The Galaxy left it late but hammered the Union 4-1 on the strength of Landon Donovan’s goal and two assists.
Three second half goals doomed the home side after Amobi Okugo had equalized following an early Zac MacMath own goal. After halftime, however, Los Angeles turned up the pressure, and the Union had no answer after changing to a more attacking formation. First, Donovan found space to play in Robbie Keane, who finished with ease, before Hector Jimenez was the recipient of similar service from the US international. Keane repaid his teammate with an assist of his own, feeding Donovan to complete the rout.
First half
Playing their second of three matches over an eight-day stretch, John Hackworth made three changes to the side that squeaked out a 1-0 victory in Chicago on the weekend. Kleberson made his much anticipated first start in center midfield, pushing Keon Daniel to the left wing in favor of Michael Farfan. Conor Casey was given the rest, with Sebastien Le Toux partnering with Jack McInerney up front. In defense, Bakary Soumare got his second straight start alongside Okugo, with Sheanon Williams returning to his spot at right back and Ray Gaddis sliding back to left back for the recently traded Gabriel Farfan.
With LA entering the match on the heels of two consecutive defeats, they were eager to force the issue. Okugo was called on to make an early intervention before Soumare had to put the ball behind for a corner after Donovan had beaten Gaddis to the endline.
Less than three minutes into the match, the Galaxy had their breakthrough, when MacMath lost sight of Donovan’s corner behind the hulking figures of Omar Gonzalez and Soumare. Missing the ball with his punch, MacMath had to pick the ball out of his own net after it struck him in the face and bounced past the goal line.
It was a shock for the Union, but they did not fade from the fight. Kleberson nearly had them level following Daniel’s corner kick, still inside the first 10 minutes. Unfortunately for the Union, the debutante could only direct his effort straight at LA goalkeeper Carlo Cudicini.
MacMath kept the Union from going two down in the 12th minute when A.J. DeLaGarza got in behind the Union defense to receive a through ball from Keane. In alone, the right back could not beat the onrushing MacMath. The Galaxy were looking to kill off the match early, and MacMath had to be sharp to slap away Mike Magee’s curling cross before DeLaGarza volleyed the rebound over the bar.
While the Galaxy were controlling the match in the attacking zone, tireless chasing from McInerney and Le Toux was giving LA fits at the back. In the 22nd minute, McInerney nipped in behind the defense to pick off a back pass intended for Cudicini. Setting the table for Daniel to smash home, the PPL Park faithful looked on in frustration as Daniel took two touches before losing possession.
But relief by way of an equalizer was only a minute off, and it was a long throw-in from Williams that undid the Galaxy defense. Firing the ball nearly to the goal line in the 23rd minute, Williams watched as Okugo streaked in unmarked and slid to his knees to send a glancing header spinning past the helpless Cudicini.
The high pressure exerted from the Union forwards continued to affect the Galaxy’s ability to move the ball comfortably from the back, and the Union took advantage. Kleberson’s influence on the match grew with the passing minutes as he spread the ball capably and created pockets of space for himself to work. In the 34th minute, the Brazilian’s through ball unlocked the defense, but Cudicini was equal to McInerney’s near post blast. Moments later, Kleberson had his chance to send the Union to a halftime lead by way of another Williams’ throw, but he headed his attempt agonizingly wide of the target.
As the half wore to a close, the Galaxy had the ball in the back of the net after MacMath did well to get his hand to Gonzalez’s header, but the goal was called back, with Keane offside on the play.
Second half
Like they had in the first half, Los Angeles seized the initiative from the beginning of the second stanza. With the Galaxy at full flight, the Union seemed content to absorb pressure and hit back on the counter.
After laying off the ball to Daniel, McInerney sprinted 60 yards from his own half to get in behind, but could only win a corner, which Kleberson again got his head to, though his effort flew wide.
In the 59th minute, both Cruz and Gaddis left Donovan’s run unchecked, and Keane played him through to race in on a breakaway with only MacMath to beat. Sliding out to cut down the angle, MacMath managed to get his right hand to the shot, saving a sure goal.
It was back and forth, with Cruz accepting the ball after a driving run from Carroll before shooting wide.
Donovan was soon straight back at the Union, again getting in behind, but he was unable to connect on his cross through the goal mouth.
In the 63rd minute, Antoine Hoppenot and Conor Casey replaced Cruz and Le Toux, respectively, in an effort to add to the attack. Soon after, the Union again nearly got their second through Kleberson. Receiving a pass from Casey, Kleberson beat the first man but was unlucky to see his open shot carom back off Todd Dunivant.
