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It’s So Easy a Caveman…Maybe Not
Last night, in the hot spring air of Cleveland, Ohio, the United States Men’s National Soccer Team played a friendly against Belgium. A final score in soccer can have a variety of meanings. For instance, a 1-nil affair could be thrilling or downright dull. In the case of the 4-2 final score between the U.S. and Belgium, it too had its defining dynamics.
The Belgians were terrific at making quick, cutting runs towards the goal while moving fluidly on counter-attacks while the United States’ defense looked like a castle with no draw bridge when the enemy charged. Combine the two together and there’s the final tally of 4-2. After each mistake the defensive backline of the U.S. made, the commentator, former MLS (& briefly USMNT) player Taylor Twellman, rigidly defended (at least one American was defensive last night) how the errors in the defense were easily fixable.
The score was 1-1 at halftime.
Then, during a fifteen minute span (56′-71′), the sharply dressed Belgians put three past the Americans to make the game a quintessential blowout. Again, patience was professed by Twellman regarding the latest, yet still “easily fixable” mistakes of the defense. We the fans just need to continue to be patient for these defenders to develop.
Three years ago during the World Cup in South Africa, the backline consistently conceded a goal within the first ten minutes or so of a game. Its predictability deserved its own mathematical proof. As it was said then too, the players in the back were still great defenders and all of this was just bad luck or was, again, “easily fixable.”
It was never fixed.
What we the fans and the team needs is not patience in the defense anymore, but rather serious changes in personnel. The “easily fixable” mistakes continue to happen over and over and over again. The defenders are not defending. This is a minor problem when you’re a defender. Perhaps, these players are not capable of making the easy fixes. The bottom line is that the wrong combination of players are being assigned to play directly in front of Tim Howard. Of all the lines in any formation for any team, the defense needs to be the most solid and have the strongest foundation. Period. Think about the backline of a chess or checkers game…
(And yes, I’m aware Carlos Bocanegra (34) and Steve Cherundolo (34) were both absent. However, the World Cup is about a year away and must-win qualifiers are right around the corner and conceding goals in bunches is a recipe for disaster)
Twellman also said during the broadcast that defender DaMarcus Beasley could catch anyone on the field with his recovery speed. False. He literally stopped running when coming back to defend a Belgian attack and his mark was the player who, seconds later, calmly played the ball across the box to his teammate who scored a goal.
Omar Gonzalez, heralded as a “great defender,” was absent-minded on the first Belgian goal as he stopped defending his mark around the American’s penalty box. He was absent-minded during other critical moments throughout the course of the game. Geoff Cameron (also a “great defender”) was directly responsible for the first goal as he stopped running and covering his man after an initial shot by the Belgian and save by Howard. The rebound by his mark was an easy slice into the back of Howard’s net (I will give Cameron isolated props for getting the equalizer at 1-1 about fifteen minutes later). On another occasion, Beasley literally bounced off his mark and the Belgian was then able to easily cut to the top of the 18-yard box for an uncontested shot on goal. Quite frankly, Beasley is not strong enough to be a defender.
The only bright side of the defense may have been Clarence Goodson.
The problem in soccer is that each team is only afforded three substitutions and having to replace your entire backline is usually not an encouraging sign.
P.S. I think Chad Marshall and Josh Williams own cell phones…and after watching Brad Guzan, add Andy Gruenebaum to the call list as well.
und der Meister ist…Bayern Munich!!!
After 93 minutes of fast-paced action between the two giants of Germany, and the world this season, Bayern Munich defeated Borussia Dortmund by the final score of 2-1 to hoist the most sought after cup in European club football: The Champions League trophy. From the first whistle, the Bundesliga rivals were locked-in to attack each others’ defenses in the hopes of scoring first and setting the tone in the stunningly massive Wembley Stadium in London.
An insightful pass from Frenchman Franck Ribéry got to the perfectly cutting Dutchman Arjen Robben who, after dribbling just past the goalkeeper, while simultaneously dancing towards the baseline, was able to cross the ball in front of the goal and past a defender where Croatian Mario Mandžukić was waiting for the bouncing kick-in.
GOAL!
1-nil Bayern Munich in the 59th minute.
