Tag: Montreal Impact

The Day After (Montreal)

Oh dear.

The First Half

After much anticipation for this match, the first 45 minutes was some of the worst we’ve seen. Where to even begin?

Kreis started an interesting team, to say the least, but we’ll get to that later. Our first half reminded me of some long lost memory in the freezing cold of March where our players couldn’t pass to each other and mediocre opponents waltzed past our defenders with stunning ease. Unfortunately, I was not dreaming as I saw our back line humiliated on several occasions in the first half.

Look, Mena and Hernandez tried pretty hard, which is nice. And Mena even managed to stick a foot in and steal the ball from the attackers, which was a welcome surprise. But none of that can make up for such poor defending aerially. I mean, honestly, it was impressive how easy it was for Montreal. All they had to do was kick the ball in the air towards our center backs and their strikers would easily be open, control the ball, and beat our guys for pace. It looked like high school. And it happened over and over again. It even lead to two first half goals. How can we be so helpless?

But it wasn’t just the back line. After finally being able to bang in goals (5-3 Orlando, 4-4 Toronto) our offense this game was abysmal. Pirlo and Jacobson were actually quite nice as a duo again, but there’s only so much the holding mids can do.

Calle offered little to nothing, McNamara worked hard and passed back, and Grabavoy was moving into useless positions right in front of the center mids, all of which gives Pirlo very limited options. Granted, Pirlo had an off day, hitting poor corner kicks and sending wayward passes, but he didn’t have much to work with. Often his long balls should have worked but Calle, Grabavoy, and McNamara didn’t really know they had to be there. The first half was typified by shitty passing, almost no shots on goal for us, and schoolboy defending.

The Second Half

I guess the second half was better. Poku and Mix came on and did what they could. Poku was good every time he was on the ball, making smart passes and taking people on, but he just didn’t have much opportunity to do so.

Mix was a similar story. He got into good positions on the right flank and looked dangerous but we need more from him. Most of the time he’d get the ball on the wing and just pass it back, not much forward-thinking play. Maybe if Kreis had started him he could have done more.

Oh, Lampard came on. I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt, since he hasn’t played a competitive match for a bit, but he looked worryingly out of sorts. He had a really poor touch, and didn’t seem quite comfortable on the pitch, which is weird for someone of his caliber. He wasn’t great, yet it’s only his first few minutes, we’ll wait until his next match. Let’s just hope it’s better than that.

We’re Not In Salt Lake Anymore

Firstly, Kreis has nearly lost any respect I have for him. Okay, MAYBE Shay Facey had a slight injury (although no reports indicate anything of the sort) so whatever, he’s on the bench. BUT Poku gets 3 assists and Mix scores on his return (at right mid, mind you) and they’re both benched? For NED GRABAVOY and Calle? Have you lost your damn mind sir? The craziest thing is, Kreis seems to understand his error, bringing on both Mix and Poku for Calle and Grabavoy once they were losing in the second half. It’s as if Kreis is 50 percent smart manager and 50 percent MLS-bred twat: half of his mind knows that Poku and Mix should be playing in those positions, but the other half, and thus far the dominant half, have decided that Ned Grabavoy deserves to play soccer. I can remember back to the beginning of the season when Kreis was talking about Grabavoy and saying how fans may not realize his worth, but managers do. His work rate, what he does off the ball, what he brings to the team. It’s only clear to me now, all these months later, that Jason Kreis loves Ned Grabavoy because of the context in which Kreis knew him before NYC.

Before NYC, Kreis was a player-turned-manager for newly fledged side RSL. With some good ol-fashioned American hard work and determination, Kreis built a team of overall decent enough players, that together, as a unit, were able to win. They were built on passing not because Kreis is a disciple of tiki-taka, but rather because you didn’t have DP’s running into defenders. Kreis’ team was built on passing because none of the players were selfish enough to keep it longer. Kreis lauds nice, cooperative personalities because that’s what won it for him in the past.

