Soccer Recap 13: Loons Tie At Home, Timbers Take The L, Colorado Next, and A Look Around MLS
Minnesota Soccer Spot
Monday, May 20th
Loons Tie At Home, Timbers Take The L, Colorado Next, and A Look Around MLS
*Disclaimer: My takes are not thoughtful, and they are NOT based in knowledge.*
First, A Shoutout To Myself:
I cannot believe I've actually committed to doing this for thirteen weeks. I am a pro at starting a project and not maintaining or finishing it, so please give me a round of applause.
There's a lot to unpack from this past week, so let's get into it.
First, A Shoutout To Myself:
Loons Tie At Home:
On Wednesday, Minnesota United took on the L.A. Galaxy in a thrilling 2-2 draw. My unemployed self, once again, decided it would be a great idea to take work off and bring friends to the game. I had a friend visiting, so I thought it would be the perfect time. It was some of the same people as last time and some newbies, but in the end, I would assume the experience was enjoyable for those new to the MLS fanbase.
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| The BeReal. |
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| Jens and Bub together again |
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| The photo sent after I lost Jens, Bub, and Oscar in the Wonderwall |
Lineups:
Here's how the two teams lined up this past Wednesday:
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| MNUFC Lineup |
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| L.A. Galaxy Lineup |
For Minnesota, Eric Ramsay opted to go with a 3-4-3 formation. Boxall, Tapias, and Arriaga maintained their positions on the backline, with Taylor and Rosales pushing up into the wings of the midfield. Trapp and Lod also maintain their consistent positions in the midfield, Lod providing an attacking edge with Trapp holding down the fort in a more defensive manner. Tani Oluwaseyi keeps his starting position alongside Sang Bin Jeong, and Bongi comes back into the starting eleven.
As far as the L.A. Galaxy is concerned, they showed a different look from what I had originally predicted. I assumed Neal would start considering he had been the more consistent starter as of late due to Caceres dealing with nerve pain. Caceres was fit, regaining his starting position. Nelson takes the place of Aude, but Yoshida and Yamane maintain their starting positions. The midfield was as I predicted with Puig, Delgado, and Brugman maintaining their positions from the previous week. I assumed Joveljic would maintain his starting position having started against Real Salt Lake the previous week, but he is moved to the bench. Miguel Berry regains the starting position with Painstil and Pec beside him on the wings.
Match Summary:
Before the Galaxy would strike again, Minnesota had more possession. In the sixty-fourth minute, a beautiful switch ball from Wil Trapp finds the foot of DJ Taylor, who squares the ball to Caden Clark. Clark's angle is cut down by L.A. Galaxy's goalkeeper John McCarthy, but he wins the corner kick. It looked as though Minnesota was growing back into the game, but Galaxy would take the lead. They win the ball in midfield, and Puig takes the open space to run half the length of the pitch. He splits Minnesota's defense, finding Fagúndez, who makes it 2-1. Galaxy's substitutes were making the impact they were hoping for, and Minnesota looked to be on the way to a loss at home.
Minnesota began to grow back into the match. Two shots from Lod force either a save out of McCarthy or are just wide of the post. It seemed like one of those matches where Minnesota wouldn't be able to find the back of the net. But in typical fashion, the Hondurans came in clutch: In the eightieth minute, Rosales serves an inswinging ball into the box, finding the head of Arriaga, who puts it away. It's Arriaga's second in two games, and the Loons are back in it. McCarthy wanted an obstruction call, but I agree with the goal standing: McCarthy was never going to get to that ball.
In the eighty-third minute, Boxall steps, thinking Joveljic will be in an offside position, but the flag stays down. He takes the shot, forcing Dayne St. Clair into another smart save. Just a minute later, Rosales has possession of the ball closer to Galaxy's net. He takes a shot, forcing a save out of John McCarthy. Pukki attempts to do something with the rebound, but he is offside. (In that moment, I think he should've left it for Clark who was in the area). Rosales would have a similar opportunity a couple of minutes later, which forced a similar save out of the Galaxy goalkeeper. And with that, the Loons walk away with a point.
