Now What?!

By: Dave Martinez | June 1st, 2009

With a vital four game home stand completed, and only four out of a possible twelve points attained, the Red Bulls must be at a loss. No matter how hard they play, or what they do, they manage to find a way to defeat, no matter what. That, my friends, is the antithesis of a winner.

Major League Soccer teams have all upgraded the quality of its football the past 4-5 years. There aren’t that many easy wins anymore. As a matter of fact, the Eastern Conference basement dwelling Red Bulls are probably the closest thing to an easy win, San Jose and FC Dallas aside.

The idea that a team can afford to learn on the job is extinct. It seems the team never responded after the brutal beating it took against the Sounders to open the season. In fact, week after week, it just seems to get worse.

With some late, hopeful acquisitions made in preseason, the Bulls took a lot of the beginning of the season for granted. The idea must have been that with this deep a player pool, and experienced leaders at the helm, the chemistry would naturally solve itself. I guess not. It only lead to boneheaded plays, miscues, silly red cards, and lack of finish in the final fifteen. Outside of a lab, team chemistry takes a lot of time to develop. It is just the way it is. And the Bulls as presently constituted never had that chance to familiarize themselves with each other early on.

This years cruel schedule leads us to the next chunk of games; seven out of nine featured on the road. Believe me when I tell you this isn’t the position the Bulls wanted to be in. This is the same Red Bull team that has earned one point out of a possible 15 on the road this season.

One point.

Add onto this mess a busy international calender which would require the services of Alfredo Pacheco, Jorge Rojas and Andrew Boyens to national team duty. This would mean heavy time off of the regular season schedule, a conflict that the Bulls will be fighting tooth and nail to overcome.

So this begs the question of the post; Now What?! Where else can the team turn for answers? What more can be experimented with to conjure up some success? Can it be that a team that boasts a quality mix of current and former national team captains, a EPL quality striker, internationally capped players and hot, young prospects can not find success in MLS? Or are the murmurs of the fan base, asking for Osorio’s head the first place to point to when the team falls flat?

So many questions, no answers, and very little time left for a turnaround. What will the future hold for these Red Bulls?

image credit: Andrew Zarate