Back in San Jose, and I must say, its good to be home. Unfortunately, the Quakes couldn’t say the same last Saturday, and once again find themselves on the road this week. They undoubtedly suffered from the absence of Guerrero, Kamara, and O’Brien, looking devoid of life in a 3-1 loss against Salt Lake. All credit is due to Real, however, as they did a good job of taking advantage of our weaknesses and the first two goals were real beauties. The one bright spot for the Quakes was Cunliffe’s goal, no more than a consolation prize, yet definitely in contention as our most aesthetically pleasing goal so far this season. It was enough to persuade many fans that it is now time for Cunliffe to get his shot up front. I wouldn’t mind seeing him get the nod over Kirovski, who seems destined to pursue mediocrity on yet another team.
Another match-up against Columbus and all I can say is I’m glad that it’s the last this season (unless we make it to MLS Cup that is, I know, I know, but humor can be helpful). Listen folks, its a long season, so let’s get some enjoyment out of it and look towards the future. Yes, someone messed up big time on the Peguero deal. Yes, some of the picks from the expansion draft were underwhelming. But it ain’t a straight shot to the top (well, unless you get a championship caliber squad moved to your city). We had to put up with years of soccer so painful to watch that the youth soccer at halftime looked Premiership quality by comparison, all so that on the scales of karma we earned two championships. So…we’re on our way!
Quakes/Columbus Pregame Analysis
Goalkeepers: Same as I said last time pretty much. Hesmer is solid but can be beaten. Cannon is having an ok season, but nothing spectacular.
Advantage - Even
Crew Forwards vs. Quakes Defense: Center Line Soccer is reporting that Garcia picked up an injury in training and will probably miss Saturday’s game. Bad, bad news for the Quakes. Without him our defensive quality drops from about a B to a C-. Cochrane and Hernandez both do decently, but are prone to mistakes (Cochrane more so). Needless to say, Moreno will look to battle for balls and win fouls, drawing attention away from other Crew attackers making runs. If the Quakes can’t shut down Robbie Rogers and let him run free as they did last game, it will be over much quicker.
Advantage - Crew
Quakes Forwards vs. Crew Defense: Look for Ryan Johnson to do his thing again on Saturday. He’s more valuable for his ability to beat up defenders, win balls, and launch runs that make things difficult for the opposition than for actually scoring goals. If only Kirovski was valuable for something. If he starts, we’re looking at easy money for the Crew defenders. If its Cunliffe who starts, then it’s tough to call. The Crew have gone through a bit of a slump, as has their defense. Ultimately they have a solid, but not spectacular unit in the back.
Advantage - Crew
Midfield: The Crew’s strength and currently the Quakes’ weakness. Schelotto knows how to pick apart defenses (wow, the obvious statement of the weak). Rogers is the main danger man, and should be concentrated on heavily. Ronnie O’Brien needs to play on the right as he has more of a defensive presence, and I would put someone like Gray on the right side of the defense who will stay back and focus on marking Rogers. Gaven is blah most of the time and can be taken out of the game if he doesn’t take himself out. I am not a big fan of Vide in the middle at all, at least not until he develops his game more. Every time it has been tried, we have gotten savaged through the middle. I would keep Corrales there and try someone like Riley out left (or even Salinas, since we won’t need as much defense on that side). I would prefer as solid a middle as possible and experiment on the flank if anything in the absence of Guerrero.
Advantage - Crew
Coaching: Here is the real test for Sigi. He’s had a good start to the season, but he needs to break his boys out of their slump. If they crash to yet another disappointing finale to the season, he’ll be out of a job. Has Frank lost his magic? Some have asked the question given the acquisition of people like Peguero and Kirovski, as well as some of the draft choices (Goodson, Pozniak, etc.). Still way too early to make such claims I think. It will take a lot of wrongs to erase two championships in my book.
Advantage - Even
Intangibles: The Crew have lost some of their initial momentum and are in a mini-slump. Then again, a slump has to end at some point, and the Crew must see San Jose as the perfect tonic. The last result between these two teams will certainly give them confidence, but will they be over-confident? San Jose has to prove it can win on the road (yes, there was Colorado, but that seems ages ago now) soon, otherwise this road trip will become a long nightmare and a hole that it’s impossible to escape from. They must become true road warriors, and I think they know that at this point.
Advantage - Even
Key Man: Ronnie O’Brien
This of course assumes that he will be playing on Saturday, which is not 100% certain yet. If so, he will have an absolutely vital role. First, he must hustle all game long and help out the defense with Rogers. Second, he needs to be a key channel for the attack (something that we haven’t seen for a few games), which not only is necessary in the absence of Guerrero but will also force Rogers to track back and take him out of the game offensively.
If I Were Manager:
Cunliffe-Johnson
Salinas-Corrales-Grabavoy-O’Brien
Denton-Garcia-Hernandez-Gray
Cannon
