KANSAS CITY, Kan. – Breaking down the Wizards' 1-0 Sunday afternoon defeat to the Columbus Crew (6-0-2) at CommunityAmerica Ballpark:
Table position: Tied for fifth in the Eastern Conference on eight points (2-4-2) with the New England Revolution
Three things to take away...
1) More than ever, Kansas City is desperately in need of three points. Is the Wizards' situation hopeless? Not quite. Are they teetering on the edge of desperation? You better believe it. At six games, Kansas City’s winless streak has lasted for exactly a fifth of the entire regular season.
Earlier this year, it was easy for the coaching staff and players to point to their still-solid play as a sign that things were close to turning around. Now? Well, the Wizards are still playing relatively well, but they’ve learned the hard way that playing well only gets you so far.
2) Scoring is a serious issue. Kansas City are creating chances. The squad just isn’t creating goals, and that’s a big distinction. The Wizards uncorked 18 shots against the Crew, six on frame and one off the side of the post, and were still shutout by a team missing it’s best defensive player.
Davy Arnaud said afterward that he would rather win ugly than lose pretty. No matter how you put it, winning means scoring goals by whatever means possible. That has to start happening soon if manager Peter Vermes’ side wants to stay anywhere close to playoff position.
3) Things could be worse. This one is a repeat from last week, but it still stands. It’s too early to give up on Kansas City just yet. There's no doubt this is a better team than the one assembled in 2009, but it needs to start earning the results to back that statement up.
Defensively, the Wizards are fifth in MLS in goals allowed with nine, and that even includes the nightmare stretch over the last four games. Offensively, they remain reliant on Kei Kamara to finish and Ryan Smith to create. That's going to have to change soon as opposing defenses begin devoting most of their attention to the duo.
Two players who stood out…
Goalkeeper Jimmy Nielsen: The Dane has turned out to be a wonderful signing for Kansas City after arriving as an unknown. He isn’t the biggest, fastest or strongest goalkeeper in the league. He certainly isn’t the fittest.
But White Puma sure is effective, and his stop on Eddie Gaven in the 10th minute showed the biggest reason why. Nielsen’s positioning has been excellent this season, and he doesn’t let the ball go once he gets a piece of it.
Forward Teal Bunbury: After injecting life off the bench and setting up Kamara’s game-tying goal against the Fire, Vermes rewarded the rookie with his first start in MLS. Bunbury didn’t light it up by any means, but his speed and strength brought a dynamic that only Kamara can match.
He showed an eye for finding teammates in dangerous positions, and made Columbus work defensively, opening up space for others. It wouldn't be a surprise to see him start this weekend in Salt Lake City as well.
One play that changed the game…
Emilio Renteria’s goal from a Crew corner kick in the 64th minute. The Wizards zone mark on corner kicks, and Guillermo Barros Schelotto, MLS’ best dead-ball specialist, took full advantage of that knowledge on Sunday.
Schelotto’s absolutely perfect ball to the front post – directly in between three Wizards with pace and verve – found Renteria, who was floating in front of Nielsen, and he did the rest to give Columbus three points.
Final verdict...
The Wizards have been stuck in a state of déjà vu for the last month-and-a-half. Either silly defensive mistakes trip them up or a lack of finishing dooms them to dominate play but walk away without the result. Sunday saw the latter of the two keep Kansas City from breaking their winless streak. As Vermes put it, it’s just not good enough right now, and that has to change sooner rather than later.
Next up...
Sat., May 29 at Real Salt Lake (5-3-1). If life has been tough recently, it certainly doesn’t get any easier for the Wizards next weekend. Kansas City travel to Rio Tinto Stadium to face off against the defending MLS Cup champions, who are still undefeated at home and also lead the league in scoring. The Wizards may need three points desperately, but it’s going to take an inspired performance to deliver it against a deep and talented RSL side.
