All Things MN United Season Thread

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well, that was not much of a match last night. Loons couldn't mount any offense. did have a goal wiped out on a corner kick that - in the eyes of the referee - went behind the end line before curving back into the field. and Pukki had a ball go between his legs on another opportunity.

stats: shots on goal LA 5, MN 1
fouls: LA 11, MN 16
Yellow Cards: LA 0, MN 2
possession: LA 55.5%, MN 44.5%

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But - in other news -

it's apparently official - Club Tijuana has announced the addition of Emanuel Reynoso for an "undisclosed" fee. This opens up a Designated Player slot for the summer transfer window.
 

short ornery norwegian said:
well, that was not much of a match last night. Loons couldn't mount any offense. did have a goal wiped out on a corner kick that - in the eyes of the referee - went behind the end line before curving back into the field. and Pukki had a ball go between his legs on another opportunity.

stats: shots on goal LA 5, MN 1
fouls: LA 11, MN 16
Yellow Cards: LA 0, MN 2
possession: LA 55.5%, MN 44.5%

-----
But - in other news -

it's apparently official - Club Tijuana has announced the addition of Emanuel Reynoso for an "undisclosed" fee. This opens up a Designated Player slot for the summer transfer window.
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The Loons are playing well. Imagine what they could do with a high caliber starter added to the mix.
 


Nice to see a beat down of skc and Johnny Russell in particular. A few guys leave this week for international duties so the squad will be relying on depth more the next month
 

this could be interesting. Loons host FC Dallas on Saturday. They will be missing 9 players who were called up to their national teams (Bran, Harvey, Pukki, Lod, St. Clair, Oluwaseyi, Rosales, Arriaga and Valentin)

Tapias is in Mexico trying to get a Green Card, and DJ Taylor is injured. so that's 11 players out with 7 or 8 of those being starters or key reserves, including the starting goal keeper.

here's what's left: (per the Strib)

First-team players available, by position (15):

Striker: Jordan Adebayo-Smith, Patrick Weah

Wide forward: Sang Bin Jeong, Bongokuhle Hlongwane, Franco Fragapane

Midfielder: Wil Trapp, Hassani Dotson, Moses Nyeman

Outside back: Caden Clark (questionable), Devin Padelford

Center back: Michael Boxall, Victor Eriksson, Morris Duggan, Hugo Bacharach (not as a starter)

Goalkeeper: Clint Irwin

players from MNUFC 2 could be called up if needed.
 


checking back in. Wednesday night was a "free" night on Apple TV+, so I got to watch the Loons piss down their legs in a 5-3 loss. match was tied at 2-all, and then the Loons gave up 3 goals to go down 5-2. got a late penalty kick to make it 5-3.

the back line was not good. got beat repeatedly and did a poor job of marking Dallas' best players.

still missing multiple players due to international team duty, injuries and suspensions. Kervin Arriaga missed the match amid rumors that he may be leaving - possibly for a European team - during the upcoming transfer window.
 

short ornery norwegian said:
checking back in. Wednesday night was a "free" night on Apple TV+, so I got to watch the Loons piss down their legs in a 5-3 loss. match was tied at 2-all, and then the Loons gave up 3 goals to go down 5-2. got a late penalty kick to make it 5-3.

the back line was not good. got beat repeatedly and did a poor job of marking Dallas' best players.

still missing multiple players due to international team duty, injuries and suspensions. Kervin Arriaga missed the match amid rumors that he may be leaving - possibly for a European team - during the upcoming transfer window.
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Kervin did a slow walk around the field after the game tonight applauding the fans. I think he’s going to one of the Belgrade Serbian teams that’s always in the champions league. An upgrade club wise but a downgrade league wise
 

Rose - did you watch/attend Saturday's game? I saw a tweet that Dotson got two yellows in a span of less than a minute and got booted. stats show Loons with 1 shot on goal for the entire match.

