mid-week review

the axe regeneration day special…

Posted on: June 18th, 2013 by sunshine 9 Comments

 

Yesterday the Timbers began preparations for the upcoming game against the Galaxy. I assume you are waiting for more information. You do want more information, correct?

 

Well, as things go with the Timbers and their practices, you get very little these days. But we do know that Futty is listed as day to day, after suffering an ankle knock that forced his substitution in the 50 minute on Saturday. While not comforting to know a Timbers centerback has suffered another injury, his skill set is likely not one that would be relied upon against Wednesday’s opponents. Notably, his skills are better suited to aerial assaults than to ground attacks, and he did appear discomfited by the change in tactics once FC Dallas lost Eric Hassli to injury. Still, having yet another centerback injured is concerning with 19 games left in the season and one gigantic and big All-Star Game to populate.

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Valencia

Posted on: June 4th, 2013 by theaxepdx@gmail.com 3 Comments

 

The count has been linked with a big money move to a number of European sides, but may have to change his diet if he wants to play for Arsenal.

The fact that the MLS season happens over the summer creates an odd dynamic for avid followers of the European game. Unlike in the winter, when actual footballing news from over there is coupled with a relatively quiet time in our own domestic league, high summer is a time of high excitement here coupled with interesting times, and some of the most bizarre rumors ever heard, over there. If you’re one of those people who follows European teams you know what I mean, and I won’t further clot up this page except to say that it’s funny to hear just about every major team in Europe linked with Villa, Higuain, Rooney, Fabregas, Jovetic, Count Dracula, Count Chocula, and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance.

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the san jose way of the bully…

Posted on: April 18th, 2013 by theaxepdx@gmail.com 13 Comments

 

some mornings, and this morning is not an exception, finding the words to write down in this forum for you all to read can be difficult. we all know the subject matter and that likely the words involve some dissection of issues surrounding the timbers, but this week there has already been so much talk regarding last weekend's game that it seems trivial to now add my two cents to the conversation. but here we are, it is thursday morning, with the weekend looming and another match against the footballing equivalent of the hansen brothers to look forward to, and so i must.

at the risk of overstating something that is as plain and obvious as the nose on zlatan's face, it really needs to be said: san jose are bullies. if they are not throwing in the rough stuff in an excessively aggressive challenge, they are surrounding the referee in a group display of solidarity and protestation against some perceived wrong they suffered after they had used their elbows to perform rhinoplasty on an opponent. after re-watching the last match, it took some moments to realize that an objective of their game plan is to use force or the threat of force to intimidate people on the pitch. and if the referee or the opposition suffers from any confidence issues, the tactics work.

in last sunday's match, san jose, and by san jose i really mean corrales, cronin, wondolowski, and, surprisingly, bernardez, persistently mobbed the ref at every chance they had--even when the timing was illogical. wondodouchehaving a good cry to the ref is as common in any other sport as it is in football, and, for the most part i tend to forgive it as that--part of the game--but their bleating was ridiculous.

in a conversation with a good friend of the blog, and a fella whose opinion i respect above many, the bullying theory took a new curve. not only is san jose forcing a ref to quake in order to gain some illusive upper hand (yes, i meant illusive, which evokes elusive but also connotes the idea of illusory) when big calls need to be made (as if an mls ref is consistent enough to place such faith in their abilities to side one way or another) but they also use the mobbing tactics to extend the time of the game. not surprisingly, their efforts are employed with greater regularity towards the end of regulation play. reading that, it should come as no surprise that last season wondo scored more goals in the waning minutes of the match than any other player in the league. i am not suggesting that mobbing is directly responsible for the increase in late minute goals for the quakes, but the coincidence is there. if i recall, of the 27 goals he scored over half were either late minute equalizers or winners. if a team is extending the amount of added time by implementation of cheap, playground tactics, it does make scoring late goals that much more possible. and given their reliance on the dump-in-the-box scramble for a ball, it makes an even stronger case for increasing the amount of extra time in a match--defenders' legs get tired and defending against a couple of bash brothers and a poacher can be difficult in the late minutes of games.

