Houston forward Brian Ching didn't hesitate in expressing his strident displeasure about perceived timewasting tactics in the wake of the Dynamo's 2-0 defeat to the New England Revolution on Saturday night.
The veteran forward called out the Revolution – and recently acquired striker Juan Agudelo, in particular – for what he dubbed “theatrics” during the latter stages of the affair at BBVA Compass Stadium.
“I think teams have figured out that they can come in here and get away with the theatrics,” Ching said in his postgame press conference. “I think it's something the league should look into. Give our guys credit. Other teams come in here and they must feel they need to play that way in order to get a result. They're diving on the ground when they are not hurt. Agudelo grabbed his face when I ran into him.
READ: Heaps appreciative of Revolution sticking to the game plan against Houston
“Basically, my message to them was be men,” Ching continued. “You guys are up 2-0, you guys scored two goals on us and you don't need to be wasting time, you don't need to be rolling around on the ground like you've been shot.”
Ching subsequently contended he thinks MLS “is better than that and should be better than that,” and noted the Dynamo “did not stand for that” and suggested the veterans in the Revolution side should teach the younger players on the team “how to be men” and reject those sorts of tactics.
Revolution general manager Michael Burns said he hoped Ching made his assertions in the heat of the moment when asked about the comments on Monday.
“I've always had a lot of respect for Brian Ching as a player,” Burns told MLSsoccer.com. “I've always had an enormous amount of respect for the entire Houston organization. And I hope that his post-game comments on Saturday night were made out of frustration.”
Burns subsequently rejected the validity of Ching's statements out of hand and said all of his players – including Agudelo – comport themselves appropriately on the field.
READ: Agudelo makes strong first impression in debut vs. Houston
“We believe our players play the game the proper way,” Burns told MLSsoccer.com on Monday. “Considering that one of his teammates was ejected for headbutting one of our players, it is surprising that he would make those comments about our team after the game.”
Both teams ended the match with 10 men after Bobby Boswell headbutted Dimitry Imbongo late in the first half and Imbongo responded by throwing Boswell to the ground.
Both players triggered automatic one-match bans with their dismissals, though Boswell may face further scrutiny from the Disciplinary Committee this week for his actions.
