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May 31, 2011

2011 Champions League Final - Barcelona vs. Manchester United

We'd be foolish to not cover the Champions League Final. Two of the best teams in the world? Yes, please.

Apparently America's television ratings for the semifinals had dramatically improved over last year's. I'm curious to see what the ratings were for the final. Unfortunately the 1.5 million viewers for the semifinals weren't enough for Fox to not "dumb down" soccer, yet again. Grant Wahl put it well,
"...the only negative aspect was Fox's pre-game coverage, which continues to dumb down the sport and compare it to other U.S. sports. ESPN proved with its excellent World Cup coverage that you can cover soccer straight up for an American audience without having to turn it into Soccer for Dummies. Fox, sadly, has yet to figure that out. And so we got Michael Strahan making a dimwitted appearance comparing fútbol to football and inane coverage of Gerard Piqué's relationship with the singer Shakira."
Yikes. You can watch the video here but I would only recommend it for those who like to laugh while being frustrated at the same time.

Thoughts on the game are below (and lengthy) but let's first take a look at the stats. (No player ratings but I think we all know how they did. No surprises here.)

(First time here and confused as to what's going on? Check here for definitions and general life clarity.)

Game Stats

Goals at 27', 34', 54', and 69'.

Total Subjective Points Graphs


First Half

Barcelona - 43.47
Manchester - 20.10


Second Half

Barcelona - 63.37
Manchester - 10.70 

Full Game

Barcelona - 106.84
Manchester - 30.80

Momentum Graphs


 First Half Dominance
Barcelona - 56
Manchester - 31
None - 13

GG Rating - 31

Second Half Dominance
Barcelona - 60
Manchester - 0
None - 40

GG Rating - 40

Final Game Dominance
Barcelona - 58
Manchester - 15
None - 27

GG Rating - 36
 
Numbers

***Example Category***
Team - Chances...Threat Rate/100 
Team - Chances...Threat Rate/100

First Half
Possession
 Barcelona - 49...12.3
Manchester - 23...10.2

Passing
Barcelona - 40...14.4
Manchester - 24...13.5

Shooting
Barcelona - 10...27.6
Manchester - 3...46.0

Second Half
 
Possession
 Barcelona - 59...13.2
Manchester - 22...7.1

Passing
Barcelona - 39...14.6
Manchester - 25...5.3

Shooting
Barcelona - 12...46.5
Manchester - 2...33.0

Final
 
Possession
Barcelona - 108...12.8
Manchester - 45...8.7

Passing
Barcelona - 79...14.5
Manchester - 49...9.3

Shooting
Barcelona - 22...37.9
Manchester - 5...40.8

Conclusion

The only stat that's surprising is how low the GG Rating (36 out of 100) and Manchester's dominance are (0 in the second half). Turns out that this wasn't really "the game" to display to Americans as far as pure entertainment goes. Sure, watching one of the best teams of all-time demolish another really good team is meaningful to most of the world, but if you wanted to grab someone's attention that didn't know anything about soccer (which seems like how every soccer game in America is presented) this wasn't the one, in hindsight, of course. You'd want constant action because everyone in America is so ADD not a moderately paced game. All of this just furthers the point of who the 1.5 million viewers really were; they weren't some random sports enthusiasts but genuine soccer fans (*ahem* Fox...). But all of this is really a side point...

As far as the stats go, Barcelona trounced Manchester. Well, as far as anything went in this game, Barcelona had a significant edge.

At first I was going to point out Manchester's lack of performance from Javier Hernandez and Antonio Valencia but I think the bigger problem may lie in Manchester's strategy. The kick-it-and-get-it strategy obviously didn't work for Manchester (see the numbers). More importantly, this game plan is universally reviewed as "bad soccer". The one major complaint about America's strategy is that we do just this exact same thing and maintain a lack of creativity in attack. On top of the general distaste from the soccer community, English soccer was blasted in Soccernomics for an overabundance of over the top passes. (I'll hold off on the book review for now, but I'll just go ahead and point out that the start of the subtitle is "Why England Loses...".) By now, soccer should have progressed from the 1970's where teams were solely relying on these type of booted "passes" combined with raw speed to produce goals. You'll hardly ever see Barcelona do this because they have a much more efficient strategy, but we'll get back to that later.

