October 31, 2008 by f4denz.

Well I never expected a match preview to take 3 posts, but this is the first time in the playoffs, a lot is at stake and when it comes to facing off against Chivas there is a lot of history and info. Anyhow here is my match preview and prediction, I hope you enjoy it.

Enough of others, here are my thoughts

OFFICAL MATCH AND SERIES GUIDE

So there are a number of really interesting matchups in this one, but the biggest thing for me is the RSL defense, can we close down a hot Eskandarian (3 goals in the last 5 Chivas matches) and Ante Razov who in his career has been a real thorn in RSL’s side with 4 goals and 4 assists while playing for Chivas. The last time these two teams faced off it was a defensive mistake that cost RSL the match as Borchers and Rimando ran into each other and Esky waltzed by their fallen bodies to put an easy shot into the back of the net. Clearly it will take a big effort from all 4 defenders and whoever starts at d-mid for RSL, which I believe will be Kyle Beckerman, despite the published lineup in the match guide. When I asked Coach Kreis if he was going to start Andy Williams to give RSL an offensive spark from the start of the match vs. brining him on later in the match, well Jason didn’t say anything but there aren’t too many questions you can ask him that make him smile the way he did when I asked this one.

The Chivas defense is weekend without Vaughn who is out with an ankle injury, and with a 39 year old Claudio Suarez, there will be a lot of work for Carey Talley and Shavar Thomas. Mendoza tends to push forward a lot but might be forced to play further back in support of the Chivas defense to slow down a much improved RSL offensive attack. In their last two matches the Chivas defense has given up 3 goals and has a loss and a tie in those two matches, after their recent 4 match winning streak when their defense had given up only 1 goal in those matches. For RSL the defense has given up a single goal in three matches and gotten a win and two draws. I think this one will be a draw as both defenses have performed well, but suffered occasional meltdowns, for Chivas that is the two matches where they gave up 4 goals in their last 11 matches. Real Salt Lake’s meltdowns are well recorded but I think recently giving up the two late goals to New England is the clearest example. I think this one is a draw.

I think the battle in the midfield will be important as RSL’s midfield looks to rebound from a horrible performance in Colorado, Jason called it the worst match of the year, but I disagree. It was bad, but nothing was worse than the 4-1 defeat at DC United, but I think his point was clear that RSL would need to control possession against Chivas much better than they did against the Rapids. I think the play of Williams and Will (Johnson) on the outside will be crucial as they work with Joy and Wingert moving forward from the backline. Andy brings great vision and creativity, while Johnson brings speed and a never say die attitude and work ethic that is impressive for such a young player. I have been critical of Javier Morales a lot this year, I believe he is so much better than what we have seen in some matches, and as a big time player who was rewarded with a big contract extension Javi has to show up in the big matches, and this one will be huge. There really isn’t anyone in the Chivas midfield that should be able to match up against Javi, so he should have chances to shot and to create opportunities for Mathis and Yura.

Chivas brings Harris, Nagamura, Marsch and Sasha Kljestan as their starting midfield and while it is a talented bunch, the biggest threat is Sasha who recently has had stints with US National team, both as part of the 2008 Olympics and the 2010 World Cup qualifying. I expect that they will try to keep possession and work up the sides using Sasha’s speed and Atiba’s speed and size, can they create good chances for Esky and Ante? I think a slight advantage goes to RSL, especially if they give Andy the start.

Up front we match up is really even as both teams have hot players and veterans that can turn a match with a single touch. Yura not only put RSL in the playoffs with his 90^th minute goal against the Rapids last weekend, but his 4 goals in the last 5 matches is even hotter than Esky’s 3 goals in 5 matches, so I give RSL a very slight edge in this matchup. RSL has seen enough of Ante Razov over the years, but so far this season he has 0 goals and 0 assists against RSL, in big part due to injuries and RSL knowing how dangerous he can be. Ever since his return I have been waiting to see a bit of Cletus, but after talking with Clint on Tuesday, I realize that it just isn’t going to happen. He still seems to enjoy the banter he has always had with fans, both the good and the bad, but this is a very different guy than 2005, in fact he seems very different than even last year. Perhaps it was getting married, or the birth of Maximus on August 4^th (the reason he wears 84), perhaps it was the long talk he had with Jason and Garth before joining RSL, but whatever it is I like the new Clint and the attitude of “Now I am not worried about looking pretty, but busy busting my ass to play well”. Each week we have seen Clint get closer and closer to scoring, and he is forcing defense to pay attention to him and that creates space for Yura and others, but this week I expect that you might just see Clint get on the scoreboard. So while Chivas might get a slight advantage, I think Clint will have a bigger impact than Ante.

