Canada - Germany

[Reza]

Well, no surprises here...the second half was brutal and expected.

Canada is becoming the 45 minutes team, doing well in the first half but running out of gas in th 2nd. Mind you, Canada was playing against the World Cup runner up who made 6 changes or so, but still. Judging from the Scotland match and this one, the 90 minute depth is still not there, at least against the better teams of the world.

I am not sure if anybody played bad, although Stalteri, DeGuzman and Pizzolito did pretty good. Onstad had a good 90 minutes except for he could have done much better on the last one. The 2nd goal was actually a bit unfortunate actually, because the free kick that started should have gone the other way, I thought. And they may have delayed the German onslaught.

Overall, the result was not unexpected. I think the valuable thing would be the experience leading up to the world cup qualifyings.

BTW, Jazic didn't look too enthused. I wonder if he is coming back.

And the contrast between Holger and Miller was kind of interesting too.

Reza

[bmac]

Reza:

Personally I thought Dasovic was just dreadfull...time to pass a ball and it would be put behind or too forward of a player. Never seemed to be in the right position even as a "holding" midfielder...too far behind or caught in between. Mind you at his age I am sure that he was no one's first choice.

Similarly, in a destructive role hardly knew that Imhoff was on the field.

Did not notice Jazic lack of enthusiasm but certainly did observe the contrast between Holger and Miller.

bmac

Edm

[strobe_z]

I have to agree Dasovic looked pretty bad... I was screaming for Holger to put Canizales in in the 2nd half. Almost all the attack builds we made through the mid-field were wasted on a bizzare or useless play from Dasovic.

Also, the comments about Imhof made me chuckle. I missed the starting line ups, so when he came off I said to myself "was he on the pitch??"

Ah well...

http://www.fifaconcacaf.com/strobe_z/Voyageurs.swf

[beachesl]

Canada Player Ratings

(out of ten)

Paul Stalteri 9

Excellent pace and movement. Never seemed to get tired. Was the engine and inspiration behind Canada’s success out front. Only could have been better by taking more attacks into penalty area himself, and, alternately, using some of his long-range volleys at opportune moments. Clerly, Canada’s man of the match.

Kevin McKenna 7

Good solid performance, especially in first half. Seemed to tire in second half (probably heat and humidity), missing some good opportunities, probably should have been replaced by fresh legs at the 65-70 minute mark..

Paul Onstad 7

Solid and thoughtful goal work. Patrolled the penalty area well. Could not be faulted for goals, but maybe needs to pull a few more miracles out of the bag when it counts if he wants to supplant Hirschfield when he returns.

Martin Nash 6

Good two-way midfield work, read Germans well. Obviously Canada’s best potential for crosses. Was tiring in second half like most of the team, but he was one of the better players, and was not the one I would have replaced first.

Julian De Guzman 6

Inconsistent at times, but brilliant flashes of skill and inspiration on the wings. Flagged in energy and concentration towards end..

Nevio Pizolito 6

Canada’s best player at back. Dependable, and seemed to be in the right position most of the time.

Tam Nsaliwa 6

Although showing inexperience at times, played with inspiration and intensity, clearly wanted to be on the field.

Richard Hastings 3

An example of Canada’s defensive weakness up the middle. Poor marking. Time to move on?

Paul Fenwick. 3

Ditto, plus many more mistakes.

Nick Dasocvic 3

Unimpressive, missed important tackles and ball possession opportunities.

Daniel Imhof 3

Where was he?

Substitutes (not enough)

Canizares 6

Did bring some improvement, and brought in some agressiveness. Created some of the few Canadian chances at the end of the game.

Fletcher 3

Not on long enough to properly evaluate, but more of the same in terms of inconsistency

In front of own goal. Clearly the man most responsible for Rau’s goal at end.

Coach

Holger Osiek 2

Would be lower if not for fact that he seems stolidly capable of preparing a team for the opening minutes of the game.. Total lack of imagination in making adjustments during match. Embarrassing and unhelpful sideline demeanour. Did he not care about the game as it developed? If you have substitutes, no matter how raw, why not use them if usefulness of team

clearly diminshed by heat, humidity and exhaustion (especially when confronted with fresh legs of opposition)- supposed lack of depth strength is no excuse when you pick them and bring them. Poor people skills in terms of pre-match comments (no wonder a lot of players are wary of dealing with him. Even Prussians have to adjust when they coach outside of Germany. As far as I’m concerned, he has to show some smart over the next 8 weeks, or he should be dumped after the Gold Cup. I have never criticized him in lineup selection before (I’m always a support-the-coach kind of guy) , but the glaring weaknesses displayed lately means now there’s a hanging jury still out. We can’t afford to hold onto liabilities much before WCQ qualifying starts sometime (soon?) after the New Year.