As far as Hernandez and Valencia go, Hernandez isn't equipped to play such a game. He's too light to win anything in the air compared to the athletic backline that Barcelona produced. And the umpteen offsides (I think I counted six) for Hernandez really shows he doesn't belong in this environment. The same goes for Rooney (except that he can actually hold himself in the air). Rooney is known for his striking abilities but he possesses equally talented vision and recognizes great passing lanes. Put the ball on the ground and don't let their talents go to waste. You can run the 4-4-1-1 if you wish, but not like this.

Valencia may have a different problem on his hands. This is likely the best type of offense for him, which is disheartening. His brute work-ethic (that's a compliment) fits this strategy perfectly and he's always looking upfield. However, he couldn't find rhythm in his short-field passing (or long, for that matter) nor could he figure out what the ref would and wouldn't call on his challenges. (Right or wrong, you have to be aware of what referee you're dealing with. Valencia came off as more of a thug with the constant bulldozing of Barcelona's quick-to-drop attackers.) The inability to conquer these problems are warning flags indicating his lack of discipline of skill and a change to a more passer-friendly setting would be a big challenge.

Moving on, something that I noticed in Barcelona's gameplan is that they hardly ever served the ball from the corner (whether in-game or a set corner kick). In fact, sometimes when they were rewarded with a corner they looked insulted and they would just play the ball back out. They do this because, one, they don't match up physically, and two, they don't need to. Their most effective attack was some combination of these events (all heightened by Manchester's inability to defend the attack properly):
  1. Slowly creep onto Manchester's side of the field. No rush here.
  2. Push outside-mids to the touch-lines, which widens the defense and creates holes.
  3. Once ball is 20-30 yards out, have outside-mids make a diagonal run from the touch-line through the corner of the 18. (Here the defense struggles to maintain balance. Either the outside-mid is blatantly open or a defender has dropped off to defend the through ball.)
  4. Either slot a ball to the running outside-mid or to another attacker who has stepped up in the gap where a defender once occupied.
  5. Play some sort of combination pass to set up a shot either inside the 18 or, Barcelona's favorite, atop the 18.
  6. Shoot smart, percentage shots. No need to hit the ball 100% strength nor in the deepest part of the corner. Just on frame, well-struck, and away from the keeper.
This strategy is extremely efficient for multiple reasons, which we will also list:
  1. No relying on a mass clump to head the ball towards the goal that outside service relies on.
  2. It doesn't matter how many defenders the opposition drops because this offense supplies multiple points of attack: inside of the 18, goal line areas, top of the 18...
  3. An ill-disciplined defense is getting too sucked in to the ball play to notice a camper (if not two) patiently waiting their shot.
  4. The shot from atop the 18 is golden and highly underrated. The keeper is back on his line with a blocked view. Villa's goal is a perfect example of this; it wasn't drilled but rather lofted into the corner. Ask a goalie how much more difficult stopping a shot is when you're sitting on your line as opposed to stepping up and cutting down the angle by two steps. Huge difference.
  5. Clears by the defense are panicky with this pressure and it's easy to corral the ball to start back up again.
    Eventually Manchester retaliated to Barcelona's offense by dropping their already low pressure to even less to make sure there weren't any dangerous through balls. This forced Van Der Sar to have to drop even further as well, playing right on his goal line. Barcelona didn't change and thing and, with even more time on their hands, waited for an opening in the defense. With hardly any pressure, they used their quick acceleration and superb touch to take three or four dribbles into given space and shoot confidently from within twenty yards. All of this is why Messi was given the opportunity to shoot his would-be goal but he wasn't the only one.

    Basically, Barcelona has perfected everything your U-10 coach has been yelling at you for years. Off the ball movement, low amount of touches, backdoor runs, and willingness to shoot ("You can't score if you don't shoot!"). But could Manchester have done anything to stop the best team ever? Yes, but it wouldn't be easy.

