Yes, but the problem is that his plan relies on our forwards converting their limited scoring opportunities at an unsustainable clip. If Jermain Defoe doesn't put away 2 out of every 3 scoring chances for this team, we're a basement dweller in the Eastern Conference. That is the harsh reality of the situation.Originally Posted by PopePouri
The season's nine games old, we have the league's highest payroll, the league's worst per game possession and we're one game over .500.
Not only can you doubt whether it's working, logic suggests you should. The threads about his tactics being simplistic aren't wrong. The question is how much of it is still have leftover roster and how much of it is an inability/lack of desire to run an offense that maintains possession and creates chances other than on the counter.
Pretty simplistic to say we have any indication yet of whether Nelsen's plan is "working."
One game over .500 is a misleading number when you look at a system that awards points for draws and also take into account we've only played ten. If we continue to win 50% of our matches, lose 40% and draw 10%, then that is an alright pace for this season, in my eyes. That is a 54 point pace (rounding down), which is right there in the playoff mix. There is no question this team isn't where it needs to be, yet, but our current PPG pace would put us in third place if we had the same number of games played as the teams that are currently first and second, while the teams behind them have more games played than that, giving more opportunity to make up ground (or squander it, I'll concede). And if you look back a bit further, we're unbeaten in six in all competitions (well, I suppose the Vancouver loss is a loss, but it was an aggregate game, so I counted the overall win).
That's not a bad position for us to be in at this point in the season.
If we finish third in the East this season, or even 4th or 5th, that is a massive step forward from last season. The matches leading into the WC break were set up as a real test to see where we will end up. Well, ugly or not, we got a road point from the first and three points out of the second one. If we can get three, or even a single, next week, then we have set ourselves up well for the post-WC run-in. And we'll have Michael Bradley back.
As for having the league's highest payroll, it's only the cap that counts, right?
Now, all this isn't to say I think Nelsen's the right, or wrong, man for the job, but I think our position is pretty decent. The comeback on Saturday showed the kind of fight and character that our teams have seldom had in the past. I think this can be attributed, in part, to Nelsen's effect on the locker room. When we saw how happy the boys were for Henry, and how happy they were with the win, I think that says that they are playing for each other and for their manager.
What do you think? Am I off base? What's your read on that angle?
Last edited by Jack; 06-02-2014 at 02:16 PM.
Toronto FC baby...best team everrrrrrrrrr -Jozy
we have had a lot of injuries,bradley missing is huge,our mid is lost without him,bekker,oso and rey have not been good,lets see how Bradley warner and a summer signing look.we should of got some points at home v col and ne.but I must say that worst 80 min of futbol I hv ever seen.
Canadian Int'l Issey Nakajima-Farran named to MLS best XI this week. We should look at that guy!
I'm not quite as down on Bekker as some on the board, but I really wonder what he's said/done that allows him to take virtually every dangerous free kick. I haven't seen anything to suggest he can put one in.
He was so damn close.....that one time.
Road Trips: July 7 2007 Chicago, July 22nd 2007 Columbus, August 11 2007 NY, October 13 2007 LA, March 29 2008 Columbus, May 24th 2008 DC, May 26 2008 Montreal, June 28th 2008 NE, March 7-11-14 2009 Charleston, March 28 2009 Columbus, April 10 2010 New England, May 12 2010 Montreal, April 7 2012 Montreal, March 16 2013 Montreal , June 3 2014 Montreal, March 14 2015 Columbus
Twitter: @RPBPhil
I was glad to see DeRo rip the ball out of his hands on that one against Montreal on Wednesday. Of course he missed by about the same as most of Bekker's.He was so damn close.....that one time.
bekker does seem to do a lot of pointing almost always too the keeper. i agree we are too tentative and do not have that killer instinct to attack within our midfield.
Orr is surprisingly good with forward distribution, and pretty calm on the ball as well.
To be fair, nobody is going to point forward as it might indicate where a pass would go. But....Bekker points backwards when there is no pressure.
The guy is not a General.
He had that one game at home a few weeks ago when he hit the post twice off of set pieces, but otherwise, I agree.
Seems Gilberto wants some of the kicks but never gets them. I would like to see what he can do.
Yep, but that's why Defoe does and we're going the most out of him with our play style.
Agreed. You wouldn't point forward but he does it way to much backwards… and like you said rarely there is legitimate presser. Bekker has progressed from last season however, and under Bradley/Warner/Orr I hope he can learn to be calmer on the ball. When he has space he can pick people out, can't remember the game but he had that wonderful pass to Defoe in the box that bounced off his chest and just missed the goal.