But it was the Galaxy who got on the scoreboard next, and again it was the connection of Donovan and Keane doing the damage. Finding space behind Kleberson and in front of the centerbacks, Donovan received Marcelo Sarvas’ entry pass and fed Keane who was screaming into the box. The Irishman’s low finish was quick and composed, and the Galaxy were suddenly in the lead.
Pushing for an equalizer, the Union were becoming exposed with so many bodies forward, and substitute Hector Jimenez was the next to punish Philadelphia. In the 80th minute, Gaddis got caught in the middle of the field trying to close down Donovan. With no support behind him, Jimenez had the easiest of runs into the box before smashing home his finish, essentially ending any Union hopes of a fightback in the process.
The final tally came on the counterattack with three minutes left in regulation. While Carroll tried to slow down Keane, Daniel left Donovan to try and help Carroll. It was an easy ball for Keane to play and an even easier finish for the unmarked Donovan, who dribbled past MacMath to slot home calmly.
With Chicago in town on Saturday, the Union will have to quickly shake off the loss as they prepare for their Eastern Conference foe.
Philadelphia Union
Zac MacMath; Sheanon Williams, Amobi Okugo, Bakary Soumare (Michael Farfan ’81), Ray Gaddis; Danny Cruz (Antoine Hoppenot ’64), Kleberson, Brian Carroll, Keon Daniel; Sebastien Le Toux (Conor Casey ’64), Jack McInerney
Unused Substitutes: Roger Torres, Chris Konopka, Aaron Wheeler, Chris Albright
LA Galaxy
Carlo Cudicini; Tommy Meyer (Sean Franklin ’64), A.J. DeLaGarza, Omar Gonzalez, Todd Dunivant (Greg Cochrane ’81); Landon Donovan, Juninho, Marcelo Sarvas, Mike Magee; Jose Villarreal (Hector Jimenez ‘72), Robbie Keane
Unused Substitutes: Brian Rowe, Rafael Garcia, Charlie Rugg, Leonardo
Scoring Summary
3 – LAG: MacMath (own goal)
23 – PHI: Okugo (Williams)
71 – LAG: Keane (Donovan)
80 – LAG: Jimenez (Donovan)
87 – LAG: Donovan (Keane)
Discipline Summary
53 – PHI: Soumare (caution)
68 – PHI: Gaddis (caution)
85 – LAG: Franklin (caution)
90 – PHI: Okugo (caution)
Referee
Ismail Elfath
Match Stats
| Philadelphia Union | LA Galaxy | |
|---|---|---|
| 17 | Attempts on Goal | 15 |
| 3 | Shots on Target | 7 |
| 7 | Shots off Target | 7 |
| 7 | Blocked Shots | 1 |
| 6 | Corner Kicks | 6 |
| 16 | Fouls | 12 |
| 13 | Open Play Crosses | 16 |
| 2 | Offsides | 1 |
| 3 | First Yellow Cards | 1 |
| 0 | Second Yellow Cards | 0 |
| 0 | Red Cards | 0 |
| 52 | Duels Won | 54 |
| 49% | Duels Won % | 50% |
| 395 | Total Pass | 422 |
| 75% | Passing Accuracy % | 79% |
| 48% | Possession | 52% |
– Kleberson should be on the fiel, Probably for Keon at this point. He provided the first attractive soccer I have seen out of the Union this year.
– Gaddis was so exposed out there. We need a left back, period. At this point nobody is gaining anything by having hin out there.
– What I love most about Kleberson is that he makes Cruz somewhat invisible. Instead of the team punting the ball down the right side and making Cruz hard work his way into a turnover, now I can go entire stretches without wanting to throw something at my TV.
I am now retiring Goofus Keon/Gallant Keon for Gallant Keon is dead. He will be replaced by Goofus MacMath/Gallant MacMath
Moreno is a great color commentator and I think Heather Mitts is pretty good in her limited role.
Did I mention we really really really need a left back?
Why not put Heather at left back and Gaddis on sideline commentary? I know she’s a natural right back, but I bet she has more of a left foot than Gaddis does right now.
I’m for it.
ha. for real.
Gaddis has definitely proved that he’s too talented to sit on the bench – especially because Williams is so young. I think we need to keep letting him adjust to the left side so we can have the best wingback pairing in MLS. Or maybe letting him cut inside and shoot off his right foot from distance.