those are some of the non-footballing tactics we can expect this coming sunday when the timbers take the pitch at the buck shaw. if we can see them so can the timbers. and, of course, they do. but in their preparations for the match hopefully they spend more time concerned with their own game than with the time wasting of last year's supporter's shield winners. besides, if the rules are to be followed, only the captain and any individual player who is affected by an infraction can approach the official. remember that new rule? hopefully the referee considers that the next go around.

stepping past the puerile antics of the hansen brothers...i mean the bash brothers. amongst the bleating and the pleading and the bullying, a 90 minute games does actually take place. certainly, the timbers would rather prepare for the body checks, the cross checking, and the forechecking of san jose than their other tactics? well, indeed that is the case. as the captain described in a post-game interview last weekend:

You know against San Jose what their style is. It’s very bullish, very alpha, they kind of want to fight and play a lot of long balls and battle and crunch and that’s their style. And you have to respect it because it’s been effective. We knew that coming in [to last Sunday's game], it wasn’t a surprise. We knew it was going to get chippy.

first of all, only a canadian would use a hockey term to describe the quakes style of play. yet that is the type of football they play--hard fought and boring as it may be, it is effective. and while porter acknowledges san jose's physical style, stating he has "no problem with it because we’ll fight, too. we’re not going to back down," he is more concerned that the timbers continue to eliminate the individual errors and stick to their game.

We've played two very balanced games where we've played our style, had the ball, we've created chances, we've scored goals, and we've defended well. We need to continue that.

and why not? over the last 6 games, the timbers have scored 10 goals, 8 of which were assisted. they have made goals by passing, averaging 529 passes per game. the only exception was the wind bowl against colorado, where they managed just 378 passes. still, 378 passes is 87 more than san jose could put together last sunday. passing works so long as the passing includes driving to goal, getting in positions where the attack is actually attacking. any team, and i do mean any team, can pass the ball around the top of the 18 yard box in a sophisticated game of keep-away, but only by a determined effort to get into those dangerous positions will the team score. it is a simple concept for success and one that porter continually beats into the heads of his players--possession for possession's sake will not win games.

the tactics worked to an extent against san jose, but, as you will recall, the timbers did little to break down the physical defense of the quakes. they relied on a free kick to earn the three points. an acceptable way to dispatch a bunch of moaners and groaners who spoil the beautiful game, but it is preferable to not have to rely on a set piece to win. in the overall play, it appeared ryan johnson could have benefitted from a partner up top. nagbe and kalif were as industrious as they could be, but they are not physical specimens who can handle the beating victor bernardez willingly puts on a player. perhaps this sunday a formation that involves an additional centerforward, specifically frederic piquionne, could assist in handling the physicality of bernardez and harden, and dispatch with bullies the only way possible--punching them in the mouth. [disclaimer: the axe blog does not actually condone punching people in the mouth, but if wondolowski and sam cronin had fat lips at the end of sunday's match we would gleefully look the other way]

regardless, san jose will be insufferable this sunday.

sunshine

the timbers may be on the defensive…

Posted on: April 11th, 2013 by theaxepdx@gmail.com 9 Comments

 

for all of his intelligence, magadh is a fella who often forgets important dates, moments in life when things went really bad, or even to do the dishes. as tempted as i am to trust his instinct on the run of games to come (the entire season), i simply cannot see this team accomplishing anything without hitting the market for another central defender. imagesCAILXZZIperhaps it is due to the fact silvestre was so appallingly bad at arsenal that magadh forgot he also suffered injuries. he suffered injuries at manchester united and he suffered them at werder bremen. and already this year he has suffered a minor adductor discomfort. so, whether magadh recalls those issues or not, i expect a near rookie pairing to start sooner rather than later. and that is a concerning reality to the efforts of this club going forward. it cannot be emphasized enough how the inclusion of mikael silvestre has stabilized the timbers back four. whether or not it is the calming effect of the rhum baron, the presence of any experienced centerback who has played top-flight football would obviously solidify a much maligned aspect of the timbers game.

sure, when pushed about the loss of horst, caleb porter suggested that the club was not as thin in the back as one would expect after losing david horst.