    Stopping Barcelona
    We thought the insanely large print would be a cool effect.
    1. (Hey, we like lists here.) Start pressure with the forwards and attacking midfielders (and not just because Barcelona did it!). Barcelona is getting the luxury of looking in from 40 yards out with no pressure to see their best option. It's as dangerous as it sounds. Manchester was willing to run (as displayed fearlessly by Ji-Sung and Rooney) but they need to harness that effort into not letting the first 60 yards be a cakewalk for Barcelona.
    2. Off-the-ball defending. This is huge. Barcelona is so good at backside runs that it makes you want to go play FIFA 11 immediately. (Watch the first goal and see the back two defenders get torn to pieces.) Defenses need to keep their shape even if players are zigging and zagging about. And just because the player you're defending passes the ball doesn't mean you can stop defending him. See all runs through to stop potentially dangerous opportunities.
    3. Don't be so quick to counter. Barcelona honestly doesn't push a lot of players forward (they scored their third goal 5 v. 7) so a counter in your favor won't happen too often, which Manchester didn't see. Work with the same patience Barcelona displays and work the ball up through your midfield. Be mindful not to just waste a ball by dumping it over the defense, especially if they've seen it a dozen times already. 
    ::::Edit:::: I found a couple of other suggestions as how to combat Barcelona but they weren't too helpful. All I found was basically being told to just "stop" their entire team, another told you what not to do with Messi, there was the general rhetorical question with no answer, and one implied injuring him.

    However, the best (besides ours, of course) was this one. It suggested putting pressure on the back line (our number one), funneling the wide attack by staying tight, and essentially having someone play one-on-one with Messi as a personal defender. We're not too uppity on the second option, as Barcelona will take the ball down to the goal line if they are given the chance, but I liked the personal defender option. Interesting tactic...

      Everything previous summed up into three sentences:
      - Manchester had the skill, they just didn't use it to their best interest.
      - Barcelona isn't impossible to defend nor score on.
      - But they're still the best team in the world for a reason.

      May 29, 2011

      YNTs Follow-Up

      U-18s - Poor reporting for the mens youth teams in a variety of humorous ways. First, US Soccer's own website hasn't fully reported on the U-18s in the Lisbon International Tournament (they were supposed to play Finland for their third and final game yesterday). What we do know is that they tied with the Netherlands 1-1 and then lost to host Portugal 1-0. Another hilarious/disappointing miscue is FC Dallas' wrongly attributing the goal to Luis Gill or... was it Luis Rendon, as mentioned on the first link... either way neither source is all that trustworthy.

      The U-18s will play in the Northern Ireland Milk Cup, which takes place in late July. On the 25th they face Israel then two days later they'll meet familiar Mexico. Looking at other teams in race for the cup (Denmark, Northern Ireland, and Georgia) this isn't that prestigious of a cup and seems to be more targeted towards the club part of it. Regardless, the U-18s are getting games in and we're always happy to see that.

      Luis Rendon won Gatorade Player of the Year. You can get to know him here. Good to see a more personal side to players whose only other interaction we have is watching them on a pitch. Somewhat disappointing they didn't have any actual game film on him though.


      U-17s - World Cup starts in three weeks for them.


      U-15s - Literally the day after I wrote that they went missing. USA found the boys. Apparently they were just playing soccer games and (I guess) got a little sidetracked from telling their parents how they did. They split the two game series with a win and a loss against Croatia.

      2011 USMNT Gold Cup Roster release

      US Gold Cup Roster (released Monday, May 23)

      GOALKEEPERS: Tim Howard, Marcus Hahnemann, Nick Rimando

      DEFENDERS: Clarence Goodson, Jonathan Spector, Carlos Bocanegra, Steve Cherundolo, Oguchi Onyewu, Eric Lichaj, Tim Ream, Jonathan Bornstein,

      MIDFIELDERS: Michael Bradley, Maurice Edu, Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan, Sacha Kljestan, Robbie Rogers, Freddy Adu, Benny Feilhaber, Jermaine Jones

      FORWARDS: Juan Agudelo, Jozy Altidore, Chris Wondolowski 

      Some of the most notable exceptions are at right back with Timothy Chandler's absence, who will be easily replaced by the veteran Steve Cherundolo. Omar Gonzalez was excluded, but Bradley can only afford to have two lumbering center backs on the roster (Onyewu and Goodson). 

      The center midfield will be difficult for others to break down, with a expected core of Bradley, Edu, and Jones. Two old-but-not-aged faces make the roster in Adu and Rogers, which mixes up the normal mix of attack-minded midfielders. 