[Gian-Luca]

I haven't had a chance to watch the match a second time, but I have to concur after the first viewing that Dasovic had a poor game, along with Fenwick. Neither tackled particularly well & their poor tackling led directly to 2 of the 4 goals against. Holger was too slow in his substitutions & again not enough of them, I think all are agreed on that point. I guess Menezes was injured? Otherwise I can't understand why he wasn't played, he would have made some of those tackles that Fenwick missed for sure.

Despite the loss I am more encouraged that discouraged, because again the younger players played well (with the exception of Hastings - too bad that Jazic was injured) and its the younger players that are the future of the team, rather than the Fenwicks & Dasovics. And although a tactical error was made in not responding to the onslaught of German subs quicker, that shouldn't really be a problem we'll face in a match that matters (since we don't play any matches that matter against Germany & you're not allowed unlimited subs).

I thought De Guzman was the man of the match for Canada, his progress is a delight to watch. Thought Tam defended well. I think Stalteri was wasted a bit up front & would have been better off in midfield instead of having Dasovic there. I thought the other A-leaguers (besides Dasovic) acquitted themselves well.

Canada's goal was awesome & you just had to love that first half. Looking forward to the Gold Cup against less stiff competition & with many more of our players back.

Well a lot of things can happen, when you're walking down the street, and it never fails to amaze me, the people that I meet. They all say "See you later" and I just answer "How? How will you see me later, when you can't see me now?" - Kevin Ayers, The Confessions of Dr. Dream & Other Stories (1974)

[Moosehead]

Well, they played really well in the 1st half and attacked. McKenna what an excellent goal and good cross. The defence was weak and Holger should have made more substitutions imo. As long as they tried there best what else can you expect. However, 2nd half we were clearly outclassed. Would have liked to see Jordan in there and Jazic and Menzes. Oh, well.

[Gordon]

The first half was a good watch. Although it was clear that Germany was the better team, Canada was not outclassed. Second half was a different story. Badly outclassed as the players just barely making the plays in the first hald tired enough that they were no longer able to make the play. Fenwick and Dasovic were the primary culprits, however, one wonder where Danny Imhoff was as his first mention did not come until the 72 minute mark. Pizolotto (pardon the spelling) and Hastings (the better of the two) were not too bad (Pizolotto played well when the backline was holding its form but was lost whenever things broke down), and one could have competed with this German team had they been 10th and 11th in the ratings. Unfortunately, they were 7th and 8th IMO []. Guys who held their own were Stalteri, DeGuzman, McKenna (despite the bad foot), Nsaliwa and Nash. Onstadt was fine as well. 2 good saves but, if a bit quicker might have had a couple of the goals, not his fault, but shots that a World Class keeper might have had.

2 big problems, aside from the Fenwick & Dasovic's play, were evident, however. First was that only a handful of players, (Stalteri, DeGuzman and, for the most part, Nsaliwa) showed the same anticipation and understanding of the flow of the game as the Germans. McKenna was next in this regard but other than that, everyone else was largely reacting to the German play whereas Germany was quite proactive in breaking up our offensive forays. Second, although we again showed a bent for moving the ball along the ground a fair bit, once we hit the final third we ran out of ideas, due in equal measuers to the lack of anticipation and the absence of enough players who knew what to do in those circumstances. Inevitably there was too little support.

Things that I liked: 1) Stalteri's on field decision to change the 4-5-1 into a 4-4-2. He played very well. Perhaps his presence defensively in the midfield might have helped, but I want to see Canada attacking and Stalteri did this; 2) DeGuzman's play generally caused the German's difficulties and he showed some flair out there; 3) Nsaliwa at Right Back. This really is his best position IMHO, although he still has lots to learn and did make a couple of mental errors. I hope that whatever club side picks him up installs him at rightback and lets him play there consistently; 4) McKenna's improvement as a target forward. Was this really the guy who looked lost against the US in the Gold Cup? 5) Better effort at playing the ball along the ground. They are making strides here. Yes, still too much long ball, and much maturing to do within the possession style, but they are moving forward on this front.