I think right now, we feel like we still have enough depth.

but that depth includes a rookie, a sophomore who spent a good majority of his rookie season on loan with the la blues, a central defender who is the cornerstone of the defense and has not had a season where he was injury free, and then futty. fatty. what have you.

if you did not watch the reserves match last weekend, you missed the opportunity to review why futty is not an option at central defense for this side. it may have been rust, but within the first minutes of the start of the game, futty gave the ball away cheaply in the tampa bay attacking third and nearly caused some blushes for the side (but for a quick recovery by dtg and alert play by jake gleeson). he did not improve from there. putting aside any maudlin reminiscence for the great work he has done serving this club, it should be clear that he simply cannot play comfortably within a system that requires touch and passing. futty is a hoofer--that is all. sure, he does present a threat aerially and can defend an aerial attack, but this is not basketball we are discussing, or that other, unmistakably bad sport called football, where time outs allow for multiple changes in player personnel. if it were, specialized players would be as common on the field as shin guards. luckily, what is the case in football is not the case in real football, which also means futty is a luxury this side can ill-afford and suggests another central defender is needed and the team is one injury away from competing without an experienced central defender who understands the system.

one thing is certain is that the overall defense has improved in that last few games. the balance in the backline has been found as has the perfect place for captain emeritus. last year, many of us begged that he remain slotted in at right back, not simply because the other two options were not very good at the position, but also because he showed that he played better there than at central midfield. armbandsit would seem porter is also persuaded by jack's play to perhaps keep him situated in the back-right-corner of the formation, that is if his post-game comments from saturday night are anything to find hope in.

It wasn't just the backs that were tremendous. I thought Jack Jewsbury did an unbelievable job. He played like I'd hoped he would; smart positionally, balancing our team out. He's a mature player, and you could see that tonight...Michael Harrington has been very consistent. Again, it wasn't just them, it was the entire team. The pressure that we put on when we got going was relentless.

the players have picked up the idea that defending is a team concept that does not just begin when the ball is lost and end when it is regained. even in attack the team is defending by preventing the opposition time on the ball. this concept will carry some of the responsibility that burdens the central defense and alleviate some concern for the thinning ranks in the back partnerships, but it will not cover the losses if the team forgets its primary goal--preventing the opposition from scoring.

which brings us to san jose. they come into the jw this weekend ranked one place behind the timbers in some power rankings. whoop-ti-shit. on their day, they are a tight and physical, counterattacking side that break down teams in the final minutes of games with aplomb. encouragingly, last season, the timbers were the only side that did not quake at the sight of the quakes. and while the timbers, who were the second worse defense in the league, did allow goals, they did not allow the quakes to score more goals than they did. the quakes did not beat the timbers once last year, and that was with a healthy steven lenhart and a healthy alan gordon. it is safe to say that this year the timbers overall defensive output is superior in stature to last year's porous backline held together at times by david horst and steven smith.

finally, a bit about diego. not that diego, who was overlooked in a number of the teams of the week, but the other diego, the one who looked as if he went a few rounds with houston dynamo owner, oscar de la hoya.  as of now, it should not be news that he is undergoing the league protocol for head injuries. but every indication is that he did not suffer a concussion, which is heartening for his future play. obviously, the team's efforts against san jose will be assisted with the inclusion of diego valeri, but that remains for the league to clear him for active duty.

and now i am cleared to get on with the day.

sunshine

the good, the bad, the broken: a timbers love story…

Posted on: April 9th, 2013 by theaxepdx@gmail.com 12 Comments

 

if you are not still basking in the glory of saturday's win you are probably an overly obsessive malcontent, unlikely to find happiness even in a child's smile. but really, it was just a win in a 34 game season. yes, it did display the type of football this team is capable of playing on their night, but the trick is to replicate the effort. this game does not relieve the timbers of putting an effort in for the next 29 games, it only shows them how the style of play can totally dominate the opposition and the game.

in his post game interview, porter was all too cognizant of those facts. stating the obvious, and what has become a platitude for every sports interview in the last several decades, that it is a long season and this is just one game. cp.yellingblah blah blah. you get the point, and this malcontent will not belabor it any more than necessary. but putting aside the future tripping and sticking in the present, the team did make that shift from simply playing a system with promise to earning the tangible results that are possible if they play their game. that was the most trenchant point made in his post game statement--that winning is a learning process as important as playing well within a system.

