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Gameday Notes
The boys are in L.A. for tonight’s match against League-leading Chivas USA. It’s a quick turnaround after Wednesday’s tough home draw to the Galaxy. Take a peek below to catch up on some of the most interesting storylines this evening…
- Despite struggling to, well, do just about anything they’ve wanted on the road this year, RSL brings a good level of confidence with them to the Home Depot Center. Why would they do that you ask? Well, because they’ve actually had some recent success there. After starting the year miserably on the road in 2008 (including a near carbon-copy 2-0 Rocky Mountain Cup opening loss to last weekend’s at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park) RSL earned their first road point of the year – a 1-0 victory – on the road against Chivas. That was just the beginning though. After a huge 1-0 home victory to open the 2008 MLS Cup Playoffs, Real headed to L.A. needing another road result to move on. They responded with a resilient 2-2 draw (only a late tally by Justin Braun kept RSL from victory) to earn the aggregate series victory.
- Chivas will probably be looking to exact a bit of revenge as this will be the team’s first meeting since RSL ended the Goats’ 2008 season in that aforementioned Western Conference Semi-Final. Can RSL respond with another solid performance at the HDC? We’ll see.
- The Chivas roster has a distinct Salt Lake flavor to it as Preki’s roster boasts former RSL regulars Atiba Harris, Carey Talley and Alecko Eskandarian, as well as Salt Lake native Justin Braun. Interestingly, the roster familiarity ends there, as Chivas is one of only four MLS teams (along with Houston, Toronto and 2009 expansion side Seattle) that no RSL player or coach has previously played for.
- The rivalry between the 2005 expansion brethren took a decidedly Chivas turn in 2006 and 2007, but RSL fought bit back in 2008, becoming the first of the two clubs to win a playoff series, to take back some bragging rights. Can RSL continue to earn back some respect in the all-time series tonight? Here’s thinking they can…
It's Always Sunny in California!
Yes, someone is actually wearing an Atiba Harris jersey!
09 May 2009 04:53 pm RSL HQ 40 comments
When did John Ellinger become our coach again? These past 3 games we have looked like Ellinger is back.
HA HA HA RSL SUCKS!
Did I hit slow motion on my tv? That was really slow. The MLS sucks and RSL is a sucky team in a sucky league. I guess RSL will resort back to the old days of no playoffs and really silly play with no urgency. HA HA HA! Wait until the late part of the game to get perhaps the most worthless striker off the field. If you don’t laugh you might cry so I am just going to continue laughing at this team because they are ridiculous. Five minutes left and they are all walking…….THEY ARE WALKING AROUND THE FIELD DOWN A GOAL. WALKING!!!!!!!!!!!! Am I crazy or was that a really slow game and they were walking around the field? WALKING!!! HA HA HA!!! I know you don’t care to win, but try and fool us and look like you care. HA HA HA…….BORING! I will gladly play the game and put in a good effort for a paycheck.
It’s time to have movsisyan sit the bench. He had a terrible first touch yet again and proved to be absolutely worthless. Espindola comes in with 15 left and makes quality chances IMMEDIATELY.
I really hate to be a hater but I can’t hold back. I think this team has a lot of potential…. But I don’t understand how Movsisyan consistently gets the nod and plays 70+ minutes without producing results while Escalada, who has logged much less playing time, has scored as many goals. And why are other Royals who seem like they are more proven goal scorers (Findley, Espindola) waiting until the last ten minutes before entering the game? Please, can someone explain this to me, I don’t understand…
If Movsisyan isnt out and Espy isnt in next week i will have lost all faith in the coaching staff
Rob, what do you do with your life?
Rob stinks, you represent everything I hate about some sports fans. You side with your team when they are winning and then mock them when they loose. Last night sucked, but not as much as your attitude. I bet you grew up in Centerville and work at the local smiths. So while you mock others I laugh at your pathetic life. You need an ass kicking, really badly.
Not sure why Kreis is going with the 4-5-1 last 3 halves, anyone know? To slow down the game a bit, “bunker down” a little, or is it to create more possesion and more opportunities for guys moving forward and creating unmarked runs; as opposed to our standard over-the-top-balls and try-to-get-behind-the-defense offense that the whole league knows we run? Or is it because Mathis is not a wing, he plays much better in the center, but we already have Morales and Williams there? So is he trying to justify having both Morales and Mathis out there at the same time? This formation seems to work with those players, and some speed and athleticism like Johnson and Cox on the wings. However, hard to believe Cox is the man for that right now- how bout trying Findley, Espy, or Yura our there? Clearly Yura is not the answer up top right now. Why aren’t these the questions the media asks?