MNUFC VS L.A. Galaxy Highlights
The Hondurans Are Cooking:
Overall, the Loons looked alright in this game. They looked better in the first half than the second, but I believe that was in part due to how poor the Galaxy looked. One thing I noticed from this match was how much better both Joseph Rosales (GIVE HIM THE SALARY HE DESERVES) and Kervin Arriaga look under Eric Ramsay. I'm no tactical expert, but it seems to me that both players are being better-utilized position-wise. Rosales played multiple different positions under Heath, and while he always looked solid, he wasn't shining like he is now. In the left back position, Rosales is making a name for himself. Arriaga is a bit of an unusual case: Part of his struggles with Minnesota United was due to injuries. But even when he wasn't injured, he would disappear during games at times. Ramsay has recognized the talent Arriaga possesses and has put him to good use in the more defensive role he has this season. Enjoy Arriaga while you can, Loons fans.
Timbers Take The L:
Minnesota hosted the Timbers this past Saturday in what I will say is the most stressful match I've ever watched of this team, and that's saying something. I, once again, made the extremely intelligent decision to take off work, this time going to the match with my dad. It was a delightful experience: I got recognized from TikTok, goals were scored, headbutts were butted... It was everything you'd want to experience when you go to Allianz Field.
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| Leif didn't want to be in the BeReal. |
Lineups:
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| MNUFC Lineup |
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| Portland Lineup |
Eric Ramsay changed the approach once again. With the arguably more difficult mid-week game dead and gone, Ramsay resorted to resting a couple of key players, managing their minutes. He goes with a 5-4-1 formation. Defensively, DJ Taylor and Kervin Arriaga drop to the bench. Minnesota natives Caden Clark and Devin Padelford take their spots with Boxall, Tapias, and Rosales maintaining their starting roles. Carlos Harvey, who appeared for the Loons in Atlanta, providing an assist to Oluwaseyi's goal, makes his first MLS start alongside Veteran Wil Trapp. This forces Robin Lod to the bench. Fragapane and Bongi Hlongwane take the wings, forcing Sang Bin to the bench, and Pukki takes the place of Oluwaseyi up top.
For Portland, Phil Neville decided to change tactics for the Timbers going into this match. I had originally predicted he would present a 4-2-3-1 since that had been what he had been doing as of late. Instead, he opted to go with a 3-5-2, having Rodriguez and Mora up top rather than Rodríguez as the winger and Mora as the sole striker. Veteran Diego Chara is moved to the bench, and Dairon Asprilla (my personal stalker) is added to the starting eleven. Mosquera takes on more of an outside midfield role with Kamal Miller, Zuparic, and Araujo in the three-back.
Match Summary:
The first half was an interesting one, for sure. Minnesota was the better team. There's no question about it. Their pressure started in the second minute: Harvey wins the ball off of Ayala, passing it to Pukki. Pukki hits it well, but it's right at Portland's goalkeeper Maxime Crépeau. The pressure continued in the ninth minute: Pukki wins the ball off a Portland defender in the right offensive corner, laying it off to Wil Trapp. Trapp then plays a switch ball over the top of the backline to find Fragapane on the left-hand side. He heads it toward the net but doesn't get the power he wanted, making the save easy for Crépeau. In the twelfth minute, Rosales nutmegs Araujo, absolutely cooking him. He squares it to Pukki, who shoots it just wide. It should've been a goal.
Minnesota not putting their chances away would come back to haunt them in the seventeenth minute when Portland struck back. Tapias tries to tap the ball away, feeding it right into the path of Ayala. He splits Minnesota's defense to find Rodríguez, who slots it past Dayne St. Clair. Seeing it live, he looked to be offside, but upon seeing the replay, Boxall keeps him on just barely. It's 1-0 in favor of Portland, shocking Minnesota and MLS fans everywhere.
