Breaking Burgundy: Rapids Week 6 in Review

Here at Breaking Burgundy we will take a look at this week’s game (or games) and how our Colorado Rapids performed. We’ll also identify a key player for Breaking Burgundy Player of the Week honors, as well as some random observations from yours truly.

Let’s get to it!

The Good

UGH... not much.

This was not a good way to start the Rocky Mountain Cup. Sure, we played down a man from the 20th minute on AND we had to sacrifice an attacking player for a keeper, which means the Rapids would have been in bunker mode. That being said, the Rapids didn’t have a single player in the top five for game rating. In fact, our best player this week was Enzo Martinez, with a 7.17, and he was subbed out at the 67th minute for Shkëlzen Gashi.

Let’s just say that when you pick up a red card from your captain and keeper early in the game and then lose to your biggest rival 3-0 you do not have much to feel good about.

The Bad

Overly Aggressive

A growing trend with the Rapids seems to be hard fouls and picking up cards. It’s great to have an enforcer attitude but when you’re picking up yellow cards up and down the roster, that’s indicative of a style of play.

The main concern is when you think about yellow card accumulation as the season goes on and players may have to miss games. These guys are still learning how to play with one another, and if players start having to miss games due to things like yellow cards (or red cards, which we’ll get into that in the next section) it doesn’t help the cause in the long run.

The Offense

After looking strong so far this season, this was the first time that the Rapids failed to get on the score sheet. Jack McBean still does not look like a starter but he continues to get into the starting XI. Yannick Boli is still working himself into game shape and should eventually overtake McBean in the rotation, and we sure could use Joe Mason back. Thankfully, he was fully practicing this week. There are still questions as to what is going on with Stefan Aigner, but Matt Pollard at Last Word on Soccer was able to get a bit of insight into the situation.

Hopefully, we’ll see a first-choice Rapids offense sooner rather than later this season.

The Ugly

Tim Howard Red Card

This team is still trying to figure one another out so losing our captain, defensive organizer, and emotional leader in the 20th minute of a rivalry match just makes a difficult task even more difficult. Howard is a veteran, and that was probably the right play but he’s got to do better there.

Player of the Week

Sad Trombone

This week in MLS

Welcome Home LAFC

LAFC finally get a home game at the beautiful Banc of California Stadium. LAFC joining the league in style shows what a team can do with a stadium that fits the “soccer generation” a bit more. The Galaxy have been selling out StubHub Center since the arrival of Zlatan, but LAFC is the new hot ticket in town and they’ve really done a fantastic job announcing themselves to the league. Banc of California Stadium looks fantastic and should provide a great home field advantage for LAFC moving forward.

Speaking of Stadiums

The Portland Timbers really needed to play at home. They took it to NYCFC from start to finish and totally earned a 3-0 win in front of a rabid Providence Park crowd.

It’s always fun to watch the Portland crowd because they are so into the game for the full 90. Welcome back, Timbers Army.

CONCACAF Champions League Ends with a Whimper

Toronto FC gave it a good go, defeating two Liga MX’s powerhouses (Club America and Tigres), but couldn’t get the job done against Chivas. It was a fun run Toronto. Here’s hoping that the gap between MLS and Liga MX continues to close.

*All ratings from whoscored.com