MORENO IS A GODSEND. Who did we have last year, Taylor Twellman? Whoever it was, I remember wanting to strangle them after every match.
The name you are blocking out is Bob Rigby
Twellman was great. Rigby. Rigby was an earsore.
Bob Rigby was a skin bag full of bones and stupid comments, nothing more. Anything would have been better, but Moreno is actually quite good thankfully.
I was surprised by the amount of goals scored. I thought it would be more evenly mach-up but nonetheless it was a great game.
Worst Union player= Soumare
-The times Gaddis got pulled in, it was because Soumare wasn’t closing his guy down. He looks slow and awkward and given that, why does he stand three yards off the guy receiving the ball every time? We have to realize, all the yelling we did about Soumare on the back line was really misguided.
I’m not saying Gaddis isn’t weak at left back. He is. -Remember his college coach saying he relies on speed to make up for positional mistakes? It’s not working in the big leagues. This game casts a shadow over the Garfan trade.
-I enjoyed seeing MacMath keep his team in the game, after his blunder. It takes a lot of confidence to do that.
The whole midfield looked better with Kleberson. That guy with the ball is like an street kid with a knife. He gone cut you.
Worst player=Keon. He was terrible.
Soumare had a strong first half. Second half…not so much. He like the rest of the Philadelphia Union looked out of shape and even more outclassed.
We are nowhere, even remotely, near the level of the better clubs in the MLS. That was embarrassingly clear last night.
At least not defensively.
gaddis was awful. if he’s helping out soumare while leaving the left side empty, that’s a problem and it’s his problem.
Soumare is miserable. He is purely useful on set pieces, and I’d say 70% of the set pieces on which he’s going to be useful are offensive set pieces. He couldn’t get a job right now if he wasn’t about 8’16”. Let alone be the second highest-paid player on an MLS team
Every goal (minus MacMath superb header) was same play. Carrol steps up to LA player in center, LA player passes to other CM who is all by himself and then goal scorer makes run from the left side. In each play after Carrol steps up Gaddis tries to close down the midfielder who plays the goal scoring pass. I don’t know if that is taught by Hack and if so then Soumare needs to drop to the left to cover Gaddis. Carrol has no help from his CM parter and to be fair Kleberson should have never played more than 65 minutes but wow was Soumare bad. Guy is marking no one on each goal. I mean come on. Either cover the hole Carrol vacates or cover Gaddis as he tries to cover the space of Carrol.
Two different games in the halves. Kleberson looked like the man that he was expected to be, and I look forward to watching him again and again. Overall, his presence seemed to lead to the positive ball movement that has seemed missing for some time. I saw less aimless side to side, control as the goal ball movement and more probing forward, leading to creative efforts in the offensive third. (I still see too many two touches or pass attempts by attackers in the box; when will we see that offensive mindset of a quick hit striker, instead of a series of passes in too close that leads to a loss of the ball?) While Zach MacMath’s OG was a combination of tough luck and difficulty in controlling his box, he again showed progress over the earlier portion of the season with several aggressive confrontations of the ball. I understand the strength that Hack sees in Gaddis when he has a man up close and battles for the ball; rarely is there a mistake that gives an opponent a free run on the goal. However, when Gaddis is asked to work with the run of play and hold down that left side, or take on a player that has a head of steam, it appears that he cannot handle the position. His mindset is that of a one footed player, and his positioning betrays him. Each of the three goals that were scored except for the OG from the corner, came down his alley, and he was either going to defend the wrong player or on the wrong assignment. It cannot all be bad communication on the back line, can it? If Hack wants that tough one on one defender, put Ray on the right and move Williams inside over there. Now, we have all seen, and clearly the Galaxy saw, that the way to score on the Union is the same play, repeated again and again. Bring the ball up the middle, await the challenge, and pass to the gap that will almost certainly arise on the left side of the Union back line. I wasn’t counting on a win against the returning champions, necessarily, but I really wasn’t expecting the wheels to come off so completely at the end there. The good thing is that there is a short week and no time for the boys to mope about it. Better luck against the Fire.
It’s difficult for any back to not be exposed when you have a midfield that provides zero defensive resistance. I commend Carroll on his efforts. He was the only one who even attempted to sto the Galaxy midfielders. The trouble is; he just doesn’t have it anymore. But At least he tried. Daniel was the main culprit. He left Gaddis out to dry. Ray was forced to defend Donovan head on, with Robbie Keane making superior runs behind him. Gaddis was not the reason we lost that match. Hackworth was the reason we lost that match. Farfan should have been in, for Faniel, at the start of the second half. Any LB would have been destroyed by Keon’s lack of involvement and untimely turnovers. He was absolutely terrible.