The issue is, we’re not in Salt Lake anymore. The question handed to Jason in this new stage of his managerial career was: can he handle a team with superstars? Can Jason Kreis, the sweetheart from Utah, handle putting together a team with Manchester City youth prodigies, Villa, Pirlo, Lampard, and a billionaire Sheikh breathing down his neck? The answer so far has been, no.

The fact is, I’ve been defending Kreis for a while. At least, amongst friends. The truth is, I believe in patience, in letting the manager figure things out. And I would be doing that with Kreis, but this game serves as the perfect example. The fact is, for all the patience and waiting for the team to gel, Kreis dropped Poku, a player who had been instrumental in orchestrating a win over Orlando, for Grabavoy, a hard working sub-par footballer who contributed little to nothing in this game and has continued to be picked by Kreis despite consistent anonymity on the field.

Kreis is a nice enough guy, but there’s nothing I’ve seen to serve as evidence that he’s the man we need at the helm. Tactical errors are still made in spades, our defense is pathetic, and half our players seem unsure of what they’re supposed to be doing.

I guess there’s always next season.

On To The Next One

We play the Red Bulls. Let’s hope we can give them a run for their money. Should be interesting, at least.

Whatever.

NYCFC vs Montreal Impact: Preview

On Saturday, August 1st the Montreal Impact will visit Yankee stadium for the second time this year, with kickoff around 2pm.

Form

Montreal are doing unusually well, with a two-game win streak, which is considered something special here in the MLS. They most recently beat the Seattle Sounders in Canada, winning one-nil with a late goal in the 88th minute to seal the win. Granted, Seattle didn’t have Dempsey or Martins and have been on a deeper spiral down than Dante’s inferno, but hey, a win is a win.

If there’s one thing we can say about NYCFC these past few weeks is that it hasn’t been dull. A 4-4 game at home draw versus Toronto. A 5-3 home victory against Orlando City. It’s amazing how many goals we’re scoring, but to be letting in this amount of goals should be making our defensive coaches (if we have any) blow their fucking brains out in the shower. I mean, really. The good news is, we have Pirlo. And if that last 30-something minutes is anything to go off of, we’re in good shape. Our attack has been firing quite well, with Villa enjoying a purple patch, Poku getting playing time and oodles of assists, and McNamara somehow doing good things. Not too bad.

Lineups

Montreal (4-2-3-1): Bush (GK), Gagnon-Lapare (LB), Ciman (CB), Lefevre (CB), Reo-Coker (RB), Bernier (CM), Donadel (CM), Mallace (LM), Piatti (CAM), Duka (RM), Oduro (ST)

-Undoubtedly the biggest question mark over this lineup is whether or not Drogba will feature. While still waiting on his work permit and not having trained with the squad, it’s near impossible that he’ll play.

NYCFC (4-2-3-1): Saunders (GK), Angelino (LB), Facey (CB), Hernandez (CB), Iraola (RB), Jacobson (CM), Pirlo (CM), McNamara (LM), Poku (CAM), Mix (RM), Villa (ST)

-Firstly, this is a pretty cool lineup. The fact that it’s possible that Kreis will play this team is all too exciting.

-Will Pirlo start? Kreis is uncertain. He has, though, been very impressed with Pirlo’s fitness and his training sessions. Pirlo even trained with the subs on Monday, which was impressive. It seems possible he’ll get the start.

-One of the biggest question marks with Lampard and Pirlo in the team is what to do with Mix. On several occasions he’s played for the US team on the right flank, a position where although he feels less comfortable in, he’s excelled. Trusting Kreis to make the correct decision and play him there for NYC is always a tough endeavor, but the fact that he occupied that position as a sub last week, and scored, should be very encouraging. With all three of those guys on the field in good positions, we could have a lot of fun.

-Wingert is out with a hamstring injury (yay!) so one of either Hernandez or Mena will start. While Mena probably has better technical skills, he looked shaky against Orlando, and Hernandez has experience playing with Shay in the center. It’s most likely Mena needs more time to adjust and Hernandez will get the start.

