The inability of the Revs to settle their roster needs before the start of the season is now starting to pay them back. We sucked against Columbus, looked good against Dallas (bottom of the West Div) and sucked against S Jose. This story repeats itself every[I/] year. We suck because of the play of the midfield. I think Ralston is the only keeper of the lot and the faster the Revs make a move, the faster we start digging out of this hole. We had the whole preseason (after the loss of Nowak) to fix this and we're still "scouting" players. By the time the Revs come up with some half-ass player, we'll be on the bottom of the Eastern pile. I give the Revs zero chance to win against LA with this lineup and the Revs management a zero for not fixing what they know is a problem.
I would suggest that we keep in mind that this league is very balanced. The difference between first and last place is not all that great so if some aspect of the team is off a little, it may make a big difference. Look at San Jose last season. Donovan came back from the WC tired, he and Graziani apparently didn't mesh too well, Agoos got hurt and missed time -- and look what happened. Something as simple as a lack of focus by some players or a couple of guys hurt or slowing down or even the fact that JMM and Twellman don't really know each other yet could be enough to drop them down near the bottom of the league at least for the short term.
REVSRULE: I find your comment to be unreasonably negative and completely off base. The Revs Roster has been stable since last year. In the off season the Revs trimmed off all the fat and marginal players. In the off season they signed JMM and in the draft and in other personel actions they got Noonan, Reis, Jason Moore and signed Joseph. The only thing--"in process" is the Revs desire to fill the last roster slot with something that is very hard to find and afford in MLS, a creative midfielder. I firmly believe that SN has done an excellent job in reshaping the roster to one that should be able to play his style and win a lot of matches. We've played two solid and two stinko matches. I'm not sure why we played so poorly in the two home matches but I don't expect it to continue. George
George, Actually, I have to side somewhat with RevsRule on this one, at least with respect to the vacancy in midfield. Going into the off-season the acquisition of Nowak was key: the fans knew it and the club emphasized it... the acquisition even influencing the Revs draft strategy to some degree. But with his departure, the Revolution aren't the team they could be, and quite frankly, are probably not playing the way Nicol would like them to. The sense with Nicol is that he's exceptionally particular in terms of what he's looking for: a midfielder cut from a cloth quite similar to that of Nowak. Problem is, we haven't found that yet, and the inability to do so is having a noticable impact on the quality of play and consistency of results. That being said, I think the Revs have done an excellent job of getting their ducks in a row in bringing about the return of Joe-Max, the re-signing of Twellman, and player additions in Noonan, Reis, and Joseph. But without someone in midfield who can help retain possession and provide another point of distribution the Revs will remain predictable... and beatable. It's a bit hard to understand: we played quite well against Chicago and Dallas, yet we came out flat and uninspired against Columbus and San Jose. It's just tough to ask, "which Revolution team will show up next week?" The Magpie
I was focusing on the midfield problem. They know there's a problem there and yet weeks have gone by and more will go by while they seek that perfect player, that costs no money. Meanwhile, we slip in the standings and fan support shrinks. I disagree with the second paragraph above. Yes we can play his style but no, we will not win a lot of games playing it. I guess saying what I feel is true will make me negative to some but I feel we do not have a winning formula at this point. Exhibit A is Twellman. He had one great strike in Dallas but other then that, he's not had very good games either in Dallas or against SJ. He's not getting the service he needs to score. The closest he came on Sat. was on a header that most wouldn't even try. TnT's fault? No! he's getting the ball to near midfield to score. Our pathetic mid's are not moving the ball up the field and the forwards are drifting back to get involved. Not going to produce may goals that way. I stand by my prediction, the Revs have no chance against LA on Sat.
The style is boring the players, which consequently bores us fans. There is no creativity in midfield and the best play is Ralston running with the ball down the right and getting a good cross in, which every opponent knows but is not always able to stop because he can do it so well. If boring is successful, fans don't mind. But when boring doesn't produce results, everyone minds. That is the reason for the boos.
I think Shalrie should be put in the attacking mid role if JMM is to stay up top with TnT. The defensive mid position can be filled. Joseph has shown good distribution skills (with the exception of a few poor team passing displays in the second half of the last game) and holding ability as well. He's difficult to knock off the ball and has surprising speed.
Ralston wasn't even the best midfielder on his team. Joseph was FAR AND AWAY the best player on the Revs, no contest! I submit that the issue of what ails the Revs has changed. They have an excellent attacking midfielder - one of the best in the league, improving every game. Joseph is getting noticed around the league, even if Revs fans are slow to pick it up. [Anyone notice that Joseph got off a point blank header for the second game in a row while being covered like a blanket?] The problem, IMO, is that the team is way too deliberate - which is okay when tied or ahead, but results in a boring ineffective game when behind. The problem isn't that we don't have talented offensive players, it's that they have about 5 defenders in front of them by the time they get the ball!