Things I didn't like: 1) Paul Fenwick. Agreed: the guy took some hits for Canada in his time, but his time is now up. Why no Menezes? There was no mention of an injury on the telecast but there is no earthly reason other than injury as to why Fenwick plays ahead of Menezes, particulalry as Tony is looking for a new club; 2) The inability of the backline and defensive mids to figure out who to mark when Fenwick left them exposed. I mean, how many times were German players left completely unmarked in the box while 2-3 Canadians over ran the play or stood around watching...more than I can count! 3) Defensive coverage off corners. Attrocious throughout. I think the Holy Cross High School (Traditional Saskatoon HS powerhouse) team could do a better job. 4) Penetration of the German box on the ground...to many people who did not know what to do or when to do it. 5) Dasovic - one of my favs, but clearly past it as a midfielder. Can't question his heart, but he gave the ball away, or was a step too slow, too many times. 6) The inabilty or unwillingness to switch the ball across the field. Canada did this once, Germany dozens of times. One of the reasons Canada tired out is because of the chasing that is caused by effective switching. Where was it for Canada in return? 7) Lack of defensive "intelligence". The Germans did a very good job of discrete professional obstruction. Canada, when they tried were too blatant and obvious. 8) The air generally. Other than McKenna we were dominated in the air.

So while there are some positives to take out of the game, but our lack of depth was clearly evident. We also have much to learn about playing the ball along the ground at this level. Too often guys hesititated to make the pass when they should have, didn't know where they should be running, and only Stalteri made any effort to stretch the defence.

In a World full of caterpillars it takes balls to be a butterfly.

[behrouz]

it was a poor game with very poor result.if it was't for onstad ,they could sccore big time (and the linesmen ) which they called two goal as offside

[Mimglow]

Funny, I was sitting there in what must have been the 70th minute thinking: "Uh-oh, the Voyageurs are going to whine...".

Therefore, here is a new installment of "Mimglow's Reality Check".

And please, I'm only being facetious to get my point across...I am in no way questioning anyone's intelligence.

Concerning late, minimal changes: I believe Holger wanted to get/keep the core of the team he will use at the Gold Cup in game shape. With any luck, the players on the bench today won't even be part of the roster at the Gold Cup (with the exception of Jazic and Fletcher, both of whom were nursing injuries today.

Concerning how fatigued our players appeared to be: 6 substitions from the German side. See previous point for explanation on why we didn't follow suit.

Concerning the final score: World Cup Finalists. Period. We scored a goal. Hurray. Count your blessings.

Concerning Holger's future: We don't have a better soccer mind than Holger Osieck in this country. He won the World Cup for crying out loud. Yes, his man-management could be better, but at least we don't have a "one of the boys" coach like Bob L.

Positive points:

- PIZZOLITO. WOW. I'd never seen him play, and he was mostly solid. Nice to see.

- deGuzman, Stalteri. Now there's a partnership for the future. Add Brennan and a more consistent Imhof, and we've got a really solid midfield. I see Stalteri (we MUST come up with a nickname for this guy) as a saner version of Roy Keane.

- Martin Nash as a super-sub. He started today, ran out of gas. Created our goal with a superb cross. Watch him coming off the bench in the Gold Cup.

- Jazic, Hirschfeld, Radzinski, deVos injured. We may get these guys back for the Gold Cup. That would be great news, we can put McKenna back in defense (left side?) where he's more natural.

Negative Points:

- Nick Dasovic. Sad to see his skills crumble at that rate. Hopefully we'll retire him soon, because I'd like to keep good memories of him.

- Forrest is retired

- One month before we see our boys in action again

Sorry for making fun at the start boys and girls, I just think this board could use a little more positivism (the act of thinking positive, not the philosophical doctrine).

Mimglow, Ottawa

_________________________

Where are the weapons of mass destruction?

[matthew]

I'm not sure I'm as enthused as some people are. The only thing I enjoyed in the second half was the look on Holger's face. I thought the backline looked quite good in the first half, Fenwick included (though I nearly threw something at the TV when he got exposed about 30 seconds in).

The second half was a totally different story. I thought Nevio was as culpable as Fenwick on some of the breakdowns. We tried to push up and were exposed, largely I think because Davosic and Imhof couldn't stop the bleeding and were giving the Germans mids too much time on the ball.

