Post Chivas vs RSL Game

Well, as my father has often told me, even a blind squirrel can find an acorn.
I have to admit, I went into this game against our expansion siblings thinking it was the end of the season. Anything but a solid 3 points here and the chances for this squad to make a run into the post season would be all but finished. Nothing, save the home field advantage, gave me a feeling that this game would be RSL's, and definitely not in the fashion it was.

First off, just on a side note, whoever decided that RSL should wear their white tops, with their blue bottoms and socks needs to be shot. I am not a super fashionable person myself, but it looked like we were wearing something a 5 year old picked out. Yes I understand that we couldn't wear our full home kit as the blue tops would clash, and I know we couldn't wear our full white kit as the shorts would clash, but seriously? Come on, don't we have a 3rd jersey (the greens?) or something better (training kits with names added to them?). Just a side note that wasn't very important, I just thought it was a bit comical.

Moving on to the game:
The starting XI was fantastic. It only took a handful of games for Kreis to finally figure it out, but he did figure it out. He put in an actual target for his two wings, and it produced and was dangerous the entire night. Add that to some of the most fantastic play I have seen out of Andy Williams in a long time, and a very solid effort from pretty much everyone else on the pitch, and you get a 4-0 drubbing of the second Chivas.

The first 45 was a pretty even battle. RSL came out with a bit more fire than Chivas, something I haven't seen from this team in quite some time, and seemed like they wanted to be the first ones to get on the board and to get all 3 points. Credit has to be given to Chivas though as they kept their shape and only had a couple serious saves to make. Then, after about 20 minutes or so, the attack switched and Chivas took it to the home side. RSL was lucky not to concede a goal on a very cheeky back heel/redirection that Nicky Rimando somehow got a hand to (save of the week candidate?). After that, it leveled out again until a very nice tackle from Beckerman in the middle of the field gave him some open space. A clever ball out wide to Espindola lead to a well placed cross to the big man in the middle who tucked it inside the far post. Props to Campos for saying hi to his wife and soon-to-be child, that was classy. The half ended with RSL just holding onto the lead and neither team really pushing much.

The second 45:
Kreis made no subs at half, which to be honest was a bit surprising. Campos was sitting on a yellow after a pretty reckless tackle at the end of the half and was seeming a bit gassed. I thought at first he should bring on Findley then, but as he stated in the post game show "making subs at half can put you in a bad spot if anything happens in the first part of the half". I was amazed, Kreis should some tactical sense to his subbing... there is a god. The half started where it left off, a pretty even battle with RSL being the more dominate side, but not by much. Then, came the Andy Williams show. I haven't seen Andy play with that fire for that long of a period of time (the FULL 90) in quite some time. I think he saw the door open to take Javi's spot, and isn't going to sit quietly, which is a VERY good thing for this squad. His clever little balls, dicing Sasha Kljeiaojdlafdsljhstan (you have to say it like that), and vision were superb. He found Espy out wide, who then took the former RSL man Talley to town by faking to his right (like he would ever go that way) and firing a rocket into the far post with his left (aka, his only foot). The last two goals came because Findley was finally used properly. As the Chivas defense wore down, Findley looked more and more explosive. Off of an extremely nice cross by Wingert, Findley caught Talley (again, poor guy) flat footed, blew past him, and sloted the ball back to the near post for a 3 to nothing lead. But it wasn't over there, Mathis wanted in on the assists. He found Findley streaking towards goal. Findley, again, cut across Talley (that's 3 if you are counting, and his birthday... ouch) and fired one off the far post and in (gotw?)

In the end, I hate to say it, but I have my faith restored in this team. With that starting XI and those kind of substitutions, this team can make a push. This next game is HUGE for RSL. I am not sure if I will categorize it as a must win game or a must get a point game, but either way, a loss is far from acceptable.

Player Evals:

Rimando: A-
I want to give the guy an A, but his dive to the far post when the ball was obviously going wide made me reduce it to an A-. Showing off like that is pretty retarded Rimando, no offense. With that said, FANTASTIC save in the first half. That is the kind of stuff that deserves save of the week honors.

