MLS is Back

[TU_BLA]

Watching the 1st game between Orlando and Inter Miami. Players are rusty or just bad. The quality of the 1st touch is about the equivalent of avg. 15-16 year olds. I have never seen it at the pro level unless the GK has been hurt but the Inter Miami GK doesn’t take his own goal kicks. Miami is also playing a 5-2-3 and one of the “2” is Wil Trapp so Miami is having a ton of issues working the ball out of the middle 1/3 of the field. Seeing them play a lot of long balls to the front 3.

Orlando is trying to play possession but their 1st touch and even just basic receiving of passes is subpar for a professional team.

 

[Chris Harmon]

Watching the 1st game between Orlando and Inter Miami. Players are rusty or just bad. The quality of the 1st touch is about the equivalent of avg. 15-16 year olds. I have never seen it at the pro level unless the GK has been hurt but the Inter Miami GK doesn’t take his own goal kicks. Miami is also playing a 5-2-3 and one of the “2” is Wil Trapp so Miami is having a ton of issues working the ball out of the middle 1/3 of the field. Seeing them play a lot of long balls to the front 3.

Orlando is trying to play possession but their 1st touch and even just basic receiving of passes is subpar for a professional team.

I assume they are playing in front of an empty stadium?

 

[Li'l Eric Coley]

Sounds like Memorial vs. Webster back in the 80s.

 

[TU_BLA]

TU_BLA said:

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Watching the 1st game between Orlando and Inter Miami. Players are rusty or just bad. The quality of the 1st touch is about the equivalent of avg. 15-16 year olds. I have never seen it at the pro level unless the GK has been hurt but the Inter Miami GK doesn’t take his own goal kicks. Miami is also playing a 5-2-3 and one of the “2” is Wil Trapp so Miami is having a ton of issues working the ball out of the middle 1/3 of the field. Seeing them play a lot of long balls to the front 3.

Orlando is trying to play possession but their 1st touch and even just basic receiving of passes is subpar for a professional team.

I assume they are playing in front of an empty stadium?
[/quote]
They’re playing at the Disney Wide World of Sports complex. All the teams are staying on site in their “bubble”. They’ve got 3 pitches set up for games and another 8-9 set up as training facilities for the teams. 2 teams have already been forced to WD due to positive COVID tests (FC Dallas has like 9) and Nashville FC. One other team had a positive test but they ppd the game b/c everyone else was negative and negative on a 2nd test. The fields are actually in phenomenal shape.

The GK has been less than stellar. Minnesota United just gave up a goal because the GK decided to play the cross instead of holding his angle against the attacker with the ball and he gave up the near post in an awful way. Twellman spent a good 5 minutes puzzling over what the GK was thinking.

That’s OK. I watched Kasper Schmeichel from Leicester drill a Bournemouth player in the chest off a goal kick that ended up with Bournemouth scoring the equalizer. Schmeichel is a pretty solid keeper normally.