Marc Burch versus Avery John

We've seen debates emerge a couple times over the past few weeks as to who should be our starting left back. The reality of the situation is that Tom Soehn is likely to continue rotating players at just about every position for the foreseeable future. Marc Burch and Avery John each started one match last week, and they're probably going to continue to split time as long as both are healthy. But who should be our #1 top choice at that spot? Let's break it down…

Marc Burch

Positives:

1. Burchie-bomb - Although we haven't seen much of Burch-from-distance yet this year, he is much better in the offensive third than John. Whether crossing the ball from the left flank, or taking a free kick, Burch's left foot remains to be one of the most dangerous weapons on the team.
2. Educational background - Marc Burch graduated from the University of Maryland the same year that I did. That's got to count for something.

Negatives:

1. Consistency - Burch has been known to put together 85 solid minutes, but if you take one play off, that could be one goal for the other team. The only thing consistent about Burch is him getting beat for headers by Dax McCarty.

Avery John

Positives:

1. Experience - While age can be both a pro and a con, the 33-year old John has seen it all. And with 65 caps for the Trinidad & Tobago national team, John is second only to Moreno in international experience.

2. Position - John was the starting left back for the Revolution team that went to the MLS Cup Final three years in a row, and that was a 3-5-2 system.

Negatives:

1. Lack of chemistry - John has been with the club for less than a month, and has only made one appearance so far. With a defensive unit that already occasionally struggles with communication , it might take a little while for him to fit in.

2. Fouls - One of John's most commonly used defensive tactics is the foul. That can put the club in a tough spot sometimes.

So in conclusion, I'm giving the starting job to Burch because he has more positives than negatives. Yes, namely because he's a Terp. Now there's some expert analysis that you won't find in any other blog in the country!

DCU v. UMD

From the Insider: D.C. United's scrimmage against NCAA champion Maryland on Sunday has been finalized: Ludwig Field, 1 p.m., free admission.

The two teams of my namesake on the field at the same time? I will be there.

Hey, the season's still young

A 2-1 loss at home on national television? Not the result any of us were really anticipating. Especially playing against a back line that included Chad Marshall and Danny O'Rourke in the center. We've really got to do better on offense.


1. Bryan Namoff - He's having maybe the best season of his career so far. Hopefully he can stay healthy.


1. Fred - Great work ethic tonight. Did really well, and almost had an assist to Emilio's head early in the match. But for the most part Fred was shut down by, um, Hejduk?!

2. Gonzalo Martinez - You could tell he wasn't 100%, but still played his guts out. I was going to put him in the Top Shelf category, but then I decided I just couldn't justify two defenders there when we gave up two goals.

3. Tom Soehn - Soehn took the opportunity to start his best XI players, in their best formation. It just didn't work. Gotta love "Tommy's Army" though, with the giant Soehn head. Or was that the Pope?


1. Gonzalo Peralta - If you score an own goal, chances are you didn't have a great game. Remember the first couple of matches when we would see Peralta talking to the ref after every foul? And yelling at his teammates to get into position? What happened to that guy? The defense was unorganized for the second game in a row. If Peralta is going to be the vocal leader on defense then he needs to communicate better with his keeper and with the rest of the line.

2. Luciano Emilio - I wasn't too upset at him about the header off the cross from Fred that Emilio shot straight at the keeper despite having 90% of the goal open. I was much more upset about Emilio trapping the ball and then trying to slowly turn on a ball that he could have one-timed into the net from Moreno around the 36th minute.

It's not just Emilio though. And it's not just this game. The whole team seems way too tentative on offense. Instead of taking the quick cross or the one-time shot, United is more often holding the ball waiting for a play to develop, or sending it in to Emilio posting up with his back to the goal (which never works). In the first 10 minutes against TFC, and the last 10 minutes of the home leg against Pachuca, DC took advantage of their opportunities with some quick shots from the run of play. Other than that, they haven't been able to produce.

I'm ready for a shake up. And I DON'T mean the coaching staff. Tom Soehn can certainly not be blamed for this loss, as he put what we all thought was the best XI players on the field, and he made the tactical switch to the 3-5-2 at the right time. No, for this loss I blame the players. And it was at this point last year when Soehn started holding his players accountable. Benching Erpen for one match, benching Moreno for one match. To send a message.

