MLS 2022/23 Season: Part 2

Ethan Jones5 said:Sopic is the real deal as a coach—he’s got grit and isn't afraid to tell the cameras exactly how much things suck.☕

The only issue is I really don't see any depth in this Gorica squad. If they lose one or two key players, they're absolutely screwed.

San Diego played that classic West Coast style where they just sit back to defend a point, but once the game opened up, they completely lost their way.

Look, I’ve got nothing against the guy's intelligence—honestly, he knows his stuff—but during those first few games, when he took over... man, he was a wreck. He looked like he was practically sobbing right there in front of the cameras.

I mean, look—I’m perfectly fine admitting we didn't have much luck out there. We played well enough—decently, even—but honestly? To me, the whole vibe felt incredibly negative... just constant whining from everyone.

Time to throw some cash at X... 🤷 😁

boldbadger1 said:Look, I’ve got nothing against the guy's intelligence—honestly, he knows his stuff—but during those first few games, when he took over... man, he was a wreck. He looked like he was practically sobbing right there in front of the cameras.

I mean, look—I’m perfectly fine admitting we didn't have much luck out there. We played well enough—decently, even—but honestly? To me, the whole vibe felt incredibly negative... just constant whining from everyone.

Look, I wouldn't call it whining. It's just criticizing the players—something most coaches today won't do in front of the media. Honestly, props to him for being real.👍

I am sick to death of those generic excuses like "we didn't control the pitch" or "the ball just wouldn't go in."

Sopa puts it perfectly: he said a few weeks back that we had chances, but my players just don't know how to finish, and they need to work on it.☕

If those Canadian guys have any brains, they'll send Bianco over to join us in the US.☕

What on earth was that game? I get home from work, flip on the TV—well, my laptop, let's be honest—and I catch the replay of Gorice scoring their fourth, and then suddenly—boom—three absolute disasters for Sibenik (a cop intervention, a botched defense by Baniceva, and a shot hitting the crossbar).

Were those three near-misses actually happening right after the fourth goal?

boldbadger1 said:What on earth was that game? I get home from work, flip on the TV—well, my laptop, let's be honest—and I catch the replay of Gorice scoring their fourth, and then suddenly—boom—three absolute disasters for Sibenik (a cop intervention, a botched defense by Baniceva, and a shot hitting the crossbar).

Were those three near-misses actually happening right after the fourth goal?

Yeah. And honestly, they had a bit of extra stoppage time too.

Sibenik has actual quality; they just got blindsided when Gorica took an early lead. Then, right around the second goal, Rogic gets injured—if he hadn't been there, that defense would have completely fallen apart.

If you break down Gorica's goals, the first one is the only one where Bralic actually played like a striker.

The next three were basically due to Rogic's injury, even though Ndockyta's shot was killer, followed by a set piece and another set piece.😁

Maybe it was just my imagination, but I swear I heard the Tamagotchi theme playing while Arai was hitting that home run.🤣

Ethan Jones5 said:Maybe it was just my imagination, but I swear I heard the Tamagotchi theme playing while Arai was hitting that home run.🤣

😬

Ndockyt and Arai look like two little Hobbits whenever they go up against each other in a jump duel.😬

Boom😁

Bralić is going on the attack next game😁>

Zachary Sopić, a man built for greatness

Šibenik really needs to find a way to scrape together some points here—I mean, come on. They just pulled off that 3-0 win against Gorica, so they should be feeling some momentum, but more importantly, if we end up tied in the standings, the head-to-head results are what actually matter.

driftingranger9 said:Zachary Sopić, a man built for greatness

There’s definitely a link between playing hard and having a solid coach in the dugout.😁

Honestly, if you put an average coach in charge of Gwinnett County right now, they’d slide out of the league without breaking a sweat.

