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| C'mon on in to The Church of Happy, MFs! |
Turns out it takes just one goal to improve one’s opinion on a team’s chances.
I expected a close game tonight. I even expected one team or the other to go up a goal during regulation. To clarify the thought, given the quality in both teams’ attacking personnel and/or general capabilities, no universe exists in which either the Portland Timbers or New York City FC does not score during regulation. Tonight, it was NYCFC, and through a penalty kick they earned more in spirit than the moment - i.e., New York was applying most the pressure, but most refs wouldn’t call what Larrys Mabiala did to Jesus Medina (right?) a foul in the middle of the field, never mind the area. Doesn’t matter, Medina buries the penalty kick and NYCFC goes up 1-0 at the 27th minute. So that’s that, they scored the inevitable, in-regulation goal…the real question was how the team that gave up that first goal would respond.
The Timbers answered inside the first half, building a goal from the back and out of trouble, more or less totally in control from their defensive third into NYCFC’s. The one time they lost control saw Jorge Villafana’s cross ping off some body part or another from a New York defender and into the path of Sebastian Blanco, who only had to feint and fire just so to put the Timbers back on level terms; the move as a whole, however, put NYC on notice. Full credit to New York, because they had Portland chasing from…something like the 10th minute to something like the 30th. Still, the Timbers showed they could break NYCFC’s lines nearly every time they could get their heads up; New York just made that hard for a while. This was a fun game to watch, full stop, a chess-match built of positives, where both teams left space for the game to move in either direction. There are few pleasures greater in soccer, perhaps even in sports generally, than watching two teams that believe they’re the better one. Both teams underlined that claim with scattered incidents of minor violence. No soccer players were injured in the filming of this documentary, etc.
I expected something from NYCFC tonight, something I’d expected from earlier games in the MLS Is Back tournament, but, point of interest, did not see: they tend to out-pass teams, pace the game, and generally manage possession. Here’s the thing: after failing to do that against Orlando City SC and Inter Miami CF (wait a tic…both Florida teams), NYC reverted to their familiar “high-usage” formula, where they boot around the ball probing for openings…at least that’s what 200 more passes and lots of aimless television told me. All that time got wasted because the Timbers also reverted to type: give them the ball and space to play in, they will string you like a dazed fish. And that brings us to Portland’s second goal…
That came outta nothing, NYCFC compact, maybe too compact, not pressuring the ball, but then it got buried out wide on the left side of New York’s defensive third and they had two players between Diego Valeri and the distant wing, what was the worst that could happen? Yeah, it took a looping cross that cleared both players, a trap for the ages from Diego Valeri, a dish by Jaroslaw Niezgoda, a possibly scuffed return pass for the ages, one more touch (maybe? all the good stuff already happened), followed by a shot from Valeri, and that’s Portland up 2-1. That happened on the way to a 3-1 win for the Timbers, the third controlled managing of a game, with intent, and a real sign for near- term hyper-optimism.
I’m going to cover Andy Polo’s goal now, as opposed to weaving it into some larger narrative, and that’s a tribute to both Portland’s game tonight and Polo. To get the latter out of the way, helluva shot, kid, and I don’t want to take anything away from a moment that Polo could definitely use and, maybe, by way of translating into better play, the team can as well. The larger thought follows from that: the Timbers had sufficiently managed the game to that point so as to give Polo a space in which to excel. I think they’ve done the same for Eryk Williamson, a player who impressed me as much as anyone running around in white tonight, not to mention Jeremy Ebobisse and, often as he’s out there, Marco Farfan. I’ve been frustrated with Polo for as long as he’s played for Portland, but I will always want to see any player who wears that shirt (or, honestly, any shirt) succeed. The Timbers have a transition coming, without question, so every player that looks like Williamson gives me faith that the drop won’t be too hard when it happens. Then there are days, like tonight, when you wonder if it can’t be just as good, even if in a different way.
