Portland Timbers: A group of individuals playing a team game

by Ryan Gates on Jun 6, 2011 10:41 PM PDT

The Portland Timbers have not scored from the run of play since April 17. Let me say that again, April 17th. However no one took notice, or least pointed out that this was a major concern, until these last 2 game because Portland was scoring and winning. We all do this, even I did. Portland was winning so not a lot was going wrong. However the Timbers have now lost 2 in a row and have not looked good in either game.

So the question is why are we not scoring from the run of play? There are a lot of answers that could fit here, such as:

The Forwards are not working well together.
The Outside mids are not giving the Forwards quality service.
The Outside backs are terrible.
There is no Play-making Midfielder, a "#10"
Nagbe is hurt.
The Timbers have good athletes but no good "soccer" players
It is all Kenny's fault!

I have read all of these on this blog and each one of them is true, well exempt maybe for the last one. No one player is to blame for all of this. In fact I really believe the biggest culprit for the way the Timbers have played since the Dallas game is the Portland Timbers. The team has not played well, each of the players and even the coach have had a hand in the lack of scoring.

Find out why after the jump:

Portland has been playing like a team of individuals. I know some of you are saying, "they still pass to each other". Of course they do but that doesn't mean they aren't playing as a team. For example our wings are trying to take on 2 or 3 guys almost every time they get even a little space on the outside and this is never going to work. However almost half the time this is because no one has shown for the ball, or at least given them an option that works. It is as if the ball is a light and all of the players run away from it as if they are cockroaches.

The only players consistently showing for the ball are the defense for a back pass and you can never score going backwards. Even when the ball goes back to the defense they rarely swing the ball to create some confusion in the defense and create different holes in their line.

To illustrate my point lets take a look at some of the formation pictures below. (warning image heavy content)

Okay the ball has been played out of the back after the Timbers have won possession. First off they play the long ball to Cooper or Perlaza. Where are they going to go with this ball? Lay it off to space and hope there is someone there? Flick it on to the other forward and hope he gets to it? The Timbers have no patience when they win a ball in the back they just hoof it forward and hope for the best. Every single one of our defenders does this. Granted there is a time and a place for that but where is the possession? Where is Diego Chara or Captain Jack Jewsbury as an outlet? They are both concerned with the attacking players of the other team.

Now when the wingers get the ball this is what they should see:

This time the Timbers finally played for possession and found one of their play-makers. However what choices does he have? Play it forward to Kenny Cooper who is being man marked? Play it over the top to Jorge Perlaza for a foot race? Wait for the central midfielders to catch up and play it either back to them or to the middle?

This is what they do see:

football formations

So he usually decides to try and beat the two defenders marking him because he just doesn't see the easy option. Where is the easy option here? Really there isn't one because Cooper is trying to race to the corner and Perlaza is too far away, the CM's are so far behind the play and Jeremy Hall or Rodney Wallace is right on top of the winger. So the two options are play the long ball or dribble through 3 defenders.

The Offensive shape is terrible and limiting the Timbers ability to actually score from the run of play. It wasn't until Darlington Nagbe came in during the Chivas Game and changed the formation that the Timbers looked halfway decent. So lets take a look at why:

As you can see when the ball was played wide, after a turnover, to either Chara or Sal Zizzo there wasn't a huge patch of no man's land right in the center of the pitch. By changing to a 4-3-3 or a 4-4-2 diamond the Timbers finally filled that space.

Now this doesn't always need a sub and a formation change by John Spencer for this space to be filled. Chara and Jewsbury are together playing to deep in defense. One needs to fill that space, it can be either of them at any given time they just need to figure it out. I would prefer Chara to be there more then Jewsbury but Jewsbury is just as capable a passer.

In some ways I think time will make this flaw seem less a mountain and more a mole hill as the team gets more chemistry and learns how to play off of each other but until then I think it needs to be recognized.

Thoughts?

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Comments

I agree with the adjustments to the midfield positions you suggest

I think dedicating a mid to a more forward position will allow our forwards to take less touches and focus on shots, but I think that this forward midfielder needs to be Nagbe or Alhassan because of their ability to control the ball in traffic. A defense won’t be able to neglect their ability to get past a defender and take a shot in space. With the defense closing in on a dynamic and “forward” midfielder we could expose our true forwards to more opportunities (especially with capable passers such as Alhassan or Nagbe). I leave Chara out of this forward pressing midfielder position because I think his value may come in a more defensive role if the forward midfielders attack was to break down. I think he has shown less ability 1 v 1 and is a much better field general.

by RoseColoredGlasses on Jun 7, 2011 12:25 AM PDT reply actions

Agree, based on whose on the roster but......

