Episodes
Monday Oct 26, 2020
Thank you Daryl Grove
Monday Oct 26, 2020
Monday Oct 26, 2020
1: Well, this is probably the best starting 11 (minus maybe Franco Escobar) that we are going to be able to field. We looked up for it. We had a good amount of possession and we’re creating the opportunities for opportunities but we still can’t get much in the way of SOG. It wasn’t until the 31st minute that we had a SOG and that came from a set piece. It was until about the 40th that we had something from the run of play. I can’t really explain why there’s such a lack of shots. We have ample talent on the field. It’s gotta be more productive. A handful of shots per game I don’t think is gonna be good enough to get us above the playoff line.
2: Damm had plenty of time and space to work with tonight. It felt very similar to how DC played us last time. They gave the wing a wide berth and i think in the first half we did a decent job of exploiting that space. But still that final ball is missing.
3: Guzan has been up and down all season. I don’t have an issue with his shot stopping ability but he’s continuing to make very questionable decisions with his distribution. I’m not talking about miss hit balls, I’m talking conscious decisions he’s making where I find myself in front of my TV screaming “Why would you play it out there???” Also, I think he’s gotta save that first goal.
4: Well, what are we gonna do when Gresselmania goes running wild on us brother? That’s a really soft goal to give away at the end of the match and sadly that probably does it for the season. We now basically need to win out and get some help. The second goal, is a little more expected because you’re in full on desperation mode and taking every risk you can.
5: I feel like a broken record here but it’s consistent with us. We look ok. Attack looks ok. The opportunities are there. We have no final product. If we only ask a small handful questions of a quality keeper like Bill Hamid, he’s gonna have answers. Yes our goal was beautiful but we can’t win enough games off rare moments of brilliance like that. Even if we had got the result today it’s still not good enough going forward.
Sunday Oct 18, 2020
The one where we don't concede EARLY goals anymore
Sunday Oct 18, 2020
Sunday Oct 18, 2020
1: It feels like Atlanta United has beef with a lot of teams. We have history with Toronto, losing to them in our race win the shield in ‘18 and they beat us in the conference final in ‘19 and now took valuable points from us tonight. We have beef with Orlando because, well it’s OFYO. We got beef with Red Bull, obviously. We have a little bad blood with DC and it feels like something is starting up with Miami. Personally, I love it. Rivalries are fun and add more meaning to more games.
2: Toronto dictated terms for large portions of the first half but I thought we played out of the pressure well enough, despite the chances they had. I would have liked to see us apply a little more pressure to prevent TFC from having the time and space to pass the ball into dangerous areas.
3: A healthy and fit Juergen Damm is showing his versatility. He can play on the wing, he can come in central when required and he does a ton of defensive work. His speed is a tremendous asset that allows him to cover all of that ground with relative ease. He’s got great vision as well picking out quick passes and little give and go’s. Really looking forward to his partnership with Josef next year.
4: Barco is back. This is a total mystery to me. I did not expect to see him get a 45 minute run out. I thought he would just get maybe 20 minutes or so. When a player has been out for over a month, usually they don’t get a full half upon returning. I truly have no idea what’s going on with the little boat but he did look up for it tonight.
5: We got the attack going early in the second half. You expect that when you actually have good attacking pieces you can bring on from the bench. This is the first time in a long time where we actually had options and weren’t just zip tying and paper clipping an 11 together to go out and do something. So the attack looked good and this is probably, at least in the second half, the strongest attack that we are going to be able to field without another DP and Joseph. Yet, we still can’t get a goal. You can make the argument that all of these players still haven’t had enough time playing together, but there’s enough quality on that pitch for 45 minutes to go and find a goal.
Wednesday Oct 14, 2020
The one where we were so Damm close
Wednesday Oct 14, 2020
Wednesday Oct 14, 2020
1: Overall, really really poor for the first 70 minutes from just about everyone on the pitch save for Miles who was excellent. Touches were sloppy, passes were lazy or over hit. We just looked tired and devoid of ideas.
2: MOTM is a tie between Damm and Miles. This looked like the Miles pre 2019 injury. Jurgen came on and injected some energy and life, rescued a point and “Damm” near stole a win.
3: Pretty concerned about Brooks Lennon. He looked to be in real pain. He probably should have been subbed out before the goal from Brek Shea. Also, when did Brek Shea start having the kind of finesse he’s been showcasing?? Especially against us.
4: I’m a little surprised we didn’t see Moreno at all tonight. I guess Glassy just wanted to give him a full week to recover after his first competitive match in over half a year. If we don’t see him come on against Toronto I will be really concerned.
5: I suppose we will take the draw but we really needed the full 3 points tonight. With Nashville’s result tonight and having a game in hand we HAVE to win against Cincinnati and DC and then we need a result against either Toronto, Orlando or Columbus. Take your pick but we need something out of at least one of those games. We do that, I think we make the playoffs. Barely.
