Debriefing for Match 13.13: New York Red Bulls

D.C. United 4 : 1 New York Red Bulls

Six Word Novel Recap

Rebound? Or Regression to the Mean?

Media, Traditional and Otherwise

The Washington Times, John Haydon: "The revival of Luciano Emilio continues. Emilio scored three goals Saturday night - his first MLS hat trick - as D.C. United beat the New York Red Bulls 4-1 at RFK Stadium."
The Washington Post, Steve Goff: "Despite the absence of playmaker Marcelo Gallardo and top defender Bryan Namoff because of red card suspensions, United (5-7-1) offered another comprehensive attacking performance and overtook New York (4-4-3) for fifth place in the Eastern Conference."
UnitedMania, Chris Webb: "I think it's safe to say that Luciano Emilio has put his slow start to the 2008 MLS season behind him. "
MLSNet, Charles Boehm: "With key veterans Juan Pablo Angel and Claudio Reyna sidelined by injury and young striker Jozy Altidore recently sold to Spanish side Villareal, the visitors entered the match shorthanded and United showed no mercy..."
The Fullback Files, Fullback: "...Martinez, on the other hand, seems ferociously competent, and is completely unafraid and fully determined to make vital tackles. He also reads the game well, cutting down angles for though balls, running down wide threats, and keeping his head up when in possession. I was a bit concerned that playing him on the right with Burch on the left--which Soehn's comments had pretty much confirmed for me as early as the aftermath of the reserve match against Chicago--might lead to Burch getting schooled for pace by Dane Richards, but that threat never really materialized, whether through good play by Burch, cover from McTavish, or outright incompetence by the Metrobulltards"
MetroFanatic: "Did you know that, back in 1996, the MetroStars won their first two matches at RFK? Since then, they've won just five other times at their hated rivals, getting trounced time and time again. It doesn't matter if Metro is fielding a full lineup, or a shortened one like tonight. It doesn't matter if they're playing well coming into the match, or not. With few exceptions, RFK is Metro graveyard, as it was tonight, as DC Scum took Metro apart, winning 4:1 and jumping them in the standings."
DCSportsBox, Abram Fox: "...in the second half, Soehn said. 'I came in [to the locker room at the half] disappointed that we didn’t play better.'"
Fighting Talker, Aaron Stollar: "If this were an actual rivalry, New York would’ve actually tried to get a result yesterday. Instead, they looked entirely like they’d chalked this one up as a loss on the bus south and just wanted to get through the bludgeoning as quickly as possible. Rivals don’t do that. The New York Red Bulls do."
Injury Time, AT: "i don't even know where to begin in talking about this 4-1 loss, but we can start right off with the critical injuries. reyna and angel were out with back problems, and as shep messing pointed out during the game, there seems to be a whole lot of back injuries going around this spring in new york and maybe it's time to look at the type of grass they're practicing and playing on."
BlackDogRed, BDR: "It's important when evaluating this game to remember Metro fans suck, but, hard as they try, they just can't suck as bad as their soccer team...a sign of progress, not a sign of deliverance."
The Offside: DCUnited, jon: "When Woly is your scoring threat, you’re screwed from the get go. DC came out a little flat, but within 10 minutes, they realized the team they were playing against would struggle in the USL."
The Offside: Red Bull New York, Dave Martinez: "What else can I tell you? My last post said it loud and clear - 'this is a statement game.' And what is the statement thats been made? 'We need help. Urgently.'"

The Good

1. Luci Keeps the Football in Place: As much as I distrust cliches, perhaps there is some truth the entire "Goal scorers score in bunches, so the drought will eventually be quenched." To be honest, droughts make me nervous, but Emilio has now scored in several games, and a hat trick does seem to be a fitting punctuation mark. Right now, on MLSNet, the top goal scoring list reads "Donovan - Buddle - Emilio and Cooper" And that's pretty amazing, so let me admit that the conventional wisdom may well be the correct wisdom: the goals were going to come. That being said, I think there is a difference in play. This isn't simply a matter of Emilio getting breaks he wasn't getting before. Instead, there are two things that are different between Emilio now and Emilio circa two months ago. Now he's getting the ball facing the goal (all three of his goals were situations where his first touch in the attack was with him facing net, not with this back to goal). That's partially from more effort in his runs, but also to the team getting him the ball in a better position. The other change is the way he's dealing with contact. Emilio's first goal saw him fight through a marker to get on the end of Fred's cross, and two months ago I'm not sure he had the strength to do that. And that's really a difference for him, and an encouraging one.
2. Handicapped to Even: Red Bull fans can rightly point out that they had no Jozy, and no Angel. But before this is used as a "DC just beat up on a team missing key players" let's not forget that DC was missing Gallardo, Namoff, and Olsen. So both teams had equal excuse to play the "we're missing key starters" card, but only one team did.
3. Playmaking from the Middle: Both Quaranta and Fred, especially Fred, did excellent jobs pinching in from the wing to create attacking moves. Fred getting moved into the middle for the ineffective playmaking of Dyachenko was actually a strong move by Tom Soehn. Rod was proving a disappointment, but the position switch maximized the ability on the field. Quaranta's through ball to Fred was easily the start of the prettiest goal scored by United this year.
4. Clyde Simms: Getting him a statistic to help demonstrate his ability is a lovely thing. He has done so much for this team, Moreno's decision to trust him to take that shot rewards some strong defensive play all season.
5. LT. Zach Wells: A promotion to O-3 for Zach. Yes, the clean sheet wasn't kept, but his decision making in coming off his line was better this game than I can remember for some time. So we're bumping him up a rank.
6. Tom Soehn: He put out a line-up compensating for suspensions, but also had the ability to play tactically to both minimize our shortcomings for what we were giving up. Quaranta and Fred would pinch into the middle as needed to support Dyachenko in the first half, and Emilio and Moreno were both going wide at the same moments. That was good play in this game, but not for every game. For the next match against San Jose, Fred and (McTavish/Burch/Kirk) must stay wide and let Gallardo and Simms fill the middle of the field.
7. Jaime Moreno: Now, let me say this. While he's playing wonderfully the last few games, aren't you a bit concerned about him running out of gas in August? I am.
   

The Bad

1. How United didn't score: One set piece goal, three goals on the counter, zero from a build from possession (unless you count earning the set piece.)
   
2. Service Level Agreements: Here's the thing you can legitimately wonder about. That United scores four goals is fair, but if Juan Pable Angel is playing, or Jozy is still around, doesn't one of them get on the end of Dave van der Bergh's multiple dangerous serves into the box, and New York gets one or two more goals, right? Right. United still struggles wit the Terry Cooke's of the world, and this game was no exception. United was also fortunate that New York never really tried to play in long balls to Dane Richards over the top, another bug-a-boo of games past.
3. Quavas Kirk: United was off-side once in this game, and it was Kirk who was offside despite coming in only at the 72nd minute. This is a problem for him, as he really needs to see the line better.
   

Officiating Watch

Kevin Stott and the ARs had a decent game. I think New York could have argued that Perralta was interfering with the play from an off-side position on the Simms goal (but even the replays there with regards to Perralta's position were inconclusive to me). The cards and fouls seemed about right, and despite the blowout the game never felt like it was going to get out of hand. So kidos for that.

Likert Scale Grade: 4 - Good.

Man of the Match

Luciano Emilio, obviously. Merit awards to Tino, Clyde, Fred, Jaime, Zach Wells, and Mark Burch. Small notes of censure to Quavas Kirk.

Final Thoughts

Let me admit that I missed the true importance of the Chicago game. The key was that United fought through another game that looked like it might get away from them, the same way they continued to fight against New England. The importance of playing for the shirt should never be understated, and I missed the boat on that.

That being said, let me say the thing that's probably going to be considered unfair -= Tom Soehn's job should not yet be considered safe for this season. We've had two good results, and have a chance to go to Superliga at .500, in which case his job is safe for the season. But, having shown that this team is capable of fighting through good teams (Chicago) and not so good (Toronto) it's clear that he does have the personnel he needs, the question of coaching is still not academic.

And right now, we're basking in the glow of a wonderful come-back win against Chicago, and a strong performance against New York. Still, that shouldn't discount from just what a big hole United dug for itself at the start of the season, and some of the abominable performances that were seen in that time frame. If, and I hope this doesn't happen, but if United is made to look silly by San Jose and Los Angeles, doesn't that have to factor into our opinion? Still, I've said that if a move were to be made, it should be made earlier rather than later, and after L.A. is as late as I would be willing to leave it. After that, the season should be his, and all the indications are that he has weathered the storm and started actually varying his tactics accordingly.