      Chris Wondolowski lit up MLS last season with 19 goals, and has been rewarded with a fine beginning to his season with a call-up. His inclusion all but ensures that Altidore and Agudelo will start together, and hints that we could see Donovan or Dempsey seeing some time up top as well. 

      I would have like to see Bunbury make this roster, and surely Charlie Davies was looked at heavily but is still considered to not be at his previous high level of play.

      Brad Guzan is getting married this summer, apparently, which allows Nicky Rimando to step in to camp. While Guzan is the better player at this stage of his career, but Rimando is definitely a positive influence in the locker-room.

      See detailed roster here.

      The U.S opens on June 7 in Detroit vs Canada, then moves to Tampa to face Panama on June 11, and closes out the group stage against Guadeloupe on June 14 in Kansas City. 

      The Quarterfinals will be on June 18 & 19, Semis on June 22, and the Final is June 25 at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. Here's the proof.

      CONCACAF has become increasingly competitive in recent years, and this tournament will provide evidence to that fact. The U.S. has a strong team, with a only a couple of holes (left back), but could struggle against an up-and-coming team like Canada. 

      If the U.S. makes the Final, a game against Mexico (lead by the offensive trio of Vela, dos Santos, and Chicharito) in Los Angeles will be a grudge match.

      May 23, 2011

      05-23-11 Roundup: Covering Various Teams

      I had the unfortunate chance to watch the FC Dallas vs. Real Salt Lake match. I assumed with both teams sitting second and third in the Western Conference that this would be a good match-up. I should have looked a little bit more closely at the goals scored/goals allowed for Utah's side: 9/2. As in, they have given up two goals in eight games but have only scored nine as well.

      I tuned in from the 35th minute until the rain stoppage at the 83rd but it was more than enough to get a sense of the game. You can watch the highlights but there's not a whole lot to offer. To give you an idea of the game, the momentum graph (which I'm not going to bother posting so you'll just have to take my word) didn't rise above nine while the WNT against Japan rested over twenty-five twice. The GG Rating was only a 16 with the previously mentioned game at a 73. ("Wolf" indeed.) Again, I only watched a half of the entire game but the highlights didn't hint at me missing a ton other than a George John goof shot and a rocket at Hartman from Will Johnson from 25 yards out.


      Some players played in the Chile game back in January, some didn't...
      • Gabe Alexander had some nice combination play on the right side with Jackson but was subbed out at the 77th minute.
      • Brek Shea provided some attack but almost all of his crosses were eons too early, something that won't be tolerated at the interational level. I know he's trying to counter quickly against a loaded defensive line but he was oblivious to nearly every situation he was sending a ball into. As a player as a whole, there's little smart defending although his energy and willingness to make plays happen seem to overshadow that flaw for most people...
      • Zach Loyd played well but I've always been a fan since the draft. I think he can fit into the LB spot for the national team in time...
      • Nick Rimando did everything that was asked of him and then some on the awkward but necessary save from George John's shot...
      • George John has been talked about a lot in and out of the game.  Currently the 8th best player in the MLS.
      Conclusion

      RSL had no attack and you can't blame Javier Morales' absence on this. I'm not saying the skill of the fielded 11 wasn't less, I'm merely pointing out that RSL made no effort to attack FC Dallas. Every counter Dallas had they were going into numbers. And I'm talking about quick 18-to-18 counters into a 3-on-6 defensive man advantage. RSL just camped out with five defenders and had midfielders playing shallow to stop any idea of an attack. 

      Statistically, RSL had tallied just nine subjective points in 45 minutes. Compare this to Japan's 37+ in their losing effort that most people would describe as a "stomp" (they were outscored by the WNT by nearly quadruple subjective points). On the other side of the field, FC Dallas could only muster just over twenty points in watched 45, which would extrapolate to close to Japan's.

      All of this is even more interesting (or depressing, considering your point of view) when you find out that RSL is led by ex-FC Dallas striker and prolific scorer, Jason Kreis. Just a mind-boggling no-strategy on Kreis' part, really. I guess that MLS unbeaten home streak means a ton to these guys.

      Game Observations

      I'm having trouble finding the name of the commentators but the higher pitched fellow actually had some decent insight to the game. And the basic play-by-play guy didn't have a British accent (although that's a staple for MLS games anyway). Overall they did very well...