Beltran: B+
Tony is becoming one of the most consistent players on this team, and it actually hurts him in my evals. He plays so good, that I don't know how to grade it. Tony is the kind of player this team needs to lock into a long contract in my opinion.

Olave: A
JAMISON!!! This guy was a beast tonight. If Andy didn't have such a spectacular night, he would win man of the match honors without a doubt. Solid tackle after solid tackle. Smart plays, very nice touch, a steal for this team, and absolute steal.

Borchers: A-
Its not that I don't like Nat, its just that Olave set the bar too high with his play. Nat, great game again. Solid in the back, the BEST defender when he is behind the ball. He isn't great at recovery, but he usually doesn't have to worry about that.

Wingert: A-
That is the kind of game we need out of him. Solid tackles, smart decisions with the ball, shut down one of the better players in the league all night. oh, and one hell of an assist to Findley on the 3rd goal. I bash on you a lot Chris, but I cant tonight. That was one hell of a game you put in

Johnson: B+
This guy is a beast as well. I give him a lower grade as I feel the need to give at least someone below an A and why not the guy who is suspended next match. Seriously though, Will had a great night as well and the yellow he got was pretty soft (big man Jesse Marsh all of the sudden became soft that play... wtf)

Beckerman: A-
As many people involved with soccer/football will say, when you don't hear too much about your holding mid, it usually means he is having a good night. Kyle did the work, distributed, got forward as needed, and played with a lot more confidence. While I don't personally think the national team call up is deserved, it is obviously boosting his morale, and that's a good thing no matter what.

Andy: A+ MOTM
Andy was everywhere on the pitch. If he made a bad pass, he was sprinting back. His vision is better than anyone on this squad (yes, even better than Javi) when he is on his game. I didn't think he had 90 in him, but he sure proved otherwise tonight. Andy, I hope this is just the start of another great run with the team. I know my love for Andy makes me a bit blind at times, but that was a damn good match, everyone agrees.

Espy: A
Fabian is coming back into form under a lot of people's noses. Even though a lot of us may think he would do better in the center striker role, he has adjusted his game and is thriving on the wing. In the last 3 or 4 matches he has figured out how to go at players, get the space he needs, and either get quality service into the box or make a dangerous run in himself. Great game from Fabian, great game (and one hell of a finish I might add)

Campos: B+
While he may not be the fastest guy (giant understatement) he is very good with his feet and is pretty good in the air. This is exactly what we need at that post position to start the game. His skills worked wonderfully and he deserved the goal he got. I expect to see him back in the starting XI against KC and probably for the rest of the season unless things go bad.

REK: B+
Rachid reminds me of Will from last year in how he is gelling with the squad. The pure raw talent and understanding of the game put him a lot further ahead than most players would be with the little amount of time he has been here. JK, I hope at least, recognizes this and is trying to get him to be a staple in our lineup like Johnson. Will wasn't fantastic in his first couple of games last year if you remember, but you could see what he wanted to do... the same is with Khalifi. I have high hopes for this guy, he seems like a very good find for what this team needs.

Mathis: B
I was VERY happy to see Kreis send the same message as he did to Olave. This can only be good when it comes to the locker room. Clint didn't seemed pissed at all, and logged in some very good minutes. The level of play didn't drop when he came in, and that is the biggest thing for a sub. Good game Clint, and a very clever assist.

Findley: A
Robbie has found his role. He could very easily be leading scorer in this league despite only averaging around 30 minutes a game with his talent and skills. Two very pretty finishes, with the second one topping the first. Good game Findley, continue the hard work

Ned: B
Like Clint, Ned came on but the level of play did not drop. This is HUGE for subs, especially in a position as vital as the one Ned plays with this team. Good hard working minutes from Ned. I expect him to be the replacement for Johnson this weekend in Kansas City, and for there to be just as much work and the level of play to be just as high.


Looking Ahead:
This win means nothing if RSL can't find some points in Kansas City baseball field. There are going to be a lot of things to deal with there (sun, dimensions, etc) but I have faith that if RSL plays its game, we can get some revenge on our only home loss of the season.


Cheers,
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