Everyone party! The Review turns 100 today! 100 posts that is. That's 100 entries of my pointless ramblings for your reading (dis)pleasure! To be honest, when I started this I wasn't sure how long it would last; I'm glad I've stuck with it, it's been fun! Anyway, enough of that, on to the review!
First half grade: B
RSL played what was probably their most aggressive half on the road so far in '08. The attacking mentality seemed to work with RSL creating many chances. Unfortunately, the coaching staff stuck with the goal-anorexic tandem of Movsisyan and Nunez for a second straight game, meaning that RSL would almost assuredly not score. And they didn't, even with some quality chances. While I did like the
attacking pressure shown by RSL (and I think with decent, aka our regular, forwards in there it would have paid off), it did leave the team open to counter attacks, which Chicago took advantage of with regularity. Chris Rolfe especially seemed to be dangerous going forward, especially with the help of Loungais' (er, I mean, Blanco's) quality passing. Still, with some hustle and some luck, and after a hard fought first half, RSL took the game to the locker room 0-0.
Second half grade: F
Ah yes, vintage RSL, how we have missed you. RSL came out extremely flat in the second half, while Chicago looked like they had exchanged jerseys with an actual soccer team at the half. The Fire came out firing (damn, that's a clever pun) and had tons of chances. Luckily for RSL, their attack looked about as limp as RSL's normally does. And really, the lone bright spot of the second half offensively for RSL was Robbie Findley, who came on at the half. For the second straight game, Robbie came out like a man possessed, causing havoc for Chicago all over. Unfortunately, his best chance came early in the half when he took a misplayed ball into the box, one-on-one with the keeper, Jon Busch. Robbie fired low to the near post, but Busch made an outstanding acrobatic save to just push the ball wide. In fact, both goalies in this game were outstanding. Not long after that, RSL seemed to give up on the game, I'm not really sure why. Instead of trying for the win, they just bunkered and tried to hold off wave after wave after wave of Chicago attacks. Sound familiar? It looked very much like Ellinger-era RSL, and it was terrible. The clearances were bad and often right back to the Fire. Positioning was often questionable as well. No attempt was made to hold possession or move the ball upfield. Very, very ugly. However, despite the poor play, with the help of a couple great saves by Little Nicky, the defense held on just long enough for RSL to escape Illinois with a 0-0 tie (and a sorely needed road point).
Pros:
-RSL steals a point on the road.
-Findley again looked sharp.
-Rimando looks to be rounding back into the form he showed last year (when he should have been MLS keeper of the year).
-RSL's defense somehow was able to keep the ball out of the net.
-The game was on KSL so we all could enjoy Bill Riley on the call.
-Real Salt Lake stays in first place for another week!
Cons:
-Morales decided to prove Steve Nicol right by having a terrible game.
-Beckerman still doesn't look right out there.
-The bunker ball needs to go! Play to win, boys, not to tie!
-Blanco is hard to watch, his diving is infuriating.
Game grade: D+
A pretty good first half is wiped out by an astonishingly bad second half. The team showed little passion or fight in the second, which does not bode well coming into the home stretch of the season, especially considering how many road games (7) the team has left. With only a one point lead in the conference (and with the teams behind them with a game, or even two, in hand), RSL needs to look to get as many points as possible. That means playing to win, not bunkering for an entire half.
Player grades:
Nick Rimando-9 This game featured two goalies on top of their game.
Chris Wingert-7 Seemed pretty solid in his first game back.
Nat Borchers-7 A little iffy early, became a brick wall late.
Jamison Olave-6 A few too many mistakes.
Ian Joy-6 Perhaps a little generous on the score, but this was possibly his best game for RSL.
Andy Williams-7 The only consistent performer in the midfield.
(Tony Beltran 89)-6 Wasn't on long enough to make an sort of impact.
Dema Kovalenko-6 Pretty bad early, had a solid second half.
Javier Morales-4 Pretty much useless all night. Even his free kicks were bad.
Kyle Beckerman-5 Touch is still terrible, played better very late.
Yura Movsisyan-6 First game I can recall not hating every second he was on the field.
(Kenny Deuchar 67)-6 Actually dribbled (well, tripped) around someone!
Tino Nunez-5 Not a good game for Tino.
