Tag: MLS

The Day After (DC United)

Well that was unexpected.

I stand by my earlier theory that the existence of NYCFC is just some cruel, cruel joke concocted by bored billionaires from the Middle East. How else do you explain how, after playing like idiots against Montreal and then getting easily beaten by Red Bulls, do we manage to beat the statistically best team in the league, quite comfortably? Bored billionaires, I’m tellin’ you.

Mr Suck Goes to Washington

Perhaps the most astounding aspect of the game was just how mediocre DC United were. It must be said that this is my first game watching DC play a full match, and most of the other research I had done was reading other people talk about them. Suffice to say, I was generally confused by the end of last night’s match. They had been alright, they’ve got a great ability to retain possession of the ball and make menacing runs. But they never really looked like threatening. Sure, they had some very close chances, but who doesn’t against our sad excuse of a defense? What was amazing is they really looked ok with losing. Was it complacency? Perhaps it’s the fact that they know they’re probably into the playoffs and didn’t expect much from NYC. Maybe it was just an off night.

Whatever the reason, DC looked like one of the easier teams we’ve had to play. Far more teams have come into Yankee stadium and had oodles of chances, better organization, and much more desire. For some reason, DC United didn’t. So from all of us here in the Big Apple, I’d like to say: Thank you for sucking.

No Pirlo, No Party? No Lampard, No Problem

With Lampard picking up an injury midweek, Kwadwo Poku slotted into his attacking midfield role.

There’s just too much to say about tactics and individual player performances last night. David Villa actually played decently well, inexplicably scoring the second goal and often times sending Poku some great balls.

But, if someone had not seen the lineups, they’d guess that Villa was playing left mid. And that seems to be his game. But it’s not that he merely drifts out wide, he hugs the touchline and spends most of his game there. The problem? No center forward to aim for. We send way too many balls into the box and there’s no one there. Thus, with Poku playing under Villa, he ends up playing as a central striker almost, yet he does well to get back on defense. Poku had an interesting match. Without him, we’d have been screwed. His ingenuity, his directness, and his stunning ability to retain the ball in tight spaces made him the X-factor for last nights game. Yes, he did miss some easy chances and was a little rusty, but he always made up for it. And that’s the real difference between Poku and whoever else we want to play. Maybe Poku is young and inexperienced and is prone to making the wrong decision in the box, but at least he has those decisions to make. That is to say, the fact that Poku looks a bit rusty in the box is also a testament to his ability to get in amazing positions. With consistent playing time and a mentor like Villa, Poku could, nay, will, become one of the top player in the MLS. But Kreis will probably bench him once Grabavoy’s fit. Motherfucker.

On To The Next One

We play the Columbus Crew away on Wednesday. It’ll be fascinating to see what lineup Kreis chooses, specifically whether that lineup include Poku and/or Lampard. It’s odd to say, but we looked a better team without Frank. Sure, he’s a world-class player who, when he’s really fit, could make amazing things happen, but out DP policy has been Real Madrid esque: buy a bunch of superstars not caring about which position they play or if we really need them and force our manager to figure it out. And there’s a few problems with that policy.

  1. Jason Kreis is not Carlo Ancelotti. The MLS vet is out of his depths at NYCFC and does better when coaching a team like DC United, full of MLS seasoned players who work for each other as a unit.
  2. No legs in the midfield. With both Pirlo and Lampard expected to play in the middle, with Villa right on top of them, most pundits have been asking the simple question: who’s doing the running? While it was seems childish, it’s been a good point. Against the Red Bulls, having both Pirlo and Lampard in the center of the field meant that the other players had to do way more running and defensive work than they should. And not even that, we lack any pace, any cutting-edge up top. With Poku instead of an older gentleman, we fix that problem. But Lampard has to play. So we shall see.

Anyway, Columbus are a top team who’ve been playing some decent enough football in this league. They’ll be a good test, and we’ll see if we can build off this win or if it’s just a flash in the pan.

On to the next one.

NYCFC vs Montreal Impact: Preview

Well, we’re at it again. After the gut-wrenching home loss to the Red Bulls, it’s probably good we don’t have any sort of by-week, as we’ll want to forget the calamity that was last weekend as soon as possible.

