KANSAS CITY WIZARDS v COLUMBUS CREW
ARROWHEAD STADIUM, Kansas City, Mo.
7 p.m. CT (HDNet)
Sept. 15, 2007 (WEEK 24) / MLS Game #155
Two teams in real need of a jumpstart for the stretch drive meet at Arrowhead Stadium when the Kansas City Wizards entertain the Columbus Crew. The Wizards had last week off after completing a winless three-game road swing, with just one win in their last six games. But they still have a five-point edge as they chase their first postseason berth in three years. The Crew meanwhile fell out of the top eight last weekend in a 1-0 home loss to the Chicago Fire; winless now in their last six games, they are a point behind Chicago, still tied for ninth place overall with the Colorado Rapids.
REFEREE:
Andrew Chapin. SAR (bench): Jose Corro; JAR (opposite): George Vergara; 4th: Hilario Grajeda
MLS Career: 19 games; FC/gm: 28.7; Y/gm: 5.1; R: 4; pens: 1
Games involving Wizards: P5 W5 L0 T0; FC/gm: 25.2; Y/gm: 5.4; R: 1; pens: 1
Games involving Crew: P4 W1 L3 T0; FC/gm: 32.3; Y/gm: 5.0; R: 0; pens: 0
INJURY REPORT:
KANSAS CITY WIZARDS - OUT: MF Ryan McMahen (torn ACL); MF A.J. Godbolt (patellar tendonitis); QUESTIONABLE: MF Sasha Victorine (tibial contusion/laceration) ... COLUMBUS CREW - OUT: DF Rusty Pierce (L hamstring strain); DF Chad Marshall (concussion); MF Brad Evans (L hip flexor strain); MF Brandon Moss (L knee ACL reconstruction)
SUSPENDED:
CLB: Frankie Hejduk (through Sept. 16; five cautions); Guillermo Barros Schelotto (through Sept. 16; five cautions)
WARNINGS:
SUSPENDED NEXT YELLOW CARD: KC: Jimmy Conrad, Jack Jewsbury, Eddie Johnson, Kurt Morsink
SUSPENDED AFTER TWO YELLOW CARDS: KC: Jose Burciaga Jr., Nick Garcia, Carlos Marinelli, Kerry Zavagnin ... CLB: Marcos Gonzalez, Stefani Miglioranzi, Danny O'Rourke
INTERNATIONAL ABSENCES: none
HEAD-TO-HEAD
ALL-TIME (33 meetings): Wizards 15 wins (2 shootout), 52 goals ... Crew 14 wins (0 shootout), 54 goals ... Draws 4
AT KANSAS CITY (15 meetings): Wizards 8 wins (1 shootout), 27 goals ... Crew 5 wins (0 shootout), 25 goals ... Draws 2
• This is the third and final league meeting between the clubs this season, the second of two at Arrowhead Stadium. The teams have split their first two meetings, each winning on their home ground.
• A year ago, the Wizards swept the season series, winning all four games and not allowing a goal in the final 327 minutes they faced each other.
• It was the first time since 1997 the Wizards had taken the season series. The Crew had won the season set in 1999, 2002 and 2005, splitting the remainder, since the Wiz took two of three games in the league's second season.
• Coaches record: Curt Onalfo vs. CLB: P2 W1 L1 D0 ... Sigi Schmid v KC: P28 W11 L13 D4
2007 (MLS):
5/5: KC 1, CLB 0 (Burciaga 90)
6/20: CLB 2, KC 1 (Gaven 56; Schelotto 61 - Jewsbury 93+)
• The Wizards got a last-minute goal from Jose Burciaga Jr. for a dramatic 1-0 victory against the Columbus Crew on May 5 at Arrowhead Stadium. Each team had cleared a shot off the line in the late going before Jose Burciaga Jr. picked up the ball well out from goal and set off on a slaloming run through the Crew defense, skipping to his left past a couple of defenders before hitting a bounding shot past Andy Gruenebaum for the game-winner.
• The Crew held on for a 2-1 win on June 20 at Crew Stadium. Over the opening 45 minutes, neither goalkeeper was tested at all. Early in the second half, Sasha Victorine found himself all alone after a neat passing sequence, but Crew 'keeper Will Hesmer came out to deflect away the effort.
• The Crew then scored twice in a six-minute span. First, Alejandro Moreno cut in from the left and sent a shot goalward. It was deflected into a group of players at the spot, fell to Eddie Gaven, and he buried a left-footed roller inside the right-hand post for his first goal of the year, in the 56th minute.
• Then Guillermo Barros Schelotto flighted in a corner from the right. Stefani Miglioranzi was able to send a looping header goalward off his back foot, but sent it just off the fingertips of Kevin Hartman and just under the bar for his first goal with the Crew.
• The Wizards spoiled Hesmer's shutout bid in stoppage time. A long ball was poorly cleared, just to the top of the area, and Jack Jewsbury stepped into the rebound, sending a low shot inside the right corner for his first goal of 2007.
