Quick Review: Sounders settle for scoreless tie
by Jeremiah Oshan on Sep 9, 2010 11:00 PM PDT
in Sounders: MLS Regular Season
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Sometimes a tie feels like a win. Sometimes it feels like a loss. Tonight, a 0-0 decision with Supporters Shield-contending Real Salt Lake it felt like a, well, tie.
RSL had, unquestionably, the best scoring opportunity. But Kasey Keller stopped Robbie Findley's penalty at 32' to keep the game scoreless.
The Sounders, though, seemed to have more opportunities, but were unable to make the final passes that would have helped turn them into goals. The RSL defense, too, came up big with several blocked shots and kept backup goalkeeper Kyle Reynish from being too significantly tested.
The Sounders who had been on quite a roll in terms of getting shots on goal have suddenly struggled to get much on net. This was the second straight game -- notably both without Blaise Nkufo in the lineup -- where they failed to get more than three shots on target. That comes on the heels of a seven-match run in which the Sounders got at least five in every game.
It was hoped that the presence of Nate Jaqua would provide some holding ability that the Sounders lose with Nkufo's absence, but he struggled to create much out of the target forward position and was subbed out for Michael Fucito at 70'. Fucito, who is seven inches shorter and much faster than Jaqua, succeeded in creating some chances but was equally ineffective at helping the Sounders find the back of the net.
The post-match locker room was quiet and lacked the kind of buzz you might expect after gaining a much needed point against a team that has lost just once since April.
Perhaps that's because the Sounders felt that two extra points were for the taking in both matches against RSL. In the previous encounter, you might remember, the Sounders ceded a stoppage time goal that robbed them of two points. In this one, there were frustrations for different reasons.
Whether it was the questionable nature of the penalty call that led to Keller's heroic save, the final whistle that blew as Steve Zakuani was streaking down the byline for a potential 1v1 or just the frustration of numerous missed connections, the Sounders hardly seemed to be in the mood to celebrate.
"It was frustrating not to get the win," said Fucito, who made his first appearance at Qwest since his stoppage time goal against Kansas City. "I think we can beat that team.
"We have high expectations. We want to keep that good streak going that we had and rebound from that game last weekend. Especially playing at home, we expect to get three points every time. So, we're frustrated, but we didn't give up a goal ... it could be better."
For the rest of us, though, sometimes a tie is just fine. The point keeps us five points up on Toronto in the overall standings and actually moves us ahead of San Jose for seventh. It also allows us to maintain our .14 PPM lead over Chicago, who now trails by seven points with three matches in hand.
The tie may not feel great, but crunching the numbers tells us it will do.
Stats and quotes after the jump.
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Goals by Period |
1 |
2 |
Tot |
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Real Salt Lake |
0 |
0 |
0 |
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Seattle Sounders |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
Scoring Summary: |
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|
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Real Salt Lake -- Kyle Reynish, Tony Beltran, Nat Borchers, Chris Schuler, Chris Wingert, Nelson Gonzalez (Will Johnson 65), Kyle Beckerman, Javier Morales, Andy Williams, Robbie Findley (Pablo Campos 89), Alvaro Saborio. |
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Misconduct Summary: |
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RSL -- Alvaro Saborio (caution; Reckless Tackle) 54 |
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Referee: Paul Ward |
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Referee's Assistants: -Peter Manikowski; Anthony Vasoli |
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4th Official: David Gantar |
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Attendance: 36,078 |
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Time of Game: 1:52 |
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Weather: Partly Cloudy-and-59-degrees |
All Statistics contained in this boxscore are unofficial
Seattle Sounders FC vs. Real Salt Lake - September 9, 2010 - Postgame Quotes
Sigi Schmid - Sounders FC Head Coach
(On the game) "I think we battled and we fought, but I don't think we played great soccer tonight so it was a little disappointing from that regard because I know we have more in us. For whatever reason all of our passing was disjointed and we didn't click in that regard. I'm still proud of the fact that we've played what's probably the best team in the league twice now and have tied them twice. But I know we're capable of better soccer and I don't think we played as well tonight as we could have."
(On Kasey Keller's game) "Kasey Keller made a great save on the penalty. It probably was a PK because he [Parke] probably did get a piece of him in the box, but we thought the ball was out of bounds before it ever got there. At the end of the day, Keller came up with a great save and it was probably justified because I don't know if they deserved it 100 percent for sure. He came up with a big save there and it garnered us a point tonight."
