Congratulations Cleetus, from the East side of town!

As a sports fan, my fandom is defined by the efforts of individual players that pushed themselves to great lengths in order to keep my attention and enthusiasm. Those efforts get lost in this ever growing and expanding league and I want to do my part to highlight these people and their efforts to an audience that may not know much about the roots of their teams existence.

“Metro Memories” is not a shot at the current organization and its ownership; frankly, I believe Red Bull has already done far more than what the Metrostars ever offered its fans. What “Metro Memories” will be is an homage to the players and moments that have created the foundation for this franchise, whether as a Red Bull or a Metrostar. (besides, Metro Memories has a ring to it!)

And we will start this thing off strong – with Clint Mathis scoring 5!

Background: (August 26, 2000)This game was significant in many ways. It was the first (and only) time in MLS history that one man scored 5 goals. It was also the first (and only) time that the Metrostars / Red Bulls have ever clinched the Eastern Division Regular Season Title (with 51 pts. already accounted for in late August). It took a late goal by forward sub Adolfo Valencia to seal the victory late, as the Red Bulls defeated the then Dallas Burn 6-4.

BTW – Mike Petke was on this team, starting no less. How is that for tying the past in with the present?

So, what do you think? A worthy new addition? Or just plain dreck! Let me know . . .

img. credit: usatoday

Time to throw random names against the wall. Maybe one will stick

JAY JAY OKOCHA

Jay Jay was released from Hull City a few weeks ago. Rumors link him to a player/coach position in Accrington Stanley Football Club League II England. Once reknown as a dribbling god, Jay Jay may still have the goods to get the job done. That, or he can be another Pablo Wanchope, or dare I say, Denilson.

ARIEL ORTEGA

Simeone and Ortega once again made an amazing combination, this time as coach and player, winning the Argentine Clausura with River Plate. Though Ariel is a “gallina” through and through, the temptation of playing in a low pressure, high paying, first world country may be enough to give Ortega the next challenge in his long and colorful career.

JARED BORGETTI

Seriously, you guys know what he can do. And it pains me to list him here, but an option is an option, even if it comes from the enemies camp . . . The Dynamo are pursuing, so why not?

EL TIN DELGADO

Sitting on the bench for potential South American Champion Quito (cross your fingers!), El Tin was a major cause for chatter in last years transfer windows. Will someone take a chance on the enigmatic Equadorian legend?

PAUL DICKOV

This is an MLS Rumors exclusive – so take it as you wish. But he is someone with connections to some players in our stable, and would be a forward upgrade for sure.

MARTIN PALERMO

I cant mention a “gallina” without giving “bostero” options. Martin Palermo, the long time Boca Juniors target man, presents an aerial threat the likes of a Brian McHead. Palermo, playing along side a healthy Juan Pablo Angel, would quickly erase memories of forwards past. Besides, his name is always being volleyed about during transfer windows the past two years, even with MLS – so why not bring him up again.

CLINT MATHIS

Hey. Why not?

Let me begin by saying – this is completely based on the team as currently configured. I know April 15th is right around the corner, and 2 signings can change everything, but this is the current situation.

With that said . . .

Lets begin with a Haiku . . .

Red Bulls 2008

We place all our hope
Into Osorio’s plan
May he guide wisely

SEASON PREDICTION:

12 wins 11 loses 7 ties (3rd in the East, 43 pts., Semi Final finish)

KEY ACQUISITIONS:

Juan Carlos Osorio (new head coach)
Zach Thornton
Oscar Echeverry
Eric Brunner
Luke Sassano
Danleigh Borman

KEY PLAYERS RELEASED:

Dema Kovalenko (you will be missed)
Clint Mathis (ditto)
Ronald Watterreus
Markus Schopp (not exactly KEY, but . . . )
Santino Quaranta (ditto Schopp)
Joe Vide (underrated, well trained CDM who will also be missed)

SEASON PREVIEW:

Nuts and bolts :

We left you last season at yet another brick wall performance against the team I love to hate – The New England Revo-losers.

There were our glaring weaknesses on display, for all to see. Lack of wing play. Mediocre play from our defensive wings. Absolutely no service to the most dangerous forward tandem in the MLS. And a big fat 0 on the goal side.

The list began to be compiled – we need an attacking mid, we need a left back, we need more service from the wings. We need, we need, we need.

So, in an attempt to better our course, we dumped Bruce Arena after a less than glorious reign as coach. In comes Juan Carlos Osorio, magic man who brought the Chicago Fire back from the dead (though I am sure there was some guy named Blanco who helped out situations). And all hopes were heaped on his shoulders.

The signings have been slim. The cuts have been drastic.

And here we are, days away from the first game of the season.

How much have things really changed?

The Stars

As previously mentioned, we feature the Dynamic Duo of MLS forwards – Jozy Altidore and Juan Pablo Angel (dont ask me who is Robin . . . ). Maybe 10 years ago, having that was enough to win an MLS Cup. But in this parity ridden league, you need strength on all ends.