To be sure, part of that was the circumstances of this match. With suspensions to Gallardo and Namoff, Tom couldn't just play the same as he did against Chicago, he was forced by the roster to move things around. However, with them coming back, I expect him once again to adjust to the demands of that game. San Jose does have some threats for an expansion team, and we simply can't expect to use the United Form Letter game plan against them. The big thing will be the use of space. Frank Yallop, coming into RFK, is going to try as much as possible to make things as narrow as possible, and United must play wide in a way they didn't have to against New York. If that happens, and United continues to solidify results, then we can say that this team is in full recovery.

Emilio needs a caption

I think they could have picked a better shot of Emilio to use for a VW ad campaign.. In this picture, he looks like someone shot his dog. In the interest of venting a little, let's have a caption contest - I hear all the big blogs are doing that nowadays.

Debriefing for Match 13.04: Columbus Crew

D.C. United 1 : 2 Columbus Crew

Six Word Novel Recap

Never understood why Goldilocks preferred lukewarm.

Media, Traditional and Otherwise

The Washington Times, John Haydon: "Even with the strongest lineup coach Tom Soehn could use, D.C. United fell short last night at RFK Stadium. United lost 2-1 to the Columbus Crew before a crowd of 13,329. It wasn't as one-sided as Saturday's loss at Real Salt Lake in which three key players rested, but United's offense still struggled to find the right chemistry."
The Washington Post, Steve Goff: "Alejandro Moreno's sweeping shot from close range pushed Columbus (3-1) ahead in the 32nd minute. And later in the first half, after Bryan Namoff's deflected shot drew United even, the Crew needed just one minute to retake the lead."
UnitedMania, Chris Webb: "Soehn was baffled with the miscommunication that seemingly plagued the United back line all night long. 'It should have been better than it was. They punished us when we didn't do a good job.'"
Soccer America, Ridge Mahoney: "Is it too soon for the fans of D.C. United to panic, given their team's depressing 2-1 loss to Columbus at RFK Stadium Thursday night? Of course it's too soon. But their misgivings are well-grounded. You can talk all you want about players getting to know each other and it's still April and they've had a heavy load of games and all that, but this team has been together for more than two months and doesn't show much leadership or competitive fire."
Hunt Park Insider, Matt Bernhardt: "The Columbus Crew's first victory in RFK Stadium came courtesy of an own goal from Richie Williams. So too did the team's latest conquest, as Sigi Schmid's men gutted out a 2-1 win Thursday night. The victory puts the Crew temporarily atop the MLS standings, with nine points from four games played. DC United, meanwhile, is in the Eastern Conference basement with the opposite record."
Behind the Badge, The Management: "[Emilio] There is no frustration here, we know the potential we have...[Gallardo] We need to get a couple of wins so we can gain confidence, not get desperate."
MLSNet, Chris Snear: "...it was Schelotto who controlled the midfield in the first half, orchestrating a far more fluid attack than his Argentine counterpart. Though United created ample chances, Gallardo was given very little space to play with very few options provided by his front runners. Most of United's attack was generated from the flanks with Fred on the left side and Bryan Namoff on the right."
MLSNet, Charles Boehm: "...the home side fluffed a string of scoring chances before Alejandro Moreno's grit and graft produced two goals that put United behind the 8-ball. Neither was pretty - the first, an awkward close-range finish to a fluid passing move and the second an own goal off Gonzalo Peralta just seconds after Bryan Namoff's equalizer - but both were just rewards for the Crew. The combined effect was devastating to D.C.'s fragile mindset."
BLCKDGRD, BDR: "it is time to start asking if the team is playing up, down, or equal to its players' - and coach's - ability, and I've got the uneasy feeling that what we're seeing might be the team's true level: the players just aren't very good, and the coach isn't capable of getting a greater result than the sum of his players."
The Far Post, Thaddeus Byron Aloysius Dopenhopper: "...time to call out some dudes...Emilio: The dude is a poacher. Poachers are streaky and frustrating. This season he’s being asked to hold the ball with his back to the goal, but MLS defenders have figured out if you lean on him he gets so distracted he can’t make the appropriate pass to a teammate."
DCUMD, Shatz: "The whole team seems way too tentative on offense. Instead of taking the quick cross or the one-time shot, United is more often holding the ball waiting for a play to develop, or sending it in to Emilio posting up with his back to the goal (which never works)."
The Offside - D.C. United, Jon: "One of the Gonzalos is good, the other one needs to wake up. The good one is Martinez, who had a strong match. Peralta once again got beat for goals. I say sit him in favor of McTavish."

UPDATES:

• Photo Gallery from Information Leafblower
• DCist, Matt Borque: "Despite Soehn's offensive substitutions, United could barely sniff a goal."
• An American's View, Brian Garrison
• Center Holds It, Jeff Bull: "'The Crew held on for the win': that’s one of the most limited of soccer cliches. It falls well short of letting one appreciate just how energetically Columbus defended, how they compensated for an occasional lack of organization by closing down fast and clamping down hard."
• Who ate all the Cupcakes?, Longshoe
  
• Poplar Point Perspective, JCM
  

The Good

1. Marcello Gallardo: Commenter Jeremy asks exactly the right skeptical question last night in the Impressions: "How can you praise Gallardo's 'vision' when this vision leads to a turnover and the end of any attacking chance. For me vision includes seeing the play developing, anticipating the reactions of your teammates and the defense and moving the play forward. I have not seen that from Gallardo." And Commenter Grunthos gets the answer exactly right: "Gallardo *is* seeing the developing play better than his teammates and trying to direct the flow of the offense. With depressing frequency, his teammates ignore his suggestions or fail to understand them... the turnovers are not occurring because Marcelo made a bad choice, they are occurring because the other guys aren't reading his moves well." This is perfect, and means I don't have to do any work answering the question. Ah, the joys of laziness.
2. Key Coaching Decision Making: Tom Soehn's line-up and substitutions were all reasonable and fine. I enjoyed the double-substitution early in the second half. Now we need to start thinking about what exactly the "Best XI" for United is. More on that below.
3. Gonzalo Martinez: Really, his tackling, his presence, and his marking are excellent. If the United defense could be a little more competent, he may be putting forward a Defender of the Year type season if this continues.
   
4. The Columbus Second Half: You can complain about teams sitting on the lead, or you can credit Columbus for playing an excellent half with a one goal lead. They kept their shape the entire 45 minutes, they defended well, and they limited United to one or two dangerous balls the entire time. They deserve credit for that, and I will give it to them.
5. Checking in with the others: Saw this guy last night, who, like me, starts composing his blog posts around half-time. And to the three or four other people who dropped by to say kind things, I appreciate it.
   

The Bad

1. Lieutenant Zack Wells: I think sometimes small moments illustrate big problems better than the goals do, so let me direct your attention to the second half, sometime around the 55th minute. Columbus attempts to play a through ball behind the United back line, but the pass is errant. Gonzalo Martinez starts to track the ball down facing his own goal. Robbie Roger, I think, starts to apply some high pressure. Now, Martinez has three options: 1 - He can try and turn the ball himself and play out of the back. 2 - He can send a back pass to Wells to play out of the back. 3 - He can guard the ball back to Wells who can pick it up. Wells comes out of his box, and it looks like Option 3 will be well executed.
   
   But then Wells suddenly backpeddles four steps, just as Martinez can hear footsteps. What now? The back pass could be risky, playing it youself can lead to a costly turnover, and Wells suddenly isn't in position to pick the ball up. With some frantic movement, Wells suddenly reapproaches the ball and kicks it directly to his left for a Columbus attacking throw. And then Wells yells at Martinez, after not having taken charge earlier despite being able to see the entire field. Which is ridiculous. Wells is clearly the one who should be commanding the play as he can see what's happening. Accordingly, Mr. Wells, we demote you from O-4 to O-3, and you are now a Lieutenant in the Goalkeeping Navy.
2. Defense on the Left: Both goals had unfortunate breakdowns on the left side, and I won't even go into the Wells decision to leave the net on the second goal. I mean, he was in a perfectly fine position to guard the post for any keeper not named Tony Meola. I'd like to see Devon McTavish taken out of the midfield role (replace him with Quaranta or Kirk, please) and used more as an augment to the defense as needed. Bleh.
3. Cutting-in: Fred, I love your workrate, and your willingness to run. I'm just tired of seeing you get a ball at the corner of the box and 95% of the time cutting it back into the middle on the dribble.
   