(On RSL starting Kyle Reynish in goal and putting pressure on him) "With any keeper, you just have to put shots on goal. [Kyle] Reynish did well, but I don't think we put enough things on goal to really test him often enough. Ossie [Alonso] did a couple of times on some shots, but there was nothing clean that I felt really put him under pressure. He did well. And we find out about that when the lineups are exchanged so when we put the lineups for the guys, they knew then."
(On Alonso's long-distance attempts on goal) "When he has a clean look, it's perfectly fine. He had the one that the goalkeeper had to make the save on and then the one that he just barely put over. If we're forcing it, sometimes it's not good. When he gets clean looks, he strikes the ball fairly well."
(On not getting as many shots on goal as of late) "Our movement just hasn't been as good as it could be. There are times when we're mis-hitting clearances. Our passing out of the back was not real good tonight - I think we missed James Riley a little bit there because he helps us with that. But also the passing from our other defenders wasn't as sharp. Our hold-up play wasn't as good. I think that's one thing that (Blaise) Nkufo adds to our team - he's able to hold the ball up for us and that allows people to get into attacking positions. It's the same thing on a different scale that (Javier) Morales or (Alvaro) Saborio does for them. Nate Jaqua battled hard, but didn't necessarily hold up the ball for us. It's not that we're eons away from where we need to be - we're very close."
(On Fredy Montero not having as much an impact the last few games) "His success is a reflection of how our team's playing as well. I thought he worked very hard and he battled. I think sometimes what happens is he gets frustrated and tries to maybe do too much at times, but it's because he's trying to help the team. He really wants to help the team in that regard. Again, hold up play next to him is important because that allows him to get into good positions and our passing is important to him. So he thrives off the team just as the team thrives off of him."
(On the approach to upcoming Champions League matches) "As far as I know, we have zero points. There are a couple of teams with three and there's one team that has six and if that team with six wins their game and we win our game then you've got three teams with three so I think that would put us right in the thick of it. So we have to be smart and we're going to try and put our best lineup out there for each game. We'll base our lineup on injuries, fitness and everything and the same thing when we go to play Columbus - every time we step on the field we want to win. We don't want to do anything less than win."
(On any update on Blaise Nkufo's condition) "He seems to feel better, but we have to see how he does Saturday in training."
(On Osvaldo Alonso's play) "I thought Ossie's play was good. He covers and fills a lot of gaps for us at midfield. I thought he did a pretty good job of containing [Javier] Morales. I don't think Morales did a whole lot to hurt us tonight so I thought he did a good job there. Defensively we were okay with a couple of exceptions. Even though they knocked the ball around, it wasn't where they were penetrating a lot. There were a couple that were close, a couple that ... offsides, not offsides, but overall I thought we were okay. It was when we transitioned and the ball turned over to us, I don't think we did a good enough job of keeping it and as a result that made us defend more than we should have."
(On being surprised about the amount of whistles) "Tonight, with whistles, nothing surprised me."
(On the team's passing and possession play . . .) "We just have to work on that part of our game. That was the reason we brought in [Mike] Fucito. Even though he's a smaller stature player, he does a good job of keeping the ball and connecting. He laid a couple of good balls out to [Steve] Zakuani and got him involved, and actually had a very good shot himself. We just have to work on that aspect. The problem with the games is you really don't get any time to train so you're going from game to game and you have to talk about it then hope they understand it from talking about it."
Kasey Keller - Sounders FC Goalkeeper
(On his save on the penalty kick attempt . . .) "I mean, penalty saves are penalty saves. You just hope you go the right way. You hope he puts it somewhere where you can save it and today he did that, which was nice. It was great to be able to come up with that save at that time. I would love to see it on replay because I thought he went down pretty easily. In the end, it didn't hurt us so that is good."
(On the home crowd . . .) "There's going to be far more years when they don't chant my name so it's nice when they do. The most important thing was getting away with this game. It was one of those games where they came here to get at least one point and if they got something more then they were very happy about that. I thought the first 10 or 15 minutes we were tremendous and then we kind of didn't quite play as well after that. But some guys really stepped up. Ossie [Osvaldo Alonso] continued to play great. Zach Scott came in for James [Riley] and did a tremendous job. We are doing OK. We are frustrated. Sure. We want to win every time we step on this field. But people have to understand that teams are going to come here and really make it difficult for us because they respect what we have done here and what this crowd is like. Like I said, we could've gotten a little more today but it's definitely not the end of the world."
