Left, but not least...

Like Lionel Ritchie once sang, we've come to the end of our rainbow. Once, twice, three times thanks to you all for riding along these last two weeks, stirring up some debate/discussion of the new system and indulging my keen ability to speak mind without caring the slightest that some will find me whacko.

As promised, we're gonna delve a little deeper into the fun of attacking as a winger. Forget all that defense mess. I've had enough of it. We are going to go after teams now, so let's embrace it. Pirate flags high!

Since you have all surely surmised the choice for starter at this position, let's talk about the mind games he can play on a swarthy maraud. No more cutesy displays about b-boys or triangles. This position is for striking fear. It's for making the defense do things it doesn't want to do and then suffer for it. A winger is meant to be rude and unruly and downright uncooperative. He just spoils everything.

We've already covered how he makes the backline span the whole field instead of just the box. By that same token, he can also bring that marker inside to clear room or run him into another player. Continuing in that vein, let's skip the obvious and break down the nerve-touching capabilities of a cold-blooded raider to basic, little elements we like.

He can: get a running start at wide backs, turn them sideways, easily play off them for corners, force fouls next to the area and perhaps create card troubles, take them wide three times then cut in the fourth or vice versa, pull the keeper out, make the defensive midfielder shift out of place, make the near center back check off the striker for a second or two, shoot from bad angles solely for the purpose of creating a rebound, creep the back post... it's like a nightmare greatest hits album for opponents, all from just being wide and repeatedly looking like you might do something damaging.

Nearly every movement the wingers make has the defense reacting. Wingers ask questions defenders don't want to answer, let alone on the spur of the moment, let alone on spur of the moment after spur of the moment. Therapists should send wingers Christmas cards. They're cruel bastards and they cause problems that can't always be solved. I've seen a lot of jittery-looking and/or thin-haired Dutch wingbacks, that's for sure.

And that's why a winger can be effective for the team when he beats no defenders and directly creates no prime scoring chances. Those defenders are still having to account for what he's trying to do. They must keep checking over there, shifting, sliding out of the shape they want. He's not beating them and he's spoiling the plan anyway. They can't just do what they want to do. And sooner or later, there's just too many questions being asked that don't fit the plan and they must bother with something one too many times and one of the winger's teammates gets loose somewhere.

What is the winger thinking about all this time, that rat bastard? Actually, nothing scandalous. He thinks a bit like a wide receiver in football, really. He is often after nothing more valuable than getting past a shoulder. He watches the defender's feet, for shifts in weight balance, for where the next defender will come from when he gets his shoulder past. He thinks to keep his head up to see who is breaching the area where. He thinks getting a crap ball into the goalmouth is better than none, because a defense can't make mistakes if you don't let them. At a break in the action, he may think of puppies or his grandparents.

See, he's not a bad egg. Wingers are nothing to be afraid of, not when they're on your side. After all, it's not his fault those silly defenders get frazzled because they want to do things they can't... anymore.

#5 - Chris Pontius

The injury dropped him a little, since he probably won't be 100% until MLS preseason in February. Still, I like how Pontius works from the corner of the area with his favored right foot to the inside and his box game is all-purpose. He's not one to work to or from the corner, so you'd either need a raiding left back or classic style right winger to balance the field properly.

#4 - Robbie Rogers

Moan all you want, I don't care. Heck, go make your own clipboard chart. I said it with Wynne and I'll say it again: we coach him. We are not in the position to give up on speedy wide players that have the ability to take on defenders, win fouls, crack a shot and achieve dangerous positions. We need to be able to find usefulness in these players enough to hope for impact off the bench. It's not so much to ask considering the guy has plenty of actual experience with this system. That skull-rapping obviousness out of the way, it seems to me the two-footed Rogers operates more successfully on the left.

#3 - José Francisco Torres

Hey, remember when Pachuca were winning championships and making it to the third place match at the World Club Cup? Guess who started on left wing for them back then. Go on. Now he's supposedly, magically a #8 - albeit one not physical enough for the middle to achieve a regular starting place with a middling Pachuca. Or convince Slovenia. Torres can run, beat defenders, run two-man game and cross. So, what exactly am I missing here? Let's all just hope he can be fit when the Clausura starts in January.

#2 - DaMarcus Beasley

As we are targeting the first CONCACAF World Cup qualifier, and the eminently experienced Beasley is now regularly excelling in Mexico, what's left to discuss? I told you all he'd be back.

