Golden Boy talk coelesces

Today B-Fall states that the Dynamo ownership issue is about to have some resolution. Boxer/promoter Oscar De La Hoya and Golden Boy Promotions shareholder Gabriel Brener (a Mexican investor with ties to the US real estate industry) will each take on 25% ownership of the team, with AEG maintaining a 50 percent stake in the Dynamo.

Ives G. believes this means that AEG will maintain ownership until the stadium is completed, then sell off the remaining shares.

Glenn Davis had an interview with De La Hoya on Davis' radio show this evening. You can eventually hear the podcast of the show here.

Interesting times. I'd prefer local ownership, but remote ownership is not a new thing in sports. I hope that any new Dynamo stakeholders don't try to tinker with a great organization in order to make it cater to preconceived notions or marketing schemes. Only time will tell what, specifically, the ownership news means. In the meantime, I guess we'll take it as it appears at face value: a sign that people want to invest in the team -- and hope for the best. In the meantime, let's get to some games to help us forget the 6-1 shellacking.

Speaking of Quake alumni being shellacked. This past Sunday, with the 6-1 debacle still festering in my mind, Fox Soccer Channel played a recap of the March 4, 1995 pasting that Manchester United gave to Ipswich. The 9-0 result is the most lopsided game in EPL history and Andy Cole's 5-goal game has never been equaled. The right back for Ipswich? Frank Yallop. He looked gassed and completely crestfallen as he picked himself up from the pitch between United goals. He looked like that a lot last season too, come to think of it. Ryan Giggs sure looked young though.

The Hawaiian Debacle

Last night the Dynamo were spanked -- and spanked thoroughly -- by Bare the Brazilian and 10 other guys, collectively known as Gamba Osaka. After viewing the game, B-Fall says we "were outplayed in every aspect of the game" and Jeff Carlisle of ESPN says we were victims of a team with "superior fitness, speed, and technical ability." It's hard to argue with either assessment, given the utterly lopsided score (and the 6-1 score could have been even worse, had the woodwork not intervened and Onstad not made some stellar saves).

The loss can't be blown off as us being in rusty preseason form. (It's preseason for Osaka too.) Nor because we were missing E-Rob and D-Ro. (Osaka was missing seven quality starters.) Nope, we were just plain beaten.

Still, I didn't see Osaka as that much better of a team than the Dynamo. Maybe it was the sleepiness in my eyes. To me, Osaka was like one of those U8 youth teams that has a single kid who has developed faster than everyone else. The team relies on simple mob ball -- and the usual mistakes of other teams at this age -- to win possession. The players are trained to then give the ball to the star athlete, who proceeds to run up the score on the hapless opposition who are trying to play like big people. The other U8 teams, populated with kids who have a regular growth and development rate, are working on the skills they need to prosper in the game: tackling, dribbling, passing, shooting, and not staring at the butterflies. Yet, for all their trouble at doing things right, they are mere speed bumps as Team Prodigy runs roughshod through the age group. (Meanwhile, the coach of Team Prodigy thinks himself a genius because he's too oblivious to the fact that he is setting his players up for future failure: his star's downfall comes when others his age catch up in physical development and he has no skills to fall back on; his other players' downfall comes sooner since they weren't instructed in the fundamentals.)

This was more or less the situation last night. Osaka can be complimented for playing a compact, disciplined defensive game that totally clogged up the middle. When they won the ball back, Osaka couldn't maintain possession for long, but if they could get the ball to Bare (it didn't matter where: at the halfway line, near the touchline, in the penalty box), he'd score. That was the situation in the first half, where Osaka played truly decent soccer only during a 5-10 minute period after the Dynamo were fatigued -- and this was after the 30 minute mark when Osaka had already got their 2-1 score line for the half. In the second half, it was more of the same: channel the Dynamo to the flanks, clog up the middle, and get the ball to Bare. The Dynamo weren't outplayed in every aspect of the game, because the Dynamo were still possessing the ball and generating the threats that could lead to the eventual equalizer. Only when Bare made the goal differential insurmountable (and the Dynamo had become too despondent to fight the fatigue) did Osaka find the advanced combination play that made them look like a quality squad.

