Indy Eleven vs Strikers - 03.24

- Opponent: Fort Lauderdale Strikers
- Location: Fort Lauderdale, Florida
- Attendance: 2,376
- Final Score: 2-1 L
- Starting XI: Busch, Palmer, Falvey, Keller, Vukovic, Braun, Ring, Torrado, Smart, Gordon, Zayed
- Substitutions: Lacroix 57' (Gordon), Mares 58' (Ring), Paterson 75' (Smart)
- Unused: Cardona, Shaffer, Franco, Youla
- Goals: Braun 88'
- Bookings: Palmer 15' (Yellow), Ring 42' (Yellow), Lacroix 76' (Yellow), Torrado 84' (Yellow)
- Adage goals: None

NASL/Opta stats - Average Position

18:08 - Falvey passes to Ring 5 yards away from the center circle on Indy's defensive side.
18:10 - Ring leads Vukovic for a run up the left side.
18:18 - To Vuko's left (and in front of him) is Smart, Braun and Zayed are near the penalty spot, and Gordon is making a run on the right side near the 18-yard line. Vukovic attempts a cross that never clears the Strikers back four.
18:23 - Ball is cleared deep to Nunez at the center circle. Torrado steps towards Nunez, but not quick enough. Ring is 5 yards away from Torrado and Vukovic is starting to make his run back.
18:27 - Nunez sends a through ball between all three defenders to Paulo.
18:33 - Nunez gathers and sprints towards goal. Ring at a full sprint (not nearly fast enough to keep up with Paulo) and Vuko continues at running speed, but not sprinting speed. Nunez takes the shot from the 6-yard box to far corner with Keller closing and Busch protecting near corner.

Goal.

Thomas Rongen recapping the goal - "the one name we didn't mention, Chris, was Vukovic. Vukovic makes the run forward. Ball gets cut out. Transition happens. Left full back is drawn. Center back doesn't step. Ring has to chase right now from midfield. We just talked about the back four not being really in sync. That's a good example right there. Punished by Paulo Junior."

The Eleven struggle on the road and continue to make things more difficult for themselves by giving up goals and having to play from behind. I didn't see the game live and looked at the stats before I watched the replay. The Average Position graph shown above jumped off the page for me beyond everything else. I'm not saying that I don't want Vuko going forward because this team has thrived off of his left-sided service, but for the left back's average position to be EVEN with the forwards might be a bit much.

With somebody on that side with Paulo Junior's pace, I would prefer to have the left back not play in such an advanced position. Some of it could be attributed to the fact that the Eleven were chasing the game, especially after the Strikers picked up their second goal in the 67th minute from Maicon, but it magnifies the point of the Eleven's struggles of playing from behind on the road.

Braun got on the board late to help the goal differential and eliminate the clean sheet for the Strikers, but it continues to be a point of concern how badly the Eleven have struggled on the road. Given that the Eleven's run-of-form in the Fall has not been what it was in the Spring and the Cosmos continue to pull away from the rest of the pack, it's looking like the Soccer Bowl runs through New York. There's still several games remaining and the Eleven are starting to get healthy again, but with a streaking Miami FC coming into the Mike this coming weekend, the Eleven need to fare better against Miami than they did against Tampa Bay the last time they were at home.

Random high praise of the game:
Rongen regarding Mares - "I brought him into my 20s a few times. And at Louisville, where he played his college ball, Chris, he always played centrally for Kenny Lawler...he played always centrally and what I liked about him was that he was not fast, he was not strong, but he was extremely intelligent. He was tactically, he had a knowledge of the game way beyond his years and rarely lost the ball."

