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Red Bulls Choke

November 5, 2010 — by Sean


Red Bulls Arena this evening, courtesy of cultfootball correspondent / resident stalker Amy Chiu

Well, our local team, the New York Red Bulls, have gone crashing out of the MLS playoffs even with the likes of Rafa Márquez and Theirry Henry on the roster. To be fair, Henry was injured and only came on in the last 5 minutes, when he mishit a ball lofted gently to his head whilst unmarked inside the six yard box. It would’ve tied the game. Henry would’ve been a hero, worth every penny. I couldn’t believe it. But first things first.

The Bulls were actually pretty fun to watch tonight. Sure they lack that killer last pass, and even if they made the right choice the person on the end of the ball usually stiffened up and turned it over. But there were some serious bright spots. Lindpere was solid as usual, and Dane Richards created some dangerous attacks up the right. Ballouchy in the center ran hot and cold. He’d get into good positions, but often waste the ball. And Tim Ream, left back and rookie born in the USofA, was also solid and has had a great first season. Potential USMNT call up for certain.

The real standout in the losing effort was 17 yr old Juan Agudelo. His movement wasn’t always the best, but he’s quick, has very good control, and plays patiently even right in front of net. He smashed a shot into the post at one point and was a general nuisance to San Jose throughout. By the way, it was his second ever game for the team. You can see he has the markings of a man set for European.

In other news: the ref was sub-par this evening. I’m not one to approve of whistling ticky tacky fouls, but players were barreling into each other, the ball nowhere near them, and the ref would let play continue without a blink. And John Harkes on the ESPN color commentary, sweet jesus what a mouth on that guy. He spent a good 10 minutes just venting about Márquez from a place of deep and long-standing resentment. The guy is like a drunk at the bar shooting off his mouth. Instead of providing well crafted, diplomatic insight into the good bad and ugly on the pitch, he’d rather rant about a tackle on Cobi Jones from a decade ago. He actually has some good things to say, but when you’re a paid sportscaster, it’s all about the delivery. (ps. we’re not paid, so we can be crap)

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Red Bulls Strengthen Their Spine

August 5, 2010 — by Sean

Go ahead, take a little sniff.

With the addition of Rafael Márquez, the NY Red Bulls have put together a team bound to impress. There’s been a lot of atteniton thrown to the front line in the past few weeks, but Márquez is the piece that takes this team from contendor to champion.

You’d think with Henry and Angel up top the wins would come with ease, but a potent attack isn’t automatic, and holding a lead is not easy. Having seen some of the world’s best offenses bearing down upon him, Márquez will sit either in the back line or just in front of it and look to interrupt the attacking motion. He’ll also lend vision moving forward, starting counters with intelligently played balls and knowing when to settle the team into a patient attack.

Classy players that they are, Henry and Angel are already gelling, and Lindpere has impressed with his service from the wings. But, as with most teams in the MLS, the Red Bulls’ defense has been porous and easily pulled apart. If he does his job right, Márquez will provide the Red Bulls with a solid base to launch an attack that is going to be fun to watch.