Posts: 315
Threads: 33
Joined: Mar 2014
12-07-2019, 12:44 PM
(This post was last modified: 12-07-2019, 12:47 PM by
DenverCard.)
Some thoughts on the game.
In the "Handicapping the games" thread Farm93 predicted the following:
"Men's soccer - I predict that Stanford won't be able to use their aggressive high pressure strategy to generate mistakes by Clemson. I would expect Clemson to have at least a 60-40 advantage in almost all metrics (time of possession, shots, shots on goal, corner kicks). In other sports that would translate into a win for Clemson. This is soccer so anything in the range from 2-0 Clemson to 1-0 Stanford feel possible."
Although the actual statistics don't show a major difference, such as shots on goal (which I what I always check first), I think a collective metric of the game would give a strong edge to Clemson. I'd have to guess that 75-80% of the time, the ball was on Stanford's half of the field. Unlike a lot of teams that Stanford played this year, Clemson was relentless in putting pressure on Stanford whenever Stanford had the ball, making it really tough to generate any build-up. On offense, a lot of Clemson's attacks unraveled just prior to getting a short, or their shot would be blocked by field players, thereby distorting the statistics. They were a really tough team.
On the other hand, despite the above, a case could be made that Stanford had more actual dangerous shots. Charlie Wehan had the chance to put a volley on goal in the first minute, but he didn't off a very good shot. Ousseni Bouda blasted one off the crossbar later. Gabe Segal rolled a volley at the keeper late. And I seem to recall a few other pretty good opportunities to score.
On the PKs, while it has been said that Andrew Thomas frequently guessed correctly, I think what makes him tough is that he DOESN'T guess. He makes the opposing player strike a very good ball to beat him. Clemson did hit such balls four of out six times. This approach prevents getting beat by either a crappy shot too close to the middle or the strategy of shooting down the middle in anticipation of the goalie leaping to one side or the other. I think to guess is the lower percentage play.
I was most gratified that Thomas blocked the PK shot of Clemson's star striker, Robbie Robinson, during the first five taken to try to resolve the tie. Robinson is a real talent, as he is big, fast, and skilled. But he took at least two dives in the game, one very late that resulted in a free kick just outside the box. Total acting job that led to a very dangerous chance. And Thomas stopped that one too.
As I write this, I see that Stanford's next opponent, Georgetown, just came back to beat UW 2-1 after trailing most of the game. Georgetown had won their previous two tournament games 5-0 and 5-1. I heard that they've trailed in games only a total of 30 minutes all year before UW. Another "impossible" task for Stanford.
Finally, I'm wondering what injury Zach Ryan suffered last night, which took him out early and kept him out. He walked off the field, which is always a relatively favorable sign, but not returning to the game is ominous. His replacement, Bulut, has certain attributes, but Ryan is a much more skilled goal-scorer.
Oh, and to VG's comment about the coverage, I was able to watch the game on the ESPN app on my iPad. The camera was at a pretty remote distance, and my tiny screen make it all the more difficult to see. I do wish some special dispensation would be made for NCAA playoff games. Thankfully, the College Cup is on one of the main ESPN channels.