Caught in Possession

OK people, let's do this quick.

Biggest soccer weekend of the summer? Maybe...though Barcelona is coming to New York in a few weeks.

With the top two attacks in the league meeting at RFK Stadium, DC United vs LA Galaxy could be a genuine cracker of a match. But MLS games have a way of surprising -- Santino Quaranta noted this after DC's practice on Thursday, saying, "Games are so unpredictable, from game to game you don’t know what’s going to happen" -- and perhaps the midday heat will slow what could be a breakneck pace down to a crawl.

But defenders can find themselves leaden-legged at the worst time in these situations, and I keep having these visions of Abel Xavier getting his ankles broken by Jaime Moreno and/or Marcelo Gallardo in/around the Galaxy box...and for that matter, a tomato-faced, heatstroke-stricken Bryan Namoff having to leg-whip that pesky little bugger Landon Donovan in front of the DC goal in the 70th minute or so...

So how about it? I'll call a 2-2 draw, with goals clustered at the match's beginning and end.

As for Spain v Germany, well...how can any sane soccer observer bet against the Germans in clutch situations? Sometimes pedestrian, often plodding...but usually effective: Exhibit A for the value of fitness and "fighting spirit."

But these Spaniards seem to be a spirited lot themselves, and boasting no end of "calidad" throughout the side. I've enjoyed watching La Furia Roja this year and even my German ancestry can't prevent me from supporting them in the final. No David Villa, no matter...

3-1 Espana.

To close, here's a few extra quotes from my trip out to United training on Thursday...

"I think that we’re humans before we’re soccer players, and all of us make mistakes. If I have to mark Beckham on Sunday, it’s going to be just like me marking any other player, whether it be someone like Juan Pablo Angel or Etcheverry. If he’s on that side then it will be my duty that particular day. Every player has positives and negatives. "
-Gonzalo Martinez, who's clearly sanguine about the prospect of shadowing David Beckham on Sunday

"I think defensively as a unit, our entire team defense starting with our forwards and through our midfield and defense, has been really sound, and we’re getting better and better . I think that attests to us getting to know one another on the field and off the field. That chemistry is tending to build there."
-Bryan Namoff on United's defensive improvement

"If there was a place you were going to try to break them down, it’s at the back. It’s not like they’re that vulnerable at the back, they’re smart, they’ve got some good veteran players and I’m sure they’ll try to be compact here at the back, hopefully. That’s what they’ll try to do and we just have to figure out a way to break them down, through the wide play and changing the point of attack – that’s what Tommy [Soehn] says and I think that’s when we’re most successful."
-Santino Quaranta, on how United's front line will attack the Galaxy defense

"You could see that we were flat, and we kind of went out on the field like we just expected to win in the first half and it was going to be an easy game for us...We were fortunate to win that game – if that happens [on Sunday] the game will be over by halftime, if we come out like that. The guys know that and Tommy knows that. So we changed some things and it’ll be different from the start."
-Quaranta comparing last week's San Jose match with Sunday's Galaxy clash

"As a defender I try to communicate with Zach -- sometimes there are different times in the game where you have to know how to manage the game, and if we’re winning, we should try to kill time. Those are gamesmanship tactics that you need to do to take advantage of the opponent. So I always try to communicate with him and try to tell him different things about how the game is evolving. But overall obviously all of us support him and we’ll do whatever we can to support him. But we believe in him, because he’s a good goalkeeper."
-Martinez again, discussing his relationship with troubled goalkeeper Zach Wells

"I like Germany, because I like watching Ballack, he’s a good player."
-Fred talks Euro 2008

Just like Craig Stouffer predicted, here's my look at Gonzalo Martinez, DC United's Steady Eddie for 2008.

This Colombian is cool as the proverbial cucumbers, polar bear keratin or pillow undersides -- take your pick. His speed and athleticism make it hard to believe he's almost 33 years old, but then again, heaps of poise and confidence make clear his age and experience.

Looking ahead to Sunday's United-Galaxy clash on national TV, I think Martinez may play a central role in DC's tactical approach to the league's highest-scoring attack.

Assuming Tom Soehn likes him out wide on the left right now and has enough faith in his central defenders to keep the status quo, Martinez is going to face off against the Galaxy's David Beckham throughout Sunday's match. And considering the kind of lockdown defending he's capable of, Martinez looks likely to be Soehn's pick as the blunt instrument with which to stifle Becks' creative threat.