(Robbie Findley 46)-7 Came out like a man possessed; once the team refused to attack, his influence waned.
Coaching staff-4 Yes, it's a road point, but the Nunez/Movs experiment must end now and allowing the team to play like that in the second half is unacceptable.
Referees (head ref: Ricardo Salazar)-6 Perhaps let a little too much go, but most of the calls were fair and he seemed to take control when needed. Overall, an average performance (which for MLS is probably an exceptional one!).
RSL Man of the Match:
Nick Rimando
Didn't have to make a lot of saves, due to some decent defending and poor attacking, but positioned himself well, and when he needed to make the big save, he did. Well done, Little Nicky!
Assclown of the Match:
Cuauhtemoc Blanco
Dude, seriously. Quit your diving and whining. It's obnoxious as anything. It's the sort of behavior expected of an...assclown...how fitting!
Showing posts with label CHI. Show all posts
Showing posts with label CHI. Show all posts
Monday, July 21, 2008
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Game 1: Chicago vs. RSL 3/29/08
Chicago Fire at Real Salt Lake: A Play In One Act:
A husband and wife sit on a couch watching television...
Man: "Honey, change the channel. I've seen this one before."
Woman: "Oh yeah?"
Man: "Yeah, it's the one where RSL is in the season opener, controls the game, gets the lead, and then stupidly gives up a goal in extra time."
Woman: "But at least they still win, right? You did say that they control the game."
Man: (chuckles) "Oh, you'd think so wouldn't you? But, alas, no. They may control the flow of the game, but they also can't score. It's one of those dreaded 'Ties That Feel Like A Loss'"
Woman: (shudders) "Oh goodness, I will certainly change it, I don't like scary shows!"
Fade To Black
END
So as the game starts I see a sad yet familiar sight: American football lines on the pitch looking like they were painted yesterday. Sigh, that new stadium can't come soon enough. The RSL lineup was fairly predictable with just one or two curiousities. One is Yura Movsisyan over Robbie Findley and the other (not so surprising) was Carey Talley over Nathan Sturgis or Dema Kovalenko. Right after kick, Fabian Espindola (aka Espi) immediately looked ready, fighting for balls and playing some nice through balls. To me he looked much more aggressive than he ever has, which was very encouraging. The first half passed fairly uneventfully, but fairly pleasingly, with RSL controlling the midfield and possession. However, on the negative side, the final parts of the attack looked as weak as last year. Yura especially looked lost, missing a pretty easy header on a beautiful cross from Espi in the 6th minute, putting an awful "cross" to no one in the 19th, and then beating a defender (nice) but then making one too many moves and tripping and losing possession in the 21st. Despite having the control of the game and taking a large majority of the shots, RSL couldn't get one in the back of the net and went into halftime tied at 0.
Half grade: B+
A solid half with a few wasted chances. Espi looks good, Yura not so much.
Before I start the second half review, I'd just like to say that I hate the new font on the names on the back of the jersey. And the numbers? Even worse. The ones and sevens look identical. Just awful. Now back to the regularly scheduled review... The second half started out with an amusing incident. Blanco went down and RSL played on and soon turned it over to Chicago while Blanco still laid on the turf. The Fire kept playing for another minute before finally putting the ball out to get Blanco checked on. Why was this amusing? Becuase even his own teammates don't buy it when he goes down since he dives all over the place. In fact, in honor of Blanco, perhaps I shall start calling them the Chicago Louganises. Moving on, in the 49th, Yura missed another easy header off a nice Espi cross. He did, however, redeem himself for that one with a beautiful bicycle kick that went JUST wide in the 55th. In the 61st, Blanco went down with one of the most blatant flops I've ever seen and, of course, was not reprimanded. In the 63rd, Findley came in for Yura Movsisyan, which in my estimation was about....oh, 63 minutes too late. Then in the 69th Dema Kovalenko made his RSL debut, coming on for Andy Williams, who had a solid first half, but started to fade as time passed in the 2nd (will he ever be able to play a good 90?). Soon after, Dema whips a nasty cross into the box that is deflected into the net by Bakary Soumare (Hey! That rhymes!). Although it was not a goal scored by an RSL player, it was a deserved score for the reds as