Tino(played outside left) was everywhere-spraying attacks from the left....right...middle . Great long ball passes , took on defenders, hit the post , hustled , good controll w/ the rock at his feet. A very game Convey(in the Middle DM/OM) ran well w/ and w/out the ball. His short passes were good , except for his long passes and made the flow of the game better , but disappeared a little..in the 2nd half. Showed some nastiness to him , he intitiated a shoving match w/ Suarez. Eddie Johnson: Nothing(started)
Tino and Convey can actually play combinations also....a rarity in American players. Re: Johnson, give the guy some credit, he did hit the crossbar with a header once....
Having watched Ricardo Clark play YET ANOTHER solid game at center (holding) mid in MLS, does anyone else share my sneaking suspicion that Clark is RAPIDLY playing his way into the U-23 playing pool? Really, who's his competition? The likes of Jordan Stone and Kelly Gray? Hmmm... Odds are looking good, if he keeps this up. MY $0.02...
Brad Davis is in this pool right? He came in late for Dallas, but didn't have much of an impact. I thought Eddie Johnson looked ok. Could be a future target man? He's huge.
Ricardo Clark and Martino will be pushing for a spot on the senior team if they keep playing the way they've been playing.
and Martino finally got on the scoring sheet. Hopefully that'll give him the confidence so he won't muff anymore sitters. Not that I really care how many sitters he misses as he is a midfielder not a striker
I saw Martino play here in KC last night, and was very impressed. He floats in and out of the game still, but it is clear that the Crew looks for him, that he wants the ball at this feet, that he has unbelievable vision for his age, that his confidence is very high (taking on one or two players at a time), and that he learns as the game progresses. I sat near two U-18s from a team here in KC who didn't know of him before the game but were suitably impressed afterward (one of them will play for SLU next year and their team here includes somebody from the U-18 pool).
13 U23 players got time in MLS this week DALLAS DJ Countess – 100 minutes Ed Johnson – 79 minutes Brad Davis - 39 minutes DC Santino Quaranta – 100 minutes Bobby Convey – 100 minutes Alecko Eskandarian - 21 minutes SAN JOSE Landon Donovan – 90 minutes KANSAS CITY Jose Burciaga – 65 minutes COLORADO Kyle Beckerman – 7 minutes NY/NJ Ricardo Clark – 90 minutes Mike Magee – 20 minutes Tim Regan – 1 minute COLUMBUS Kyle Martino – 100 minutes, 1 goal I was at the DC-Dallas game. Simply put, DJ Countess was awesome. As long as he stays healthy, there is NO need to use an overage spot on a GK. Great reflexes, quick off his line and distributes well. His weakness is supposed to be crosses but he wasn't really tested there. Eddie Johnson had a couple of exhibitions of dazzling skill and athleticism and came close to a couple of goals. But, he also had some really long periods where he had zero impact on the game. Hopefully that will change as he matures and gets more experience but he is certainly fun to watch when he has the ball at his feet. Bobby Convey spent a lot of time in the middle of the park and he looked good. Not a natural playmaker but he made things happen and most importantly, called for and worked for the ball. Also showed some grit, which you have to like. Quaranta was hit and miss. Showed some flashes, especially when he went out wide left, but really didn't accomplish much. Neither Davis nor Eskandarian did much as subs though David played right mid, which was interesting given the Olympic question mark there. Watched the San Jose game on TV, and Landon's tactical awareness is so acute, it's at a level superior to the rest of his teammates, let alone the rest of the U23 pool. Sounds like Clark had another solid game. With Guevara and Williams in center mid, is he still playing in the middle or out wide?
From the KC Wizards email list: Gansler on Jose Burciaga: "He played a good game, but unfortunately came down with a knee injury. We won't know how bad until Monday. He played inspired ball and as a young player he is going to have his ups and downs. Against Chicago (last week) he had a down and today he had an up." I don't know about anyone else who saw the match, but the first thing I thought when I saw the injury was ACL. Here's hoping it's not.