In fact, we might even get to watch the muscular Colombian chase GoldenBalls all over the field, assuming Becks floats in from the right wing in search of the ball, as he's prone to do. And that might even pull Martinez forward enough to allow more looks at goal...and that's certainly not a bad thing for the Black-and-Red now, is it?

Here's my MLSnet piece on the hot commodity that is Luciano Emilio...and I just wrapped up a look at United's Sunday throwdown with San Jose, which should be posting soon.

Plus...on Thursday I got to speak to Fred, DC United's crafty Brazilian midfielder, about his team's recent resurgence and his household's newest member, daughter Eduarda. Though the newborn has made sure he hasn't been getting too much sleep lately, Fred produced a lively performance against New York -- one that saw him excel across the midfield, playing left, right and center with similar aplomb.

I think the confidence is up, definitely, and once you get one, everyone is so much happier and feeling so much better on the field, that we get more positive results.
-on United's four-game unbeaten streak and the renewed confidence it has inspired.

Yeah, I definitely like it, but that’s definitely Marcelo’s position. If he ever needs me to fill in, I will!...That’s my natural position, I always played there.
-on his rare, but clearly liberating, stint in the the central attacking midfielder role. United's regular #10 Marcelo Gallardo was suspended against the Red Bulls.

Yeah, I really like that, because sometimes it’s hard for me to play on the left – I always try to go towards the middle, and playing on the right it’s easier for me to do that. And Tino can play on both sides, so that’s a good change.
-on United's recent tactic of switching wingers during games, to find space and exploit defensive matchups.

Yeah, I don't sleep anymore. Last night I sleep four hours...I try to help out and let [Debora] sleep as much as she can, changing diapers and all that.
-discussing the travails of parenthood, and how he's helping his wife cope.

Wow. Just finished watching the first half of the Germany-Portugal Euro quarterfinal on espn360, and while I expected Portuguese skill to win the day comfortably, I am FEELING the Germans right now. Though I should probably shut up until I see the second 45 minutes.

The buildup leading to Bastian Schweinsteiger's opener was gorgeous, flowing football that few would readily associate with Deutschland, even in the midst of their World Cup 2006 run -- which relied on heart and hustle as much as anything. But it provides a timely reminder that few teams can defend against speed of thought and movement married with sharp passing.

Even the fastest player can be left in the dust if her or his opponent lets the ball do the hard work. It's a lesson that DC United and, to a lesser extent, New England and Houston, have often taught the rest of MLS and it might be the top priority for improvement in U.S. soccer, at both the domestic and international level.

[ADDENDUM] 3-2 Deutschland, and suddenly the Germans look formidable. But I still think this is Spain's tournament to lose.

What a career it's been for Santino Quaranta -- and he's only 23!

Earlier today I finished an MLSnet piece about Quaranta's emotional weekend -- it should be up on the site later today -- and working on it got me thinking about Tino's journey, the last four years of which I have been around for.

Drafted by DC United at the then-record age of 16 back in 2001...showing so much alluring potential and so many mouth-watering attributes, only to have injuries and attitude problems -- and as it turns out, so much more -- derail him...yet still helping the US win the 2005 Gold Cup and qualify for World Cup 2006...and now, a true veteran and leader, despite his age, for this year's United squad.

Back in 2004, my first year on the United beat, I was hanging around RFK Stadium as part of MLSnet's coverage of the leadup to the All-Star game, held on a very hot Saturday afternoon at the old concrete bowl that July. A couple of MLSnet's full-timers were down from New York City for most of the week and as we were talking, Quaranta walked by gingerly, grimacing as he held an ice pack to his hip following a workout.

He'd been dealing with a rash of injuries that season, something he'd by then acquired a reputation for (in addition to his rap as kind of a punk in general), and after he passed us, one MLSnet colleague who had worked in and around the league for several years turned to the group and said, "He's finished," with a tone that held equal parts certainty and contempt. And at the time, there was not much of a argument to be made to the contrary.

So it's heartening to see that there's hope for early-blooming phenoms like Tino, many of whom are exalted and then quickly eviscerated by a hopeful yet demanding U.S. soccer community. I wrote up a piece on Quaranta's return a few months ago, when he was tiptoeing around the real reason that New York and L.A. gave up on him so quickly, sending him to what he called "rock bottom." It's good to see that he's finally opened up: as one who has addicts in his own family, I know is a difficult but important step in the healing process.

Saturday's win over New York provided was in many ways "just another day at the office" for Quaranta and his teammates, but that in and of itself is further proof that there's a new Tino in town. He shows up, works diligently, fights as hard as anyone for the club colors, and does what is asked of him. Tino Quaranta, a coach's dream -- who'd a thunk it?!?!?