Also, spekaing of media, why don’t they ask Beckerman what the crap he was thinking when he half-arsed that clear that we lost on? All we get from “the captain” is his thoughts on the road woes etc. Freaking ask him what the HECK he was doing there and if he feels like it was his bad on that goal, cause it clearly was.
Hopefully Kreis will mix it up for next week, I’ve seen enough of Yura and Will Johnson for awhile. Let’s see some fresh faces. By the way, our fullbacks are playing fantastic, definitely well enough to be getting wins…
Rob stinks does have a point. Why should we care when the team is walking around out there? With only a couple of minutes left we have 2 people in the box.
If anything, I think that we should be proud that we are least improving on the road. We played a pretty good game, kept ourselves in it, and generated quite a few scoring chances throughout the game. We are only 3 points away from the third best record in the league. There have been great improvements. There definitely room for more improvement, but that is what the season is for.
Rob Stinks, stay home on Saturday. You are a disgrace, and a poor excuse for a fan.
wasn’t yuras fault lay off. the midfield was really tuff this game, and it was hard to string some passes together. we really should have come away with a draw, but one bad clearance screwed us. chris had a pretty goodnight in goal. i think its just hard to take after drawing with la, it was an ugly game but what do you expect with to teams with really good midfields. well here is to saturday and hoping they can get the southend seats back in. we know it takes them along time to prepare for things.
I’m not going to rip on Yura because it seems the playoff blinders are finally coming off and others are doing it.
I don’t know why the 4-5-1 either except maybe they’re trying to find a way to maximize Fabi, or the midfielders. Seriously, our midfield core are all such different players, but I see the same problem as last year…Too much holding and not attacking. Beckerman aka woodface, although I like him, his presence hasn’t been there the past 2 seasons. What is going on?
I guess that I have a few concerns…..(I know that its early)
1. Great teams either win or tie road games—-good teams at least score goals on the road. Even LA Galaxy who just tied Seattle on the road (and they arent that good).
We have 0 goals in 4 road games
2. Im noticing that Beckerman and Olave receives yellow cards in just about every game in the first half. Which forces a very conservative approach for the rest of the game. I guess they arent watching the recent trends with the yellow/red card happy MLS refs.
3. 4-5-1……???? why? I feel that we are a poor counter-attacking team. The mid-fielders arent getting down the field fast enough. Which might be because they know that as soon as Yura has the ball that he’ll try to shoot at five-hole of the keeper as soon as possible. That is if he doesnt lose the ball or flop on the floor.
Am I just over exaggerating or is anyone else noticing these things???
Why was Findley, who has 5 goals this season, left off the pitch. And Movsisyan who couldn’t hit the goal from 5 yds out on the field? How many great chances has Yura ruined this year? Send a message to him by benching him. And this 4-5-1 doesn’t work, Kries has even said we can’t play out of it! So why do we keep trying it? Isn’t the definition of an idiot someone who keeps trying the same thing expecting different results?
strategy. its what were missing.
better show on the road than the last road matches, but Jason…why are we playing defense for the first 60 minutes!? did we even have a shot in the first half?
olave played brilliantly, though i still can’t believe his bear hug didn’t elicit a foul. really, i think our whole back line had a great game.
midfield, johnson, morales and mathis played well– beckerman, his one lapse cost us, big–and williams was his typical quality sub.
i know people probably think i beat this horse, but yura was the weakest spot on the pitch for us. NOTHING offensively except lost opportunity. And it really wasnt til espindola came in that we created an offensive opportunity.
my analysis: jason needs to pick it up. where is the aggressive strategy from last season? you’ve got the people on the squad to do it, why aren’t you using them like we should be? strategy jason, work on it.
re: 15Lehi-RSL_Fan
Couldn’t agree more. i really love findley as a sub. his speed coming into a match when the other side is tired is invaluable. but given our track record, and since we can’t apparently take control of a game from the get go, i think we should forgo the advantage he gives us as a sub, in favor of actually doing something offensive before the the 60th or 70th minute.
yura shouldnt get the start. he hasnt earned it this season, thats for sure. put a striker on the pitch that has. its better than dealing with nothing for 60 minutes.
Listen you all may not like me, but I am going to call it like it is. I don’t like watching a team lose. That’s the bottom line. Even though it is really sad watching RSL play on the road I still watch it and hope that game is going to be the 1 in 10 they win. That math is right by the way if you care to look at the road record since RSL has been around. For the person that used the name “Re: Rob Stinks” and doesn’t care if he/she is a loser, well I am just sorry you don’t care. I am very passionate. I have been to several road games (that of course RSL lost) and certainly more than support this team and the MLS, but come on!!!! Re: Rob Stinks you were on the team I whipped over and over and over again b/c I actually cared to win and you cared to be really positive and try hard or something. Did you play for the Copper Hills High School soccer team about 11-12 years ago? You must have!
