SHAPES OF MLS – Whitecaps fail to take advantage of Chivas red card THE FORMATIONS Both teams came into the game on the back of opening day victories: Chivas USA got a late goal from Bobby Burling to defeat the Chicago Fire 3-2, while the Vancouver Whitecaps destroyed the New York Red Bulls 4-1. Toni Kukoc Jersey . Chivas named an unchanged lineup from the opening day, while Vancouver were forced to make one change, as Russell Teibert was unavailable due to a slight hamstring strain. Kenny Miller took up Teiberts place on the right, with designated player, Pedro Morales, occupying the attacking midfield role for the Whitecaps. THE GAME Given that the on-field temperature was over 30 degrees Celsius at kick-off, the tempo of the game was understandably slow at the start. Vancouver was content to move the ball around the back as it tried to find a way to get Morales involved in the game. Chivas started the game brightly, but its game plan went out the window in the 13th minute when Augustin Pelletieri was harshly sent off for a challenge on Morales in midfield. The challenge from Pelletieri was a strong block tackle, but in no way did it merit a red card. The tackle could not be classed as violent conduct, nor was it made with excessive force. The sending off forced Chivas to drop Thomas McNamara back into midfield, leaving Erick Torres to play up front on his own in a 4-4-1 formation. The red card galvanized Chivas, though, as they defended stoutly for the remainder of the game. Credit has to go to their new head coach, Wilmer Cabrera, who has transformed Chivas from a dysfunctional group of also-rans into a well-oiled, well-organized unit. In Mauro Rosales and Leandro Barrera, Chivas had two wingers who provided a genuine threat from wide areas. Both players terrorized Vancouver on the counter attack, as time and time again, Chivas repelled the Whitecaps buildup play. In Oswaldo Minda, Chivas had a midfield destroyer who sat in front of the back four and disrupted play. His defensive work alongside McNamara in the middle of the park made life difficult for Vancouvers central trio of Matias Laba, Nigel Reo-Coker and Morales. In fact, Morales was virtually anonymous until the second half, when a formation change allowed him to get more time on the ball. In Burling and Carlos Bocanegra, Chivas had two experienced MLS defenders. Neither player is especially quick, but given Vancouvers inability to move the ball quickly, this didnt pose a problem for either defender on the day. With the home side looking bright, Chivas took the lead just before the half-time break after Reo-Coker forced a pass in midfield that was intercepted by Rosales. The winger broke quickly and played the ball to Torres, whose strike from the edge of the penalty area hit the backside of Whitecaps skipper Jay DeMerit, deflecting past the helpless David Ousted in goal. Chivas fully deserved their lead, as the Whitecaps were second-best throughout the first half. Slow, methodical, deliberate and predictable. All of these words can be used to describe Vancouvers play in the opening 45 minutes. It was a complete reversal from the slick, fluid passing performance that the Whitecaps displayed just one week earlier and head coach Carl Robinson had some choice words for his players in the locker room at half-time – buck up your ideas or changes were coming in 10 minutes. THE TURNING POINT Robinson gave his team 15 minutes in the second half before introducing Kekuta Manneh in the 60th minute. Manneh came on for Reo-Coker and brought with him a change in formation for the Whitecaps. Vancouver shifted to a 4-4-2 formation with Miller partnering Darren Mattocks up front, Morales dropping alongside Laba in central midfield, and Manneh and Sebastian Fernandez occupying roles on the flanks. Manneh instantly changed the game for Vancouver. Every time he got the ball, he ran at the Chivas defenders, forcing them onto the back foot. This forced the Chivas midfield to help out defensively by applying back pressure on Manneh, creating space in midfield for Morales to dictate the tempo of the game. The Chileans passing range is superb and his through balls for the likes of Mattocks, Manneh and Erik Hurtado, who entered the game in the 75th minute for Fernandez, were a threat for Vancouver, although they failed to produce a goal for the Whitecaps. Instead, the equalizer came from good work by Mattocks down the left. The Jamaican recovered possession after pressurizing the Chivas backline, drove to the byline and cut the ball back