-Oh, by the way, Lampard should make his debut tomorrow. At this point I don’t even believe myself writing that, but it seems true. He’ll come off the bench, a la Pirlo, probably for Poku, which is his natural position. A big wonder is if there’s any way to ever have Poku and Lampard on at the same time. Most likely that’d mean Poku playing out of position, but while the young Ghanaian deserves better for all the work he’s done for this team, the reality is Lampard won’t be benched and Poku’s gotta fight to stay in. We shall see.

-I guess Khiry Shelton just isn’t an MLS player anymore. It seems he’s had a left adductor strain for months, if that’s even possible. I smell a conspiracy. PS in real news, right back Josh Williams has been picked up by Toronto FC, thus freeing up wage space on our team. Mmmm, juicy.

Final Thoughts

Villa has scored three goals in two games versus the Impact. We’ve already beaten them twice, home AND away. We’ve got a far better team than we did when we won those games. For once, and only once, I’m very confident going into this match. We’re just clearly the better team and we will win.

With us level with Montreal on 24 points, this game is crucial to any hopes either side have of making the playoffs. A win here would be crucial, and we’re set up for it. Let’s see if we can make it happen.

The Day After (Montreal)

We’re Undefeated in Canada!

If that headline makes you excited, then you might have enjoyed NYCFC’s game against Montreal last night. Sure, we picked up three points – three much needed points – but we hardly deserved them. And if you are looking to see some improvement in our performance, it was nowhere to be found.

The Game

Josh Saunders continued to be the Manhattan schist upon which our team stands. He faced no fewer than 25 shots from the Impact, with 10 of those being on target. He saved eight of them. One was a PK that drew the sides even in the 77th minute. The other on-target shot was blocked by Shay Facey, who put in another exceptional performance.

With Hernandez injured, Kwame Watson-Siriboe joined him at center back, along with Chris Wingert on the left and RJ Allen on the right. Siriboe didn’t do his future many favors with his performance. Montreal repeatedly shredded our back line, and Wingert and Allen looked uncertain about what to do on the rare occasion they did win the ball.

Andrew Jacobsen didn’t fare much better as our defensive mid. He was joined by Kwadwo Poku, who didn’t have his best game yet still shined brighter than any other midfielder on the pitch. He had some great passes, an occasional poor one, and even picked up a silly yellow. But he always put himself in a clear passing channel for his teammates, should any of them decide to look up (a rarity for NYC FC), and that alone should put to bed any suggestion about the players fitness.

Mehdi Ballouchy was on the right and delivered that “at least I don’t suck nearly as bad as Ned Grabavoy” performance we’ve come to expect from him. Though bizarrely Coach Jason Kreis replaced him with Grabavoy in the 65th minute. Was it a coincidence that Montreal scored 12 minutes later, thanks to a possible handball in the box by Tommy McNamara? Perhaps.

McNamara theoretically played on the left, but apparently they don’t teach positioning at Brown because he was rambling around like a zombie on meth, often ending up right beside Poku in the center of the field. McNamara continued his form of late, which is to say he was marginally incompetent except for the occasional moment of brilliance – with the latter unfortunately never materializing last night.

Speaking of playing horribly except for the occasional moment of brilliance, David Villa scored both of our goals. The first came in the 34th minute, from a horrible angle, though that has never stopped him before. Fortunately this time it somehow went in. The second was an amazing free kick in the 82nd minute. He bent it around the wall in what proved to be the game-winner.

It’s nice to have a striker who can be largely ineffective and consistently lose the ball for 89 minutes and then deliver a moment of brilliance or two. But I thought we signed David Villa, not Nicklas Bendtner.

It’d be nicer to have someone who is a little more consistent, someone who doesn’t try to beat three players at a time, and someone who looks up to assess his options. Villa was paired with Patrick Mullins, who put in a lot of work. And, in fairness, he was everything Villa wasn’t, including the moments of brilliance.

Pablo Alvarez came on for Mullins in the 80th. And Adam Nemec replaced Poku, who pulled up lame in the 83rd. Neither had a significant impact in the little time they were given.