they had been in control of the whole game. In the 72nd, Espindola came out for the newest member of RSL, fresh off the plane, Mr. Kenny Deuchar, who, even on TV, is a big guy. Deuchar immediately looked active, forcing the issue with Chicago keeper Jon Busch and making him play the ball much more quickly than he otherwise would have. In the 78th Findley was taken down in the box, although the ref saw it as a dive and gave him a yellow card. I still say his heels were clipped, but even if he dove, why was he given a yellow? Cuautemoc Louganis was diving all day! A terrible double standard that MLS should really crack down on and quickly. In the 82nd, Dema almost put the game away, hitting a great volley off a deflected ball, unfortunately Busch was up to the task. In the 87th, Mantilla almost handed a goal to the Louganises when he hit a terrible header in the box that went right in front of the net right where Chicago could have easily put it away. Luckily the rest of the RSL defense was up to the task and cleared the ball. Right after the ref set another bad double standard, giving Beckerman a yellow for a tackle that was no worse than what Chicago had been getting away with all day. Even with all this, RSL was keeping control of the ball and looking like they'd run out the clock and walk away with the 3 point. Then, in the 2nd minute (of 4) of extra time, it happened (like it always does to RSL). Carr beat Ian Joy down the sideline and put a nice cross through the box that got past 3 RSL players (who dove in desperation for the ball, taking them out of the play). Finally, RSL was able to get a foot on it and get a semi-clearance. But, of course, it fell to a WIDE OPEN Louganis at the edge of the 18 who drilled one past Rimando to steal 2 points away from RSL. The one big defensive lapse on the day and RSL can't survive it. A shame.
Half grade: C+
Player grades:
Nick Rimando-7 Didn't have much to do, wasn't much he could do on the goal.
Chris Wingert-7 Got forward, defended pretty well.
Nat Borchers-6 Quiet game, but that's not always a bad thing from a CB.
Matias Mantilla-5 Decent game, but that header loses him a point.
Ian Joy-5 Showed a lot of promise, got forward well, but made a few mistakes.
Andy Williams-7 Lost steam, but played well for the most part.
(Dema Kovalenko 69)-7 Had a few good plays early, disappeared late
Javier Morales-6 Too quiet a game for a playmaker
Carey Talley-6 Didn't see much of him
Kyle Beckerman-7 Aggressive and actually put a long shot on net (wow!).
Fabian Espindola-8 One of his best games in an RSL kit.
(Kenny Deuchar 73)-7 Pressed the issue, held the ball in the corner well.
Yura Movsisyan-4 Knocked off the ball way too easily, missed too many good chances.
(Robbie Findley 62)-6 Looked better than at the U-23s.
Pros:
-Espindola had a good game and showed a physical game I don't remember.
-New defenders Borchers and Joy both showed flashes. Borchers looked more settled, but Joy looked like he will be good once he gets fully comfortable.
-Kovalenko looked pretty sharp.
-The midfield looked really good, holding the Fire at bay.
-RSL looked capable of building a solid attack out of the back for the first time in....well, ever.
Cons:
-Another super late defensive lapse leads to another super disappointing season opening tie.
-Yura did not look good at all.
-Andy still can't play a solid game for more than about 50 minutes.
-Blanco dives more than the US Olympic diving team.
-The ref.
Game grade: C+ or F (only counting the 92nd minute game-tying goal part)
RSL's midfield really outplayed Chicago and minus the one lapse, the defense held strong. Finishing was poor as always, it'll be interesting to see what Deuchar can do in a full 90.
Man of the match: Fabian Espindola
Assclown of the match: As much as I want to give it to Mr. Louganis, this award is for referee Terry Vaughn. The first 60 minutes were just terribly officiated both ways (missing obvious calls on both sides). Then, to add insult to injury, he then dedicated himself to terrible double standard calls like the Findley yellow (that should have been a PK) when he allowed Blanco to dive all over or the Beckerman yellow when Chicago had been just as bad on tackles. Well done, Mr. Vaughn, you are truly an assclown.
[Note: This review was hastily written while I was spacing out AND watching "That 70s Show" so if it is terrible (and I have a feeling it is; I don't even remember what I just wrote) I apologize. But, at the very least, I said I'd have one up and I do!]
A husband and wife sit on a couch watching television...
Man: "Honey, change the channel. I've seen this one before."
Woman: "Oh yeah?"