Our position could be a lot worse. A lot will depend on the games in hand; if we pick up max points, we're in first in the east and four games over .500, so yeah, we're not in a bad place.One game over .500 is a misleading number when you look at a system that awards points for draws and also take into account we've only played ten. If we continue to win 50% of our matches, lose 40% and draw 10%, then that is an alright pace for this season, in my eyes. That is a 54 point pace (rounding down), which is right there in the playoff mix. There is no question this team isn't where it needs to be, yet, but our current PPG pace would put us in third place if we had the same number of games played as the teams that are currently first and second, while the teams behind them have more games played than that, giving more opportunity to make up ground (or squander it, I'll concede). And if you look back a bit further, we're unbeaten in six in all competitions (well, I suppose the Vancouver loss is a loss, but it was an aggregate game, so I counted the overall win).
That's not a bad position for us to be in at this point in the season.
If we finish third in the East this season, or even 4th or 5th, that is a massive step forward from last season. The matches leading into the WC break were set up as a real test to see where we will end up. Well, ugly or not, we got a road point from the first and three points out of the second one. If we can get three, or even a single, next week, then we have set ourselves up well for the post-WC run-in. And we'll have Michael Bradley back.
As for having the league's highest payroll, it's only the cap that counts, right?
Now, all this isn't to say I think Nelsen's the right, or wrong, man for the job, but I think our position is pretty decent. The comeback on Saturday showed the kind of fight and character that our teams have seldom had in the past. I think this can be attributed, in part, to Nelsen's effect on the locker room. When we saw how happy the boys were for Henry, and how happy they were with the win, I think that says that they are playing for each other and for their manager.
What do you think? Am I off base? What's your read on that angle?
I just think much of that is attributable to our new DPs, and not the roster as a whole. We have no indication that we can win convincingly yet, that we can control a game and walk away with it, or even come close. The top teams in the league can do that.
I also see our lack of tactical adaptation, generally, as a bad sign for later on. The longer we rely on headmanning it and having someone break down the back line individually, the more vulnerable we will be to losing our good position in the table.
Judging by his shot in his You Tube clips, I'd let him take one and tell him to aim straight at the head of someone in the wall.
I actually like what Gilberto did on those two free kicks taken from the right near the end on Saturday. He stood there looking like he might take them, then walked really professionally over and right into a hole and the keeper and two Columbus players had to adjust seconds before the kick was taken. Looked like we were not panicing, which is what Bekker always seems to get across.
Why Jackson took a free kick in the first half we'll never know.
He's scoring on almost every shot he takes; beyond that, we're creating basically zero chances from the run of play, just from set pieces. That's not a good sign and it doesn't suggest we're getting the most out of him, just that he's a striker well above MLS level. If we gave him four looks a game, he'd probably score four. If he were playing for KC or RSL, he'd be leading the league in scoring.
Yep agree. In a way I like that Bekker wants to take initiative on free kicks… but I want to see Gilberto have a go.
Distance from goal. He has a cannon for a leg.
The top teams also have had the same core for 2 plus years. We're not there yet.
We're scoring just enough from the run of play. We've only scored one goal from a set piece.
Last edited by PopePouri; 06-02-2014 at 02:50 PM.
Agreed. Unless our attacking form improves moving forward, I fear that we are a Defoe injury away from disaster. I think there is far too much talent on the roster to be so heavily reliant on one player to achieve a modicum of success in this league.
How many posts have Bekker, Gilberto, and DeRo hit again? I'm not saying we are a five goal a game team, but there is a bit more to our scoring chances then Defoe and set pieces.
It's also entirely likely that he will go through a barren patch at some point, as everyone (not named Messi or Ronaldo) will.
It will be interesting to see what what happens in the summer transfer window.
In theory, I'd like to count those. In reality, horseshoes and handgrenades, Og... they don't count unless they go in, and right now Defoe is our only consistent threat.
I don't expect max points, but even our current ppg would put us in a solid position.
And yet we're still sitting in a positive position in the table heading into the WC break. I don't think anyone thinks we're a top team (I hope not) in this league just yet. There are several factors missing before that becomes a reality. Coaching could be one of them. For me, this season will be a success if we make the playoffs at all. That was the goal and is a huge step forward from previous years. That said, my expectations will grow accordingly after each season. Making the playoffs is a fine goal for a team that's never done so before, but that is only a first step. I don't want to see a Leafs-type mentality set in.I just think much of that is attributable to our new DPs, and not the roster as a whole. We have no indication that we can win convincingly yet, that we can control a game and walk away with it, or even come close. The top teams in the league can do that.
I agree. So far, we've been able to get results that would seem to belie the quality of our play. I don't know if we'll be able to sustain that, or not.I also see our lack of tactical adaptation, generally, as a bad sign for later on. The longer we rely on headmanning it and having someone break down the back line individually, the more vulnerable we will be to losing our good position in the table.
Toronto FC baby...best team everrrrrrrrrr -Jozy
You said "...creating basically zero chances from the run of play...". Cause a critique for scoring is way different then a critique for the creation of chances.
This is it right here, Bekker is such a black hole its ridiculous. I would rather take Terry effing Dunfield over him, atleast he got some balls and grit.
I wish we would have traded Rey instead of Issey.He has shown more in a few games compared to Rey in a year.He scores and creates problems down the flanks
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