The matchup of keepers is an easy one Chivas lost Brad Guzan early in the season as he went to the EPL, and Dan Kennedy took over the keeping duties and has posted a 1.03 GAA average in his 9 matches. Impressive for a young guy, but after getting a red card in the Houston match last weekend Chivas will have to rely on Zach Thornton in goal. Zach has played in 8 matches this year for Chivas and has a 1.80 GAA average, he is a longtime MLS vet, who has suffered this season with a hamstring injury and will be susceptible to the RSL attack. For RSL the keeper is the rock Nick Rimando, who has started every match, played every minute of the MLS season for RSL in 2008. Nick has a 1.30 GAA and only 5 keepers had a better GAA, the 8 clean sheets is 5^th in MLS this year. RSL gets the advantage in this area.

I think RSL will come out with all guns blazing and try to get an early goal rather than give up the early goal like they have in their last 3 matches, and I think a charge up home crowd getting their first taste of the playoffs, and another match at Rio Tinto will help the team to put forth another solid effort much like they did against Dallas two weeks ago, and I think the result will be the same a 3-1 RSL win.

OFF MY SOAPBOX
and see you at the match

Posted in The soapbox | No Comments »

October 31, 2008 by f4denz.

Well yesterday I took a look at the history between Real Salt Lake and Chivas and a quick review of this seasons matches between the two side, and now I am going to take a look at the frenemies (a term I am stealing from Brian Dunesth) players that used to be teammates but not play for an opposing team. Then we will look predictions from pundits and how they think Real Salt Lake will do in the playoffs, and we will wrap it up with my preview of the match and my prediction of who will come out on top on Saturday.

But first let’s talk about a total injustice, how exactly did MLS come up with their list of nominees for season awards? You are telling me that not a single RSL player was deserving of making any of these lists? Read the list on ussoccerplayers.typepad.com, but I am unsure how Kinnear who lead a very talented team, or Frank Yallop who lead an expansion team to worst record in MLS this year be considered ahead of Jason Kreis for coach of a year? How did Blanco with his 7 goals and 11 assists get a MVP nod in front of Javi Morales with 6 goals and 15 assists? Then I remembered that the same people who picked the “comish” picks for the All Star match, also probably picked the award nominees, what does RSL have to do in order to get some respect?

Frenemies

Well if you look at the projected lineup for Chivas you will see faces that last year were part of the RSL team and often in starting roles, including one time captain Carey Talley who had 58 starts and saw action 60 times for RSL. In that time Carey scored 6 goals and had 9 assists in just over 5,000 minutes of playing time. Next up is Atiba Harris who at RSL played everything from striker to defender and in his 25 starts and 43 matches played scored 4 goals and 2 assists, but is probably best known for his very physical style of play. When RSL traded away golden boot winner Jeff Cunningham for TFC’s Alecko Eskandarian many fans wondered what Jason Kreis was thinking as this was the first move made by the team in the Kreis era. Esky only saw action in 17 matches and all of them were starts, but he was only able to score 1 goal and 2 assists.

But each of these players were given another chance to start over and with Chivas each of them have done well, but none better than Esky, who in just 656 minutes of action has racked up 5 goals and two assists and is tied for most goals scored by a Chivas player and two of those goals were game winners. Not far behind Esky is the performance of Atiba Harris who has racked up 3 goals and 5 assists, and again two of Atiba’s goals were match winners. Even Carey Talley has found his scoring touch and in just 16 matches for Chivas he has a goal and two assists. It is clear that without the former RSL players that Chivas would have had a very hard time getting to 2^nd place in the Western Conference as they account for 9 of Chivas’ 40 goals and 9 of their 40 assists, so just under 25% of the Chivas offense comes from the 3 former RSL players.

