 |
| A song for the situation... |
On the one hand, the final 20 minutes of effort couldn’t rescue the prior 70 minutes of not-good-enough. On the other, it was good to see the Portland Timbers play with some level of professional pride. To float an idea I’ve never really formulated before, maybe every team plays 50% harder after the coach gets fired so they can prove it really was him and not them?
I can list all the not-good-enough from tonight’s game, but I’m leaning against doing it for two reasons: 1) it continued the same wretched trends from the season so far, and 2) change takes time. Hell, it’ll probably take a new coach. I mean, who’s thinking of the Miles Joseph era as anything but the bridge to the team’s real future? Hell, the man doesn’t even bark at the fourth official like a proper head coach. (Is that a 400-level course or more disposition, nurture v nature, and so?)
The game happened as it did – the Timbers defense dropped on the first swing, going down on a back-post goal by the Vancouver Whitecaps’ Ryan Gaul in the 13th minute; then went down one goal further when the ‘Caps broke through their ramshackle press; honestly, the game was probably over at that point – but every lecture starts with a thesis, so here’s mine: Evander lost this game for the Timbers. And not for the first time either.
Again, this is the man brought in to win games for the Timbers.
The crucial moment came when Evander stumbled through Richie Laryea – a player moving away from goal – inside the penalty area. Right before that happened, the Timbers had just pulled back one of the two goals mentioned above. I’ll get to Portland’s first goal down below, but the complete and utter dipshittery (sp?) of committing that foul on a retreating player inside the area and giving up a penalty kick? That is elite stupidity. Fuck it, maybe file this under a karmic punchline to everyone’s complaint about Evander not trying hard enough. At any rate, the Timbers probably ran out of road after the genuinely impressive Ryan Gauld (one man, two goals, one assist) buried the ensuing penalty kick (and for why a 0:47 highlight showing a penalty kick, but not one damn clip about the foul that caused it? Rummage, worms!) and once Vancouver went up 3-1. The game ended 3-2 in Vancouver’s favor and there it is: another game older and deeper in debt.
I can list all the not-good-enough from tonight’s game, but I’m leaning against doing it for two reasons: 1) it continued the same wretched trends from the season so far, and 2) change takes time. Hell, it’ll probably take a new coach. I mean, who’s thinking of the Miles Joseph era as anything but the bridge to the team’s real future? Hell, the man doesn’t even bark at the fourth official like a proper head coach. (Is that a 400-level course or more disposition, nurture v nature, and so?)
The game happened as it did – the Timbers defense dropped on the first swing, going down on a back-post goal by the Vancouver Whitecaps’ Ryan Gaul in the 13th minute; then went down one goal further when the ‘Caps broke through their ramshackle press; honestly, the game was probably over at that point – but every lecture starts with a thesis, so here’s mine: Evander lost this game for the Timbers. And not for the first time either.
Again, this is the man brought in to win games for the Timbers.
The crucial moment came when Evander stumbled through Richie Laryea – a player moving away from goal – inside the penalty area. Right before that happened, the Timbers had just pulled back one of the two goals mentioned above. I’ll get to Portland’s first goal down below, but the complete and utter dipshittery (sp?) of committing that foul on a retreating player inside the area and giving up a penalty kick? That is elite stupidity. Fuck it, maybe file this under a karmic punchline to everyone’s complaint about Evander not trying hard enough. At any rate, the Timbers probably ran out of road after the genuinely impressive Ryan Gauld (one man, two goals, one assist) buried the ensuing penalty kick (and for why a 0:47 highlight showing a penalty kick, but not one damn clip about the foul that caused it? Rummage, worms!) and once Vancouver went up 3-1. The game ended 3-2 in Vancouver’s favor and there it is: another game older and deeper in debt.
 |
| You are good enough, you are smart enough...DAMMIT! |
The effort given by many Timbers counts as the one shining positive from Portland tonight. The official stats can go to hell, because the Timbers did a steady, collective job of forcing turnovers and recovering the ball after they lost it. As for what they did with it once they got it...their own mothers would struggle to find kind words. At any rate, Portland got on a swarming front foot plenty of times, it just failed to translate into much of anything...until a bolt transmitted in from the blue – i.e., Mora’s late, ultimately futile opener.
After pausing to honor the 17 shots (with five on goal!) the Timbers managed by the end of the game, let us also pause to note that it took goddamn near all of the game, plus replacing the front three at the 66th minute, plus Antony’s debut before those shots looked like anything worth mentioning. Dairon Asprilla’s elegant, yet aimless bicycle kick offered a lonely highlight for a wasted first half – and the average rate of success on those says plenty about that. Defects in the attack abounded: as noted in the game thread (which, thanks to dickhead, I can no longer link to), the Timbers got handed a near three-on-four near the center stripe with Asprilla on the ball; he carried forward against Vancouver's retreating backline, the good and right call, only he kept pinching toward Felipe Mora who was running the same line struggling to keep a step away. Asprilla’s baffling choice had the effect of allowing one defender to cover Portland’s two most advanced players, aka, bad soccering choices. The Timbers eventually bumbled a shot (through Evander if I remember right), but that was both a lot of potential pissed away and the dominant theme for most of the game – between Scylla (trying to play through a clogged center) and teeing up ill-considered crosses (Charbydis).