Highlights:

I haven't forgotten

Indy Eleven Military Appreciation Program
WISH for OUR HEROES
SAVES for SEALS
Indiana National Guard

Indy Eleven vs Rowdies - 03.23

- Opponent: Tampa Bay Rowdies
- Location: Indianapolis, Indiana
- Attendance: 9,098
- Final Score: 1-1 D
- Starting XI: Busch, Palmer, Falvey, Keller, Vukovic, Smart, Ring, Paterson, Lacroix, Gordon, Zayed
- Substitutions: Torrado 62' (Paterson), Braun 68' (Gordon), Mares 83' (Lacroix)
- Unused: Cardona, Shaffer, Ubiparipovic, Youla
- Goals: Gordon 34'
- Bookings: Paterson 29' (Yellow), Smart 45'+1' (Yellow), Vukovic 88' (Yellow), Torrado 89' (Yellow)
- Adage goals: None

As with life, sometimes with the Eleven you have to take the good with the bad.

The bad news is that the home win streak came to a close at 8 games.
The good news is that with the draw the undefeated streak continues, increasing to 14 games.

The bad news is that the Eleven didn't gain any ground on the Cosmos and Fury ahead of them in the standings.
The good news is that the Eleven didn't lose any ground on the Cosmos and Fury as both teams also drew in their games this weekend.

The bad news is that the Eleven had to play from behind after giving up a first half goal in the 28th minute to Chavez off a Joe Cole set piece restart.
The good news is that the Eleven equalized a mere 5 minutes later with an Omar Gordon goal from near the six yard line.

The bad news is that Janicki and Miller were both unable to play tonight due to injury and red card, respectively.
The good news is that Daniel Keller played a fabulous game in their place and was my man of the match, simply because of how noticeably unnoticeable he was during the game. He played a very solid match, continuing to show the depth of the team.

The bad news is that the more direct style of play found its way into this game as the midfield players found themselves watching the ball fly over them at times instead of the ball going through them.
The good news is that Justin Braun made a 68th minute appearance off the bench after several games with an injury. Braun brings a different ability in combination with Zayed that the other forwards on the roster cannot provide and that includes hold-up play that can work better with the more direct style of play that the Eleven were playing tonight.

The bad news is that the Eleven didn't win.
The good news is that after a three game road trip and a three game in 7 day period, the Eleven's tired legs continued to blast shots until the bitter end and finished the game with the draw. Now they will be able to get a little bit of a rest and get back into their normal routines before going to Fort Lauderdale next weekend.

Highlights:

Indy Eleven vs Cosmos - 03.22

- Opponent: New York Cosmos
- Location: New York
- Attendance: 2,977
- Final Score: 3-0 L
- Starting XI: Busch, Palmer, Falvey, Miller, Vukovic, Smart, Ring, Paterson, Mares, Youla, Zayed
- Substitutions: Gordon 45' (Ring), Keller 55' (Youla), Reinoso 74' (Smart)
- Unused: Cardona, Paterson, Ubiparipovic, Lacroix
- Goals: None
- Bookings: Miller 53' (RED), Youla 55' (Yellow), Palmer 67' (Yellow)
- Adage goals: None

"It's time to tell it like it is sports fans and this is the most wretched road trip I've seen in 20 years." - Bull Durham

There are games where finding a theme of these recaps comes easily and the words flow onto the page. Yet, how many ways can it be said that this team struggles on the road? The above quote is a bit of an exaggeration, but every time the Eleven head out on the road, it concerns me. The white on white on white away kits need to be retired as soon as humanly possible. The team went to James M. Shuart Stadium and in front of less than 3,000 people started poorly and continued that throughout the entirety of the game. You can look at the stats if you want, but the Eleven were really never in this game and were outplayed from start to finish and as a result, finished a three game road trip with a single point and a -4 goal differential giving up 7 goals.

The Cosmos looked quicker to balls, were more crisp with their passes, and generally played with more energy. The early goal by Bover in the 8th minute was indicative of much of the play for the Eleven. As organized as they have been in defense most of the year, every single player seemed to be playing reactive defensive and chasing the ball and defenders. Arrieta had three defenders around him when he passed the ball to Bover and that was not an isolated incident where Cosmos players out-maneuvered Eleven defenders.

That reactive defending directly led to two separate penalty kicks for the Cosmos and numerous other opportunities. While we're talking about the PKs, it was only a matter of time before Miller gave one up. We all love him for his fight, but he lives on the sword's edge with his tackles and this one went against him. You could blame the reactive defending on the Cosmos' having an extra day of rest and no travel before the game, but I don't think that was it.