By the Numbers

We did win the game 2-1, but that was the only stat in our favor. Montreal had better possession, more tackles, and fewer fouls. Perhaps most striking was our lack thereof – as in the absence of any coordinated attack. We had a mere five shots, three of which were on target. Montreal outshot us by 80 percent. And we only earned three corners, to their 10. Clearly we were largely impotent in our opponent’s half.

Saunders continues to save our hide game after game. But we need to learn how to play the ball out of the back and get it forward in some sort of cohesive attack. That’s the kind of style of play that Kreis has consistently called for, and the kind of style we have rarely seen from our side.

It’s just not working. And the occasional win, especially when we are basically stealing points from stumbling squads like Montreal and Toronto, shouldn’t be mistaken for improvements. We are still floundering, and it looks to be more than first-season jitters.

The Good News

We had some empty seats on the plane up to Montreal. Like Arsenal, and unfortunately this is the only area in which we are anything like Arsenal, our squad has been plagued by injuries. We couldn’t even muster the full 18 players allowed to travel to away games.

I know, this is supposed to be the good news section. I’m getting to it.

Next Sunday we face Toronto, another Canadian team, and another team we stole three points from not long ago. But even that’s not the good news.

The good news is that the cavalry are coming. Andoni Iraola and Angelino have joined the squad as right back and left back, respectively. Hopefully they will provide our back line with the competency they so desperately need.

We’ve already told you about the veteran Iraola. And Angelino may only be 18, but if this Man City loanee performs anything like Facey, he will be a massive improvement over the current crop of traffic cones we call defenders.

Plus, we’ve got Tefu Mashamaite on trial. The veteran center back was named Player of the Year last season in South Africa, where he captained the Kaizer Chiefs to the title with a pass completion rate exceeding 90 percent (and more than 60 percent of those passes advancing the ball) and committing only seven fouls.

And then there’s Frank Lampard, who will finally join the team for the Toronto match as well. His leadership and skills may be hampered by his aging legs, but hopefully he can help bring a little direction and perhaps even some results to our woeful offense. If nothing else, his addition to the squad mathematically reduces the chances that Ned Grabavoy will play, and that alone is cause to celebrate.

The post-match coverage on the YES Network featured an Ian Joy interview with Sporting Director Claudio Reyna. Our game day Goebbels, Joy was man enough to admit that he was wrong to dismiss the rumor that Andrea Pirlo will sign with the club, and then put the question to Reyna. In the pre-recorded segment, Reyna said that the club was indeed close to signing Pirlo but the deal had yet to be finalized. If this does happen, that would be some cavalry indeed.

In his interview with Joy, Reyna described the new additions as NYC FC 2.0. If we do add Pirlo and Mashamaite in addition to Lampard, Iraola, and Angelino, then we will have in fact replaced nearly half the squad – the kind of turnover you’d only expect in the off-season. And man-for-man, each of them looks to be a significant improvement on our current crop of starters.

We are just past the halfway mark of our inaugural season, and we’re sitting in 17th place. That’d be a relegation spot, if our league swung that way. We’ve had five wins, five draws, and eight losses. And we have a negative goal differential.

Yet NYC FC 2.0 can still recover enough to make the playoffs. And with the addition of these new players, there’s hope that we can salvage something from this season, even if it is only are self-respect.

On To The Next One

We’re hoping to keep up our record against Canadian teams as Toronto FC visit Yankee stadium this Sunday at 3.

Toronto were just hammered 4-0 away to LA Galaxy and come here in really poor form. Not to mention the absence of key players Michael Bradley and (sort of…) Jozy Altidore, both who are away at the Gold Cup, a visit from a team that would usually be very dangerous is seeming a lot easier.

With the debuts of Iraola and Lampard off the bench, plus the possible debuts of Angelino and Mashamaite, this Sunday should be an exciting day to be an NYCFC fan. Which doesn’t happen very often.

Oh, did we mention Pirlo?

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.