It will be first time these guys get to see Rio Tinto Stadium and I am betting that much like Cunny, Watson and Coach Ellinger were a couple weeks ago, they will be blown away by how nice the stadium is. Shame that none of them are likely to get a warm welcome from the fans or their former teammates, as Kyle Beckerman told me earlier this week “You just play, the friendships are off and for 90 minutes it is a battle and you do what you can, you show a little more respect, but you are not friends on the pitch.”.

Pundits and predictions

Rio Tinto is the difference ussoccerplayers.typepad.com
Can a new stadium really get a team over the hump? I’ve had the Chivas USA-Real Salt Lake match up circled as an upset special ever sense the final standings finally took shape. Not that I am down on Chivas. They have some nice attacking players in Sacha Kljestan, Atiba Harris, Ante Razov and Alecko Eskandarian that are capable of causing any defense in this league fits. Still, in the back of my mind I just see this Salt Lake team making a run past the first round.

Dynamo still the team to beat in the West soccernet.espn.go.com
Chivas USA vs. Real Salt Lake
After overcoming three years of futility to reach the postseason for the first time in their history, the big question is: Will RSL take the “happy to be here approach” or will their breakthrough allow them to scale even loftier heights?…..
Outlook: As so often happens with No. 2 versus No. 3-seed matchups, there isn’t much separating the two teams, but the resilience Preki’s men showed all season should carry the day. RSL showed some fortitude of its own getting the needed result in Colorado last weekend, but its defense hasn’t recorded a shutout since late August, while Chivas has kept things tight in the back. Look for the Goats to prevail by the odd goal.

A look at the MLS playoffs kansascity.com
No. 2 Chivas USA vs. No. 3 Real Salt Lake
•Records: Chivas 12-11-7, Salt Lake 10-10-10
•Top scorers: Chivas has three players tied with five, Salt Lake’s Yura Movsisyan (seven goals)
•Goalies: Chivas’ Zach Thornton (1.80 goals-against average), Salt Lake’s Nick Rimando (1.30 GAA).
•Outlook: Movsisyan has blossomed into the dependable goal-scorer the Wizards envisioned when they drafted him last year before trading him. His late goal against Colorado gave Salt Lake its playoff spot in improbable fashion. Salt Lake finished the year 3-0-2. Chivas will be hurt by the red-card suspension of goalie Dan Kennedy. He’ll miss game one and Thornton, a 13-year veteran, will take his place. Chivas will need Thornton to step up.
•Prediction: Real Salt Lake 3, Chivas USA 1

Previewing the MLS Playoffs with Frank Glase nj.com
No. 2 Chivas USA (12-11-7) vs. No. 3 Real Salt Lake (10-10-10)
Saturday at Real Salt Lake, 6 p.m.
Nov. 8 at Chivas, 10:30 p.m.
CHIVAS USA WILL WIN IF … it can take advantage of Real Salt Lake’s first playoff appearance by jumping on a nervous team early in the game. And the club has the experience up front to do it. Ante Razov (Chicago, 1998) and Alecko Eskandarian (D.C. United, 2004) have won MLS Cups before, while Sacha Kljestan (five goals, seven assists) is one of the best midfielders in the league.
REAL SALT LAKE WILL WIN IF … it can take advantage of Chivas’ shaky goalkeeping situation. Dan Kennedy (4-3-0) and Zach Thornton (2-3-3) have split time since Brad Guzan left for England in midseason. Thornton, who also won the title with the Fire in 1998, gets the start in the first leg because Kennedy is serving a one-game, red-card suspension.
ONE MORE THING: Both teams entered the league as expansion clubs in 2005, with Real Salt Lake (5-22-5) having a slightly better debut than Chivas (4-22-6). But since then, Chivas has made the playoffs three straight years with a 37-27-28 record while RSL, with a 26-38-28 record, has not. Chivas won two of the three games this year, although each won once on the road.
PREDICTION: Chivas USA

McCarthy’s Musing: A Path to the Holy Grail goal.com
2) Chivas USA v. (3) Real Salt Lake

The national media have treated Real Salt Lake’s playoff berth as some sort of lost puppy miraculously found after being lost in the woods for a couple of weeks.  As if what RSL did during the previous 30 weeks – discounting a wretched performance in Colorado to finish the season – didn’t matter.
Repeat until admission: Real Salt Lake deserves to be in the playoffs.