This is the point in the match where things got controversial: In the twenty-seventh minute, a ball from Caden Clark finds the foot of Fragapane, whose space was freed up due to a dummy run from Hlongwane. Hlongwane is taken down inside the box. In my opinion, it should've been a penalty. Kamal Miller doesn't make any contact with the ball (I know in this photo it looks like he might've, but if you watch the replay, he doesn't), and in no way, shape, or form can you argue that that is "shoulder-to-shoulder contact." His thigh makes contact with Bongi's leg, taking him down. Not only that but the fact that part of this call on the field standing had to do with Bongi's reaction or lack thereof? That rationale is absolutely ridiculous. People hate when refs complain in their faces. It makes sense why they do it now.
"Miller wins position and Bongi falls over. Bongi never reacts or says anything about the right decision. No foul, it's normal football contact." -Jair Marrufo (MLS Referee from MNUFC VS Portland Timbers).
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| It's blurry, but you can clearly see contact |
Portland would attempt to take advantage of Minnesota United's mistakes: In the thirty-ninth minute, Tapias once again tries to tap the ball away from a Portland player, passing it right into the path of Paredes. He sends a perfect ball to Mosquera, who forces an excellent save from Dayne St. Clair. In the forty-third minute, a horrible back pass from Wil Trapp ends up at the feet of Rodríguez. He tries to chip St. Clair who had come forty yards off his line. Dayne stops it with his head and clears it down the field. Was it an incredible save? Was it lucky? Who knows, and who cares!
Before I talk about the second half, I have to highlight some yellow cards given in the first half. During the first half, Rodríguez and Clark got into a bit of a scuffle, which prompted Dayne St. Clair to come off his line and interfere. Miguel Tapias, makes a headbutting motion toward Rodríguez, resulting in a yellow for the Mexican defender. This yellow will come back to haunt the Loons later.
Portland would have the first real chance of the second half: Mora tries to take a touch around Tapias. The ball deflects off of Tapias and back to the feet of Mora. Luckily for Minnesota, the shot smacks the crossbar, keeping the game at 1-0. It was one of those games where the next goal would dictate the tone of the match, and the crossbar kept the Loons in it. That play was a wake-up call for the Loons. They started getting half chances: A ball squared by Clark finds the foot of Hlongwane who shoots it straight at the Portland goalkeeper. It wasn't until the substitutions of Lod, Sang Bin, and Arriaga that Minnesota began to truly dominate.
Minnesota would strike back in the sixty-fifth minute: Pukki takes the ball into the corner. At first, I was thinking "What the hell are you doing?" But he is able to get the ball past Portland's defense finding the foot of Rosales. He then finds Lod in the box, who finishes it first time. Not only is Minnesota back in the match, but at that moment, Robin Lod officially became Minnesota United's all-time leading goalscorer across all competitions, passing Emanuel Reynoso.
In the seventieth minute, Rosales sends a ball up the field toward Teemu Pukki. In real-time, it looks like Pukki takes down the Portland player, but no whistle is blown. Pukki is taken down in the box, and a penalty is called in favor of the Loons. VAR then signals the referee to check, and the penalty is waived off. In my opinion, that was the correct call. It is clear that Pukki committed a foul before the penalty was called. This results in the penalty being overturned and Portland regaining possession in the form of a free kick.
That call wouldn't matter, because Minnesota United would take the lead: In the eighty-second minute, Robin Lod sends a savvy ball to DJ Taylor (who had been subbed on). Taylor squares the ball and Sang Bin Jeong is calm and collected, slotting it past Maxime Crépeau. It's his first goal since May 6th of 2023 and his first goal of the season.
Colorado Next:
Minnesota will travel to Dick Sporting Goods Park to take on the Colorado Rapids Saturday, May 25th at 8:30 PM central time. Colorado is in okay shape: They are currently sitting at sixth in the West with six wins, five losses, and three ties. While their recent form hasn't been amazing, they have threatening players such as Navarro, Bassett, and Mihailovic who will look to cause chaos for a Minnesota backline missing their starting center back.
Here's how I think Minnesota will line up (I don't know enough about the Rapids to make an accurate lineup):
With the absence of Tapias, I believe Padelford will slide into his position. I think this tactical change happening against Portland worked well for the Loons and allowed the much-needed players to have their spots on the field. I like having Arriaga in the central role as a center back. I also think Sang Bin deserves to start as well as Lod. I believe this lineup would do well against the Rapids.
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