We’ve played Montreal quite recently, which takes a good amount of intrigue out of this game. As an expansion team, we haven’t played any MLS teams before, thus any matchup is usually the first time we’ve ever played them.

But anyway, we beat Montreal 3-1 at home last time. It was easily our most impressive game of the season, and we’ll hope we can manage another win in Canada tomorrow night.

Form

As I said last time, Montreal are a hugely eclectic team. After losing to us they went on to impressively beat Orlando City, only to get destroyed by Toronto 3-1, a team we had just recently beaten. For every MLS match they play, it all depends on which Montreal side decides to show up.

NYC were in a nice run of form before getting ripped apart by the Red Bulls. I’m fairly confident heading into this match, though. With Lampard, Iraola, and Angelino on the horizon and South African player of the year Tefu Mashamaite training with us, competition for spots in our admittedly sub-par team will be fierce. It seems like NYC have taken notice of the fact that our team is generally bad and in this Montreal game, expect players to fight hard to cement their place in the starting XI.

Lineups

Montreal (4-2-3-1): Bush (GK), Tola (LB), Soumare (CB), Ciman (CB), Oyongo (RB), Donadel (CM), Reo-Coker (CM), Tissot (LM), Piatti (CAM), Romero (RM), McInerney (ST)

-Defenders Camara and Miller are still out.

-Striker Kenny Cooper just underwent knee surgery, as did fellow striker Cameron Porter

NYCFC (4-5-1): Saunders (GK), Calle (LB), Facey (CB), Hernandez (CB), RJ Allen (RB), McNamara (LM), Grabavoy (CM), Jacobson (CM), Poku (CM), Ballouchy (RM), Villa (ST)

-Shelton is very close to a return and could even start this match, but will most lilkely come off the bench

-If Kreis knows what’s good for him, he’ll start Poku, with Mix Diskerud off for the Gold Cup. Mix will miss around 4 MLS games. The question is where Poku will play, as a slot at CM makes sense, but he’s been more effective in an attacking position. Even so, with Grabavoy and Jacobson behind him, he might be given free reign to wreak havoc.

Final Thoughts

New York City is about to go through a heavy transition phase with so many new faces coming into the starting lineup. This will be the last game for players who’ve been here since day 1 to prove that they’re worth starting. And not a lot of them are.

Montreal have their ups and downs, and we expect this game to go NYC’s way, however unlikely that sentence is in any other circumstance.

We’ve beaten them before, we need a bounce back from last week, lets beat them again.

The Day After (Red Bulls)

Last night we were humiliated at home, beaten 3-1 by our rivals the Red Bulls. Here are some thoughts.

Wake Up and Smell The Sucking

On my 45 minute ride up to Yankee stadium from Brooklyn (still better than going on the PATH….) I turned to my father to talk about the upcoming game. I told him that it’s funny that we’re going into this game as slight favorites, only 3 games ago we were the worst team in the league with no hope.

It’s amazing how short the memory of the football world is. I’ve seen it for years in Europe, and it’s funny to see it happen here. A team, a player, or a manager, can go from being considered the cream of the crop to the worst piece of shit within a month. I remember when Cristiano Ronaldo was on top form a year back and people were questioning whether Lionel Messi had shown us his best and was on a downward spiral. A year later, Messi wins the treble in emphatic style and people are back to praising him.

And, of course, many people stick by these teams, players, or managers, but it’s really quite remarkable how ubiquitous an opinion in footie can become once it’s expressed. It’s as if journalists are too stupid to have their own opinions, so once a few articles are written everyone follows suit.

Thus, reminiscing over the insane amount of articles I read before last night’s match, I couldn’t help but be struck by the collectivity in opinions, and even phrases. “NYCFC on the up”…”Red Bulls falling”…etc etc.

The play on the field last night was a wake up call. NYCFC just aren’t a good team yet. We’re brand new, and we won’t be truly good for a while. This Red Bull team have been playing together for a bit, and have an identity.

We were almost the worst team in the league a month ago. A few lucky breaks does not make winners. Last night was case in point.

I Remember Middle School

NYC’s play last night reminded me of an 8th grade boy about to lose his virginity. The first 10 minutes are the most exciting you’ve ever had, and then you lose your focus and by the time it’s over you’re confused and she’s disappointed.

