retired_karamelkel

A short week and long vacation:

There wasn’t much time to turn around and prepare for our Aug. 23 game vs. Dallas. There were only two benefits to the game. One, it was at home, so flying wasn’t an issue, and second, the game was the prelude to an 18 day vacation from matches. But, I was kept busy with more than game preparation.

On the evening of July 20, I received word that Freddy Adu’s contract with New England was set to expire. I immediately called his agent and offered 500K for one year with 2.5 million dollar signing bonus. The agent was skeptical, but promised to pass the offer on to Adu. A day later, Patronis informed me that Bocanegra would be gone for the match. That meant Akwari would take his spot in the lineup. Ibsen, Walsh, and Maluleke would also be unfit to start. That meant that Jolly, Joseph and Chung would replace them all respectively. White would start in goal and was named captain.

Aug 23 Afternoon Dallas vs. San Jose at Spartan Stadium.

It was a bit of a warm afternoon as my team went out for warm-ups. At this point, I was just hoping to start the two week break with no unpleasant news. Neither teams looked to be completely there, but I figured that was to be expected. As soon as the kick-off commenced, it became clear that nobody was trying particularly hard. Dallas was in a soft 3-5-2 with WbS. They seemed content to **** around at midfield. They were shaken from their torpor by EJ, who seemed to be the lone man on a mission against his former team. Twenty minutes in, he disabused Dallas’s hope for an easy game by making a put-back past Popik. At this point, Dallas woke up and began pushing the ball up field more. But, the goal energized out defense and they prevented Dallas from even getting a shot on target.

The second half was a repeat of the late first half. Dallas valiantly tried to catch up, but failed. For their part, the Dallas defense was doing a nice job stopping Juskowiak and EJ, but the chances that provided for the Dallas offense were being squandered left and right and sometimes center. On 74, I saw that Joseph and EJ were being to tire. Not wanting to risk them further, I subbed in Ozimek and Cunningham. The final ten minutes of the game was all Dallas as they finally put together a concentrated attack. I was afraid White would wilt, but he remained cool as iceberg and stopped the onslaught as we went out 1-0 winners. The man of match was Eddie Robinson, who had stifled EJ and Juskowaik all day. EJ’s goal had come on a fluke really. Popik was clearing the ball, it landed in front of EJ, who put it right back. Not really a game that advertised soccer to the masses, but the 17, 161 fans did get a win.


Now we had two weeks off to relax until we had to go to Tampa Bay for an Aug. 10 game that would determine who went to the semifinals of the Open Cup.

retired_karamelkel

Not much of a vacation. Aug 23-30

The break began with bad news. During the game with Dallas, EJ had twisted his knee and would be out three weeks. The only good thing to be said about this was that we wouldn’t be playing many games while he recovered. During this time, the African nations had finished their World Cup qualifying. As a result, the nations’ managers were being fired left and right. Maluleke encouraged me to apply for the South Africa job. I thought about it for a couple of days before I demurred. I was simply too busy at San Jose and the prospect of flying back and forth between the US and South Africa. On the 24 I received a memo from the MLS brass.

The memo was about coaching attire. It seems that the MLS is concerned about the appearance of its coaches on the hemispherical stage. Those games are on TV all over Central America and the league wanted to impress the fans. So a memo was sent out telling us that in those competitions, the league “strongly encourages” us to wear suits. I fired back a reply that I was never going to wear a suit at a soccer match. Long ago I had settled the debate over business suit or tracksuit. I had decided to split the difference. I wear khakis and a team shirt. Looks nice and is comfortable. I told MLS brass that I wasn’t changing my attire and that their attempt at a dress code wasn’t binding, since they didn’t sanction the competitions in question. I had once thought about becoming a layer and was now putting those skills to use. They backed down quickly. It helped that I had a good relationship with the top brass. I generally supported MLS in their endeavors and had only once complained about the league in public. That had been two seasons ago. We were playing a game at home vs. Miami and the ref, a man named Zim Boulas felt compelled to toss, not one, not two, but three of my players on straight reds. Hard to win with only 8 men on the field. We were not tackling any harder than usual. The MLS is a rough physical league where hard tackling is the norm. However Mr. Boulas seemed out of step with his colleagues and expected a European style game. So when the match was over and I held my press conference, I ripped into Boulas for his poor officiating. The league called me up and privately told I was in the right, but that they couldn’t do much about it. I found out later that Boulas was considered a “harsh” referee, well, no ****. But, I’ve had no problems since with the MLS referees.