(On stopping penalty kicks . . .) "You can do whatever but in the end if you can come up with a few saves at the right time then great, maybe make them miss a couple. Great. But you got to understand that more often than not they are going to score. That's just the way it is."
Jeff Parke - Sounders FC Defender
(On the penalty . . .) "It was a good play by him [Robbie Findley] and a dumb play by me. I shouldn't have lunged in like that. I should've just kept him outside and my mistake."
(On Kasey Keller saving the penalty kick attempt . . .) "It was great. It definitely kept the game obviously with a tie for us. It lifts you, gets you back on track. A goal there and it's difficult to get back in but he did a great job saving it and kept us in the game."
(On the match . . .) "It was good. They are a good team. I think they are the best team that I have played against this year, just on movement and just players-wise they know where each other is supposed to be. They are always playing balls into the forwards feet and guys playing off and they are always moving. They are a tough team. On our part, I didn't think we played to our best. We weren't that sharp. Obviously there were some clearances that I should've done better with but for the most part we edged out a result and that's alright."
(On holding RSL scoreless . . .) "It's good. Obviously the PK was frustrating. As a team, I think we played good enough to keep them out of the net. I don't think they had too many good chances. After giving up three crappy goals last week, to give up none this week is good."
(On the result . . .) "You feel like you got something but it's frustrating because obviously we need points. Every time you get a tie you give space for other teams to gain on you. It's frustrating because we are at home and we want to win at home. There was only seven games, now six left, so we need to get some good results and buckle down because we have a big road trip coming up and then another road game against a tough team in Columbus.
Mike Fucito - Sounders FC Forward
(On playing at Qwest Field . . .) "It felt great. I love playing here. I love the fans. It's been a long time. That was the first time I got somewhat significant minutes. I think my fitness is coming along and I would like to hopefully start banging away some goals again."
Jason Kries - RSL Head Coach
(On coming away with a draw in the match....) "I'm thrilled for more reasons than just the result. The guys put in great effort tonight and the attention to detail was amazing. The commitment level was just second to none."
(On the play of Kyle Reynish and Chris Schuler...) "Just amazing, in my opinion they were in the right position to make plays for our team. We have been really patient with Chris and have taken our time with him. He stepped into arguably one of the most difficult places in the entire league and just didn't put a foot wrong. He has so much personality and competitive fire."
(On Robbie Findley pressing too much...) "I think he is a confident player. I have to give credit to the guys for having him take the penalty. We have a real family spirit and gave him the opportunity to score. To watch two or three of our guys go grab him after he misses and let him know it is ok; that for me is special stuff."
Kyle Beckerman - RSL Midfielder
(On his thoughts on tonight match...) "This is a tough place to play; now they are getting desperate with the playoffs. They are really attacking with everything they have. We were able to match their intensity and knew that at the 75th minute we could get out of here with a draw."
Robbie Findley - RSL Forward
(On missing the penalty kick . . .) "I was taken down in the box and stepped up to take the shot. I didn't hit it that well and he made a good save. Nothing more than that really."
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First things first
I thought that based on the overall run of play, a draw was a just result for this game.
I do feel like the fans (both in Seattle and Salt Lake City) got cheated a little by the ref. Granted I was in the upper deck, but it seemed he really “let them play,” which is sort of the soccer equivalent to having a gigantic strike zone. If you call everything a strike, it’s going to be hard to score runs. If you let defenders get away with being very physical, then it’s not really surprising when the game ends in a scoreless draw. Maybe I’m off on my impression here, but that’s how it seemed from the cheap seats.
This was the first game that makes me wonder if Montero is wearing down a bit. He had his moments, but it just didn’t seem like he had that little ounce of magic tonight. Which is completely understandable, he’s played a ton of soccer over the last 9-10 weeks. It might make some sense to make Montero a reserve in Costa Rica, bunker a bit against Saprissa, and hope that Montero can come off the bench and give the Sounders a late goal.
When the Sounders did get the ball in advanced positions, it seemed as though RSL had a ton of guys behind the ball. Which can probably be chalked up to good organization on their part as much as anything.
Montero needs Nkufo
With Baise out teams can focus their defense on Fredy. He seldom had space to turn when he got the ball tonight. That said I agree that the referee let the defense literally tie up Montero. A whole lot of clutching and holding going on.
