Sigh...

So that was pretty much the worst possible result. With New York and Kansas City both earning wins tonight in two fairly wild matches, DC United now is currently OUT of the playoffs.

KC needed a corner kick goal in the last minute of stoppage time (in front of less than 10K people) to beat what appeared to be a pretty weak San Jose team. I watched most of this match on mlslive.tv, and really, the Quakes' offense is so unorganized. Several times in the second half a player with the ball could have laid the ball off to a teammate, but decided to shoot himself instead at a poor angle. Without Joe Cannon, this team wouldn't have a chance. Which of course makes me wonder about what could have been had we managed to trade for Cannon instead of Wells this offseason, as we had originally tried to do.

NY's win was mostly off the foot of Juan Pablo Angel, but it was the goal by reserve keeper Danny Cepero that put this game away. What?! The announcers were calling it the first goal in MLS history by a keeper. I can't decide if this result gives me hope that United will also be able to punish the Crew's backup keeper if they start him again, or if it worries me because now the Crew will probably be playing pissed off.

With these two results, DC is back to being 2 points out of the playoffs, making a win absolutely necessary. To be fair though, it's interesting that the 3 teams still in contention in the East all have to play the only 3 teams in the East that have already clinched playoff spots. The Wiz play at the Revs, the Bulls play at the Fire, and United plays at the Crew. It makes me nervous that the two teams we have to count on are our two arch nemeses who always seem to knock us out of the playoffs. This year, they could knock us out just by rolling over and losing (or tying).

So the playoffs essentially start one week early this year. It's like a play-in game for each team. But with these three matchups next weekend, one thing is for sure. The teams that DESERVE to be in the playoffs WILL BE in the playoffs. Right?

Cleaning the sheets

How's that for a confidence booster? With only 7 of our normal starting 11 in the lineup, and only 6 guys starting who started against KC in the season opener, United somehow came together to produce a big win and their first shutout of the year. With a first look at the starting lineups and the revelation that Ryan Pore was starting at forward, I kind of had a feeling that this could finally be THE ONE, and the team did not disappoint.


1. With apologies to Wellsy, the #1 performer in this match goes to Tom Soehn, who took a roster made of straw and spun it into gold. The straight 4-man midfield worked out surprisingly well, allowing the team to control possession for the majority of the match, and shifting the solid Namoff into central defense was the right decision here.

2. Zach Wells really earned the shutout in this match. He made two fantastic saves (one immediately after halftime, and one around the 66th minute) that easily could have been scores for KC, and if they had been scores, we all would have been sitting around saying that neither goal was Zach's fault. He put in a game changing performance last night, and to get his first clean sheet without los Gonzalos in the lineup might have made it feel even better.

3. Screw Budonovuddlen, I think the best forward-forward combination in the league right now is Luciano Emilio and Jaime Moreno. Moreno had a goal and an assist, adding to my plea that he be considered an MVP candidate. Is it just me, or has Emilio scored a lot of goals with his left foot this year?

4. Bryan Namoff really stepped up as the leader of the defense in this match. Made some great blocks and remained very involved in the attack, despite playing centrally. Hopefully no one in the USMNT camp watched this match, because if they did, Namoff might deserve some consideration.

5. Two very strong debuts from the two former Quakers Ivan Guerrero and Joe Vide. BDR makes a good point about how Guerrero's work rate (and I would add Vide's as well) helps free up Fred more, to allow Fred to be Fred. One assist in one game for DC is not too shabby for Guerrero. And although Vide can at times be a bit Dyachenkish in his challenges, he plays the enforcer role quite well. Maybe it's just the scruffy beard, but at times he almost reminded me of another UVA product.


1. Kudos to the rest of the defense Marc Burch, Devon McTavish, and Pat Carroll for helping the team earn its first shutout. Burch's biggest contribution came on the offensive end though with a perfectly placed free kick for Moreno's goal. But I agree with Fullback that the defense did make me a bit nervous a couple of times that we would lose the shutout because of a stupid mistake.

2. Hopefully everyone agrees that Fred just played his best game in many weeks. And he did it while playing on the wing, NOT in the middle. On the wing, where he belongs!


