One day later and my opinion has not wavered. Yesterday’s 3-0 loss to Seattle was every bit as bad a performance as the infamous 5-0 night in New York. The only thing that keeps the west coast capitulation from ranking as the worst performance of all-time outright is the importance of the New York game.
So, call it 1A and 1B of TFC stink-fests. There is a long list of games to pick from, so it’s saying something.
Whether they weren’t trying (I doubt that), tired from a horrific travel day on Friday (probably, but so what) or just not good enough (BINGO!) there is little doubt that this team is not very good right now. Trying to break it down any further than that is somewhat pointless. With the exception of Stefan Frei TFC needs to get better at every position on the park.
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The question fans must ask themselves is not whether the Reds are going to be competitive anytime soon, but rather if they are going to be a contender by this time next year. I’m not sure if they will be.
There is a point to be made by those that suggest that the club didn’t need to strip itself to the point that it did. If they had mixed in the odd MLS veteran, satisfied DeRo and were a little more flexible in the system they implement on a game to game basis then things might not be as bad as they are. The playoffs would seem less fantasy, more realistic target.
But, the club is convinced that the way to get really good is to be consistent in tactics and to build a young core that can grow together. It’s not an absurd idea – the best MLS clubs stay together for a long stretch. The doubts come into play when you analyze whether Winter knows what he’s looking for in talent. And you hope that Paul Mariner can recapture some of the magic he had in New England.
Hope. It really comes down to that. You have to hope that TFC hired the right guy in Winter and hope that he can turn it around quickly before the city’s soccer fans start to lose more interest in the product. What you can’t do is demand more wholesale changes. Constant change is how TFC got in this mess in the first place.
In 2007, there was a misguided sign that sometimes hung at BMO Field that read “In Mo we Trust.” The fans aren’t quite as naive anymore and you will not likely see an “In Winter we Trust” banner hung anytime soon. However, the fans need to trust Winter now. There literally is no choice other than to give up on the club altogether. TFC has handed him and his team the keys to the thing. He’ll either build it into something or burn it to the ground.
Hopefully it’s the former.