A Late Post Game Report (KC vs. C-Bus). Plus another long rant

By: Herschel | May 11th, 2009

Yes, I know I’m late, but it was Mother’s Day and I had a higher calling. Add to that the fact that I watched the game really late on Fox Sports in Spanish so it was done past midnight and I had l little enthusiasm left to start typing. Still, this is how I see it now that I’m calm, cool and collected.

Player Ratings: Kevin Hartman (5); Lance Watson (3), Jimmy Conrad (4), Aaron Hohlbein (4) (Claudio Lopez (6)), Matt Besler (4); Michael Harrington (3) (Michael Kraus (NR)), Santiago Hirsig (4), Jack Jewsbury (5), Roger Espinoza (5)(Herculez Gomez (4)); Josh Wolff (6), Davy Arnaud (4)

KC Man of the Match: Josh Wolff. Again I think that Josh was the man. Scored a great goal and he was dangerous every time he was given the ball with some sort of an advantage. Plus you have to add that with this flip flopping of playing him wide, then as an attacker, then wide again, etc. he does well to keep scoring. Note to Curt Onalfo: play him up top.

KC Goat of the Match: I hate to say it but it has to be Lance Watson. As the saying goes, “Curt Onalfo went to the well one too many times”. This kid is all heart but does not have the physical presence (strength/height) or quality to be a defender. Third game in a row where he has contributed to an opponent’s goal (got schooled by Vitti in Toronto; pushed off by Wallace vs. D.C; Barros S. got behind him vs the Crew). He is not the solution there.

Opponent MVP: Emmanuel Ekpo. I will try to distribute pictures of Ekpo at KC practice this week so the defenders know who he is since they did not see him go by them all game.

Opponent Goat of the Match: Andy Gruenebaum. I never though I would say this that the Crew really need Will Hesmmer. Gruenebaum gives the Crew no security; the Lopez goal was a prime example.

Player that was in the game but was absent: For the second game in a row: Davy Arnaud. Except for the last 10 or 15 minutes Davy was invisible. Close second for this award: Michael Harrington; he was more active than Arnaud but Michael played what I’d have to say was his worst game with KC (that being said, if you play at your 3rd position in less than 10 games you might be a bit lost).

Game Summary: The Wizards, just like in their last road game against Toronto, started pretty well, keeping some possession and trying to take control of the game; but just like in Toronto this translated to little offensively. Roger Espinoza and Michael Harrington started in midfield with Hirsig and Jewsbury, while Arnaud and Wolff played up top. Although the game was pretty even, it was the Crew that put the KC defense on its heels with quite a few chances, having a goal disallowed for offsides and then Ekpo scoring a few minutes later on a ball that no one in KC wanted to clear (Note to Hirsig: if the ball is coming towards you in the box please move towards it and KICK IT OUT; he looked slow and Ekpo beat him to it). The Crew pressure continued after the goal but Hartman kept them at bay.

The second half started with KC bringing Claudio Lopez in and moving to a 3-4-3 or 3-5-2 (depending on where Wolff and Arnaud were on the field) which allowed the Wizards to regain a bit of control in midfield but seriously exposing them in the back. Five minutes into the half a Lopez free kick (that actually cleared the wall) got passed everyone in the box, including Andy Gruenebaum who did nicely punching the air and letting the ball just trickle in. The tie pushed the Crew forward again and just 4 minutes later Hartman punched out a ball that looked like it could have been caught, Frankie Hejduk controlled it and sent in a cross that passed through the KC box to the far post, to a lonely and unmarked Guillermo Barros who just had to head it in off a bounce (Watson drifted towards the middle and left his side uncovered). KC again went forward trying to equalize but again it was the Crew, taking advantage of a weak (and outnumbered) KC defense who scored; this time through Eddie Gaven who controlled a ball coming from Robbie Rogers, had time to stop it, look up, wave at the fans, wipe the sweat off his brow and adjust his socks before slotting it past Hartman. Wizards kept pushing and a couple of minutes later cut the difference when a nice cross by Jewsbury was buried by a speeding Josh Wolff. KC continued to attack but came up short once again.

Conclusions: A lot of things are not clicking for the Wizards now. Curt Onalfo needs to stop experimenting and figure things out quickly. It clear that Watson should not be starting for KC. Harrington, once a promising star, is fading, most likely as a result of all the different positions he has been playing. Santiago Hirsig CANNOT PLAY ONE TOUCH SOCCER and this is key in the MLS; it makes the game go faster and it saves your legs; yes, the departed Marinelli was not a one touch player either but he was years ahead of Hirsig when it came to vertical passing (when he was healthy and wanted to play); it seems to me that Onalfo is still trying to find a spot for Hirsig. Josh Wolff needs to play up top. Also, when pulling a defender to go to a 3 man back line why do you pull the 2nd most experienced defender who at least has some physical presence to hold players out of the box? Yes Michael Kraus scored a nice goal against Colorado, but is he better and more of a physical presence than Abe Thompson?

This team is very confused, and it seems that the confusion comes from Onalfo not knowing where to play his players. Last year you kind of knew that if Jewsbury or Marinelli were out you’d see Espinoza and Kurt Morsink (or another mid) come in and play the middle of the field and we’d play on. Today if a midfielder goes out it’s anyone’s guess who will come in; same goes for the defense, where Watson (a midfielder) took Harrington’s spot in the back when he got injured. Also, I actually see Jewsbury doing better when he moves out to the wing than when he plays in the middle, at least on attack. Yes he is a very good holding mid but he does very well on the right side of the midfield (which is where his last assists are coming from.

It seems to me that this year the team is so worried about speed on the wings (Gomez, Wolff, Arnaud)that the middle of the field is lost. Add to that we are punchless up front, we have a recipe for missing the playoffs (No, I’m not flushing the season down the drain but the first third is almost over and I see few encouraging trends). Something needs to be done to get some stability in the lineup so that the players can focus on the new strategy for the upcoming game instead of having also figure out where they have to play.

Interesting Stat: KC’s has won only 5 of the last 15 points possible. (1 Win, 2 Draws & 2 losses).

Next game: A tough road game in Salt Lake City.