Please. I like Gaddis and he didn’t lose the match all by himself, but he is totally miscast at LB and should not play there again. Ever.
now now, both gaddis and daniel were been terrible.
“He just doesn’t have it anymore.” This. He may be a great leader and all, but if we bring Valdes back and Parke is healthy, I can’t imagine a center-defensive-mid pairing that isn’t Okugo and Kleberson. Carroll is/should be a short-week starter/added depth player at this point in his career.
Watch every single one of LA’s goals (besides the corner kick). EVERY ONE of them starts in the hole Brian Carroll was supposed to be plugging up. But instead he’s playing LB or RB. No wonder Gaddis gets sucked in.
+1
Not sure what to say about this game. Yes, the first goal was on MacMath, but he was still probably the best Union player out there. It seemed like most of the Union passes that were longer than two yards were being intercepted. Even though they had 7 defensively oriented players, they still let Galaxy move in without being challenged. Anytime Sheanon or Ray went forward, they got no backup support. With Cruz playing an attacking role and no Farfan on the left for most of the game, it was like there were no wide midfielders. This was a total team loss, starting with Hackworth and extending to pretty much everyone one the field.
I was ready to rip MacMath apart for the OG, but the more I look at the replay, the more I think it was just bad luck that Omar’s arm trapped MacMath’s punch attempt.
He played well. His challenge, and save, on Donovan’s breakaway was world class. MacMath left it all on the pitch. Back to back strong matches for MacMath. Well done kid!
i’m not sure i’d let the og go so easily but the rest of his match was pretty solid.
MacMath was to blame on the first and third goals. On the third goal, he lead Sheanan out on an unnecessary lob throw that he had no chance on. This resulted in a counter with only three defenders back.
+1 I processed it that way too…he def shares some of the blame on that one.
Though I’m sad we lost, I feel like the scoreline doesn’t really reflect most of the game. At points I really thought we had it and I don’t know if that makes me feel more or less sad we lost. I think less sad; I feel even more confident that we have the pieces to be a very good team and all it takes is for the right guys to be on the field. I’m not sure that will happen but it makes me feel like the season could have a good outcome (especially if we get a left back).
We just suck.
I was happy to see the team fight back from a goal down. The first half was pretty nice to watch to be honest. It was MLS-grade sloppy, but not too sloppy. Own goals happen, but I think our GK redeemed himself well. In the end, the Union players, especially Williams & Gaddis, looked completely spent.
Yuck. Tough week for Union fans thus far. First, we lose not only our best left back (and I would argue, probably our best left mid as well), and then we were treated to that. At least it didn’t rain, I suppose. I loved the Hackworth promotion when Nowack was fired. I’m still in his corner, but it’s getting tougher and tougher to stay there. Why has Kleberson not been starting?!?
To me, Farfan’s loss is felt more at LM. I never thought much of him at LB.
I agree, we now have No LB or LM that is worth anything.
It’s tempting to say Hackworth got out-coached and didn’t make the right adjustments in the second half, but I think he had the right people out there to start, and he made the right subs. LA simply had better players.
Hack should never have let the game get that open. Moreno called it. Wide open game, Keane and Donovan= we lose.
Moreno wouldn’t shut up about it.
I was not watching the TV. I was watching it live. The first half was wide open, and it ended 1-1. The second half saw the U come out looking flat and LA relentless.
Hack blew the subs. Farfan should have replaced Keon, at the start of the second half. Daniel was holding us back from the touch-off.
True, but Hackworth has been doing this from game 1 this year. Nothing will change. Think about it, if it wasn’t a short week he wouldn’t have even played Kleberson.
-Until the breakdowns started happening, I thought Soumare was fine. He was borderline good in the first half. Clearly he is more of a lumbering giant than not, but in the first half he showed great strength on the ball, anticipation and distribution.
I still think our best center of the park lineup is Soumare/Parke -Okugo/Kleb instead of Okugo/Parke – Carrol/Kleberson.
– Jack didn’t score but he still impressed me. Found the ball in space (found easier thanks to Klebs of course), and displayed some great instances of 1 one passing. At this point he really does looke like all the skills that Le Toux showed in an actual soccer players body.