But seriously, there’s an almost childish mentality amongst our team. The first 15-20 minutes, we scored a goal, we had some silky (albeit frustratingly unnecessary) back heels, and some good passing.

Yet as soon as it was Red Bull’s turn to do something, we got bored and lost focus. The rest of the game was typified by wayward passing, lethargic movement, and a genuine lack of communication between our players. The true NYCFC way.

The Team

Yes, I could talk about how McNamara inexplicably is able to score goals yet not pass the ball at a 5th grade level. And I could mention I don’t think Ned Grabavoy was on the field last night.

But the truth of the matter is, our team just isn’t good enough. Yeah, there were poor individual performances, but it’s not like a few changes would’ve really changed that much.

We all love to play backseat manager. “Oh if only he played so-and-so”…”Why doesn’t he switch to a 4-3-3?” etc etc. Hell, I do it all the time. But the truth is there’s no magic formula that can transform the team we’ve got into a winning machine. Unless you’ve got a device which can make 11 clones of Kwadwo Poku, we’re shit outta luck. And if you do have that device, I seriously question your moral code that you’d spend your time using it to help a mediocre MLS club.

Yeah, Pirlo and Lampard will help, but we’re a brand new club, and I’ve heard patience is a virtue.

The Future

Here’s the good news, NYCFC has a bright future. We’re a piece of crap team that already manages to attract talent that most MLS teams would only dream of. I don’t care how much you think we’re just pawns in Man City’s chess game, our owners have a fuckload of cash and don’t like losing. They’ve seen how many people turn up for the shit we’ve got now and they’re smart enough to understand the economic gold mine that is NYC. They know how to run a football team, and I guarantee you in 5 years we’ll be MLS royalty.

We’ll look back at this first season when we get all the bandwagon fans down the line and say “I was there when we were shit.” And fuck, we’ll be proud. Because we suffered through every loss and every second and we’ll look back on players like McNamara and Grabavoy and RJ Allen and we won’t be able to believe that guys like that played for our club.

So forget “on to the next one.” This season will be tough, whoever we play. We’ll win some games with our reinforcements, and that’s exciting. But the real reward will come in a few years. In many ways, we’re going to end up being a lot like Man City. After years of mediocrity and suffering we eventually become the top 3 in the league, never to look back. And it’ll be so much sweeter when we win whatever they’ll be calling the trophy in 5 years time. Because we’ll remember the shit we sat through, and we’re better for it.

NYCFC vs Red Bulls: Preview

Ah, the day is upon us. With all the twitter competitions, the meaningless press conferences, and the overrated blogs, it’s easy to forget that this whole schpiel is about a 90 minute footie match. And how enticing this footie match is indeed.

Form

If you had told me that coming into this match NYCFC would be in far better form I’d probably chloroform you, squeeze your body into the back of my trunk, drop you off at the nearest sanatarium and think nothing of it.

But somehow NYCFC have won 3 MLS matches in a row while Red Bulls were winless in 5 consecutive matches before their scrappy 1 nil midweek home win versus RSL. The Red Bulls even lost, AT HOME, to the Philadelphia Union. Not even NYC have lost to the Union at home, and we’ve sucked for most of this season.

In fact, the Red Bulls’ hot streak ended just after beating us 2-1 in Harrison. Weird vibes, man.

Point is, the Red Bulls haven’t played particularly well the past few games and NYC have exceeded prior expectations, occasionally playing quality football. Going into this game at home in the Bronx, this is a pretty good scenario to have.

Lineups

Red Bulls (4-2-3-1): Robles (GK), Duvall (RB), Miazga (CB), Perrinelle (CB), Lawrence (LB), McCarty (CM), Felipe (CM), Zizzo (LM), Kljestan (CAM), Grella (RM), Wright-Phillips (ST)

-Kljestan is back from serving his suspension and should slot into his preferred role right under the striker.

-Lloyd Sam might make it to the bench, but probably still needs another week to recover from his groin injury.