Sunday Oct 11, 2020
The one with new faces and theories
Sunday Oct 11, 2020
Sunday Oct 11, 2020
1: It felt like in the first half we were giving Red Bull a little taste of their own medicine. We pressed. We created turnovers and errant passes. We seemed to finally have the reply required for the Red Bull press. As the match progressed they played deeper and deeper. Not something we typically see from Red Bull.
2: Hyndman must have been listening to the podcast because he looked much better today. His touches were better and he connected on his passes. Overall just a more complete and confident performance from him. You’re welcome.
3: Well for still learning names and faces, Moreno had a better start than anyone we have brought on this year. He was aggressive and his heat map must have been the entire pitch. His first touch is terrific and you can see his vision and creativity. He’s gonna see passes that other players wouldn’t. He also drops back and defends. Bienvenido Marcelino! He’s a great fit for us and I see him quickly becoming a fan favorite.
4: I call (Red) bullshit on that goal. I’m really tired of the officiating in this league and the implementation of VAR. Just go have a look! Just look at it and you’ll see Guz was being screened. If that ball has the slightest touch off a Red Bull defender, it’s offside for sure. You can still be offside without touching the ball. This will add fuel to the rivalry. We were the better team in the first half and I argue that we would have been the better team in the second. Goals change games and it changed how we played. It should have been called off. It’s crap.
5: I don’t like peddling conspiracy theories but the Barco saga has reached the point where I think we have to talk about it. He hasn’t played for weeks. He hasn’t been training with the team regularly. We’ve been told directly by Carlos Bocanegra that it’s just a nagging injury and that he’s working hard on recovery and that he’s desperate to get back to playing. Based on the comments from Josef, Remedi, and Damm in the FIFA ratings video that was released today, I no longer believe that. Josef brought up Barco at the end of the video. He didn’t have to do that. Then, on the white boards Remedi wrote “See you” Josef wrote “Next” and Damm wrote “Bye”. They were laughing the whole time like there was something known on the inside that we on the outside don’t know about. IMO something is going on beyond injury.
Friday Oct 09, 2020
The one where at least we're not DC United.
Friday Oct 09, 2020
Friday Oct 09, 2020
OFYO
1: Jahn is tall but he’s not that tall lol. I’m loving the service that Jahn is getting in the box even if they are well over his head. We know his strengths and we’re playing to them. It looks like we’re finally figuring out how to be dangerous with what we have. Better late then never.
2: I thought the back line looked really good in the first half. They held their line and played Orlando attackers offsides a number of times. I give big credit to Guzan for that organization. We had a number of really good take aways in our own third that lead to some great counter opportunities.
3: Second half was very disjointed. Heavy legs seemed to set in. There weren’t too many absolutely horrid mistakes but it just looked like we were getting worn down a little so I’m pretty happy to walk away with a draw.
4: Guzan gets MOTM. This was probably his best performance. His distribution and organization of the back line I thought was excellent and he had two massive game saving saves.
5: We seemed to approach this match exactly the same way he approached the match against DC and not just with the line up. We kept trying to play down the flanks and cross balls into the box and it just wasn’t as effective. The match against DC had something like 26 crosses. I just felt like we weren’t really playing with what Orlando gave us. There was a lot of space in the middle to exploit and we didn’t really build up through it.
Sunday Oct 04, 2020
The One Where It's Good To Have Goals
Sunday Oct 04, 2020
Sunday Oct 04, 2020
1: We flipped the script tonight. DC played and looked the way we have to be honest. We got on the front foot early. We were aggressive and got stuck in with hard tackles. We frustrated and annoyed DC through the first half. We took advantage of their defensive mistakes.
2: Gallagher and Brooks Lennon made a hard push for dual MOTM. Terrific performances from both of them. The 18 yard box was a piggy bank with both dropping dimes all night. Brooks, minus that one ugly match, has been consistently out best player. Gallagher is making the most of his opportunities and making the case that he deserves to start in this team. His attacking threat is as good as his service into the box.
3: Hyndman is still having too many defensive mistakes for me. Since project restart this just hasn’t been a great season for him. I’m not saying he’s been an outright bust, but he has not come close to meeting expectations.
4: I’ve never seen anything like what happened tonight anywhere. Either DC made a genuine mistake or they know he wasn’t on the match card and tried to play him anyway. Surely there will be repercussions that come down for DC, Ben Olson, and maybe....the officiating crew? Either way it’s bizarre but truthfully, a minor footnote in a dominant performance.
5: That was fun, and when’s the last time any of us said that? Now for Orlando, in our house again. We done had them over and they went and made a mess. Not again. Not. Again.