– For what its worth Ives was tweeting that Omar was holding Zacs hands on the OG. Still, scoring on OG with your face will always be funny. And he still had big saves after that.
– All in all, going to the 4-3-3 was a tactical blunder and after that we got overran.
No way. Soumare is slow and gives technical guys space. Okugo is our fastest, most athletic CB- that is where we need him. Anybody who made a lot of noise about Soumare- eat crow.
On the Keane goal, he should have closed on Donovan, then Gaddis would have marked. When he didn’t he should have stepped across and picked up Keane, but he stood there like an enormous orange cone.
Soumare is fine. Teaming him with Parke and moving Amobi to Carrolls spot and then buying Carroll a bus ticket out of town is our best option. No one watching this team can say our biggest issue isn’t the midfield.
Plenty of the great CBs in the world aren’t known for their speed. Soumare, in the first half, displayed strength and poise on the ball and made some well timed challenges. We need that. Those are skills we can use in a CB.
Okugo would be better used in the midfield.
I actually thought Soumare moved surprisingly well in the first half. Did he look slow on TV?
Soumare isn’t just at the “not known for his speed” level, he’s uselessly slow. And nobody’s asking him to be a sprinter who rushes back on the counter attack. He doesn’t need top speed, he needs agility. That ability to move his body to be in position to block the ball. Top speed is something you have or you don’t, and can be inversely proportional to size. A lack of agility is simply inexcusable for a CB. Soumare would make a better striker than CB, as he’s only useful as a big body in the offensive box as far as I can tell
Jack made a strong impression on me, with his petulance
Yup. He showed his age and maturity last night. I especially loved when we got possession in their half and had to turn back play, while Jack walked back, pouting, from ten yards offside.
I dont know how anybody can say that something that hasnt been tried yet or seen is our best option?
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Calling Soumare a lumbering giant is very appropriate.
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Carroll/Kleb looked very promising.
Los, it is an option that must be tried out. Obviously our current setup isn’t producing the results that are what the team needs. So, it really can’t hurt much to try out Soumare/Parke and move Amobi to the DM spot.
So you’re saying even though we have something that we KNOW isn’t working right now, we shouldn’t ever try another option? Because we haven’t seen it yet? Your Carroll love is clouding your judgement.
@ Great One
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No Im saying I dont know how anybody can say that something that hasnt been seen or tried yet IS the BEST option. Its an untested theory.
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I dont know how you can infer anything you said from what I wrote?
So I guess I’ll wade into these waters again: If you are utilizing one option and it isn’t working, how do you decide what to do next if you can’t call anything you haven’t seen a “best option”? If you haven’t seen any other options in action, laying out arguments to support those unproven options and picking the one with the best arguments seems the most useful strategy. At least that’s what Kevin Costner told me in his incredible Boston accent in the movie Thirteen Days.
As a fanboy, I process options based solely on my interpretation of on field performance, its my only luxury. I do not work in maybes or what ifs (offseason aside)…I am also not present during training sessions.
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My interpretation of the Union defense is as followed…keep in mind this is my perspective only. Im not trying to convince or change anybody’s mind.
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Williams: owns RB without a doubt. Fast, agile, aggressive…does well to contain, forces wide and has matured with ball at feet, better in tight spaces. Offensive threat with wicked crosses and with throw. Liabilities include becoming overemotional and easily baited.
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Okugo: Has been “best” CB. Leader of defensive back four. Cleans up after other CBs mistakes. Calm with ball at feet, wins balls in air both in offensive and defensive half. Reads game and anticipates movements well. When offered time has excellent vision in transitioning offense. Shown scoring ability. Liabilities include being prone to the inexperienced CB mistakes ie: positioning, filling empty spaces.
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Parke: Aggressive, quick to close down, contains and reads game and movements well, strong in the tackle. Limited in distribution. Prone to biting on first move and over committing.
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Soumare: Defensive liability. Game moves faster than his reading. Slow. Tall but weak in the air. Easily turned in own box. Fails to fill in spaces. Good at clearing the ball and shoulder bumping.
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Gaddis: Backup at best, out of necessity our starting LB. Quick and fast. Recovers well but beaten easily. Over commits rather easily exposing our defense and forces CBs out of position…on both the right and left (Watch Rolfe turn him inside out three times in one play)
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As such IMO there is no argument that supports removing Okugo from the back line. First off, Okugo IMO is our “best” CB and secondly I have not seen him play DMid (remember how awesome Soumare was supposed to be?).
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From what I have seen, Lahoud is the only viable option to replace Carroll (Kleb also but he is not our best CAM option).