Hastings got caught out, but the only times recently that seems to happen is when DeGuzman is playing on the left. I think Julian was MOTM, but he's not a defensive player (he let Rammelow go on the first goal) and we need someone who will track back a bit on the flanks.

I thought Nash and Stalteri both played well, but weren't involved much. Nash really never got into the match and I don't think it was really his fault. Not sure if the position had anything to do with it, but there wasn't much effort to get the ball out to him (besides some hopeful 60-yard passes from Hastings).

McKenna played pretty well, but didn't have much to do. Really nicely taken goal, great, great ball in from Nash.

I have to argue a little with Gordon about our play in the air. We weren't great defending corners, but the Germans are the best in the world on those sorts of plays and Onstad is a punch first, ask questions later kind of keeper. I was impressed how many times DeGuzman won the ball in the air. He won a ball he had no right to that started the build up for our goal. He was active and led the attack.

I want to see the game again before I say too much about Tam. I thought he had a great first half, got forward well and in the second I thought he looked a little raw. I want another look at Pizzolitto as well.

Dasovic and Imhof were dreadful. Imhof brought nothing to the game today and we really missed Stalteri back there. I have no problem with Stalteri playing up front, I think he does a nice job, but we need him in the midfield. He's the heart of the team and he needs to be more involved.

I can't believe the subs, absolutely infuriating. Bring Canizalez on for either Imhof or Dasovic. Push him forward with McKenna and bring Stalteri into the mf. Bring Fletcher in for Nash and push him Tam up and bring in Menezes in for Fenwick. If Jazic could go, try him in place of Hastings. We get a more active mf with Tam, Imhof, Stalteri and DeGuzman, fresh legs in the back and someone to do more running up front. Plus we have more guys in their more natural positions.

There's a few positives to take from this game and I'm glad we got to see Tam play right back and Nash get some minutes. Julian looks like he made big strides this year and McKenna is making a case for a starting job in the Gold Cup at the very least.

Plus Jazic came back for camp at least and Holger got to look at Pizzolitto in game action and Budalic and Jordan in camp. Not all bad to be sure.

And it was a lot of fun to be up 1-0.

cheers,

matthew

The secret of life is to find moments of levity and grace in what is, ultimately, a tragedy. Watching Canadian soccer is good practice for this.

[Mimglow]

Wasn't it? Was I the only one who allowed myself to daydream a little bit, and think of the positive press coverage that would follow a Canada win over ze Germans? And the editors in charge of our newspaper having to justify to their bosses why there was no buildup to the match? And, and...

Well, it is nice to dream, isn't it?

Mimglow, Ottawa

_________________________

Where are the weapons of mass destruction?

[matthew]

quote:Originally posted by Mimglow

Concerning Holger's future: We don't have a better soccer mind than Holger Osieck in this country. He won the World Cup for crying out loud. Yes, his man-management could be better, but at least we don't have a "one of the boys" coach like Bob L.

In the early part of his tenure I thought Holger was a brilliant tactician and since the last World Cup cycle I've thought the absolute opposite. He seems to prepare the team well and have a good tactical plan for the first half and then the other team adjusts and we get run off the park. When's the last time our second half was better than our first?

The Scotland game was a perfect example of this Vohgts puts (Devlin I think) out on the right and he absolutely takes over the game. Imhof winds up trying to mark him, stretching our midfield and creating space. We did nothing to change it. Today the Germans are coming at us in waves, we needed some legs in the midifeld to keep it close and instead he just looks pissed off as we get overrun.

Against Jamaica in 99 he made some great adjustments (Stalteri started to get wider on the right and provided an outlet that really caused them problems) that turned the tide. Some of his subs and moves in the Gold Cup 2000 were great (Nash especially), now it seems that everyone else adjusts to us and Holger views changing tactics mid game as almost akin to admitting you were wrong.

I don't mean for such a strong reaction, I know this game isn't that important and was just a friendly while we were missing half our team, but I hate losing as much as Holger does and I can't be all philosophical after a 4-1 loss (and it should have been 6-1, against a not-terribly-strong German team).

cheers,

matthew

The secret of life is to find moments of levity and grace in what is, ultimately, a tragedy. Watching Canadian soccer is good practice for this.

[MikeD]

Let's remember one thing: McKenna's goal gave us the lead against frickin' Germany and we held that lead for 21 glorious minutes. Those were 21 of the greatest minutes I've enjoyed as a Canadian soccer fan, not just because we were leading the three-time world champions in their own backyard but because we looked good in doing so.