Man: "Yeah, it's the one where RSL is in the season opener, controls the game, gets the lead, and then stupidly gives up a goal in extra time."
Woman: "But at least they still win, right? You did say that they control the game."
Man: (chuckles) "Oh, you'd think so wouldn't you? But, alas, no. They may control the flow of the game, but they also can't score. It's one of those dreaded 'Ties That Feel Like A Loss'"
Woman: (shudders) "Oh goodness, I will certainly change it, I don't like scary shows!"
Fade To Black
END
So as the game starts I see a sad yet familiar sight: American football lines on the pitch looking like they were painted yesterday. Sigh, that new stadium can't come soon enough. The RSL lineup was fairly predictable with just one or two curiousities. One is Yura Movsisyan over Robbie Findley and the other (not so surprising) was Carey Talley over Nathan Sturgis or Dema Kovalenko. Right after kick, Fabian Espindola (aka Espi) immediately looked ready, fighting for balls and playing some nice through balls. To me he looked much more aggressive than he ever has, which was very encouraging. The first half passed fairly uneventfully, but fairly pleasingly, with RSL controlling the midfield and possession. However, on the negative side, the final parts of the attack looked as weak as last year. Yura especially looked lost, missing a pretty easy header on a beautiful cross from Espi in the 6th minute, putting an awful "cross" to no one in the 19th, and then beating a defender (nice) but then making one too many moves and tripping and losing possession in the 21st. Despite having the control of the game and taking a large majority of the shots, RSL couldn't get one in the back of the net and went into halftime tied at 0.
Half grade: B+
A solid half with a few wasted chances. Espi looks good, Yura not so much.
Before I start the second half review, I'd just like to say that I hate the new font on the names on the back of the jersey. And the numbers? Even worse. The ones and sevens look identical. Just awful. Now back to the regularly scheduled review... The second half started out with an amusing incident. Blanco went down and RSL played on and soon turned it over to Chicago while Blanco still laid on the turf. The Fire kept playing for another minute before finally putting the ball out to get Blanco checked on. Why was this amusing? Becuase even his own teammates don't buy it when he goes down since he dives all over the place. In fact, in honor of Blanco, perhaps I shall start calling them the Chicago Louganises. Moving on, in the 49th, Yura missed another easy header off a nice Espi cross. He did, however, redeem himself for that one with a beautiful bicycle kick that went JUST wide in the 55th. In the 61st, Blanco went down with one of the most blatant flops I've ever seen and, of course, was not reprimanded. In the 63rd, Findley came in for Yura Movsisyan, which in my estimation was about....oh, 63 minutes too late. Then in the 69th Dema Kovalenko made his RSL debut, coming on for Andy Williams, who had a solid first half, but started to fade as time passed in the 2nd (will he ever be able to play a good 90?). Soon after, Dema whips a nasty cross into the box that is deflected into the net by Bakary Soumare (Hey! That rhymes!). Although it was not a goal scored by an RSL player, it was a deserved score for the reds as they had been in control of the whole game. In the 72nd, Espindola came out for the newest member of RSL, fresh off the plane, Mr. Kenny Deuchar, who, even on TV, is a big guy. Deuchar immediately looked active, forcing the issue with Chicago keeper Jon Busch and making him play the ball much more quickly than he otherwise would have. In the 78th Findley was taken down in the box, although the ref saw it as a dive and gave him a yellow card. I still say his heels were clipped, but even if he dove, why was he given a yellow? Cuautemoc Louganis was diving all day! A terrible double standard that MLS should really crack down on and quickly. In the 82nd, Dema almost put the game away, hitting a great volley off a deflected ball, unfortunately Busch was up to the task. In the 87th, Mantilla almost handed a goal to the Louganises when he hit a terrible header in the box that went right in front of the net right where Chicago could have easily put it away. Luckily the rest of the RSL defense was up to the task and cleared the ball. Right after the ref set another bad double standard, giving Beckerman a yellow for a tackle that was no worse than what Chicago had been getting away with all day. Even with all this, RSL was keeping control of the ball and looking like they'd run out the clock and walk away with the 3 point. Then, in the 2nd minute (of 4) of extra time, it happened (like it always does to RSL). Carr beat Ian Joy down the sideline and put a nice cross through the box that got past 3 RSL players (who dove in desperation for the ball, taking them out of the play). Finally, RSL was able to get a foot on it and get a semi-clearance. But, of course, it fell to a WIDE OPEN Louganis at the edge of the 18 who drilled one past Rimando to steal 2 points away from RSL. The one big defensive lapse on the day and RSL can't survive it. A shame.