Because the narrative sort of takes off from there, I wanted to wrap up New York City FC before diving into that. La plus ca change, right? A team with plenty of talent and that plays more smoothly than most, only they can’t even win the two games before The Big One. More to the point, they put their greatest rumored weaknesses on full display tonight: build-up sans climax. (Yes, landed one below the belt!). Because I don’t like to admit that nothing can’t be solved, I’d like to argue that New York City FC has some viable and, crucially, regular path to goal, beyond the carving of beautiful openings they manage on their best days (e.g., the now-meaningless win over Toronto). That doesn’t mean I can think of one. At any rate, not every team needs a target forward to function and New York City FC had a fairly shitty tournament all things considered, and I mean insofar as anyone takes them seriously in 2020, or even (barring new additions, and ignoring whatever happens with the COVID) 2021. The persistent failure to find the space or circumstances to make all that talent come good is one of Major League Soccer’s greater mysteries at the moment. Now, on to happier thoughts…
If you haven’t looked at the box score for tonight’s game, it’s worth a peak. If you do duck in, you’ll see low numbers on the sharp end, evidence of a real tooth-and-tong affair. That matches what I saw, a lot of game in the middle of the field, with break-throughs hard to come by. That last detail is what makes tonight’s win - and the Timbers’ equalizer tonight - so goddamn satisfying. The move from one end of the field to the other felt certain, as if Portland could do that 10 more times in a row. That is, as any sane person knows, straight-up cult talk, but I hope you know what I mean: I don’t know how many passes happened before that deflection/goal, but I’m confident it was over a dozen and some of those plays involved making tough decisions in very brief moments and, incredibly, one player after the other aced it. Seeing things like that, those rare moments of calm and bliss, are the details that give me faith in a team’s future.
In case it’s not obvious, I’m high on the Timbers’ near-term future. I haven’t given the Philadelphia Union a close(r) look of late, but I do know that Portland has gone 4-0-1 during their time in the Magical World of Major League Soccer, and that most people would call NYCFC and Los Angeles FC, and maybe even the Houston Dynamo and the Los Angeles Galaxy (but also, probably not, not unless you’re stuck back in 2019), good and/or quality opposition. The Timbers didn’t get a free pass to this point and they don’t have one going forward. And yet, here they are…
All in all, yeah, I’m pretty damn happy about how the only full-and-complete domestic soccer tournament I might see this goddamn year of 2020 has played out so far, and that’s nice, if in the sense of really nailing down one’s short game whilst dying of radiation poisoning. (What? Blame it on lockdown, man.) For what it’s worth, I’ve seen enough of Orlando and Minnesota, both before MWoMLS and during, to see both of them as formidable; and I’m assuming Philly doesn’t suck either (though I will look into it). So, no automatic happy endings anyway…but are they ever automatic? Here are three reasons to believe this one could be…
The Firewall
His dubious mistake aside, Mabiala cuts a decisive figure on the field with how he plays - and I’m seeing more signs of him looking the very real anchor to that defense. Dario Zuparic keeps looking better; there was a moment tonight where NYC broke through from midfield, leaving both Mabiala and Zuparic to sprint back to cover…I’ll be damned if they didn’t cover the ground a little better than fast enough. They look promising. Moreover, Bill Tuiloma waits in the wings…
Eryk the Awesome?
It’s possible I’m splicing together happy sequences, but I do believe that Eryk Williamson started the move that lead to Portland’s equalizer by pivoting out of considerable pressure at the inside left of the Timbers’ defensive third, and combining in that space to play the ball across the back line and into space on the right. Even if it didn’t happen in that specific moment, that sequence definitely happened and that’s beyond encouraging. If Williamson can become a calming presence in possession, on top of the run and gun…shit…
An Abundance of Forward Feet
I’ve seen Jaroslaw Niezgoda enough in the open field to believe he can be a real asset in transition. The same goes for Jeremy Ebobisse, even if they play the possession game a little differently (and in a way I’m not yet equipped to differentiate). Timbers fans already knew Ebobisse had some talent in this area, but having two players who can combine like that, and maybe even with one more fresh wrinkle (Felipe Mora) waiting in the wings…suffice to say, things are getting interesting.
And that’s it for tonight. Fun shit, yeah? I mean…they look legit, right? Especially after tonight? I don’t want to say I’m expecting the final, so much as I’m demanding it to feel good…is that wrong? Before you answer that, what if this is all MLS fans get this season
I expected a close game tonight. I even expected one team or the other to go up a goal during regulation. To clarify the thought, given the quality in both teams’ attacking personnel and/or general capabilities, no universe exists in which either the Portland Timbers or New York City FC does not score during regulation. Tonight, it was NYCFC, and through a penalty kick they earned more in spirit than the moment - i.e., New York was applying most the pressure, but most refs wouldn’t call what Larrys Mabiala did to Jesus Medina (right?) a foul in the middle of the field, never mind the area. Doesn’t matter, Medina buries the penalty kick and NYCFC goes up 1-0 at the 27th minute. So that’s that, they scored the inevitable, in-regulation goal…the real question was how the team that gave up that first goal would respond.