It really looked like what we want our identity to be. Tonight I think you saw what could happen when we get up on teams. They had a hard time getting on the ball because we kept attacking and kept moving the ball. It’s important to get results for the players to realize what they’re capable of doing. This was a big step in the right direction, this was that breakthrough that I was looking for. It is one thing to know you’re playing well and know you’re a good team, but to get three points, that reinforces it.

even the accolades accumulated over the last few weeks by individual players are not sufficient substitutes for that good, old-fashioned knowledge that accompanies kicking the piss out of another side. finally, the timbers have earned that to a degree.

still, the accolades are nice bits of recognition too. and, yesterday, for the second week in a row, a timbers player earned mls player of the week. ryan johnson, who is quickly showing the benefits of having a mobile stiker, who can not only latch onto a delicate pass and score but can also create his own goal, took home the honors for his brace. rj.hou.v.porin 5 games, johnson now has 3 goals and an assist and looks to be well on his way to topping his best mls effort in 2009 with san jose, when he scored 11 goals in 30 games.

johnson and porterball are an ideal marriage. where against some systems, defensive anticipation is as important of a skill set as positioning, but with the timbers new system, the ball movement does not allow the opposition to sit back and await the obvious because there really is no obvious next move. when on, the play will develop off of the defensive positioning and exploit any hole and any mistake, requiring not only that dreaded word "athleticism" but also intelligence and ingenuity. johnson has those qualities.

in my post match report i gave nagbe some stick. and it was deserved--he is one of the most frustrating players on the pitch. he has been imbued with gifts many players would suffer a removal of certain sensitive areas to have, yet he woefully misuses them, or, even worse, never tries to harness them. but the hyperbole used to describe his overall play may have been misunderstood. aside from his his cameo in daniel day lewis's first oscar winning performance, my left foot, nagbe did everything he failed to do against colorado and seattle. his one-touch play was exquisite, and he sought to get forward and to put the defense on their heels. on his day, he can weave in and out of any three-man press drawn to him, open up teammates, and release them into the acquired space. unlike the prior two games, he did that on numerous occasions against the dynamo. fairly put, his effort to win the ball in the timbers final third and the interplay with kalif, before unleashing johnson for his second goal, typifies the way darlington is capable of performing.

finally, and on a sad note, it appears david horst is out for the season. after chasing down dynamo speedster, giles barnes, horst made a misstep reminiscent of those girls doing dumb things video compilations on youtube--he stepped wrong, over-corrected, and then rolled his right ankle in a direction physically impossible for most humans who are neither drunk nor doing stupid things. this is terrible news for a man already saddled with the misfortune of suffering serious injury after serious injury. horst had just returned to the starting eleven from a groin injury that forced him to watch from the sidelines since the second week of pre-season. over his career he has undergone hip flexor surgery, has had knee surgery, ankle problems, and now, he has had surgery on his right leg to repair a broken tibia. it might be convenient to say he suffers from bad luck, but the fella plays hard and always puts in a muscular challenge, which means these type of injuries are going to happen in his career.

with the announcement in colombia that hanyer mosquera and the timbers have mutually agreed to a contract termination, horst's injury leaves the timbers well short at central defense. aside from the early season, favored pairing of mikael silvestre and ajb, the timbers have the promising, dylan tucker-gagnes, and the known commodity, futty danso. so, in essence, the timbers have 3 central defenders capable of playing within the system. if you disagree with that assessment, i would suggest you watch the reserve match and pay particular attention to fatty's comfort levels on the ball against a tampa bay side that was anything but dynamic in attack.

that is your tuesday.

sunshine

z-man and the timbers “new” direction…

Posted on: April 4th, 2013 by theaxepdx@gmail.com 4 Comments

 

can it be that only two days remain until the timbers again take to the field? it cannot come soon enough. the impatience of the now crowd headed by the unimaginative and misinformed is beginning to supplant the good will that existed only 2 months ago as porter cp.trainingtook over the reigns of a directionless team. sadly, four games into the season and people have already begun to question whether this team has the mettle to push through a winless patch. the questions are understandable but wholly premature.

