MLS Five-a-side:The skinny on five things that matter this week in Major League Soccer:
1. He's surely seen worse: David Beckham seemed a bit amused with the question. And you can probably understand why.
The scene was a postgame news conference last Sunday after his LA Galaxy had ambushed hapless hosts FC Dallas 5-1. So Beckham was in a cheery mood anyway, and didn't hide a smile very well when a reporter asked about some boo birds at Pizza Hut Park.
Beckham had gotten a little hot following Adrian Serioux's nasty tackle, which resulted in the FC Dallas defender's immediate expulsion. Beckham had some words, did a little pushing and later made "shushing" gestures to the crowd when the Galaxy struck for No. 5. Nothing too out of the ordinary, really, but a few fans took offense and booed the Galaxy superstar.
So, did it bother him, he was asked?
But let's think about this for a second. Beckham has waged soccer wars in some passion pits that can be truly unkind to visitors. Here's a guy who has fought it out at Leicester and Leeds, Newcastle and Nottingham Forest, etc. Later, in Spain's La Liga, he was front and center in the bitter Real Madrid-Barcelona rivalry. Think those fans can't be punishing, especially for a fellow who plays out wide as Beckham does, usually roaming near the touchline stands?
So, upon further review, was it really necessary to ask if a few derisive shouts from soccer moms and dads in the Dallas suburbs were going to unnerve soccer's global icon?
"Of course, you always hear when people shout things at you," Beckham said politely. "But trust me, I've heard a lot worse things said about me, shouted at me, than people booing. That's part and parcel in soccer. It's what happens. It's all friendly sort of banter that goes on. It's not soccer without that."
Beckham noted how he appreciates that supporters are passionate about their side and he respects how that they desperately want to see the visitors go home unhappy. What's the most hostile environment he's ever encountered? Beckham demurred, mentioning only that lots of fans love to hate Manchester United and Real Madrid.
Safe to say, his answer will never be "Frisco, Texas."
2. Earning their pay in tough times: There are times when you or I could be a manager. When clubs are winning, when the team trainers and docs are bored with inactivity and things are generally swell, it's really just a maintenance job. The lineup selects itself. The locker room polices itself.
All that is to say, the real test of a manager starts when things begin to unravel. How does the boss cope with the pressure of a couple of bad performances or increasingly wobbly job security? How does he deal with a locker room malcontent? Does he dole out internal discipline equally regardless of star power? These are the tests of leadership and mettle.
So, we're watching it unfold dramatically at RFK and at The Home Depot Center, where D.C. United and Chivas USA are dealing with issues aplenty.
Chivas USA manager Preki seems to be coping well. He has a little history of doing so.
Whether you think he was right or wrong last year to jettison Amado Guevara without compensation, he acted decisively, and that counts for a lot. It settled the team and Chivas USA was off and running. The Red-and-White were relatively unbothered by injuries or any other issues until ailments undercut the starting forwards around playoff time, so Preki had a relative smooth ride until the postseason.
Not so in 2008. Already, Preki has helped Brad Guzan through some struggles, and the side is staying afloat despite an implausible number of injuries, especially in defense. Last week, six defenders who could be starters were on the shelf. And yet, his team found a way to beat back United, albeit against the run of play.
Which brings us to Tom Soehn, whose team is under all manner of duress. There are injuries, slumps and flagging confidence to deal with up and down the roster. Soehn takes a four-game losing streak into Saturday's critical RFK match with Toronto.
3. Six Degrees of Ezra Hendrickson: Kelly Gray is settling into his fifth MLS club (assuming you count San Jose of old and new day San Jose as two organizations) following this week's trade from Colorado to the Earthquakes. That's a lot of address changing for the versatile defender/midfielder who only recently turned 27.
But he's hardly the leading contender for a cracking version of "Six Degrees of MLS Separation." Lots of fellows (more than you care to know, really) have played for five clubs.