So let's shake things up. As well as he has played on the wing, I'd like to see McTavish get a try in central defense again, in place of Peralta, if even for just one match. And I don't think he will be supplanted in the starting lineup permanently, but I think it's time to give Emilio a game off, and try Quaranta and Moreno as the combination up front.

Blah. The season's still young. Hopefully this won't discourage too many fans from showing up tomorrow morning at the auxiliary field. I'll still be there. BYO suntan lotion. But more than anything else, I was just disappointed to see two Terrapins (Burch and Rogers) starting in a game on ESPN2 and both of them named their hometowns instead of giving shoutouts to the University of Maryland.

Marc Burch on the Junkies

Our boy Burchie gave an interview on the Junkies yesterday morning. Listen to it here (4/4, Segment 10) or download it here. For a transcript of Marc's previous interview with the Junkies, check out the Edgell archives.

Burch on Ben Olsen: "He could shave before he gets to practice and then by the time he leaves he's got a full grown beard. You don't really know, but I think he's been going for a little bit of the caveman look lately."

Burch on Santino Quaranta: "The one thing about Santino that I've learned is that he's not very bright."

Burch on his, um, *career*, at Maryland: EB asks if he "banged more lacrosse chicks, soccer chicks, or cheerleaders." Burch: "I think maybe a lot of the soccer chicks are doing the soccer chicks." But Marc does point out that the women's lacrosse team is probably the hottest at Maryland.

Burch on his salary: He tells the guys that his base salary this year is only $33,000 and unsurprisingly the Junkies are shocked. But Marc goes on to explain that the players also earn bonuses from tournaments, for each win, from Adidas, Nike. But... "If you suck like some of the teams you're not gonna make any more money."

And finally, back to Olsen: "He's got a nice house in DC. He drives a BMW."

Ryan Cordeiro

How come this year we had two draft picks from the Big East (Cordeiro-UConn, Stratford-WVU) and two from the Pac-10 (Jacobson-Cal, Owens-UCLA), but not a single player from the ACC? So Maryland and Virginia aren't good enough for DCU anymore? I see how it is.

I know I probably just sound bitter, given my blog's namesake, but how do you pick Ryan Cordeiro when Stephen King of Maryland is available? King was a first-team All American, finished his career at Maryland ranked second all time in assists, and has had several call-ups to the U23 national team. Burchie and Dom certainly would have welcomed another Terp to the team.

Instead, United selected forward/midfielder Ryan Cordeiro, a guy who some experts referred to as "a disaster pick." Cordeiro finished his career at Connecticut with 18 goals and 19 assists, and was second team All-Big East in 2007.

This is usually the type of player that United tries to convert to a defender, but so far in the two scrimmages, it looks like Cordeiro has been a second half winger in each game. With so many guys like Kpene, Dyachenko, and Moose turning 25 this year and losing their "Developmental" status, Cordeiro has a good chance of making the roster. Actually, Moose looks to be the best comparison as far as I can tell, because he's an attacking guy who doesn't play too much defense. But hopefully I'm wrong and Cordeiro will turn out to be more well-rounded, like a Mediate.

International update

Looks like our acquisition of Gonzalo Martinez is just about official, and that Said Godinez is probably not heading to the nation's capitol. Nothing further yet on Carvallo. But this is developing quite nicely. Assuming we re-sign Vanney, we might see a rotation of three guys at center back again with Martinez, Vanney, and McTavish. It's nice to have depth again. If we can come away with both Martinez and Niell, I'll be happy. I'm mostly indifferent about Carvallo right now, just because I'm reasonably confident that we can find another decent American goalkeeper, judging from our country's world renowned reputation of producing decent goalkeepers.

Also in the news is our favorite Terp that doesn't currently wear black and red: Taylor Twellman. Twellman wants to take his 29 credits overseas to Preston North End, but the move has been blocked assumedly by the Revolution. New England is good at exactly two things: Losing MLS Cups, and screwing it's top players out of chasing their dreams in Europe. Nice to see Taylor being honest about the whole thing.

