Real Salt Lake 0 - Seattle Sounders 0 - halftime thoughts

It was on frame, and Keller guess right? Yes I would have loved for him to make it, but it didn’t happen. Here is what Kasey Keller had to say about it:

“You can do whatever but in the end if you can come up with a few saves at the right time then great, maybe make them miss a couple. Great. But you got to understand that more often than not they are going to score. That’s just the way it is.”

Findley has to start delivering what we know, based on his past, that he is capable of but I find it funny the people are so on his case. So how many chances did he create last night? How many did everyone’s new favorite Saborio create? How many did Javi create last night. If you believe that the team wins and loses as a team, then the constant criticism of one player is out of place. Every RSL player on offense could have and should have done better last night, of that there is no doubt.

Do we expect that Robbie should make every PK attempt, when we have seen other top players miss them too? Is that a fair judgement? Didn’t his shot come closer than did Javi or Fabi in the Chicago match last year? Didn’t his shot come closer than Landycakes attempt in MLS Cup?

I think I have simply taken a different path on being critical of RSL this year, yes they could have done more and gotten the win, but if you look at the big picture, we are 12-4-8 and in first place in the Western Conference with 6 matches to go. We are 3-4-5 on the road with just 10 goals allowed, and we have 14 points on the road, both of which are huge improvements from years past. Can each individual player do better, yeah I believe they could but as a team they went to a very tough place to play and faced a team with just one loss in their last 6 matches and got a solid 0-0 draw.

Findley could have done better, so could have Saborio, so could have Javier, so could have Nelson. I was pleased with how Andy, Kyle, and our entire defense played but could they have been better, sure they could have.

Listen, I like Robbie but I think he is capable of more and more should be expect of him. I also think if we are going to offer DP type money to Saborio, then he need to do more on the road as well. Asking simply about last nights match, who attacked the area more, who created more havoc on the Sounders defense, Findley or Saborio?

Sure being used as a sub in most cases after starting for the World Cup team might have him a bit down in the dumps, sure his contract re-negotiations with RSL may have him unfocused, to the best of my knowledge he hasn’t signed with anyone else for the end of the year, so do you think that a player looking for a job would intentionally play that way?

Maybe, I saw him in the face of the official last night, I saw him in the area trying to make plays, I saw him making runs that nobody else on the team was making, I saw him miss a couple shots like others on the team did, and yes he took a PK that seemed to lack something (was it Keller getting in his head, was it the minute plus they made him wait at the stop, was it he intentionally put forth a crappy effort?)

You and some others say poor form, but I look at his goals per minute played, his goals per shots taken, and all the other stats and all are main offensive players are all about the same. I guess I am confused over what people are perceiving and what the numbers say. FYI, he is off his career numbers slightly but not much and some of that has to be that he is getting less minutes and less scoring opportunities (in part because of Saborio’s great home form, and because Fabi established a nice playing relationship while Robbie was at the World Cup).

I do think that Robbie is learning to not chase balls that he can’t get to, and as much I would love him to run after everything like he used to, saving energy for when it actually matters is a sign of a player that is learning and maturing. I do miss the frantic, balls to the wall style that he and others used to show, but to be completely honest it is about the results and I am confused how a RSL fan can look at the results and not be giddy as hell about the entire team?

If he continues playing like what? Sorry but I think trying to pin the entire season on Robbie Finley’s missed PK last night is a cheap shot. Are you going to give him credit for the point we got off his goal against KC? Are you going to give him full credit for the 3 point win at Chicago. See these types of arguments are pointless, RSL is a team and they win and they lose together, trying to say that if RSL doesn’t finish ahead of FC Dallas or in front of LA all hinges on one player missing a PK is simply unfair, untrue, and wrong.

Why exactly did RSL have the shot at the PK in the first place? Was it the daring run of Nelson Gonzalez into the area? Oh wait didn’t see any of those? Was it Alvaro Saborio going one on one with the defender inside the area? Oh wait didn’t see that either, so if you want to toss around blame there is plenty to go around all season.

If you want to try to point to one match out of 30 that could be the difference maker, how about the horrible play of our defense in LA to allow 2 goals off set pieces? I am sure you would love to blame that on Findley as well, how about the inability to hold form against FC Dallas and a 2-0 loss, I am sure that only Robbie Findley is to blame for that loss as well. I sure as hell am not going to point to getting a 0-0 draw against the Sounders as the straw that broke the RSL season.

Was the shot on frame? Did the keeper have to stop it from going into the back of the net? Sorry the effort may have lacked something but you are simply wrong Keller guess right (his own words) and made the save.

You all continue to hate on Robbie Findley, but when pointing out the issues of RSL you might want to consider that Alvaro Saborio has yet to score a single goal on the road in a MLS match for RSL, despite being the striker with the most minutes.