Player Ratings: Colorado Rapids at New York City FC, July 30, 2016

This was ugly and I hope it does not get much uglier for the Colorado Rapids this year. The Rapids went into the Bronx and lost to New York City FC 5-1. However the score looks, it is worse than it probably should have been.

But the score got out of hand because the Rapids went for it. They were trying to get back in the game, even though they were down to 10 men and down 2-0. After Axel Sjoberg came off, that is when NYCFC scored their three goals. The Rapids were getting players up and scoring opportunities, which opened them up in the back playing with three men back there.

It was good to remove Sjoberg because it protected him for the next match against Vancouver at home.

For me, Sjoberg had a good match. So did Shkelzen Gashi. Kevin Doyle had just an average match and Powers was not that bad. Just think if Gashi scores in the 19' as the ball was skipping off the pitch and almost got by Josh Saunders. The result of this match may be different.

For me, and I think most Rapids supporters, Azira had a horrible match. He made some bad decisions and should never have picked up two yellows. Why is he trying a slide tackle from behind on Andrea Pirlo at midfield? Also Mekeil Williams did not look right. I am not sure what was happening, but he just was not in this match.

Finally, Jared Watts did not seem to be moving well with Sjoberg in this match. The pitch is not that big to get lost and there were not a lot of fans making a lot of noise.

The community is a little more harsh on the Rapids players than I will be. I think we should be thankful that it has been 15 matches since there was a loss. A win on Saturday will make things better. At least the other results of the weekend went in the favor of the Rapids and they remain in second in the west and supporters shield.

Here is how I saw the match.

Tim Howard - 6 (4.48): Howard had an average match for him. He probably wants the first goal back. It would have been a great save, but he got his hand to it and almost tipped it out. The others provided him no chance. Howard also made some pretty good saves during this match.

Marc Burch - 6 (4.74): Burch did not have a bad game. He made some mistakes, but overall it was not that bad. It is tough for a winger like Burch to get the space and be utilized on the wings on such a narrow pitch.

Jared Watts - 2 (3.37): Watts was just out of position several times during this match and not only on the field but in his positioning when marking players. That is how he picked up his yellow card. He got square and was going to get beat and stuck out his leg. Failed to close down the break on the second goal.

Axel Sjoberg - 5 (4.19): He was pretty solid for most of the match. He even did a good job on shielding Lampard on a through ball. He was subbed off to protect him from picking up a yellow card, which would cause him to be suspended for the next match. He could have done better with his body position on Lampard's first goal.

Mekeil Williams - 2 (3.22): He was just off all day, or at least for the first half when he played. He was passing behind players and could have done better on the second goal. He just let the player dribble up the side and did not try to close him down or push him to the sideline.

Micheal Azira - 1 (2.48): It can't get worse for Azira who has had a good year up until now. He took an unnecessary yellow card and then got caught trying to slow down Jack Harrison on a break. That first yellow was uncalled for and cost the him and the Rapids later.

Sam Cronin - 6 (4.63): I do not usually say this but Cronin was solid in this match. He was a workhorse, especially after Azira was sent off. He was making lots of passes and drew some fouls.

Shkelzen Gashi - 7 (5.37): He almost scored in the first half on a great, skipping shot. He also scored in stoppage time when the game was beyond the Rapids. Otherwise he was active and being creative with the ball in small spaces.

Dillon Powers - 6 (3.59): It was a decent performance for Powers. He was chasing the ball down in the attacking half and getting some passes into dangerous areas. It was one of his better matches. Though I think the Rapids could have done better with Marco Pappa in that position this match.

Marlon Hairston - 4 (4.52): Though his speed earned the Rapids a corner, he seemed lost at times as he came back on defense, including the first goal. He was moving up the field with NYCFC taking the ball back to goal. He was just out of position, like many of the Rapids on that goal.

Kevin Doyle - 5 (4.26): There were many times during this match, especially in the first half, when Doyle was upfield by himself and no support. There was nothing he could do with the ball once they got it to him. He rattled the cross bar in the second half.

Substitutes

Marco Pappa - 4 (4.00): As someone who was brought on to create things, he did not create many opportunities. This match could have been good for Pappa, but it did not turn out that way.

Eric Miller - 3 (4.19): Miller got schooled on the NYCFC third and fourth goal. He should have won the ball on the third goal and was unable to keep tight to Frank Lampard on the fourth goal. He should hopefully learn from this.

Dominique Badji - 3 (3.93): Came on in the 72' for Sjoberg. He just did not have a good run out in this match. He fouled Harrison in the box that accounted for NYCFC's last goal. It was soft, but still a foul in the box.

Community Ratings Summary

It has been a while since I have posted the summary of the community ratings for the season. But here they are.