• Here's Schmid's team (4-2-3-1): Will Hesmer - Ezra Hendrickson (Jed Zayner 71), Marcos Gonzalez, Chad Marshall, Stefani Miglioranzi - Duncan Oughton, Danny O'Rourke - Eddie Gaven, Ned Grabavoy, Guillermo Barros Schelotto (Kei Kamara 91+) - Alejandro Moreno,. Substitutes Not Used: Aaron Chandler, Brad Evans, Jason Garey, Andy Gruenebaum, Ben Hunter
• Here's Onalfo's team (4-4-1-1): Kevin Hartman - Jack Jewsbury, Jimmy Conrad, Nick Garcia, Jose Burciaga Jr. (Ryan Raybould 84) - Davy Arnaud, Sasha Victorine, Kerry Zavagnin, Michael Harrington - Carlos Marinelli (Yura Movsisyan 58) - Scott Sealy (Ryan Pore 73). Substitutes Not Used: Aaron Hohlbein, Eric Kronberg, Kurt Morsink, Tyson Wahl
KANSAS CITY WIZARDS
The Kansas City Wizards return to action after having a weekend off, completing a winless three-game road trip in their last match, a 1-1 draw with Houston Dynamo on Sept. 1. The Wizards now have 33 points from 24 matches, sitting in fourth place in the Eastern Conference and seventh place in the MLS overall table, three points behind the New York Red Bulls and four ahead of the Chicago Fire in both.
LAST MATCH
• Houston Dynamo had just one win in their last six games as they tried to hang on to the leadership of the Western Conference, while the Kansas City Wizards were completing a week-long road trip that had started with losses in Chicago and Salt Lake.
• In first-half stoppage time, Eddie Johnson grabbed his share of the leadership of the MLS Golden Boot for the moment with a quality finish. Michael Harrington picked off a pass and sprung Scott Sealy on the left side of the area. Sealy drove in a low cross where Johnson flashed in in front of his marker and turned home a first-time shot past Pat Onstad for his 14th goal.
• But Dynamo were able to take advantage of the travel-weary Wizards in the 69th minute. De Rosario picked up the ball in his own half and went racing forward on a nearly 50-yard run. Joseph Ngwenya timed his run along the back line to perfection, and De Rosario slotted a pass into the area for Ngwenya to drive home for the leveller.
• Wizards head coach Curt Onalfo made four changes from the team that lost 3-1 to Real Salt Lake the previous midweek. Jack Jewsbury came back into the team at right back, Nick Garcia into central defense, Michael Harrington at left back and Davy Arnaud into a wide midfield role, as Ryan Raybould, Tyson Wahl, Jose Burciaga Jr. and Carlos Marinelli all went to the substitutes' bench.
• Here's Onalfo's team (4-4-2): Kevin Hartman - Jack Jewsbury (Ryan Raybould 74), Jimmy Conrad, Nick Garcia, Michael Harrington - Davy Arnaud, Kerry Zavagnin, Kurt Morsink, Sasha Victorine (Eloy Colombano 72) - Eddie Johnson, Scott Sealy (Carlos Marinelli 66). Substitutes Not Used: Jose Burciaga Jr., Eric Kronberg, Yura Movsisyan, Tyson Wahl
• "I thought it was a good overall performance. I thought the first half was very good," Onalfo said. "I loved the fact that we created all the way and got ourselves a goal in the 45th minute."
TEAM NEWS
• The draw capped a stretch of five games over a 14-day stretch, the last three on the road, all over a seven-day road trip.
• "It was a tough game. We knew it was going to be a tough road trip. They were real physical today, and they made it difficult for us," Eddie Johnson said.
• It was just the second time in the last eight games the Wizards had allowed a single goal. They last shut out their opponents on July 14 - a 1-0 win against Real Salt Lake.
• "There are some things that we wanted to shore up in our game, and we played five games in 14 days, which is very difficult," Onalfo said. "Our guys gave everything they had to walk out of here with a point."
• Over the stretch, the Wizards have also been conceding their share of late goals. "We always work hard as a team, but that one mental lapse we always do to give games away is something we've been really inconsistent with. The majority of teams that score first in this league end up winning the game," Johnson said. "But we'll take the point. It's a positive result on the road against a good team."
• With his next appearance, Nick Garcia will become the club's all-time leader for games played in a Kansas City uniform at 219, eclipsing current Chivas USA head coach and former Wizards midfielder Preki.
• "I go to practice every day wanting and needing to win everything I do ... ," Garcia said. "We are a results-oriented business, and I like to challenge myself and get better. With any veteran player ... it's all about consistency. If you are not consistently playing well, you're going to be shipped out and moved around."