#1 - Brek Shea

Every proper 4-3-3 needs at least one winger ready to run at defenders... and run at defenders... and run at defenders. The best part is this type of player does not even need to beat any of them to have a positive effect for the team. That Shea often does beat them to reach dangerous positions makes this a much easier pick than I anticipated when the exercise started. It hasn't come up in a game yet, but I also feel the dribble artist can have great value as a far post target for quality crosses from right wing.

--

Be forewarned. This is not the end of this exercise by any means. Coming soon, I'll have such things as a list of guys who just missed these lists and could still make a move up, as well as a colleague's guest post detailing the Top 5 things I got horribly wrong in my depth charts.

- Keepers
- Right backs
- Right center backs
- Left center backs
- Left backs
- Defensive midfielders
- Right wingers
- Two-way midfielders
- Strikers
- Attacking midfielders



- Greg Seltzer

Hello Muddah... you know the drill

A pair of clips from USMNT camp and then one about the US ladies giving back away from the field...









- Greg Seltzer

B-Boy Hero

As with a soccer team, a successful breakdancing crew is usually made of people all playing their specific roles. Everybody is expected to add their unique flavor to the mix. Some people wow as lockers, some doing hand tutting, some add in classical training.

Indulge me a moment, please, and enjoy this performance by Boston crew Phunk Phenomenon. They are a very strong group that eventually finished third in the most recent season of America's Best Dance Crew. However, I'd like you to focus in on Bebo (the short fella in the do-rag) and then try to mentally translate all of the judge comments to 4-3-3 soccer.




The visual lesson is, when metaphorically marrying the two endeavors, the #10 is our b-boy. He's the one who suddenly pops up with the amazing move nobody saw coming, could have planned against or can typically stop. He's got the swagger in the big moment, pulling off the high-difficulty move that gets them off their feet. He's the one you point to when it comes time to turn the tension of build into "Holy shit, did you see that?!?!?" - with a reply of "I'm actually not quite sure, but the defense definitely didn't."

It may now round out the roundabout explanation by dropping the fact that five of six champion crews thus far have had at least one quality b-boy (or b-girl) able to blend in until the time is right to shine, as did three of the runners up.

When someone hears '#10', the most common initial image is of a player that can dribble, feed the wings and specializes in final passes up the middle. Some may think along the lines of a younger Totti, the striker playing from midfield.

Ideally, you want someone that does all of that and more. The most obvious current example is former Ajax ace Wesley Sneijder, so let's quickly examine his game. He often drops deep for the ball, sprays lead passes around, shoots accurately from distance, runs maddening combos with his striker, plays all manner of balls into the area and even gets back to harass the opposing defensive midfielder when the other team is camping in his own end.

Naturally, Way Out Wes (as only I call him), is the dream prototype - but don't get started on that depression over not having a Sneijder just yet. The good news is every 4-3-3 custom tailors the attack to fit their #10.

For instance, if your b-boy hero shades to the left in attack, you have the left winger religiously stay wide, while maybe playing one of those newfangled modern wingers that likes to cut in over on the right. If he's less likely to take a crack from above the area (or just not particularly good at it), you may create a lane for the #8 to get forward for shots more often. And so on. Every perceived problem has a wrinkle solution. That is the new attitude around here.

So get your head out of the oven and open your mind to possibilities. This list could see plenty of shuffle by the start of qualifying - for various reasons.

#5 - Benny Feilhaber

He's played well since joining the Revs, but maybe is not quite putting up the numbers you'd expect on that Eastern last place team - yeah, they're bad. Benny is still definitely a guy who could shoot up the list with a strong start next season. We already know he can make some impact off the bench in big games.

#4 - Mikkel Diskerud

While Feilhaber has a big experience edge and I still believe in him, Mix is the guy on the rise. He's improved significant amounts the last two season, brings the all-around #10 toolbelt to a decent extent and, sweet Moses, is his comfort on the ball in the danger zone not soooo enticing? May I remind of his USMNT hello? Diskerud was in a Lazy-Boy wearing a snuggie in the area, one goal down in the waning minutes. The real questions here are will he move this winter to a better league and would such a move slash his playing time as we approach June? The answer on both for now is too soon to tell.