Nagbe isn’t healthy enough right now. He’s looked poor starting/playing 60 minutes. When he came on against Chivas, lets remember he was taking on tired guys, who’d been used to a different formation all game. My hope he is can play that role, I’ve always thought he’s wasted on the wing, but I don’t think you can ask a rookie who obviously isn’t a 100% to suddenly pull the strings in your midfield.

My problem with Alhassan is that position would make him even less likely to play any defense (its bad enough already), and to be fair, while he’s great at breaking someone down and making a spectacular pass, I’d much rather see him make the easy, smart pass every time and complete it, then break down his guy 30% of the time and make an amazing pass. He’s a bit of a blackhole at times, and to be honest, his striking (something you’d want from a guy in that position to force the defenders closer/therefore easier to break down) is/has been poor all year. Can’t hit the broad side of a barn.

Its all we got on our roster, but I’m not sure it makes us much better.

by zaggy on Jun 7, 2011 9:34 AM PDT up reply actions

Not true that no one pointed it out

Sigi Schmid was pointing out the Timbers affinity for set pieces in May.

“They are a team that is very good on set pieces. They do try and get set pieces. I don’t know why he’s trying to apologize for that.”

For some reason people took offense at it rather than looking at what he was saying… They score alot on set pieces and less on run of play. There was nothing to take offense too in my opinion since both types of goals are worth the same.

Scoreboards, not billboards.
Regular season, not pre-season.

by lysander on Jun 7, 2011 7:32 AM PDT reply actions

I think anyhing said about the Timbers from Sigi Schmid

will be taken as an offense.

I agree with you, but he’s the Sounders coach, it’s just gonna be that way.

RCTID - Stumptown Footy
Moderator of /r/MLS

by Geoff Gibson on Jun 7, 2011 7:41 AM PDT up reply actions

You might

Want to let that die, We will always take anything Sigi says as an insult. And the way he says it is insulting. We try for set-pieces as much as any other team, just look at Montero and the amount he dives.

Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.

by Ryan Gates on Jun 7, 2011 8:51 AM PDT up reply actions

Oh and

I never said no-one pointed it out. I said we all overlooked it due to results.

Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.

by Ryan Gates on Jun 7, 2011 8:53 AM PDT up reply actions

I am just saying

that Sigi did not overlook it.

Scoreboards, not billboards.
Regular season, not pre-season.

by lysander on Jun 7, 2011 9:47 AM PDT up reply actions

Just pointing out the facts man

You can not like sigi, but it is below you to take everything he says as an insult and wrong and then pretend he did not say it when you later acknowledge he was right.

Scoreboards, not billboards.
Regular season, not pre-season.

by lysander on Jun 7, 2011 9:49 AM PDT up reply actions

Can we please let this go now?

Please?

by pdb on Jun 7, 2011 9:50 AM PDT up reply actions

Touchy touchy

anyways… sure we can let it go. Not my intent to piss anyone off.

Scoreboards, not billboards.
Regular season, not pre-season.

by lysander on Jun 7, 2011 2:50 PM PDT up reply actions

A good way to not piss people off is to know when to let things drop

especially on your favorite team’s main rival’s fan web site.

by pdb on Jun 7, 2011 2:58 PM PDT up reply actions

FYI...

It is my second favorite team before it is my favorite teams main rival.

Scoreboards, not billboards.
Regular season, not pre-season.

by lysander on Jun 7, 2011 3:13 PM PDT up reply actions

I know

You are not here to troll or try and make enemies but bringing up a already dead horse to beat it again and again and again fits definition of insanity: Doing something over and over again expecting different results.

Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.

by Ryan Gates on Jun 7, 2011 3:03 PM PDT up reply actions

Did not know it was dead

nor did I know I beat it over and over. We discussed it when it happened and now because it seemed to be exactly on topic. I do not remember bringing it up any other time. If I have… sorry.

And like I said… I did not think it should be a particularly touchy topic then nor now. Obviously it is so this is the end of me discussing it.

Scoreboards, not billboards.
Regular season, not pre-season.

by lysander on Jun 7, 2011 3:11 PM PDT up reply actions

It was a jab

“Their game is predicated around free kicks and set pieces. That’s what their danger is. That’s what they live for.”

and

“I don’t know if it’s a rivalry on the pitch that make it physical. I think it was physical because that’s the nature of their game. You don’t see their goalkeeper throw the ball out and they’re not going to build. Everything is either a punt or a goal kick.”