NONE

So DC turned in a great game, and one that they really needed against a team who we were tied with for points before the match. DC is now solidly in third place in the East, with one game in hand over Chicago and two over Columbus. But that comes with a very tough stretch of matches ahead. Following a winnable game against the improving Red Bulls, United then faces NE at home, Chicago on the road, and NE on the road. It's the Open Cup semi-final match next Tuesday though that we should all consider the first MUST-WIN game of the year. Really a shame that it won't be seen on tv anywhere - I'll be in Ocean City that week :(

The season started? That wasn't just another scrimmage?

Someone must have forgotten to tell the DC United players that last night's match against Kansas City was actually the season opener, and not just another scrimmage. Really though, I can see why they would make that mistake. Maybe it was that the stadium reminded them of the high school field that they played in in Texas. Or maybe it was the lack of live television coverage. Maybe they just figured that since they're playing a much more important game in a few days, this game probably didn't matter all that much. Regardless, it was not a very pretty sight, and yet no one is apparently all that upset about it.


1. Bryan Namoff - Was his usual consistent self on defense, and was a cheap offside flag away from notching an assist to Peralta in the box.


1. Marcelo Gallardo and Clyde Simms - With these two pitted against Carlos Marinelli and Kerry Zavagnin, we really should have dominated the midfield. No such luck.

2. Franco Niell - Not a strong game. I have a feeling that he will be much more of a weapon coming off the bench than is he when he starts. If Moreno isn't fit enough to start, I'd rather see Quaranta in the starting XI and Niell as a super-sub.


1. Luciano Emilio - I thought it was a tale of two halves for him. In the first half he had one great shot on goal that forced Hartman into a diving save, and even got more involved in the defense than usual. But he seemed to lack any bit of motivation in the second half, and his giveaway led to the second goal.

2. Marc Burch and Dominic Mediate - Not a great game for the two Terps who grace the left border of this blog. Either one of them could have done more to stop the first goal. Jewsbury should not have had a clean pass to Trujillo like that.

3. Zach Wells - Can't fault him for the first goal, but the second goal is exactly what I've been afraid of since we first got word that our boy Troy was bolting for Scandinavia. Perkins would have been off his line quicker and would have made a sliding tackle before Lopez was able to get off that chip shot.

One lesson learned though... Kansas City is probably better than I thought. Claudio Lopez really seems to have been embraced by his team, and Ivan Trujillo seems like a bit of a jackass, but will probably score a lot of goals this year.

Eastern promises

When DC United started making all their numerous changes this offseason, I had it in my mind that I would NOT pick them to finish in first place, because there were just too many question marks. So I toyed for a while with putting Chicago in first, but then I realized that they had a new inexperienced coach, and Chad Barrett playing forward, so that wouldn't work. Then I flirted with putting New England in first place, but they just haven't done enough to improve this offseason. It even crossed my mind to put New York in first, but then I realized that I'm not a moron. So after eliminating all the attractive distractors, we'll just settle with...

1. DC United
Key addition (+): We've talked at length about United bringing in Marcelo Gallardo not to win the Supporters' Shield again (they could do THAT with Gomez) but instead to make the team more competitive in the C-Cup, Superliga, and even MLS Cup.
Key Loss (-): Brian Arguez. HA! No it's Troy Perkins. While starting all but one game in the past two seasons, Perkins was absolutely fearless, and emerged as one of the top keepers in MLS. Zach Wells will try to fill those shoes.
Player to watch (()): Will be interesting to see if Luciano Emilio scores another 20 goals, or if he suffers from a sophomore slump.
Result (=): United showed against Harbour View that they have the tools on offense and defense to dominate a lesser team. But how will they fare against more quality competition? With los Gonzalos, the team should be in the top 3 in defense again this year, but an aging attack with Gallardo, Moreno, and Olsen could stumble with the injuries and fatigue that result from being in so many competitions.

2. Chicago Fire
+: The Fire bring in experienced Polish international Tomasz Frankowski to add to an already strong attack.
-: The retirement of Chris Armas sees the end of the career of one of MLS's greatest defensive midfielders. The absense of this underrated player could do a lot of damage on defense.
(): Cuauhtemoc Blanco will continue to frustrate opposing teams, along with the referees. Makes you wonder if the most bruised legs in the MLS will last through the year.
=: This sounds cliché, but Chicago was on fire towards the end of last season, and I think they will keep it up in 2008. Look for Calen Carr also to play an emerging role.