to the top of the penalty area, where Manneh was able to calmly side-foot the ball past Kennedy. It was a cool finish from the youngster, and the move gave a glimpse of just how dangerous the Whitecaps can be when their young guns are flying. THE POSITIVES The play of the three substitutes (Manneh, Hurtado and Christian Dean, who made his professional debut after replacing the slightly injured Andy OBrien) made a real difference for Vancouver. The team as a whole looked lethargic until after the substitutions were made and too many key players struggled to impact the game. But the youngsters came on and made a difference by upping the tempo, allowing Vancouver to rescue a point from a game in which they were often second-best. Carl Robinson deserves a mention for not only his willingness to make early substitutions, giving those players enough time to alter the course of the game, but also for his decision to change to a 4-4-2 formation. Morales was ineffective in an advanced midfield role, as Chivas did an excellent job of compressing the space between lines, as well as across the pitch. Dropping Morales deeper (and putting Miller up front alongside Mattocks) allowed the Chilean to get on the ball and do what he does best – pull the strings. Too often, coaches are married to a tactical formation and Robinson showed that he is savvy enough to make in-game changes to produce the desired result. THE NEGATIVES Too many below-par performances from too many key players – DeMerit, Reo-Coker and Miller, in particular – saw the Whitecaps struggle to dictate a game in which they had a man advantage for 77 minutes. Playing Miller on the right in place of Teibert did not work. While one game is not enough to come to a conclusion on his ability to be effective in a wider role, there will be plenty of discussion and debate amongst the coaching staff before they choose a employ the Scot in a similar role. It is often said that it is difficult to play against 10 men, but this is only true if you play the game at a pedestrian pace. This is exactly what Vancouver did against Chivas, as the Whitecaps ball movement was slow and predictable and their off-the-ball movement was non-existent. Chivas were able to set two solid lines of four with Torres operating as an outlet up front, which allowed them to break quickly on the flanks through Rosales and Barrera whenever they recovered possession. THE STAR MAN It is very difficult to pick out a star player for Vancouver, as so many players were below average. However, Manneh showed glimpses of what he can offer as a dynamic attacking threat and he took his goal very well. If Teibert is still unavailable for this Saturdays game away to New England (watch on CTV BC at 11am pt), Manneh could very well have played his way into Robinsons starting eleven. For Chivas, Leandro Barrera looks like a perfect complement to Mauro Rosales. With Torres and McNamara making a nuisance of themselves up front, dont expect the 2014 version of Chivas USA to be a pushover. Kris Dunn Jersey . Maricopa County spokeswoman Cari Gerchick says thats the finding from an autopsy conducted Thursday by the county Medical Examiners Office. Cheap Bulls Jerseys China . The D-Backs came into being in 1998 and appear destined to finish second in the AL West after the Tsunami that is the Los Angeles Dodgers swept over them. I thought it might be interesting to see what the D-backs have done over their 16 years compared to what the Blue Jays have done over their past 16 campaigns. http://www.cheapbullsjerseys.com/?tag=cheap-omer-asik-jersey .com) - Wayne Simmonds, Scott Laughton and Jakub Voracek each posted a goal and an assist as the Philadelphia Flyers thumped the Carolina Hurricanes, 5-1, on Saturday.TORONTO - The Toronto Argonauts will make their late-season playoff push without slotback Andre Durie.Toronto put the veteran receiver on the six-game injured list Friday. Durie, 33, broke his right clavicle again Wednesday after diving for a pass during practice.Durie first broke it during Torontos 48-15 home win over Saskatchewan on July 5. He underwent surgery and missed seven games before returning Sept. 13 and playing in two contests.Toronto head coach Scott Milanovich said the two injuries are similar and Durie will likely require surgery again.Its not exactly the same break, Milanovich said. Part of it held up, part of it didnt. Thats how I understand it.Im anticipating hes done for the season but that isnt set in stone.Rookie Robert Gill will replace Durie on Saturday when