Unlike most teams in this league, Jason Kreis’ side knows exactly what it needs to do and knows how to do it. Funnel the ball to Javier Morales and watch him create in the attacking third. Let others do the running for him. Keep it tight in the midfield so the outside midfielders don’t turn into wingers and restrict the fullbacks’ space. Keep it tight in the back and don’t give away cheap goals.

The tactics will work to some extent in this series. The Goats will have problems containing Morales and Yura Movsisyan because Jesse Marsch isn’t Pablo Mastroeni and the Chivas USA defense is woefully slow

But everything Kreis installed is founded upon this water-tight defense. That’s where I think RSL loses this series.

The problem is in the middle. Nat Borchers went from Best XI candidate to something else entirely over the past couple of months. Ditto for Jamison Olave. What was once a rocky-hard core has turned into the creamy nougat center opposing attackers love to munch upon. One shutout in the last three months of the season and 12 goals in the past 8 games. Not horrific, but not good enough at playoff time.

If it turns into a battle to see who will score more goals rather than one about who will concede less, Sacha Kljestan’s team is generally going to win. Especially when the opposition hasn’t been here before.

Prediction: Chivas USA

Well that went longer than I thought

OK I didn’t expect this post to be this involved so I am going to save my preview and prediction for later and just post this as is.

OFF MY SOAPBOX

Posted in The soapbox | 1 Comment »

October 30, 2008 by f4denz.

As important as this match is, I will be doing my pregame post in two parts, this part will look at the 3 regular season matches between the two sides, and a little bit of review of the history between the two clubs.

Part two will be a look at the match coming up, what do the pundits have to say about the match, former RSL players now with Chivas, and what I think will be the RSL keys to victory on Saturday.

Regular Season review

Well if you were to just look at the fact that Real Salt Lake is 1-2-0 against Chivas you might despair at RSL’s chances on Saturday, but if you watched the matches you would have a very different opinion. It was week two of the MLS season and RSL made a trip down to LA to face off with Chivas at the HDC (Home Depot Center), the final score was 3-1 but when you look at how the match was played it was much closer. Chivas controlled the first half of the match and went into halftime with a 1-0 lead but in the second half RSL was the more dominant team and controlled the possession, on a cheeky goal by Atiba Harris Chivas went up 2-0 but RSL answered back just two minutes later on a goal by Kenny Deuchar to get back into the match at 2-1. RSL had a number of good chances in the second half and as the match got close to the end RSL pushed everyone forward looking for the tying goal, Nick Rimando made some great saves to keep the match close, but in stoppage time Esky got a 3^rd goal and the final was 3-1 in what was a close match.

When RSL headed back to the HDC in mid June, they had not gotten a single point on the road 0-5-0 was their record, but this time RSL looked even better than the week two matchup and scored a first half goal and went on to protect that lead for the rest of the match, this one got physical and personal as there were 7 yellow cards in the match. Not only was it the first road win of 2008 for RSL it was part of the turnaround of the RSL season, the next 7 MLS matches the RSL defense would give up only 3 goals, and post a 4-1-3 record and get themselves in first place in the Western Conference standing for the first time in franchise history.

The final regular season match between these two sides was also a huge date in RSL’s season and history as it would be the last match played at RES (Rice Eccles Stadium), and the 1-0 loss on a fluke goal given up by a disastrous communication error between Nick Rimando and Nat Borchers, almost sunk RSL’s playoff hopes and ended RSL’s undefeated home record for the season. This loss moved RSL’s playoff chances to the lowest point since the 1-0 victory over Chivas at the HDC in June, only twice all season were RSL’s chances lower than after this loss.

The match itself was controlled by RSL, who outshot Chivas 17-8 and owned the majority of possession in the match and having the much better scoring chances, but like Colorado found out last weekend the best team doesn’t always come out on top. Once again Esky was in the right place at the right time against RSL and after Nick and Nat both fell down it was easy for him to put the ball in the back of the net. Dan Kennedy was up to the task that night and made a number of incredible saves, but after a bizarre red card last weekend RSL will not see Dan in goal this weekend.