NYC (4-5-1): Saunders (GK), RJ Allen (RB), Facey (CB), Hernandez (CB), Wingert (LB), McNamara (LM), Grabavoy (CM), Jacobson (CM), Mix (CM), Ballouchy (RM), Villa (ST)

-As per usual, we’d love to see Poku instead of Grabavoy. Last time out Kreis opted for Grabavoy, as Poku had played a full match in midweek. That choice ostensibly payed dividends, as NYC won in Toronto. Although Grabavoy had little to do with that win, he will be trusted in this derby match because of his “MLS experience.”

-As with last game, one of Calle or Williams should make the bench. Shelton is recovering well from a left knee sprain, but if he features at all it would be coming off the bench.

Final Thoughts

With a crowd of at least 45,000 people, it’s hard not to be excited for tomorrow’s derby.

One thing to keep in mind is that while form certainly is influential, often what makes derby matches so great is the fact that both teams want to win this game so much more than other regular league games. When this happens, the play from both sides improves and the game becomes impossible to call. Each team puts forth an inspired performance to match the other and we often see some of footie’s finest moments.

Yet, this isn’t a traditional rivalry as of yet. Sure the first game was heated, but right now the fans of the opposition teams are the ones who are making this a “derby” match. Most of the players are using the “oh-it’s-just-another-3-points” PR tactic.

But soccer players are rarely the best speakers, we’ll see on the pitch how both sides feel about this matchup.

Until then, Death To The Red Bulls.

The Day After (Philadelphia)

NYCFC broke their 11 game winless streak on Saturday night as we ousted Philly 2-1.

Wait, What?

We won? Really?

Yes, turns out we got 3 points. Frankly I still haven’t really accepted that as fact because it’s just been so long since it’s happened, I don’t know how to react.

While the hype-machine PR douchebags who run most of NYCFC’s website will herald this win as a massive stepping point, we’d like to put things in perspective before everyone gets their panties in a bunch.

Nothing Changed

The sad truth of that match was that we got very lucky. This was no tactical marvel, no newfound spark from the team, and not even the hardest fought game. There was very little we can point to that contributed to our first win in ages.

David Villa still dribbles too much and overthinks every move he makes, our defense gets caught making stupid tackles, and we struggle to get players wide. Our passing and movement off the ball are poor. We just didn’t play a good game.

If anything, we owe that win more to Philly than ourselves. The amount of chances they wasted and mistakes they made almost looked as bad as us. We would not have even been able to compete in that game had the Union not been so bad themselves.

Yet aside from all this brutal cynicism, there was a positive to take from this game.

Shay Facey

My man. I’ve always been excited about Shay, from the first day the young English lad got subbed on at right back in Yankee stadium. To me it was simple: would I rather have a young American player who’s been playing at college level, or a young Brit who was raised through the Man City youth system? No matter what, he’s going to know things that it will take years for his counterparts to learn, that’s just the reality of the gulf  between youth development in Europe and the States.

Much to my chagrin, however, Facey has had a rough start to life in the MLS. In his first start for the club he managed a red card in the first half and he’s had some really shaky defending. But after getting a rare start at center back against the Houston Dynamo, Facey has impressed, even being named man of the match against Philly.

Facey looked like vintage fuckin’ Vincent Kompany against Philly. He just had that beautiful intangible aurora about him where you just knew he wasn’t going to lose the game. Every cross into the box he managed to clear, he ran tirelessly, his positioning was spot on, and his high field pressing would force mistakes from the opposition attackers.

Though he did have some “training wheels” moments, most notably when his poor excuse for a cross fell invitingly at the feet of a Union player only for him to fuck up. But, as the case was, Philly made us look good. And Facey looked good.

If Facey can keep up this run of form he could be the rock in the back we thought Hernandez would be early in the season.

On To The Next One

At the end of the day, we did win. Which is pretty big. I’ve never played professional footie (…yet) but I believe that this win could have the power to instill real self-belief within our players. And that’ll be important considering the run of games we have coming up.

Looking ahead, we’ve got El Clasico versus the Red Bulls on June 28th. If we can maybe get another win between now and then we might have a real shot of competing. But that’s looking ahead and asking a lot.