four games. we are talking about four games for a team that is literally brand new and still trying to find its feet. yet the questions persist. the comparisons have begun. and soon the gripping. or not. whether the expectations that currently rest upon the team are justified, they are there. by some, porter was labeled the savior of football in Portland after the demise of john spencer, as if john spencer had the ability to do much more than pump his fist and say things in a cool accent. the fact is spencer could not realize the opportunity he had because he was not cut out to manage a club. he may have been the best cheerleader this club had during a time it was being re-introduced to the city and the world.  the club needed him for that role. in his time he gave the timbers faithful some great wins, including an opening home win on day one of the new jw, but he was never the man to take this club forward. he had a limited vision of how to bring the team into the future, how to grow it into a force. and that is where patience becomes necessary.

four games into the season and we have seen more from the team in terms of heart and drive than we ever saw in the year and a half spencer guided the club. there are issues. there are questions. but these issues are part of the development of a team and the answers will only become clearer once the team has had more time to show its strengths (and its weaknesses). without a doubt, there are concerns about certain player selections, but, overall, this team is playing better football than it has ever played since becoming a member of major league soccer. the wins will come as soon as the team learns how to play effectively within a possession based system rather than reverting to old, tried and tested formulas that feel comfortable.

the differences between porter and spencer remain relevant and apparent. porter embodies the attitude of patience, where spencer would have been raving and barking by this point yet still persisting with his route 1 football. porter is still in the process of sussing things out. he knows things are developing within the squad and that each day brings them closer to realizing what potential the play has proven to have.

There is an evolution taking shape. You can see it clearly, especially in the mentality. The spirit in this group is unquestionable. The group has bought in.

the question whether the timbers faithful will remain faithful while that evolution continues is really a moot point. the supporters will remain regardless of the performances. the greater issue is whether the media hype machines will remain charitable or will their hyperbolic disaster machines be dusted off and fueled up. as i was saying, the unimaginative often tend to prevail in moments of doubt. fortunately, those in the club understand and feel the desire to improve as much as those who watch them. the captain has addressed some of the issues surrounding the four game "winless streak," stating that the road draws in two of the mst difficult places to play should not be considered less of an achievement simply because they lost a home game to the currently best club in major league soccer.

Draws are acceptable if you win your home games. So, with our slow start at home, the draws are not as satisfying as they would be.

some might forget that the other home game was a draw against a talented red bulls squad. quite honestly, i had little expectation to see the timbers do more than win against colorado. so, the 3 points the timbers have after 4 games is exactly where i thought they would be. as depressing as it is to think they could have been much better off had they not conceded the first goals in each of the four matches, they have shown a quality that once they collect the first win things will happen--heart.

speaking of heart, i mentioned ben zemanski earlier this week. he may not be the ideal option at right back. and, in fact, he is not my preferred option at right back because that means jack is in the squad and the system is off-balance. against seattle, both mags i suggested that miller remain at the back and zemanski push forward to the right side of midfield. we still hold that position. yet, since that first run out at rightback zemanski has acquitted himself rather well. last weekend he was the most consistent of the timbers squad, playing within the possession system while his counterparts reverted to spencer route one idiocy in a hurricane. zman.colzemanski completed more passes, was involved in more build up play, and had more overall involvements in play than any other timbers player on the pitch. and he was successful at it. of any player, he was the one that looked to get the ball into the 18 yard box. on the night, he made 7 passes or crosses into the box. more than even the creative midfielder who was hung out to dry on the right flank. in many estimations, he is the best crosser of the ball currently finding minutes in the side. the concern is the current imbalance in the squad may prevent the team from exploiting his ability to put in that good cross because he must support on defense.

those are your thoughts for the day.

sunshine

will johnson is captain mls…

Posted on: April 2nd, 2013 by theaxepdx@gmail.com 5 Comments

 

let me get this out of the way: will johnson, captain. CAPTAIN. when the team looked out, beaten, and incapable of stringing together a meaningful series of passes on the left flank in colorado, thanks in no small part to darlington nagbe (i will get to that later), the CAPTAIN took the team on his back and carried them out of a hole. captain.timber.pkwhen the creative force of the team was playing out of position and the timbers could not break down the rapids's second string defense, the CAPTAIN worked to get that done. he did the things his teammates were not doing. that included leading them out of the emotional morass they had slipped into after conceding the first goal.

It's a tough team, a tough group of guys. We're a little disappointed in ourselves that we kind of got on each other's' minds a little bit in the first half. We were pointing fingers, and that's outside the character of this group...

he recognized the need to respond quickly. unfortunately, the penalty was called at the beginning of  the second half.