#3 - Sacha Kljestan

The Anderlecht man plays the #8 for the Belgian leaders, but that has only solidified his game. His real talents are for seeing the field and delivering an easy-to-handle final ball. The problem so far has been that Kljestan lapses into indecisiveness on the ball when in a 'Nats uniform, which kinda negates those two great skills at once. Boy, it sure would be swell though if the Mauves did now begin pressing him into a true playmaking role so he can warm up his swagger moves. Once again, as always (shakes fist to the heavens)... Belgians!!!

#2 - Freddy Adu

He's still just getting back to regular PT, he's still a tactical work in progress - and yet, he's also still probably the scariest, most unpredictable attacker we can bring off the bench. He can hurt defenses in just about every way and practically sneezes unpredictable flash. And as with striker, whomever gets the nod here for qualifier one is A) a squad ace & B) quite capable of sliding elsewhere in attack. If we were looking at someone to compete for the starting job here, he'd be back a little further. As back-up minutes should be both lean and late for now, easily having the most sweet tricks is enough to come second on this chart.

#1 - Clint Dempsey

I don't consider this the long-term choice and he is obviously fairly adept from any of the four attack positions. There's really just one thing that compelled me to pick him here for CONCACAF bout numero uno: Deuce dun wanna stay wide. And hey, that's fine. So let's accommodate that. Let's let him lead the wingers, crash the box late, bomb from above the area and throw all his little Dempsey moves at the backline all day long. And geez, just imagine the number of danger free kicks a combo team of Altidore and the Texas Tornado would earn bulling up the gut. Of course, he's not a typical playmaker. But with Donovan and Chandler's crosses out wide right, some of that responsibility can be taken off his shoulders.


--
Tomorrow, we take the final voyage on my clipboard by sailing over to left winger-land. My record of priors...

- Keepers
- Right backs
- Right center backs
- Left center backs
- Left backs
- Defensive midfielders
- Right wingers
- Two-way midfielders
- Strikers



- Greg Seltzer

District #9

No, we won't be discussing fire trucks, school buses or South African aliens today. It's literally the pinnacle of our 4-3-3, the striker. It's also the easiest top choice this side of Tim Howard in our little exercise.

This is the most straightforward job description on the field, really. Naturally, our #9 wants to stay in the middle of the field, make the center backs work, drop back to be available for hold up touches, make effective runs in attack and finish well, by air or land. You like a guy who can score in more than one fashion, preferably all of them. Every purely offensive tool a forward may lack (long shot, aerial ability, dribbling, turning, first-time strikes on the run, etc.) makes him that much easier to defend.

He wants to form a consistent combo relationship at the top of the area with the #10, if not also the #8 (depending on the traits of those particular players). When we're on defense, he wants to stay high, keeping the opposing back line on its heels at the stripe. Oh, and he should be prepared to get his ass kicked around some. Somebody has to win those fouls around the box. Sadly, the "one" a striker takes for his team is not a banana cake donut.

Dammit... now I want a banana cake donut and have none available. You read these while I try to recover emotionally.

#5 - Charlie Davies

Let's not talk specifically about his play for DC United this season. Here's the three-pronged deal: 1) as astutely noted to me by The Armchair Analyst, dude is understandably in need of some down time, 2) it probably was never fair for anyone to expect him to approach 100% athletic return until he'd played a year & 3) no other forward in contention for the second slot here can match his international experience. There were a handful of MLS forwards I could have gone with in this slot and a healthy Conor Casey would have snared it outright, but for now I'm gonna bank a little while longer that the once-incredible goal animal Chuck D can get near all the way back again by June. Let's see how he plays in early 2012 - where ever that may be - and then decide if he's moved up this list or dropped off of it.

#4 - Robbie Findley

Oh, I know. Many will groan, but what I see is a player that is evolving. Findley's near-post runs are still frightening for a defender and he's still suspect with hold-up play, but he's added in a long range game and becoming more difficult to deal with physically in the area. Also on the plus side, he follows system protocol to the letter and has shown he can find space to receive. With four goals across all competitions, including one against Newcastle, the former RSL is Nottingham Forest's joint top-scorer thus far this term despite being only third in minutes at striker. Let's see if the growth curve continues.