For next week we’ve got the Montreal Impact at Yankee Stadium. Montreal are an eclectic team to say the least. They made it to the CONCACAF Champions League final all the while coming in dead last in the league. Anything can happen with those guys, but they’ve been playing some fairly good footie lately. Let’s hope we build on progress and don’t regress.

On to the next one….

NYCFC vs Houston Dynamo: Preview

Tonight Yankee stadium will host the Houston Dynamo as NYCFC try to do something, anything, to prove they are still a real team.

Interestingly enough, this is not the first time NYC have faced the Dynamo. While it was only a preseason match, we have played against these lads in the Carolina Challenge Cup back in February.

We played a fairly poor game then, losing 2-1, with the only consolation a sweet back heel from McNamara to set up Mix’s emphatic finish.

Ahhhhh, February. We had the whole world ahead of us: “back heels”, “emphatic”, “finishes,” no knowledge of Ned Grabavoy’s consistent mediocrity.  Granted, playing as we did should have been a stiff harbinger for the future, but hey, it was February.

Form

If there’s one thing that can be said about Houston’s season thus far it’s that is has been far from boring.

They’ve had only four wins, two of which have come in the past three games. They tied Sporting KC at home in a 4-all eight goal thriller. Their last match was set to be a tie against the Galaxy in California until a 92nd minute winner by Alan Gordon, giving LA the late victory.

Houston haven’t played all that poorly this season, they’ve just had a lot of unlucky moments. Watch out for British striker Giles Barnes who’s got 5 goals already and holding mid Luis Garrido. Also if you think you see a certain 33-year-old former US international playing left back, you’re not dreaming: it’s the man, the myth, the legend, DaMarcus Beasley.

NYC keep losing. They’ve lost for a while. There’s a few tied games in there. Mostly losses. That’s all.

Lineups

Houston (4-4-2): Deric (GK), Beasly (LB), Taylor (CB), Horst (CB), Rodriguez (RB), Lopez (LM), Clark (CM), Garrido (CM), Garcia (RM), Bruin (ST), Barnes (ST)

-Poster boy Brad Davis caused NYC a whole mess of trouble in that game back in February, so Yankee Stadium will hope that the left midfielder’s right knee bruise doesn’t heal up before this match. He could start, though, if the doctors give him the green light this morning.

-Center back Horst has a slight knee sprain, but is expected to start.

NYCFC: (4-4-2): Saunders (GK), Brandt (LB), Watson-Siriboe (CB), Hernandez (CB), Facey (RB), Ballouchy (LM), Mix (CM), Jacobson (CM), Shelton (RM), Villa (ST), Mullins (ST)

-It’s possible that NYCFC are using the same medical staff as Arsenal have been using for the past few years. There are SIX players who could possibly not play, FIVE of those defenders.

-Left back Calle and right back Williams are both certainly out, with a right quad strain and left adductor strain, respectively.

-Wing backs Brovsky and RJ Allen seem to be forming some type of chemistry, as both are questionable with right quad strains. Twins!

-Center back Wingert looks doubtful with a right hamstring problem.

-Ned Grabavoy is our final name on this list, with a pelvic injury (HA, loser!) having kept him out of a few matches. We’d usually be celebrating another match without him, but at this point it doesn’t even matter.

Final Thoughts

I think we could get a tie. But then again I also thought Pluto was a real planet, Arsenal would finally win the league this year, and NYCFC had a chance of making the playoffs.

Maybe try to play well? I don’t know. I really don’t know.

The Day After (Real Salt Lake)

FAITH NO MORE: RSL Dispenses NYC 2-0

Confidence. It’s the “patriotism” of the sports world…the last refuge of a scoundrel.

When your team’s coach and paid commentators start saying that your team needs confidence. When one of the Tri-State Ford’s Keys to the Match is “BELIEVE!” That’s when you know you are in trouble.

And, boy, are we in trouble.

Even without the 10-billion-ton burden that is Ned Grabavoy, we looked clueless and incompetent last night. Sure, Khiry Shelton is still a kid, a 21-year-old rookie. Maybe he and the 20-year-old Manchester City’s youth academy product Shay Facey might lack confidence, and Facey certainly showed it last night with some costly blunders, but the rest of these clowns are professional athletes. They get paid to do this, for a living. They are MLS veterans. Heck, some of them are even World Cup-winning record holders.