Broadly, the Timbers started by seizing the upper hand, only to let it slip away one goal at a time, and then Evander fucked up the game beyond (arguable) recovery. They dropped an anchor’s worth of weight on the ‘Caps defense in from the 85th to somewhere around the 95th minute and that’s probably my biggest takeaway for this game. The fight was there tonight. Whether it’s to prove a point, whether it’s playing for a new, if interim coach, or whether it’s just playing to protect the resume, the level of effort the Timbers produced tonight is a first, vital step in the right direction for a team struggling the way Portland is right now. As for the next step...yeah....
Bluntly, I’m not optimistic about a near-term turnaround. I don’t think the coach v players debate has truly settled for anyone and, duh, tonight didn’t solve it. I went into this game dead-eyed – i.e., dispassionate as I could manage – but I can see that getting the Timbers back to any form of competitive is gonna take a minute. I was probably more stunned by the bad tonight than I had any right to be, but....c’mon, they played some atrocious stuff out there. The fundamentals looked like they did in March through April – misplaced passes all over, plus way too many going backwards – and none of that exactly spells confidence, does it? And yet it wasn’t all bad, so let’s talk about what went right.
The Timbers played a (for me) distressing number of crosses tonight – 28, per the box score – most of them to nowhere good or useful. The way the Timbers highest players lined up had far too much to do with that – i.e., players meandering to the same places on the field, players in attacking positions ball watching, etc. That only makes re-watching Mora’s goal a more worthwhile exercise. Portland had just two players in the box, but, unlike what I saw all over for most of the night, Cristhian Paredes feinted toward Asprilla’s run/cross, a move that pulled Tristan Blackmon with him and that froze Ranko Veselinovic...if more than it should have. Mora took the space between and lifted his 5’ 9” self high as he could go and slotted home the goal. I’m not sure where Mora ranks among the cleanest finishers on the roster, but he’s up there. And yet, somehow, the rest of what he does is still more valuable. Mora will make the Timbers better for as long as he can stay out there.
For all the exhausting, futile sameness that came before it, Portland achieved their purest moment of attacking clarity in the 85th minute. And, please, sit through this highlight again, because it’s a reminder of what the Timbers can and, more crucially, should do in the attack. Start with a great, long pass to open the width (fucking finally!), get players to the opening, move the ball quickly and make the crucial run before the secondary assist even comes in. The piece de resistance came at the end, when two Timbers attackers crashed different(!) parts of the goal, dragging defenders with them as they went, while Evander stepped back and let all that rush toward the end line. The broadcast booth frothed over his finish, but it was Evander's movement on that play that gets my feeble fan heart beating.
That’s a game summary, right? I’m going to close by naming some names.
1) We Have to Talk About Evander
He doesn’t do enough good to make the dumb-fuck decisions he makes. Whether you count it as four points or six (or maybe even more), Evander has lost this team points this season.
I sincerely believe he knows this and probably kicks his own ass harder than I ever will...and yet, I believe two things just as sincerely: 1) he’s still trying to figure out how this league works, and 2) Evander’s a tricky goddamn piece to place.
To provide thoughts on both points: I’m more than a little concerned that he doesn’t have a better handle on 1) yet and 2) is on the goddamn FO. Look at the lineup, assess your needs, then go find your player. Moreover...
2) The Paredes Problem
Note I didn’t phrase that as “The Problem with Paredes” for a reason. Paredes has played high over the past two games (or so) and it just doesn’t suit him. In my book, he’s a quality harasser, a decent shuttler, and...a form of threat on late runs. What he’s not good at is receiving the ball, back to goal in the attacking third, or even facing forward in the final third, not if he has to do something immediately useful with it. Arguably – and I think it’s a good one – this is a knock-on effect that follows from where Evander likes to play. Sorting this out is going to take some doing.
3) I Will Not Clap for This Shit (No Bravo)
Claudio Bravo played a terrible game on both sides of the ball, but his attacking contribution approached the sordid depths of manslaughter. I feel like I’ve been plenty patient with Bravo, but I’m now open to all kinds of things.
4) Sunk Cost
There’s no kind way to say this: Yimmi Chara was a bad signing in general, but the DP contract makes it a terrible one. At this point, Yimmi looks more like fan service than a proper, considered signing.
Bottom line, I could have called the fight/result some form of progress had they played it at BC Place. Sadly, this was at Providence Park, against a direct rival (and one with a head start to boot), and the Timbers still lost it. With an enormous assist from the guy the paid to be the solution. Uff Dammit!
Till the next one.