"The first was simply a question of timing his run, so that Torres would see him in time. The second was exquisite, as was the pass from Iniesta that found him. Villa stayed level with the Russian line until the vital moment when his sprint into space enabled the pass from Iniesta - a pass so perfect that Villa only had to poke the ball into the net first time. The pass invited the single touch and sold the goalkeeper completely.

The third was different again, chasing forward from deep to receive an angled pass from Fabregas then tricking his way inside one defender and finishing intelligently, low at the near post...."

That's Phil Ball this week, waxing poetic about David Villa's hat trick in Spain's Euro 2008 opener against Russia. Undoubtedly worth a read -- just as the action is worth a look, while you can.

Having spent much of the past week on the road between DC and Austin to mark the 07 June onset of my fourth decade on earth, I've been badly Euro-deprived thus far. But displays like that Spain-Russia match are a welcome reminder of why Euro is the purest tournament in world footie these days. I'll be watching La Furia Roja -- the sublime, indefatigable Andres Iniesta, most especially -- and calculating how many light-years remain before the soccer played within our own CONCACAF region matches up.

Well, they finally called this one off, at approximately 9:40 pm, just about when a normal 7:30 match is coming to a close...except they only got 16 minutes in tonight. They'll have to find a time and place to reschedule, and the match will start from scratch -- not like there was anything important to salvage from the 16 sloppy minutes that were actually played.

Early speculation around the press box has this game being replayed in the early part of July, when United has nearly two weeks off between the June 29 "Beckham match" against the Galaxy and the beginning of SuperLiga on July 12. Houston play at Real Salt Lake on Thursday, July 3, but could ostensibly squeeze in a trip back to DC the following Tuesday or Wednesday (8-9 July) before they kick off their SuperLiga campaign on the same day as United. We'll see...

I'm sitting in the RFK press box -- unusually well-populated tonight, especially for a Wednesday game -- watching the rain beat down on the field as thunder rolls around the rim of this old concrete salad bowl. Tonight's DC United-Houston Dynamo match has already been delayed a half-hour and may get pushed off further if the deciders-that-be do not see the thunderheads clearing with sufficient speed.

The pitch down below me has gotten a thorough soaking and standing water is visible along the east touchline and in all four corners as well, so you can imagine United officials being in no hurry to let 22 grown men tear it to shreds without a bit of drainage time. There was never going to be a huge crowd in attendance tonight, but the weather has truly sorted the hard-core from the wannabes and I've got to be impressed with the soaked but spirited Barra Brava contingent banging away on their drums as they wait in the tunnels above section 235.

A couple quick, random United notes as the two teams come out for a quick warmup before the late kickoff...

*With Gonzalo Peralta back from his wife's childbirth and Mediate and MacTavish now getting full consideration as central defenders, Tom Soehn has as many options in defense as he ever has before. Peralta's size and physicality makes him hard for Soehn to leave out of the first XI, but some people -- the Examiner's Craig Stouffer, for one -- think McTavish and Mediate played well enough together in New England to deserve more time.

The biggest loser out of all this: Marc Burch, who has hit on hard times after being such a revelation at left back last season. He's one of the only left-footers on the team and when he's on the field, he gives the squad the width they lack from Fred and Gonzalo Martinez. But Soehn clearly has some issues with his play right now and has used Martinez on the left instead -- a choice made easier by the veteran Colombian's composed, steady performances. Burch can't be happy right now, and in fact he popped off a bit at goalkeeper Zach Wells during training early last week, getting himself a tongue-lashing from assistant coach Mark Simpson.

*Soehn downplayed the possibility of Fred missing Saturday's road match in Chicago on account of his wife Debora's imminent delivery, but her due date is June 9 and I have a feeling that the gregarious Brazilian will do what it takes to make sure he's there for the birth of his first child, just like Peralta did. Oh, and I asked both men about the significance of their children being born in the United States, thus making them automatic U.S. citizens...Peralta said it didn't really matter, but Fred was a bit more effusive.

"Yes, it’s good, good for her future," he said. "She can decide [which identity she chooses] later, but definitely [we'll raise her] as a Brazilian first."

*I continue to be impressed with Santino Quaranta's comeback this season. Having earned a reputation as a "problem child" in his first stint with United, he's been a committed pro this time around and if anyone has a chance to fill Ben Olsen's inspirational role in the D.C. locker room, it's Tino. How easily we forget what a veteran Quaranta really is -- he's only 23 but has been in this league for eight years, and that sort of experience matters. It has certainly helped him in 2008.