I could, like the match commentators, argue that David Villa isn’t getting the service he used to back when he was a world-class superstar. And I could even cling to their other claim, that MLS is a tough league with permissive refs and brutal center backs. But Villa has played against tougher, stronger, and faster opposition. And no matter what league you are playing in, if the ref isn’t giving you the calls, then you’ve got to stop going to ground and find a way to beat your opponent.

Mix Diskerud did strike the crossbar. That was our one shot on target. And our one match highlight. Which is why you won’t hear a lot of people talk about how useless he was for the other 89 minutes and 37 seconds. I hate to single him out, but – like Villa – the gap between his promise and his performance is hard to ignore. Diskerud is like a spinnaker that’s flapping loose.

In the field, Mehdi Ballouchy was our best player last night. The guy, long a posterchild for mediocrity, is even our top scorer this season. Mullins showed the occasional spark. And Jacobson wasn’t an embarrassment, though he did miss one of our few opportunities (Villa, who put one decent effort over the bar, pathetically squandered another opportunity).

Define “Defense”

Our defense really stood out. Brovsky was out-blundered by Facey, but he certainly can’t hold his head up high. Our two center backs, Hernandez and Wingert, were as effective as orange traffic cones on the side of the freeway.

The only exception to NYCFC’s failure has been and continues to be Josh Saunders. He made some huge saves. So many saves that it’s harsh to question his performance on the second goal. Without him there surely would have been more.

I look at the stats from last night’s game and the two teams appear even. Possession, passing, tackles, crosses, corners – all nearly identical. The only significant differences were in shots on target and clearances – both of which were in Real Salt Lake’s favor. Yet even MLS.com, notorious for proclaiming the league’s parity, declared that it was a “comprehensive victory” for RSL.

Jason Kreis…

I have to blame Jason Kreis. Yes, he did make some changes in the 66th minute, bringing on Velasquez for Shelton and McNamara for Mullins, and we did start to show some signs of life. And then he got bold in the 81st, bringing on Brandt – his first appearance as a professional – for Wingert. But stats aside, there looked to be one competent team on that field, and it wasn’t ours.

I blame Kreis because he picked these players, most of whom are proven entities. Sure, some of them are failing to perform, but a lot of them look completely incapable of performing – at least not at the professional level.

We’ve earned 7 points in 12 games…rock bottom of the table. 

Even without Grabavoy, we continue to chase the ball around the midfield. We lose our shape as soon as the whistle blows, leaving opponents with all sorts of space – and limiting our passing options when we do have on the ball. And our back line is exceedingly subpar. These are all issues Kreis can and should address, though it doesn’t seem like he’s even aware of them.

On the attack, Villa always has his back to the goal. Or he’s dropping back into the midfield to get the ball. That’s not his strength. That’s not his skillset. That’s not his game. That’s what Diskerud should be doing. He should be the playmaker sending through balls to Villa. Or, better yet, put Poku out there – a proven passer. And Nemec, the one strike partner who has demonstrated an ability to receive and hold the ball with his back to the goal.

I blame Kreis because he should see these challenges. And he should be working to address them. I’ve seen little improvement in our play over the past 12 games. Each week it’s the same problems. And each week he attributes them to a lack of confidence, and bad luck.

Maybe the player’s don’t believe in themselves, as Kreis claims. Or maybe they don’t believe in him. Either way, I hope I don’t have to wait 12 more matches to find the answer.

On To The Next One

We play Houston Dynamo at home. Whatever.

NYCFC vs Real Salt Lake: Preview

On Saturday, May 23rd NYC will travel to Salt Lake to take on Jason Kreis’s former club at 10 p.m. ET.

Form

RSL haven’t exactly set the world on fire with their play this season. While managing some impressive away wins at San Jose and more recently the Chicago Fire, Salt Lake have only won 1 of 4 games in their home stadium and have suffered heavy defeats such as 4-0 and 4-1 to the hands of New England and the Montreal Impact.

NYCFC have been worse, though. After an opening night win over the Revolution, NYC have seemingly forgotten what 3 points feels like. Unlike RSL, however, NYC always seem to compete for every game, never losing by more than 2 goals. We love barely losing. Yet, after a massive morale-boosting 2 goal comeback draw with 10 men last weekend, all of NYC will be hoping that game can kickstart the season.

