RSL Game Review - Nagbe's Back

Well, that was an interesting home opener, wasn’t it?

I was stuck in the middle of Central Florida on a field trip with my class last Saturday, so I couldn’t enjoy the game in live time with you all, so I turned off my Twitter notifications, shut off text messages, and went to sleep. Sunday morning, I watched the game via MLS Live in the car on the way to our airboat tour. (Thankfully I had a little extra data to use this month so I didn’t run out.) While watching on a 3.5” screen in the back of a bumpy van with dodgy service on a bright Florida morning made the viewing difficult, I managed to pick up on a few trends that occurred throughout the 90 minutes.  

Overall, the Timbers impressed me. I didn’t finish the game in the butthurt mood I usually do after a draw or loss. In fact, I was quite happy with the result. But that doesn’t mean there weren’t any plays that had me punching the car seat in frustration.

I’ll start by addressing Nagbe’s form in this game – what an improvement it was. There’s a reason he was voted Taco Bell McDonald’s Man of the Match.

While Nagbe didn’t take many shots, and most of them were blocked (or stolen…I’m looking at you, RodWall!), he was more eager to get forward into the space between Beckerman and the centerbacks. Nagbe was taking on 4-5 guys at once, beating people up the sideline, and starting counter attacks. It seemed as though his 2014 tendency of receiving a ball, doing a 180, and passing it backward or laying it off for an overlap was gone. He also got in the faces of a few players, which made me happy. 

(Nagbe tells Gil to back the fuck up)

I’m still concerned about Nagbe’s defending, as he was often further up field than the holding mids for RSL and I caught him walking back far too often. It’s easy to see why fans and coaches like Asprilla for the right wing position – his work on defense is great. But if Nagbe can continue to get into those tight spaces and free up Wallace, Adi, and Asprilla, we’ll see a few more goals and assists out of him than we did last year.

Nagbe was voted the MOTM, but for all that he did on offense to earn that honor, Fochive did just as much on defense. I’ll admit that I didn’t know a whole lot about George before this preseason after only seeing him in limited minutes throughout the summer, but he truly impressed on Saturday. He was everything we adore about Chara, minus the diving in for tackles, which is what impressed me the most.

One instance in the 2^nd half stood out in particular. In the 54^th minute, RSL looked to play the ball up through the midfield, with the ball reaching Gil just north of the half-line. Fochive took a quick glance of his surroundings and noticed Jewsbury behind him and Villafaña retreating on the sideline. He almost started forward, but stopped and contained Gil’s run, making sure he stayed wide. The instant Gil took his second touch, which was too long for him to reach, Fochive pounced and cleared the ball. He patiently waited for RSL to make the first move on several tackles throughout the night, showing great awareness of his surroundings and knowledge of when to make the tackle.

Aside from Nagbe and Fochive, the Ridgewell-Borchers partnership had a complete performance, as did Captain Jack and “Spree”, as Clon refers to him. Kwarasey was good in his distribution, with some awkwardly-thrown-but-still-very-effective balls. Borchers could do well to limit his long air balls to Adi, which will almost never be effective. It’s not clear why Porter insists on playing Adi in the air, as he is much better with the ball at his feet being a hold-up man than he is at winning headers. Chad Marshall bossed Adi for the back-to-back games last summer, and Olave got the better of him on Saturday.

Two guys that could have done better were Wallace and Powell. Wallace missed an easy chance on the corner kick that fell to him in the middle of the goal box, and he wasted an opportunity in the 59^th minute by blasting it right at Rimando from a tough angle instead of squaring it to Adi in the middle. Powell also had trouble when he attacked down the right side. His run in the 88^th minute after cleverly beating two RSL defenders ended up in a goal kick instead of a cross, and his cross straight to Rimando in the 51^st minute needed to be much better.

Aside from a few sloppy crosses and poor shooting choices, the Timbers played a decent game of football. The patchwork partnership of Jack and George worked amazingly well against Gil and Morales, and Ridgy and Borchers managed to keep Saborio quiet, much to the dismay of my Fantasy team. The Trimmies probably suffered from Urruti’s substitution coming too late, and I’m not alone in thinking that it should have come around the same time Fernandez was put on. Nagbe looked great, but needs to release the ball a bit quicker at times, and Wallace needs to avoid clogging Nagbe’s space. If the Timbers can start playing Adi on his feet, and the centerbacks can keep their marks, they should do well against the Galaxy. A tricky Zardes versus an aggressive Powell worries me, but I could say that about almost any team in the league. (We’re lucky Plata is injured, right?)

