Don't get him wrong: New England Revolution coach Steve Nicol was pleased with Saturday's 3-1 win against Chivas USA at the rain-soaked Gillette Stadium.
However, though his side rebounded from falling behind to Francisco Mendoza's 19th-minute goal, Nicol expressed his frustration at the way his side had played in the first half.
"We were guilty of not closing the ball down. The field was almost perfect for knocking the ball around but our passing wasn't accurate. To get the ball wide we have to win it in the middle," said Nicol after the game, adding that he had made it clear to his team at halftime in what he wanted to see improve.
"When we lost it the appetite wasn't there and sometime you just have to dig deep. When we pass the ball it is great but, in the first half, as a team we didn't work hard enough in certain situations."
After Mendoza's strike woke up the home side, the Revolution equalized almost immediately through Andy Dorman, who completed a busy week on and off the field by scoring is first goal of the season. The Revolution midfielder has spent the last few days in England completing the administrative process that will see him granted U.S. citizenship and admitted that his head is in a whirl at the moment.
"It's been pretty hectic. I played the game on Saturday night and then was in Manchester the next morning. A day later I traveled to London and from then I was pretty much running around London, doing lots of different things," said Dorman, whose goal was set up by one of the passes of the season, from Jose Cancela.
"I knew that [Cancela] had seen me and knew there was a good chance he would find me and he did. He put it right on a plate for me," added Dorman.
"Andy has been really consistent this year," said Nicol. "It's been a topsy-turvy week for him but he responded magnificently."
Another of Nicol's midfielders, Shalrie Joseph, had quite a night too. The Revolution team MVP of a year ago put his side ahead with his third goal of the season in the 53rd minute and also picked up an assist on Taylor Twellman's game-icing strike, which came with five minutes to go.
However, Joseph also picked up his fourth booking of the season, which leaves him one yellow card away from a one-game suspension. To complete a hectic evening, Joseph was substituted in the game's late stages after feeling tightness in his groin.
"It's a little bit sore but I just need to treat it over the next couple of days and get ready for next week," said Joseph, who was pleased that he could contribute with another big offensive output.
"I've been working with the coaches on that and they just told me to be cautious with when I make those late runs. Luckily, I timed it perfectly and Jay [Heaps] played a great ball in to the box and I just got my head on it."
Twellman's late goal confirmed that the Revolution would pick up their second consecutive win and take the side into double figures in points this season. Seven goals in two weeks also suggest that the side's early season offensive worries were indeed just a blip and that New England will mount another serious challenge this year.
However, the lengthening line for treatment in the trainer's room will be of concern to Nicol who also saw Cancela suffer an ankle problem. With a tough road game against FC Dallas next week, Nicol will be hoping for a positive reaction to treatment from a number of important players. Besides Joseph and Cancela, Pat Noonan, Daniel Hernandez and Khano Smith also cannot return quickly enough to the list of available players.
Despite those problems, however, and his side's early struggles tonight, Nicol concluded by saying he was content to focus on the positive aspects of the Revolution's win.
"The fact is that we won. We could very easily have muddled through, just got a point or made a silly mistake and lost the game but we didn't," he said. "We packed in, kept it solid and kept going, not always with the greatest quality but we got the points."
Andrew Hush is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