The Cosmos just wanted it more. A win provided them some temporary separation in a race for the Fall Season, especially with a streaking Edmonton (who has games in hand), but maybe more importantly, their win exacted some level of revenge for a game they felt they had won in the Spring only to see it slip away in the dying moments. While there were a lot of games that factored into the Spring Season standings, most people point to that game as being the deciding factor into who won the Spring Championship. From the way this game was played, it doesn't look like they forgot.

The better team won tonight and unfortunately for Indy Eleven fans, that team wasn't the Indy Eleven. Luckily, the team head home for a Saturday game against a much less streaking Tampa Bay Rowdies.


Highlights:

Indy Eleven vs Fury - 03.21

- Opponent: Ottawa Fury
- Location: Ottawa
- Attendance: 6,139
- Final Score: 1-1 D
- Starting XI: Busch, Palmer, Falvey, Janicki, Vukovic, Smart, Ring, Paterson, Mares, Gordon, Zayed
- Substitutions: Torrado 64' (Mares), Youla 67' (Paterson), Lacroix 77' (Gordon)
- Unused: Cardona, Ubiparipovic, Keller, Miller
- Goals: Ring 64' (assist Zayed)
- Bookings: Smart (Yellow)
- Adage goals: Two

Fear has officially set in for me for the Championship. There are still 11 games remaining (5 home, 6 away), but as it stands right now, the Championship doesn't go through Indy. That means an away win is required to bring home the Soccer Bowl trophy and that has not been a strength of this team. Win at home? Check. 9W-2D-0L. Win on the road? No check. 1W-6D-3L. I wish I could point to the silver bullet that will fix the road win struggles, but the best I can do is say that they seem "off."

There were struggles with defending, with first touches, and with dribbles. As the Ottawa commentators stated during the game, there were stretches by both teams where nothing seemed to happen. Some of that was a result of the above said struggles by the team. The stats show that this was an even game, but the eye test again showed that the Eleven were not the better team for long stretches of the game. That's disappointing considering that the Fury list 9 different players as injured and were coming into the game on a four-game winless streak (LLLD).

The Fury were out-of-sync themselves as pass after pass was missed, overshot, or poorly communicated. The Fury had a perfect look at the goal in the 37th minute off a set piece that would have given them an earlier lead if it hadn't been for a poorly played first time shot by Rosebloom and a last ditch recovering defensive effort by Palmer to send the ball wide. Even after multiple viewings of the Fury's 59th goal by Stewart, I'm still not sure how Busch misplayed the set piece kick from Williams.

There's just something about the road games that causes this team to not be as successful as they are at home and despite continuing to get points on the road, at some point, they are going to have to win when they aren't at Carroll Stadium. I, personally, would feel better about it if they figured it out prior to The Championship starting. A mid-week game at New York would be a good way to start, but I'm not sure that I see a win coming until the end of the week when Tampa comes to town.

Update:

Highlights:

An Indy Eleven Stadium Update with Jeff Belskus

Shortly after Jeff Belskus became the president of the Indy Eleven, I was informed that he not only had read my series of articles on the details of an Indy Eleven stadium, but that he was also impressed with those articles. To further add to my surprise, Mr. Belskus agreed to answer some of my questions about the stadium. Similar to the way that I conducted the Peter Wilt Exit Interview through email exchanges, I wanted to give Jeff the opportunity to answer the questions with as much or as little as he wanted. Additionally, he was just getting into the job and its responsibilities and a new world of soccer for him so I expected that it might take him awhile to answer and hoped that a more laid back approach to my questions would result in more honest and insightful responses. So I provided an initial series of questions related to the Funding, Location, Design Status, Ticket Prices, and his Experience. I realized at some point that my continued interest in this subject matter and my excitement in getting the questions answered by someone in the Front Office resulted in a series of questions that was too extensive and over-reaching. While I would love to definitively know what locations the team are most heavily considering, I also understand the difficulty in answering those locations honestly due to the potential issues with competing investors purchasing those sites for the sole purpose of increasing the cost to the team. So those were the first questions to be eliminated. I've also had conversations with Peter Wilt in the past about ticket prices being as much art as science in a stadium where they are already playing so to speculate on prices in a new stadium that could be at least a couple years down the road were unnecessary and so they were eliminated too.

