Peter Vermes and Aurelien Collin [Part One]
Peter Vermes and Aurelien Collin [Part Two]
MY THREE THOUGHTS
1. Espinoza is playing the best soccer of his career thus far. Last night, Roger continued his great start to the season, with his touch of a feather...and his wild hustle of a ferocious dog.
2. That was a physical match. With player match-ups like Olave vs. Sapong, as well as Saborio and Espindola vs. Collin and Besler, there was sure to be fireworks. Expectations were met.
3. The level of refereeing in MLS is still not adequate. With an extremely inconsistent game, Kevin Stott made clear to the league that officiating needs to improve. I know referee officials in MLS are working to improve the officiating, but I don't see the level rising to the necessary point any time soon without drastic changes.
[Have any thoughts you'd like to share? Feel free to post in the comments section below.]
Agreed. Overall the officiating of the match was not awful. But professional referees do not make game changing decisions on such poor evidence. As the MLS continues to expand, so does the referee training program.
ReplyDeleteAgree with all three of your points. What a game and what a season, so far. Great time to be a Sporting KC fan!
ReplyDeleteAs far as the refereeing goes, isn't true that the level of play in MLS has benefited from international players becoming part of the league? Why not scout good young referees in Mexico, England etc. to see who might like to join a growing league? Speaking English at a reasonable level might be needed, but look how well some refs do in the Champions League or World Cup without speaking the language of either team. Just as U.S. players from learned from internationals, so would our referees. Having played the game at a reasonably high level would be a plus, too.
ReplyDeleteJust a reminder, the referees are under the jurisdiction of USSF, not MLS. The phantom foul call against Sapong was especially galling since Olave had gotten away with shoving him down just outside the box very early in the game. Ironically, except for those two obvious exceptions, I thought that Stott was fine.
ReplyDeleteGood points all around. As usual, thanks for commenting.
ReplyDeleteSo do you think the level of refereeing is improving at an adequate pace, or is there need for drastic changes? Thoughts on recruiting internationals?
Isaac
I didn't think much of Stott. My grip with him is/was his inconsistency. He would allow various muggings to occur, by both teams, then call the slightest of contact on other plays. Had me scratching my head the entire time wondering what in the heck was considered a foul and why.
ReplyDeleteLooks like there's some hope for officiating in the future: http://www.examiner.com/soccer-in-national/ussf-mls-reveal-new-oversight-organization-for-referees