Lineups

RSL: (4-4-2) Rimando (GK), Beltran (RB), Olave (CB), Vasquez (CB). Phillips (LB), Beckerman (CM), Gil (CM), Stertzer (LM), Mulholland (RM), Saborio (ST), Sandoval (ST)

-RSL have a host of niggling injuries to Okwuonu, Plata, Morales, and Jaime. While not necessarily guaranteed starters, RSL would benefit from having a few of these guys fresh and on the bench.

NYC (4-4-2): Saunders (GK), Brovsky (LB), Wingert (CB), Hernandez (CB), Facey (RB), Jacobson (CM), Mix (CM), Shelton (RM), Alvarez (LM), Mullins (ST), Villa (ST)

-With RJ Allen suspended, Brovsky will move to left back and Facey will slot in at right back, as Williams is out with NYCFC’s favorite injury, the famous left adductor strain.

-Both Calle and Grabavoy are questionable but one could make the bench.

Final Thoughts

This could be an important game for both sides. We both need the win.

Furthering the plot line is that Grabavoy, Watson-Siriboe, Velasquez, Wingert, Saunders, and as we all know, head coach Jason Kreis all used to play at RSL. It will be very much a homecoming for Kreis & Co. Let’s hope we can spoil the party.

May the force be with you. Or at least a win. Maybe even a tie. Good luck, basically.

The Day After (Chicago)

Last night NYCFC earned a well fought point against Chicago Fire at home. Here’s our thoughts.

David Villa? More like David Suck!

That’s not entirely accurate. He’s a fantastic footballer who holds the top goal scoring record for the Spanish national team and has won almost every trophy that a footballer can earn. He came to MLS to either: A) Get one last hefty paycheck living in our lovely city or B) Give himself one last challenge.

Presumably it’s a Mix of the two but if option B was at all on his agenda he’s doing quite poorly.

Granted, he’s only been here for a bit and he’s had some injury trouble, but it’s kind of unsettling how hard he’s finding life in MLS.

Sure, he doesn’t have Xavi or Iniesta giving him passes. Which in all honesty is exactly the reason he’s struggling. But you’d hope a player of such high caliber and talent would be able to do something on his own. Yet he often looks at a loss for ideas.

He keeps losing the ball when he runs with it at MLS defenders. Let me repeat, MLS defenders. 

And while his off the ball play is rather commendable, he’s slow and indecisive on the ball (Mix Diskerud too, maybe that’s what they learn in training?).

Villa will get the ball in a dangerous area and often slow the tempo, allowing for the opposition to get more men behind the ball, and then he’ll shoot from the same position he was in earlier yet now it gets blocked.

But forget all that. Villa is a goddamn world-class footballer. He shouldn’t only be finishing every single chance he gets in the box, he should be creating chances, he should be a game changer. A Designated Player, if you will.

So far he hasn’t really done that. He’s been good in patches, takes some nice shots like the one that allowed Mehdi Ballouchy another goal for this season, but he really isn’t doing anything special. We’d like that to change. Or another DP. Both work.

The People

As our results have been poor to say the least, I’ve been wondering how long will this team continue to get support.

Losing to the Red Bulls, playing like crap, being a bad team, all these factors add up to what should be a substantial loss of an excited fan base.

Of course the diehards would stay and the casual supporter would go, but it’s those in the middle, the slightly interested, who have presumably been jumping ship after this suck-fest we call our first season.

Thus, at Yankee Stadium this summer night I was surprised to see 23 thousand fans in attendance. There were many seats vacant, which makes me question that number, but a lot of people are still showing up. What if we were good? Imagine the possibilities!

Yet as the game progressed my positivity from the fan support was quickly overshadowed by what’s becoming an NYCFC trademark: poor play, red card, giving up a goal.

Once the second goal went in, the crowd (myself included) started getting angry.

“You guys are idiots” one fan screamed down to the team. “How could you make that pass?”, “What’s wrong with you guys?” “Does anyone want my season tickets? Please? I’m begging you!” were only some of the less than supportive shouts during the first half. It looked as if we were in for another long night.