After pausing to honor the 17 shots (with five on goal!) the Timbers managed by the end of the game, let us also pause to note that it took goddamn near all of the game, plus replacing the front three at the 66th minute, plus Antony’s debut before those shots looked like anything worth mentioning. Dairon Asprilla’s elegant, yet aimless bicycle kick offered a lonely highlight for a wasted first half – and the average rate of success on those says plenty about that. Defects in the attack abounded: as noted in the game thread (which, thanks to dickhead, I can no longer link to), the Timbers got handed a near three-on-four near the center stripe with Asprilla on the ball; he carried forward against Vancouver's retreating backline, the good and right call, only he kept pinching toward Felipe Mora who was running the same line struggling to keep a step away. Asprilla’s baffling choice had the effect of allowing one defender to cover Portland’s two most advanced players, aka, bad soccering choices. The Timbers eventually bumbled a shot (through Evander if I remember right), but that was both a lot of potential pissed away and the dominant theme for most of the game – between Scylla (trying to play through a clogged center) and teeing up ill-considered crosses (Charbydis).
Broadly, the Timbers started by seizing the upper hand, only to let it slip away one goal at a time, and then Evander fucked up the game beyond (arguable) recovery. They dropped an anchor’s worth of weight on the ‘Caps defense in from the 85th to somewhere around the 95th minute and that’s probably my biggest takeaway for this game. The fight was there tonight. Whether it’s to prove a point, whether it’s playing for a new, if interim coach, or whether it’s just playing to protect the resume, the level of effort the Timbers produced tonight is a first, vital step in the right direction for a team struggling the way Portland is right now. As for the next step...yeah....
Bluntly, I’m not optimistic about a near-term turnaround. I don’t think the coach v players debate has truly settled for anyone and, duh, tonight didn’t solve it. I went into this game dead-eyed – i.e., dispassionate as I could manage – but I can see that getting the Timbers back to any form of competitive is gonna take a minute. I was probably more stunned by the bad tonight than I had any right to be, but....c’mon, they played some atrocious stuff out there. The fundamentals looked like they did in March through April – misplaced passes all over, plus way too many going backwards – and none of that exactly spells confidence, does it? And yet it wasn’t all bad, so let’s talk about what went right.
The Timbers played a (for me) distressing number of crosses tonight – 28, per the box score – most of them to nowhere good or useful. The way the Timbers highest players lined up had far too much to do with that – i.e., players meandering to the same places on the field, players in attacking positions ball watching, etc. That only makes re-watching Mora’s goal a more worthwhile exercise. Portland had just two players in the box, but, unlike what I saw all over for most of the night, Cristhian Paredes feinted toward Asprilla’s run/cross, a move that pulled Tristan Blackmon with him and that froze Ranko Veselinovic...if more than it should have. Mora took the space between and lifted his 5’ 9” self high as he could go and slotted home the goal. I’m not sure where Mora ranks among the cleanest finishers on the roster, but he’s up there. And yet, somehow, the rest of what he does is still more valuable. Mora will make the Timbers better for as long as he can stay out there.
For all the exhausting, futile sameness that came before it, Portland achieved their purest moment of attacking clarity in the 85th minute. And, please, sit through this highlight again, because it’s a reminder of what the Timbers can and, more crucially, should do in the attack. Start with a great, long pass to open the width (fucking finally!), get players to the opening, move the ball quickly and make the crucial run before the secondary assist even comes in. The piece de resistance came at the end, when two Timbers attackers crashed different(!) parts of the goal, dragging defenders with them as they went, while Evander stepped back and let all that rush toward the end line. The broadcast booth frothed over his finish, but it was Evander's movement on that play that gets my feeble fan heart beating.
That’s a game summary, right? I’m going to close by naming some names.
1) We Have to Talk About Evander
He doesn’t do enough good to make the dumb-fuck decisions he makes. Whether you count it as four points or six (or maybe even more), Evander has lost this team points this season.
I sincerely believe he knows this and probably kicks his own ass harder than I ever will...and yet, I believe two things just as sincerely: 1) he’s still trying to figure out how this league works, and 2) Evander’s a tricky goddamn piece to place.
To provide thoughts on both points: I’m more than a little concerned that he doesn’t have a better handle on 1) yet and 2) is on the goddamn FO. Look at the lineup, assess your needs, then go find your player. Moreover...
2) The Paredes Problem
Note I didn’t phrase that as “The Problem with Paredes” for a reason. Paredes has played high over the past two games (or so) and it just doesn’t suit him. In my book, he’s a quality harasser, a decent shuttler, and...a form of threat on late runs. What he’s not good at is receiving the ball, back to goal in the attacking third, or even facing forward in the final third, not if he has to do something immediately useful with it. Arguably – and I think it’s a good one – this is a knock-on effect that follows from where Evander likes to play. Sorting this out is going to take some doing.
3) I Will Not Clap for This Shit (No Bravo)
Claudio Bravo played a terrible game on both sides of the ball, but his attacking contribution approached the sordid depths of manslaughter. I feel like I’ve been plenty patient with Bravo, but I’m now open to all kinds of things.
4) Sunk Cost
There’s no kind way to say this: Yimmi Chara was a bad signing in general, but the DP contract makes it a terrible one. At this point, Yimmi looks more like fan service than a proper, considered signing.
Bottom line, I could have called the fight/result some form of progress had they played it at BC Place. Sadly, this was at Providence Park, against a direct rival (and one with a head start to boot), and the Timbers still lost it. With an enormous assist from the guy the paid to be the solution. Uff Dammit!
Till the next one.
No comments:
Post a Comment