Half grade: C+
Player grades:
Nick Rimando-7 Didn't have much to do, wasn't much he could do on the goal.
Chris Wingert-7 Got forward, defended pretty well.
Nat Borchers-6 Quiet game, but that's not always a bad thing from a CB.
Matias Mantilla-5 Decent game, but that header loses him a point.
Ian Joy-5 Showed a lot of promise, got forward well, but made a few mistakes.
Andy Williams-7 Lost steam, but played well for the most part.
(Dema Kovalenko 69)-7 Had a few good plays early, disappeared late
Javier Morales-6 Too quiet a game for a playmaker
Carey Talley-6 Didn't see much of him
Kyle Beckerman-7 Aggressive and actually put a long shot on net (wow!).
Fabian Espindola-8 One of his best games in an RSL kit.
(Kenny Deuchar 73)-7 Pressed the issue, held the ball in the corner well.
Yura Movsisyan-4 Knocked off the ball way too easily, missed too many good chances.
(Robbie Findley 62)-6 Looked better than at the U-23s.
Pros:
-Espindola had a good game and showed a physical game I don't remember.
-New defenders Borchers and Joy both showed flashes. Borchers looked more settled, but Joy looked like he will be good once he gets fully comfortable.
-Kovalenko looked pretty sharp.
-The midfield looked really good, holding the Fire at bay.
-RSL looked capable of building a solid attack out of the back for the first time in....well, ever.
Cons:
-Another super late defensive lapse leads to another super disappointing season opening tie.
-Yura did not look good at all.
-Andy still can't play a solid game for more than about 50 minutes.
-Blanco dives more than the US Olympic diving team.
-The ref.
Game grade: C+ or F (only counting the 92nd minute game-tying goal part)
RSL's midfield really outplayed Chicago and minus the one lapse, the defense held strong. Finishing was poor as always, it'll be interesting to see what Deuchar can do in a full 90.
Man of the match: Fabian Espindola
Assclown of the match: As much as I want to give it to Mr. Louganis, this award is for referee Terry Vaughn. The first 60 minutes were just terribly officiated both ways (missing obvious calls on both sides). Then, to add insult to injury, he then dedicated himself to terrible double standard calls like the Findley yellow (that should have been a PK) when he allowed Blanco to dive all over or the Beckerman yellow when Chicago had been just as bad on tackles. Well done, Mr. Vaughn, you are truly an assclown.
[Note: This review was hastily written while I was spacing out AND watching "That 70s Show" so if it is terrible (and I have a feeling it is; I don't even remember what I just wrote) I apologize. But, at the very least, I said I'd have one up and I do!]
Monday, March 31, 2008
Week 1: Chicago vs. RSL-coming soon!
Hey all, I hope to have a review done and up by tomorrow (Tuesday) night. Work has interfered with progress so far (and opening day for the Cubs didn't help matters), but I will get it done before the Chivas TST game at the very least. As for now, all I'll say about Saturday's game is 'I thought the 2007 season was over.'
Thursday, August 23, 2007
8/18/07 Chicago @ RSL
So I recorded the game (after having slept through it after a hellish 2 days at work), watched it on Sunday, took extensive notes, and was all ready to blow your minds with an insightful, well-reasoned and thoughtful post. Well, as close as I can get anyway... But then life got in the way. I have had a busy week, capped by this winning development on Tuesday:
Everyone is fine, but needless to say I haven't been thinking much about reviewing the latest RSL debacle. So instead of a great post, I will just skim the notes and try and give a decent mini-review. But never fear, I am hoping to get back on track with the ol' RR, and have many things in the works (like the long-promised pics from the Houston game). And off we go!