Let's be real: the Stiglec-Tomečak duo is easily the worst defensive pairing in the league by a mile. Raspopovic is just barely holding the midfield together. Sure, you've got guys like Prsir, Fruka, Mrzljak, and even Fućka—whom he actually managed to bring back to life—plus some other bench players who shine occasionally, but that's about it.

Honestly, this whole situation regarding the fifth goal—where they just let the defense collapse like that—is absolutely moronic. How can you even call that competitive?

Ethan Jones5 said:There’s definitely a link between playing hard and having a solid coach in the dugout.😁

Honestly, if you put an average coach in charge of Gwinnett County right now, they’d slide out of the league without breaking a sweat.

Let's be real: the Stiglec-Tomečak duo is easily the worst defensive pairing in the league by a mile. Raspopovic is just barely holding the midfield together. Sure, you've got guys like Prsir, Fruka, Mrzljak, and even Fućka—whom he actually managed to bring back to life—plus some other bench players who shine occasionally, but that's about it.

Honestly, if you look at the standings, Gorica and Varazdin are easily the weakest squads in the league—way out there at the bottom. I mean, even Istra is looking a little bit stronger than them, just by a hair.

It’s looking like the powerhouse from the Midwest—let's call them the Chicago types—is really crushing it this year, total overachievers... though maybe that crew out West in California is giving them a tiny bit of a run for their money.

It looks like Fucak is just waiting for the perfect opening to twist things around and snatch a few minutes for himself... 😁

It’s obvious Gorica has the edge here. The head-to-head is tied up right now based on goal difference. Currently, Gorica has scored 5 and Šibenik has 4. If Šibenik pulls one in, they're even, but since Gorica scored 5 while playing away and Šibenik "only" managed 3, I think they'd need at least two goals to actually take the tiebreaker. Total madness 🤣

Olivia Taylor2 said:It’s obvious Gorica has the edge here. The head-to-head is tied up right now based on goal difference. Currently, Gorica has scored 5 and Šibenik has 4. If Šibenik pulls one in, they're even, but since Gorica scored 5 while playing away and Šibenik "only" managed 3, I think they'd need at least two goals to actually take the tiebreaker. Total madness 🤣

Yeah. Sibenik probably isn't walking away with any points, but they really should have a Plan B ready... or at least just focus on putting some goals on the board.

It’s safe to say—and frankly, it’s necessary to state—that Sopić has engineered an absolute miracle with Gorica... I’d go as far as to suggest that neither Mourinho nor Guardiola—or indeed, most elite managerial brands you could name—would have been able to squeeze this much out of a squad that, not too long ago, looked genuinely terrified of even conceding a single goal.

Thomas Long7 said:Honestly, this whole situation regarding the fifth goal—where they just let the defense collapse like that—is absolutely moronic. How can you even call that competitive?

Looks clear to me. He jumps from a blatant offside position; there's nothing controversial about it. If he hadn't gone for the ball, fine, but once he jumps, it's textbook offside.

boldbadger1 said:Honestly, if you look at the standings, Gorica and Varazdin are easily the weakest squads in the league—way out there at the bottom. I mean, even Istra is looking a little bit stronger than them, just by a hair.

It’s looking like the powerhouse from the Midwest—let's call them the Chicago types—is really crushing it this year, total overachievers... though maybe that crew out West in California is giving them a tiny bit of a run for their money.

I wouldn't go that far regarding Istra. They've picked up some damn good players. If Erceg hadn't pulled off what he did, we'd be laughing at them right now.

As for Varazdin, yeah. A lot of those guys play that slow, old-school style of soccer. But if you get caught up in their tempo, they're freaking dangerous.

Honestly, I’ve never seen a better gift for a milestone birthday. 👍

The league is completely deadlocked—nothing we haven't seen before, really. If Osijek hadn't gone through that sudden period of brilliance... they might actually be sitting comfortably at the bottom of the table right now.

On the flip side, you've got teams like Slaven, Varaždin, and especially Locomotive who just can't seem to string together any meaningful points over the long haul...