Many other people had negative stuff to say as well, which they should have, and unless the fans express themselves then there is no use in commenting. I am going to say what I think and feel. I just so happen to think that losing every game on the road is unexceptable and that walking around the field looking completely defeated is lame, especially from a paid athlete. So fix the RSL lifelong problem and cut this losing on the road nonsense. All I would like is .500 on the road and maybe a few ties.
Stop crying about my comments and show a little passion as a fan.
If you want to come kick my butt I am in section 26 EVERY game. I am also seen occasionally in Dicks Sporting Goods Park and the Home Depot Center. Always with an RSL jersey on and cheering my team to victory. Unfortunately, I usually get laughed out of the away game stadiums because the team stinks it up.
Rob stikns, has great points. Also he is not a bandwagon fan. Did you not read any of his post from last season. He would rip the team when they were playing good and winning for stupid mistakes. I dont understand how we can dominate at home and then suck on the road. No sense of urgency at all. Besides it is our job as fans to tell our team when they suck!!!!
Are you kidding – Cox and Yura had on concrete boots. Both of their “1st touches” & passing we’re horrendus. I was watching Central v Newells classico and Newells dominated play for the 1st 50 minutes. Then, being up 1-0 and on the road they decided to play everyone back on defense – they went from being a constant threat to central and not allowing them to build anything up to giving them whatever they wanted. Of course they gave up the goal and the game ended in a draw when Newells was clearly the better squad. Same thing happened with Chelsea v Barcelona. Real has to attack constantly to be good. Did we play defensive last year when we beat Chivas on the road in the playoffs???? NO! why do we do this.
Beltran & Cox are not very good compared to Ian or Robbie.
Yura was great and talked about a USMNT towards the end of last season. The guy has a lot of talent and we need him. We just need him at a better form than he is now…. Goals will come if we keep playing our game. if we keep playing 4-5-1 they will not
Thank you Rob Stinks for your comments. The only thing that you haven’t said that is already a known fact is that YURA STINKS. Honestly, why didn’t we toss him away for Davies…I actually would rather Yura go than Horst and that is pretty sad. Atleast Horst only makes us lose when he plays(Which is almost never) while Yura costs us games weekly…sometimes biweekly especially when we knew Fabi was there and we are 5 deep up front. Whatever.
Rob stinks,
Having great points is one thing but reality is we could go back to the form of 2007, you know a total of 6 wins, or how about that first year with no road wins. RSL has always struggled on the road (never won before June) and the matches they have played on the road each present a unique set of challenges:
Seattle- horrible surface (our guys lost their feet so often it was almost comical) a hot new team with an incredible fan base.
New York- the worst surface in MLS (even worse than RES) and a team we simply have never beaten.
Colorado- Always a ugly and tough match, I rarely expect to get a result there.
HDC- I would rather face the Galaxy there than Chivas we only have one win there against the goats.
I did think the effort was much better on Saturday than in the previous road matches, it may be ugly to watch but on the road teams almost always seem to get that defensive mindset. It worked for almost the entire match, except for when Beckerman didn’t clear the ball. We created a couple of good chances but neither Yura nor Espindola were able to convert chances into goals.
I think jumping on the team when they are 3-4-1 is a bit early and consider that we are still one of the top scoring team in the league, the mental block on the road will die down as the season wears on.
There isn’t a team in MLS that ends with .500 road record, it simply doesn’t happen in hardly any sports, The best road teams last year had 6 victories (.400) and in the west it was (.333 with 5 wins). I would be happy with a 5-5-5 road record, hell I would be jumping up and down with that road record, but more likely is a 4-7-4. Overall the league posted a .254 winning percentage on the road last year. 6 teams still don’t have a road win this year, and only one team has more than one.
The league doesn’t suck, my god you are lucky we have a league it could be arena football where the whole league closes down for a year, or USL where several teams simply have stopped playing. Is it perfect, by no means but considering it is just 14 years old, it is leaps and bounds in front of other “new” leagues.
Yes both MLS and RSL have issues, and yes both are still progress in the works, but if you really think this is bad then you have a very short memory. If you believed the hype that happened at the end of last season and thought we were the best team in the league, well then you might be a bit gullible. We are a good team, in a league full of decent teams. We will finish in the top 3 in the West and make the playoffs. It will require a little faith, but considering the past, faith is something we should have no problem having a little bit of.
Sorry for the book, the simple fact is we deserved a point from the Chivas match and had Kyle been able to clear the ball out of the box we would have gotten it.
In fact if we had figured out how to clear a ball out of the box on Wednesday we would have had 3 points.
Here is the hint ” Clear the damm ball”
So theres a monster truck event at Rio Tinto next month? Are they going to store the dirt in the south end so we’ll have to sit atop a big dirt pile? Should i bring my shovel and pail?