In comes Captain America, Claudio Reyna. Reyna enjoyed a less than stellar year, with reports of a tumultuous relationship with Coach Arena making matters worse. Pile on injuries to this mediocre stew and you have Claudio Reyna, 2007.

2008, however, carries a more positive tone. Reports early and often have praised Reynas play on the field, where he is being asked to play a bit of CDM, his natural position, and CAM, the categorical opposite. And it seems he has been excelling in both areas, even if this display wasn’t quite visible in Carolina (last two games were sleepers, but he did play well in the first).

These are the teams stars, people who we will be relying heavily to carry this team.

The New Comers

Um. Zach Thornton and Oscar Echeverry. So we have depth at goal and the attacking spot.

Besides them, there is this years slew of draftees, headed by Luke Sassano and Danleigh Borman, both who may see time on the pitch as starters. Borman showed some magic in his crosses preseason. Sassano, grit. It will be interesting to track their development as the season commences.

But the most exciting new comer is Juan Carlos Osorio. He takes the cake. And he is carrying this teams expectations squarley on his shoulders.

Keep an eye on

Jon Conway. If anyone on the team is in the position of making this team float or flounder, its Conway. A life long career back up, many Bulls fans are skeptical of his ability to maintain his cool under pressure, come up with the big save, or simply maintain concentration on the pitch. Displays like last years Mendes back pass, or more recently with the mystery goal TFC’s Cunningham scored in the Carolina Cup that was in Conways hands, have fans begging for answers and hoping for the best. This will be Conways job to lose – all season long.

We’ll win the league if…

We avoid injuries, sign a key defender (Chris Innes), or a solid CDM to allow Reyna the CAM position (Lider Marmol). With them, and a healthy Dane Richards and Hunter Freeman, we will have the depth and talent to succeed.

We’ll be in trouble if…

We run into injuries. Why? Our depth cant take it. We will already be without Dane Richards till Summer. Ditto Freeman. We can not afford to plug in holes with rookie players. One more injury, and we will be looking at the Chris Leitches and John Gilkersons of the world to patch us up (in fairness, Leitch has looked ok this preseason).

The Beckham Factor

Will still be strong this season. If he stays healthy.

You might not know . . .

+ Play by Play of NY away games are done in studio, away from the field action.

+ Jozy Altidore had an offer from Reading as an immediate starter – and he rejected it.

+ Our only trophy? The La Manga Cup – a Soccer Resort in Spains club team preseason tourney

+ The logo featured above is the 2007 logo. I couldnt find the new, non-streaky one.

+ I am a Gemini!

Ah . . . now we can all smile again.

Mathis gets a rare opportunity, especially amongst veteran American players – a second chance for a shot abroad. Though details remain sketchy to say the least, It is my hope that they are true.

If so, we will be your 12th man from afar Cleetus. Best of luck.

PS: I dug up this extra photo too, showing the clubs board of directors. Looks like the rumors are true.

PPSS: From bigapplesoccer.com – HE NEVER WANTED TO LEAVE US! :

In an August interview with BigAppleSoccer.com, Mathis indicated that he could play in Europe again.

“I am enjoying my stay here,” he said. “Obviously it’s going to depend on what they decide to do and how they decide to move forward. I’m definitely enjoying myself playing soccer again. I definitely don’t want to up and change that. Some of (the) decisions are out of my control.”

Anyway. Clint Mathis opened up the scoring for LA. They went on to win. I thought he had nothing left?

Miss ya Cletus.

“I heard that he is interested in playing in the A-League, so we followed it up,” Coach Kosmina told the Daily Telegraph. “We’ve contacted Clint’s agent, so we’ll see how he goes on Tuesday.”

They will be scouting him in their upcoming LA Galaxy friendly.

If the front office knew this and unloaded him before they got any compensation? Then God Bless.

But at the same time, I do believe Mathis would have a positive impact on that particular Galaxy squad if he chose to stay put. Mathis feeds on that type of spotlight (need I remind you of his highlight game AGAINST the Galaxy), and along with Donovan and Becks, he will attempt to once again rise like a phoenix from the ashes. In LA, I think he may have an excellent shot of it. It just seems like a comfortable fit (hell, on top of it all, Lalas is in charge! Friends in high places . . . )

Frank Glase of NJ.com also states that Mathis fully expected to be in a San Jose uniform next season. So much for that.

Has the Mathis rumor train pulled over and stopped in LA? Or does the land of backwards flushing toilets have other plans? Cant wait to see how this one ends . . . .

A fan favorite.

Honored this year for being our all time leading scorer.

Road the bench unexplicabley (in my opinion). And never voiced discontent, even when he had the chance at the end of season press conference.

TRADED FOR A 3RD ROUNDER

If its about money, understandable. But god help this organization if we get a 3rd rounder for our fan favorite, and we pay a bit of his salary. Because that would SCREAM MLS circa 1996 (the anything goes if it benefits the league mentality).

AND WHO DID WE LEAVE UNPROTECTED?

Woly
Sinisa
Doe
Vide

I say Woly and / or Doe will be taken fairly quickly.

…………………………………………………………………….