Just a mere nine minutes later, Bayern Munich defender Dante, in a very ill-advised move, raised his cleats to the stomach of Marco Reus. A rightly deserved penalty kick followed and Ilkay Gundogan of Borussia Dortmund guessed correctly and easily scored the equalizer for the men in black and yellow.
GOAL!
1-1 in the 68th minute.
In the closing moments of regulation, with the game level at 1-1, an advantageous pass into the feet of the offensively charging Ribéry at the top of the eighteen quickly evolved into a perfectly timed touch to the charging Robben. Following a touch of control, he split a couple defenders and led the goalie to his strong foot: his left. At the last gasp of his attack, Robben, ever so eloquently, cut the ball back across the goalie’s body for a slow-moving, yet definitive, game winning goal.
GOAL!
2-1 Bayern Munich in the 89th minute.
The goal was as stunning as a robin itself on a perfect spring day. If only for a moment, indulge me:
The primary color of Bayern Munich is red. A robin’s feathers are a red-orange mix. The beautiful game winning goal for Bayern Munich was scored by Dutchman (primary national team color is orange) Arjen Robben, who was wearing his club’s power color red.
Just saying…
There was terrific offense, with quite a few goals that were left just begging. The goalies made their share of spectacular saves. The defenses were tough and tireless as well. The 2013 UEFA Champions League Final saw the two best teams in Europe this season for the first-ever German versus German championship. Es war fantastisch!
After Bayern Munich’s record-breaking season, holding up the club’s fifth (third most all-time!) Champions League trophy was fitting. Jupp Heynckes will forever be a treasured name with the Bayern Munich faithful. This year’s win may very well set-up a Barcelona-like era of dominance in wins, trophies and admired style. But, regardless of the future, this year’s squad will be remembered and celebrated for many years to come, most especially throughout the second-half of 2013.
The final was redemption for Bayern Munich in the Champions League after recent final defeats in 2010 and 2012 (in Munich). The final was redemption and pure joy for Jupp Heynckes after being “forced” to retire at the conclusion of this season’s campaign. The final solidified a European and global power-shift of defining the world’s best club from Barcelona to Bayern Munich. The final officially relocated the capital of club soccer for the world from Catalonia to Munich.
Bayern Munich is the best football club Europe and the world. They are unequivocally #1.
Be sure to check out a video showing Bayern Munich’s go-ahead goal in the “Amazing” section of this blog!
After experiencing so many personal nightmares in the past three years with his club and national team, this was one of Man of the Match Robben’s reactions post-game.
“This is a dream,” he said.
und der Meister ist…
Bayern Munich v. Borussia Dortmund
The 2013 UEFA Champions League Championship Game is this Saturday, May 25th at 2:45 p.m. EST in the grand and mystifying Wembley Stadium. It is not only the first German versus German club final, but is also the third title game for Bayern Munich in the past four years. FC Hollywood lost the past two, including last year in Allianz Arena, literally on their home field. The feelings of disappointment are still raw and they are surely anxious to erase the past two with a triumphant victory against Bundesliga-foe Dortmund.
There are many dynamics for this championship game, including the all-German aspect, possible big-game redemption for Dutch winger Arjen Robben, watching how Dortmund reacts to constant 90-minute pressure from Bayern Munich, the injury and absence of Dortmund star, but soon to be on Bayern Munich, Mario Götze and so forth.
The moment these two German clubs qualified for the final by each slaying the two Spanish, and global, giants in Barcelona and Real Madrid, a consensus was uniquely reached that the two best teams in the world had indeed made it to Wembley. In many ways, this is the championship fans wanted. And come this Saturday, the footballing needle of dominance could officially begin a significant shift from Spain to Germany. This will be more true with a Bayern Munich victory considering their pure dominance throughout this season, complimented with the arrival of tika-taka maestro Pep Guardiola in a matter of weeks.
Most importantly though, Bayern Munich has been led by Jupp Heynckes this season. With a win at Wembley tomorrow, he could cap off his illustrious career with one of the best and most dominating seasons by a football club in recent memory.
The UEFA 2013 Champions League Final will be spectacular. The winner can potentially claim not only that they are the best club in Europe, but also the best football club in the world.
A Heavenly Night in Munich
Masterful. Superior. Brilliant. Perfection.