U23 Training

From the Insider:

Peter Nowak, new coach of the U.S. under-23 national team, has invited 22 players to his first training camp. Because of conflicts with European seasons, all but two are domestic based. The group will gather Saturday at Home Depot Center and head to China next week for a pair of friendlies. CONCACAF Olympic qualifying will take place in March.

GOALKEEPERS: Zac MacMath (St. Petersburg, Fla.), Chris Seitz (Real Salt Lake)
DEFENDERS: Hunter Freeman (New York Red Bulls), Patrick Ianni (Houston Dynamo), Jon Leathers (Furman University), Mike Randolph (Los Angeles Galaxy), Nathan Sturgis (Real Salt Lake), Tim Ward (Columbus Crew), Marvell Wynne (Toronto FC)
MIDFIELDERS: Arturo Alvarez (FC Dallas), Maurice Edu (Toronto FC), Eddie Gaven (Columbus Crew), Michael Harrington (Kansas City Wizards), Stuart Holden (Houston Dynamo), Sacha Kljestan (CD Chivas USA), Dax McCarty (FC Dallas)
FORWARDS: Josmer Altidore (New York Red Bulls), Adam Cristman (New England Revolution), Charlie Davies (Hammarby IF), Robbie Findley (Real Salt Lake), Robbie Rogers (Columbus Crew), Sal Zizzo (Hannover 96)

Great to see Robbie Rogers get the call up. He really impressed me in one match against DCU this year, and could be a quality substitute on this team.

Actually, what's funny is that when I look at this roster, I see a lot of quality forwards. But when we look at the full national team roster, the forward position appears to be the weakness. With promising young forwards like Altidore, Davies, Rogers, and Zizzo out there, the USMNT could be pretty strong up front in 6-8 years. The talent is certainly there for Nowak to take this team through Olympic qualifying. We'll see if he can get it done.

Also, I just wouldn't be myself if I didn't specifically mention that there are two Terps on this team: Rogers and Edu.

Waiting by the phone

If I get a call later tonight and am asked to be the new General Manager of the San Jose Earthquakes, here is the list of players I will select (assuming I can negotiate myself a reasonable starting salary...)

GK: Kevin Hartman
DEF: Alex Zotinca, Ryan Cochrane, Brandon Prideaux
MID: Kyle Martino, Ned Grabavoy, Brian Carroll, Andy Dorman, Ivan Guerrero
F: Abe Thompson

I'm taking Hartman because even though he's up there, he's still got a lot less gray hairs than Onstad, although I'm hesitant because of his GAA in Kansas City. My three defenders are starters with their current clubs, and with Prideaux I'm getting someone who has been his team's captain, and will be my team's captain.

The midfield was the hardest. But with Martino, Guerrero, and Dorman, you're getting three versatile guys who have all played in several different spots. Carroll is coming off a down year, but could still start for most clubs in the league, and Grabavoy has the skills to lead the attack. Of course Andy Dorman is a concern to leave MLS completely, but I think he's worth the risk. I know I've been saying all along that San Jose would be crazy not to take Rod Dyachenko, but I think with Grabavoy available, Dyachenko becomes a bit redundant, and Carroll is easily the best defensive midfielder available.

Not too many good forwards on there, but at least with Thompson I'm getting a UMD alum! Notice I didn't take anyone from the Red Bulls. Hmm...

OK, now here's a list compiled from all the comments on the Insider, adding in my own, of who are the popular choices to be selected. This list is far from scientific because I think there's a lot of commenters on there that selected more (or sometimes less) than 10 players, and most of us gave very little regard to salary concerns. So read into it what you will.