#3 - Edson Buddle

Like Findley, Buddle is the leading attacker on his team even though he's been a mere spot starter this season. He provides a decent enough aerial target, though all of his hold up touches could use some polish. The Ingolstadt striker has a nice ability to gain shooting separation on the dribble. As he will be 33 come World Cup, the next eight months worth of friendlies could present his window to prolonged activity. If not or if he flubs lines, we will probably be talking about another, younger player over the back half of 2012. As of now, he seems the best choice for what the Dutch amusingly call the "pinch hitter" role - the guy who comes off the bench to provide power forward actions.

#2 - Juan Agudelo

When deciding who would be the back-up here, I had to weigh into it the fact that the back-up will likely be relegated to sub minutes during early qualifiers. Thinking in that light, what seemed a really difficult choice became easier. Agudelo is fearless going at the defense (perhaps sometimes too much so) and adds instant jump to attack. In fact, I'd not be against him used as a winger off the bench, either... having him run toward a defense at angles when they also need to keep track of you-know-who in the middle just sounds dangerous. He's shown a willingness in (if not always an acumen for) holding up the ball and a flair for hopping off the bench to make plays. Besides, the more coaching he gets, the better. It's sponge time, so let's be teaching him at every opportunity.

#1 - Jozy Altidore




Seriously, I think it's safe to say the AZ sniper is well on his way to fulfilling all that #9 promise. As I promised. Which I will never let you forget.


--

Tomorrow, we cover the #10's. I can hardly wait for the inevitable widespread abuse to start!

- Keepers
- Right backs
- Right center backs
- Left center backs
- Left backs
- Defensive midfielders
- Right wingers
- Two-way midfielders





- Greg Seltzer

"These BS reading are off the charts, Ray."

It's been brought to my attention that various UK rags (I don't know why anyone ever believes them) have Chelsea, Manchester City and Manchester United all bowing up with drawn knives over FC Dallas ace Brek Shea. His agent just told me, chuckling, that this was all news to him.

So who ya gonna call? "Scoop" busters!

And yes, quite obviously, my report on that general topic is taking longer than I expected. It'll still be worth the wait.


- Greg Seltzer

3-peat

Timbers fans will not like this. But thereyago... the Sounders are your 2009, 2010 and now 2011 US Open Cup champs. And it's not like there was any doubt either. Seattle's road: 2-1 over something called Kitsap Pumas, 3-1 over the Galaxy, 1-0 over FCD and finally 2-0 over Chicago. Not a light slate. Will have some video up as it becomes available. This provides MLS' wine and cheese fan base with the bragging equivalent of a 1985 Chateau Margaux. Never. Hear. The end of it.

Update: Here are your two goals from an awesome fan cam.

This also happened on Tuesday night. DC United fans are not amused.

- Will Parchman

The tipping point

Aided by a merciful Cardinals start time, there will be no dozing off too early tonight. It about to get really Dutch up in here, up in here - so let's just dive in.

The #8 is a very important player in this formation. He's the time-keeper, controlling match tempo when necessary. He's usually also the traffic director, deciding which direction we go up the field. He's the one who acts as foreman for the attack and spearheads the back. He is your transition game portal, your possession bulldog. He's rough enough for a scrap, but skillfull enough to make a play. And while doing all that, this player holds among the most important overall spacing keys.

Regulars will know I love to talk about passing triangles, which obviously give a ball carrier two close options as opposed to one. A while back, in either a comment section or the main post, I pointed out how the formation change takes our attack from being composed of five straight lanes to more closely emulating a Chinese checkers board, which is made up of triangles instead of squares.

Now, take that concept of the #10 looking forward into attack with triangular options and push it back into the middle of the field with a two-way view. Yeah... the #8 is amid a sea of triangles in all directions. The movements of a central midfielder always need to be efficient. In a 4-3-3 they need to be efficient in the precise right place. This guy should be able to regularly appear on cue in passing triangles with seven of the other nine field players. It's essential he seems to be everywhere - because he needs to be. In recent Eredivisie times, think of the impact of Van Bommel with PSV, Janssen at Twente or De Zeeuw with Ajax last season.

Off the ball, this player has several important duties, not all of which have gotten fair attention in US coaching until now: troll for weak clearances, anticipate lost knockdown second balls, crowd the opponent's pressure valve, force immediate pressure on turnovers in the attack end, help usher the other team's attack into wide traps, help protect the area of the box from open shots and always be available for the quick outlet from defense with mind to any necessary shielding or turns and a clear idea of where to move the ball before it arrives.