On the 26th of July, my asst. GM told me that Jeff Johnson’s contract would expire at the end of the season. Since Johnson is a third-stringer, I have no interest in retaining his services. He can go back to the A-league and play there. On the last day of the week, the Confederations Cup began. The USA wees in a group with Australia, Denmark and Germany. The matches began and the USA played Germany first. In front of a deafening home crowd in Berlin, the USA pulled off the moral victory, drawing 0-0 with the Germans. The US focused on defense, and Tim Howard rose to the occasion by stopping the 8 shots blasted at him. As the TV camera panned the stunned crowd, I tell that they were worried about their c

retired_karamelkel

Author's note: Premit me a moment of digression. I would like to point out that writing this story has rekindled my eye for detail within the game itself. Prior to writing this, I was simply pointing and clicking my way through the game. Now I'm starting to notice and appreciate many things in the game such as the the real depth of the statistics and what they represent. Furthermore, during games, I am now making tactical adjustments, because I have to do something during the matches to write about, plus I really want to win now that I've got you, the audience, to hold me accountable. And now we return to the regular program...


Even less of a vacation: Huly 31 to Aug 10

The week and a half before the Tampa Bay game was even less of a vacation. Player administration took up most of my time. First of all Karbasslyoon returned to full practice, which meant extra sessions trying to get him up to speed. At the beginning of the month the Merconorte Cup groups were drawn. We would play Necaxa, Independiate Petrolo and Allanza Lima. So all of the travel and hotel arrangements had to be made so that trips throughout Central America would be smooth undertakings. But even that was easy compared to what came next. On Aug 6, I got word of two events that would change our season.

Asst GM: Gus, this morning I received well and bad news, which do you, want to hear first?

Gus: Gimme the bad news first and get it over with.

Asst GM: *swallowing hard* Chicago just made a 2.8 million bid for Bocanegra. *pause* And Mr. Jamison is ordering you to accept the offer.

Gus: *cursing under his breath* Why

Asst. GM: Do you not read the financial reports I placed on your desk?

Gus: Spare me the asperity, just summarize please.

Asst GM: Well, we have lost half a million dollars this season. Mr. Jamison wishes the club to be in the black for the year. Therefore, we must sell a player and the transfer fee will achieve that goal.

Gus: *mumbles* Why couldn’t I get a sportsman for a boss instead of a goddamned businessman?

Asst GM: I’m sorry, what did you say?

Gus: Nothing. Does Mr. Jamison realize that Bocanegra is our best defender and our captain and is a team leader?

Asst. GM: Yes, but Mr. Jamison feels that Akwari can replace Bocanegra, who wanted to leave anyway. Mr. Jamison’s decision is final.

Gus: I’ve no choice then. But I’ll be damned if he goes to Chicago; seeing who else is interested in him.

Asst. GM: It’s rumored that Colorado may make a bid as well. I’ll inquire. And now, for the good news, Manchester City released Claudio Reyna yesterday. You’ll want to call his agent and offer a deal.

Gus: Will do that. You work on the Bocanegra deal. Keep me informed.

Asst. GM: Yes sir, will do.

Later that afternoon, I called Reyna’s agent. The agent was desperate to get his client somewhere. We spoke for a bit and we offered what the agent asked for: 210 grand and a 300,000 signing bonus for 1 yr. The agent warned that Metrostars and Liverpool also might offer contracts. The Bocanegra deal was worked on for the next couple of days. Colorado did come in with a bud and were allowed to offer a contract to him.

Meanwhile, while the soap opera around his transfer was filling the newspapers at home, Bocanegra was playing in Europe. The US managed to lose 1-0 to Australia as the Premier League vets goalkeeper Mark Swartz and Mark Viduka showed their talent. With their backs to the wall, the US responded by drilling Denmark 5-0, but Australia went through, along with Germany, because of head to head match-up.

As predicted, the Metrostars did offer Reyna a contract. We weren’t worried as we were the first to approach him. Besides, our need for a RMC had diminished slightly by the return of Walsh to full practice. The day before the Aug 10 game, the San Jose Mercury News ran a story on Juskowaik’s season and how he was performing brilliantly. I concurred with the article. It was nice to have some positive feedback on the team; it would increase their confidence for the Tampa Bay game.

retired_karamelkel

Aug 10 SJ at TB Open Cup QFs.

I was hoping my team had not noticed the other articles in the soccer section of the sport pages the morning of the game. First was the notice of the CONCAF Champions Cup draw. We would play Anjuenlese in Costa Rica in the first round. The other article was a piece that touted our chances of winning MLS. I had declined to comment on the story earlier. No sense in inflating more heads on the team. After flying in the previous night, the team did various activities in Tampa Bay before arriving at Raymond James stadium in the afternoon to prepare for the night game. This was the Open Cup quarter-final and a reasonably important game as only the MLS winner and the Open Cup winner are invited to play in the following year’s hemisphere competition. Thanks to the 18 day layoff, everyone was fresh except for the still injured EJ, who was replaced by Cunningham. White got the nod in goal and Walsh returned to the RMC spot. The bench consisted of Karbasslyoon, Chung, Daniels, Akwari and Thornton.

First half- Tampa Bay came out in a 442 with short passing and an attacking mentality. Not that it did them much good. We prevented them from having a shot on goal and they were unable to get the ball into our zone. In fact, we were constantly putting pressure on them in their area, as we spent over a third of the half there. We only managed to net one goal, a header on 23 by Juskowaik. But, that sealed the game for all purposes as TB seemed content to play out the clock. As the teams walked off the pitch at halftime, the 16,900 fans booed.

Second half- Whatever Fitzgerald said to his team at halftime, it made no difference. Tampa Bay was just not inspired. They were punching the time clock. Juskowaik scored again on 57 to make the score 2-0 SJ. On the kickoff, I subbed Daniels for Walsh. TB did score a consolation on 67 when Gomez tapped in a rebound. On 72, I pulled off Juskowaik and Maluleke for Karbasslyoon and Chung. Both teams ran out the clock and we emerged victorious 2-1. Juskowaik was named MOM in an uninspiring game. But, a win is a win. We would return to MLS action on Aug 13 at Colorado.

The two days preceding the game were notable. First, the Open Cup semi-final would pit us against Colorado at home. That same day, EJ and Jeremy Joseph (youth prospect midfielder) returned to full training. In addition, we 2.8 million, over six months, deal was completed, sending Bocanegra to Colorado. He would face us on the 13th, a mere day later.

retired_jdupont

CONCACAF and Alajuelense.

Good story so far. :thup:

retired_jgirl87

Enjoying this very much, EH. :cool:

retired_karamelkel

PMLF- The hard part is spelling them correctly Cheers for the kind words guys.

Aug 13 SJ at Colorado's Mile High Stadium

It was a hot afternoon in the mountains as we warmed up before the game. Low 80’s may not be considered hot by many, but it is scorching for a mountain town. Thornton got the start in goal. Akwari replaced Bocanegra, David Johnson played for Davis, Jim Johnson filled in for Maluleke and EJ returned to the starting lineup. The bench was Cunningham, Maluleke, Ozimek, Huff and White.

First half- Colorado came out with an attacking 3-5-2 and they came charging out of the gate. On 12, Zizi Roberts took a low cross at the near post, turned, and whistled the ball past Thornton. Two minutes later Kingsley, the Colorado AMC, dribbled in and blistered in the shot to make the game 2-0 after 15 minutes. Having seen enough, I yanked Thornton for White at the 17th minute. I figured this game was done, so instead of pacing the sideline as I normally do, I sat in the dugout, tucked a wad of chewing tobacco in my cheek and stared out at the field. What I was seeing wasn’t pretty. Colorado was clearly the superior team that day. They dominated possession, and winning 70 percent of the headers. All in all, I was happy when the half ended.

Second half- I told SJ to start attacking more. Colorado went into defensive mode with a counter attack if they needed it. On 67, I subbed in Ozimek and Maluleke for Walsh and Jim Johnson, but the game was over. The last 25 minutes were spent kicking the ball around midfield. The 17,685 home faithful were happy that their team had won. For my part I was content with getting a copy of the stat sheet and getting the hell out of the thin air. I wanted to put this game behind me as quickly as possible. I could see one consequence from this game. Both Juskowaik and EJ had been man-marked into oblivion. Any team who saw this game tape would probably use the same strategy. It might be a rough few games coming up. At least Bocanegra won his first game with his new team.

retired_elizabethlacey

im loving this KUTGW

retired_karamelkel

Cheers I'm getting the imprssion my fanbase is mostly Aussies. Here's a bit of news that didn't make the story- Turns out that Australia went on to finish third in the Confederations Cup.

That evening when we returned home to San Jose, we received news that almost canceled out the game. Reyna had accepted our contract offer and would join us the next day. Reyna stepped right in at RMC, replacing the erratic Walsh. Since Walsh is being paid a starter’s salary, he was transfer-listed. I wasn’t about to incur the wrath of Jamison by relegating another expensive salary to the bench. Cunningham was bad enough, but we had at least convinced Jamison that Cunningham performed better off the bench and in spot starts, rather than as a regular member of the lineup. We couldn’t honestly make that claim with Walsh. As it was, we would have to jettison both players in the off-season. Fortunately, Reyna picked up the system quickly in the three days of training that preceded the Dallas game.

August 17 Dallas at SJ. MLS game

It was a usually cool evening in San Jose. I decided to start Thornton in goal, so that he could shake off the effects of his bad game in his last outing. Reyna was announced as the new starter at RMC and Karbasslyoon replaced a slightly tired EJ. The bench was EJ, Chung, Walsh, Huff and White. At the kickoff, Dallas came out in a 3-5-2. Their passing was short and crisp and they were following the Colorado plan by marking our forwards. On 2 Dallas AMC Alvarez dove at our goal and sent the ball into the net to give them the early lead. We didn’t panic, calmly probing their defense for openings. We were getting in shots, but the Dallas keeper Popik was having a great game, turning away shot after shot. However, on 21, Karbasslyoon converted a penalty to tie the game. Twenty minutes later, Juskowaik took a cross from Reyna and hit the header to send us up 2-1. The rest of the half passed uneventfully. We were clearly the superior team that day.

The second half did nothing to change the game. Dallas began attacking, but couldn’t get past the defense. On 60, I subbed in Chung for Maluleke and EJ for Juskowaik. The fresh subs helped to kill the remaining 30 minutes. We kept the ball in midfield for the most part and the 17,865 fans cheered as the game ended in a SJ victory. At the end of the day, Dallas goalkeeper Popik received the MOM for brilliant handling our 8 on target shots. The next game would be Aug. 20 at New England.

retired_karamelkel

On the 18th, a day after the match, our trainers discovered that Reyna had injured his shoulder during the game and not bothered to inform anyone, probably because he wanted to make a good impression. At any rate the injury puts him on the shelf for three weeks. Of course this in the time of year where fixture congestion starts to take its toll. Hopefully Reyna would be healthy enough by the time the postseason started. On the day before the match against New England, as we were on the plane flying to Boston, Patronis revealed some unsettling news. It turned out that the long season was starting to wear on the starting lineup and so many would not be a wise bet to start. The asst. and I discussed our options and we decided to start White, Kolodzley (Pierce), Jolly (Ibsen) _ Huff (Salinas) David Johnson (Davis) Keenan (Paule) Daniels (Reyna) and Beech (Juskowaik) The bench would be Cunningham, Delao, Walsh, Guillano and Thornton We were just hoping that this somewhat this diverse mix of regular starters, A-league vets and youth prospects could compete with the likes of Steve Johnson and Freddy Adu- New England’s best players. In deference to the un-cohesiveness of the lineup, we decided that playing the offside trap would be a bad move and we also decided to do an all out attack from the first minute of the game. Resolving the tactical issues posed by a shaky lineup gave me the evening free in Boston and after we landed, I met some friends for an enjoyable dinner. Needless to say, my spirits were high as we began preparing for the game.

Aug. 20 San Jose at New England

It was an unseasonably cool afternoon in Foxboro. The stadium is the home to the 3-time Superbowl champion Patriots and I was hoping that my players wouldn’t be overawed by that fact. The first half opened with New England coming out in a 442 with Adu moving up to an AMC role on offense. They were attacking from the get-go just like we were. The two attacking styles essentially canceled each other out as both teams would make forays into the other’s area only to see the ball taken away and booted up field. This meant that neither team was able to gain an advantage. We opened the scoring on 22 when EJ headed in a cross by Daniels. New England responded by moving back up the pitch to score on 38 when Broome took a low cross from Twellman and kicked it in low. We again broke the stalemate late in the half during injury time when Beech took a cross from Daniels, who had blown by his man to the byline, and headed it in. The halftime stat sheet showed an even game; San Jose had just done one better with its 3-4 shooting than New England had done with the same total. One item of particular concern to the coaches and I was our tackling. We had made an appalling 27% of tackles. The little sisters of the poor could have done better. But, when you’ve already told your team to put effort into tackling, there’s not much you can do.

The second half was much like the first. New England did come out attacking and the 26,118 fans were screaming for their team to do something. For our part, I told them to not press and to play at a normal tempo. On 46 Maluleke sealed the win by tapping in a rebound. From that time on we contrived to keep the clock running. However Gonzales had other ideas on 71, sending a screamer past White to make the score 3-2. At that time I burned all three of my subs, putting in Cunningham (Beech) Delao (Mal) and Walsh (Daniels). Predictably, ten minutes later Kolodzley pulled up with an injury. I dropped DJ back to lb and we finished the game with no further happenings. Twellmn won the MOM because of his two brilliant assists. Not that it mattered to us. The win gave us 53 points as we continued to stay ahead of hard-charging LA, who were four points behind. We were headed to Kansas City to play them on the 22nd. It would be our first and only true road trip of the year.