4. Emilio: See last night's post. With his back to goal, he's looking awful.

Officiating Watch

Both ARs were excellent, and I didn't disagree with a single flag that went into the air. Center official Jair Marrufo was his typical self, which is a shame. I would really like to see a replay of the first time Emilio was taken down in the box, as from my seats (Sec 236) it looked like a penalty, but given that I couldn't see if Emilio was also shirt grabbing, I can't really make a definitive call. That being said, Mr. Lars next to me saw a lot of two footed tackles not get called (both ways) and that's really not right kids.

Likert Scale Grade: 2 - Below Average

Man of the Match

N/A. Merit Awards to Gallardo and Martinez, your goat is, I think, Zack Wells (though Peralta and Emilio both are candidates)

Adjusted Results

A-ha! If I can find a replay of that Emilio take-down, I might adjust one goal up for United. Or if there's consensus in the comments. So it's either no change, or a 2-2 match. What say you?

UPDATE: Commenter Jason caught the replay, and argues for DC +1.5 for a DOGSO red to Frankie. I'm not sure I can go that far, but at least it confirms the initial thought of a clear penalty (combined with some good other chances). So the adjusted result is +1 goal for D.C, for a final score of DC 2 : 2 CLB. For the season, D.C. United's adjusted record is 1-2-1 (4pts); 7GF, 10GA, -3GD.

Final Thoughts

There need to be changes. Personally, I'd start with the place where it seems we have the most options, and take out McTavish for Kirk or, more likely, Quaranta. I mean, yes, thank you for your goals in the CONCACAF Champions Cup, but it's just not working Devon. Sub him in on the defense, or start him for Peralta for a game.

I'm not sure that we're a bad team, as BDR might argue. I see a whole lot of talent on the field, and not just on paper. But our lack of a coherent attack as a team is concerning. We improvise nicely, but that only takes you so far. I love improvisation, but Whose Line Is It Anyway? never won a dramatic Emmy. Or a BAFTA, for those of you who remember Tony Slattery. Regardless, we're not on the same page. And we've had, as Mr. Mahoney notes, 8 games to get on the same page. That's not good.

That being said, I'm less annoyed by this result than the RSL result. The RSL game was a game where we deserved the thrashing we received. This game was a bit unfortunate, as we had some very nice moments in the opening thirty minutes. There was progress, sadly it was progress from one of the most ridiculous losses in our history. So I'm not about to scream and yell. Yet. A loss, with extra rest, at home against RSL... that would be pretty much intolerable, right? Right.

Debriefing for Match 13.A.03: At Pachuca C.F.

Pachuca C.F. 2 : 0 D.C. United

Aggregate after one leg -- DCU 0 : 2 Pachuca C.F.

Six Word Novel Recap

You thought it would be simple?

Media, Traditional and Otherwise

MLSNet, Charles Boehm: "D.C. United saw a valiant defensive effort undone by the products of two inspired substitutions from Pachuca coach Enrique Meza in the second half as 'Los Tuzos' earned a hard-won 2-0 victory Tuesday night at Estadio Hidalgo."
The Washington Post, Steven Goff: "Montes's strikes in the 63rd and 81st minutes sent United to its fourth road loss without a victory against Mexican clubs since 2005 and left the MLS team in need of a two-goal victory April 9 at RFK Stadium to force an overtime period and, if necessary, penalty kicks."
DC Sports Box, Abram Fox: "Driving in from the left flank, Montes looped a hard volley to the left corner of the net from outside the penalty area. The shot tricked D.C. United goalkeeper Zach Wells, who initially played it as if it were a crossing pass. Wells managed to get a hand on the ball, but not enough to keep it out of the net."
Soccer America, Ridge Mahoney: "The 8,000-foot altitude took its toll early. With Jaime Moreno on the bench, United could only hang with Pachuca for the first half an hour or so..."

US Soccer Players, J Hutcherson: "So DC United shows up at Estadoi Hildalgo, opens like it's an away game in East Rutherford, and wrongly thinks they're actually in it based on time of possession and the MLS definition of 'chances.' Fair enough, but not likely to hold. Instead, Pachuca once again reminds the League why they've been so unsuccessful playing in Mexico. At some point, an MLS club is going to look at how Mexican League teams play each other, realize that the bunker defense and 0-0 shutouts aren't entertaining, and open their game up.
UnitedMania, Mike Martin: "United did everything right except keep it to a one goal margin in Estadio Hidalgo Mexico."
BLCKDGRD, BDR: "The question isn't whether Gallardo is skilled, the question is whether Gallardo hasn't adopted to United's offense or whether Soehn hasn't changed United's offense to fit Gallardo. The question is whether United has the skill players to fit Gallardo's skills."
The Fullback Files: "Wells did his level best to top Perkins' brain-fart from last year against Chivas. Not quite the same level of egregiousness present in the mistake this time, but still a basic positioning error nonetheless." [Note: I'm in agreement with Fullback here, and not with DC Sports Box. The problem wasn't Wells thinking the ball was a cross, the problem was him positioning for a cross before the ball left the attacker's foot.]
Center Holds It, Jeff: "Without laboring the point, it’s worth noting that Pachuca could have had more: in fact, they squandered a couple positively gilded chances..."
Poplar Point Perspective, JCM: "A one goal loss would have been admirable and perhaps fortunate. A two goal loss was deserved."
DCUMD, Shatz: "How can consecutive 2-0 losses feel so completely different? Altogether, this isn't an entirely insurmountable lead. But it feels to me a lot like our 2-0 loss at Chicago in the playoffs last year. And I have a bad feeling that the home leg will be similar too, with a much-improved DC squad that will score a goal or two, but ultimately still come up short."
The Edgell Supporters: "Guys like Emilio and Gallardo were brought in to make immediate impacts and win these tournaments. Is the master plan incorrect? or do we just need more time? Luckily we have more time and even this tournament is not over yet. I hope we are not waiting in vain for the team to come together."

The Good

Since I didn't see the game with my own eyes, I'm gonna incorporate some comments from last night...

1. Fred: It was clear that he wasn't cheating towards the middle, but had been ordered to pinch in and help out. Part of this was the way we were being abused down Devon McTavish's side of the flank, which forced Simms to cheat from the middle to the wing. A slight deformity of shape, but Fred made it work. One of the two bright spots in this game, the other being...
2. Clyde Simms: Seriously, after a Kansas City game where I was less than impressed, he really fought hard, and even after his legs gave out he was still one of the more effective defenders. Classy.
3. Adam Shlian's Birthday: Just my boy Adam. It was his birthday yesterday. Happy birthday man. Not soccer related, but at least there was something to feel good about yesterday.
   

The Bad

1. Devon McTavish: Do I think Devon knows how to make attacking runs from the wing? Yes. Do I think Devon knows how to defend? Yes. Do I think that he knows how to move and position from one to another, providing a balance between the two from the midfield position? No. At this point, he simply doesn't seem to possess the awareness of how to make those choices, and both suffer inordinately.
   
2. Emilio, Midfielder: Emilio was tracking back deep for the ball. Really deep. And it clearly wasn't a case of him drifting back to get the ball, but rather some form of gameplan that called to push him back. Maybe it was Gallardo playing deeply that Tom Soehn felt that Emilio was the best choice to provide a linking option, but those aren't Emilio's skill set (nor is it really Niell's). The team seemed awkward at best, and we gave the ball away too frequently as Fred and Emilio found themselves out of options as they moved into the final third.
3. Scientists: Remember hearing, via the Post and on the FSC broadcast, how scientists had determined that the longer you put off your arrival at altitude, the less it would affect you? Really? I imagine then that if we had arrived another day earlier, that United would have probably collapsed the moment they got off the bus, their eyes bugging out of their head like Ah-nold's at the end of Total Recall.
   

Man of the Match

N/A

Karma Bank

N/A

(Semi) Final Thoughts

I see where others are writing the "2-0" is not impossible, just very very difficult storyline. And they're right. But I think we're also trying to convince ourselves of that fact. Pachuca, if they play anything close to as well as they played two nights ago, will win the aggregate score. Even if United plays twice as well. The only hope for United is that Pachuca suddenly finds that traveling doesn't agree with them, and United plays the game of its life.