When you consider the strength of our opponent, the fact that we were on the road and the fact that we were missing more than half of our regular starters, you have to be optimistic about the Gold Cup. Throw in a few of the guys who were missing today and this team should be able to go deep in the tournament.

In response to the comments on some specific players:

I'm shocked and appalled by some of the Hastings bashing going on here. It wasn't his best match ever in terms of moving forward in support of the midfield, but his defensive play was stellar. The Germans got virtually no penetration down our left flank all afternoon because Hastings and DeGuzman were doing such good job. Most of the Germans' good chances either came from down the middle or the right, usually because either Dasovic, Fenwick or Nash missed their man.

I also think the criticism of Imhoff is baseless. Just because Jerry never said his name doesn't mean he wasn't doing his job. Whoever Imhoff was marking was never open, so the Germans could never pass that way. Again, like Hastings, his offensive contributions were modest at best, but you can't knock his defensive play. All the breakdowns in central midfield were because Dasovic couldn't keep up with the play, I can't remember any such mistakes from Imhoff.

As for Dasovic, I've been a huge fan and supporter of the guy for years but he was clearly a step behind today. If he's to have any role with the national team in the future, it should now be that of a backup defender/midfielder - I can see him being useful as a fresh veteran pair of legs to help defend a lead in the last 20 minutes, but that's about it. Imhoff is to the national team now what Dasovic was in his prime.

Fenwick was better than against Scotland and, in fairness, he made a few good plays today (including a late match nice strip of the ball from a German attacker who shouldn't have been allowed to run at Fenwick in the first place). However, he still made too many mistakes for my liking.

Nash made a handful of good offensive plays in the first half but then disappeared - I thought Holger could have replaced him with Canizalez even earlier than he did. However, my main problem was that he provided little defensive help to Nsaliwa on the right flank. Under the circumstances, Nsaliwa did a great job. When Fletcher is healthy, he should play right back and Nsaliwa should play right mid - Nash should go back to being our super-sub because his crosses are still as good as ever.

On the positive side, I thought Pizzolitto, Hastings, Nsaliwa and Imhoff were all solid defensively, though none of them contributed much to the attack. DeGuzman and Stalteri were the only two guys who had strong two way matches (DeGuzman has developed into a hell of player - as far as I'm concerned he should start every match in midfield from now on.)

I thought our problems started when Stalteri abandoned the midfield and began playing up front with McKenna. That was when the Germans started getting penetration through the centre of midfield. Stalteri was desperately needed in midfield to keep Dasovic from being so exposed - I can't imagine why Holger had him move up. McKenna showed a lot of poise as a target man - it would be great to see him play alongside Radzinski (or even Peschisolido) at the Gold Cup this summer.

Mike D

[Reza]

In my opinion, Gold Cup is not very important. I think Canada will do fine with two or three more players added to this very same squad. We are talking about our CONCACAF rivals here, not Germany who can probably count on some 30 players of almost similar caliber. I think the key is not so much winning the tournament, rather just gaining as much experience as possible.

Holger has to ease up a bit too. He has to take a hard look at his strategies and maybe start subbing players in a bit earlier than 80th minute. There are too many similar trends in the past 6 months, but the great thing is that it is all happening now. Canada's weaknesses are being showcased in 2003 as opposed to later when things are far more important.

Reza

[Guest Georgio]

Well, I suppose it is time for me to move my lazy @ss over to this board. Who couldn't with the barrage of problems the other board has as far as access is concerned. I like the coversational flow of it though.

Germany

The Players:

I am happy with how all the players that played today performed with what was made available by Holger so I won't bash any of the players. Although I agree that it is time for Dasovic to play solely in the A-League and continue to progress as a coach. I was also thinking that Imhof was not doing much but in retrospect it does seem that Imhof was doing two men's jobs defensively whilst having to defend off offensive breakdowns created by Dasovic - as Mike D was basically saying. Dasovic was a solid player Internationally and probably will be a great coach in the years to come.

I liked the first half so much that I watched it again directly after with a rediculous smile on my face the entire time, according to a family member who kept pointing it out to me. That was beautiful and I felt extremely proud for the first half. Our players should be proud of what they did in the first half and even the effort they were forced to put in in the second half.