Montero
Constantly had 2-3 defenders on him as soon as he touched the ball. RSL executed their tactics well in that regard.
Win or lose, we will always be here for you.
by johnjahafanclub on Sep 10, 2010 2:42 PM PDT up reply actions
Mixed feelings on alonso tonight.
Yes, the man is like a giant vacuum in mid-field and seems to get any ball near him. I, however, was very frustrated with his shooting today. I used to love that he take chances from range. For quite some time I have always been saying “it’s going to happen one of these days soon” but that goal hasn’t. Funny thing was the closest shot he had was the volley. Is Ozzie hitting these shots in training and that’s why he is doing it, or should he be taking his time to try to find a killer pass into the box instead of pulling the trigger every time he gets possession with a slight amount of space from 23 yards out? It seems like the constant shooting may be wasted possession in an attacking area if he can’t put a ball on target.
-Ben R.
agree with reesebw
the passing was subpar, and lacking. too many forced shots by ozzie tonight, rather than trying to work the ball up through more deliberately. i understand keeping the goalie honest, but he just doesn’t score on these shots, and is rarely on target. his defense is solid, all the time. he is too impatient offensively, and he doesn’t need to be, because he’s plenty quick..
jaqua was by far the best passer last night. montero’s passing was awful. way too many balls too hard and not to a player’s feet. and he doesn’t like to “give and go” pass.
montero should miss nkufo, because blaise does an excellent job drawing players to him, and moving into space. but nkufo clearly is frustrated with montero’s lack of interest to reciprocate, and get service back to him when he’s making runs off the ball.
i wish they’d try alvaro at CM with ossie, and forget about him on RW. stay with nyassi. this team is too slow with just zak. that’s one key reason SOG were low, again..
by the time they brought fucito in, the defense and midfield had resorted to the “long ball”. his 20 mins were wasted using that style. also too many kicks upfield from keller. we rarely control possession when that starts happening.
get back to working the ball up through the midfield, including on the wings, and have a bit more patience passing in the top third. then get the speed guys making diagonal runs into space~
by roadrunner11 on Sep 10, 2010 8:16 AM PDT up reply actions
re: Subpar passing
The short passing seemed fine to me, it was that they would just give up after 2-3 short passes and boot it long.
Win or lose, we will always be here for you.
by johnjahafanclub on Sep 10, 2010 2:43 PM PDT up reply actions
In this game, I didn't have a problem with it
We were struggling to generate opportunities, legitimate scoring chances. The numbers kind of tell the story:
TOTAL SHOTS: 10 (Osvaldo Alonso 5); SHOTS ON GOAL: 2 (Osvaldo Alonso 2)
Long-range shots are not exactly high-percentage shots, but they’re better than no shots at all.
Probably because they realised they could play for another 90 minutes and still not come up with a realistic scoring chance. They had 2 shots on goal: the penalty and the effort from Williams in the second half that was really pretty tame.
On another note, the PK call was probably one of the better calls by the ref all night; certainly he spent long periods being consistently terrible. The start of the second half springs to mind – clear and deliberate infringements by RSL in the 48th (trip), 49th (holding, for about 3 or 4 seconds in plain view) and 50th minutes that weren’t called, and then he gives a free kick the other way in the 52nd for a challenge with barely any contact? Well it’s always safe to call them near the centre circle, I guess…
Wow Really
I mean the home team took 10 shots, the visiting team took 7 shots. The home team had two shots on goal and the visiting team had two shots on goal. RSL had more offside calls, which comes from attacking.
Sorry but once RSL adjusted to the turf, about 20 minutes in, the number of shots and movement of players forward was fairly even. I know you can think that RSL bunkered but I am not sure where you would get that from watching the match, honestly both teams attacked when they had chances, neither side possessed the ball very well.
But RSL did shift to a "go for tie" mode with 10 minutes left
Just random long clearences to Kasey Keller.
I am not a Supporter | I am not a Fan | I am a Sounder
Sounder At Heart
I wasn’t doing a compare and contrast – where did I say the Sounders looked any better? Oh yes, I didn’t; you might want to look out for statements like “RSL looked way worse than the Sounders”, they’re a good giveaway.