      On free kicks I saw the ref mark the grass with, what looked like, shaving cream. I may be behind the times on this but I still thought it was a great idea immediately after seeing it...

      There was a scuffle around the 73rd minute. Shea went to clear a ball in his box by kicking backwards upfield. Shea's foot came close to Real Salt Lake player, Olave, and proceeded to fall to the ground grasping his ghost-bitten face. Hernandez said something Olave didn't like but not after he "straddled" Olave laying on the ground. The players moshed together and the referee had to interfere, although no cards were given. The commentator put it beautifully, "No player wants to be straddled whatsoever."...

      I haven't surveyed all the refs but the fact that David Gantar caught my eye probably means he's the best center ref the MLS has to offer. He reffed the U-20 Suriname game. I like how this website describes of him, "[Gantar] finally got what he deserved by getting his FIFA badge. It's very hard to go far as a FIFA referee from Canada but hopefully Gantar can change that and give hope to other Canadian referees."...

      Men's Youth Programs

      (Side note: It's a tad discouraging when you can't find news about a team on their own website. Imagine if the Los Angeles Lakers didn't publish their own results of games and were weeks of of date.)
       
      U-20s - Recently played France's U-20s to a 3-3 draw on the 17th earlier this month and a 2-1 loss on the 19th. The U-20s carried about half of the squad that went through WC qualifying over to France. The highlights took forever to load for me but was worth it. Some great goals as well as some head scratchers. The best of the videos is Rowe's free kick in the 2-1 loss that set up Conor "Cherrypicker" Doyle's goal.

      U-18s - Days away from starting the Lisbon International Tournament where they'll face the Netherlands, Portugal, and Finland. Among the squad is captained Luis Gill who scored in the first U-20 game against France and attended the same tournament last year.

      U-17s - Won the CONCACAF championship earlier this year with an amazing goal (start at 3:30) from Nathan Smith in the 92' of overtime to lead USA to a 3-0 win over Canada. Now they're awaiting the start of the 2011 U-17 World Cup where they'll face Czech Republic, Uzbekistan, and New Zealand in group play. USA was among the top six teams in Pot A that were dispersed to the other six groups. (The other five teams were Mexico (hosts), Germany, England, Brazil, and Argentina.) The World Cup starts in late June with their first game against the Czech Republic on the 19th.

      U-15s - Apparently the boys (who are in eighth and ninth grade, to put things in perspective) traveled to Croatia and... have not been heard from again. Check for yourself. This is really disappointing that the boys have gone missing on USA's part. Please keep these boys in your prayers.

      May 18, 2011

      WNT vs. Japan: Recap, Ratings, and Stats

      This was my first WNT game to watch since 1999 and it was good to see that the team decided to stay clothed after a goal. Oh and that they dominated in the game too.

      The women set the tone early with physical and fast play to negate any attack Japan attempted. This opened up for several counters in the WNT's numerical favor. They maintained possession in the attacking third and had more than their fair share of opportunities as the fourth ranked team in the world was simply overpowered by USA's size and speed. Goalkeeper Hope Solo had little action and the times she did she handled appropriately. Up top, the women targeted Abby Wambach the most but it was Amy Rodriguez (28') and Heather O’Reilly (69') that put USA on the board.

      The women have one more tune up game against Mexico before the start of the World Cup in late June. The team looks to be running on all cylinders despite suffering recent injuries.

      Player Ratings

      Megan Rapinoe - (12...10/2) - Great service on set pieces despite announcer and WNT alumni Julie Foudy's wishes of higher balls. The occasional low, hard pass (when on target) was handled well by her teammates and still provided chances in the box. Rapinoe ran up and down the field for 83 minutes and was in nearly every attacking play.

      Heather O’Reilly - (10...8.5/1.5) - Key in both scoring plays. She had a great move that set up the pass to Rodriguez on the first goal and found the corner of the net for the second. Willing to be creative but not force unnecessary plays.

      Carli Lloyd - (9.5...7.5/2) - Lloyd was on the same page with substitute Alex Morgan and kept the attack alive after Rodriguez was replaced by Morgan. Great vision to set up some dangerous chances.