Holger:

Well he really disapointed me this time. His tactical coaching has hit an all time low with this game, IMO. Maybe fresh legs wouldn't have had a huge impact but, like I stated before on the other board, Holger could atleast make this game a positive experience for all the players who were physically able to play. As Craig Forrest aptly stated on two occasions throughout the broadcast we could definately have used some fresh players. Gaaaawd Damnit Holger, don't be so vain, this game wasn't just about you. He wasn't in touch with the match. I kept thinking he was kinda like a police officer who has too much emotional attachment to a homocide so needs to be takin off the case.

Anyways, Well done players! and as far as specific plays are concerned and breakdowns you guys basically covered it all.

Georgio

P.S. That comment in another thread about Holger always looking like he wants to dismember a dog was hilarious - I almost fell out of my chair laughing.

[Mimglow]

This from the German Football Federation (www.dfb.de), translated by Alta Vista:

The German national team won the friendship game against Canada in wolf castle with 4:1 (1:1). Carsten Ramelow (41.), Paul Freier (52.), Fredi Bobic (61.) and Tobias Rau (90.) the success of the DFB selection, for the Canadians met Kevin McKenna (20) secured. Before 23.000 spectators Fredi Bobic had the first chance for the hosts in the 16. Play minute, but Canada torwart Pat Onstad was to the place. Two minutes later it was again Bobic, which likewise met the slat after a head ball collecting main of captain Christian Woerns with the head only. In the 20. Minute were then however the Canadians, who obtained the first gate of the portion. The earlier Cottbuser federal league professional McKenna did not leave a chance following a freistoss by head torwart franc rust. Reconciliation by Carsten Ramelow In the future the DFB selection, with which in the DFB Pokalfinale on Saturday olive punt, Michael Ballack and Jens Jeremies as well as Kaiserslauterns employs been Bavaria the gate hunters Miroslav Klose was still missing, strove strengthened around reconciliation. The efforts were recompenced in the 41. Minute, when Leverkusen Ramelow transformed one of Bobic extended Hereingabe of Sebastian Kehl.

Team head Rudi Voeller changed to the break and brought among other things Paul Freier for Ramelow. The Bochumer took itself revenge already in the 52. Minute: At beautiful preliminary work of Andreas Hinkel (VfB Stuttgart), likewise exchanged to the second half time, succeeded to suitor in the ninth international match his first hit at the 2:1-Fuehrung for the hosts. In the future far pressure made the German eleven and came into the 61. Minute to the 3:1 by Bobic. The future citizen of Berlin obtained his altogether fifth international match gate, after the olive Neuville exchanged before had outstanding become generally accepted against two opponents and had exemplarily served to Bobic the ball. The point of conclusion to the 4:1-Endstand Tobias Rau (90.) set, with its first hit in the national team leotard from wolf castle said good-bye. Rau changes in the coming federal league season to the German master Bavaria Munich. Rau was also more than content with its achievement: "for me this play was such as Christmas and birthday together: The first victory with the national team, my first gate - and in my last play in wolf castle. Better it could not have run for me " After the play team head Voeller balance pulled: "in the first half the Canadians were still fresh and tactically skillfully played. We had hardly means to intersperse us. We were somewhat shocked by the early arrears, but the reaction in the second half time was very good. There play joy was to be seen. The play has me courage made for the portion against Scotland on Saturday. The most important was that the players without play practice were demanded." _ the meeting apply as Vorbereiung for the both line up EM Qualifikationsspiele in Scotland (7. June in Glasgow) and on the Faeroe Island (11 June in Torshavn).

Mimglow, Ottawa

_________________________

Where are the weapons of mass destruction?

[Canuck Oranje]

My preliminary observation, having seen only from the second German goal through to the end of the game, is that there was a wide gulf in talent on the Canadian side. Stalteri was clearly the best player on the Canadian side (seemed par with the Germans). de Guzman, McKenna and Nsaliwa have things to learn but were not out of place on the field. I thought Nsaliwa was dog tired when they finally subbed him off(but he was running more than others at that time, too).

Then when I started watching the game, there were other players that I didn't know were playing for some time. Hastings, Fenwick, Dasovic, and Imhoff come to mind.

From what I understand Jazic was injured and was only going to be used in an emergency. And with others not available like Radzinski, Brennan, Devos, Klukowski, Hume, Pozniak, Hirshfeld and Hutchinson, I think we still have something to build on. A left side with Brennan and a healthy Jazic would be interesting. Especially balanced with a rightside with Nsaliwa (especially if he moves up a level or two in Germany) and someone else. Radzinski and McKenna up front seems like something worth seeing. de Guzman and Stalteri in the middle will be solid.