My point was that RSL didn’t present a credible threat on goal all night – which for the highest scoring team in the league, one that averaged 2 goals a game in all competitions through July and August and only conceded 10 in the same time, 5 of which were in that farcical CCL game, is a bad night all round as far as offence is concerned. There were two things that allowed them to walk out of Qwest with a point: solid defence from the midfield back combined with a singularly ineffectual offense on the part of the Sounders.
And to go back to the ref one more time: what the heck was up with that throw-in call? If you throw in incorrectly, be it intentional or otherwise, and the ball enters play, it’s a foul throw, end of. This is professional football: you don’t just say “that’s okay lad, it happens sometimes – have the ball back and give it another go”.
Personally
I thought that was a pretty stupid call. It’s like, are we really concerned about posture while throwing? Are we back in U-10 youth soccer? I felt like the call was a nitpick. But, on the whole, I felt the ref did a fine job.
by chrisperry1983 on Sep 10, 2010 3:15 PM PDT up reply actions
The non-call, you mean? Because having picked Leo up on his foul throw (and correctly so – Leo had done the same thing a couple of times already and been allowed to get away with it, so awarding the foul throw against him was an effective warning not to do it again), if he was being in any way consistent he should’ve made exactly the same call for the fluff by the RSL player, but he apparently didn’t know what to do and ballsed it up by giving it back to them.
I wouldn’t say anything the ref did wrong was an absolute game changer, but there were just so many little things he did wrong that taken as a whole, “fine” is near the bottom of the list of words I’d use to describe his performance last night.
At the game
I didn’t feel like we were playing poorly. I do agree that the first 15 minutes were our best, but we created a lot more opportunities than RSL (even in the first 60 min. before RSL started playing for the draw). On our passing, I agree that Jaqua had a not-so-great game… his ability to control the ball was minimal and the RSL defenders capitalized and never gave him the extra second he needed. Instead, he’d mostly just hit it by head or foot as soon as it got to him without head to who was where or direction. It was frustrating, but I can’t blame him.
The real reason we looked disjointed in this game is, at least to my untrained eyes, the RSL defenders. They were big, fast, well positioned, and freakin everywhere everytime we got the ball down near their goal. It was an impressive display, as much as it was frustrating to know that we had opportunities. There is a reason they have allowed so few goals – their play reminded me of the Sounders defense on our better days; it was an absolute lock-down.
Gonzo had an amazing game, along with Alonso, on defense. Those two, plus our magnificent keeper’s play (two great saves, several other gutsy plays that prevented opportunities by RSL), made this game a fun one to watch. Great energy from the crowd.
And, for only my second live game (I’m not the richest man on the planet, even though tickets are reasonibly priced), I have to say I still LOVE the atmosphere and I find ECS to be a huge part of that. I love that I can ENJOY their chants and join in, but can also just stand there and watch the match when I want to as well.
RSL fans probably feel like it was a loss
I’ll snarkily nominate Robbie Findley for MOTM. Besides the PK denial, he had 2-3 close-in shanks that could have given RSL the match going away.
I think Jaqua had an okay match, but was victimized by the same issue that has bedeviled Nkufo: Ineffective or non-existent runs by teammates when he was holding up the ball. Sigi’s post-game comments seem overly harsh to me.
The bunch-ball and incessant dribbling in the 18 is driving me insane. I agree, while Alonso isn’t making shots, at least he was putting the ball on goal with some velocity.
I’ll take the point, but I’m back to feeling rather pessimistic about playoff chances.
You will hear us.
just out of curiosity
Why use an external link for Sigi’s comments when they are all in this post?
Kicking k-nowledge at Sounder at Heart and Dreaming of Wigan
by Jeremiah Oshan on Sep 10, 2010 10:50 AM PDT up reply actions
Because
I missed them in skimming 11 paragraphs of Sigi quotes to see if they were there (now seen at the bottom of paragraph 5). They were more easily seen in the MLS article. I mean this constructively, the mass quotes you provide are extremely difficult to get through and I rarely read them.
You will hear us.
Again, just an honest question
Would you rather us not include them? I honestly don’t mind the external quotes, but if you really want to highlight a specific quote, you could always cut and paste it, while giving credit to the source.
Kicking k-nowledge at Sounder at Heart and Dreaming of Wigan
by Jeremiah Oshan on Sep 13, 2010 9:34 AM PDT up reply actions
And the only time we provide mass quotes
Is in the postgame stuff.