The Timbers answered inside the first half, building a goal from the back and out of trouble, more or less totally in control from their defensive third into NYCFC’s. The one time they lost control saw Jorge Villafana’s cross ping off some body part or another from a New York defender and into the path of Sebastian Blanco, who only had to feint and fire just so to put the Timbers back on level terms; the move as a whole, however, put NYC on notice. Full credit to New York, because they had Portland chasing from…something like the 10th minute to something like the 30th. Still, the Timbers showed they could break NYCFC’s lines nearly every time they could get their heads up; New York just made that hard for a while. This was a fun game to watch, full stop, a chess-match built of positives, where both teams left space for the game to move in either direction. There are few pleasures greater in soccer, perhaps even in sports generally, than watching two teams that believe they’re the better one. Both teams underlined that claim with scattered incidents of minor violence. No soccer players were injured in the filming of this documentary, etc.
I expected something from NYCFC tonight, something I’d expected from earlier games in the MLS Is Back tournament, but, point of interest, did not see: they tend to out-pass teams, pace the game, and generally manage possession. Here’s the thing: after failing to do that against Orlando City SC and Inter Miami CF (wait a tic…both Florida teams), NYC reverted to their familiar “high-usage” formula, where they boot around the ball probing for openings…at least that’s what 200 more passes and lots of aimless television told me. All that time got wasted because the Timbers also reverted to type: give them the ball and space to play in, they will string you like a dazed fish. And that brings us to Portland’s second goal…
That came outta nothing, NYCFC compact, maybe too compact, not pressuring the ball, but then it got buried out wide on the left side of New York’s defensive third and they had two players between Diego Valeri and the distant wing, what was the worst that could happen? Yeah, it took a looping cross that cleared both players, a trap for the ages from Diego Valeri, a dish by Jaroslaw Niezgoda, a possibly scuffed return pass for the ages, one more touch (maybe? all the good stuff already happened), followed by a shot from Valeri, and that’s Portland up 2-1. That happened on the way to a 3-1 win for the Timbers, the third controlled managing of a game, with intent, and a real sign for near- term hyper-optimism.
I’m going to cover Andy Polo’s goal now, as opposed to weaving it into some larger narrative, and that’s a tribute to both Portland’s game tonight and Polo. To get the latter out of the way, helluva shot, kid, and I don’t want to take anything away from a moment that Polo could definitely use and, maybe, by way of translating into better play, the team can as well. The larger thought follows from that: the Timbers had sufficiently managed the game to that point so as to give Polo a space in which to excel. I think they’ve done the same for Eryk Williamson, a player who impressed me as much as anyone running around in white tonight, not to mention Jeremy Ebobisse and, often as he’s out there, Marco Farfan. I’ve been frustrated with Polo for as long as he’s played for Portland, but I will always want to see any player who wears that shirt (or, honestly, any shirt) succeed. The Timbers have a transition coming, without question, so every player that looks like Williamson gives me faith that the drop won’t be too hard when it happens. Then there are days, like tonight, when you wonder if it can’t be just as good, even if in a different way.
Because the narrative sort of takes off from there, I wanted to wrap up New York City FC before diving into that. La plus ca change, right? A team with plenty of talent and that plays more smoothly than most, only they can’t even win the two games before The Big One. More to the point, they put their greatest rumored weaknesses on full display tonight: build-up sans climax. (Yes, landed one below the belt!). Because I don’t like to admit that nothing can’t be solved, I’d like to argue that New York City FC has some viable and, crucially, regular path to goal, beyond the carving of beautiful openings they manage on their best days (e.g., the now-meaningless win over Toronto). That doesn’t mean I can think of one. At any rate, not every team needs a target forward to function and New York City FC had a fairly shitty tournament all things considered, and I mean insofar as anyone takes them seriously in 2020, or even (barring new additions, and ignoring whatever happens with the COVID) 2021. The persistent failure to find the space or circumstances to make all that talent come good is one of Major League Soccer’s greater mysteries at the moment. Now, on to happier thoughts…
If you haven’t looked at the box score for tonight’s game, it’s worth a peak. If you do duck in, you’ll see low numbers on the sharp end, evidence of a real tooth-and-tong affair. That matches what I saw, a lot of game in the middle of the field, with break-throughs hard to come by. That last detail is what makes tonight’s win - and the Timbers’ equalizer tonight - so goddamn satisfying. The move from one end of the field to the other felt certain, as if Portland could do that 10 more times in a row. That is, as any sane person knows, straight-up cult talk, but I hope you know what I mean: I don’t know how many passes happened before that deflection/goal, but I’m confident it was over a dozen and some of those plays involved making tough decisions in very brief moments and, incredibly, one player after the other aced it. Seeing things like that, those rare moments of calm and bliss, are the details that give me faith in a team’s future.