hard to assess things with so many players missing. I hope they are active in the transfer window. if Arriaga is leaving, they need to bring in a player or two who can contribute right away.
 

short ornery norwegian said:
Rose - did you watch/attend Saturday's game? I saw a tweet that Dotson got two yellows in a span of less than a minute and got booted. stats show Loons with 1 shot on goal for the entire match.

hard to assess things with so many players missing. I hope they are active in the transfer window. if Arriaga is leaving, they need to bring in a player or two who can contribute right away.
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Yes I I was there. The red card crushed us. We actually played as well as we could down a man and had some chances. MLS is a joke for playing during these major international cup tournaments
 



it's official - Kervin Arriaga is transferring to a club in Serbia for a reported fee of $500,000.

and little-used defender Victor Eriksson is going back home to his team in Sweden. Ericksson appeared in 4 games while battling injuries.

the Summer transfer window opens in 3 weeks.

other notes:
Teemu Pukki is out for a few more weeks with a knee injury.

on the beat-up back line - Michael Boxall has been playing through an injury. Hugo Bacharach is out with an injury. But Devin Padelford has cleared concussion protocols and is eligible to return.
 

Not trying to be a downer. I really enjoyed watching the Kicks at the old Met. I don't know the caliber of players that the Kicks had at the time, but they appeared to be decent. Now we seem to get players that Europe doesn't want and therefore at a much lower tier of play. Am I correct on that assessment? I'm just having trouble getting excited about the loons.
 

#2Gopher said:
Not trying to be a downer. I really enjoyed watching the Kicks at the old Met. I don't know the caliber of players that the Kicks had at the time, but they appeared to be decent. Now we seem to get players that Europe doesn't want and therefore at a much lower tier of play. Am I correct on that assessment? I'm just having trouble getting excited about the loons.
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I think that’s just nostalgia kicking in.

It was the same situation at the end of the NASL, with aged out players ending up there well after they were cooked, like Pele, Beckenbauer, Cruyff, George Best. Add in players that aren’t good enough for the European soccer leagues.

I think the overall level of play is superior to the level of play in the 1980’s (and the entire run of the NASL) but I wasn’t around for the early years of the league).
 
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IMHO, the difference with the Kicks is that soccer was "new" back then. In the days before the internet and streaming, with cable TV still not a wide-spread thing, you did not have a lot of people who were hard-core soccer fans. there was no way to watch Premier League games, etc. About the only time anyone saw soccer, if at all, was during the World Cup or the Olympics.

and then, when the Kicks arrived, people could attend matches and see players they had only heard about in news stories, like Pele or Beckenbauer. It was new - it was cool.

and, to be honest, the Kicks were as much about the party scene as the actual matches. young people sat in the parking lot drinking and getting stoned, and then stumbled into the stadium to watch a sport - for which many had only a minimal grasp of the rules.

so if today's MLS doesn't seem as 'good' as the old NASL, I think it's because we didn't have a base of comparison then the way we do now, when Premier League games are available and people can readily watch the best teams in the world.
 



not really Loons related, but the USMNT stunk up the joint in their Copa America match on Thursday, losing 2-1 to Panama. Weah with a moronic Red card foul early in the match forced the team to go much of the way short-handed. (he punched a Panama player in the back of the head)

it was a really chippy match. 19 fouls on Panama to 4 for the US. 3 Yellows on Panama, 2 on the US. each team with a Red Card. But - time of possession 74% for Panama - 26% for US. Ugh. US with 0 corner kicks.

in order to advance to the next round, US almost has to beat Uruguay. If the US ties Uruguay, then Panama has to lose to Bolivia - the worst team in the group.

