get along famously. *bang Bang Bang Bang* Oi.. ANOTHER long term injury?
I would like to see Joseph up against Ruiz...that would be an interesting match up. Sorry, I don't see Kante playing. The question is the combination of Kamler - Joseph - Dempsey better than Kamler - Kante - Joseph. I don't see it. While I like Joseph as the dMid over Dempsey, I like Joseph as a central defender over Kante more. I would be very surprised if we have a change to the starting lineup besides Cancela starting at a-mid from last week. It's all about team play and 'organization' and the team last week showed they got it.
Hmmm, so that would mean about 20% of the Revs senior roster out with long term injury - two from the team's achilles heal (defense). Can anyone, particularly any of you press types, confirm or contradict this? Gus reports a "quadracep" injury in today's Herald - nothing more. Might make sense of why the Revs have decided to go so assertively after Avery John - who seemed like a bit of a lark when the season began.