Chivas: Burpo (1), Cunliffe (4), Nunez (3), Perez (1), Zotinca (2)
Chicago: Curtin (3), Guerrero (6), Gutierrez (4), Thorrington (1)
Colorado: Cancela (1), Casey (7), Hernandez (1), Petke (3), Prideaux (2)
Columbus: Grabavoy (13), Guenebaum (1), Herron (1), Thomas (1)
Dallas: Gbandi (1), Goodson (2), Oduro (3), Pitchkolan (1), Rhine (1), Thompson (6)
DC: Carroll (8), Dyachenko (3), Kpene (2)
Houston: Ashe (2), Cochrane (5), Onstad (3), Waibel (1), Wells (3)
KC: Burciaga (7), Colombano (1), Hartman (4)
LA: Gray (3), Hamse (1), Martino (6), Mathis (1), Tudela (3), Xavier (1)
NE: Dorman (7), John (4), Riley (4)
NY: Doe (2), Goldthwaite (1), Magee (2), Vide (6), Wolyniec (1)
Salt Lake: Brown (2), Kipre (1), Watson (2), Williams (1)
Toronto: Boyens (1), Lombardo (3), Pozniak (1)

Midnight Riding a Bike

Let's see the Boston Globe try to top that headline!

So I guess 32 credits was all that Taylor Twellman needed at the University of Maryland. Wow, what a goal.

And I don't need to hear the arguments that it should have been disallowed. The rule says that a dangerous play call is at the discretion of the referee. And this is coming from a guy who just saw United knocked out of the playoffs on a "discretionary" handball call.

The Revolution sure have this whole 3-5-2 thing figured out. Heaps, Parkhurst, and John were great, and Joseph was brilliant. I'd like to see Clyde Simms develop more into the Shalrie Joseph type. He's got the body for it. But Joseph is such a leader, pointing and directing wherever he goes. I also think Parkhurst's Defender of the Year title is well deserved.

I will be wearing all black to MLS Cup in support of United, no doubt about it. But don't be surprised if you hear from me a couple of "Taylor Twellman! Clap, clap, clap-clap-claps"

Terp wins Rookie of the Year

University of Maryland alum Maurice Edu was named the MLS Rookie of the Year today, and well deserved. Edu had a pretty good season for a pretty bad team. He's already got one cap with the National Team, and could become a frequent contributor there on the wing.

MLS also named Preki the Coach of the Year today. I know we were all pulling for Tommy Soehn to win, but its hard to argue with Preki getting the award. Preki took a bad team and made them good. All Soehn did was take the #1 team and make them the #1 team again. It's hard to move up when you're already at the top.

So that's what we call a finale?

A 3-2 loss at home would have been crushing earlier in the year, but let's not get too down on ourselves. We were without our best central defenseman Greg Vanney for 90 minutes, our biggest inspiration Jaime Moreno for 80 minutes, our lucky charm Clyde Simms for 40 minutes, our hardest working player Ben Olsen for 45 minutes, and our leading goal scorer Luciano Emilio for 40 minutes.

How great would it have been for Olsen to score that goal inside the six yard box with his head while LITERALLY sitting on his ass.

I've never heard of him before, but that Robbie Rogers kid is a stud, and would be a great addition to the DCU/UMD connection. I could see him as the heir-apparent to Olsen's spot on the right wing. One can only dream.

Regardless of two disappointing results at home in the final two matches of the season, DC United still owns the Supporters Shield, and should still be considered the favorite to win the MLS Cup.

New blog

Welcome to my brand new blog: DCUMD

This is a soccer-only spinoff from my other most recent blog The Good Fight. As of right now, I plan to continue the TGF blog for all other non-soccer topics like the Redskins, politics, movies, and whatever other dumb stuff I've written about over the years. But this blog will just be about DC United and other soccer topics. The reason for the change is that no one freakin reads my TGF blog anymore, and I figure a big reason for that is that it skews all over the place instead of focusing on just one topic. Soccer was one of the few topics that I ever received response to, so I guess I'm just a whore for readers by devoting an entire blog to soccer.

Anyway, the name of the blog is obviously a combination of DCU and UMD, and it's inspired by the two current DC United players and Terrapin alums Marc Burch and Dominic Mediate. I need to do some more research to see if any other former DCU players were also Terps. I am a big fan of DC United, but I am not much of a fan of Terrapin soccer, although I wish I had been while I was going to school there so I could have seen these guys play.

It's probably going to take me a little while to get up to speed on this new blog, but I plan on it being a pretty frequent thing. Hopefully I will get the design finalized by the end of this week before the playoff push!