For this reason, I think there's greater upside to the Dynamo as a team than to Osaka. If a team can shut down Bare (or should Bare get injured), Osaka is in trouble. They are a one-trick pony. But what a trick that pony does!

While the Dynamo were doing the wall passes and overlapping runs, Bare-Osaka was scoring. In the end, that's all that matters in soccer: goals. So, while I'm arguing that the Dynamo weren't outclassed, they definitely were outscored -- and not by fluky goals.

Luckily, the Dynamo are a team that doesn't get too confident when things are going well, and doesn't get too bummed when they have a bad day. Also, Kinnear is no dummy and probably is relieved to see the glaring problems that need to be fixed before we face our CONCACAF opponents in the regional Champions' Cup.

• The most obvious deficiency is the center defense. I did not expect this to be said of the Dynamo squad. I'm of the mind that Boswell is better than the departed Ryan Cochrane, so we should be better defensively this year than last. We have arguably improved the pieces, but apparently they aren't working in coordination...yet. At the beginning of the match, Bobby Boswell was said to be the guy to shut down Bare. He shirked this duty if that was indeed his. We knew before the match began that Bare was strong, fast, and talented. Still, our back line played him soft and didn't seem to know who had him at times. Even after halftime, when we saw firsthand the danger embodied by Bare, we didn't adjust to do better at covering him. (This failure to adjust is my biggest aggravation of the game…but maybe Bare is just. that. good.) Only his final goal, where Barrett was challenging him for the ball and Bare was force to make a tremendous volley off the pressured dribble, did Bare score DESPITE solid defending; the rest of the time he scored in the ABSENCE of solid defending. When E-Rob returns, we should be better in the center, but frankly Boswell and Ianni should have been good enough. They weren't. The defense has to do better as a unit if it's to succeed, and they better start quickly since they're going to have to give a revamped offense some cushion.
• The offense was already understood to be a concern since we've lost Ngwenya and Jaqua. Hopefully the signing of the young Argentinean forward, Franco Caraccio, helps our punch. He hopefully brings the missing pace that our attack currently lacks. If he does, then that might be all that we need to open up defenses, which would enhance and be enhanced by our threats from DeRo and Holden from distance, Davis from set pieces, and Ching on crosses from the flanks. Last night, we were generating countless threats, but few turned into genuine shots on goal due to the congestion in the middle. This is a problem we had last year too: scoring on compact defenses and bunkered defenses. Even against 10-man opposition we couldn't score if the team bunkered on us. Hopefully we do better in this aspect this year.
• The midfield didn't play particularly poorly as a unit last night. We maintained possession well in the center and on the right flank. But! The delivery to Ching and Wondo (erroneously called "Stephen Wondolowski" all night by the accented commentator) was off target most of the night. Corey Ashe still exhibited excellent athleticism but poor soccer savvy. A few shots from range (Clark and Holden, I'm looking at you) were completely off target, but they were low percentage shots to begin with. We're still at our best with D-Ro in the middle and Davis/Mullen/Holden (pick two) on the flanks and Clark as D-Mid. I think Holden is the best option for D-Ro when the Canadian has to sit out, keeping Davis wide. Frankly, the midfield is the least of our worries, but that's a good thing because I think that's the hardest element to address.
• Goalkeeper isn't an issue yet. I can't blame Pat Onstad for the scoring frenzy last night. It all goes back to the defense for leaving him out to dry. We do need a solid backup though, because Onstad's age might become an issue by increasing the likelihood of injury.
  

LA supporters can feel better that, on the surface, their results are the same as their fellow MLSers' results: a loss to Gamba Osaka (and by only one goal!) and a win over Sydney FC. The difference is that the Dynamo dominated Sydney whereas LA backed into a victory, and the Dynamo looked dangerous (despite the story told by the goal differential) versus Osaka whereas LA looked like an amateur team playing a professional team. Where LA can feel good about themselves is that the team that played in the Pan-Pacific Championship won't be the one fielded in League Play. More of their starters played in their match versus the Dynamo reserves than in the actual tourney, which should embarrass the LAG faithful.

This year, unlike the last, we have had a good warm up before the Champions Cup. Let's hope it produces results in the CONCACAF Cup and other competitions we undertake. It'd be nice to have some trophies to accompany our MLS Cups in the trophy case.