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Please be advised that this is only my opinion and how I process our defense and options.
I feel like this loss should be put on Hackworth. The tactical switch that he made with Casey/Hoppenot coming on for LeToux/Cruz was something an nine year old would have done playing FIFA. It was pretty obvious that the Union midfield was struggling with tired legs in addition to dealing with the Galaxy’s increased pressure. To switch to a 4-3-3 with Carroll and Keon having gone 90 just three days ago and Kleberson seeing his first extended run out made no sense. The gaps in the midfield were huge and our backline just got overwhelmed. Many times, it looked like a jailbreak out there.
If you’re going to play three games in eight days, you need to rotate your squad better than what he has done. Knowing how Hackworth only seems to trust certain players, I really wonder what kind of performance that we’re going to see on Sat night if he puts the same group out there again. It’s a big ask for Carroll & Keon to play major minutes again on Sat night.
He doesn’t have any other players. Or at least any other players he trusts.
You know who would have made a good sub? Garfan.
He would have made a better starter too.
Garfan was exactly what we needed, last night.
I still would have traded him, only because of the return we got.
Yeah, Garfan could have definitely helped things last night, but Hack seems to have fallen out of love with the Farfan family.
I am of the opinion that our return is pretty much vapor. Money that is going to pay down salaries and a draft pick that will probably be the quality of Garfan. throw in losing Marfan too. (and we will)
I hope your wrong but I know your, probably, right.
I have no idea why all of Hack’s subs weren’t in the midfield. Kleberson was excellent but was running on fumes by 50 minutes, and Daniel is a complete mess right now. Carroll does not trust his defenders and sits way too deep (but the way Soumare and Gaddis looked, I can’t say I blame him).
The left side of our defense (Soumare, Gaddis, Daniel) is a complete joke. DeLaGarza had so much time and space, I’m amazed he didn’t create 3 goals himself. And Daniels is so painfully one-footed and slow that anyone can defend him, so he poses little offensive threat to keep anyone at home.
The Union’s record is far better than their play this season, and I fear that’s about to change.
I hate weeknight games. Especially during school season. I understand why MLS needs to squeeze in a few mid-week games, but I’d much prefer they come after Memorial Day.
I loved Kleberson, but he looked gassed by around the 70th minute or so. I thought Brian Carrol looked better while Kleberson still had his legs. Casey for Cruz, Farfan for Kleberson would’ve been a better sub combo, in my opinion. Hopefully we see more of our Brazilian DP – he made things happen.
Ray Gaddis got beat like a rented mule. He’s clearly not a left back.
I like Keon Daniel, but I don’t think he’s an every-game starter.
Yea thats why I didn’t go thanks to the joys of public transport I would be rolling home around midnight
Yeah, we got home right around 11. Even with leaving work a little early, we still didn’t get there until a bit after 7. So we ended up parked in the very back corner of Lot B. And getting out of there was a nightmare.
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My daughter looked like a zombie this morning when she was getting ready for school…
sieve – no other way for you to get to the matches? what about that Brauhaus Bus?
I didn’t know Brauhaus still had the bus
I don’t know. Their website may not be up to date. Maybe the SoBs could help you. Maybe PSP should start some sort of a rideshare program for supporters (of course, it would take a leap of faith to drive to Chester with a complete stranger). Traffic was especially light coming home, because so many people left early. I could have given you a lift home and still been in bed by 11 pm and I live in the burbs.
Not only do they still have the brauhaus bus but also they were giving out tickets to the game last night
neat
The game had the feel of one of those 1 vs. 16 first-round March Madness games. The Union looked great and pushed the action, but they had to go full-throttle to do it. By 60 minutes, most everyone was gassed. The LA did what good teams do: wait for a mistake, jump on it, and crush the other team’s soul.
This is where Hackworth needs to make some big-boy decisions. On two days rest, he clearly needs to put a lot of new bodies on the field for Saturday. But he’s been so afraid to make a mistake with his decisions, he’s not making any. If the same 14 are in on Saturday, I’ll — well, I’ll still cheer them on, but with a sinking feeling inside.
I sympathize with those supporters who were unable to attend this midweek match, and I am not happy with the MLS scheduling either, but it was a beautiful night with two of the leagues best players visiting and it wasn’t a sellout. Moreno may be a good broadcaster, but is he a reason to stay home and watch the match on TV? Plans to expand PPL Park appear ill-advised at this point in the young club’s history. Very sad.
