In the wake of the Union’s listlessly ugly loss to Vancouver on Saturday, comments appeared on the PSP and elsewhere describing the Union’s performance as their worst since the loss to Dallas. As might be expected, there is truth in the obvious.

Looking back over the past nine games (detailed match statistics became available on MLSSoccer.com beginning with the San Jose game), the Union’s record is W, L, D, L, W, W, D, D, L or 3–3–3. In each of the three losses—against Portland, Dallas and Vancouver, all of them Western Conference teams—the Union mustered only eight attempts on goal, a number surpassed by the winner in each of those losses. In comparison, in the two most recent wins the Union recorded at least 16 attempts on goal. Only in the game against San Jose did the Union manage but eight attempts on goal and still win, the winning goal coming not from open play but from Sebastien Le Toux’s penalty kick. In every draw over the same period, the Union recorded at least nine attempts on goal.

Also telling is the number of shots on target. Of the three losses, against Vancouver and Dallas the Union managed only one shot on goal. Against Portland, they recorded two. The only other time over the past nine games that the Union registered as few as two shots on target was the draw against Colorado, with three against LA and six against RSL. In every win over the past nine games, the Union managed a minimum of four shots on target. Fewer attempts on goal equals fewer shots on target. Fewer shots on target equals fewer goals.

Interestingly—and to my mind, counter-intuitively—in each of the three losses the Union created far more passes than their opponent and had the better share of possession. In two of the last three wins, against Toronto and Chicago, the Union was out-passed and had significantly less possession. Only in the win against San Jose was the opposite true.

Match Statistics

In Saturday’s loss, Vancouver recorded one more attempt on goal and one more shot on target than the Union, an indication of just how ripe that road game was for the Union’s taking. As has been the general trend over the past nine games, the Union lost despite creating more passes and enjoying a much larger share of possession. The chart below gives a sense of the Union’s performance over the past five games, during which the club’s record is W, W, D, D, L, or 2–1–2.

The trouble with Le Toux

When will Le Toux break out of this slump?

In 2010, Le Toux recorded 14 goals and 11 assists. After 14 games in 2010, Le Toux recorded six goals and six assists. In 14 games in 2011, he has only one goal—and that from a penalty kick—and four assists. In the first five games of the 2011 season, Le Toux recorded two assists, the same number as in the last nine games. So, comparing the last nine games to the first five, it would appear that Le Toux’s production as measured by assists is declining.

A first glance at Le Toux’s shots and shot on goals numbers is no less encouraging. Three times in the last nine games, Le Toux recorded no shots. Five times he recorded no shots on goal, three times only one shot on goal. But, a closer look at shots on goal shows slight improvement.

Over the first five games he had two shots on goal from ten shots, a shots on goal percentage of 20 percent. Over the last nine games, he has had five shots on goal from 17 shots, a shots on goal percentage of 29 percent. We’ve all been saying it and we all hope it will become true: The chances are there, they just need to start going in. Wednesday night would be a fine opportunity for that to start.

When Le Toux is taking shots and making shots on goal, the Union do seem more likely to win. In the three losses over the past nine games, Le Toux has recorded four shots, only one which was on goal, the same total as in the three draws over the same period. In comparison, Le Toux recorded nine shots in the three games the Union won in this period, three of which were on goal. In other words, in each of the three losses and three draws over the past nine games, Le Toux’s shots on goal percentage is 25 percent. In wins, it is 33 percent. (In the chart below, the numbers in parentheses are season totals.)

The Union coaching staff has said Le Toux contributes much more than goals and assists and, indeed, it is hard to imagine the Union offense without him, his incredible work rate creating pressure all over the pitch. While Peter Nowak has demonstrated what many see as an unaccountable willingness to tinker with the offensive lineup, thus far he has consistently stuck with Le Toux both in terms of starts and by not subbing him out. Still, with the team’s goal production in the Chicago and Toronto games beginning to to look less like the breakthrough we all hoped it to be and more like an aberration, just how long Nowak will continue to back Le Toux with starts is anybody’s guess, particularly with the return of Carlos Ruiz and the acquisition of Paunovic.

Team offensive statistics

None of us knows what Nowak was thinking with the starting lineup on Saturday. Veljko Paunovic, whatever his role is supposed to be, recorded no shots or shots on goal. Neither did Justin Mapp. Kyle Nakazawa recorded one shot, Sebastien Le Toux three shots, but neither recorded a shot on goal. Defensive midfielder Brian Carroll recorded two shots one of which was the Union’s lone shot on goal in the match. Of the three second half substitutions—Danny Mwanga, Michael Farfan and Roger Torres—Michael Farfan, in for 31 minutes, recorded two shots. None of the subs had a shot on goal. For Mwanga, it was the first time since Portland (he did not play against Chicago) that he blanked on both shots and shots on goal. Meanwhile, Keon Daniel, who scored a commanding header in the Union’s draw against RSL, was sat on the bench.

Speaking of Danny Mwanga, in 2010 it wasn’t until the seventh game of the season that he scored his first goal. By the fourteenth game of the 2010 season he had scored five goals and registered two assists. In 2011, Mwanga scored his first goal against LA, the ninth game of the season. After fourteen games in 2011, he has four goals and two assists. (In the chart below, the numbers in parentheses are season totals.)