Toronto (4-8) hosts Edmonton (9-4) in the first of four straight home games at Rogers Centre. The Argos are currently third in the East Division, two points behind Hamilton and Montreal while the Eskimos are tied with Saskatchewan for second in the West.Robert Gill has as much juice as anybody in this league and well find somebody to do some of the other dirty work that Andre does, Milanovich said. Now, can one guy do the job Andre did? Probably not.But I do think were in a much better place than we were four, five weeks ago when we had all the injuries.Toronto also released former starting linebacker Shane Horton on Friday.The five-foot-10 199-pound Durie had career highs in catches (92) and receiving yards (986) last season. The Mississauga, Ont., native is also a versatile performer as he can play running back a€” his former position at York a€” and contribute on special teams.Durie has been limited to just 19 catches for 214 yards and a TD this season.Were definitely going to miss his production ... and his leadership as well, Toronto quarterback Ricky Ray said. Weve just got to try and fill that void and make some plays in his absence.Cornerback Pat Watkins, who spent two seasons with Toronto before signing with Edmonton this off-season as a free agent, said losing Durie is big for the Argos but its Ray who makes their offence go. Despite an abundance of injuries to Argos receivers, Ray leads the CFL in pass percentage (68.2 per cent) and TDs (22) and is second in passing yards (3,206).He (Ray) is going to be on his A game, we know that, Watkins said. Ricky Ray has always been sharp. I havent really seen him off his game too many times.We expect him to go out and play like Ricky Ray so weere going to play like we can play. Bobby Portis Jersey. .Ray spent his first nine CFL seasons with the Eskimos and led them to two Grey Cups before being dealt to Toronto in December 2011. Ray guided the Argos to the 2012 Grey Cup but is just 1-3 against his former team, including a 41-27 road loss in Edmonton on Aug. 23 where Ray was sacked five times and threw three interceptions.Hell face an Edmonton defence that was sensational in last weekends 24-0 win over Saskatchewan, the Riders first shutout loss since 1986. But the Eskimos will be minus defensive linemen Eddie Steele and Gregory Alexandre a€” both Canadians a€” and Marcus Howard.Veteran Almondo Sewell and rookie Cedric McKinley will replace Alexandre and Steele at tackle while Canadian Bo Adebayo, plucked recently from Montreals practice roster, was added to the 46-man roster.They understand what needs to be done (Saturday), Watkins said. Im pretty sure after seeing them this week in practice they have a full understanding of how the game is played.Were going to be there to support them.Edmonton head coach Chris Jones also figures into the equation. A defensive guru, Jones is often unconventional in his defensive schemes, which makes it difficult for opposing offensive coaches to know exactly how to gameplan against him.Milanovich knows this firsthand. He and Jones are close friends and one of Milanovichs first moves after being named Argos head coach was to hire Jones as his defensive co-ordinator.Toronto hasnt played since its 40-23 road win over B.C. on Sept. 19 but Milanovich said time isnt an advantage when preparing to face Joness defence.The thing with him is you dont know what hes going to do, Milanovich said. So it really doesnt matter if you have a long week or short week because he could completely change everything the first play of the game and throughout the entire game.We understand whats ahead of us. Hes as good as it gets on defence and our offence is going to have a great challenge.Jones is also a free spirit. He rides motorcycles, dresses in all black on the sidelines and has drawn the ire from other coaches for not shaking hands after games.But Milanovich says, thats Chris Jones.I should go all black, its slimming, Milanovich said with a chuckle. He was upset we didnt have all black when he was here ... but thats the way hes been since Ive known him.And so Milanovich wont go looking for a pre-game handshake Saturday.Ive had enough handshakes, he said with a smile. Well be all right. Cheap Diamondbacks Jerseys Cheap Braves Jerseys Cheap Orioles Jerseys Cheap Red Sox Jerseys Cheap Cubs Jerseys Cheap White Sox Jerseys Cheap Reds Jerseys Cheap Indians Jerseys Cheap Rockies Jerseys Cheap Tigers Jerseys Cheap Astros Jerseys Cheap Royals Jerseys Cheap Angels Jerseys Cheap Dodgers Jerseys Cheap Marlins Jerseys ' ' '