It was a bigger hole than we thought that we were going to have to climb, a bigger mountain. When those things happen, they happen so quickly that you don't have time to analyze it, and get down, and say, "now we need two". You just have to focus one goal at a time. 2-0 is I think the most dangerous lead in soccer because as soon as you get one, you're flying, and you're coming right down their throat, and the other team usually can't handle it. We knew if we were able to get the first one, that was the hardest one, and that we'd be able to get a second.

yesterday, the sports writers who follow this league awarded johnson the player of the week award. overlooked in the synopsis of the article was the fact the CAPTAIN played a complete game. if the inability to create offensive chances was not significant argument for it, johnson's defensive graft certainly proved sufficient evidence against the employment of 3 defensive midfielders.

when looking at the defensive involvements of the 3 midfielders a striking disparity in play becomes apparent. johnson was involved in 16 total interceptions, tackles, and blocks during the passage of play. capt.timber.2the configuration of his tackles suggested he was the primary defensive foil for the back four, not jewsbury and not chara. in contrast, jewsbury had only 6 defensive involvements. a further difference between jewsbury's and johnson's play is seen in the position of those interactions. 4 of Jewsbury's involvements were in the attacking half of the pitch, where johnson's contributions read like a wall of potholes before the rapids entered the attacking third. johnson set up to protect the backline and he did that. in the second half, after johnson moved further back in the midfield, the rapids were limited to 4 shots on goal and only one of those was from within 25 yards. ok, great. what does that mean? well, the rapids had 17 total attempts on goal, 13 of those came in the first half. i trust you all can do the math. those numbers suggest the timbers were better with 2 defensive mids than with 3, in particular--will johnson.

a number of factors could have contributed to the decrease in attempts made by the rapids. two are certain. first, johnson is better at his job than jewsbury is at his. and, second, removing jewsbury from the pitch in the 64 minute allowed the timbers to play pressing possession football, not simply attempt to play a game of keep-away. all of this forces the question: why does porter not position johnson in the defensive mid role, or along side chara in a set up that resembles 4-2-3-1 or 4-2-2-2?  furthermore, why does porter persist with jewsbury in the midfield?

in reviewing the game, it became clear that another player whose play often goes underrated should not be. mike harrington is another guy who puts in an honest shift--his game may not be as flash as his moniker, but he fights for the opportunity to be on that pitch. slowly, mikey mo money is proving the worth of a full back willing to put in a shift, get a little dirt on his shorts, and buy into the team concept. everything about his game indicates he does not take his opportunity to play for granted. personally, i would prefer a player who sells it every minute than a player who phones it in on occasion.

overlooked in saturday's game was his solid performance on the ball and in distribution. mo money established a decent work rate attempting to push the ball forward, a work rate bettered only by ben zemanski. certainly his numbers reflect the timbers preference to attack from the right flank, but, ultimately, they convey how ineffective and tentative his left flank partner,  darlington nagbe, was on the night.

in one half, nagbe passed the ball 32 times. and of those 32 touches, nagbe returned 11 of them backwards, halting any forward movement. he took no shots on goal, even when he was standing unimpeded at 8 yards out. in fact, one of his many well crafted and frustratingly good backpasses was the result of his unselfish play at 8 yards from goal (why shoot when you have a teammate setting up position 20 yards behind you?).  unfortunately, that selfless play resulted in a quick turnover. if a poster child existed for footballers who lacked the killer instinct, darlington would be that guy. frustrating as it is, and perhaps the promise of his earlier goals has heaped too many expectations on him, he sorely looks like a player without confidence and direction. the assumption that because porter worked with him and found his spark in akron only holds so much water. eventually, nagbe must either find his drive to get forward and press defenders or accept the bench for a while.

i thought mags's point yesterday that nagbe requires someone to unlock his abilities was apposite. when valeri was pulling the strings from the middle of the pitch, nagbe looked dangerous, he looked purposeful in possession, and he looked to get forward on the ball. it is not surprising that he put in two of his worst shifts in a timbers kit when valeri was positioned on the opposite side of the pitch.

all food for thought. see you in the comments.

sunshine