A little bit of history

So everyone knows that both teams came into the league in 2005, but how many remember that fact that RSL finished two points ahead of Chivas at the end of the MLS season? The two teams faced off 4 times during the regular season in 2005 with Chivas winning both matches at the HDC and RSL winning both in Salt Lake, one of the losses in LA still holds the record for worst RSL defeat as we went down 5-1. Of the 6 players to score on that night, only one is still playing for either team and it is Clint Mathis, all the players for Chivas who scored (including the OG by Brian Kamler) are gone. Despite finishing ahead of Chivas in the MLS standings RSL challenged them to a 5^th match after the regular MLS season and it was RSL that prevailed 1-0 in that rubber match. Of all the goals scored by either team in the 5 matches in 2005, only RSL’s Clint Mathis and Andy Williams are going to see any action in this playoff match, all the others are either with different teams or no longer in MLS.

Prior to the start of the season RSL won a coin toss and got the #1 draft pick in the MLS super draft and chose Nik Besagno (who was 16 years old at the time) and Nik is one of only 4 players still on the RSL roster this weekend that were on the roster for the first match in 2005 (Andy, Kenny Cutler, and Clint Mathis). The number two pick went to Chivas and they chose Brad Guzan who is no longer with the team but playing in the EPL. Believe it or not in 2005 the Galaxy won the MLS cup and since then they haven’t even made the playoffs.

2006 saw Chivas make some huge progress as a team and they finished the regular season in 3^rd place in the West and made the playoffs. Once again RSL faced Chivas 4 times, but this time 3 matches were draws and only the season opener played at the HDC saw either side get a full 3 points as Chivas won the match 3-0. For RSL 2006 would be the start of the Ante Razov era in matches against Chivas as he scored twice in the opener and wasn’t finished scoring against RSL yet, and while nobody scored in the second match a 0-0 draw, in the 3^rd matchup between the two teams Ante would score again in a wild 3-3 draw. While Ante would not score in the final match of the season, he did take 4 shots to lead Chivas in a match that ended the 2006 regular season with a 1-1 draw. Chivas moved on to the playoffs and RSL’s season was over as they missed the playoffs by 4 points. The highlight for RSL was the fact that despite finishing last in the West they were better than 3 of the teams in the East and they had the MLS golden boot winner in Jeff Cunningham who scored 16 goals in 2006.

Last year was a rough year for RSL, after a promise from Dave Checketts of making the playoffs, RSL finished dead last in the West and only expansion Toronto had a worst season. RSL was a full 13 points away from a playoff spot; meanwhile Chivas won the West by a single point over Houston. 2007 saw the change of head coaches from John Ellinger to Jason Kreis and the start of an almost total rebuild of the team. The MLS moved to a new 30 match season, so RSL only faced Chivas 3 times, twice at the HDC and once at RES, but the result was the same in each match with Chivas taking all 3 matches and RSL only scored in the match at RES.

The first matchup of the season saw RSL fall 4-0 and Ante Ravoz entered the history books by scoring his 100^th MLS goal against us and Maykel Galindo scored twice to blow RSL out of the water. The second contest between the two teams was again played at the HDC, but this time RSL played better but still could not score in the 1-0 loss, the good news is that Ante didn’t score against us, the bad news is that he had an assist on the only goal of the day and he continued to haunt RSL. In a sign of how much change took place in the 2007 season, this match was played in late August and of the 14 RSL players who saw action in the match, only 6 are still with the team today (Williams, Rimando, Wingert, Findley, Espindola, and Kyle Beckerman).

The final match up saw RSL lose 3-2 at RES, but the loss saw RSL much better and actually control large chunks of the match and lead Chivas in shots 13-8 and shots on goal 8-4. Ante Razov didn’t score or have an assist in the match, most likely caused by the fact that he didn’t see any action in the match because he was out injured. Again for RSL only 7 players who saw action in this match are still on the team (Seitz, Wingert, Williams, Findley, Espindola, Beckerman, and Yura Movsisyan), but two RSL players from that match are now part of the Chivas side (Carey Talley, and Atiba Harris). More on the former RSL players that now play for Chivas is coming in part II of my preview of the playoff matchup between the two sides.