Ah yes, after RSL played a good game in defeating Houston I began to wonder what had happened to the real players on the team (that obviously wasn't them against Houston, but talented soccer-playing dopplegangers). No worries, they were back last Saturday to play Chicago. RSL came out looking ok (I guess), but never dominated in the first half. Fortunately for RSL fans, Chicago played a pretty awful half and allowed RSL to play even. The best scoring chance of the half came in the 17th minute when Findley somehow stretched his toe and poked a shot on goal, only to be denied by the post. True RSL luck. Of course, sometimes you need to make your own luck and Findley certainly didn't. Instead of following the play after he shot, he assumed it was in and gave up on the play. Had he followed up on the shot he had a gimme goal as he had the defender beaten and the goalie out of the play. Nevertheless, this kept the game scoreless for now. The rest of the half was mediocre at best from both sides with lots of turnovers and not much offense. The kind of game that soccer haters would use to point out how "boring" soccer is (a 3 second play followed by a minute of standing around....now THAT'S excitement, but I digress). Then in the 43rd minute, out of absolutely nowhere, Cuauhtemoc Blanco showed why he makes the big bucks by hitting an absolute scorcher of a goal from distance and off a bounce. GREAT goal. I do have one question about it, though. The TV coverage was awful so I'm not sure how the Fire had the ball. We had an RSL throw (as far as they showed), they went to a short replay, and suddenly Chicago has a throw-in that leads directly to the goal. How did Chicago get a throw-in call that fast??? Anyone? Anyway, RSL goes into the half down 1-0 in a game that, honestly, neither team deserved to have a lead in. But, that is RSL's luck for you.
Half grade: D
The second half was much like the first, drab and ugly. Chicago played slightly better in this half and RSL never looked all that dangerous until the 76th minute when new signing Espindola was denied on not one but two straight shots in the penalty area. He's fitting in already!!! Seriously, my fat ass could have scored there. Just putrid. Soon after, Paulo Wanchope headed home a Blanco corner (after running over Pope and pushing Talley away, but, you know, that's not a foul) to put the game away at 2-0. RSL's Atiba Harris had a good chance to pull one back in the 89th where he basically had a one on one with the goalie, but he stumbled and the ball rolled harmlessly to the keeper. Game. Set. Match. Chicago.
Half grade: D-
Pros:
-Atiba at least looked dangerous once in a while.
-Esky got back on the field.
-We got to see one of the "Argentine 3"
Cons:
-The long ball game plan. It rarely works (see RSL's record for proof).
-The refereeing was terrible as usual.
-The general ineptitude of RSL.
-This was Beckerman's worst game in an RSL uni by far.
-The TV coverage. Don't show replays and bench closeups when plays are developing!!! AGH!!!
Game grade: D-
Chicago played a pretty uneven, pretty bad game and still beat RSL 2-0. Shouldn't, at some point, we have a pretty good homefield advantage, what with the altitude and the fact that we regularly play on the turf while others see it once a year here? Guess not.
Player grades:
Nick Rimando-6 Up and down night, some great plays; terribly out of position on the 2nd goal
Jean-Martial Kipre-5 OK, but most runs and plays went nowhere
sub(Chris Brown 78)-4 Did he play in this one? Didn't hear his name called once.
Ritchie Kotschau-7 Possibly his best game for RSL. A surprise bright spot.
Eddie Pope-6 A pretty mediocre game for him.
Chris Wingert-5 See Kipre
Kyle Beckerman-4 Seemed absent from the game, played a bit dirty
Nathan Sturgis-5 OK game, injured early
sub(Atiba Harris 33)-5 Had some moments, but HAS to finish that play in the 89th
Carey Talley-4 Pretty invisible as well, beaten physically on 2nd goal
Andy Williams-4 Little effort, can't seem to handle 90 minutes
Robbie Findley-6 Up and down game
Alecko Eskandarian-4 I like Esky, but he needs to give us more that THAT
(Fabian Espindola 58)-5 Made some nice runs, but the inability to finish brought him down
RSL Man of the Match: I can't believe I'm going to say this but it's Ritchie "Red Card" Kotschau!
Assclown of the match: (tie) the refs, just as uneven and unpredictable as usual AND Dasan Robinson, he seemed to be doing a lot of dirty play off (and on) the ball. Something about him just grated on me in this game...