3. New England Revolution
+: Mauricio Castro will be asked to add some more experienced leadership to a young midfield that includes Jeff Larentowicz and Wells Thompson. Steve Ralston could see his role diminish this year.
-: Two solid MLS attackers in Pat Noonan and Andy Dorman went overseas this offseason. New England will look for some young foreigners to step up.
(): How will Taylor Twellman react when the team blocked his move to Europe, but had no problem shipping off his partner Noonan?
=: The team really didn't do much to try to improve this offseason, choosing to rely more on their proven 3-5-2 formula with mostly the same players as last year. We expect mostly the same result as last year.

4. Columbus Crew
+: The Crew added left back Gino Padula, who should help to improve a defense that already includes Ezra Hendrickson and Frankie Hejduk.
-: Ned Grabavoy was found to be expendable and wound up in San Jose.
(): The Crew would be wise to expand on the role of Robbie Rogers this year. He's a young player with national team experience who should absolutely be in the team's starting XI.
=: We'll get to see what Schelotto can do with a full year. My prediction of the Crew finishing ahead of the Red Bulls is hinged on some other predictions that Jozy Altidore will leave the league and Brian McBride will rejoin the league in the middle of the season.

5. New York Red Bulls
+: It’s a sad state of affairs in New York when I'm claiming Zach Thornton as the team's best acquisition this offseason.
-: The team chose not to retain Dema Kovalenko for some odd reason. He's a foul machine, but he's about all the team had going for them in the play-breaking role.
(): Keep your eye on the forward combination of Juan Pablo Angel and Jozy Altidore. If Altidore gets a contract in Europe, how will Angel do alone up top?
=: With a pretty stout offense, and a lack of defense, look for the Red Bulls to be involved in a lot of 4-3 games this year. The team might start off strong again like they did in 2007, but will surely fade.

6. Kansas City Wizards
+: Sorry but I just don't see Claudio Lopez making a huge impact this year. He is also joined in the attack by Columbian Ivan Trujillo.
-: Lopez is a totally different player from the departed Eddie Johnson. We'll see how the rest of the team reacts to this change.
(): KC struggled in defense last year, despite the leadership of Jimmy Conrad. They will likely find themselves towards the bottom of the pack again this year.
=: This could be a year of transition for the Wizards, and I'm just not as high on them as a lot of people are. They have relied on Johnson too heavily the past couple of years, so I don't think they'll do well without him.

7. Toronto FC
+: Toronto made very few moves this offseason, but had a very strong draft with the selection of Julius James, along with finding Xavier Balc in the late rounds.
-: Fortunately, Toronto didn't lose much either. Chris Pozniak was a decent player for them in the midfield last year, but that's about it.
(): The reliable and versatile Maurice Edu will continue to develop, and if TFC is smart, they will allow him more freedom to make his own plays.
=: Toronto is building a talented young team, and probably one of these years we will start to see the results of that. But it won't be this year.

So not a lot of wholesale changes in the seeding of teams in the East. I do have United finishing in first, but I do NOT have them winning the Supporters' Shield. More on that we get to the Western Conference later (Hint: It won't be San Jose!)

There you have it. I made it through an entire post titled Eastern Promises without a single reference to Viggo Mortensen in a naked knife fight. Oh woops...

An early test of United's depth

3/29/08 at Kansas City
4/1/08 at Pachuca (Mex)
4/5/08 vs Toronto
4/9/08 vs Pachuca
4/12/08 at Real Salt Lake
4/17/08 vs Columbus

It all starts this week! With all of the competitions and tournaments that United is playing in this year, we knew this would happen eventually. I was just hoping it wouldn't be this soon!

Some have proposed just sending a "B" team to KC so our starting XI will be fresh to travel to Pachuca. While I would have no problem sacrificing the Supporters' Shield if it meant winning the Champions' Cup, resting ALL of our starters seems a bit unrealistic. Still, no player should play in every one of these matches. And I think we can even get by while trying to have no player start more than 4 out of these 6 matches.

