Glasgow Seahawk wrote:Much better this weekend.
I feel like the team clicked a bit and should have scored more if Morris finishing was better. Morris speed was giving NY absolute fits, just needs to work on his left foot and finishing. His goal though was awesome, kudos to Jones.
I do worry that Lodeiro and Dempsey in the same team isn't optimal. I feel Lodeiro is far better centrally. However, I also get that Dempsey gets goals. I'm wondering as the season goes on if Dempsey may ended up being more of a sub player to keep him fresh.
Was impressed with Shipp who I feel is a definite improvement on Fernandez (I feel like Fernandez has really regressed). Also liking Bruin so far, feel he is far more effective than Valdez, looks good at holding up the ball and isn't a DP.
Defensive depth is starting to look a worry. I doubt NY would have scored that goal if Torres had played. When Marshall looked hurt we would have been down to the bare bones...is Alfaro any good?
Fisher getting hurt also isn't good, we need a RB. When is Evans back? That's been 3 games now he has been out.
Given NY's long unbeaten run, they didn't look that great.
Portland are looking really really good, though it is early.
Alfaro is a solid left footed CB. He's young and a bit inexperienced, but he's good. His development is a big reason why we let the likes of Jimmy Ockford and Damian Lowe leave the club. He's our #4 CB, and really, could be starting for us in a year or so. Marshall can't play forever...same goes for Torres.
Fisher getting hurt is a blow. It likely means we will see more of Svensson at RB, as Evans is out another 3 weeks at least (initial timeline was 6 weeks). I really felt that Fisher was starting to come along too. Defensively he was good, and offensively he was beginning to grasp what Schmetz wants. He just needed to be more decisive in the final third.
I was shocked we got Harry Shipp when we made that deal, because he's a very talented player. Very technical. Not fast (at all), but damn can he play a quick pass. He was a big reason why we made NYRB look so bad.
NYRB is a high-press team, but once you break that pressure, they are vulnerable. We set up to put Jordan in behind, and play technically out of the back. The outside backers were critical. We broke them from outside in. We had an impressive number of 1-2's and Triangles from the Wide Players and the CDM's.
And anyone who is concerned about #6 role when Ozzie retires really shouldn't be...Christian Roldan is an incredible talent and will slot into that role seamlessly. We hit it right when we drafted him. He might also be a factor in keeping Jordan Morris here for an "extended" period of time.
I think our roster right now is pretty good. We have a lot of depth, and thats even considering Evan's fragility. I think we lack a little bit of pace out wide, but with the Joevin Jones emergence, its less of an issue than it was before. There is no issue with Nico cutting in leaving that wide space for Jones. We may still add a player in the summer (maybe even Honda) and I think that'll be fine. I'd like another player with pace, but if Wingo keeps performing, we may already have that option on the squad.