Everyone is fine, but needless to say I haven't been thinking much about reviewing the latest RSL debacle. So instead of a great post, I will just skim the notes and try and give a decent mini-review. But never fear, I am hoping to get back on track with the ol' RR, and have many things in the works (like the long-promised pics from the Houston game). And off we go!Ah yes, after RSL played a good game in defeating Houston I began to wonder what had happened to the real players on the team (that obviously wasn't them against Houston, but talented soccer-playing dopplegangers). No worries, they were back last Saturday to play Chicago. RSL came out looking ok (I guess), but never dominated in the first half. Fortunately for RSL fans, Chicago played a pretty awful half and allowed RSL to play even. The best scoring chance of the half came in the 17th minute when Findley somehow stretched his toe and poked a shot on goal, only to be denied by the post. True RSL luck. Of course, sometimes you need to make your own luck and Findley certainly didn't. Instead of following the play after he shot, he assumed it was in and gave up on the play. Had he followed up on the shot he had a gimme goal as he had the defender beaten and the goalie out of the play. Nevertheless, this kept the game scoreless for now. The rest of the half was mediocre at best from both sides with lots of turnovers and not much offense. The kind of game that soccer haters would use to point out how "boring" soccer is (a 3 second play followed by a minute of standing around....now THAT'S excitement, but I digress). Then in the 43rd minute, out of absolutely nowhere, Cuauhtemoc Blanco showed why he makes the big bucks by hitting an absolute scorcher of a goal from distance and off a bounce. GREAT goal. I do have one question about it, though. The TV coverage was awful so I'm not sure how the Fire had the ball. We had an RSL throw (as far as they showed), they went to a short replay, and suddenly Chicago has a throw-in that leads directly to the goal. How did Chicago get a throw-in call that fast??? Anyone? Anyway, RSL goes into the half down 1-0 in a game that, honestly, neither team deserved to have a lead in. But, that is RSL's luck for you.
Half grade: D
The second half was much like the first, drab and ugly. Chicago played slightly better in this half and RSL never looked all that dangerous until the 76th minute when new signing Espindola was denied on not one but two straight shots in the penalty area. He's fitting in already!!! Seriously, my fat ass could have scored there. Just putrid. Soon after, Paulo Wanchope headed home a Blanco corner (after running over Pope and pushing Talley away, but, you know, that's not a foul) to put the game away at 2-0. RSL's Atiba Harris had a good chance to pull one back in the 89th where he basically had a one on one with the goalie, but he stumbled and the ball rolled harmlessly to the keeper. Game. Set. Match. Chicago.
Half grade: D-
Pros:
-Atiba at least looked dangerous once in a while.
-Esky got back on the field.
-We got to see one of the "Argentine 3"
Cons:
-The long ball game plan. It rarely works (see RSL's record for proof).
-The refereeing was terrible as usual.
-The general ineptitude of RSL.
-This was Beckerman's worst game in an RSL uni by far.
-The TV coverage. Don't show replays and bench closeups when plays are developing!!! AGH!!!
Game grade: D-
Chicago played a pretty uneven, pretty bad game and still beat RSL 2-0. Shouldn't, at some point, we have a pretty good homefield advantage, what with the altitude and the fact that we regularly play on the turf while others see it once a year here? Guess not.
Player grades:
Nick Rimando-6 Up and down night, some great plays; terribly out of position on the 2nd goal
Jean-Martial Kipre-5 OK, but most runs and plays went nowhere
sub(Chris Brown 78)-4 Did he play in this one? Didn't hear his name called once.
Ritchie Kotschau-7 Possibly his best game for RSL. A surprise bright spot.
Eddie Pope-6 A pretty mediocre game for him.
Chris Wingert-5 See Kipre
Kyle Beckerman-4 Seemed absent from the game, played a bit dirty
Nathan Sturgis-5 OK game, injured early
sub(Atiba Harris 33)-5 Had some moments, but HAS to finish that play in the 89th
Carey Talley-4 Pretty invisible as well, beaten physically on 2nd goal
Andy Williams-4 Little effort, can't seem to handle 90 minutes
Robbie Findley-6 Up and down game
Alecko Eskandarian-4 I like Esky, but he needs to give us more that THAT
(Fabian Espindola 58)-5 Made some nice runs, but the inability to finish brought him down
RSL Man of the Match: I can't believe I'm going to say this but it's Ritchie "Red Card" Kotschau!
Assclown of the match: (tie) the refs, just as uneven and unpredictable as usual AND Dasan Robinson, he seemed to be doing a lot of dirty play off (and on) the ball. Something about him just grated on me in this game...
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