Although there are some signs that Jaime Moreno might be back and healthy soon, and Jeff Curtin could possibly join the club soon too, I'm just going to assume that they are both out, along with Olsen and of course Jeff Carroll.

Hopefully most of you agree with me that the "C-Cup" has got to be the top priority. (The C-Cup! Haha! This is just like that time in guitar class when I couldn't keep a straight face any time the teacher said "G-String.") We definitely need to start McTavish and Emilio in both of the Pachuca matches because they are C-Cup gods! Anyway, as a free service to Tommy Soehn, here are the lineups that we here at DCUMD would use in the upcoming matches:

at KC: Wells, Namoff, McTavish, Peralta, Burch, Quaranta, Simms, Gallardo, Moose, Emilio, Kpene

at Pachuca: Wells, Namoff, Martinez, Peralta, Burch, McTavish, Simms, Gallardo, Fred, Emilio, Niell

vs TFC: Carvallo, Kirk, Martinez, Carroll, Cordeiro, Moose, Stratford, Gallardo, Mediate, Quaranta, Niell

vs Pachuca: Wells, Namoff, Martinez, Peralta, Burch, McTavish, Simms, Gallardo, Fred, Emilio, Niell

at RSL: Carvallo, Namoff, Carroll, Peralta, Burch, Quaranta, Simms, Dyachenko, Fred, Emilio, Kpene

vs Columbus: Wells, Kirk, Martinez, Carroll, McTavish, Mediate, Stratford, Gallardo, Fred, Quaranta, Niell

Alright, I failed a little bit because I've got Gallardo starting in five games, but he's (temporarily) our captain! I also think the team should showcase Gallardo in the opening match, the home opener, and the ESPN2 game against Columbus, so he doesn't get to rest. What's really cool though is that I've got McTavish playing in three different locations in four games. Not that I think Soehn will actually use these lineups, but it's just a testament to the depth and flexibility that we do have this year, and hopefully this will provide a bit of relief to some worry warts. I guess my only concern is that some of the reserves aren't quite ready for this kind of test.

Some would say that many of the moves this offseason were specifically made to prepare the team for stretches like this. But man do I miss Benny and Jaime right now...

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)

WCC Preview: Kansas City at Houston

I want to pick the Wizards to win here.

I really do.

But I just don't see it happening. You see, I've had some success in the past when picking the teams that no one else is picking. And that's what the Wizards are here. No one is picking them to beat Houston. And that's because they probably won't.

Chivas exposed the Kansas City defense in the opening round, but they couldn't score. If it counted as a score every time you hit the post, Chivas would have won the series something like 4-1. But with Ching, Jaqua, De Rosario, and Ngwenya, I don't think Houston will have as much of a problem finishing. I don't feel like Kansas City really deserves a place in the conference finals, and as the 5th place team from the East, they don't even deserve to be in the playoffs. This game might not even be close.

So then let's talk about the matcup that really matters here...

It's the Dynamo Girls

vs. the Starting 11

The playoffs

I'm still trying to figure out the new MLS playoff structure.

I distinctly remember earlier in the year the MLS announcing that they would be switching the playoffs to a straight table structure, with no conferences. Then a couple of months later they changed it so that the top 8 teams, regardless of conference, would still make the playoffs, but the playoff matchups would still be determined by conference.

I guess it's cool to try to be original…

But if DC United has won the Supporters Shield, then they are considered the best team, and they should get to play the worst team. That's how the playoffs work in every other civilized league in the world. But here we have the #1 team playing against the #7 team. And the #2 team playing against the #8 team.

That's odd.

This happened because 5 teams qualified from the playoffs in the East, and only 3 teams qualified from the West, so MLS's theory is that they should send the 5th place team from the East over into the West. But here's how the theory SHOULD work. Since 5 teams qualified from the East, the East is clearly the stronger conference. DC United should be rewarded for winning the stronger conference, and play against the 5th place team, not the 4th place team. It's the 4th place team (Chicago) that should be sent out West, not the 5th place team (Kansas City).

I guess it's silly for us to be complaining about it. DC United is the best team in the league, so they should be able to beat the #7 team OR the #8 team. Right? It shouldn't matter. But you never know.

There must be some way that MLS thought that this playoff system would have somehow benefited LA and NY, otherwise they wouldn't have done it.