RSL vs FC Dallas: What we learned

Draws that feel like losses hurt, especially when they come off the back of an own-goal. It’s rough and painful, but a point on the road—in Texas!—is acceptable. It’s not what we wanted, maybe not what we deserved, but it’s a result we can work with.

MLS is back, though! I haven’t been this happy in months. I had my buffalo wings. I watched the Crew blow past Toronto and Atlanta get mangled by Houston. MLS is my league (except Atlanta; we can all agree Atlanta’s the worst in the east) and RSL is my team!

New Guys

We saw some good minutes from Barry and Kreilach. Barry looked a bit shaky at the match’s inception, but he found his stride. He got forward, he got back. He’s a good piece on this team. He’ll make some mistakes while he adjusts to a new team; and let’s be fair, training and preseason are great, but it’s not until you’re in real matches that matter that things come together.

Kreilach had a good match. He can ping some swell passes, which is exactly what we need from the guy tasked to shuttle through the midfield. He helped us look dangerous on the field.

No Alfredo Ortuño, which is too bad. We all want to see what this guy can do on the pitch.

Chemistry, play, & moving onward

Plusses and minuses. There were times where we looked exceptional. At times, flashes of communication looked great, players were clicking, everyone was positioned well. We moved the ball with some beautiful, impressive combinations. Rusnák notched an assist to Plata—something I hope becomes a weekly expectation. Rusnák’s pass was a beauty. Savarino was a wizard with the ball at his feet, though I wonder at some of his decisions on the field. And his touch after he swept around the Dallas defense let him down. But it happens and we played well much of the match.

Nick Rimando can still win matches for us; or, as was the case tonight, at least keep us from a loss. Here’s hoping for an elixr of youth to keep him playing like this forever and ever and ever.

The final minutes of both halves were stressful. Dallas brought all they had. We weathered most of it, but one play and a series of unfortunate decisions on the field finally gave Dallas a point. It’s something to work with. Petke will have a plan.

Watch Glad, folks. That kid’s a serious asset. If he keeps playing like this, bigger clubs are going to come knocking. Defender of the year? Maybe.

Overreactions

Where the hell is Kyle? I keep hearing his name, but I can’t find his dreadlocks. Did anyone see him out there?

I’ll bet Barrios makes zooming noises when he runs. If I could move that fast, I would.

We’ll never, ever stop having to watch that Rio Tinto commercial. You know the one: The lady who’s trying to hold a smile while she awkwardly swallows. The guys getting out of a car and shutting the doors with a chock block already beneath the tire—it’s probably why they got out; they couldn’t back out of their parking spot. No wonder they save so much on gas: all of their cars are stuck unmoving. Please! It’s been years, years. No one likes commercials, but at least give us something new and different!