Very sad indeed, in a big sports market like Philly not to fill in 18.5k stadium when the best team visits…
On the soccer side of things, after last night I’m actually much more optimistic about the rest of the season, why? we finally have real CAM!
First off, Daniel has no place, NO PLACE AT ALL, being on the field anymore. He offers absolutely nothing to the team at this point, and the difference in quality between him and Kleberson is unbelievable. How Hackworth ever left him in instead of Kleberson or Marfan is beyond me.
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Ok now that’s out of the way, it’s weird to think that I actually feel we played better (before the collapse) than last week, when we won the game.
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The Good: Kleberson-I cant speak highly enough of him, plenty of pace, outstanding vision, and amazing ball control. Okugo-really impressed with his game last night, even aside from the goal. JacMac-Didnt score, but finally had room to make runs and work the ball bc he had a capable distributor behind him. Cant wait to see what that looks like with Casey to start. Shaenon-I felt like the old Shaenon was slightly back last night, made some runs up the wing, made stops, and of course the throw ins.
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The Eh Okay: Soumare-can’t decide yet, seems to have good positioning and made some nice step ups. Died a little in the second half though, maybe playing his legs back in shape. If he held tighter to some guys I think he would really look good. Cruz-its so hard with him bc he’s so fast and makes some great runs, but he can’t play defense and he has zero clue what to do once he gets the ball forward, and no touch either. Zac-Played strongly during points of the match and looks to be making some strides, but you also can’t ignore an own goal and giving up 4 goals, even if they weren’t necessarily his fault.
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The bad: Letoux-I hate saying this bc I love the guy, but I really don’t see what he’s bringing anymore besides energy and stamina. Daniel-See above, worthless. Carroll-Did he even play last night, except being out of position.missing tackles/making bad passes? Maybe give the guy a rest for a game. Gaddis-Really really had a tough game. They went to his side and his guy constantly. And now we have literally no other option.
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There were some great strides made last night, and we actually looked like a good team at certain times. However our achilles heel is going to continue to be the midfield and John Hackworth. The defense is constantly being left out to dry by the midfield. The Galaxy went right to the open spots behind Cruz and Daniel, and absolutely ate up the pocket of space that Carroll Is theoretically covering. Until we make some kind of change, we will be fighting for the last spot in the playoffs.
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Preferred lineup:
Macmath
Williams, Parke, Soumare, Gaddis
Cruz, Okugo, Kleberson, Marfan
Casey, Macinerney
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Predicted Lineup
Macmath
Williams, Okugo, Parke, Gaddis
Cruz, Carroll, Daniel, Marfan
Casey, Letoux
I was with you 100% like you read my mind until you preferred Gaddis…unless you would switch him and Williams for LB? If Williams HAS to play RB for some reason, I’ll go along with the Heather Mitts suggestion somebody posed.
Gaddis wasn’t that bad. Anyone will be exposed, if you let a top quality passer have time to pick a back apart. He stood his ground on Donovan, time and time again.
gaddis was shit, black hand.
I disagree with your problems with Le Toux. His stamina and energy kept Galaxy’s defense on their toes and back towards their 18. He doesn’t always touch the ball a lot, but that pressure forces mistakes or quick clears by their defense.
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Jack hangs his head and starts walking once he loses the ball and it drives me crazy. He could have had a few more shots on goal if he would just freaking follow up after a bad pass…
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Cruz is back at midfield looking for the ball so he can do one of his crazy runs up the side before he loses it for the 10th time.
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Once we subbed out Le Toux their back line seemed to play much higher and the ball was on our side of the pitch a lot more…
I was at a different game, I guess.
Positive note: Kleberson rules
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Negative note: Some tool thought it was pronounced ‘Kleeberson’. (facepalm)
Scratch that, worst point of the night was when some girl in the river end asked who Soumare was, at least the guy screaming ‘Kleeberson’ was close.
For me I saw a team that gave up and hung there heads low after giving up the second goal and for me that is much worse then 1-4 score line.
Though I know we don’t want to say it we played a far superior team last night. In all ways. defensively better, midfield better, forwards better. We were QPR and they were manchester united. They spend more, have more experience and believe in each other more.
Last night we got schooled by donovan and keane. two of the best to play for their countries led by a great coach (by MLS standards) and a pretty good one by anyones standards.
There is no shame in this. also of course you never conceed before or during the game.