      Shannon Boxx - (8.5...5/3.5) - Briana Scurry said Boxx was without a doubt the player of the game but I'd have to disagree. Boxx provided great offensive support but defense and fitness were both lacking. She only played 60 minutes and her biggest praise of the night would be in reference to the second assist on the first goal. Boxx did a great job of switching the point of attack then (as well as several other times throughout the night) but O'Reilly deserves more credit for making the goal happen.

      Rachel Buehler - (8...6.5/1.5) - The captain did a great job at the back and had no trouble with the Japanese attackers.

      Abby Wamback - (8...5.5/2.5) - Like stated before, the offense tried and tried to get her a goal but she couldn't put one in the back of the net, and only because of her own doing. Tonight she fell somewhere between unlucky and poor finishing. Although there should be nothing to fret about as her previous performance against Japan was extraordinary. She'll be fine come June.

      Becky Sauerbrunn - (7.5...4.5/3) - I'm a little worried of this CB with her aggressiveness. Tonight she won several tackles but other times if the WNT was playing a faster team, she would have made the wrong step to a challenge and provide an unbalanced three man defense.

      Ali Krieger - (6.5...5.5/1) - The right back saw the least amount of action of the defense but performed in excellent demeanor.

      Amy Rodriguez - (6...4.5/2) - Took the credit on the first goal with great positioning and patience but was MIA for too long in the game. Only played 60 minutes but she could have been used a lot more.

      Alex Morgan - (6...4/2) - Possibly the WNT version of Juan Agudelo. Her speed and smart runs gave her the same (if not more) amount of chances to score as Rodriguez did in only half the time. Electrifying and gave life to the offense around the time where most teams settle down.


      Stephanie Cox - (5.5...3/2.5) - Positioning is worrisome as she seemed too high at times when on defense. Got away with it tonight but several balls were dropped in over her towards the corner.


      Amy LePeilbet - (5.5...5/0.5) - Played with confidence with the ball at her feet. Less offensive minded than Cox but as Foudy pointed out she is more of a center back as opposed to her playing out on the right side.


      Hope Solo - (4...4/0) - Flawless play with the limited action she saw. Nice to get a shutout, either way.


      Lori Lindsey - (1.5...1/.5) - Hates animal cruelty.


      Lauren Cheney - (0.5...0.5/0) - Has several socks.


      Tobin Heath - (0.5...0.5/0) - Great hygiene.

      Game Stats

      Subjective Points Graphs
       

      First Half

      USA - 45.33
      Japan - 18.17 
       

      Second Half

      USA - 83.00
      Japan - 19.50 

      Full Game

      USA - 128.33
      Japan - 37.67

      Momentum Graphs

       First Half Dominance
      USA - 43
      Japan - 5
      None - 62

      GG Rating - 40/100


       
       Second Half Dominance
      USA - 69
      Japan - 2
      None - 34

      GG Rating - 73/100

      Full Game Dominance
      USA - 56
      Japan - 4
      None - 40

      GG Rating - 57/100

      Numbers

      ***Example Category***
      Team - Chances...Threat Rate/100 
      Team - Chances...Threat Rate/100

      First Half
      Possession
       USA - 31...18.7
      Japan - 18...12.2

      Passing
      USA - 34...22.1
      Japan - 25...14.0

      Shooting
      USA - 8...33.7
      Japan - 4...25.0

      Second Half
      Possession
       USA - 54...20.7
      Japan - 19...13.2

      Passing
      USA - 50...21.8
      Japan - 20...14.5

      Shooting
      USA - 10...55.0
      Japan - 6...20.0

      Final
      Possession
      USA - 85...19.9
      Japan - 37...12.7

      Passing
      USA - 84...21.9
      Japan - 45...14.2

      Shooting
      USA - 18...45.6
      Japan - 10...22.0

      Conclusion

      The WNT more than dominated the fourth best team in the world even without their leading scored at her best. The revenge game against Mexico will be interesting to watch and their expectations at the World Cup are nothing less than first, even though they're in Germany.

      Side Notes
      Perhaps the pending rapture sparked two comments of "biblical proportions" from the studio commentators...  

      Foudy relentlessly critiqued the Japanese side with comments like, "We'd say the [Asian teams] can't hang with us mentally and physically. Pound them in the second half."...

      Pia Sundhage upped her record with the WNT to 63-4-5...

      Ian Drake is one of the worst announcers ever...

      Highlights