Santino! Having seen the DC game, Quaranta played his best game EVER in a DC shirt. I really don't get any criticism you can give the kid for this game, he held the ball extremely well, and wasn't muscled off by an Burn defenders. He won his fair share of headers, something he is often criticized for. It seems he's added the long passing element to his game and he sent 2 or 3 perfect passes that Earnie and co. simply fluffed, I mean the kid could have had 3 assists and got dragged down for a PK, and yet most people I've seen have criticized him. I was not a fan of Quaranta's going into this season, as I thought it all was going to his head, but seeing him in this game has changed all that for me, he's gonna be a star for DC and the national team. He will prolly be converted fully to the wing for the national team as that is where he shined for DC against Dallas. He was taking players on, passing the ball well, he just played an excellent all around game, and this was from the left wing, and since he's right footed, he prolly would do even better on the right.
Sandon, From what I remember Clark played in the middle next to Williams. Shep Messing pointed out that they were covering for each other quite well when the other joined into the attack. What impresses me about Clark is that he rarely comits fouls while winning the ball away. His feet are so quick that he does not make the awkward lunge that players can dive over to get a call. This is a great skill for him internationally since card accumulation is such a problem in WCQ or youth tournaments.
You never realize just how many different skills it takes to be god at soccer. I never thought about the skill of tackling with fouling. I mean I knew about it, I just never thought about it when considering a players skill set. Great Point
As I feared: http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/sports/soccer/mls/kansas_city_wizards/5793603.htm
When someone points out a playmaker who hasn't had this criticism leveled against them, maybe a point will be made.
Quaranta did make like a ghost when switched to the left. People are making him out as a winger, but IMHO, he is a forward and in this game this is where he was better. With Guevara, MetroStars are playing 4-4-2 with no wide midfielder on the right. Williams and Clark are the twin central d-mids, but not chained to the center at all times. They're pretty much attacking the ball like wolves. Guevara is the attacker, though sometimes from the inside-right. DiGiamarino is out on the left wing. Williams and Clark have been playing this way, pretty much, in all four MetroStars' games. They are working very well together.
Ricardo Clark has been unbelievable as a defensive mid mainly for the MetroStars. He goes for balls in the air and wins them as though he is 6ft 5 inches tall. The kid is fast, aggressive, skilled with good vision and has played great. Looks like the real deal and should start on the U-23 team.
What it is up with these guys...... ... Well..... we have them identified...some of the most talented american soccer players, but one question remain: are we polishing them the way it suposed to be done, what will separate them? Motivation? phisical training? ......
Soccer Big I'd say we're doing great. Europe has plenty of 6' 4", 200 lb+ athletes, in a region where the best athletes gravitate to soccer and can make pretty darned good money. But hardly any of these guys make it in the pros. So we don't need those NFL lineman types. Or even the 6' 5" wide receivers. We need the next tier down in size - the safeties, the cornerbacks, the possession receivers, the smaller running backs. The guys who are big by everyday standards but not really gigantic, and are also quick, agile, and fit. Not saying that we have to steal the future NFL football players, convert them to soccer. That ain't happening anytime soon. But we need our share of the next group -- the guys who were almost athletic enough to play top-level football, just maybe a shade lacking on the power/speed measure. For every 500 guys in the NFL, there are 5,000 or 10,000 guys who are very, very close in athleticism. That should be our pool. Of course, not saying that every player has to be an NFL type body. Many, many exceptions to that, particularly in the midfield. But in addition to having all the requisite skills, training, tactical intelligence, etc., our defenders & at least some of our forwards should have this level of athleticism.
Re: Soccer Big I'd like to see us become more efficient at producing players with requisite skills and TACTICAL intelligence before I worry about the caliber of athlete. Basically, if a player has vision, tactical intelligence and skill, he can make it in soccer. Football is for the biggest and fastest, not necessarily the one with the most vision and intelligence(beyond quarterback). Basketball is for the most athletic overall. Great soccer players have to have that vision and intelligence.
Re: Re: Soccer Big If Mr. Cam didn't have a red card he would have a field day posting on this thread right now.