Saturday, April 21, 2018

Back To The Drawing Board (Get It?)


There's a reason US Soccer fans cite Columbus, Ohio as one of the preferred places for a national stadium should we ever go that route (we won't). The weather and the fans make it a tough place to play for any team. It was imperative that the Revs go into MAPFRE and get some kind of result though. And thats what they did. It wasn't pretty but they did what they needed to.

Friedel made one change to the lineup: Juan Agudelo started at forward with Scott Caldwell replacing him on the bench, and Luis Caicedo dropping back into midfield next to Zahibo. Most likely, he was looking to get some additional firepower against a good team in hopes of jumping out to an early lead and holding momentum.

The key for the Revs on defense was trying to contain Federico Higuain. He's one of the best playmakers in the league, and has been for a number of years, and giving him anything easy was asking for trouble. The defense did end up doing a pretty good job with him; he was having to really work to create chances. Now don't get me wrong, he still had very good stats...
... but nothing came easy, which is something to feel good about. We're not just rolling over for good players and letting them pat our bellies.

The Crew had a much easier time breaking the press than teams in the past few games, and right off the bat they had a nice looking chance that was snuffed out and turned into a 3 on 2 counter. That ended in Penilla getting the ball and passing it to a Crew defender in the 18 yard box. Definitely one you want back.

The Crew did end up drawing first blood, but on a Revolution goal.

Farrell rightly pissed after that bit of bad luck. I was really impressed with how Turner handled it though. Got right up and offered encouragement to the Big Burly Boy. A calm, cool, veteran mindset from the youngster.

Luckily the Revs got it right back.


Just a brilliant pass from Penilla. It almost looked like he was ready to cross and then when the space between defenders opened up he put the ball through the middle and onto Teal's foot. The Man Between Blue And Green gave it a heavy touch to the outside and then somehow struck it in just the right way that it skipped along the ground and into the net from a tough angle. It was one of those goals that makes you wonder why he can't finish the easy ones, but can put that home no problem. Very Giroud-esque if I must say.

The Crew took the lead back thanks to Gyasi Zardes.

Just a great individual effort from Zardes. The cut inside and low shot with pace to the far corner. I've never been a Zardes fan. I always thought he underperformed for the national team. But he's been very good under Greg Berhalter this season. Maybe all he needed was a change of scenery and a good coach to reach another level. Maybe he'll still be awful on the national stage. I'm not sure if I want to know the answer to that.

Columbus had the 2-1 lead, and then the Revs did the thing where they tied it up right after.

Alright cool lets see how many of these I can fit in...





Ok thats good for now. A downright filthy effort from Juan Agudelo. The Swag Man touches it over a defender, keeps it up again, lets it fall, and send the half volley over to Penilla, who one-times the volley into the twine. It was mostly sexual for me.

After that there were chances that neither side could finish off. Teal had a header get knocked aside, Diego made a great run and played it off to Penilla who put one right into Zack Steffen's chest. But the defensive efforts down the stretch cannot be understated. Penilla was robbed again by Jonathon Mensah, Jalil Alibaba made some nice blocks, Claude Dielna made a perfect slide tackle to break up a run by Zardes
Multiple times you had guys putting themselves between the ball and the net, and it paid off in the form of a point each. A 2-2 draw, a result more importantly, in a tough road game. We saw resolve and a fighting spirit from this team. Hard fought and coming away from it healthy, least we can ask for.

Other notes:
-Kelyn Rowe missed tonight's match with that lingering injury that kept him out last week. He should be back in the 18 once he's 100%, and before that I say don't risk him. I'd rather wait a few weeks for him to be right than try and force him into it at anything less.

-MLS teams this week are wearing special jerseys as part of an initiative with Parley for the Oceans for Earth Day. The jerseys are made with yarn from ocean plastic or something, I'll be honest with you I don't really get the technology behind it but I do now they look FIRE.

White for the home teams and a cool carbon for the away. I think the Revs especially wore the carbon well, as did Orlando City (Dom Dwyer can make anything look cool though). It probably wont happen, but this would be a great look as a third jersey should those ever come back. 

You can check out all the Parley jerseys HERE.

-Swaggy almost had a worldy 


-Penilla's performance brings him to 2 goals and 4 assists in 7 games. The dude will continue to feast on counter attacks. Having to try and stop him in space must be so scary for opposing defenders. 

-Columbus Capital J Journos can get these hands 

Bring it nerds.


Man of the Match


Jalil Anibaba was shutdown tonight. Coulda done better on the Zardes goal but he was immense other than that. He was going up and dueling with Zardes in the air and had some huge blocks.

The way he celebrates after those plays is electric. Passion pouring out of him. It's an edge that some fans noted they also saw in former Revs standout defender AJ Soares. There's a reason why Toni Delamea, last seasons Team MVP, is stuck to the bench. Anibaba REFUSES to give that spot up. He's pulled a Tom Brady on Drew Bledsoe. He's Wally Pipp'd Toni. I did not see this happening when we signed Jalil for depth. You need to ride the hot hand and the guy is on a heater right now. Absolute class performance from him tonight.

Next week its back to the Fortress to take on Sporting Kansas City. Let's start a new winning streak in the friendly confines.

Revs 2-2 Crew

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