All this being said Keon has now become a great liability and if I was klebberson i would want to ring his neck and follow-up with cruz for the wasted chances last night. I can’t fault anyone else in particular for their play last night as they all were the unfortunate benficiaries of the turn-overs, poor passing, dribbling in the opponents box till dispossessed etc from mostly danny cruz and keon.
Enough is enough.
Daniel – not only was he terrible last night, but he knew it. His body language was ‘take me out, Coach’ from about minute 20 on. I think there’s a role for him on this team, but he needs to sort his mind out before he steps on the field again imho.
Cruz – after watching him walk out with the special-needs (or really, really scared) girl during the player intros, I can’t say anything bad about him this week.
Cruz seems like an extremely good guy and he’s scored 2 goals and I’m going to take a couple months off from criticizing anything he does, and it’s all been said, anyway, so what’s the point?
I have no, I repeat no problem with mr. Cruz as a person. I believe he is probably a wonderful person, as is Chris Albright, and sheanon Williams, and from my viewpoint John Hackworth. However last night and for most of his minutes this year he has not been a great soccer player. Sheanon has made some foolish moves and gotten red cards, hack worth questionable personnel decisions and Albright is above comment with the amount of involvement he has off the field but obviously he’s not our best player right now as seen by minutes.
I am simply pointing out that when talent ( jack, Casey, kleberson etc) are saddled with hacks it gets old for them quickly and can be uninspiring. This is a problem the same as a primadonna who thinks his crap doesn’t stink. Hack needs to address it and quick or we will see a diminishing return on our talent.
I could parse out a lot of criticism to multiple culprits for what happened last night. I could crack on Cruz for having cement blocks for boots when the ball is at his feet. I could blast Bakary for blowing his mark on Keane on the second goal. I could gnash my teeth at Gaddis for leaving the entire left side of the field wide open for themajority of the game. I could hate on Hackworth for the horrendous substitutions (actually not that bad, just going for alliteration here) and horrific formation.
But no…
I despise. I detest. I deride. I am absolutely delirious with disgust for Keon Daniel. The fact that he got paid for what he did last night, is a complete farce. Did he make a about three passes that looked okay? yes. Besides that, this guy is unwatchable, unplayable, unbearable, and undeserving of a paycheck. Where can I begin? For staters, he shouldn’t be one. This guy is weak on the ball, and looks scared to try to even think about the possibility of maybe taking a defender on.
Where did his creativity go? When he first joined the U, he was cheeky, he was cagey, he was….good. Now, we go negative with the ball every time he touches the ball. Even with these decisions to try to go backwards, he causes turnovers. He shows no desire to try to move the ball forward. Only when he has ten yards of distance from the nearest defender, and can tee the ball up perfectly, do we get to see a decent cross from him. I am an out of shape ex D3 player in my late 20’s, and I can still get a better cross off quicker than this guy.
He has no defensive presence, and causes Carroll to get overloaded and gassed by the 70th minute, if not earlier in the match. A previous post had it nailed, he had the body language of “take me out coach” by the 20th minute. He didn’t want to play offense, he didn’t want to play defense, he just didn’t want to play. If the argument against Kleberson and Torres is that they have no defensive impact, then I contend that I’ll take the offensive production they can offer over the overall negative impact this idiot has on both sides of the field.
The biggest indictment of Keon happened in the first half, when he had the ball… all alone…undefended… inside the penalty mark… one on one with the keeper…and we take 4….we take four….WE TAKE FOUR!!!! touches on the ball before allowing the defense to recover and strip him of the ball. The entire stadium screamed in solidarity for him to shoot the ball, and the mere thought that he would actually be moving the ball forward with a shot caused Keon’s body to go into temporary full body paralysis.
Hackworth, I know you don’t read these posts (and that is probably for your own good in most cases) but if this missive somehow passes onto your desk, take heed sir. Keon Daniel is not a professional soccer player, and his worthless dreads should never be seen on the pitch for us again.
Sadly, I know that this will not happen, and I will have to suffer through him again probably as soon as Saturday. I am Union til I die, and unfortunately I can feel Keon taking minutes off my life as I watch him play.
So I sure hope those who were feeling somehow vaguely unfulfilled by ugly wins and ties and whining for more “attractive” soccer are encouraged and even a little giddy by the much more aesthetically pleasing moments we had last night. Personally, I walked out of the stadium feeling like I caught Donovan banging my first girlfriend and her little sister…
I know, Kathy, right? Prepare to work out more than you ever thought you’d have to! And Ines, we miessd you! Especially since we were in your house