This Mathis news is NOT what I wanted to hear. For those who didnt know, I became a Metro fan circa Mathis first stint here, and he was the main reason, along with Tim Howard later on, that I truly fell for this team. It hurt to see em leave once. It hurts doubley hard now.

13LEGEND, out.

There really is alot to take into account going into Gilette this weekend.

First off, the New England team we saw exiting Giants Stadium with a draw is not the team we will see in Gilette. Thanks, once again, to the horrible playoff rules of this league, the first leg of the home and home is render meaningless, since all the visiting squad has to do is pack the box, play defensive football, and hope for the best. New England did that. And they escaped our home turf in excellent position to strike. Escaped is the key word. And Reis was wiping his brow all night long . . .

Hey, Steve Nicol did say he could neutralize our midfield. I am guessing he was right.

THE LINEUP

Though we looked strong out there, I would be less enthusiastic than mlsnet was in their description of last game – RBNY DOMINATE IN TIE. Lets relax a bit shall we?

Though we once again were playing some variation of a 4-4-2 meets a 4-3-3, I think something more traditional would do the trick.

A clean and even 4-4-2, something where Reyna and Dema could run the middle a bit if necessary.

=========JPA=======ALTIDORE=========
MATHIS===DEMA=====REYNA=====RICHARDS
DVB=====PARKE======STAMMLER==FREEMAN
===========CONWAY=================

Mathis needs to start. It takes a good 10 minutes to get his motors going. He can be subbed if he isnt efficient by the second half. he can drift middle, as always.

DVB can have more room for an open attack.

Stammler in, because of his strong play against New England. I know I have been a Mendes mark all season, but Stammler has earned the spot at this point. After a strong showing, the defense should not be tampered with.

And all in all, look at the balance on either half of the field. I think its a threat on either end.

KEEP YOUR EYES OPEN

Conway barely faced any shots last game. An early bombardment by the home team may be enough surprise to throw us off and take an early advantage.

And what if Waterreus is healthy? Then whom starts?

New England will be much more fluid in attack, and daring in their chances. This will not be a reply of Saturday for damn sure.

Our guys are in a situation where they may have been put to sleep by the opposition. Its like Brazilian football – they lure you in, let you believe you are doing well, . . . . meanwhile, they plot and scheme on the next counter attack, and the minute your guards are down and you are bored out of your mind . . . . BAM! Jogo Bonito.

We cant think we will face the same defensive minded Revolosers this weekend.

We have to be better than that. And we have to be on our toes. Constantly.

KEEP UP THE EMOTION

Did you see Coach Arena jumping out of his seat? Must have been the first time ever for most of us. We need that from our leaders, both on and off the field. Play with passion, but play smart.

==============================================

I will have more as the week goes on, but after 48 hours or so of sulking, its time to move on, and find solutions.

So much for pouring on the pressure.

That lasted one half. The first one.

And clearly, the second belonged to New England (at least, quality goal scoring opportunity wise).

Now, with a tie heading into Gilette, our backs are truly against the wall.

What is it about us playing against the Revolosers?!??!

Jeckyl and Hidden

So, who are we is my question?

Are we the first half juggernauts?

Or are we the second half clueless, grasping at straws, desperation in our eyes football squad?

Before the game, I really tried to drive home the point that TONITE was a night for GOALS! And the first half really drove home the point – Me and Bruce Arena, seamingly, eye to eye on strategy! But then the second half? Oof.

2 Big goose eggs.

Jozy put it best. At halftime, he was asked for his impression on their strong play. He simply said, and I am paraphrasing, “We didnt score so it was all for nothing.”

BRUCE ARENA

BRAVO on the gameplan

BOOS all around for the substitutions.

Sinisa in for Doe? What happened with Mathis?

DVB for Leitch – well . . . what can ya do . . .

But then . . . Mathis for Reyna? In the 85th minute?

Mathis needs some ball time to get something done. He should have been in for Doe. And Reyna could have been subbed for Vide, Drop Kovi in the dominant central mid position.

EDIT: Got another idea for a change at this point. Mathis in for Doe. DVB for Leitch is an unfortunate given. But then, why not Mendes in for Reyna, move Stammler up to Dema’s spot, Dema to Reynas. I dont know. Just did not like the change sequence.

We need the same spirit of the 1st half, in BOTH halves of the next game. If not, we are looking at another early exit.

And if we are in need of a goal yet again, PLEASE do not hesitate to press the CLINT MATHIS button. Because throwing a rookie into a match and expecting a win just isnt logical (unless that rookie is Dane Richards).

SO NOW WHAT?!

We are off to Gilette folks. And we have a week to think about it.

===================================================

PLAYER OF THE GAME: Claudio Reyna held down the middle of the field, and contributed to key defensive stops / step ins.
GAME GOAT: The Substitutes. Sorry. What else can I point at as a negative besides this? Substitutions were not what we needed at the times they were executed. I cant name Arena goat since, besides these subs, he was on the ball.
PLAY OF THE GAME: Matt Reis robs Francis Doe. That was the game.