Photo: Mikey Reeves
Philadelphia Union
Back to the film room to analyze the Union’s loss at DC United. One thing that stands out to me: while the Union are focusing on switching fields, there is still clearly confusion among just about everybody about how to proceed in the final third. Too many guys are firing in aimless crosses at teammates who at times are literally running into each other.
Matthew DeGeorge says “the Union aren’t much of anything beyond winless and in last place.” Ouch.
Dave Zeitlin takes stock of the Union in this week’s Inside Doop.
Eugene Rupinski writes that there’s plenty of blame to go around.
Kevin Kinkead asks if Jim Curtin should be fired. I think you all know my answer.
Eric Ayuk is PSP.
Get to know the Portland Timbers.
Small changes to TV for two games and start time for one. Change your schedule accordingly.
Local
The Union Academy teams are faring much better than the big league club, remaining unbeaten after this games this weekend.
Harrisburg City Islanders announced a uniform partnership with Capelli Sport.
MLS
Limericks for this past weekend’s games. These are fun.
SI has dropped the Union to 19th in their power rankings: “The Union fell behind in the first half, and a second-half goal from CJ Sapong was all the team could muster in response in a 2–1 loss at D.C. United. On the plus side, that’s Sapong’s third straight game with a goal, perhaps staking his claim for a starting spot over newly acquired Jay Simpson up top.”
MLSSoccer has dropped the Union to 20th in their power rankings: “Two points from four games is a bummer in the land of #Doop, but it’s not all bad consider three of those games were on the road. Still, they need goals and they need three points. It’s time for C.J. Sapong to move back into the starting lineup, but he’s still going to need some help carrying the load. Paging Chris Pontius, Alejandro Bedoya, Fabian Herbers, Ilson Jr. et al.”
ESPN has dropped the Union to 21st in their power rankings: “The Union winless run is now at 11 games following the loss to D.C. The heat is rising in Chester, Pennsylvania.”
A look at the top teens in MLS this season.
It’s getting more and more expensive to buy into MLS.
FC Dallas lost 3-1 at Pachuca to get knocked out of the CONCACAF Champions League 4-3 on aggregate. Chris Seitz Seitz’d it for FC Dallas, as Pachuca scored an easily preventable goal in the final 15 seconds of extra time when Seitz got distracted by a marked runner who made no contact with the ball. Brutal.
Around the globe
Chapecoense won 2-1 in the first leg of the Recopa Sudamericana.
Becky Sauerbrunn thinks the USWNT and USMNT need to get back on better terms.
Jermaine Jones plans to retire from the USMNT after World Cup 2018.
St. Louis’s stadium proposal fell short.
Matchfixing still happens, but you’d think they’d be a little more subtle than a 12-0 blowout.
The owner of Steaua Bucharest and the Romanian Ministry of Defense are fighting over the club’s name. Bet you wonder who will win that one.
Highlight of the day
This fancy little move and shot by Valere Germain in Monaco’s 2-1 French Cup Quarterfinal win over Lille.
Whoever in the FO came up with “From the Film Room,” I * slow clap * you – a thing that never would have happened under The Sack and The Hack.
agreed.
.
…wonder how long until ‘crossing the ball’ stops being the defacto method for trying to score. its a bit tedious. imagine its not tata martino’s method.
Assume the worst come June. Did Big Ern get out his complimentary “USMNT Greats” directory to offer the job? Would he ask Tab Ramos? And what style does he bring?
Giuseppe Rossi is healthy again and had a great weekend, see: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-4377466/Giuseppe-Rossi-scores-hat-trick-Celta-beat-Las-Palmas.html
On SiriusXM it was mentioned that he may want to come ‘home’. Hope that we have the discovery rights, will get him and that he stays healthy!
I’d take Rossi. He should be able to score some goals for this team.
No brainer. He’d terrorize the league the likes of Giovinco.
.
Just have to wonder if the price would be worth the likelihood of him not being healthy too often.
Sarvas was suspended for his double foot stomp on Jones.
.
http://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2017/04/05/mls-disciplinary-committee-suspends-dc-uniteds-marcelo-sarvas
WOW only one game?? WTF MLS?
So NYCFC doesn’t have to play against him. Why not suspend him for the next game against the Union instead (as long as they play again this season)?
watched it multiple times…no intent to injure at all from POV. a game seems right. now cursing out a referee and getting 4 games from FIFA…that seems a bit harsh.
I think the ref and you need glasses. He literally looked down and jumped. Red card should have been given.
I agree about the red and even a one game suspension…but feel he was not intending to injure and anything more would be unnecessary.
.
the ball was there and Jones moved it and next thing its a leg stomp.
And immediately before, Jones went into Sarvas with a kinda high boot. The stomp was intentional and retaliatory IMO. We got Salazar’ed.
If a player is on the ground, for awhile mind you, and another player comes in with that much force two-footed, that’s intent to injure. It’s extremely reckless play at the very least.
That piece on Steaua Bucharest is a great read.
.
It’s always nice to look at the sport through a different lens.
Jim Curtin has these next 3 games – ALL at home – to show me that he is capable of leader this team. If we head to LA on April 29 with the less than 4 more points – or, gasp, the same amount we have now – the he should be fired after the Montreal game. Curtin is a great guy, have nothing against him, but if he can’t get the job done we have to move in a new direction.
—-
Seattle made a managerial change last summer. That worked out ok.
As long as they have a replacement lined up. Otherwise you’re getting Mike Sorber, and once again, the Next Man Up gets the job.
.
Definition of insanity…
.
The Euro season ends at the end of May. That is a more likely timeline to see a change, as impatient as the entire fan base may be by then.
In this business or any other you should have plan B in case you have to fire the coach. And plan B should not be hiring assistant coach. If Earnie will promote Sorber he should be fired due to incompetence. Enough of throwing it and see what sticks.
I agree and maybe the Seattle comparison was not appropriate in this case, but the point I was trying to make was the it wasn’t working with Schmidt despite a clearly talented roster so they made a change. In the Union’s case Sorber would not be a good Plan B, but at the same time it doesn’t appear to be working with Curtin. So if I’m Earnie Stewart I have one eye on potential replacements to keep that option open.
Sorber can come in as the interim in the short term but yes they need a replacement outside of the organization. Curtin and Hackworth both had initial success when their predecessor was fired, which in turn got them the job, but not this time. Ideally they have their mean NO later than the Gold Cup break.
Per twitter about the weekly presser:
.
Curtin on Bedoya as the No. 10: “He and I are in agreement that that isn’t his best spot.”
.
.
.
Soooo….why…ummm…is he…umm….playing there?
Because it’s temporary….. I hope.
Maybe they just came to that agreement? If so it took too long. Ilson Jr. or Alberg to start in the middle this weekend will tell us.
Then where does he play? And who plays in that spot? OR do we not play a 4-2-3-1????
Any of the above. The bottom line is something needs to happen. It’s up to Curtin to make that choice.
why can’t i be going into Sat’s game with more than “watching a car crash in slow motion”? at least last season they were looking good early. 90% of the season still to play…
optimism is in short supply.