I'm also now on the bandwagon that United needs to use the home opener against TFC as a statement game. There have now been three somewhat disappointing matches, and one good one. Fans need to believe in this team, but United needs a reason to believe in itself. Saturday's as good a day as any for that to happen.

I may have one more thing to say later regarding Pachuca and United, so we'll call these the semi-final thoughts for now.

Debriefing for Match 13.01: At Kansas City Wizards

Kansas City Wizards 2 : 0 D.C. United

Six Word Novel Recap

Ask me the secret to comedy.

Media, Traditional and Otherwise

The Washington Post, Steve Goff: "the 2-0 defeat before a sellout crowd of 10,385 at CommunityAmerica Ballpark did not sit well with a United team that retooled its roster in hopes of winning something other than a regular season title. Ivan Trujillo and Claudio López, the Wizards' South American imports, scored 14 minutes apart early in the second half as Kansas City handed D.C. a decisive, early-season defeat for the second consecutive year."
The Washington Times, Cole Young: "D.C. United probably wishes it could replay the 61st minute of its MLS opener against the Kansas City Wizards last night. United had a goal called off because of an offside call and then gave up a goal on the ensuing possession as it fell 2-0 at Community America Ballpark.
The Kansas City Star, Bob Luder: "Ivan Trujillo and Claudio Lopez, both of whom signed with the Wizards earlier this month, each scored second-half goals. A mostly rock-solid defense did the rest in leading the Wizards past the reigning Major League Soccer Supporters Shield holder in front of — yes, a sellout crowd — 10,385."
MLSNet, Thomas Foote: "Managing player minutes with a big international game following was one thing. United is facing the first leg of their CONCACAF Champions' Cup semifinal against Pachuca of Mexico on Tuesday."
UnitedMania, Chris Webb: "United had the best of the rare scoring chances in first half with a 17th minute blast from Luciano Emilio that was well saved over the bar from KC keeper Kevin Hartman. United did well to create their usual smooth possession game in the first half but an early second half goal set KC on their way to the win."
DCUMD, Shatz: "One lesson learned though... Kansas City is probably better than I thought. Claudio Lopez really seems to have been embraced by his team, and Ivan Trujillo seems like a bit of a jackass, but will probably score a lot of goals this year."
Down the Byline, Mike: "Death, taxes, and beating DC to open the season. Those are the three assured things for the Wizards the past two seasons...To start the second half, though, it was the Wizards that dictated the tempo, and only 2 minutes into the second half, Michael Harrington's cross was touched by Jack Jewsbury into the path of Trujillo who slotted the ball inside the near post of Zach Wells to make it 1-0 Wizards."
Six Yards North, QJA: "The thing is, there's a big drop off in talent between our starting XI and our subs. Our lack of depth is a serious problem."
Fighting Talker, Aaron Stollar: "I am quite disappointed. It’s not that we lost, it’s that we lost making so many of the same errors we explcitly sought to fix...The attack again insisted on pounding it down the middle of the field where KC had amassed all its defenders bother, hack and repel. Quaranta should’ve been inserted at the wing, not in for Niell...Don’t get me wrong, there were new problems as well...If they say that they weren’t looking ahead to Pachuca, I want to know what the hell they were looking at. "
BLCKDGRD, BDR: "BEN OLSEN! Any questions on his importance? Gallardo will be fine, Simms is fine, sure would be nice to have two other midfielders out there in the midfield, yes? Landru talks about the formation, but what five midfielders would United use? (Dyachenko out on red hurt, but really....)"
Still Pending: An American's View, DCist,

The Good

1. Free MLS Direct Kick Weekend: That was nice, not making me wait for tape delay. And hey, RSL actually looked good in their second half with new US Citizen Dema Kovalenko, and Columbus wasn't awful to watch, and... wait, really, this is the KC telecast? Wow, um... I can see why Dave Johnson preferred to be calling the Houston-New England match on FSC than travel with Comcast to KC for this one. Yikes.
   
2. Strategic Sacrifice: Look, there was a time when a D.C. United coach would simply look at a situation like Tom Soehn had on Saturday, and would play his top XI on Saturday, and then play them again on Tuesday. And then probably for the next two games he had as well, until they were about to fall over, and then he'd bring out a reserve squad against Columbus or something, and we'd end up losing that game narrowly. That time was 2005. That Tom Soehn is willing to rest some players ahead of the CONCACAF Champion's Cup match is the right decision, as right now that competition takes priority over the MLS regular season. That's the right decision. And while I somewhat agree with QJA above, I disagree in terms of actual impact. While our reserved are not as good as our first XI, I still think Domenic Mediate and Devon McTavish (and Niell, for that matter) put in good minutes. As good as Fred, Olsen, and Moreno would have? Maybe not, but that's why they are reserves and not everyday starters. Now, I do agree with some of the kvetching about Quaranta for Niell as opposed to, say, Quaranta for McTavish, but I think this was not so much about tactical decisions on pushing for the win as limiting Niell's minutes, so even there I won't object.
3. Fight On Through: I disagree with the sentiment that somehow United wasn't showing the effort on Saturday. I felt they fought the entire game. Yes, the final shots weren't there, but they at least were creative, and were moving the ball around decently.
   

The Bad

1. Emilio: Yes, he had one blistering shot, but even that shot was probably the easiest hard shot to save (you follow me, right?) Hartman only had to make a vertical move to make the save, there was no lateral movement involved. He was frequently drifting around the field, and never seemed to be able to leverage his strengths. I do not look to Emilio to break down a defender on the dribble, but apparently he felt that was his best option at times.
2. The Predictability of Fred: There were multiple moments when DC would get the ball wide to Fred, but on each occasion he would cut the ball in along the top of the box rather than push it down the side to whip in the cross. After a time, that became much too easy a move to anticipate.
3. The non-deployment of Clyde Simms: KC has a Designated Player their hopes for goals rest on, so why isn't Clyde man-marking him out of the game?
   

Officiating Watch

Ricardo Salazar had a decent match. Yes, KC got away with more hacking than I would like, but he called it decently enough. The ARs blew one off-side call, but that was to DC's benefit. The one call that went against us that I object to was the failure to award a penalty after Domenic Mediate was tackled in the box. That call should have been made, but perhaps the feeling was the ball had gotten away from him. I still think you make that call. Still, as a whole, I have little compliant.

Man of the Match

N/A

Karma Bank

We earn 2 karma for the failure to be awarded the penalty for Mediate's take-down, but we also burn 1 karma for the horrible off-side call that disallowed what would have been another KC Goal. Overall play doesn't earn or lose any karma. +1 for the match, so +1 for the season.

Final Thoughts

I don't feel much different today than I felt on Saturday. The comments in the First Impressions are right -- If we play this way against Pachuca, then the Champion's Cup run is over. But I don't expect us to play the same way, or with the same people, in that match. I expect a better effort. For what this was, I can accept it. It's a disappointing result, but not an enraging one. I did see signs of a good defense, a diverse attack, and more reason to hope than fear. It was an away loss to a team that's pretty good. And right now, the priority must be Pachuca.

Is it Emilio? YES, IT IS

I hate doing link and run posts, but this is intriguing enough to warrant it. Goff says he's heard that your MLS MVP is... Luciano Emilio.

UPDATE: Just got word from some folks we trust, it is Emilio. As in 100% sure. Yes, we're second on this, but at least we can confirm the rumors.

ANOTHER UPDATE: The official announcement is up. Congratulations to Emilio. Now for your next trick, go win us some silverware we can drink beer out of.

MVP vs Newcomer of the Year

Luciano Emilio is up for two overall awards this year in addition to leading in the race for the Budweiser Golden Boot award. There has been some internal discussion amongst the DCenters about whether Luchi is more likely to win the Honda Most Valuable Player award or the MLS Newcomer of the Year award (or both!).

Here are some of the arguments, excerpted from e-mails.

The discussion began when I heard Rob Stone make a comment on Thursday Night Soccer a few weeks ago about Emilio v JPA for league MVP. Paraphrasing, he said that JPA would win the award because of the high quality of players on DCU versus the players on RBNY [snigger]. Essentially JPA stands head and shoulders above his teammates whereas Emilio is just another amazing player from DCU. At first I was confused, because I didn't think that had much to do with it, so I consulted with the DCenters.

