Dein erstes Forum » one of the toughest teams when it come

The Formations The Vancouver Whitecaps made a tactical change for their game against the Houston Dynamo on Saturday, dispensing with their preferred 4-2-3-1 formation in favour of a 4-4-2 formation with a diamond midfield. Carl Robinson made three changes to the team that started against the New England Revolution a week ago. Skipper Jay DeMerit replaced Jonny Leveron at the back, Gershon Koffie replaced the concussed Nigel Reo-Coker to make his first start of the season and Pedro Morales replaced Sebastian Fernandez. The changes saw Matias Laba play as Vancouvers holding midfielder, with Russell Teibert on the left and Koffie on the right, leaving Morales to operate as the attacking midfielder. The Dynamo had a bye week last weekend, and head coach Dominic Kinnear decided to field an unchanged lineup from their 1-0 win over the Montreal Impact on March 15. (click for larger image) The Game Tactically, this was an intriguing matchup. The Houston Dynamo are one of the most well-organized teams in MLS, and Kinnear has an experienced squad who are consistent performers. However, Carl Robinsons decision to play a diamond midfield was a clever one. Not only did it allow Robinson to get his most creative player (Morales) into his preferred position, it allowed Vancouver to nullify many of Houstons threats. Both Houston fullbacks – Corey Ashe and Kofi Sarkodie – are encouraged to get forward to supply crosses for Will Bruin and Giles Barnes. The quality of Brad Davis on Houstons left side, coupled with Ashes energy, could have been a real problem for Vancouver. But the introduction of Gershon Koffie on Vancouvers right, coupled with the tactical change to the Whitecaps lineup, limited Houstons ability to generate a supply line from that side. With Russell Teibert shutting down Kofi Sarkodie on Houstons right flank, both Bruin and Barnes were cast adrift, starved of the crosses upon which they thrive. In midfield, Matias Laba had an excellent game for Vancouver, disrupting Boniek Garcias forward progress. The young Argentinian is proving to be an excellent signing for the Whitecaps, and his ability to cover so much ground freed up Pedro Morales to dictate the game. In the opening half, Morales had arguably the best 45 minutes of any player in the Whitecaps relatively short MLS history. His technical ability is superb, and his passing range is magnificent. Time and time again, Morales was able to spring teammates into attacking positions, or change the point of attack with his precise short and long range passing. Vancouver went into the break leading 1-0, courtesy of a Jordan Harvey goal. After his corner kick was cleared, Morales hooked a one-time pass to the back post, where it was nodded across goal by Andy OBrien. Harvey caught the Dynamo defenders flat-footed, and he prodded the ball home from six yards. Vancouver added to their lead in the 58th minute, as Kenny Miller converted a penalty kick after Kofi Sarkodie had handled in the penalty area. Miller scored at the second attempt, as his first kick had to be retaken due to the encroachment of Darren Mattocks. The Jamaican striker could be forgiven for his exuberance – it was his excellent work that created the penalty kick in the first place. Mattocks has yet to score this season – something at which he is surely frustrated – but his play has been much improved over last year. He is holding the ball up well, linking with his teammates, and because of his blistering speed, he is a genuine threat to any defence that chooses to play a high line. If he can improve his composure in front of goal, he will surely reach double figures in goals. Down 2-0, Houston brought on Omar Cummings for the ineffective Garcia. Cummings took a place up front alongside Bruin, with Barnes dropping into midfield. The substitution effectively resulted in Houston matching Vancouvers diamond midfield – something that should have been done at the half. Houstons midfield partnership of Garcia and Ricardo Clark never got to grips with the movement of Pedro Morales. The Chilean was everywhere he needed to be to get on the ball – even dropping into the left back position at one point to gain possession. Morales effectively dispelled the notion that a midfield diamond has to be narrow or positionally rigid. Playing Miller up front alongside Mattocks also worked in Vancouvers favour. While Mattocks offered game-breaking speed, Miller offered craft and guile. When Morales vacated the central position, Miller was clever enough to move into that space – meaning Houston always had to be wary of Clark and Garcia getting bypassed. And because Mattocks speed caused the Dynamos Jermaine Taylor and David Horst all kinds of bother, neither centreback wanted to step into midfield and leave the other exposed 1v1. After Houston pulled a goal back through Clark in the 75th minute, Robinson showed his tactical nous by reverting back to a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Teibert slotting in alongside Laba to congest the middle of the park, and substitutes Sebastian Fernandez and Kekuta Manneh taking up wide positions. This allowed Vancouver to see out the remainder of the game, sealing an important three points and maintaining their unbeaten start to the season. The Positives Pedro Morales showed all of the qualities that led the Whitecaps to make him a designated player. He rarely conceded possession, showed fantastic one and two-touch passing range and generally controlled the tempo of the game. The midfield diamond from Vancouver worked very well, and now offers Robinson a viable alternative