These four words definitively encapsulate the performance of Bayern Munich versus the best team in the world yesterday and of the last five years, FC Barcelona, at the grand Allianz Arena in their first UEFA Champions League semifinal match-up. The final score at the end of 93 minutes was 4-nil in favor of “The Bavarians.”
For Bayern Munich fans, last night’s game was absolutely magical.
There are many necessary elements to playing a great soccer game, like good passing, control, positioning and shooting. However, one of the lost arts of “the beautiful game” is the importance of fitness (and some height).
The pure dominance of Lionel Messi and Co. courtesy of Bayern Munich provided a world-class training video in how to surrender more than sixty percent of the possession, and yet, still crush your opponent physically, mentally and on the scoreboard. How? Being efficient and running, running and running. From the very first whistle, the players in red and gold were sprinting to every mark and every man. And yes, this included lone forward Mario Gomez and winger Arjen Robben. To emphasize, they were not jogging, but running and sprinting to every gap and to virtually every space in front of every opposing player on the pitch for the entire game. They successfully executed my suggested defense against FC Barcelona, “The Crocodile Trance,” from back in late March. They were positioned correctly, allowed for possession and then attacked at the exact right moment. Lionel Messi, their maestro in the middle, had no oxygen to get the Barça offense breathing.
FC Barcelona’s excellent brand and bottle of offensive wine, with its smooth taste and dancing flavors, was kept corked in a cellar back in Catalonia.
What was more startling was the fourth and fifth gears the Bayern offense operated with while on the counter-attack after persistent, and seemingly exhausting, defending. Each time they had possession in Barcelona’s side of the field, there was legitimate reason to believe a goal could be scored.
And on four occasions, that happened. The goal scorers were Thomas Müller with a brace, Mario Gomez and Arjen Robben.
A magnificent game plan with an outstanding display of fitness and spacial awareness coupled with good passing, control, shooting and timely height advantages led to one of the most dominating soccer performances in Champions League history, a sentiment being widely echoed.
Here are a couple player reactions from last night’s game.
“[Barcelona] have dominated Europe over the last five years, and to beat them like this in such a terrific way, I think we have to be proud. But on the other hand, let’s be humble about it and enjoy this evening, because there’s still a game to play and we have to be ready [for the second leg].”
—Arjen Robben, Bayern Munich
“The comeback is very complicated,” Messi said.
“They were better than us, they were much stronger. They were superior in everything.”
—Lionel Messi, FC Barcelona
However, there is still one more game to be played in this leg at Camp Nou. FC Barcelona is still considered to be the best team in the world by many. The key words in the previous sentence are, “by many.” After witnessing Bayern Munich’s 4-0 triumph, some are starting to believe this was a “passing of the torch” of sorts for the unofficial crown of the next best team in the world.
This hypothesis will become more clear, but still not solidified, after next Wednesday’s match. But consider this: Bayern Munich has a four goal advantage and a single away goal from them is equivalent to two. Plus, the mastermind behind tika-taka and the massive success the past few years at FC Barcelona, Pep Guardiola, will be the new head coach in Munich next season. Also, Bayern Munich became the fastest team to ever lock-up the Bundesliga Title earlier this season and are set to compete in the German Cup Championship, DFB-Pokal, against VfB Stuttgart on June 1st while under the steady leadership of head coach Jupp Heynckes.
Even just up to this point of the season, Heynckes deserves a tremendous amount of credit for the work he and his coaching staff have orchestrated so far this season. Bravo!
Again, there is still one game left to be played in this semifinal at Camp Nou and the hosts will certainly not be welcoming and will be preparing to fire on all cylinders. All cannons will be lit. It will be an exciting and aggressive game. Camp Nou and all of Catalonia will be rocking.
Still, pending a certain result, the 4-0 victory could prove to be not just a solitary 93 minute sprint, but perhaps the beginning of an enduring marathon of footballing dominance. It’s certainly a fascinating proposition to imagine…
At least for one week, Bayern Munich fans can share Arjen Robben’s sentiment.
Photo By Keeghann Sinanan, Goal.com
I think this look signifies, quite simply, “Yup. We did that.”
Jimmy's Daily Planet 