US plays Uruguay at 8pm Monday in Kansas City. Uruguay is 2-0 in the group with a 3-1 win over Panama and a 5-0 win over Bolivia.

outside of Pulisic and Balogun, the US just doesn't generate any offense.
 

short ornery norwegian said:
not really Loons related, but the USMNT stunk up the joint in their Copa America match on Thursday, losing 2-1 to Panama. Weah with a moronic Red card foul early in the match forced the team to go much of the way short-handed. (he punched a Panama player in the back of the head)

it was a really chippy match. 19 fouls on Panama to 4 for the US. 3 Yellows on Panama, 2 on the US. each team with a Red Card. But - time of possession 74% for Panama - 26% for US. Ugh. US with 0 corner kicks.

in order to advance to the next round, US almost has to beat Uruguay. If the US ties Uruguay, then Panama has to lose to Bolivia - the worst team in the group.

US plays Uruguay at 8pm Monday in Kansas City. Uruguay is 2-0 in the group with a 3-1 win over Panama and a 5-0 win over Bolivia.

outside of Pulisic and Balogun, the US just doesn't generate any offense.
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The biggest hope the US has is that Uruguay imitates Portugal at the Euros and benches a bunch of regulars.
 

and the Loons fall again, dropping a 3-2 match late Saturday night at Portland. short-handed Loons got even shorter-handed when Wil Trapp had a pre-match injury and couldn't play.

Loons were up 2-0 on goals by Bongi and Sang-Bin. But Portland scored on a Penalty Kick in 1st-half stoppage time. 3rd time this year DJ Taylor has committed a foul that led to a PK for the opponents.

then Portland added 2 goals in the 2nd half. another possible Portland goal was negated by VAR.

Portland dominated the stats:
possession 67% to 33%
13 shots on goal to 4 for the Loons
11 Corner Kicks to 1 for the Loons

Loons host Vancouver on Wednesday and go on the road to face LA Galaxy next Sunday.
 

The Loons are really struggling with a lot of national team players out, plus losing 2 guys via transfer.
 

short ornery norwegian said:
not really Loons related, but the USMNT stunk up the joint in their Copa America match on Thursday, losing 2-1 to Panama. Weah with a moronic Red card foul early in the match forced the team to go much of the way short-handed. (he punched a Panama player in the back of the head)

it was a really chippy match. 19 fouls on Panama to 4 for the US. 3 Yellows on Panama, 2 on the US. each team with a Red Card. But - time of possession 74% for Panama - 26% for US. Ugh. US with 0 corner kicks.

in order to advance to the next round, US almost has to beat Uruguay. If the US ties Uruguay, then Panama has to lose to Bolivia - the worst team in the group.

US plays Uruguay at 8pm Monday in Kansas City. Uruguay is 2-0 in the group with a 3-1 win over Panama and a 5-0 win over Bolivia.

outside of Pulisic and Balogun, the US just doesn't generate any offense.
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We're not guaranteed to advance even if we beat Uruguay. The upside to us not advancing is that hopefully we finally get rid of Berhaulter. We could have and should have hired Marsch, who was just hired by Canada and now has Canada into the next round.
 

Full Speed Ahead said:
We're not guaranteed to advance even if we beat Uruguay. The upside to us not advancing is that hopefully we finally get rid of Berhaulter. We could have and should have hired Marsch, who was just hired by Canada and now has Canada into the next round.
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I've watched every game of the Copa and Euro tourneys thus far. To me, Uruguay and Spain are the elite national programs right now with France and Brazil following close behind.

The US will get destroyed tonight if they are facing Uruguay's first team with no answer for that midfield. Assuming they rest key players, it could be competitive but not enough to advance.

I expect our boys will be joining Mexico as declining programs watching from home while that soccer powerhouse, Canada, represents North America.
 

USMNT 0-0 at half with Uruguay. very physical first half, and some interesting calls or non-calls by the ref. announcers say he is "inexperienced" at this level and questioned a lot of his decisions.

Panama is leading Bolivia 1-0. US needs to find a way to score a goal - hopefully more than one - if advancing comes down to goal differential.
 

This ref sucks. So does McKennie. Why does he get so many minutes?
 