D first answered with,

"Personally, I prefer [Ben] Olsen for MVP. If quality of support determines MVP, then Maurice Edu (Toronto FC) should be in the running."

and then Kinney chimed in with,

"It is a common argument among MVP voters. Do you vote for the best player, or do you vote for the player "most valuable" to their team. Take away Emilio and put in a decent striker DC United is still doing pretty well, take away JPA and what happens to the Metros? This is the type of thinking that leads to [Amado] Guevara being voted over [Jaime] Moreno, but without it [Michael] Jordan would have been MVP [in the NBA] for basically every year in the 90's instead of just four of them. This is especially the case in baseball or college football where the disparity is so huge; you usually don't see too many issues in leagues with parity. For example, looking at the history of MLS MVPs, the top scorer or point getter (MLS used to count points like hockey) has never lost out to another striker. This year might be the first. I think that is why Ives on his blog put Emilio as MVP but JPA as best newcomer."

Oscar responds thusly,

"It's an interesting dichotomy - I can see how a player could have one value to his team (Emilio) and have a different perceived value in the rest of the league. That is, while he might not be the MVP as a player for DC, drop him on any number of other teams, assuming he replicates his performance, and he'd be an MVP shoe-in, no problem.

I hate the Guevara/JPA MVP argument because in those cases, it's usually one player making a crappy team noticeably less crappy. If NY was #1 in the east, then you might convince me, but when they're losing to TFC..."

D finally decided we should define what to be the MVP actually means,

"Personally, I would evaluate the MVP of the league as "who had the most value to the league" instead of to the team. To me, Emilio's goal scoring has been more interesting and valuable on a league wide basis (since goals are highlights, and he's provided a ton of them). That also allows us, if we want to, to say Olsen is more valuable to the team, but perhaps less to the league."

Oscar then pointed out that D's definition could lead us down ridiculous paths,

"Umm, then you could argue that Sir David Beckham should be the MVP this year. It could work if you were crazy and insane, but it could be done."

Of course, no one is nominating Becks as league MVP. But also, no one is denying that his value to league is huge. RFK was sold out. The Meadowlands were at or near capacity. But what about longer term? As soon as the Galaxy left DC, attendance moved back to normal levels. But in the next few years, as more international players like Emilio, Fred, JPA, Denilson, C. Blanco, G.B. Schelotto, Beckham, etc) make their mark in the league and increase the overall level of play, isn't there an argument about these players having the biggest impact on the league, of being the "most valuable" to the league?

Two points here.

1. I'll answer my own question by saying, "of course". And that's why the league created the MLS Newcomer of the Year award. These players aren't rookies but their instantaneous value to the league has to be acknowledged.
2. Emilio, should he win the Golden Boot award, should be seen as the first player of his kind to come to the league and dominate it. Even if he is edged tonight by JPA against LAG, he's been leading the stat category for the whole season, and I think that other teams in the league have had to scramble to go out to sign internationals of their own. That's where Emilio's value to the league lies. Not only has he scored 20 goals this season, not only has he been named player of the week three times this season, but I consider him one of the first internationals to make other teams sit up and say, "hey - DCU might be on to something here."

Please add your own thoughts in the comments.

Debriefing for Match 12.27: Toronto FC

D.C. United 4 : 1 Toronto FC

Six Word Novel Recap

Five quality goals; only four enjoyable.

Media, Traditional and Otherwise

The Washington Post, The Bog Man: "After being greeted with enthusiastic ovations from an announced crowd of 25,174 [coming on as subs in 2nd half], Moreno and Olsen immediately created a dangerous chance, with Olsen heading Moreno's cross back in front of the goal to Christian Gomez. The latter's bicycle kick fizzled, but it was a sign of things to come... United received some bad news in the closing moments when Fred limped off the field with a groin strain. He will accompany the team to Mexico but said he was not sure whether he would be able to play."
The Examiner, Criag Stouffer: "Luciano Emilio became the league's first 20-goal scorer in five years and D.C. United extended its unbeaten streak to 11 matches with a 4-1 victory over Toronto FC on Saturday night."
UnitedMania, Mike Martin: "United was just warming up to their dismantling of the hideously poor Toronto defense however. In the 67th minute, Clyde Simms slid a perfect through ball to Jaime Moreno sneaking in behind Tyrone Marshall, and heading dead on goal with only the keeper to beat, no one makes it look easier than La Bomba who easily notched his 112th goal slipping the shot almost carelessly under the Toronto keeper..."
MLSNet.com, Charles Boehm:"United finally responded with a set of chances around the half-hour mark. First holding midfielder Clyde Simms -- apparently still wearing his shooting boots after hitting the game-winning goal on Wednesday -- cracked a long-distance effort that beat Stamatopoulos but skimmed off the top of the crossbar. Then Marc Burch lifted one of his trademark left-footed crosses to the far post, where Guy-Roland Kpene got his head to the delivery but drove it straight down into the turf instead of on goal."
BlackDogRed, BDR: "As exhilirating as that 2nd half was, it shouldn't have been necessary. Maybe those 45 minutes won't negatively affect Olsen and Moreno this Tuesday night in Guadalajara, but the plan was clearly to give them both the night off, and when the starting eleven farted the first half away, Soehn had no choice: dropping points against an expansion team at home is beyond inexcusable. But beautiful goals, three of them, Burch's and Fred's and Emilio's (Moreno 's was nice, but not stunningly beautiful), and the proper response, in the 2nd half, by a superior team with championship ambitions against an undermanned and overwhelmed expansion team."
DCist.com, Matt Bourque: "After five minutes revving their engines, D.C. United poured on four goals in 19 minutes. Twenty subsequent minutes of possession soccer sealed the win. It was as if Toronto's ragtag band of rebels mounted an attack upon the imposing imperial fortress before United's fully armed and operational battle station systematically obliterated its invaders."
Mistake By The Lake, stillkicking: "The first twenty minutes of the game at RFK showed TFC in rare form. Yes, in recent games, Toronto has had stretches of good play, (1st half against the Crew, many moments in Dallas) but this seemed to be a level above recent top gear. The passes were crisp from the back, the midfielders were moving forward with confidence, there just seemed to be opportunities in the air. And sure enough...... Carl Robinson hit a beautiful free kick and scored his second goal of the season."

The Good

1. Section 471: Arriving at the RFK box office at 6:45pm to purchase 3 tickets doesn't usually put you in the 400 sections. It has taken me until now and some reading around to the other DC United blogs to figure out why this was. I guess the crowd was a bit larger on Saturday evening because the game was only being shown on HDNet. (And maybe Summer's was only showing UFC - who knows.) Section 471 started good and got great. Not only were all 4 goals (all 5 actually) scored in our end, but we had an outcrop of The Screaming Eagles in our section and more attractive women than my single friend could shake his $7 beer at. People were singing and clapping and the mood was energetic. Especially after Fred's goal when I fell up the stairs twice doing some crazy celebration sprinting thing.
2. The Goals: Let's face it, those were some quality finishes. BDR doesn't think so, but Moreno's goal, for me, was classic Moreno: beat the trap, settle the ball and don't rush anything. Wait for the keeper to commit in some way and then confidently finish it. mistake by the lake thinks Jaime was "way" offsides and I can't tell by looking at the highlights package, but it may be that the lowest defender kept Jaime on. But I think that "way" offsides is too harsh. Emilio's goal was especially sweet because those are the type of balls that can easily be sent into section 471 (see: Jaqua, Nate).
   
3. Marc Burch: He says, "All the guys have been telling me to shoot, and it felt good to finally get up there and hit one." He really cracked it, and that was great to see. But he played well the whole game and was dangerous from the left side with that left foot of his. I called him out last week after Chicago, so he must have read my post and taken my advice to heart. I'll take full credit, thanks.
4. TFC fans: The expansion club's supporters are the gem of the league and to see (we actually heard them first; we were in the ramp to the 400 level and they were marching into the stadium from lot 8) such a large contingent traveling with them was impressive. They eventually settled in somewhere near section 430 with a huge Canadian flag. They certainly enjoyed Carl Robinson's goal. It seemed that everyone of them had a scarf and a jersey. Full credit to you people and to the TFC blogger in the comments section of the First Impressions entry for this match, who seems like a very nice person. Oh look, it is stillkicking. He's all over this recap today!
5. Predictions: Looking over the DCU blogs, a lot of people were predicting stuff. And there were a lot of good predictions.
   