• As well, Kevin Hartman will reach 1,000 saves for his career when he stops nine more shots. That's a figure bested only in the MLS annals only by Scott Garlick, who played with five teams over his 10-year MLS career, and Tony Meola who played with both K.C. and New York.
• "I really believe the goalkeepers who have the most success are those who find themselves peaking at the right times of the year and really allowing their team to rally behind them," Hartman said. "I really want to make sure that once the playoffs start that that's when I'm playing my best soccer."
COLUMBUS CREW
The Columbus Crew saw their winless streak reach six games, falling by the game's only goal in a weather-interrupted match against the Chicago Fire at Crew Stadium last Saturday. The Crew fell out of the final playoff spot with the loss; now with 28 points from 24 matches, they are still tied with the Colorado Rapids for ninth in the MLS overall table, but now a point behind the Fire, who hold the last postseason berth.
LAST MATCH
• The Crew came into the game still grimly hanging on to the final playoff spot, despite not having won since July 22, while the Fire were looking to continue a turnaround that had seen three wins and a draw in their last six games.
• The game was delayed for more than a half-hour at the 38-minute mark as lightning storms and torrential rains rolled through the Ohio capital, nearly leaving the field flooded.
• But there was no abandonment, and the visitors scored the game's lone goal in the 65th minute, just seconds after Marcos Gonzalez had hit the post at the other end for Columbus.
• The newly acquired Wilman Conde flighted a long ball from the Chicago half over the top, and Paulo Wanchope ghosted behind the Crew back line to get onto the end of it. Crew 'keeper Will Hesmer slipped as he tried to come off his line, and that gave Wanchope the opening to curl home a shot for his second goal with the Fire.
• Crew head coach Sigi Schmid made two changes to the team that played to a 1-1 draw with the Colorado Rapids the previous Sunday at Crew Stadium. Marcos Gonzalez returned from suspension, coming in for Ezra Hendrickson in central defense, and Jacob Thomas made his first start since early July, coming in for Ned Grabavoy.
• Here's Schmid's team (4-2-3-1): Will Hesmer - Frankie Hejduk, Marcos Gonzalez, Rusty Pierce (Ezra Hendrickson 19), Stefani Miglioranzi - Danny O'Rourke, Duncan Oughton - Guillermo Barros Schelotto (Ricardo Virtuoso 10), Eddie Gaven, Jacob Thomas (Kei Kamara 71) - Alejandro Moreno. Substitutes Not Used: Jason Garey, Ned Grabavoy, Andy Gruenebaum, Tim Ward
• "Obviously, this was an important game. It was a pivotal game. I can't fault our guys for their effort; I thought their effort was good. I thought we created more on the run of the play, but at the end of the day, they got the goal," Schmid said. Obviously, it's big points today and it bounced their way."
TEAM NEWS
• Schmid was forced into two huge changes before the game was 20 minutes old. Guillermo Barros Schelotto was forced off with a right hamstring strain after 10 minutes and then Rusty Pierce went off with a left hamstring strain on 19 minutes.
• "That certainly affects the game plan. Obviously, we don't expect to lose Guillermo [Barros Schelotto] 10 minutes in, and then we don't expect to lose Rusty [Pierce], so now we've got to burn two subs and we've lost the ability to bring in fresh legs in different positions, and that handcuffed us at that point."
• Schelotto will certainly be out for this weekend's game - even if healthy, he received a yellow card in his short time on the field that left him over the limit and suspended for the Wizards match. The Crew will also be without Frankie Hejduk, who also received a yellow card putting him over the limit.
• Since a 2-0 win against Toronto FC on July 22, the Crew have taken just three of a possible 18 points. "There still are a lot of points to be had. I think we played well enough as a team and as a unit tonight to get a win. You have to think about this game a little bit tonight. Yes it hurts. It is a team that we wanted to beat tonight, a rival, Chicago. It's a home game. It's a game we needed to get three points from," Hejduk said. "In MLS, you need to win your home games. You can't get too down on yourself; there still are six games left. There still a lot of points to be had. In this league, anything can happen. Any team can beat any team on any given day."
• The Crew have four of their final six games on the road. After the trip to Kansas City they play away to Toronto. Back-to-back home games follow against the LA Galaxy and FC Dallas, before the Crew finish out on the road against New England and D.C. United.
• "We have a six-game season, basically. There are 18 points out there, and we want to get as many as we can and see what happens with the rest of the teams," Ezra Hendrickson said. "Right now it is all about us. It doesn't matter if we are at home; we're going for maximum points. Like I said, there are 18 points out there to get. Hopefully we can get 14 or 15, we'll be all right."
• Said Schmid: "It's not easy. We've made it difficult for ourselves, but the one thing we're not going to do is give up, and mathematically, things are still there and the way this league is, in a week things can turn around. So, now it's a matter of us going to Kansas City and Toronto over the next two games, and every game is the same for us, whether home or away, we just have to get maximum points every time we step on the field, and hope that others start knocking each other off."