So I trimmed it down to the topics and questions that I felt were most likely to be answered and resubmitted. Recently, Mr. Belskus provided answers to all of those questions. That also means that I still have a series of questions for the next time Mr. Belskus feels like answering some more questions about the stadium. Until that day arrives, the following is Indy Eleven President Belskus' responses to my questions.

FUNDING:
1. Given that there has been some hesitancy by the legislature, some in the media, and taxpayers and that there seems to be a growing trend against publicly‐funded stadiums, at what point does Ersal and the team decide to forego the legislative process and seek funding through completely private financing? Would a failure in the 2017 legislative session be the final piece to move ahead with trying to fund privately given that the legislature showed this year (and in 2014) that this kind of bill doesn’t get much traction in the shorter non‐budgetary sessions or would the team wait again for 2019?

JB: A new stadium will be a fabulous addition to the city of Indianapolis and for the people of central Indiana. I’m very optimistic and enthusiastic about the potential for a multiuse soccer stadium being built in Indianapolis within the next 5 years. It is important to remember that we received 2 positive responses from the legislature in 2015. While the responses were different (House version and a Senate version) it indicates that our legislative leadership understands the benefits to this community for a new stadium and the importance of soccer. It should be noted that no new taxes are being requested. The stadium will be paid for via the taxes generated from the use and operation of the stadium. We continue to examine all viable options for the funding and building of a stadium. Should a proposal to build a stadium via private financing be presented or developed, it certainly would be given full consideration.

2. How are last year’s differences between the House version of the bill and the Senate version of the bill being discussed and resolved?

JB: After the 2015 legislation died in Conference Committee, the two Chambers discussed the differences and the options going forward. They remain open to proposals that resolve the difference and have asked us to describe what we think works best. With this input, I’m confident the House and Senate will resolve any differences they may have.

Not to be overlooked is the City of Indianapolis which will play an important role in this process. We are actively engaged in conversations with various leadership groups from the City. This project will require cooperation from the City and the State and we are encouraged by the early conversations with City leadership.

Screen capture from Stadium proposal video

DESIGN STATUS:
3. Related to the location piece of the stadium design, how far along has the Populous design progressed given that there are different challenges to building a stadium at different site locations? How far along has that design progressed? Just the conceptual renderings that have been presented by the team or has detailed design begun? 30% complete? 60% complete? How long is it projected that it would take Populous to finish the design once the final decision is made for location and financing?

JB: We continue to examine stadium design options for various locations. They are all very high level and conceptual at this point. No investment in detailed designs will be made or can be made until we are certain about the location and ready to proceed with the project. The design team will make this a priority once given the green light and can have enough design completed to break ground in a very short period of time once given the green light.

4. Populous has worked on numerous stadiums throughout the country, including the rehabilitation and upgrade of the Coliseum at the Indiana State Fairgrounds and the recently released renderings of the proposed stadium for the Minnesota United. The Coliseum cost $52M to renovate and the Minnesota United stadium is projected as $150M. What are some of the key design features that gets the Indy Eleven a stadium for $85M instead of $150M in relatively similar markets?

JB: Much of the construction budget is dependent on the size of the stadium and the location. The $85M is a very early budget estimate and will be refined once detailed design plans have been developed. Budget aside; we are committed to building a first class stadium that provides a great experience for our fans.

5. If the stadium does become privately‐funded, are there additional features that might be eliminated to lower the cost even further?

JB: All appropriate options will be considered.

6. Has there been any consideration of incorporating a parking garage or mixed‐use facilities into the design?

JB: Yes. While a parking garage is not our preferred solution, depending on the site, one could be incorporated into the design. We will make the best use of the space we have available and are committed to bringing a first class stadium to Indianapolis and to our fans.