With the rock in his own end, he needs to often ride physical challenges without coughing up, make the first pass out positive, find the open hold-up man, weigh lead balls expertly, help the flank players up his side and ideally has a nasty diagonal ball in his pocket. Moving forward, there are the tempo and direction decisions, followed by much more. Wing outlets, long shots, slip passes, diagonal crosses - all of this falls under typical asks. This player can also overload the box on crosses (Hello, Michael Bradley) or wait for pinballs that pop out above the area (the aforementioned Eredivisie three). Even better, he could do either at any time. And when a center back or the wingback on his side jets forward, he hangs back a little for support.

It's all in the decisions and the spacial discipline. It's knowing which tool to pull from the belt at which moment and how much to use it. If there is a "coach on the field" in a 4-3-3, it is this guy. Above it all... erm... it helps if he has a bit of a shoulder chip and matching shoulder charge.

Bottom line: If this guy kills it out there and the four flank players are killing it, you look a lot like winning that day.

#5 - Dax McCarty

He needs seasoning at the international level, but I like the varied game he brings. His passing is positive and there's a little bit of grit there (not that he couldn't add more). A lot of people forget he was named to the Olympic All-Tournament Team and wore the armband against Chile in January. Such occurrences have reasons.

#4 - Jermaine Jones

The Schalke ball hound is again out of the doghouse, so he could quickly rise up the list. He has the tools to kill this position, but various elements of his game go missing too often, including mere judgment. Perhaps the more disciplined 4-3-3 can tame him just enough.

#3 - Stuart Holden

As I said, players injured past January camp will take a slide. It is a testament to Holden's game and field personality that he remains this high when match availability may not return until April or May. When fit, he's at the least good enough in this post to win his EPL club's Player of the Season prize having missed 12 games. His delicious diagonal cross, scatter-bug style, tackling accuracy and dangerous long shot make him just a bit like a righty Janssen that contains his emotions better.

#2 - Alejandro Bedoya

Oh, I know. He's only just settling in at Rangers. He hasn't exactly excelled in his USMNT outings to date. Only... he's never been allowed near his proper position. Put this guy in Nats engine room central and he will deliver. You watch. Bedoya loves to drop that shoulder and all his best attributes are wasted on the wing. Thus far, USMNT fans have not seen the real player. At all. He wants traffic and bodies to bang. He welcomes it, like a boxer. Put in him the ring, already.

#1 - Michael Bradley

Ask Heerenveen, dude is a #8 all day. Even more so than Holden, who is good enough here to slide Bradley back to defensive midfield when fit. Simply put, there is no better metronome/traffic director on the US roster and few can match his late box raid impact. He also just happens to be your Postcard From Europe at MLSS tomorrow.

--

Tomorrow, we go for goal with the #9's. The archive:

- Keepers
- Right backs
- Right center backs
- Left center backs
- Left backs
- Defensive midfielders
- Right wingers





- Greg Seltzer

Dancing with Hope Solo - Round Three

This week, our #1 shirt was assigned the Cha-Cha. Like most any Latin-style dance form, many of the moves are re-purposed or re-imagined throughout the various forms of break dancing. Among these similarities with the female partner are body and arm waves, which we've already seen Hope be a little stiff with - let's see how she did...



--

Okay, so there's some great stuff and some not-so-great stuff. Let's switch up and tackle the negatives first. Unlike last week, there were definitely times out there were she dropped performing the moment and could be seen thinking of what comes next. And, of course, she remains a bit stiff when it comes time to let it flow.

How do I put this... ? Hope is trying so hard to make her hips and arms move right, instead of letting her hips and arms move her. She even discussed why that is a challenge for her on Ellen before this round. If she can let go and find that lady groove, she could definitely win this thing. As is, it pops up just when you're about to marvel at how well she's doing.

Now, the good news. Her footwork remains next to flawless. It's quite impressive, especially with a dance like the cha-cha where you have to change speeds with the steps so often. And with no game cutting into rehearsal this week, she was actually hitting steps - not just landing them in the right place. Her body positions also remain quite admirable. When it comes to the actual dancing, she works very hard and gets it down, always remaining on good balance.

The Distracter noted how painful it can be to watch her during the rehearsal snippets, and then she pretty well handles the performance. It's no surprise, as Hope is accustomed to drilling and to putting it all together at game time. She absolutely picks up the dancing and the routine. Now, we only need that last layer of performance to come out.