Most of the sites that provide them in chunks are not doing so because they got them at different times, but because more posts = more reads.
I am not a Supporter | I am not a Fan | I am a Sounder
Sounder At Heart
Isn't that
really two questions? ;)
In general, I’m sure there are plenty of folks that like the mass post-game quotes so I wouldn’t say get rid of them. I gave my opinion, but can easily skip past if I’m not inclined to read them. In this case, like I said, perhaps not clearly, after reading the mlssoccer article, I did look for Sigi’s Jaqua comments here with the intent of quoting them, I just missed them and assumed you hadn’t included them.
As for the linking, it’s generally easier/less time-consuming than copying, block quoting and attributing. Because you know, I might be on sounderatheart when I should be doing something else.
You will hear us.
Quick thoughts
1) For the most part, our defense shut down RSL’s offense. I was impressed.
2) The PK call was questionable only because it was a foul, but it was really, really soft. Parke stuck his leg out for the ball and didn’t get it, and Findley tripped over it. He was not “taken down” as he put it.
3) I felt Ward did a decent job. There were lots of boos and screaming about non-calls, but almost everything I saw him call or not call looked legit.
4) Ianni was endlessly frustrating with his wild clears and kicking out of bounds.
5) Passing was overall pretty terrible. We’d have some good runs and a good pass or two leading up, only to be lost by a pass to nobody
6) Aside from Zakuani and to some extent Fernandez, we were not able to out-dribble and got stripped pretty frequently
7) Good crosses with nobody to receive are not fun to watch
That starts sounding pretty negative towards the end, but overall I think we played pretty well (certainly better than Sunday) and were able to solidly shut them down. Only problem is once we got to the attacking third, we seemed to get shut down pretty well also.
That was a PK
not at all questionable
Win or lose, we will always be here for you.
by johnjahafanclub on Sep 10, 2010 2:47 PM PDT up reply actions
It looked really soft
was my point. It wasn’t a hack, it was a trip over an outstretched leg. Calls like that go uncalled all the time. I felt it was a really harsh call for something that was not malicious or anything like that. Refs use their best judgment on stuff all the time, and I think this was a bad judgment call.
by chrisperry1983 on Sep 10, 2010 3:18 PM PDT up reply actions
I was at the game
And so I couldn’t see what happened at the other end of the field (when Montero was tripped up while in their penalty box).
I think the crowd was mad at the PK call, but its the refs call. We got really mad when it seemed like the same thing happened to Montero on the next play and there was no call made. It was the non-calls that were frustrating, not the calls themselves.
Could anyone watching on TV see what happened when they didn’t give Montero a PK at the other end of the field (immediately after the PK)? Was that legit or did the ref just screw that one up?
I have to agree
Findley beat Parke with the dribble, causing Parke to slip and fall. Parke then tried a desperate lunge to recover and in the process tripped Findley. It was a beaten player making a reckless attempt to stop a shot and it was all in the box. The referee has to call a PK in that situation.
You will hear us.
I think the frequent games are starting to wear a bit
and having Nkufo out makes a big difference. Even though he hasn’t gotten a goal yet, his hold-up play is something that no one else on the team really brings. as noted in the post game comments. I like Jaqua and I think he has a lot of skills and brings some good qualities to the team, but solid hold-up play just isn’t one of them. It wasn’t last season and it isn’t now, either. He’s just not that guy.
Because of his height, Fucito really needs balls played to his feet (or at least shouldn’t be expected to win balls in the air vs the average CB). I agree with roadrunner11 that he wasn’t put in a great position tonight because of the style of play (although it was kind of humorous to hear the two girls sitting behind us cheering for him incessantly based on, apparently, how cute he is). If the team is playing more of a short passing game and is doing less in the air, I think Fucito could do fine as a hold-up player. I would actually love to see him sub in for Montero in a game (we need to rest Montero sometime, don’t we?) and play in tandem with Nkufo or Jaqua.
