AROUND MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER
LA Galaxy tied with FC Dallas on Saturday and picked up a point. The Galaxy missed several opportunities to finish shots on goal. Robbie Keane missed a PK and several crosses were left without a connection. Those are the bad things about LA and shows that FC Dallas put up a great fight against the Galaxy. FC Dallas striker Brek Shea picked off a PK to put his side up 1-0 after Galaxy GK Bill Gaudette collided with Blas Perez and got a yellow card. In the 90′ stoppage Pat Noonan picked up his first goal with the Galaxy. Does this result say anything negative about each team? No, other than what has been said, each team played well and gauged the opponents quite well. Does this mean that Los Angeles will sit on top of the West and win it all? Not playing this way. They were a bit scattered. There were SEVERAL missed chances (by both sides) that could have had the game with a 4-3 total or a 4-4 total. There were also several bad calls by the referees against both teams. There were a lot of non calls and two or three calls that shouldn’t have happened, then there were a couple shots that could have been a red card but that didn’t happen at all.
Struggles still are happening for Portland. They fell 2-0 to expansion side Montreal Impact. Both Montreal goals came in the second half with one in the 74′ with Bernardo Corradi’s shot and again in the 84′ with a shot by Sinisa Ubiparipovic. Both team put up similar numbers in the game but Montreal had more blocked shots duels won and had more possession. Does this mean it is time to panic for Portland? No, panicking causes teams to fail. The team needs to focus and tighten up on defense. They also need to get service to the strikers in order to pick up points and get wins. Don’t discount Montreal in this affair at all. The Impact have steadily been improving all season and sit mid pack in the east.
Toronto FC has now tied the 1999 Kansas City Wizards for worst start to an MLS season. Not exactly the record they wanted to hold. Toronto almost picked up a point but couldn’t hold on after a stoppage time shot from Jonny Steele game RSL the 3-2 victory. TFC looked to pick up a point with goals at the 48’ and 57’ marks but a first goal by RSL striker Kyle Beckerman in the 7’ made Toronto have to play the catch-up game for a better part of the match. RSL’s second point came from a TFC own goal. So does TFC need to throw in the towel and roll over? No, this time is critical for the team. Manager Aron Winter needs to see what his team is doing and fix it. Own goals happen, there’s no avoiding that fact but giving up early goals is what has cost the team this season. Should he make a defensive change? Probably, it seems to be where the root of the problem is at. He should look at LA Galaxy’s shifting of players and see how that helped them get points on the board. Should the midfield pull back a bit to help with defense? They should have been doing that all along. Do the strikers need to move better? Always, doesn’t matter the team, one can always criticize how strikers move and miss shots and crosses. The team seems very scattered and still struggling. A good practice and a new outlook on the season shouldn’t be “We’re in last place”, it should be “We have as good of chance of continuing to the playoffs as Sporting Kansas City”.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Should there be a replay used over controversial calls in MLS? This has been a question that has been argued for quite some time and with several incompetent referees out there making terrible calls and not making calls, something has to give. The biggest ones are disallowed goals and terrible calls that need further scrutiny.
FIFA head, Sepp Blatter has stated that Goal Line Technology will be in use before the end of 2012 and MLS head, Don Garber has said that the MLS will possibly be using the technology as soon as July. This could help the referees not have to make such tough calls so close to the goal but it could also cause some issues with personnel and fans alike. The technology has been in use for a while but not in soccer to any degree. With MLS being on the cutting edge, it either proves to be a complete flop or a great tool. There is no in between with this one. There will be tweaking all along this process and constant ways to make it better but it won’t be without flaws like all other new technology and that might make the fans and personnel turn on it before it gets to its full potential.
If you have suggestions… email us (sportcastzone@gmail.com) like us on Facebook (facebook.com/sportcastzone) follow us on Twitter @sportcastzone and myself personally @jrichardson25.
Until Thursday, feel free to comment below, on Facebook or Twitter.
#1 by passthesugar on April 30, 2012 - 8:12 PM
great blog mate any tips for a new blogger? http://www.footballfortheday.com
#2 by thetrublzone on May 5, 2012 - 7:15 AM
Find your nitch and stay in your wheelhouse. The only times I have difficulty is when I leave my wheel house in the Red Zone. And consistency is also a plus. Don’t get discouraged by low traffic, just work on stuff like yahoo answers and the like to get your traffic up and good luck.
#3 by JRich on May 6, 2012 - 8:10 PM
Exactly what my colleague said. Just post and promote. Twitter has helped a lot. We also have Facebook and that helps. Promoting the blog will increase traffic.
#4 by 24-Volts Batteries on May 9, 2012 - 11:14 AM
Someone essentially help to make significantly articles I might state. This is the very first time I frequented your website page and so far? I amazed with the analysis you made to create this particular post extraordinary. Magnificent activity!