1. JCM @ Poplar Point Perspective says, “Predictions: DC United 3:0 Toronto FC [correct goal differential], Chivas USA 2:2 Chicago Fire [correct], New England Revolution 2:1 Colorado Rapids [correct goal differential]"
   
2. edgell supporter @ The Edgell Supporters says, "1. We are the better team and we show it [check], 2. Fred and Emilio get back into the swing of things [check], 3. The new, non-infield grass is down [the pitch did not seem to be a factor] and 4. Burch from distance [check]

The Bad

1. The First Half: Moreno, Olsen, Carroll and Namoff (injury) were all on the bench to start the game and it showed, even though Emilio, Fred, and Gomez are three of our biggest threats and playmakers. It seemed like United was trying to force things through the middle too much and doing it sloppily. TFC's midfield was able to bunch up in the middle third and intercept passes or accept giveaways leading to many promising counterattacks.
2. Set piece goal: Coach Soehn says, "You can't get beat keeper side and Troy [Perkins] knows that and we addressed that and we have to make sure that doesn't happen again, because that has been twice now. I guarantee that won't happen a third time." Even I'm a little scared now. I love Perkins as a keeper and he had a great match overall, but I think giving up this goal, especially to a sluggish Toronto side is not good. The distance from goal of that free kick was such that there should have been enough time to react to it, but at the same time, there was a lot of movement on that ball, so I tend to think that Perkins did about as well as he could.
3. Guy-Roland Kpene: I like this kid. He seems like a hard worker and he has speed. (One of) His first assist(s) came early in the season when United was still struggling and ever since then I've held a special place for him, rooted for him and wanted to see him get minutes and play well. Maybe part of it is just my bias towards anyone in a black and red kit. But against Toronto he seemed to be either a cause of or a symptom of the poor first half for DC and when he was subbed for Jaime at half time, all I could muster was a "meh". It will be interesting to see if he gets any more minutes this season outside of the reserves as the games become more important. I'd love to see him stay with United but he's gonna need to improve in order to earn more minutes.
   

Man of the Match

Clyde Simms again, I think. Merit Awards to Olsen and Moreno for the 2nd half spark, Burch for the tally and Perkins for some big stops.

Karma Bank

+1 for the season entering the game. I can't see any karma points accrued or burned in this one. Leave your thoughts on this in the comments.

Final Thoughts

Giving three points to a visiting Toronto squad would have been bad. It certainly wouldn't have killed us in the SS or playoff race, but it would have been one of those losses that a quality team like United just doesn't give. At halftime, I was nervous. Usually I feel confident that we can at least equalize if not pull out three points, but in this one I saw little in the first half that would give me my usual confidence. If we hadn't gone down 1-0 with poor 1st half play, Moreno and Olsen may have rested the entire night; who knows. Maybe Gomez would have woken up in the second half; who knows. But when you have veterans like them, it nice to see them do exactly what you need them to do: provide a spark and score a goal. This was one of the most exciting and enjoyable matches I have been to and I was so proud of my team. Vamos.

Debriefing for Match 12.23: At C.D. Chivas USA

C.D. Chivas USA 2 : 2 D.C. United

Six Word Novel Recap

If tired now, think about Sunday.

Media, Traditional and Otherwise

The Washington Post, Steve Goff: "On an evening of odd bounces and defensive follies, D.C. United let an early two-goal lead evaporate and settled for a 2-2 tie with Chivas USA on Thursday night before an announced crowd of 9,306 at Home Depot Center."
The L.A. Times, Jaime Cárdenas: "Defender Lawson Vaughn scored the tying goal in the 60th minutes on a shot from inside the box that deflected off United's Clyde Simms."
UnitedMania, Mark Martin: "United looked to be firmly in control of this match as they scored barely three minutes into the match when Emilio struck a pea to the upper 90 after a lovely feed from Moreno. Then when Emilio doubled the lead barely twenty minutes later by pounding a rebound from a Moreno shot into the back of the net, surely the game seemed won...Chivas was denied a clear chance for the full three points in the 90th minute as a Mendoza breakaway was called back for offside in what was clearly a bad call as Brian Carroll was way late in holding the line and obviously left Mendoza by a good two yards."
MLSNet, Luis Bueno: "Chivas USA, though, benefited from a goalkeeper mistake. As D.C. looked for a third goal, Chivas USA's Paulo Nagamura cleared the ball from his own third of the field. The ball sailed toward the top of United's penalty area. Perkins tried to send the ball right back but Razov stepped in front of him. The ball caromed off Razov's midsection and rolled toward the goal line. Perkins scrambled back but the ball had too much pace and he couldn't keep it from crossing the line. Perkins had been struck by misfortune against a red-striped club earlier this year. Facing Chivas de Guadalajara in a CONCACAF Champions' Cup match, Perkins mishandled a long-range shot from Gonzalo Pineda. The ball hit Perkins' hands and floated over his head and across the goal line." [Note: Is there ever a reason not to bring this up anymore? Is this part of the story, except to feed the Chivas Guadalajara machine? For shame, Luis, for shame...]
MLSNet, Andrea Canales: "United saw their six-game winning streak come to an end, but still took a point which pushed them to the top of the MLS overall standings, one point ahead of the New England Revolution - who United plays Sunday at RFK Stadium."
MLSNet, Luis Bueno: "In the 60th minute, Vaughn bagged the equalizer in Chivas USA's 2-2 draw with D.C. United. On the leveler, Vaughn ripped a shot on goal that deflected off United's Clyde Simms and into the back of the net...Never having scored as a pro and having scored seldom in college, Vaughn was at a loss for ideas."
BlckDgRd, BDR: "fatigue kills...There're playing four games in twelve days. If United can push through these last two games of the four and be ahead of Supporters Shield (still a reasonable expectation) it should be considered a successful run, and one way or the other they'll have nine days after Wednesday to rest before their next game. Suck it up for Ningland then rest starters if necessary against Duck Lake."
QuarterVolley, I-66: "While I’m not placing any blame on our back four for the goals, after the Perkins mistake Chivas always looked like drawing level, and probably would have earned all three points had both teams not decided to fold up shop and settle for the draw - a move that didn’t really surprise me from United, but was downright shocking from Chivas."
The Edgell Supporters: "Our team speed is slow, or our team is slow, however you put it, in comparison to Chivas USA we lack speed. Chivas exploited our slow defense and never allowed us time to recover between attacks, credit goes to them for that."
An American's View..., Brian Garrison: "What the hell is wrong with Brian Carroll? That guy gets subbed into the match late, then spends his whole time on the field standing and watch balls roll at him, just to see a Chivas player steal it."

The Good

1. Apparently, we got another early goal: I'm really not sure if this is a good thing. Without radio or ESPN coverage, it's hard to judge how that early goal came. Comments made it sound like it was against the run of play, but once the magic pictures animated my low-def TV set, United looked really decent for about a half-hour. I am a bit worried about the reliance of quick starts. What happens if United goes down a goal, or doesn't get that first goal in the first fifteen minutes? At some point, this will happen (with New England in town, perhaps sooner rather than later). While the MLS Official Stats through yesterday show that United has just as many first half as second half goals, how many of those came with a team pressing for an equalizer?
2. Emilio: Two goals is two goals, and both are trickier goals than they looked in real time. Consider that Chivas had a similar chance to Emilio's first, and sent the ball either over the crossbar or right into Perkins' face. The second was also not the simple garbage goal it might have seemed. Emilio had to lurch awkwardly to his right to get a foot on the ball, and still direct it towards the goal.
   
3. Kevin Stott: I may get in trouble for this, given that most of the DC faithful are not happy with Stott's performance. I thought his biggest problem was playing advantage to United too often (grabbing a player and delaying him enough to force a drop pass is not an advantage) but he called more off the typical ticky-tack fouls that teams enjoy employing against United. Each card was deserved, and his officiating was fair.
4. Boswell's Near Own Goal: Good? Yes. If Boswell lets that go through, it's more likely than not a goal. And the easy decision, the defensible decision, was to let the ball go by. No one could blame Boswell, especially Boswell, for being so worried about the autogolazo if he had decided to not make a play on that ball. Still, from where I sit, his decision to make the play on the ball made sense to me. Yes, there's a large risk of an own-goal, but I'm pretty sure that shot has a 90% likelihood of being buried if Boswell doesn't interrupt the cross. Even if it was a 70% chance of an own goal, that's a good trade. It was a courageous play, and should be noted as such.
   