This week, Hope got 8's across the board from the three judges going next to last in the dancing order. In an episode with several high-scoring dances, her 24 put her in a four-way tie for fourth from the judges (one dancer scored 27, two others 26). I am going to give her a 7 - which also happens to be her average mark from me over three rounds.

She's done well, but like the judges, I think there's better to come. What style she gets thrown next round, I do not know. But I get the feeling she has not had her last Latin dance, which very well could somewhere down the line be the thing that either knocks her out or makes her the champ.




- Greg Seltzer

Donovan's down, so Buddle's up

It's the camp with no natural LB's or proper #10's allowed. Apparently. At least we've brought 634 forwards. That'll show 'em our new system!

On an obviously unrelated note, I can confirm that Benny Feilhaber still exists.



- Greg Seltzer

Who likes goals?

I'm telling ya, all these baseball late nights are making my brain foggy. Meant to have this up last night, but just fell out and I'm slow today. Plenty coming your way, let's get started...

The MLS Goal of the Week decision is rough this time. It's hard to pick a standout.




This crazy concoction by Bayer Leverkusen's Eren Derdiyok will be remembered for a long time.


szólj hozzá: AMAZING Goal by Eren Derdiyok


Naturally, the goalie needs to be slapped for conceding to a center back walking the ball up in his own end, but let's not forget to hand it to Real Sociedad's Ingo Martinez.




To put it mildly, FC Rostov's Igor Smolnikov has some action on his shots.




Finally... ya know, I get tired of hearing people pretend Schalke's Klaas-Jan Huntelaar isn't good enough for this team or that league. It's total nonsense, he makes half of the strikers in the EPL and Serie A look like complete donkeys. How many of them have the locker to score both his goals from their weekend win over Hamburg?


szólj hozzá: Ham 1-2 Sch




- Greg Seltzer

Spec is on spec

Have no fear, just got the Brums word: the ankle twist suffered by Birmingham's Jonathan Spector on Sunday was minor and he has departed for USMNT duty. Proper report soon at MLSS.

That is all.





- Greg Seltzer

The MLS Grinder: DC United's meek week

We begin our playoff madness with DC United this week. United had wild card nemesis New York's kryptonite entering the week: games played. With two in hand over New York and two games to play in four days this week, DC made up one of those in a Thursday tussle at Philly and then played Columbus on Sunday. The Union are doing their best to hang on to one of those precious automatic qualifier spots in the East, while DC sat a single point behind NY for the final wild card spot entering Thursday. Even a point from either of these battles works. Neither are gimmes, but if you're DC, points are precious now.

If United doesn't make the playoffs, look back at this past weekend as a primary contributor. On Thursday, Sebastian Le Toux flipped on beast mode in the first half, scoring two goals in the opening 15 minutes. DC, ever the resilient battlers, clawed back to 2-2 by half with goals from DeRo and Andy Najar. Then, well, Michael Farfan opened up his lunch pail and this fell out.

So DC is down but not out. Yet. That's a bullet turned into a blank, but there's still an extra one in the chamber to make up, so The Joker delivered a brief message before Sunday's away game at Columbus. It did not get home. Eddie Gaven, who'd just returned from two months on the trainer's table, got his head to this cross and spun DC's hopes of salvaging anything from the weekend right down the tubes.

DC still has one in hand, but things are tighter now. DC's last three games are at home this year, but will that arrest the backslide? Keep in mind, New York has a rugged final three games - the Galaxy, at SKC and Philly, my pick for the next great MLS rivalry. Stay tuned, sports fans.

New York 1, Toronto 1: Yeah yeah, the Red Bulls continued to scuffle ahead of the playoffs and Danny Koevermans is scoring faster than a Lindsay Lohan court date, but what about Marquez?

Marquez, you'll remember, was handed a one-match ban for drawing the ire of the New York faithful by tanking terribly and throwing his teammates under the bus for not following. As I predicted, Backe backed down from further punishment with the playoffs peaking over the horizon and elected to start Marquez in a surprisingly defensive move. It did not pay off (surprise, surprise). Rafa played 79 mostly uneventful minutes as the Red Bulls trailed for 29 of those following yet another Koevermans goal. Marquez went off for Dax McCarty, NY's get in the DeRo trade, and it was McCarty's corner that set up this beauty from Thierry Henry in the 88th minute, saving a collapse against a non-playoff team that would've significantly damaged playoff hopes.