Seems strange to me to say that Canada's biggest weakness is defensively in the middle. Devos will help especially after a year in the English First Division.

Actually, I can't wait to see the first half of the game.

[Gian-Luca]

Agree with Mike D.'s defense of Imhof. Please people, whatever you do in evaluating a player's performance do not do so on the basis on what Gerry Dobson says, come on!

Not that Imhof had a great game, but he wasn't really to blame for much either. He did do a lot of good work shutting down the Germans in the first half which (as usual with Imhof) goes unnoticed. Imhof plays the role that you don't notice much (except when you see him play live) so unfortunately he's probably going to be stuck receiving such comments for the rest of his career for Canada.

I don't agree however that Fletcher should start at right back & Tam at right-mid. I think Holger had the right idea with Nsaliwa at right back. His performance there was one of the main positives that I think we will take from this match, while Nash's crosses will continue to make him a viable option on the right. But we can also play De Guzman on the right side (rather than the left side, where Jazic & Brennan should play, with the other playing left back).

This doesn't mean much, but I can't believe that I am the only one who knows that the first disallowed German goal was a correct call, there must be someone else out there. I suspect 10 out of 10 linesman would have put their flag up on that one. Lauth was clearly offside when the ball was played & he was definitely interferring with play, as the Canadian defenders were holding up their "backing up" runs in order to play him offside. In order for the offside player not to be considered "involved" in the play that player (Lauth) has to be looking to not be in the play at all, running back into his own zone with no intention to receive a pass. Lauth in this instance was running towards the Canadian goal & definitely looking to receive a pass & the Canadian defenders had to be (and were) mindful of him - thus he was invovled. That was 100% the correct call by the officials.

We did catch a break on the 2nd disallowed goal, but as Reza mentioned, a couple of the other goals Germany scored they caught a break by not being whistled down for obvious fouls on McKenna that led directly to the goals, so it all evens out in the end & it doesn't matter really as 4-1 was the deserved scoreline.

Well a lot of things can happen, when you're walking down the street, and it never fails to amaze me, the people that I meet. They all say "See you later" and I just answer "How? How will you see me later, when you can't see me now?" - Kevin Ayers, The Confessions of Dr. Dream & Other Stories (1974)

[Mimglow]

Gian-Luca, you wouldn't believe how excited I just got with your words "(except when you see him play live)", and my realizing that in only one month I'll be in Boston watching the team live. It will only be my second time seeing the Men's Nats live, the first being a 1-0 win at York University over T&T (Jeff Clarke scored).

Also, great point about the first goal, I completely agree. Too many people stretch the passive offside rule.

Mimglow, Ottawa

_________________________

Where are the weapons of mass destruction?

[Gian-Luca]

That was actually at good ol' Varsity Stadium, which was owned by U of T (before they tore it down), but yes, the Gold Cup is coming up very very fast. I suspect the Gold Cup roster will be announced in less than a month since the training camp is likely to start on July 2nd or something like that. It will be good to meet you down there & some other Voyageurs - I just received word yesterday that we have another two people from Toronto (with car space I might add to the Toronto Ultras reading this) going down. Unfortunately they bought their tickets without realizing that we were trying to set up a Canadian section & bought tickets for another part of the stadium.

Well a lot of things can happen, when you're walking down the street, and it never fails to amaze me, the people that I meet. They all say "See you later" and I just answer "How? How will you see me later, when you can't see me now?" - Kevin Ayers, The Confessions of Dr. Dream & Other Stories (1974)

[Mimglow]

I bought 3 tickets for behind the player's benches as well. I'm just not crazy about behind the goal tickets. Perhaps I'll regret it, but it was unanimous at the time.

And yes, it was at Varsity. It was the first match in Canada following the Gold Cup victory, and the crowd was electric. Remember the guys who lit flares and we're promptly shown the door? Classic Canadian Soccer moment.

Mimglow, Ottawa

_________________________

Where are the weapons of mass destruction?

[Cheeta]

I think it was a grand game. Absolutely brilliant. And I take great pride in the fact the Germans came hard at us for the full 90.