The Bad

1. Handling the Pace: The Edgell Supporters have a very good point: Chivas is a fast team, faster than United which is not particularly known for handling speed well. The problem is that United insisted on poor passing to exacerbate Chivas's advantage. How often were balls played from the back third to the middle third for a Chivas player to take at almost full speed back at our defense? Too often. This was a decision making problem. Fatigue may play a role in clouding the senses, but United was far too eager to try and start a counter when clean passes weren't present.
   
2. Touch: Fred and Gomez both had awful games when it came to settling the ball. That's an aberration, I think, but it didn't help.
   
3. Tactical Decisions: Not sure about Soehn closing up shop when he did. We waited until the 70th minute before getting people off, and Ben (as I think a commenter noted) was clearly gassed before then. Would have liked to have seen moves starting in the 60th minute.
4. ESPN: Commenters are right. I can't blame them for sticking with the game and not Heidi-ing the college football viewers. But the rest of the game did not atone. And let me take a moment on Dave O'Brien. I think his introduction (or intrusion) on our sport was misperceived by many fans. They saw it as a sign of early disrespect from ESPN that a baseball announcer was being given soccer duties. I don't think it was meant that way at all. Many play-by-play folks can do multiple sports (see: Johnson, Dave). And O'Brien is good at baseball. To me, I think ESPN saw this as a way of investing some talent, of putting someone into the role who could really grow into it. It was, in a way, a sign of respect. But while O'Brien is better at the start, he is at least a long-flight with a layover in Newark away from good. He probably can be a just-below average play-by-play soccer man at best. He has no natural constituency that would like to see him remain. It is time to end this.
   

Man of the Match

Emilio. Merit award to Vanney.

Karma Bank

+2 for the season entering the game. United burns one karma for the fortunate deflection off of Guzan (-1). United is then owed two karma for the Razov butt-shot goal (+2). United then gets a fortunate post to block the Boswell own-goal (-1), and another one karma is burned for the off-side call saving Perkins from a solo situation(-1). That's one karma burned for this match, and +1 for the season. Even with the misfortune of that first goal, I still think we got more luck our way than Chivas did.

Final Thoughts

Before this swing began, I said that 5 points from the Dallas, Chivas, and New England games would be good. We have 4 points, with a maximum possible yield of seven. These games are not disastrous even if we lose against New England. The question is are they mildly disappointing (a loss), acceptable (another draw), or pretty-darn-good (a win.) Personally, while others expect United to hold serve against New England, I think a draw has to be considered a decent result. I have to remind myself to think larger than one game. This result against Chivas felt awful primarily because we went two up and the game got away from us. But as a result, it isn't really bad.

What's more upsetting is for all the talk about learning lessons from the first Dallas draw to the most recent Dallas win, United gave away this game the same way. They played too quickly, and allowed a rival team to use their speed against them. It was almost the exact same situation. If the lesson had sunk in against Dallas, it should have sunk in against the rest of the league.

Yes, I can understand the "look tired" issue. United did have two road games in five days, and will have a home game on Sunday. But it's not like this situation won't reoccur (look at the September to October period when Copa Sudamericana kicks off). BDR says "There is no back-up striker, there is no back-up withdrawn, there is no back-up ten, there are no back-up wings." It makes you wonder. Some players should have been able to step into these roles (well, perhaps not the ten, Dyachenko not withstanding). But Moose and Kpene should be making their influence felt, and aren't. Why not? For all the credit Tom Soehn gets about playing youngsters, I get the sense that he's more comfortable giving young players a chance in defense (Soehn's own role, and perhaps his comfort zone) than in attack. Or perhaps they really aren't training well (Paging Dave Lifton.)

Again, the results are okay, but there's always the chance that the results miss important facts. We survived against Toronto. We did not play well against Chivas. We are unbeaten in six, but we've been convincing in two of those games, acceptable in two, and mediocre at best in two. Maybe that's the way of thing. Maybe I'm always hoping to see dominating performances, and am disappointed when I don't get that. Entirely possible.

Debriefing for Match 12.19: At Columbus Crew

Columbus Crew 0 : 2 D.C. United

Six Word Novel Recap

Emilio takes ball, wallet, from Hendrickson.

Media, Traditional and Otherwise

The Columbus Dispatch, Shawn Mitchell: "United did not play its finest but still handed the Crew a 2-0 loss...Brazilian midfielder Fred struck in the 52nd minute, and 11 minutes later Luciano Emilio scored for a league-leading 14th time."
The Washington Post, Steve Goff: "In the 52nd minute, Christian Gomez nodded Bryan Namoff's cross off the left post, collected the stray ball and had his second attempt blocked. The ball caromed toward the top of the penalty area, where Fred blasted a 17-yard one-timer into the upper right side for his third goal of the season."
The Washington Times, Joe Reedy: "United took advantage of a Columbus lapse for its second goal. After Ezra Hendrickson intercepted a pass by Fred near the penalty area, he tried to clear it in the opposite direction. Then Emilio, who easily put it past Hesmer just outside the goal area..."
MLSNet, Nathan Linton: "Both United head coach Tom Soehn and Crew boss Sigi Schmid said that much of the play in the first half favored the Crew."
MLSNet, Nathan Linton: "...the Crew started to press over the final half-hour. Schelotto had a free kick barely miss four teammates in the box in the 69th minute before being punched away by United 'keeper Troy Perkins. Then three minutes later Perkins saved a goal again after Columbus midfielder Duncan Oughton hustled to the ball, colliding with the right post but pulling the ball back across the face of goal. Perkins scrambled to control the ball and nearly carried across the line before hurling it back out, but referee Richard Heron ruled that Alejandro Moreno fouled Perkins..."
BlackDogRed, BDR: "I am taking nothing away from this game but three points, admittedly on the road, against a mediocre team in hideous kits. S'better than losing, s'better than tieing, it's the minimum requirement after Wednesday's shoepuke, but ultimately it's just a win against crappy yellow team."
Poplar Point Perspective: "Gomez looked better than he has in a month."
The Edgell Supporters: "Simms is an upgrade at defensive mid because of his distribution (not always perfect but better than Carroll) and his ability to shut a lot of stuff down coming through midfield. I hate to say this because of what it means, but we did not really miss Boswell tonight..."
Six Yards North, QJA: "Fred is magical...It wasn't just his strike, which opened the scoreboard as well as United's attack. It was Fred's urgency, which ensured positive movement up the pitch; it was his persistence, which ensured focused, dynamic attack on goal; and it was his thrilling movement on the ball, which ensured that the audience was at the edge of their seats and that the Crew were at the edge of their collective wits. Simply put, United is better as a team when Fred is on the field."
The Offside: Columbus Crew, Scott: "We moved the ball well against them, we came forward often and with intent, but we never really looked that much like scoring. I was particularly impressed with Hejduk’s runs down the right side, the guy never gives up. The second half was largely a different story altogether..."

The Good

1. Second Half Revival: That first half was an utterly disheartening bit of soccer. Neither team looked particularly good, but the Crew overall looked less bad. The second half was a different story, but I'm not sure what caused it. Was United playing that much better before the goal? Maybe, but after Fred broke the deadlock, they certainly established control of the game. Chicken and Egg a bit there. They went on to do very well until they packed it in for the final 13 or so minutes.
   
2. Tackling: One frustrating thing of this season was United not showing enough bite in their tackles, something that they seem to be reversing. This game United had more fouls, but that's largely because they were disrupting play as much as possible in midfield.
   
3. Fight for the shirt: A loss is frustrating, but a loss when the team never has it together? Infuriating. This was somehow not the opposite, but the contrapositive you will. The team never was in sync, but they were fighting through it. There were giveaways, but the team was rallying back to fight for the ball. Luciano Emilio's goal was all about not giving up on the play, pressuring Ezra Hendrickson into turning the ball the wrong way. I'll take that.
   

The Bad

1. TV: Had to watch the game on MLS Live, which came through fine for me but subjected me to ads for Fort Rapids, Ohio's largest indoor waterpark. DO NOT WANT. (That being said, the pbp/color combination in Columbus is much better than most local teams. Credit where it is due.)
   