Dynamo 2008 schedule

The MLS schedule came out yesterday. The Dynamo's 30 game include every team once at home and once away, and an extra match versus four of the six other Western Conference teams. We play Chivas and Dallas in an extra home game, and we play Colorado and San Jose in an extra away game. I think this works out perfectly: Chivas and Dallas have trouble getting results at Robertson, so it's good to have them come here to Houston (particularly given Chivas' strong home record). Colorado can be difficult due to the altitude, but the Dynamo often uses these trips to Colorado to recuperate at Philip Anschutz's nearby ranch -- assuming AEW still owns the Dynamo in June and October (brrr!) when the Dynamo venture to Commerce City. I'm sure the Dynamo also won't mind the extra trip to their old stomping grounds in San Jose either.

The week before that October date in Colorado (brrr!), Dynamo play in Toronto on September 27. That's my birthday weekend; maybe I'll use that as an excuse to travel to Canada.

Dynamo's first match is March 29 at Foxboro, MA. The first home game is the following Sunday, April 6, versus FC Dallas. There is only one Dynamo game scheduled in July due to SuperLiga, the US Open Cup, and the MLS All-Stars all occurring that month. The final game of the season is October 25 versus Chivas USA at the Home Depot Center.

The league schedule will be strained because of the usual extracurricular tournaments (such as the aforementioned SuperLiga), and international play will also be an issue. We host Chivas USA on August 20, the day the US is likely to play Guatemala in a semifinal round World Cup qualifier. (Probably means we'll face a Guzan-less Chivas.) We host the Wizards on September 7, when the US will likely be at Cuba. We host DC United on October 12 when the US will likely host Cuba.

B-Fall has some observations on the schedule in his blog at chron.com.

TV coverage is still being fleshed out, but hopefully Channel 55 The Tube will pick up some games to fill in those dates that are currently left to Direct Kick or HDNet.

Oh yeah, and the Galaxy come to Houston once: October 19. If you're a Beckham groupie and seeing him once is not enough, you can take a road trip to Frisco to see Becks play Dallas twice: May 18 and July 27. The other celebrity, Blanco, comes to Houston with the Fire on August 31.

In other Western Conference News:
Du Nord reports that former DC United center mid, Christian Gomez, is heading to Colorado. With him as the attacking mid and Beckerman (or Mastroeni) as the defensive mid, Colorado is now a much bigger threat in the West. It seems the quality of the opposition improves each season. Hopefully the Dynamo continue their trend of adapting and improving this season.

A tie with El Tri

It's always exciting to see international soccer -- particularly US international soccer, of course -- here in Houston. Last night Reliant Stadium was LOUD. The crowd was passionate but surprisingly amicable. Heck, in the final 10 minutes of the game, US and Mexico fans alike sent a few waves around the stands.

(But then this morning has reports of a shooting in a parking lot. Cue the xenophobic, bigoted rants on chron.com.)

I thought a 2-2 draw was a fair result. The US goals were quality goals (and they almost had a 3rd) and the US should not have conceded goals it did. On the other hand, Mexico could have easily had at least two in the run of play without relying on the US being uncharacteristically disorganized on set plays. Furthermore, the US was too often disorganized at the back and its flanks were weak on both sides of the ball. Thus, 2-2 was a result both teams should appreciate.

As for that 3rd US goal, it turns out Dempsey was offside when the ball was initially passed to him. It's unfortunate that the center ref waited for -- what? -- 10 minutes and an apparent goal before calling it?

On the other hand, I think Jozy Altidore's breakaway in the first half -- long before the game's first goal -- was wrongly whistled dead. Altidore won the ball off clumsy possession play by Rafael Marquez, then Marquez successfully covered his gaffe by flailing to the ground after minimal contact, and Altidore's one-on-one with Mexico's GK, Ochoa, was whistled dead before Jozy could show us what he could do.

Some rambling thoughts...