Anyone know why Dunseth didn’t mention one time about Beckerman’s failure to clear the eventual game winner? My friend and I noticed that after the game. It was a terrible clearance that cost us the game, and he should be held accountable the same way Johnson’s flub in the box against LA cost us. He is definitely not an offensive force in any way ( his passes are always side to side and back to Olave or Rimando), so basically he failed in the one thing he was required to do. Ironic that the goal scorer was the guy he was talking smack with all game. Let your play on the field talk your smack, Kyle. Nagamura got the last laugh Saturday.
I actually like the idea of a 4-5-1 on the road, it was the personnel and the execution that failed. Prior to this game RSL had been bleeding goals on the road, with none in return. I think the defense first mentality was the way to go, especially with our backup Keeper and a patchwork defense. Before the match started, everyone I spoke with agreed that a draw and a point would be an acceptable outcome since we were playing the best team in the league on the road. That is almost what we got. I like Yura, but I agree that he can no longer coast on those two goals he scored at the end of last year. Does anyone know where we can find solid stats on shots and shots on goal? I’d bet the farm on the fact that Yura has one of the lowest percentages in the league. The simple fact is the guy is a forward who’s played virtually every minute of every game and he’s scored one goal in the last 8. That’s not good enough! If we’re putting one forward up top, like on Saturday, it’s got to be someone that can create something out of nothing like Espy or even Escalada! I’m sorry, but I’ll be the first one to say it: For all of the preseason hype about how RSL is going to be such a great possession and passing team, we can’t possess the ball to save our lives! Yura has the WORST first touch in the league, Findley isn’t much better, Beckerman’s touch is awful, even Javy hasn’t been that impressive with the ball this year! In very recent memory, this lack of touch has cost us points at Chivas when Beckerman’s clearance was popped up and fell right to Kljestan, and at the Rio when multiple players couldn’t clear the ball and allowed Magee to nutmeg Seitz for the draw. Until these ball control issues are cleared up, I wouldn’t mind seeing more of the 4-5-1 formation, with Espindola up top. Everyone knows it’s a very long season and I’m still confident that RSL and Kreis will figure this thing out before September.
We only one 2 games on the road last year, why are your guy’s expectations so high?
LEAVE YURA ON THE BENCH! I’M HAVING MY SECTION BOO EVERY TIME HE GETS THE BALL.
Utah teams suck on the road and thats the way it is… but we need to play with some urgency… Real has that problem… they need to play like every game is very important… it also is very important with how many teams make the playoffs and how good the other teams are this year… we have to win every home game and at least tie every road… just put soem effort into it…
Seitz is so solid and i hope they decide to keep him in there… romando is good but i feel so much more comfortable with Seitz in there… and yura has sucked… findly is playing well and espindola is solid… start them!!!
the expectations are higher because last year it took the last game to get into the playoffs.
PUT YURA ON THE BENCH!
jank2…don’t be a jerk. support your team. THE WHOLE TEAM. so what if his touches haven’t been perfect? you think booing him is going to help that? help his confidence? that’s so rude dude.
Re: goRSL
Personally I would never boo a RSL player. However maybe if he hears a few boo’s it would help his performance. As a fan we have the right to boo if we feel someone is not playing up to par.
Yura needs to stop being patted on the back and get a wake up call. I hope Kreis benches him to send that message.
Kreis needs to step up and admit he doesn’t have a clue.
Score Card
Movtivation of players–0
Using the best players on the pitch regardless of position–0
Winning games-0
Playing a boring style of football–10
Developing players–0
bench him sure. i have no problem with that. i don’t have faith in the dude. but i don’t really think booing him is that rad.
your wrong Kreis should not put him on the bench. RSL need fast legs and really good shooters and thats what Yura is.
How did you guys think of there game on Sat. against Chivas?
I can’t tell if rsl #1 fan is kidding or not. YURA is a terrible shooter! he is 1/27!!! THOSE ARE TERRIBLE STATS! This is the problem with the MLS and the playoff system.. Teams like us can slide by and even caring what happens on the road as long as we make the playoffs and pray for some magic. SERIOUSLY! if it was structured like any other system where your total points at the end of the season determine your place, we would have no chance…. NO CHANCE AT ALL BECAUSE WE CANT SCORE ON THE ROAD THIS IS PATHETIC!!!!
WE MUST BENCH YURA!!!! I ALREADY HAVE ABOUT 20 PEOPLE WAITING TO BOO HIM IF HE DOES NOT SCORE WITHIN THE FIRST HALF
Yura will get 2
jank2 thank you for that lovely remark. Yura is one of my favorite players. He has his ups and downs but he is a good player