Id add a couple of points here. Bendik really fails to command his six yard box- I just watched Fire beat Dallas and their (young) goalie played a far better game, positionally. It made Bendik's weakness really clear. I'd fault him for the first and third goals, plus Konopka is the only goalie we have ever had who actually saves penalties. I think Vanney should seriously consider putting Konopka back in.
with respect to Vanney, post game he said "we discussed set pieces". You don't just discuss, you practice, over and over again. Your insight that he is too intellectual is bang on. However, he has shown he can learn. Hopefully he can, although jury's out at this point.
Given we are at the cap, with 3 DP, it's not that our payroll is bloated. It's that a couple of people on higher wages at non DP positions are not doing the job.
Subtle difference.
I get the feeling management thought Caldwell would be a steadying influence on Perquis. Dude needs to calm down.
"That altidore guy" Lol.
Roll on the next game. As far as I'm concerned NE never happened.
Last edited by Brooker; 08-04-2015 at 06:06 AM.
Went to Osheaga for the weekend. just saw the result and thread now.
I will never, ever be disappointed by the mental breakdowns that some of the usual suspects have here. High art.
LOL
Jozy should never wear an armband again, nevermind just TFC's. What a monumental fuck up. The only thing more impulsive than that kick out is the set of circumstances that lead him to be here in the first place.
Best part of the game was the last 10 minutes when we were pressing. And who would have thought Jackson at RB would be the best defender of the night? Our CB's are a disgrace.
Btw, did anyone see who got the armband after Cheyrou was subbed off?
I share the same view. If a pattern develops then cause for concern is warranted but right now all this hate is a little odd. As a fan base I get we are trigger happy but we have a good team right now in the thick of it. If we get blown out the next two games fine... big questions.
Lots of people are ragging on Altidore right now (and rightfully so). I think Altidore's problem is that is pretty much the definition of a confidence striker. Basically, if he is feeling like he's god's gift to soccer, he will be scoring goals at will. If he is feeling shaky, he's going to be shit. You can see it in his movements lately, he just doesn't move like he believes he can score (whereas Giovinco seems to believe he can score no matter where he has the ball).
Look at his recent history. At Sunderland, he had lost all confidence, so was playing below his ability. We sign him for big money, Bradley convinces him that it wasn't HIS fault he was shit there, he just had bad service! He comes in, and frankly kills it for a while. Sadly for him, he gets an injury, which allows Giovinco our lord and savior to show that he's isn't just one of a strike partnership at Toronto, he's the fucking superstar of the team (which is probably the first knock on Altidore's confidence). He then goes to play for the USMNT at the absolute wrong time (coming back from an injury, and no longer feeling quite as confident as he was). He mentioned himself that he should have spent the group stage back in Toronto ensuring he was 100% fit, and possibly joined the team after). Anyway, then he basically gets cut from the national team, and we have a striker rejoining TFC with no confidence (leading probably to the kick yesterday).
So what does Jozy need? He needs Bradley to come in and give him a cool runnings talk ("I'm a bad ass mother, who don't take no crap off of nobody!"). He also really needs to have a game where he saves the day (and doesn't just play second fiddle to Giovinco). Will it happen? No idea, I think we're at the point where Altidore either come back and starts to kill it again, or starts to fade away for real.
^ this. It's on MB to get JA's head back in the game. He might be the only one who can do that. If he does, then well done. If not, it calls into question the added value of bringing JA in - the special partnership between JA and MB.
I disagree, but understand where you're coming from. It's one thing taking a penalty (if he deferred that to Giovinco, after drawing the penalty himself, I agree it would have been much worse) but it's another making decisions in open play. To me, recently he hasn't been playing as someone who demands the ball. I almost get the impression he would rather someone else have it, or someone else shoot it.
Now, I'll try to put some data in here (though to be perfectly fair, there isn't really enough data to work with yet to form a solid opinion). I looked at Jozy's games from before his injury, and after his injury. I looked at different stats of his per 90 minutes played (so all sub appearances were pro-rated). He played for 651 minutes before his injury, and 438 after his injury. The stats are as follows:
All numbers are average/90 minutes played
Shots Shots on Goal Fouls Committed Fouls Suffered Before Injury 2.2 .96 1.8 2.8 After Injury 1.2 0.6 2.5 1.2
What I see is a frustrated striker who is not shooting, not as involved with the ball (fewer fouls suffered) but committing more fouls. Sure, it could be due to a lot of factors (like Bradley not being there to feed him the ball), but I wouldn't discount a confidence issue (as I said, he plays to me like he doesn't want to shoot). Anyway, obviously stats don't tell the whole story, I was just interested to see what they said.
Playing hurt and not at full speed could account for the stats, too. I think we need to see a couple more matches from him. He's had a bit of a tough go since the injury and then not being fully fit for the Gold Cup (and we know he loves playing those internationals). A bit of frustration shows he cares and wants to succeed. I think he'll be motivated now to show that was a one-time thing. Vanney has said as much, too. Hopefully, he gets his head straight and comes back like we know he can.
Toronto FC baby...best team everrrrrrrrrr -Jozy
Cause some of us actually watch the league and know what an average team is like.
This isn't an average team.
Even without Giovinco, this is the most talented, most balanced, most tactically aware team we've ever had.
For all we know he's been fighting injuries all year and has just kept his mouth shut about it for the most part. People were on Bradley last year as well after he dropped off.. Sometimes guys just take a while to get healthy and MLS teams don't have the luxury to let them sit for long periods of time (nor do the players want to).