El Diego

Burak Yilmaz on for David. The less said about this one the better.

Now he misses a 1v1, rounded the keeper with too heavy of a touch. How many chances will he get?

Sparta much more likeable. Playing better, getting screwed by ref, and the only reason David got the chance to miss that open net is because they took a quick throw in after the Sparta keeper put it out of play due to an injury.

Sparta should have had a penalty there I think. Looked like the foul was on the line which would make it inside the box. Lille have not been very good after a really fast start. Sparta looked shell shocked in the first minute but are probably the better team, shame they are a man down (especially considering that Lille could easily have a red themselves as well as the aforementioned penalty).

Just got a defender sent off after being dragged back on a break away

Just skied an easy chance he should (and used to) bury in his sleep. Really hope he can get one to give him confidence, Lille are all over Sparta to start.

I agree with the above sentiment - much ado about nothing. Back on topic: Serge Gnabry has tested positive for COVID-19. The game was in doubt for a hot minute as the other Bayern players got additionally tested, but it is going ahead. Let's see how Bayern line up without Gnabry, who astonishingly has become one of their most important players.

Yes but raking is an overrated skill. In the modern game more and more clubs are asking their players to mulch.

The fact that people bring up Evan Bush (even if it is half joking) -- a 34 year old with zero reports of interest or eligibility in the NT who, if eligible, would be like 6th or 7th on the depth chart anyway (and probably never even called up due to age) never fails to confuse me.

Perhaps. I was thinking more along the lines of 15-18 years old. I remember one guy comparing David's level to Davies. Many of us thought he was crazy, but tbf I don't think any of us had ever seen him play. So maybe if there was more tape on him when he was younger we would have been even more hyped for him. Whatever, it's all semantics in the end. Sometimes I forget just how young David is.

I thought David looked better than previous matches, but still overall it was disappointing. Lille looked very good, and Lens looked very bad (how are they off to such a good start). Semi unrelated note: Sven Botman is so good. He might be my favourite Lille player to watch (and as a centre back, that's gotta be saying something)

I keep hearing comments like this. I'm not saying it's untrue, but does anyone have sources? I have seen JMR play exactly one match (u15 USDA Playoff finals vs LAFC) and he looked good, but not like he was a league above everyone else. I'm not trying to bring the kid down, but to me the term 'wonderkid' means a 100% can't miss prospect, and in my estimation the only wonderkid that Canada has ever produced is Alphonso Davies.

We talk about possibly playing Davies at left back or wing back for Canada and picking the formation/tactic to maximize him, and the truth is that Vanney schemes up Laryea for TFC. That's how much of a threat this guy is -- Vanney gameplans his side to maximize Richie Fuckin' Laryea. (note I am not trying to make a Davies/Laryea comparison, just a thought I had from other threads) And against Atlanta, it directly led to the goal! When Laryea came on he had Delgado (and then Fraser) drop into the right back position, the right winger would tuck inside (though this is a general feature of the system) and this basically gives Laryea 1v1 situations against the full back, with cover behind him just in case. It must have been satisfying for TFC to see their game plan directly lead to a win, but credit has to go to Laryea for producing (time and time again).

Early lead for Lille who are playing a strict 442 again -- Burak with a poacher's header after a set piece. David involved a couple times which is encouraging, still very early. We'll see how much they sit back with a lead. Also yeah OneSoccer sound is unplayable.

I should also say that that kind of mental error, in my view, is "better" than a technical or athletic error. I am prepared to write it off. Of course if he does it again then questions start getting asked, but as Free kick mentioned he played well after, so I think it is fair to assume it was the type of error every goalkeeper makes once in a blue moon and move on.