And we are back to the question of identity.

Throughout the early success the Union were enjoying to begin 2013, the picture was growing clearer: This was not a possession team. Smart, composed build-ups did not matter as much as stout defense turned into speedy, hard-charging counterattacking play. Against Toronto and DC United, the Union conceded the possession battle by nearly a 2 to 1 margin in both matches, yet managed to scrape by with 4 points based almost entirely on the inspired tandem of Conor Casey and Jack McInerney.

As long as the Union could get a few chances each game, they seemed capable of scoring just enough to get by.

There’s a hole in the bucket

The Union’s theoretical formation.

Against New England, Casey and McInerney cooled off and the bottom fell out.

In 8 matches thus far in 2013, the Union can claim 12 assists on their 10 goals. Five have come from the strikers and four have been attributed to the defense, while the unit charged with setting the table come in last with only three assists to go around.

It is no secret that in Major League Soccer, along with most leagues in the world, the team that controls the middle third of the pitch wins the majority of matches. For as much as commentators understate the difficulty of finishing, a soccer field is slanted towards the defense. To begin with, they tend to own a numerical advantage over the opposition’s strike force. Take a look at any weekend’s score sheets and the page will be replete with 1-0, 1-1 and 2-1 scorelines. In 2012, the average MLS match had 2.64 goals.

What does this mean for the Union? They must create. They must put an emphasis on creativity. And they must do it now. That means installing a full-time, attack-minded playmaker at the heart of the midfield. This is irrespective of the speed and aggression of the wide players and forwards. Without a creative fulcrum to link the fullbacks, wide midfielders and strikers, it does not matter whether the build-up is slow and methodical or an all out fast break; the attack will lack organization and will ultimately fail.

Entering each of their last three matches, the Union lined up against the bottom three team in the Eastern Conference. To gain only four points from those fixtures will not get the job of reaching the playoffs done, regardless of where those matches were played.

Back to the Bucket

Keon Daniel’s touches vs. New England.

Now back to the center of the midfield.

Specifically, the erratic play of Keon Daniel.

When Daniel took over from Michael Farfan in the center of the pitch, he ran as a CAM (central attacking midfielder). On paper, the 4-4-2 diamond made sense (figure 1). Though Daniel lacked ruthlessness in the box and struggled to pick out the final pass in the attacking third, he sat behind the strikers, pushing play.

In each match he has started, however, Daniel has dropped deeper and deeper, culminating in Saturday’s performance in which he spent considerable periods of play behind Brian Carroll. Confirmed by the heat map (figure 2), Daniel spend the majority of the match in his own half, where he was unable to influence positive play for his side.

Operating without an effective CAM was bad enough, but with Daniel sitting in Carroll’s preferred spot, the Union captain was forced to vacate his comfort zone, working wider and higher than he would prefer.

What about wingers?

How the Union formation actually plays.

With no attacking productivity coming from the center of the pitch, the Union’s wide midfielders, Michael Farfan and Danny Cruz, reacted in very different manners.

Playing on his off wing, Farfan turned in his best performance of the season, cutting into the attacking center of the pitch, eagerly consuming the gaping hole between Daniel, Carroll and the forwards. On the other flank, Cruz failed to adjust, continuing his one-dimensional approach to wide play by holding a high line, looking more like a winger in a three man forward line than a wide midfielder in a team struggling for possession. While his three midfield mates each completed 29 passes or more, Cruz finished with only 14. All but 3 came on back passes, with the majority of those coming after checking back from an advanced position.

That advanced positioning does not only have an effect on the midfield. Sheanon Williams’ early rough patch in 2013 was directly related to Cruz’s continued aggressive forward positioning. When Williams is at his best, the speedy fullback looks for a quick interplay of passes before racing down the touchline to run play into the corner. Without Cruz providing a consistent, easy outlet, Williams has been unable to keep in touch with the offense or sprint past his midfield partner on an overlapping run.

The resulting compromise is that Williams is forced to reside in a defensive no-man’s land, playing too high to cut off a diagonal ball in behind him, while still sitting too deep to catch up with Cruz on the breakout. Far from the typical 4-4-2 diamond, the Union’s alignment against New England took on a shape that defied tactical convention. (See image at left.)

Defensive deficiencies

The Union have conceded two goals in each the past two weeks against two sides that each had a total of two goals entering the match. That’s a lot of twos.

Considering how heavily the back four has been covering for their midfield teammates in 2013, it was inevitable that the pressure would get to them.

But fundamental cracks in the Union’s tactical approach have served to further pressurize the situation, making life even harder for the defense. As mentioned above, Williams’ tightwire act between fullback and midfield has created defensive problems on the right. Furthermore, with Amobi Okugo sliding wider than ever to help cover, the gap between him and Jeff Parke has become far too variable for comfort.

Given that Parke regularly provides extra cover for Ray Gaddis, who continues to struggle in the transition from right to left back, solid spacing between the centerback pairing has fallen off. Rather than assert their dominance on the midfield, beating their opponents back and allowing Okugo and Parke to find each other, Carroll and Daniel have funneled their way into the hole left at center defense.

No matter how talented a defense may be, if the opposition can walk the ball to within 35 yards of the goal in the attacking third, that defense will not only bend, they will break.

And thus the return to the midfield.

Fix the midfield and you fix the Union. Talented two-way players like the Farfan brothers (Michael not only led the Union with 43 passes completed, but he was also credited with an impressive 8 tackles won and 15 recoveries) can provide width in all three phases of play. Whether it is for Daniel or Carroll, Kleberson must be given the opportunity to prove that he can be the central offensive catalyst the Union so desperately need.

This week, player ratings will be separated into their own post to foster unique discussions pertaining to individual performances rather than the team’s performance as a sum of its parts.