There’s a lot of truth to these statements – as you’ve pointed out a couple times around here – but they weren’t intended as compliments.

by bndwgn on Jun 7, 2011 9:07 AM PDT up reply actions

I do not see it as a compliment or a insult

It is as Sigi said, just stating the facts. And given the play so far I do think it is safe to say it is a fact. Timbers have gotten great results from set pieces.

I understand timbers fans will take anything he says as an insult. I am just pointing out that it was noticed unlike the posts says above. It was noticed and ignored by Timber fans because of who noticed it.

I personally do not pay much attention to what Sigi says. He is a typical coach that can speak for 10 minutes and yet you gather new information. In this particular case he was saying something I had not noticed and found interesting. I also found it interesting that so many Timbers fans (and coaches) took offense to it.

Scoreboards, not billboards.
Regular season, not pre-season.

by lysander on Jun 7, 2011 9:46 AM PDT up reply actions

Great analysis.

This also explains why Alhassan seems to find himself wiggling through so many defenders so often, he’s not able to lay the ball forward easily.

RCTID - Stumptown Footy
Moderator of /r/MLS

by Geoff Gibson on Jun 7, 2011 7:43 AM PDT reply actions

I'd add

If you go back and watch him carefully, he often makes a cut in to the middle and has a streaking wallace running by on the outside and he ignores him 95% of the time. A quick give and go with wallace would really help stretch the defenses, but Kalif seems to like to break players down himself. Really suffers from tunnel vision at times.

by zaggy on Jun 7, 2011 9:36 AM PDT up reply actions

Yes

The same goes for Zizzo

Contributing editor to Stumptown Footy the Portland Timbers SBN blog.

by Ryan Gates on Jun 7, 2011 9:59 AM PDT up reply actions

This drives me crazy

I’ve also seen wallace frustrated several times. Alhassan’s next step is decision making – knowing when to use the simple pass to get around players and when to dribble through them

by shrekpdx on Jun 7, 2011 5:42 PM PDT up reply actions

Man-motivation, not tactical refinement

I had related thoughts after the Chivas game:
Would it be fair to view coach Spencer as more a man-motivator than as a tactician coach? The ownership of mid by Chivas was equal parts well-drilled midfield passing and a team arrangement that kept individual Timbers out-manned for the majority of the match.
Timbers attacking SOP – clipping the ball over the top – seems to lead to a couple of situations- One,Perlaza tries to break contact with his defender, which he can’t because he’s not any faster than most of the league’s good defenders. Or, two, KFC tries to shield the ball and turn past the two or three defenders he’ll spend all game with. Kenny laying the ball off to a trailing player won’t result in a shot on goal. Our trailing midfielders keep looking for someone else to take the shot and almost always pass square or back at this point.

by buckyball on Jun 7, 2011 7:46 AM PDT reply actions

I agree the midfield was empty during the Chivas game...

but I think the problem isn’t as much the formation as it is the fact that the defense is still not quite as sound as it should be. Jewsbury and Chara continue to have to cover on defense because they are not able to hold their shape. Couple that with the occasional failed back pass from the wings and our midfield is forced to sit back and keep numbers behind the ball. With our fullbacks playing aggressively on the wings there is no reason for the center of the midfield to be empty. The diamond helps this by pinching in on the wings but that should be happening on overlapping runs regardless. I think if we could get our defense playing the way they were a few games ago that will give our central midfield the confidence to position themselves more effectively. It would be interesting to see what the team would look like with a defense that tried to get forward a little less where the exchange of roles and responsibilities was a little less dynamic. Alas, we do not have those players on the team.

by baumerpdx on Jun 7, 2011 10:00 AM PDT reply actions

Teams playing poorly

are going to look like this. But in the Timbers case, goals in the regular flow of the game have always been tough.

To allow your defensive minded midfield to move into offensive positions requires holding on to the ball. Long kicks get up the pitch fast and can come back just as fast. No one is going to commit to a long run to support the offense when the ball is up in the air going 40-50 meters+

I grew up watching Dutch soccer and love that style. The Timbers in their current form are not going to play that style. They do need to make some adjustments to make the ball do more of the work and not just the players.

Ruudster

by Ruudster on Jun 7, 2011 1:15 PM PDT reply actions