You can really only nod your head solemnly and mutter, "Heh, alright," quietly to yourself if you're TFC. If Vidic, Puyol or Hummels aren't about to stop that, neither are you.

The Red Bulls' point was vital. It allowed them to hang on to the final wild card spot, for now, by staying perfectly even with Portland on points (40) and games (31). The Timbers' lousy goal differential (-5) is what could keep them out of the playoffs, given that they can't win away from mighty Jeld Wen to save their lives...

Portland 1, Vancouver 0: ...unless they play in Vancouver. On the grand unveiling of BC Place. Oof.

First this.

Then this.

Double oof.

Colorado 1, Dallas 0: How bad is FCD playing right now? Schellas Hyndman started wingers Brek Shea and Marvin Chavez in the same lineup for the first time since Aug. 27, FCD's last win, and they still couldn't muster a point. Or a goal for that matter. We have some franchise history to deal with here, and not the good kind: FCD has lost four straight 1-0 games and five more minutes of scoreless soccer will break the franchise record. They stand at 360 minutes without netting as we speak.

It's not as though the Rapids have been burning through the league lately either. Colorado hasn't won in the league since Aug. 13. That's 1-3-2 in the last six, for those keeping count. Yet the Rapids are still within shouting distance of FCD, just a point back with a game in hand. Keep in mind, everybody wants that top wild card spot. The team that takes it will face the Eastern Conference.

Best of the Rest

- Diego Fagundez, aka that 16-year-old kid that plays in MLS, scored again in a 2-1 loss to Seattle.
- Chivas is still alive? Chivas is still alive.
- Teal Bunbury is good. San Jose is not.

- Will Parchman

Two points conversion

We have a pair of goals to screen, starting with DaMarcus Beasley's losing cause opener for Pachuca last night. As against Ghana at World Cup 2006, Da Bease passes it on to Fulham's Clint Dempsey, who helped pile on late with the fifth goal (and assist on the sixth) in a 6-0 spanking of QPR this afternoon.









- Greg Seltzer

Lucky #7

First off, apologies on the tardiness. I just got too tired and happily dozed off before getting to the post.

Secondly, as is often the case, discussion of my prattle out there on the interwebs has been brought to attention. It seems we suddenly have a lot of new NSC visitors, including many who joined in the fun after we'd started. As such, a couple of quick newbie notes:

- These rankings are my personal opinions only, no mind-reading Klinsi or any other such prediction-type exercise here. They are based on now, but with a view to the first World Cup qualifier next summer. No player will be listed in more than one position, but a few will be designated for multiple uses in their blurb. And as we now are coaching players up, there will be precious few guys who are moved to cover a hole away from their optimum position - left back means left backs, and so on. Finally, where a subject plays for his club is not among my main concerns. They have their needs for their purposes, I have mine for mine.

- You will learn fast that I don't post things for any effect. I'm just wacky me. So, no, I'm not trying to be either obvious or surprising with any picks. It's literally as if I had to make these decisions and this is what I'd actually go with, regardless of what anyone might think. You may not like or agree with what you read here, but at least you can be assured it's always straight business.

So... wing attack! It's about time we talked some offense in our new offensive system. And as any NSC regular will know, winger is my favorite position. To me, it's the straw to the drink. There's so much to cover in talking about wingers, so I'll split the description into the two lists. Today, I'll get into the more basic, obvious aspects. When we go lefty, I'll get into details.

On the first line of the first page of the winger handbook, it says in big, bold letters: "STAY WIDE!". If these players do not hold their positional integrity, the defense can become more compact, which we naturally hate. We don't want to stretch a defense - we want to keep it stretched at all times. Collapsing inside doesn't merely almost automatically closes down 25% of the attack half. It almost automatically closes down one of the best, juiciest quarters of the attack field.

There are a few different types of wingers to consider, and I prefer to have separate kinds on opposite wings. The standard variation most likes to take wingbacks to the line for pace and cross. The modern winger cuts in at the corner of the area, preferring shorter centering feeds and shots. Often, this type plays the off wing, allowing cut-ins to the favored shooting peg. Preferably, both types will occasionally do the unexpected thing, to keep defenders honest.

A third type essentially acts as a second area forward, but you need a major field-tilting bastard on that side to make it work for balance (example: when Messi played from the right for Barcelona, Alves always made it so Barcelona still had a right wing presence). I don't favor this set-up and we don't have Messi/Alves, so let's just leave it out.