In case it’s not obvious, I’m high on the Timbers’ near-term future. I haven’t given the Philadelphia Union a close(r) look of late, but I do know that Portland has gone 4-0-1 during their time in the Magical World of Major League Soccer, and that most people would call NYCFC and Los Angeles FC, and maybe even the Houston Dynamo and the Los Angeles Galaxy (but also, probably not, not unless you’re stuck back in 2019), good and/or quality opposition. The Timbers didn’t get a free pass to this point and they don’t have one going forward. And yet, here they are…
All in all, yeah, I’m pretty damn happy about how the only full-and-complete domestic soccer tournament I might see this goddamn year of 2020 has played out so far, and that’s nice, if in the sense of really nailing down one’s short game whilst dying of radiation poisoning. (What? Blame it on lockdown, man.) For what it’s worth, I’ve seen enough of Orlando and Minnesota, both before MWoMLS and during, to see both of them as formidable; and I’m assuming Philly doesn’t suck either (though I will look into it). So, no automatic happy endings anyway…but are they ever automatic? Here are three reasons to believe this one could be…
The Firewall
His dubious mistake aside, Mabiala cuts a decisive figure on the field with how he plays - and I’m seeing more signs of him looking the very real anchor to that defense. Dario Zuparic keeps looking better; there was a moment tonight where NYC broke through from midfield, leaving both Mabiala and Zuparic to sprint back to cover…I’ll be damned if they didn’t cover the ground a little better than fast enough. They look promising. Moreover, Bill Tuiloma waits in the wings…
Eryk the Awesome?
It’s possible I’m splicing together happy sequences, but I do believe that Eryk Williamson started the move that lead to Portland’s equalizer by pivoting out of considerable pressure at the inside left of the Timbers’ defensive third, and combining in that space to play the ball across the back line and into space on the right. Even if it didn’t happen in that specific moment, that sequence definitely happened and that’s beyond encouraging. If Williamson can become a calming presence in possession, on top of the run and gun…shit…
An Abundance of Forward Feet
I’ve seen Jaroslaw Niezgoda enough in the open field to believe he can be a real asset in transition. The same goes for Jeremy Ebobisse, even if they play the possession game a little differently (and in a way I’m not yet equipped to differentiate). Timbers fans already knew Ebobisse had some talent in this area, but having two players who can combine like that, and maybe even with one more fresh wrinkle (Felipe Mora) waiting in the wings…suffice to say, things are getting interesting.
And that’s it for tonight. Fun shit, yeah? I mean…they look legit, right? Especially after tonight? I don’t want to say I’m expecting the final, so much as I’m demanding it to feel good…is that wrong? Before you answer that, what if this is all MLS fans get this season
Agreed on all counts! What a fun game, felt very in control despite the lack of possession.
ReplyDeleteIf you listen to "MLS Assist" podcast, which I highly recommend as short daily tactical assessments of MLS, they note that Orlando shifted their midfield line higher and the defensive line a bit lower to create an incentive for LAFC to play balls into that space. This may seem like a bad idea, except the context was that the Orlando defenders are better charging forward to cut off passes than tracking back with runners behind. I would like to see a similar shift from the Timbers going into the Philly game, as Larrys and Dario are both better charging 10 yards forward than tracking 10 yards back.
Also, I highly suggest you listen to yesterday's episode - https://mls-assist.simplecast.com/episodes/adrian-heaths-press-blanco-the-point-guard-and-more-from-san-jose-v-minnesota-and-nycfc-v-portland-HUe6lreq
Two wins to another trophy, a cool Mill and Champions League baby!
Thanks for the recommmendation! (And those tactical wrinkles/choices sound very sensible!) Zuparic, in particular, does present as a front-foot defender, but so does Larrys. Good one...
ReplyDeleteIt's good and short.
DeleteNice write-up! I like how Valeri seems in the zone for this tournament. He's playing the right amount per game to keep some bounce in his step, and seems focused on tournament success. Maybe he's come to terms with this year being the last where he hasn't permanently entered the role of strictly a specialty late substitute for the Timbers. A bit of a last hurrah?
ReplyDeleteAnd coach Gio seems to be having a nice tournament. Maybe in tournament play the tactics are much more about the game at hand. No self-imposed requirement to play anyone for future development reasons. Win today with your best people seems comfortable for our coach.
Thanks! The mechanics of the tournament do seem to favor the Timbers - maybe something you'd expect from a team designed to absorb pressure and hit on the counter...but, as I've noted over the past couple posts, I'm not sure they're really doing that on the field. There seems to be something else going on with what they're doing, something that goes beyond a basic counter-attacking game. It's been fun to watch and pick apart.
ReplyDelete