I’m off to Tampa to visit some breweries and hang out at Busch Gardens. But don’t worry, I’ll be back by 7pm on Sunday. See you bums then. 

Season Preview - Bye Offseason!

Ahead of tomorrow’s opening match versus Real Salt Lake, Clon and I sat down to discuss a few of the talking points ahead of the season. We brought in a few of our own ideas, and also took questions from our Twitter followers, who have remained faithful to us over the last few years, and we thank them for that. Special shoutout to @mpacific, @HootieSmurf, @rhinoblues, and @dersho_ for supplying a few talking points. I’d shoutout @STARCHITECT93 as well, but his question sucked.

The questions follow no logical progression, and they were mostly thought up while I was in the shower.

If you disagree with any of our points, feel free to yell at us and link our quotes online and point out how dumb we are. Or just leave a comment. Your choice, I guess.

What place will the Timbers finish in the West?

Dran: 4^th place. If the defense can withstand the first few months without a full-powered attack, I think they’ll be able to get some positive results in the summer, a time when historically they haven’t been their best. We’ve got a relatively easy July this year compared to previous seasons, with SJ and Vancouver at home and Philly and FCD away (oof, the heat), but who knows where we’ll be with USOC at that time. I doubt we’ll place higher than LA, Seattle, or Sporting, but I think we’ll have a good number of points over SJ, Colorado, and Houston.

Clon: I'm gonna say 5th. I think the back line will bail us out of a lot of bad situations. Plays will go through the midfield that normally might not have had we had a full strength midfield. Chara is great, but he can't defend box-to-box and sideline-to-sideline (Dran interrupts here to point out that Chara in fact can do everything, but he remains humble instead). Offense will score enough goals to snag wins. It's an odd-numbered season, so we'll be fine. I guess 5th really isn't fine, though.

Will they be able to survive the first 2 months without Valeri and Johnson?

Dran: No. I said in the last question that I thought we could earn a playoff spot if we have a good defensive effort in the first two months, but I don’t see us picking up many wins in that period. The preseason showed us few glimpses of attacking opportunities, but it wasn’t until the final game versus a young Stabaek side that we saw any real threats. I’m confident that Jewsbury can step in beside Chara, but I don’t think Adi or Urruti will be able to pick up the offensive output that Valeri provides – and I don’t think Nagbe can even come close.

Clon: Yes. Literally none of the Timbers will pass away during that time frame.

Football-wise it will be rough. If you thought last season was hard, this one will be a new gauntlet. I don't have much faith in Gata creating, if that's where he ends up. Again, the back line may keep us in a lot of matches.

Who will be the leading goal-scorer?

Dran: Adi. He challenged for this spot last season after coming in late, and typically our highest scorers have been the big forwards on the team – Cooper, Boyd, and R. Johnson. Adi will get 12 goals and a few more in other competitions.

Clon: Maxi. But possibly Adi. Both had steady goal clips. Adi has the benefit of (PLEASE DEAR SOCCER LORDS) playing a full season this campaign. 

Will Asprilla start?

Dran: On Saturday? Yes. Gaston works well with Urruti, and he tires after 30 minutes – something we saw early last season and in this preseason. This 60^th minute substitution partnership will pay dividends as we look to get a late go-ahead goal, but Asprilla’s work on both sides of the ball are necessary to keep us alive.

Clon: Sporadically, yes. Rodwall may want to watch his back. Spree had a pretty good showing at the Simple Invitational.

Dran: I didn’t know “Spree” was a nickname, but cool.

Will the Timbers give up fewer penalties?

Dran: Yes. Kah is gone, and I think the biggest threats now are Powell’s youth and Chara’s tenacity. I imagine we’ll still have some BS moments with officials, especially at home, but not to the extent of last season.

Clon: Kah is gone.

Will Besler or Fochive see time with the first team in the MLS regular season?