Then, Mehdi Ballouchy did what he does best: Inexplicably score yet another goal. Fans clapped and cheered, but it wasn’t enough to bring us back from the disapproval we held.

Second Half

NYCFC love the second half.

We always play better. And for some reasons teams end up playing worse. Really odd.

Last night was no different. We played far better in the second half, and ended up with a goal to show for it.

Went Shelton sent that miss-hit shot wobbling into the far corner, Yankee Stadium erupted. As the game came to a close, most fans were on their feet, applauding the efforts of our team.

True, we were a man down for an hour on the match, but it’s quite incredible we were all clapping for a tied game at home. Maybe one day we can clap for a really good performance and even, dare I say, a win.

Shelton

It’s a shame, but Khiry Shelton looks the be the Chicharito of the MLS. We’ve started Shelton for many successive games after his breakout into the team, yet despite his best efforts, he hasn’t really had the offensive impact we’d hope he would.

Normally I’d be livid if he were benched, but last night I felt he sort of deserved it. And the truth is his pace and raw force are better utilized later into the match when the opposition are tired.

It’s so simple! He kept having such a positive impact on the game off the bench earlier in the season, naturally we assumed he’d be just as effective given 90 minutes.

Yet, we were wrong. Shelton is at his best two-thirds into a match when the opposite defenders are starting to get weary and he can run at them full steam. He may not want to admit it, but at this point in his career, he’s best only playing 30 minutes a game. But what a 30 minutes he gives us.

On To The Next One

Shelton’s late goal can only propel us towards a brighter future. It will give the team renewed confidence and a belief that maybe they aren’t the worst thing to happen to New York since some European douchebags brought pigeons here on a boat.

But let’s not get our panties in a bunch. Sure Kreis and Co. will be lauding this miraculous result, but we’re still making the same stupid mistakes and not playing up to our potential.

We can hope that this comeback will inspire us to get a result against a Real Salt Lake that were just humiliated 4-1 by last placed Montreal Impact, but only time will tell.

On to the next one.

NYCFC vs Chicago Fire: Preview

On Friday, May 15th NYCFC will host the Chicago Fire at 7 p.m. ET.

Form

Chicago’s form is an enigma. They love mini-streaks. 3 losses, 3 wins, and now 2 losses. Hopefully this’ll be their third loss in a row, just for the sake of consistency.

Chicago have a quality-ish team. Harry Shipp, David Accam, and Shaun Maloney all have the individual firepower to take over a game, but often struggle to do so. Accam wreaked havoc down NYC’s right side against Brovsky last time they played, so expect NYC to be prepared for that.

Or they won’t. Whatever. NYC need to get their shit together, but I don’t expect anything from them at this point.

It’s kinda fun now though…When will NYC get a win? How long will we wait? This is exciting! In a depressing sort of way.

Lineups

Chicago (4-4-1-1): Johnson (GK), Jones (LB), Larentowicz (CB), Adailton (CB), Gehrig (RB), Accam (LM), Polster (CM), Ritter (CM), Shipp (RM), Maloney (CAM), Guly (ST)

-Accam returns from a game suspension and will be looking to get his team back to winning ways

NYC: (4-4-2): Saunders (GK), RJ Allen (LB), Wingert (CB), Hernandez (CB), Williams (RB), Jacobson (CM), Mix (CM), Grabavoy (LM), Shelton (RM), Mullins (ST), Villa (ST)

-Calle and Nemec are STILL fighting injuries. Nemec is looking near 100 percent and should make the bench.

-RJ Allen could keep his place after an assist in a lively performance again Red Bulls, but could be dropped for Brovsky/Calle.

-It’s likely Mix will get the start over Ballouchy, but expect him to be fighting to stay on the pitch after last weekend’s early sub.

Final Thoughts

Deep Dish sucks!

Actually, no it doesn’t, it’s just not legally pizza. It’s something else, a separate denomination of cheese-tomatosauce-bread dishes.

Point is, much like last weekend, all we’ve got for bragging rights is that New York is better than Chicago. And they’ve got worse pizza.

We are home. While that hasn’t mattered much this season, you’d hope we want this win more than Chicago. Or who knows.

Let’s go team!