7. Has there been any thought to include park features or futsal courts around the stadium to bring the public into the area around the facilities?

JB: Yes. Same as above. Much of this will depend on the site and the amount of land available.

EXPERIENCE:
8. How do you anticipate that your experiences at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway will help the Eleven’s stadium procurement process? What experiences at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway are directly related to the stadium process? Pagoda? Project 100? Others?

JB: My previous experience will be very beneficial to this process. Project 100 is particularly relevant. As a result of my experience, I understand the legislative process and personally know many of the people involved. Like most dealings in life, having a personal relationship and knowledge benefits all parties. Further, I believe I have credibility with our elected officials based on past dealings. They know me as an honest and trustworthy individual who is very straightforward.

Indy Eleven vs RailHawk - 03.20

- Opponent: Carolina RailHawks
- Location: Cary, North Carolina
- Attendance: 6,106
- Final Score: 3-2 L
- Starting XI: Busch, Palmer, Miller, Janicki, Vukovic, Smart, Ring, Torrado, Mares, Youla, Zayed
- Substitutions: Gordon 66' (Smart), Lacroix 66' (Mares), Paterson 79' (Youla)
- Unused: Cardona, Ubiparipovic, Keller, Falvey
- Goals: Janicki 20' (assist Mares), Zayed 30' (PK)
- Bookings: None
- Adage goals: Two

I wish that I had been able to find a way to shine a good light on this game, but the simple truth is that this team struggles on the road. Yet, to state that this result was only because the Eleven played poorly would be an injustice to the RailHawks. While it seemed like the Eleven was going to get out of Cary with a draw, the stoppage time penalty kick by Bravo was likely a fair result for a game that the Eleven looked out of sorts, particularly in the second half. There were moments in the second half where Carolina looked like they could move the ball at will against the Eleven defense. Fondy and Bravo, and later substitute Orlando, had the Eleven defense scrambling and the last ditch sliding effort from Ring that preceded his handball in the box was just one of many where the Eleven's defense was playing catch up and only being only moderately successful at times.

Opta/NASL stats for the Eleven defense distribution

In a lot of ways, to me this game had the feel of an old school Eleven game. The Eleven scored a goal off a Janicki header from a Mares' corner kick only to give one back mere minutes later. The new team mentality kicked back in and the Eleven pulled back ahead when Youla was pulled down in the box and Zayed scored the ensuing penalty kick. Carolina took the game to the Eleven in the second half, scoring in the 54th minute, but the game didn't have the recent Eleven feel that they were going to be able get another goal. The Eleven had a Fall Season high percent of long passes with 26.8%. While I was watching, I even had the thought that Palmer reminded me of Jaime Frias. Unsuccessful long ball after unsuccessful long ball. Palmer wasn't the only one though.

Maybe most surprising to me, and possibly one of many indicators of how disjointed the team played was Gerardo Torrado's play. I've come to expect him to play with a consistently calm demeanor, but even Torrado struggled with his passes and decision making. Torrado completed a season low 66% of his passes, which is well below where he has been averaging since coming to the Eleven. He only won 2 of his 9 duels. He wasn't the only Eleven player to struggle, but just the one that was most striking to me because of the way that he has played to date. Statistically, Mares had a decent game and he looked like he left the game, not because of normal substitution plan, but because of an injury to his ribs.

The good news is that this team has shown its resiliency time and again. The bad news is that they apparently don't play as well after sleeping in a hotel and the game against Carolina was the first of three straight away games. Luckily, the Eleven's next game comes against the Ottawa Fury, who have had a rollercoaster Fall Season (LLLWWWLLL) and will be coming off a midweek game against Miami. Given their recent form on the road, an Eleven win against a seemingly inferior opponent isn't a guarantee, but with Indy headed to their own midweek game after that to the New York Cosmos, a win on the road at Ottawa would be a great time to overcome their road issues.

Highlights: