With no one to play against…
By: travis |
Add Comments
The Wizards played each other. Yesterday, KC lined up against each other, dividing themselves into two squads, the White and the Orange:
White - Hartman, Myers, Hohlbein, Wahl, Harrington, Colombano, Jewsbury, Marinelli, Victorine, Lopez (Arnaud 46), Sealy
Orange - Kronberg (Pardo 46), Leathers, McKenzie, McMahen, Kraus (Miles 62), Souter (Pizarro 46), Zavagnin, Morsink, Espinoza, Pore, Trujillo (Souter 82)
Final score was a 2-2 draw with goals from Marinelli and Sealy for the White team and Morsink and Pore each grabbing one for the Orange. Of note, Jimmy Conrad was held out of the scrimmage for most likely precautionary reasons. Full recap can be read here.
The week off also gives a few Wizards the chance to recover for next week’s game against the Red Bull up in New York. Davy Arnaud, Carlos Marinelli, and Sasha Victorine are all still nursing injuries. Sitting even on points with Toronto and New England at this point in the season is a definite success, but the team is looking to rebound from back to back losses.
In other news, the US Open match may take place at College Boulevard Activities Center on June 4. The match will be between the Wizards and the winner of the Los Angeles-RSL qualifier. That news is from the bottom of this article from the KC Star, courtesy of Kansas City Soccer Review.
Tags: A week to off to get some rest
By: travis | Add Comments
The Wizards won’t play a game until May 17th. And with a poor road form, they’ll be looking to break out of their winless slump. That haven’t won since their 1-0 defeat of the Fire. So I guess it really isn’t that bad of form, but nonetheless, more goals and more wins are definitely needed.
There really isn’t that much news to speak of. The reserves drew with Columbus 1-1, and the large Argentinian contingent from both clubs’ senior sides sat down and had a chat:
It’s nice for all players involved to have fellow countrymen alongside them going through similar things. I can only imagine Guillermo giving Lopez a few tips on how to adjust to a semi-major metropolitan area in the city. Claudio Lopez, Carlos Marinelli, and Eloy Colombano are from the Wizards and Guillermo Barros Schelotto and Gino Padula are Crew players all pictured in the above photo. Courtesy of Hillcrest Road.
Category: Team NewsSoft loss to the Crew
By: travis | Add Comments
The Wizards let another one get away from them yesterday, dropping to the Crew 2-1. Falling behind in the 4th minute after some soft defending - a free kick floated in by Guillermo Barros Schletto was headed back across the goal and in the cluster of players camped in front of the net, and Adam Moffat headed in from point blank range.
Another soft goal was conceded in the 34th minute, as Chance Myers and Kevin Hartman had a miscommunication just outside the box. Myers looked like he was trying to shield his man, Robbie Rogers off the ball so Hartman could grab it, but Hartman couldn’t get to it in time and Rogers poked it in. So the Wizards faced an uphill battle, compounded by a red mist moment by Roger Espinoza. He lashed out with his elbow at Frankie Hejduk and landed a shot to Hejduk’s face. The ref had an easy call giving Espinoza his marching orders.
The Wizards were the better team in the second half, although it wasn’t until Carlos Marinelli made a substitute appearance and helped spark the offense. In the 79th minute, Scott Sealy (another substitution) was pulled down in the box and Claudio Lopez calmly finished from the spot. Unfortunately, the Wizards couldn’t steal a point in the last 10 minutes.
The coach was proud of how his team responded to adversity. Disappointing to concede soft goals like that, but in the end, defense will continue to be key. It would also have been nice not to be down to 10 men, but what happens, happens.
Going forward, there were more than a few positives. The team had a positive reaction to the adversity of being down a man, and showed composure scoring. Lopez continues to play well, and despite not exactly lighting up the score sheet, his passing and skill automatically make the Wizards a better team.
Next Opponent:
The Wizards don’t play again until May 17, as they will next travel to face the New York Red Bull who drew 1-1 at Toronto. Time to step up and bring the losing streak to a halt.
Finally, the highlights:
Life on the Road part 3 - Columbus
By: travis | Add Comments
The third road game in a row features a tough match up against the surprising Crew, who hold the best record in MLS and sit on top of the table. They’re the only team to win four games so far this season and this game will be a tough match from the get go. Neutralizing the midfield play of Schelloto will be key, as well as denying service to Alejandro Moreno, the Crew’s goal scoring leader with four.
The difference this week (aside from actually scoring) will lie in the midfield. Last week against Toronto, the Wizards did a poor job of holding onto the ball. Obviously, they were under intense pressure, but consistent mental mistakes made things easier for Toronto. With Carlos Marinelli scheduled to return to the starting line up, this could potentially solve the problem. However, with the depth available to Curt Onalfo, maybe a slightly different line up to keep players on their toes.
Look for Chance Myers to continue his solid play on the right hand side. The few times that I’ve been able to see him, he adds a counter attacking option whenever running forward from his right back position. I think it also may be only a matter of time before Claudio Lopez gets another goal. After scoring in the first game, I thought he could start out in fine form. But he deserves time to adjust and let his teammates adjust to his style of play as well. In the end, I don’t think the Wizards will be able to get anything off this game.
Columbus 3-1 KC
Odds & Ends
By: travis | 1 Comment
As the Wizards hold practice in preparation for this weekend’s match against the Crew, time to take a look at what’s going on in KC:
- Down the byline brings us an update on the stadium situation. Apparently, the legislation for funding is stuck somewhere between the State and the House legislation. The funding needs to be approved before the stadium can be built (duh).
- The Wizards will play the winner of the Galaxy-Rapids match to qualify for the US Open Cup.
- Two players have been added to the developmental roster. Nelson Pizarro and Kevin Souter (who I’ve mentioned previously) were added. They were both part of the open tryout the Wizards hosted back before the season started. To make room, Amir Lowery and Yomby Williams were both dropped.
- Don’t forget to listen to the Jimmy Conrad show. The link is available on the main site.
What? Turning the ball over in midfield doesn’t help you win?
By: travis | Add Comments
Not so surprising if you’ve watched the game, but the story here is how careless the Wizards were with the ball - that and a fantastic free kick by Amado Guevara. After watching the game from the weekend, here’s a few things stuck out to me:
- The Wizards shot themselves in the foot a number of times with sloppy turnovers, especially in the first half.
- The bungled clearing attempts cost them the first goal, as defense continues to be a bit inconsistent. Guevara’s goal was ugly and he may have been offside, but come on now. Terrible defense leads to goals
- Toronto really came out of the gates in the first 15 minutes with a real attacking mindset. Good job by KC to weather the storm.
- The fans in Toronto continue to impressive. The field may be astro turf, but with every game likely to sell out this year is great.
- Ivan Trujillo loved hugging the back post whenever Lopez fed in crosses. Crash near post. Also, not a great finish after a nice set up by Claudio in the 70th minute.
- Amado Guevara played like a monster. Great free kick in the 78th minute.
Hardly a disastrous loss, but more of a step back than anything else. Toronto played great and the Wizards were on their heels for a large part of the game. Onfalo tried to make the right moves, bringing on Scott Sealy and Carlos Marinelli, but they couldn’t crack the Toronto defense. It is still early, after all.
The progress of the defense will be important to monitor. This week saw a moment of blundering leading to the first goal. Conrad remains solid at the back, and Harrington’s speed kept runs from Wynne at bay. Chance Myers was a bit inconsistent, with some strong runs forward, although at times his final touch let him down. Bottom line is that the number of sloppy turnovers cost them.
Here are the highlights, courtesy of MLS.
Next Opponent:
Next stop is Columbus. Wizards look to get back against the Crew, who sit in first place with the best record in the MLS. They took down the Dynamo 1-0 last weekend.
Wizards head to Canada
By: travis | 1 Comment
Match number two of the road trip brings the Wizards to BMO Field to face Toronto. Winners of their past two, they’re no doubt going to be tough for the Wizards. Amado Guevara and Laurent Robert, two fairly recent acquisitions have been key cogs to their recent form. It’ll be a big test for KC, one that I think they’ll be up to.
A second win in a row will no doubt be important if the Wizards hope to be in a similar spot on the table come July. They’ll benefit from the return of Carlos Marinelli who has missed a couple of weeks with a groin strain. Hard to see how this game will end up, but the offense from the Wizards should be enough to snatch a goal or two, and the recent play of Kevin Hartman and Jimmy Conrad will continue their shut out streak.
Prediction: Kansas City to win 2-0
Lopez article
By: travis | 1 Comment
With the Wizards sitting on top of the Power Ranking from Ives and ESPN, so far so good. The Fire definitely did us a few favors with their poor finishing last weekend, but a win is a win, especially with the poor record the Wizards have had at Chicago.
Not much is going on this week, but check out this article on Claudio Lopez from the Houston Chronicle. It has an interview with Onfalo as well, a good read to give you an idea of how Lopez is adjusting and the high expectations KC has placed on him.
Highlights from the Chicago game right here:
Somehow escaping with three points is quite nice
By: travis | Add Comments
Time for a celebration. The Wizards are in first place! The best record in the MLS is a title to hold and treat with such dignity and respect….
Oh yeah, it’s just the fourth week of the season. Still, it’s a good thing to get a road trip off on the right foot even if your team didn’t play up to par. Jack Jewsbury got the winner in the fourth minute off a beautiful ball from Claudio Lopez. Jewsbury controlled the ball, was helped out by a dodgy move from the Fire’s goalie, and smashed it home nicely.
They did well to hang on for the rest of the game and come away with the win. Both sides had chances to win it. The Fire ended the game with 19 total shots. For the Wizards, Tyson Wahl came close, lashing a shot off the post while Chance Myers saw his chance (ha!) go over the bar. Hartman played well and would be my pick for man of the match - although I didn’t see the game. Thanks, Univision. Claudio actually got a brief respite, coming out for the last four minutes of the game. And Sasha Victorine made his midfield debut as well after battling injuries this off-season. The promising thing about this squad is that the MLS has yet to see them with everyone health.
Next Opponent:
Next stop on the tour is Toronto. Should be a tough crowd, but a winnable game on the road. Toronto has picked up their game thus far. It will be no walk in the park.
Wizards look to put out the Fire, gain first place
By: travis | Add Comments
Let’s here it for lame, clichéd headlines! Nothing better than talking about dousing the opposition, especially when they are so cleverly named. What’s neat about the game aside from that is the battle for first place. It is early in the season, but gaining early momentum for the long haul of the season is crucial. Well, not entirely, because the playoffs still determine the champion, but gaining confidence on the road is critical for the Wizards at this early juncture of the season. After all, they won’t play another game in Kansas City for two months. Brutal, if you’re a Wizards fan.
A few interesting tidbits to follow coming into this weekend’s match:
- Claudio Lopez has played in all but one minute of every game this season. So much for him being old. Although as the season progresses, will he wear himself down?
- Two months away from the CAB will be a challenge. How will the team respond?
Carlos Marinelli will probably miss today’s game, with Kurt Morsink replacing him as the attacking midfielder. Not sure if the Wizards will have the legs for this one, but I think they can steal a point.
Chicago 1-1 Kansas City
Home 