OFF MY SOAPBOX

Posted in The soapbox | 1 Comment »

October 28, 2008 by f4denz.

Well they moved the practice out to Xango field, so I won’t be able to provide any updates from them but I am out at Rio Tinto and they are still on schedule to have a media luncheon and some questiona and answer time with the players and coaches. I am alo=so going to try and to another photo run through the stadium to give you the most current view of what is going on at Rio.

There is a great crew using a pressure cleaner to get everything ready for Saturday

and I have to admit that the view from the stadium club patio is mighty nice,

I am thinking of getting a ticket for the Rugby match that will let me get access to the club area.

So on my way in I was talking with Trino Martinez and he mentioned that they had a stadium tour on Saturday and the people on the tour were blown away by the quality of the facility, they thought it would be like a fancy high school stadium. I got very similar feedback from a number of OC Tanner people who were at the FC Dallas match as part of presenting Chris Seitz his Olympic ring, and they were blown away by both the facility and by the staff.

So taking a closer look around the club area, it really is as nice as they say it is

So how funny is it that many of the local TV and radio media have joined the print and online media today, amazing how quickly the bandwagon of a new stadium and a playoff berth can bring out the hounds that you would never see at a normal practice. Oh my how lowly RSL has risen in the eyes of the local community and all of it based off a single goal that propelled RSL into a much larger object in the local media eye. I know these people cover the team for their respective companies but, it is amazing how many are showing up today to get their time and exposure, oh the life of the bandwagon jumpers. I just hope that this will be the case with the fans on Saturday, it would be nice to see the stadium full of RSL fans and the rowdier the better if you ask me.

Of course with the trip back up to Rio Tinto from Lehi, everything is running a bit late as expected. Well the players are eating lunch and it looks like Jason is ready to get this started, so here we go.

Bill Manning will be up first, then Jason, Andy and Kyle.

Bill was brief saying credit goes to Jason and the staff for building a great team that is made up not only of good players but good people. Then he introduced Jason

Jason thanked the players, and then showed some appreciation for the reserves and how proud he is of them, despite not getting starting team minutes or spots in the 18 that they worked hard and are developing. Just a note that the reserves ended the season with a 2-1 win Sunday morning over the Rapids and ended the season with a 7-3-2 record I believe (the MLS site isn’t up to date).

Jason says that making the playoffs isn’t enough and that the team is ready to make some noise in the playoffs. He also thanks the fans for making our home pitch an advantage, and then he thanked ially the travelling fans who made a huge impact on the team in Denver.

Jason is thanking Andy and letting everyone know that he set very high standards and expectations for Andy and he met them and is more fit today than anytime in his career in Jason’s opinion. While it was a rough year on and off the pitch for Andy he stepped up the challenges and exceeded expectations.

Andy is saying how nice it is be on the team, how the team has a number of leaders, and while he is one of the senior guys on the team he is soft spoken but when he says something to the team that it is listened to. Nobody thought they would make the playoffs during preseason, they hoped but didn’t expect to make it. He mentions how tough of a year it has been, but how the front office and players have given him and his family so much support. After four years, it is nice to have the ability to make a statement and he expects a good match against Chivas. He is imploring the fans to show up in force, and that he and the team have battled and they now want to make some noise in the playoffs. Next up is Kyle

Kyle jokes that they could have scored anytime, they just wanted to make it exciting for the fans. He is praising that the team isn’t just good players, but good people and that Garth and Jason look for that attribute as much as anything. He is praising the fans and that he feels it is special to be able to give something back to the fans that have supported the team in bad times.

He isn’t sure if the home field advantage is playing at home first or second, but they will be giving it their all to get further in the playoffs.

That was the end of the press conference time and players were available for the media to do one on one interviews, I was lucky enough to get a couple guy to answer a few question for a non-guy like me.