• I am surprised that Bradley never subbed out any of his defenders, given how pathetic the back line looked at times. I expected to see Parkhurst at some point, and hoped to see Robinson, but Parkhurst was the only defending option on the bench (other than Lewis, when necessary).
• Bad news: the Dynamo website states that "Brad Davis is out indefinitely after suffering a right groin strain while training with the US Men's National Team, the team announced today. Davis has been evaluated by Dynamo medical staff. Stay tuned to houstondynamo.com for further updates." That explains why he didn't play. I think he would've fared better than Bobby Convey.
• And what has happened to Bobby Convey? He used to be a "player of the future." Now he looks indecisive and clumsy. He's had a hard road recovering from his past season-ending injuries and surgeries.
• I've always been on the fence with Michael Bradley, but his recent club play converted me to a Boy Bradley supporter. But his game last night was weak. His tackles are always suspect, but his passing is usually his strength. Last night saw several errant and intercepted passes -- which is inexcusable given that he should be in mid-season form. He maintained good possession on several occasions and successfully won back a ball after he had lost it near our defensive third, but wasn't much of a factor (in my opinion) overall.
• Maybe it's because there was no true attacking mid to work with, but I thought Clark, like Boy Bradley, was limited in his effectiveness in the middle. He had a journeyman effort, but not the creative and even controlling role he can demonstrate from the middle.
• Dempsey is still playing out of position I think. He's better as a right midfielder, but that's not a position where we're lacking in options.
• I'm trying to think of who did impress me. No one with any consistency. Several had shining moments, including those who I whined about in this post. I'd have to say Oguchi Onyewu fared the best. I wondered why he was taking the one throw in, then as it flew 50 yards into the penalty box I said "Oh, that's why." Then he followed up with that quality long range header into goal. He held the center of the back line pretty well (defense had its issues, but the biggest weaknesses were the flanks and he wasn't responsible for the poor coverage on the two Mexico goals) and his yellow card was undeserved. Furthermore, without Dave O'Brien in the booth, we didn't have to hear the constant reiteration that Onyewu is built like a linebacker. Other thoughts: Altidore probably had more good than bad. Tim Howard too, although I partly blame him for the disorganization of the back line. He realized the noise made communication difficult (and nearly took his captain, Bocanegra, out of the game), but he never seemed to take the opportunity to take corrective action. He had trouble controlling the wall formation even after halftime. He was having so much trouble with that in the first half that I thought the break would see that easy fix made, but nope!
• I can blame the rustiness of Clark, Donovan, Moor, and Altidore (if he had any) due to the fact that they are in pre-season form (and Moor and Altidore are young). Feilhaber and Convey might be excused because of their lack of time on the field for their clubs (but if they're not good enough for their clubs, what does it say about us that they're part of the top 18 for their country?). As for the others: no excuses.
• Dynamo fans, take heart: both of Mexico's goals can be blamed on FC Dallas. Drew Moor of Dallas blew his positioning and his marking on both goals. On set pieces no less. To repeat: the US lost to Mexico on set pieces.
• Moor halfway made up for his error with the great service to Jozy Altidore for the 2nd US goal. But that only accounted for half of the deficit Moor put us in. Moor had good service to Altidore late in the 2nd half too, but the cross was slightly deflected which affected ALtidore's timing and made his header go wide. Moor's successes are described on the MLS recap of the game, but the MLS recap attributes Moor's gaffes to anonymous "defenders".
• Question, is Jonny Magallon, who scored the brace for Mexico, any relation to Consul General of Mexico Carlos Gonzalez Magallon? The Consul General attended a Dynamo function (a reception for FMF Secretary General Decio de María) the night before the US-Mexico match. He must have enjoyed seeing his last name on the scoring sheet for his national team, even if he's not related to Jonny.
• And finally, we got to see the new ESPN broadcasting team of John Harkes and JP Dellacamera. I like both guys in general. It sounded like they've still got some work to do on their integration and chemistry; they didn't combine well on some of their commentary. Harkes has apparently worked on eliminating some of his annoyingly overused phrases/tics. Maybe the sound wasn't too good in the broadcast booth, because JP seemed to be lost at times, particularly when play was stopped; this is where Harkes needs to step in. And Harkes, it's okay to decry a bad call when the ref deserves it! It may be that I like Harkes better as a person than as an announcer, with Wynalda as the converse.

Most surprising quote of the night, leading me to question the translation or transcription: "These are hard-fought games. As far as play, we probably deserved the win, but the result is fair because they capitalized on their style of play,which is one we have a lot of respect for." That was Hugo Sanchez who said that (with the italicized emphasis my own)!