And what happens? Played us like a flute. Went right to the bench for a half dozen fresh pairs of legs and a high energy attack knowing Holger's best 11 (by a long shot) are allready on the pitch and he'll be completely desperate to not draw any subs. Used the advantage of their bench which was huge. Good move. A no-brainer but a damned good move. And they were going for the full 90. Didn't give a rat's arse if they ran up the score, and they tried to. All because of that first half. A lot of teams are going to take notice of that 45 minutes. Oh, that first half.

No point in even watching the last 1/2 hour. It's a pointless exercise under the circumstances. Germany had subbed 1/2 the starting squad and were using the throttle against sitting ducks. Big deal. You'll never see circumstances like that outside of a friendly.

I'll say this for a match we've gone down 4-1 and which could have been worse I'm very pleased. Not discouraged in the least.

Paul Stalteri for Canada's footballer of the year. Was completely in his element. Absolutely love that temper. He'll push the boys and bark and bite 'em when they need it. I christen thee "Diesel". No matter what, you just keep running and running and running.

Big Kev. Tehehe. Gave as good as he got in the air. Was given a great amount of respect out there wasn't he? What if he'd been supported better? Had some greyhound along side him? Maybe I'm out there somewhere but he's stuck up front now for sure and I just imagine a free running Paul S. (oops sorry Diesel Stalteri) and galloping Radz. offering options to my man McKenna.

Hey, what about DeGuzman! He's got some learning to do but man, get that lad on contract. Our midfield could be all right for WCQ. All right indeed.

There's more but gotta cut out for a bit. I'll be back.

P.S. Pretty physical match for a friendly, eh? Looked good. Good ref'ing. Nice to see.

Minority of one

[Gordon]

quote:Originally posted by Gian-Luca

Agree with Mike D.'s defense of Imhof. Please people, whatever you do in evaluating a player's performance do not do so on the basis on what Gerry Dobson says, come on!

Sorry guys, but the reference to Gerry's failure to mention Imhoff was only to illustrate a point. I, and other, have eyes too and Imhoff was virtually no where to be seen. The Germans came at us from right, left and centre and no sign of Imhoff. Since we know he was not involved in the offence one would thought that he would at least be showing up on defence. Lots of Dasovic (who in addition to his blunders also made some fine plays as well) either breaking things up, getting beat, or involved in the offence (with mixed results). No Imhoff, however. Kicker gave Imhoff a 4.5, tied with Fenwick and Pizzolitto (probably a sp?) for worst on the team, I think it safe to say that the eyes in the stadium concur with my eyes on the telly. I was willing to defer to those in attendance at the US game on Imhoff's performance but not for Sunday I am sure, as Matthew says, Imhoff will bounce back from an off game, but I have no doubts that it was an off game. Not trying to be reactionary here, just calling them the way I saw it. I didn't think Hastings as bad as some, and was not as High on Pizzolitto as others.

In a World full of caterpillars it takes balls to be a butterfly.

[Gian-Luca]

Well, Kicker's ratings clearly leave something to be desired when it comes to the rating of Dasovic above Imhof (one "f" in his name, by the way) and equal with Nash (who set up the goal & converted nearly all of his passes & was instrumental in every scoring chance we had, barring De Guzman's late strike). Neither had a great game in midfield, but I don't recall Imhof giving the ball away at every available opportunity that way Nick unfortunately did - for that reason alone Nick has to get a lower mark than Imhof on the day.

Well a lot of things can happen, when you're walking down the street, and it never fails to amaze me, the people that I meet. They all say "See you later" and I just answer "How? How will you see me later, when you can't see me now?" - Kevin Ayers, The Confessions of Dr. Dream & Other Stories (1974)

[Gian-Luca]

Oh, and having re-watched the match I would agree with you that Hastings wasn't as bad as I originally thought. But I still think we need to look at Jazic there, as well as Pozniak or even Klukowski (as I'm pretty well sold on Tam as right back).

We are may have a pleasant problem for the Gold Cup in midfield - a "too much depth" problem! We should have De Guzman, Stalteri, Nsaliwa, Nash, Imhof, Brennan, Klukowski, Bent, Jazic, Hutchison available - who do we leave out? I think moving Jazic & Nsaliwa to the back four (our weakest area nowadays) is part of the answer.

Well a lot of things can happen, when you're walking down the street, and it never fails to amaze me, the people that I meet. They all say "See you later" and I just answer "How? How will you see me later, when you can't see me now?" - Kevin Ayers, The Confessions of Dr. Dream & Other Stories (1974)