to the 4-2-3-1 formation that he used in the first three games. Both Russell Teibert and, to a lesser extent, Gershon Koffie, had effective games, and Matias Laba reaffirmed his growing reputation as one of the top holding midfielders in MLS. The Negatives Houston defender David Horst shouldnt be surprised if he receives a phone call from the leagues Disciplinary Committee this week. On two occasions, Horst used excessive force against Vancouver players. The first was a deliberate elbow into the ribs of Pedro Morales; the second, a deliberate elbow into the neck of Kekuta Manneh. Given the leagues recent precedent of handing out supplementary discipline, Horst could well be in line for a suspension. The Star Man Camilo who? Pedro Morales is making disgruntled Whitecaps fans quickly forget last seasons departed top scorer, as Morales had a magnificent game for Vancouver. He is quickly establishing himself as the number ten that fans have always craved – a technically gifted, free-flowing maestro whose lead the other players follow. With eight points from their opening four games – including two impressive home wins – the Vancouver Whitecaps are off to a great start under Carl Robinson. Vancouvers next match is on Saturday, April 5 (6:30pm ET, 3:30pm PT on CTV BC) against the Colorado Rapids. Ian Happ Jersey . Just ask Arsenal fans. However, Arsene Wenger has repeatedly told anyone willing to listen that finishing in that spot is more important than winning a cup competition. Shawon Dunston Cubs Jersey . The Padres made the moves before Fridays game at Washington. They promoted infielder Jace Peterson from Double-A San Antonio and right-hander Kevin Quackenbush from Triple-A El Paso. https://www.cheapcubs.com/1060t-allen-webster-jersey-cubs.html . Louis Cardinals on Sunday afternoon; a brief, poor outing that served to highlight two trends that have developed this season. Kerry Wood Cubs Jersey . The freestyle skier from Calgary finished sixth in the qualification round with a total of 82.00 points. 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Scoring 13 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter against his former team, Augustin got revenge on the team that sent him packing and the Bulls pulled out a huge win against the team that is directly above them in the Eastern Conference standings. "D.J. has been huge for us," Joakim Noah said of his point guard. "And I know this was a big game for him, too, being able to play in Toronto, the team that cut him, and play well like that and lead us to victory. That must be the best feeling in the world. Just prove your doubters wrong." Carlos Boozer led the Bulls with 20 points, Kirk Hinrich scored 19 points and Noah recorded a career-high 13 assists. DeMar DeRozan led the Raptors with a game-high 32 points. Kyle Lowry added 16 points, but shot just 4-for-13 from the floor. With Toronto having played in Washington the night before, the Bulls came out strong and led by 10 at the end of the first quarter. Toronto was able to trim the deficit to seven at the half. Chicago went into the fourth ahead by eight. Things stayed heated throughout the game, particularly down the stretch of the fourth quarter as the teams traded scores until a Jimmy Butler defensive stop on a DeRozan jumper with 2.9 seconds remaining allowed the Bulls to walk off the court victorious. "DeRozan is a load and I thought Jimmy defended him on several plays as well as you can," Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. " 1/8DeRozan 3/8 is a big-time player. Each year he has improved significantly to the point where he iss as good as it gets.dddddddddddd Theres constant pressure on you. Jimmy battled and thats what I like about Jimmys mindset. He is going to keep coming." While DeRozan was unsuccessful down the stretch, the Raptors had a hard time criticizing the effort they received from their All-Star. "Hes our go-to guy throughout the game," Raptors coach Dwane Casey said of DeRozan. "He gave us 32 points and hes going to grow into that role in closing games. Thats something he has to learn how to do. Its not a lack of trying; he made a strong move there, got into the paint, rose up and got a shot off. I dont know how you can fault it." It was Chicagos first game since the all-star break layoff, but they showed little rust, and plenty of intensity. "That was a playoff game," Casey said. "Thats something our players have to get used to. That type of intensity, that physicalityawe have to initiate that from the beginning of the game." Seven technical fouls were called in the grind it out game, and exactly the type of game that Chicago excels at. "We were going against a tough Eastern Conference team," DeRozan said. "Thats one of the toughest teams when it comes to physicality, beating you up, holding, grabbing through the whole game." DeRozan wasnt surprised that Augustin had a big game in his return to the city. "D.J. Can shoot the ball," DeRozan said. "Hes a smart point guard. Hes very crafty. Hes creative. He knocked down a couple of big shots for them." Chicago pulled ahead by as many as 15 points in the first half before the Raptors called a timeout midway through the second quarter. Coming out of the timeout, Toronto reeled off a 14-2 run before trailing 48-41 at the half. The Bulls refused to relinquish their lead and they led 70-62 after three quarters. Back-to-back three-pointers from Augustin to open the fourth put the Bulls up by 10. After Butlers stop on DeRozan, the Raptors fouled Butler and he made one of two free throws to put the Bulls ahead by two. A 43-foot heave from DeRozan at the buzzer missed the mark. ' ' '