Questions for Yura:

1. So when you came over from KC you had to be hoping for more playing time, early this year it wasn’t there, how did you stay motivated to work so hard to get into the starting 11?
   1. You can’t stop working, just because it isn’t going well doesn’t mean you can stop working, you have to work harder.
2. Did you imagine that with RSL poor play after the 3 week layoff after the ALL Star break that we would have been able to recover and make the playoffs?
   1. We knew if we wanted to make the playoffs things had to change, so the players, coaches, everyone just worked harder and we started playing better
3. Did you ever imagine that you would score a goal in the90th minute of the final regular season match to secure a playoff spot for RSL?
   1. It is a dream, but you don’t expect it. You get lucky and it was special,
4. You mentioned in an interview that you thought you didn’t get the PK call because you didn’t dive and you got the shot off. You work very hard in the box and don’t shy away from physical contact, would you ever dive?
   1. No diving
5. How does it feel to be RSL’s 2008 golden boot winner?
   1. I didn’t expect it, it was one of my personal goals, but the way the start of the year went, but then I scored and got my confidence and everything went up from there.

Questions for Jason:

1. Given the huge boost we have gotten from inserting Andy into the lineup over the past few matches, have you considered moving him to the starting 11 for the Chivas match this weekend, knowing that getting off to a big start will be very important?
   1. Nothing but a big smile
2. What is the status of Fabi? What are the chances he will be available for Saturday?
   1. Fabi is getting better and may be in the 18 for Saturday
3. Is it true that you were smiling after the final whistle blew?
   1. Of course, said with a smile
4. Are you satisfied with making the playoffs?
   1. We all knew that making the playoffs would be the hard part, but now that we are there nobody is satisfied with just making it. I believe we can make some noise in the playoffs.

Questions for Robbie R

1. So like Will and a number of other players you came in midway of the season, what were your expectations upon joining RSL, and what expectations did the staff have of you?
   1. None, he didn’t know much about MLS or the team, but I got a good feeling about the staff and team through interviews and practicing with the team. I came in with an open mind, the team was set, and I was brought in to strengthen and fill in because of my versatility. Staff let me fit in and it has been good.
2. You have been a vital part of the team for the last couple months filling in at a number of positions, what is your favorite position to play?
   1. Midfield, more defensive minded, but I just want to play. Nat Borchers chimes in with a “He really doesn’t like to play defense” and they both laugh.

Questions for Clint

1. So many fans were excited about your return to RSL (myself included), but just as many questioned the move. How do you think your performance has been since your return to RSL?
   1. I have had to go through another preseason after Greece, vacation and training after galaxy, and then Jason brings me out to train, and it was good to clear the air with Jason about 2005 and what expectations would be on me returning to RSL. I have unfinished business from the 2005 season, I wasn’t my best at the start of that season but as the year went on I got better but there were many issues. Now I am not worried about not being pretty but busing my ass to play well.
2. I mentioned that Clint looked very fit, more so than I have seen him in years
   1. He said the only time in recent history he has been this fit was prior to the 2005 season
3. With your son being just over two months old, any advice for new fathers?
   1. Just enjoy and watch how quick they grow. A week later he signed the contract, you just enjoy your kids every day. He loves getting home to see his smile because he is a fan 24 \7.

Questions for Kyle

1. So in last weeks match and the one this week you are playing against a number of former teammates, does that make it harder or easier to prepare and do you get an advantage because you know them so well?
   1. You just play the friendships are off and for 90 minutes it is a battle and you do what you can, you show a little respect but you are not friends on the pitch.
2. How does it feel to lead the team into the playoffs? What are your expectations of the team in the playoffs?
   1. It feels really good, honored to be the captain of the team, very unique environment in MLS with so much focus not only on playing talent but the quality of the players. I try to be the best capt for the team, it is great to be in the playoffs and it is a fresh season and we are going to give it our all, play tough on defense. We have the ability to make noise in the playoffs.

My thoughts on things

Well I have to admit it was nice to see the players willing to spend time with the big media, as well as the little guys doing blogs and such. I have always thought that one of the best things about MLS is that the players remain connected to the fans and the local media, they are approachable at events like this as well as on the street. Several times today and in the past it was mentioned that RSL isn’t just looking for good players but also good people and they have done a great job in finding some really good people that are damm good soccer players as well.