They need to enforce the stalling and flopping. The game is unwatchable. I turned this game on about 25 minutes ago, and have maybe watched 5 minutes of actual game play.
 

Hey. I do not pretend to be a high-level soccer expert - more of a casual fan. But after watching the USMNT play three matches in Copa America - I just don't think that the US players are that good.

Pulisic and Balogun clearly have talent, but after that - I just don't see anyone who stands out or makes a real difference - at least not in comparison to the other teams.

maybe the US is just that far behind the rest of the world. But I remember the Landon Donovan days when the US had players who looked like they belonged at that level.

and - again, no expert - but watching MLS, you can generally see what a team's plan is - how they are trying to attack and defend. I am at a loss to discern what the US's plan is. what are they trying to set up?
 

For the Loons, add Irwin and Trapp to the injured list. I'm not sure we'll have 11 players for tomorrow's game. Maybe someone from the stands can come in to play keeper. July 18th is when we can finally add some players to our roster.
 

short ornery norwegian said:
Hey. I do not pretend to be a high-level soccer expert - more of a casual fan. But after watching the USMNT play three matches in Copa America - I just don't think that the US players are that good.

Pulisic and Balogun clearly have talent, but after that - I just don't see anyone who stands out or makes a real difference - at least not in comparison to the other teams.
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Jedi Robinson and Pulisic are both world class, and maybe Adams and Musah. After that, we're in trouble.
short ornery norwegian said:
maybe the US is just that far behind the rest of the world. But I remember the Landon Donovan days when the US had players who looked like they belonged at that level.

and - again, no expert - but watching MLS, you can generally see what a team's plan is - how they are trying to attack and defend. I am at a loss to discern what the US's plan is. what are they trying to set up?
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We have no plan other than "get the ball to Pulisic". We really need to get rid of Berhalter. He's been a failure everywhere he's coached. The only reason he is our coach is because his brother is on the committee that selects the coach.
 

Yikes!

according to Andy Greder of the Pioneer Press, Loons midfielder Wil Trapp is out from 3-5 weeks with a hamstring, and Goalkeeper Clint Irwin is out 3-5 weeks with a groin injury.

Loons will reportedly start MNUFC2 keeper Alec Smir vs Vancouver on Wednesday. backup to be determined.

this could get UGLY.
 

short ornery norwegian said:
Yikes!

according to Andy Greder of the Pioneer Press, Loons midfielder Wil Trapp is out from 3-5 weeks with a hamstring, and Goalkeeper Clint Irwin is out 3-5 weeks with a groin injury.

Loons will reportedly start MNUFC2 keeper Alec Smir vs Vancouver on Wednesday. backup to be determined.

this could get UGLY.
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I bought tickets to this game months ago, didn't occur to me that the timing would be during the international tournaments. This is unacceptable for MLS to do this. It makes our league look worse than it is because we play during these breaks with second team players.
 

I had the treat of seeing the Argentina vs Chile and Uruguay vs Bolivia copa matches in New York last week. The atmosphere at the Argentina was something I will never forget. They live and breath futbol. Seeing Messi and Di Maria was just icing on the cake. Also Uruguay played a brilliant match against a pretty weak Bolivia side but was fun to watch. I went to NYCFC game at Yankke stadium and that made me appreciate what we have at Allianz. We truly have a top 5 stadium and atmosphere
 

Loons have a backup goalkeeper. Per Andy Greder, Loons signed Oscar Herrera to an MLS Next Pro contract and a short-term loan for tonight's match.

Herrera played D3 soccer at Augsburg University. Go Auggies.

also - Costa Rica is out of Copa America, meaning that midfielder Alejandro Bran is free to rejoin the Loons. Not sure if he will arrive in time for tonight's match. he played 38 minutes total for Costa Rica in Copa matches.

(have to say Greder really does a nice job of covering the Loons for the Pioneer Press.)
 

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