2. Backline shuffle: The Edgell Supporters didn't miss Boswell, but I think I did, especially in that opening twenty minutes. One thing Boswell does well is play the sweeper role, tidying up some ugly moments in the back by getting the ball out of the box. Given the number of low balls on the ground that Hejduk sent through that missed everyone, I think Boswell deals with those fairly well. He's even better at getting that tall head of his to sloppy aerial balls in the box, clearing them out of the box (sometimes right to an attacker, but hey, better there than around the six yard area.) Burch had a tough game, Vanney was acceptable but not stunning, and Namoff had his hands full. Given that United's central defense was a bit put together, I'm surprised Columbus didn't try to come down the middle more. Part of that was Clyde Simms, but the other part is that Columbus loves dealing the ball wide to Frankie and playing the soccer equivalent of Plinko with his
   

Man of the Match

Fred. Six Yards North has this right, he did an awful lot on the ball to earn that goal. The return of Gomez was nice, and Moreno is playing better now than I can remember, so special merit awards to them. Also merit awards to Emilio, Mediate, Simms, and Perkins.

Karma Bank

Interesting night karma wise...

+1 for the post denying Gomez, -1 for the fortunate series of rebounds that led to Fred finding the shot in stride. +1 for Emilio's persistence in tracking down that second goal. +1 for Perkins making sure of the clean sheet even if he had been fouled, -1 for conceding so much of the opening half but escaping without a goal. +1 for the game, +3 for the season... so we're still owed.

Final Thoughts

While I'm thrilled at the result, I can't help but feel that if Columbus had put away an early chance that we might be looking at a 1-nil loss coming out of Ohio. Still, this win is important. Finishing off August with wins in league play is huge for this team, as September starts with three games in eight days against good teams (At Dallas, At Chivas, Home to the Revs). United will drop some points in those games, but stockpiling results now helps.

The other good news is checking the standings. Not the race for the supporter's shield, which I still want, but rather my bet with The Kin of Fish. Tied with New York and a game in hand... a much better scenario than at the start of the season. If we can finish off August, things will look much better there. Frankly, I've had enough pain this season, I don't need to be heading into Lot 8 in RBNY colors. C'mon United, my physical well being is in your hands.

Debriefing for 12.18: Los Angeles Galaxy

DC United 1 : 0 Los Angeles Galaxy

Six Word Novel Recap

Beckham played, United won, Everybody happy.

Media, Traditional and Otherwise

The Washington Post, Steve Goff: "The English superstar, whose first appearance in a league match had been delayed by an ankle injury, entered in the 72nd minute and provided a couple of his trademark passes in a losing cause, a 1-0 defeat to D.C. United before 46,686 spectators, including England Manager Steve McClaren."
The Washington Post, Michael Wilbon: "Beckham did that last night, put 46,686 fannies in RFK Stadium, which is five grand more than ever watched the Nationals at RFK this season."
The Washington Post, Katie Carrera: "Beckham entered the game in the 72nd minute, to a loud and mixed reaction. Some fans booed him, but most cheered."
The Washington Times, John Hayden: "While Beckham sat on the bench there was plenty of action on the field. In the 27th minute United's Luciano Emilio scored a stunning goal from 25 yards out. Galaxy goalie Joe Cannon got his hands on the ball, but the shot was much too powerful. Emilio notched his league-leading 13th goal of the season."
The Los Angeles Times, Grahame Jones: "Beckham seemed to enjoy it all and was laughing with Cobi Jones on the Galaxy bench, perhaps amused by a huge sign that read: "We Sing Better Than Your Wife."
The Guardian, Saptarshi Ray: "'I've supported DC United for years but something like this has never happened before," said Robert Park, 27, one of the many thousands of Washington regulars sporting a Beckham shirt. "He's the biggest name I've ever seen so I had to get a shirt with his name on.'"
US Soccer Players Association, Ian Plenderleith: "It was just like watching England at RFK Stadium last night. There was David Beckham in the middle of the field, in a white shirt, playing long balls up to a struggling forward line in a desperate but ultimately failed and unimaginative attempt to claw back a 1-0 deficit. To make him feel even more at home, it was raining too."
MLSNet, Charles Boehm: "On a night when David Beckham made his debut in Major League Soccer, it was Luciano Emilio's goal that proved to be the difference as D.C. United defeated a 10-man Los Angeles Galaxy 1-0 on MLS Primetime Thursday before a sold-out RFK Stadium."
Six Yards North, QJA: "Emilio's strike sent the crowd into raptures. It was so unexpected: all season long he's played the poacher, finding the odd ball in the box and slotting it home easily. This was the first taste of Emilio long distance, and it was very, very sweet."
Poplar Point Perspective: "United's red card luck continues. This makes three of four where United is up 1-0 and is the beneficiary of an opponent's red card. Two of three they have won the game 1-0 and one 1-1 tie. This will not continue. Combine this with DC's recent run of futility near the goal and it could go bad for United if they can't muster the second goal on a semi regular basis."
BlckDgRd, BDR: "If MLS becomes the league where fat and washed-up Ronaldos come to make one last paycheck, if MLS becomes a league of fat and washed-up foreign mercenaries first rather than a league that develops American soccer players, Beckham is a minus."
The Offside: DC United, Max: "This, by the way, is a point that needs thinking about. The trend of late, the New England win aside, seems to have been “Well, we could have scored (x goals), but it just wasn’t there tonight.” A couple of times and that’s a good if irksome sign of progress. After a while it just becomes ridiculous lack of killer instinct up top. It’s hard to place a lot of blame on the players tonight because of the rain and turf, but at some point soon, if not already, the shanking and pretty passing leading nowhere are going to be the reasons for a loss."
The Offside: LA Galaxy, Laurie: "David Beckham’s MLS debut! (I have to put that first. If I didn’t, it would violate some unspoken law of the universe and I would end up in Galaxy blogger hell. And Eric Wynalda would be there, talking incessantly. And Tommy Smyth would be there too, saying “Onion bag. Onion bag. Onion bag…” over and over and over. No thanks. Beckham comes first.)"
Center Holds It, Jeff Bull: "To return to the first kiss analogy, consider Beckham an intriguingly deep and tender kiss…while the rest of the Galaxy amounts to a rough, mildly painful groping of our collective breasts."
Screaming Eagles Podcast, Administrator: "I didn't stay for the Galaxy press conference so that I could talk to the DC players, but I left all the quotes about him from the other reporters in their in case you're interested, and Eric, Aaron and I do get into a lot of that in our discussion of the game."
Ted's Take, Ted Leonsis: "It started to pour and as it really picked up in volume, the fans started to scream and cheer. DC United fans are true fans and they packed the parking lots before and after the game, hooting and hollering."

The Good

1. Attacking Soccer: United came out and attacked Los Angeles. They had good possesion soccer with dangerous penetrating runs. About three different times they put together long uninterupted passing sequences. United wanted this one in and played like it until they scored. Once they scored they continued to play attacking soccer but seemed to take their foot off the accelerator.
   
2. Defense: United bent but didn't break. After all the goals Donovan has scored at RFK, keeping a clean sheet is impressive. Kudos to the back line and Perkins for their second consecutive shutout.
   
3. Crowd: More pro DC than I had hoped. Still not perfect but better than I thought it was going to be. I couldn't tell if there were more cheers or boos for Beckham, which was good. Hopefully some of the people will be back. Or at least check this blog to get their United fix, right?
   

The Bad

1. Finishing: Pure and simple, United needs to learn how to finish. The game should have been over before Beckham even stepped onto the field. But because United hasn't been able to finish well (NE game excepting) the Galaxy had a chance to steal some points. Which bring us to problem number 2.
   
2. Killing Off the Game: I litterally forgot the Gals were down to ten men when I was watching the last ten minutes of the game. United played some amazing possesion ball in the first half but when they really needed it most they were in a defensive shell and just booting the ball upfield. Kill off the game, don't bunker and wait for Beckham or Donovan to kill you.
   

Man of the Match

Luciano Emilio. He scored the game winner and nobody else really out played him.

Karma Bank

+1 for Emilio's goal. -1 for United's missed chances. -1 for LA's missed chances, -1 for bunkering against 10 men, -2 for McTavish's NFL defending, +2 for Martino's "tackle", which leaves us -1 for the game and +2 for the season.

Final Thoughts

So much has already been said I don't really know what to say. I loved having RFK full and loud. We need to do that again sometime. I brought 16 friends most of whom had been to at least one game before. About half of them helped me start some chants in 327. Another one bought a DC United shirt to represent. Hopefully everyone else brought some friends and had a great time as well.

Debriefing for 12.15: F.C. Dallas

D.C. United 3 : 3 F.C. Dallas

Six Word Novel Recap

Three goals surrendered, two