I noticed in talking with players, staff and coaches that there was something all of them had in common, it was in their eyes. It was a sense of hunger and passion, folks I am going to say this right here and right now, RSL will beat Chivas on Saturday, they will move on in the playoffs and we should all be cheering for New York, because that match would be at Rio Tinto. I think we have a good shot at winning the Western Conference, and if we do, don’t be surprised if nobody is talking about the Rocky Mountain Cup as being our only silverware. These guy are not just teammates, you can tell they are friends and I imagine they will do whatever it takes to make a real run in the playoffs.

I noticed today as I walked out of the player’s tunnel and onto the pitch that it appears that Jason may have had an influence here as well, but nothing speaks louder about what I think the players, staff and coaches are thinking than this:

OFF MY SOAPBOX

Posted in The soapbox | 1 Comment »

October 28, 2008 by f4denz.

The Mighty Eastern Conference

So all year the commentators were ranting about how good the teams in the East were and they did secure both of the wildcard playoff spots, but Real Salt Lake held their own against the top teams in the East. Only the Wizards and Red Bulls were able to get clear season matchup victories over RSL, and for KC it was the unfortunate own goal by Tony Beltran that gave them their win against us. Should RSL make it to the MLS cup to face off against a foe from the East, no team could be considered a heavy favorite over RSL.

The Messy Western Conference

Coming down to the final match the West featured the biggest guns (goal scorers) but also featured the two worst teams the Galaxy and the Quakes. Real Salt Lake beat the teams they should have San Jose, Dallas, and got robbed by bad calls against LA, but against the top teams in the West RSL struggled. In Houston it was a knock down drag out fight to the finish in the 3-4 loss, but at RES the Dynamo could only come away with a scoreless draw. Chivas benefitted from two matches at the HDC, and RSL pulled out a win on the road against them, but dropped their only home match of the year to Chivas in a 1-0 loss on a bad communication mistake between Nick Rimando and Nat Borchers.

How will all of this impact the playoffs

Well in the first round we have a chance to redeem ourselves against Chivas and I believe playing the first match at home will be an advantage for RSL, they are getting used to the pitch at Rio Tinto, they should have a good crowd to support them and in the last two encounters between these teams RSL was clearly the better team. In the match up at RES despite the 0-1 score Real Salt Lake took more shots 17-8, had just as many shots on goal 4-4, and the only way Chivas scored was a rare communication mistake on RSL’s end. In the 1-0 victory at the Home Depot Center, RSL played well but was outshot 8-4 and had one fewer shot on goal 3-4, but we controlled the pace of the match and held onto the lead for almost 60 minutes without giving up a goal.

RSL is playing well and have not lost a match in their last 5 (2-0-3), and while the offense has been impressive scoring 10 goals, the defense has allowed 7 goals and for RSL to take a big advantage into the second match at LA, they will need to not give up an early goal. The first 20 minutes of this match will be huge as RSL has struggled at the start of their last 3 matches giving up the lead too early and being forced to come back and chase the match. In each of those matches one of the big keys for RSL has been the play of Andy Williams coming in to boost the attack, and I wonder if Jason will simply start Andy and allow us to push forward and attack from the very start of the match?

With just 13 starts this season Yura Movsisyan has claimed the team golden boot with 7 goals, Javier Morales ends the year with 6 goals and a team leading 15 assists. Javi’s 15 assists were the second best in MLS, just 4 behind Guillermo Barros Schelotto of Columbus with 19, GBS is likely to be the league MVP, so not a bad effort from Javi and enough to get him the honor of being my team MVP. So to continue the awards, I think I have to give defender of the year to Chris Wingert, who only missed one match all year, but to be honest this could have gone to Jamison Olave who stepped in and made a huge impact and gets my Newcomer of the year award.

OK, I have to get ready to go watch practice, so that is it for now. I am going to try to post some pictures and info from practice live this afternoon if I can get access to the Rio Tinto wifi network. Until then, go buy your playoff tickets and get your flags, signs, and streamers ready because Saturday is going to be a historic matchup.

OFF MY SOAPBOX

Posted in The soapbox | No Comments »