May 19th, 2009 . 11:02 am . By: Buzz Carrick

SLIPPED AWAY! SLIPPED AWAY? SHE DIDN’T JUST SLIP AWAY! YOU DID IT! YOU DID IT! YOU DID IT! YOU MURDERED MY MISERY!- Annie Wilkes

After a couple weeks of not being able to see the FCD game live due to work, I managed to catch this one in real time.  Frankly when the season is this bad it can be hard to find good stuff to say.  So in an effort to be more positive I’m flipping the order of these pieces so I can finish with what I did like.

In the end the point was them main thing.  It is a step in the right direction.

Before we ran out on the field, I drew a figure about half way on a hill and I said that we were on a slippery slope. We’re in a situation where we haven’t done well for ourselves in points but we’ve played three games at home and I think we have six games out of seven at home so we have the opportunity to move up the hill or continue to slide down the hill, so I think (we) took the right step forward. It’s been frustrating for the coaches and players but if we can produce the way we did in the second half we will be moving up the hill. – FCD Head Coach Schellas Hyndman

No Tan Bueno (Not So Good)

The first half was perhaps, as a friend of mine said, the worst soccer FCD has played in their history.  That’s just how bad is was and it should have been worse cause Seattle blew some scoring chances.  Was this first 30 the rock bottom?  One can only hope.

It was really frustrating in the first half with all of the turnovers. I think we lost the ball 22 times in the midfield and you can’t find much success that way. – Hyndman

I am really disappointed that Anthony Wallace and Brek Shea didn’t start.  Both have had a terrific two weeks in training, both have been mentioned by the coach to the media, both got long runs with the first in training. So why didn’t they start?  Is the coach that worried about losing? Is he that afraid of youth, or of losing the vets?  The Team isn’t winning anyway, so what’s the worry?  As a result of the coach’s unwillingness to start the kids, Drew Moor started at left back, a position he has not played since Indiana.  No guts no glory coach. 

I like Marcelo Saragosa, he’s a great guy.  He’s a good player to have on your roster.  But if he’s a starter, then you’re in trouble and someone has made a mistake in team building.  Saragosa hasn’t been good enough to start since he came to the league with the Galaxy.  He was getting killed by Steve Zakuani in the first half.  At least Hyndman recognized it and made a change, or someone did if it wasn’t Hyndman.

I’ve said this a couple times now, but the diamond 4-4-2 requires a player at the d-mid spot FCD doesn’t have.  It takes a player like Seattle’s Osvaldo Alonso.  What a player he is; intensity, ranges, toughness, touch, and passing.  He never let Ferreira get more than a foot away from him.   FCD doesn’t have that player and it’s certainly not Ricchetti, who despite being a great player, doesn’t have the range nor intimidating physical side needed there.  Maybe Wallace could be that player some day, but he’s not now despite his improved play this week.

Unfortunately George John got hurt in this game. One of the few bright spots this season, John is now out several weeks, maybe a month.

Don’t let the goal fool you, Andre Rocha was crap.  He continues to mail it in this season.  I couldn’t be more disappointed in that, cause I know just how good he can be having seen him play for CAP.  He’s got MLS First XI talent and I was really sold on signing him, but it’s clear his head just isn’t right.  I don’t think he wanted to come back this year.  It’s time for Rocha to sit.

El Camino Central (Middle of the Road)

The switch to the 3-5-2 was effective, but I’m not sure that it was the reason in and of itself for the improvement in play.  It did help FCD get more of the ball in midfield cause Alonso couldn’t smother Ferreira. 

We came into the locker room with some enthusiasm and found out that our other center back was injured; Steve Purdy was out with a knee so we tried to put a makeshift (lineup) together. We trained a little with the 3-5-2 last week and thank goodness we did.

Seattle came back with Stephen King to try and counter the FCD possession they were getting with the 3-5-2. 

We were trying to go for the win and we brought Stephen King in because of the fact that we felt he could help us possess the ball a little bit and ironically it turned out Brad Evans gets hurt at about the same moment. So, we didn’t really get the chance to play that way, so the natural one would come with (Sanna) Nyassi. – Seattle Head Coach Sigi Schmid

El Bueno (The Good)

Brek Shea was terrific up top.  He should have started. He also should have scored, but he knows that.  Shea creates chaos with his work, gets in good spots (i.e. the box), and could have had two.  He needs to start this week.

He’s just a big body. He’s a quick player and has got good speed. He plays pretty courageously. He believes in himself and takes people on. Last week, we worked a lot on the flick ball from striker to striker and I thought we were putting them under some pressure. I thought he really did a good job considering how much he was playing today. – Hyndman

I’ve been saying for a while that FCD needed a veteran leader in the back to hold the defense together.  It looks like Hyndman may have found the solution by accident cause Pablo Ricchetti in defense was fantastic.  Ricchetti doesn’t like to play back there, but at this point who cares.  When you’re 1-6-2 sacrifices must be made.

Bruno Guarda may have had his best game yet for FCD.  That was the Guarda I remember from SMU.  I won’t say he was great, but it was his addition that made the biggest impact in midfield, specifically the bite and intensity he brought.  (I give Saragosa a little bit of credit here too.)  But it was Guarda’s greater range and will to fight that helped the most.  It looks like Guarda might yet turn out to be a terrific holding midfielder.  He certainly has more range than anyone else we have seen so far.

Pablo did a great job at center (back) and I thought at that point with Brek Shea and Bruno Guarda in there it gave us a different look. It gave us what we’ve been missing, that bite and aggressiveness in the team and I thought the boys played a good second half. – Hyndman

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