Some have done so in more orderly fashion. Others have been all over the map, literally and figuratively. For instance, Raul Diaz Arce spent time at five organizations, but he made seven changes along the way (most of them involved coming or going from D.C. United, where he had three separate stints).
Now, six clubs. That's accomplishing something. In Columbus, Ezra Hendrickson is at his sixth MLS organization in his 12th MLS season.
But the all-time MLS frequent changer has to be John Wolyniec. He has just five clubs on his resume. But with multiple stops at New York, Chicago and Columbus, "Woly" has actually changed MLS addresses nine times. In 2005 and 2006 alone he went from Columbus to New York, back to Columbus, then to Los Angeles and back to New York.
Surely, at some point, he's gotten on the wrong team bus heading out of the stadium.
4. Armchair manager: Watching Houston midfielder Brian Mullan these days, I'm wondering if a move to the defense wouldn't help shake some of the offensive malaise that has settled over camp Dynamo? Mullan, who turned 30 in April, can still do the hard work up and down the flank.
But he doesn't beat defenders one-on-one with anywhere near the frequency of earlier career days. So, could he perhaps be more effective attacking from overlapping runs, a little more like Chris Klein does so effectively for Los Angeles? That gets him going at defenders in a greater variety of situations.
It's not that Richard Mulrooney isn't getting forward from his spot. Rather, Mulrooney probably has some central midfield duty in his future as Ricardo Clark and Dwayne De Rosario have international duty upcoming. And generally, Mullan has more pace than Mulrooney.
Plus, it can't hurt Dominic Kinnear's club to have some different offensive options, and inserting Mullan at right back would make room to get dynamic young attacker Stuart Holden on the field more regularly.
Houston, still not getting enough production from its forwards despite Brian Ching's lone effort Thursday, is on pace to hit for 33 goals this year. That would represent a significant drop from 43 for the league champs a year ago.
5. Yep, they do sometimes work: SportsCenter anchor Steve Bunin wasn't at his best on Thursday's ESPN2 halftime broadcast. During highlights of an Italian Serie A match, as viewers saw a well-executed bicycle kick, he asked rhetorically, "Have you ever seen one of those work?"
Hmmm. He must not have been watching as Taylor Twellman struck magnificently on a "bike" in what turned out to be the game-winner for New England (on a Thursday night national showcase match) in last year's Eastern Conference championship. With apologies to a few successful bicyclists who won't make the list (Miklos Molnar, Mauricio Cienfuegos, Dwayne De Rosario and a few others that might escape me, but that I'm sure I'll be reminded of in short order) here are the top five MLS bicycle strikes of all time:
5. Hugo Sanchez: This one from 1996 goes on the list just because of the showmanship involved. The San Jose defense was so horribly bad on this particular centering pass, leaving Sanchez so implausibly unmarked, he could easily have headed in from a short distance on the far post. Instead, Sanchez opted for his signature move, turning his back and slamming home dramatically.
4. Brian Ching: Distance and accuracy spotlighted his 2006 effort, which was later voted Sierra Mist Goal of the Year in MLS. It was also a game-winner and the game's only goal in a Dynamo win against D.C. United.
3. Marcelo Balboa: His fabulous strike in 2000 was another Goal of the Year, and deservedly so for the power and precision involved. (Besides, he had it coming after such a narrow and nearly famous miss on just such an effort in the 1994 World Cup.)
2. Carlos Ruiz: He has two to choose from, one with L.A. back on his first go-round with the Galaxy. But the better one, due to degree of difficulty, came on a night at RFK, where he rose high and quickly to meet a short pass from Roberto Mina. It was named Sierra Mist Goal of the Decade.
1. Taylor Twellman: Considering the stakes, Twellman's big effort in last year's huge playoff contest may be the biggest yet. Twellman is another two-timer, having hit one from close range back in 2002 against Kansas City.
Fergie Slams Madrid’s Ronaldo ‘Nonsense’
Davis: Beckham, Donovan guiding LA
Galaxy looking for scoring balance