On the whole, I wish we would have threatened more, but to hold one of the league’s best offenses (or the best offense, maybe?) to 0 goals even after conceding a PK (which I was a little skeptical of from my POV at the match, but looked totally deserved on the replay), well, I’ll take it. We need at least 9 points out of the last 6 games now, but that’s basically the 1.5 ppm that should be a playoff pace, so, well, fair enough.
being less selfish
i think i’m with you in that i’d like to see Fucito come on for Montero, instead of playing alongside him. frankly, i would have loved to see him play with Ljungberg. Jaqua, Nkufo, and Freddie are all unselfish, and Fucito would create more opportunities as a result, because of how those 3 look to pass. Montero’s mindset just isn’t that way…
i didn’t see how the ball was deflected, but his 1 shot volley was ripped, and looked to be on target…
by roadrunner11 on Sep 10, 2010 9:30 AM PDT up reply actions
Fucito played well when he was in
Love the kid’s hustle – and he was able to contribute to a few late attacks that sputtered due to good RSL defense and a lack of avaiable targets to pass to.
But he just isn’t big enough to play where they put him. I agree that he’d be a better sub for Montero as then his size can let him play a sneaky sort of game (the same kind of play that resulted in his goal against KC).
yes
he’s better in less congestion, with more movement off the ball. tough when it’s packed in, like last night. his 1 shot was “sneaky”, as you described. i’d like to see him be able to do more “slicing” runs. i think he’d pair up well with Nkufo, who’d find him.
by roadrunner11 on Sep 10, 2010 10:05 AM PDT up reply actions
That would be fantastic
I think you’re right. If Montero is winded or hurt (I’d still much prefer Montero to Fucito all else being equal), I’d have the front four-ish be Zak, Fernandez, Fucito, and Nkufo. I was impressed by Nyassi last night, but Fernandez has just been so freakin boss when he’s in that I’m starting to prefer him.
how about...
…putting Fernandez at CM with Ossie? he sees the field very well, and would be a much more dangerous passer in the middle, with several more options. also the defense would have significantly more trouble cutting off his passing lanes. so, i’d reco: Zak-Nkufo-Montero-Nyassi and Ossie-Alvaro.
nothing against Sturgis, who has been solid. but i think Fernandez would open things up offensively more.
1 qualifier though. i’d have Fucito as 1st sub, and soon give him at least a half with Nkufo to understand what that dynamic would provide..
by roadrunner11 on Sep 10, 2010 11:43 AM PDT up reply actions
But I like Sturgis
For his hustle back to the ball and his discipline on defense. I think, though, that your recommendation sounds tasty enough to try – I can just see it… us actually scoring, like, 2 goals in an average game :-) … Mmmmmmm….
Does someone have to be big to be a Target?
Or do they just need to have the skills to hold the ball with a defender on their back and win headers as they come?
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It might help psychologically against the offense
Just a theory. I think Nkufo is better able to make space because he is a big, tough, force of a guy, and people pay attention to that. They might not push back so much when a smaller guy is running around who maybe can’t muscle up as much.
by chrisperry1983 on Sep 10, 2010 10:32 AM PDT up reply actions
I think Fucito holds the ball fine
- potentially very well with the low center of gravity mentioned in the post-game comments somewhere, but winning headers will be hard for him vs a lot of defenders. That’s his biggest issue as a Target. I’m not convinced it’s really the best use of his talents.
But the issue
Is that the size matters without an absolutely massive verticle leap. How can you win headers without commiting a foul if the other dude in the challenge is a foot & a half taller than you?
What I saw yesterday with Fucito was that he just plain got muscled by the bigger RSL defenders. His effort and speed was superb, as well as his footwork & passing (and I think they’d gain the consistency they need with more regular play), but he wasn’t able to create as many opportunities because of his size.
Guess who has the biggest vertical on the team?
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I'm not really
seeing why everyone seems to be so excited with Fucito. He seems like an ok player, but surely not better than Sanna. What am I missing?
fucito not better than sanna?
Fucito is Faster, Better shooter, Better passer and can win physical battles
Besides that?
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by Dave Clark on Sep 10, 2010 6:24 PM PDT via mobile up reply actions
Well
You are obviously entitled to your opinion.
by m_b on Sep 10, 2010 6:53 PM PDT via mobile up reply actions
Faster is fact (from preseason testing)
Shooter is proven through both of their performances in reserve and scrimmages over the past two years.
Passer is because, well, look at last night. Fucito passed to Sounders, Nyassi passed to RSL players. There’s also a history to look at lower levels (college and USL). Fucito had solid assist numbers.
Fucito is stronger (again, according to the team)
Plus Fucito is left footed, and can play both wings and both forwards. Sanna is right footed playing only the wings.