Dran: Yes. I am willing to place all the money that I would have spent on a new Timbers primary kit on the line and say that Besler will see a substitution appearance in the first two months. Of course, that money is exactly $0 because the new kit is shit, but it’s the thought that counts, right? If we’re holding a 1-goal lead in the last 15 minutes, it’s hard to look past Caleb’s tendency to substitute a holding midfielder…but at the moment the only time that really sticks out to me is versus Seattle last year. Oh, Zemanski, we’ll miss you, but we won’t miss that.

Clon: I think at some point, Fochive will, if not tomorrow's match with the injury situation in midfield. I'm thinking Besler will get USOC and T2 time, barring something even more completely catastrophic. I'm not touching that atrocious kit or betting anything.

Will the new primary kits look nice in person, in the stands and on TV?

Dran: No. LOL. It’s dark green. (Clon mentions it could be White and Gold, though.)

Clon: No, no and no. But I hope we win the league because @TheNicestJerk is getting the kit tattooed on his leg if we do.

Can Urruti keep up his strike rate this season, playing what looks to be a primarily 60^th-minute sub role?

Dran: Urruti had one of the best goals-per-90 last season, and I’m sure I could dig up a chart somewhere, but I’ve got homework to do before my spring break, so you can find it yourselves. I imagine Urruti will score 8-10 goals this year in all competitions, but no more than that.

Clon: Yes, Taco Bell is now offering the Sriracha Quesarito.

As much as I wish Maxi could go a full 90 at his break neck speed, I doubt he could. I hope he can maintain the goal clip. I'll be ecstatic if he posts +/-1 what he netted last season.

Dran: That first part wasn’t what I asked, but is very useful information for literally everyone.

Clon: We aim to please.

Will Gaston get 13 goals in all competitions?

Dran: Gaston scored several goals in the USOC last season, and he will surely be starting those games again this year, but he won’t get 13 goals. Plus, his contract got slightly reworked, right? So he may not need to.

Clon: No. 12. Maybe. USOC is/should be his jam. Easy to chalk up some stat pads in the early rounds.

What will the Timbers do without having Chivas to beat up on?

Dran: I don’t know, but I sure hope they utterly destroy NYCFC. I’d like to think Colorado is a team we can take advantage of, but we’ve had some nasty appearances in Commerce City. I’d also like to hope that RSL’s new formation makes it a little easier for us to break down, but they have Rimando, Beckerman, Morales, Plata, and Saborio, so they’re still just as lethal as they always have been.

Clon: Beat up on San Jose? The West is going to be brutal this season, that's no secret. I hope we beat up on everyone. Points will be sweet this season and more rare than last.

@HootieSmurf: What the hell is a MAPFRE?

Dran: After much debate and Googling, Clon and I have decided that a MAPFRE is an Earth-like planet orbiting a sun approximately 69 billion lightyears away. We don’t know whether water exists, but the atmosphere looks promising.

Clon: In addition to the planet, a Mapfre is also a small, amphibious goat that inhabits the marshes in Peru. No pictures have ever been taken of one because they have chromatophores that instantaneously blend into the environment.

@dersho_: Over/under on Merritt deleted tweets?

Dran: Taking into account the number of games we have, the recent trends in global climate change, the number of un-vaccinated children in Portland, and the recent release of the film Fifty Shades of Grey, based on the book Fifty Shades of Grey by author EL James, I’d set the Tweet-Delete Over/Under at 45.5, and say Over.

Clon: I’d place the line at 59.5 and say Over. He does it a lot more than we see. Seriously, check Tweetbunker. The man is as fickle as a junior high boyfriend/girlfriend relationship. I had a girlfriend in Junior High named Katie. She cheated on me when I went to camp. I bought her a Ty Beanie Baby for Christmas. How could she give all that up?

@mpacific: The player to get yelled at most by Porter?

Dran: Powell.

Clon: PACIFIC!...But yeah, probably Powell. Or Nagbe if he shoots poorly like he did near full time v Stabaek. I hope it’s not Kwarasey.

@mpacific: Number of times Kwarasey will make us yell out in horror by coming off his line?

Dran: I’ve already yelled several times during the preseason, so I bet it’ll be at least 20 more times this season.

Clon: 3x/game. I’m not sold on his line-keeping abilities so far. I want to be wrong so badly. #Upgrade

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#OlivesIN