There's a great misconception that Dutch wingers don't play defense. At the least, they act as pressure valves, but they also need to help the wingback when the other team is invading their own corner. We don't want the center back pulled out and we don't want the defensive midfielder pulled out. The winger definitely needs to play defense. In that respect, it's no different than the wide midfielders in an empty bucket.

Of course, the real fun comes at the other end. And I will be throwing the jazz hands at you in the left back preamble. For now, let's fill out the right flank stable.

#5 - Chris Rolfe

While the AaB ace has cooled off a bit from his hot start to the season, he can provide several of the elements we want here. Rolfe can take a good crack from distance and has a penchant for the big play. While not a guy to overrun defenders one-v-one, he does link well in combos and hit a fair cross. He also provides another quality corner kick taker.

#4 - Josh Gatt

I know everyone is very excited about developing along a true wing terror, but let's not rush things. Some could theorize that his emergency cover shifts at right back for Molde may have slowed his attack development, but actually they might just have put him closer to a first call-up because he truly understands the full responsibilities of the position now. When he does arrive in USMNT camp (I'm assuming January), he won't just be a guy with blinding speed, the daring of a pirate and moves like gettin' jiggy. Yes, he will be all that - but also the full bag of chips. He's a great kid who eats up coaching like the Cookie Monster, so don't be shocked if he's topping this chart come Brazil 2014.

#3 - Herculez Gomez

Here's the deal. Just like how a 4-4-2 leaves some of our players without a natural clipboard position (read: Feilhaber, Diskerud, etc.) , the 4-3-3 also makes life tough for a few guys. Most all of these guys are support forwards. Is he a striker? Is he a winger? Is he a #10? Well... I'm not 100% certain what Gomez is in this set, but I know he deserves a shot in the team. For my money, he most comfortably fits on right wing. He likes to approach the net at angles and has plenty of experience as deep as right midfield. I'm confident he'll know what to do here and I really do not want his back to goal, which negates so many of his best attributes. Plus playing him on the wing allows you to add another prime set piece target. Yep, it's a done deal, get the rubber stamp. I will allow late game desperately-need-a-goal #10 slot duty to take advantage of his itchy trigger finger and added aerial threat up the middle, but that's it. Right wing Herculez.

#2 - Fabian Johnson

As you've surely noticed, a large percentage of wingers are kinda small. It's often for the best, as you want to get playmakers and those bound to get outmuscled away from traffic. And then there's the lanky, angular-but-strong winger that almost looks like an illusion when beating defenders into the area. Fans, meet your "that guy". Though not exactly a crosser, Johnson will cause disarray in the opposing defense. He just... wiggles and changes speeds and pushes and spins and looks like he's going to fall over but then sorta hops to suddenly appear beyond your shoulder. It has to be like defending the flu. He's literally "The Foreign Object" for wingbacks. He gets under the skin and makes you sneeze. And if that's not good enough, dude has the high-level wingback experience to make him a complete flank man.

#1 - Landon Donovan

I know what some of you are thinking. And I know what yet others of you with a different reasonable thought are thinking. Respectfully, here's why you're wrong. Donovan is still the team's best crosser. He's one of those smaller cats we mentioned for keeping out of traffic. He attacks best when with open sail. He plays great track back defense and runs forever. He links like a chain factory. He is straight back post murder. He needs multiple targets to be most effective, but for some strange reason doesn't seem to thrive in the #10 position. Wide right is usually where he's been played when facing the highest level of competition (think Everton, most of WC 2002, etc). It's also pretty much from where so many of his memorable, top outings and plays have come. And, gosh, best of all, he will actually stay wide if you ask him to (ahem). Besides, with the growing depth at this position, he can always be relocated to the left or #10 in certain circumstances.

I'll assume that covers that, yes? Super duper.


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On Tuesday, we come back with the two-way midfielders.

- Keepers
- Right backs
- Right center backs
- Left center backs
- Left backs
- Defensive midfielders


- Greg Seltzer

Bud-Step

Ain't that a kick in the head? Edson Buddle scores twice in the opening 20 minutes at home to Bochum and then Ingolstadt promptly goes on to lose 5-3. The US striker now has a team-high five goals on the season (which is two off the league lead) and four in his last three games.







- Greg Seltzer