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Well great
I’m excited to see him play more. I wonder why so many teams passed on him during the draft.
by m_b on Sep 10, 2010 7:41 PM PDT via mobile up reply actions
He withdrew from the combine with an injury
I had someone tell me he would have been top 20 if healthy
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Dave's not alone
Nyassi has 0 goals. he’s had a ton of mins. Fucito not only has a cannon leg, he is 90%+ as effective with his right leg as his left, making him the best balanced shooter on the entire team, not just vs. Nyassi.
i realize by your question you probably haven’t seen a lot of Fucito. too bad. sanna changes direction very well. he’s certainly as quick. but his decision-making isn’t optimal because he lacks a degree of poise. he tends to hurry crosses before he’s drawn defenders sufficiently to him.
and ALL of what Dave said…
no way could sanna have made that shot vs KC, for many reasons..
by roadrunner11 on Sep 10, 2010 7:42 PM PDT up reply actions
roadrunner knows him from his college days
I am not a Supporter | I am not a Fan | I am a Sounder
Sounder At Heart
that's true
saw him a lot during college, and even a few games in HS when he was paired with Charlie Davies.(you must know him, right?) he fell in the draft because he had hip surgery prior to his senior season. same issue as mike lowell had with the red sox. torn labrum. he came back probably a bit too soon, and in compensating for the hip, pulled (in season), then tore his hamstring entirely before the Combine. missing it was death in the draft. he was running away with the ivy scoring title and MVP, even well ahead of akpan, before it happened. likely would have been a hermann finalist with zakuani, though zak would still have won it.
sigi found gold, in my opinion.
very disappointing when this knee tissue tear happened during the KC game. seemed like he was about to breakout. i still think he will.. he’s overdue..
thanks for asking. hope you’ll root for him~
by roadrunner11 on Sep 10, 2010 8:30 PM PDT up reply actions
Fucito?
You can’t be serious. If that’s the case I’m immediately a bigger fan of him.
I’m no athlete – does that measure total height reached on a given jump regardless of one’s personal height, or the difference between height reached during jump and one’s personal height?
The only other issue would be weight and the ability to physically move another body during a challenge.
I'll find your vert answer
Your issue with getting bodied and pushed was shown with Sturgis in the box late last night. And would probably show up, even with the lower center of gravity.
Also, some of the part of being a Target is having the defense respect you as a Target man. And there I think being big helps a TON
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Sounder At Heart
differential, not overall height reached.
vertical leap is the height achieved off the floor. a player stands with his arm outstretched upward. that gets measured, then he jumps up reaching measured markers above. the difference is his vertical. Fucito had the highest on the team, and was also the fastest 30m sprinter. he’s run a sub-4.4 40(yards) also, in the offseason. that beats most NFL wide-receivers. did you see him pass the defender and run down that pass off the corner of the box last night?
you’d like seeing him in open-play quite a bit, especially on a breakaway. sooo fast.
by roadrunner11 on Sep 10, 2010 2:05 PM PDT up reply actions
That probably suits him to Quest
Where he has more room to run – but sticking him in the box in place of Jaqua seems a waste of that speed.
And if he is already shorter, but has a great vert. leap, that just means he’s athletic. It doesn’t mean he can actually get up higher than a much taller guy with a smaller verticle leap. I’m curious what his total ability to reach (height + vert. leap) is by comparison to others on the team. Obviously, that doesn’t alone make him a good or bad target forward all on its lonesome, but it would seem to be relevant given that a lot of times the ball gets to the target forward not at his feet but at his head.
don't want to put words in your mouth..
..but i think we’re on the same page. leaping for headers is not Fucito’s game, despite the fact he can jump very high. but he won’t outleap a 6’4" guy under even circumstances. vertical leap won’t overcompensate for an 8" height disadvantage in that case. i’d rather get him room in more space myself. let him attack going forward.
by roadrunner11 on Sep 10, 2010 7:30 PM PDT up reply actions
headers
Sometimes winning headers has more to do with positioning than height, as evidenced by Tim Cahill who’s certainly not the tallest guy out there
RSL fan loves the Sounder fans
Seriously. You guys rock. I’d love to attend a game in Seattle sometime. I love watching all your games on TV because the atmosphere is awesome.
Keep it up.
Whenever the announcer at an RSL game says “lets hear it for the best fans in MLS” we all respond with “Yeah Seattle!”
by Sin2r on Sep 13, 2010 1:02 PM PDT reply actions 1 recs
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