- First, let's discuss O'Brien White. The guy continues to underwhelm at times (come on OB, don't get pushed of the ball so easily), but he has 2 goals and 2 assists in the past two games. I feel like he is quickly becoming Nate Jaqua v2 - you know, a guy who can get you 6-10 goals a year but who the fans are always on to do more. I've been trying to watch him closely and I think I like what I see but will give him a few more games to really sway my opinion of him.
- Two guys who I am not reserving judgement on are Mauro Rosales and Erik Friberg. I really like these guys and think it will be interesting to see how the are used once Montero comes back. There are naturally those fans who will say that the Sounders are better off without him but they are crazy. The hard part will be how to mesh all the parts together - someone will have to go to the bench (and join El Flaco). Anyways, Rosales really is earning the #10 jersey and has some great crosses. Friberg is ubercalm on the ball and is the yin to Morales yang. I'm just enjoying them.
- There is something wrong with the defense right now. Every week there is a Keystone Kops moment - this week when Parke and Riley ran into each other on the Fire goal. I'm not overly concerned at the moment as I think they are simply suffering from some growing pains. Last year Ianni and Parke formed a great partnership and with the introduction of Hurtado back into the fray. I think they will work it out - or at least hope they will.
- Kasey Keller was simply amazing tonight. I was starting to think that he was on the decline, but wow...amazing tonight. Now he won't be able to sustain that every night, but every once in a while he can steal a game.
- For the second straight game they gave up a quick goal after scoring one of their own. In San Jose it was within 5 minutes - today it was less than a minute. It is certaintly a troubling trend and one that shows how mentally fragile the team is. Maybe it's the slow start. Maybe it's the new faces. Or maybe they are all headcases...I don't know. But what I do know is that we have get better in this area if we want to compete.
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Instant (Over)Reaction: Chicago
So this is what winning feels like, huh? I gotta say that I am a big fan of it. Add in the beautiful weather and a few beers and it was a good day at Qwest on Saturday. Let's get to my thoughts on the game.
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On O'Brian White, I thought he did really well. The header he scored was fantastic, quality cross from Rosales (he should show Zakuani how to do it) but O'B had to beat 2 players and direct it with power. He showed good movement throughout the game until tiring in the second half. Yes, he does get pushed around a little bit but he's still a little raw in that regard, needs the experience to learn how to play defenders and that will come in time.
ReplyDeleteFrieberg played well but someone needs to teach that poor chap how to shoot, he made Sebastien Le Toux (well the Sounders version) seem like a net buster.
Agree with you on the defense, I hated that they sat back for most of the second half. Against a better offense, they will get crushed for that sort of defending. They seem to be second guessing themselves a lot and really I felt allowed Chicago back into a game they never had any business in. Keller was great though, 3 or 4 superb reaction saves and good box presence throughout, he bailed out Parke/Hurtado/Riley/Gonzalez a few times.
Lastly, Carrasco was lucky not to see red for crippling Nyarko in the last few minutes, that was an awful tackle and even if the intent wasnt there, Ive seen players go for less.
I'm posting it publicly: What would happen if the Sounders continued to play without Montero? I know he's good and he scores goals, but I've seen better passing and off-ball movement in the games he's been out than I've seen in a while.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely an internal thought that I think a lot of us have. I don't know. Maybe I'm more a Montero apologist than most, but I have a hard time believing that over the long term they would be better without him. Rosales has been great but the dude can only go 60 minutes right now and I wonder what happens once the league figures him out.
ReplyDeleteThe problem with Montero is always the same - you never know what you will get. Is it the guy who scored like 8 goals in a 10 game span or the guy who hasn't scored in like 17 games (totally didn't get either stat right, but you know what I'm saying).
In a perfect world, Sigi would be able to know when Fredy starts his tailspin and put Rosales in. However, I'm not sure we can afford to sit him over the long haul though.
Just my thoughts.
Ive always been a firm believer of "you start your best 11" and if Fredy isnt playing well right now, well then he's got to earn it back. We did look more solid on midfield and attack on Saturday, guess its Sigi's job to figure out how to make it all work, he certainly has a lot of pieces that dont quite fit right now (Fernandez, Evans, Montero, Rosales, Freiberg).
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