What's Wrong With This Picture?

There has been a lot of discussion about what is wrong with this team. Part of the answer is obvious. We are paying some very high salaries to players whose form is poor. Between Fred, Luciano Emilio and Christian Gomez, we are paying just under a million dollars against the cap to players who either are on the bench, should be on the bench, or are part time players. In a league with a fixed salary cap, I don't see how that can be overcome.

But I think there's more ailing this team than a few players underachieving. This is a team that really looks lost to me. Despite having already played almost 40 matches, we sometimes look like a team that has been playing together for two weeks. The players often appear to be waiting for someone else to make a play. Runs away from the ball are rare, and the ones that do occur are not rewarded with effective passes. Speaking of which, how many truly incisive passes has this team made in the last five matches? Contrast that with how many passes of less than five yards that accomplished nothing in the last five matches. I'm sure a lot of that is due to fatigue. Forunately, the seriously brutal portion of our schedule ends with our next match. But it still points to a coaching issue.

Another factor that needs to be considered is our frequently changing lineups. I understand that minutes must be managed in a ridiculously crowded schedule*. This is especially true for the older players. But how are the players (especially the young guys) supposed to develop chemisty together when they don't get consisistent time at a given postition? Consider Chris Pontius and Rodney Wallace as examples. Is Pontius a winger? a striker? a central midfielder? Is Wallace a winger? a holding midfielder? an outside back? The balancing act between managing minutes and building team cohesion has not been handled effectively. This also points to a coaching issue. But, in fairness, it should be pointed out that if our much vaunted depth was as deep as advertised, we wouldn't be in this situation. That is a front office issue.

On the bright side, we still have a realistic chance to make the playoffs. With three very beatable teams (San Jose and Chivas USA at home plus Kansas City on the road), as well as a home match against Columbus, we can still get to 45 points. A playoff berth is 100% assured at 45 points. But our margin for error is gone.

*At the conclusion of the regular season, DCU will have played 45 matches. The Colorado Rapids will have played 33. Both teams operate with the same roster and salary restrictions in a league that prides itself on limiting competitve advantages to its member clubs. To paraphrase P.J. O'Rourke, "This is what those of us who follow such things closely refer to as bullshit."

Talking Points: The Defense

First things first. Should we play three or four in the back? I think that the fairly obvious answer is four. Recent results bear this out. It is especially true with Dejan Jakovic out of the lineup. I don't see another player on the roster capable of holding down the middle in a three man backline. Even with Dejan in the lineup, we have been exposed repeatedly on counterattacks.

The good news is that in Namoff and Dejan (once he's back) we have two steady and reliable professionals. The question marks are the other two spots. I think that Marc Burch has made signicant strides in his marking ability. I also think his skill set would benefit a great deal from having a second inside back on the field to provide cover.

The top question in my mind is the other centerback slot. Greg Janicki? No thank you. Julius James? I haven't seen him enough to know whether his performance against Dallas last night was indicative of a marginal player's typical performance or a capable player having a bad night. I also haven't seen enough of Habarugira to know what to think about where he should fit in. In considering this slot further, another question comes to mind. Does the team still consider Devon McTavish an option on defense? I thought his play on the backline in the past was decent. Not great, but decent. Considering all of the options available, I would like to see him get a shot at the second centerback slot.

One final thought, the fact that what formation we should be using could even up for debate in the month of September says something about the leadership of this team. But that is a subject for another post.

Talking Points: Our Transition Offense

Welcome to something I've just started calling: Talking Points. The hope is that we can make this into a regular feature here at United Front. It will bring up certain topics that have been on our minds, and quite possibly yours as well.

No use beating around the bush, our transition from defense to offense is SLOW. In fact, over the last two years it seems to have steadily slowed so that it might simply ground to a halt somewhere around the 63rd minute of the game against the Sounders on the 12th. Whether this is do to players being old and slow, lacking in vision, or a fault of the coaching staff is up for debate, and frankly, that's what this place is for.

The standard DC United Offensive buildup:

Meander up the field making sure that every player gets a touch. Make sure to take your time, or the opposing team won't be in proper position to defend any crosses or incisive passing. Slowly but surely, bring every player into the opponent's half so that we're wide open for a counter attack. Never forget, there's no such thing as one pass too many.

As I read the above, oh-so-subtle, bit of satire I realise that it may be a bit harsh. There are times when we play some damn good ball. But, more often than not, we are subjected to watching our team miss opening after opening do to a lack of sharpness and speed. It's getting a bit old.

More Good News, Dejan is Injured

Today Goff blogged that yet another United player is heading to Germany for possible sports hernia surgery. So in the heat of the playoff stretch, as well as Champion's League Group play, our best central defender is to be sidelined. I would not trade places with the brass right now for all the beer in the bar. Our goalie has melted down twice in the last two games and should certainly get an extended time out. Our defense could be losing its lynchpin in the middle for at least three crucial weeks. Our midseason acquisition who was supposed to provide midfield help has been on the field about as much as I have lately. Our play in the attacking third is slow and ineffecive. Not good times for the Lot 8 faithful...

Why Are We Here?

So we decided to start a blog. We are doing it because we are fans who care deeply about DC United. There are a lot of blogs out there, some of which are quite good. But I think that many blogs create a lot more heat than light. That is not what we want to do here. We just want to have a forum for sane discourse about the game and our team. That, in a nutshell, is why we are here.

What a night to start a DC United Blog.

Palm, meet forehead. Ouch, what a night.

Anyway, welcome to United Front, the newest addition to the ever-growing list of websites set up by fans to pontificate about the beautiful game. This blog will be about one thing and one thing only. DC United. More specifically, DC United from a supporter's perspective. No more. No less.