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Tag: Ibson
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Matchday Thirty One: Away From Home, Loons Embarrass Themselves On The Field, And On The Touchline
Categories: NewsContinue Reading: Matchday Thirty One: Away From Home, Loons Embarrass Themselves On The Field, And On The TouchlineOn the road, against a Philadelphia Union team on the upswing, the Loons were never going to be favorites. But even a sober observer probably didn’t anticipate the team’s complete and total capitulation. Minnesota was down 0-4 at half, and after a switch back to the 3-5-2 and a more relaxed approach from the hosts,…
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Match Preview: Philadelphia Union vs. Minnesota United FC
Categories: NewsContinue Reading: Match Preview: Philadelphia Union vs. Minnesota United FCAlright Minnesota United, we get it. We love Minnesota, too, and we do not much care for any other parts of the country. Minnesota has followed up a stunningly poor seven game road trip with back-to-back home wins. If the Loons could replicate even a portion of their home success on the road, they would…
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Match Preview: DC United vs. Minnesota United FC
Categories: NewsContinue Reading: Match Preview: DC United vs. Minnesota United FCMinnesota United is still playing MLS soccer. It has been a while, with an international break and scheduling conspiring to provide the Loons with the longest break of the season. That does not mean, however, that the team will return refreshed and with its best eleven ready to take the field. Far from it. Minnesota…
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Match Preview: Sporting Kansas City vs. Minnesota United FC
Categories: NewsContinue Reading: Match Preview: Sporting Kansas City vs. Minnesota United FCAfter a late tactical switch against the Galaxy earned Minnesota a comeback draw two weeks ago, Adrian Heath earned some just plaudits for getting the tactics right. As for his lineup choices against Dallas; well, let’s hold off the talks of Heath replacing Pep Guardiola. In the coach’s defense, Minnesota is just not deeply talented…
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Match Preview: FC Dallas vs. Minnesota United FC
Categories: NewsContinue Reading: Match Preview: FC Dallas vs. Minnesota United FCCoach Adrian Heath will have some difficult lineup choices to make in the Lone Star State on Saturday. It is easy to overlook how relatively stable the lineup choices have been over the last two months, with few additional injuries, suspensions, and other outages to contend with. Player swaps have largely been by choice rather…
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Matchday Twenty-Four: Minnesota Battles To Ugly Point On The Road, With Big Elephant In The Stadium
Categories: NewsContinue Reading: Matchday Twenty-Four: Minnesota Battles To Ugly Point On The Road, With Big Elephant In The StadiumHappily for much of Minnesota’s time in MLS, there has been surprisingly little drama. Sure the team may have been bad and players have come and gone, but there’s rarely been a behind-the-scenes soap opera that other teams seem to attract. But this week was different. Days after sending beloved striker Christian Ramirez to LAFC,…
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Match Preview: Los Angeles Galaxy vs. Minnesota United FC
Categories: NewsContinue Reading: Match Preview: Los Angeles Galaxy vs. Minnesota United FCThere are lots of intriguing questions posed by Saturday’s key Western Conference showdown between the Loons and the Galaxy, but only one will be in the mind of fans. How will Minnesota move on from the man who scored more goals than any other and provided value off the ball even when he wasn’t scoring?…
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Matchday Twenty-Three: Late Gut Punch Dooms Loons, Raises Questions About Leadership
Categories: NewsContinue Reading: Matchday Twenty-Three: Late Gut Punch Dooms Loons, Raises Questions About LeadershipThrough nearly ninety minutes, Minnesota United were in the process of eking out an undeserved but professional home victory over the Seattle Sounders. Then, in stoppage time, it all fell apart. With recriminations flying thick and fast over what increasingly looks like another season short of the playoffs, it’s time to return to some hard…
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Matchday Twenty-Two: Road Woes Continue For Loons In Deflating Loss To Vancouver
Categories: NewsContinue Reading: Matchday Twenty-Two: Road Woes Continue For Loons In Deflating Loss To VancouverEven thought their impressive three-game win streak catapulted Minnesota United back into surprising playoff contention, it came with a significant caveat: all the wins were at home. Only one other team (San Jose) have won just a single road match this year, and for the Loons to make good on their playoff aspiration, they simply…
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Minnesota Outlasts Real Salt Lake 3-2, Starts Home Stand With Win
Categories: NewsContinue Reading: Minnesota Outlasts Real Salt Lake 3-2, Starts Home Stand With WinMinnesota United FC outlasted Real Salt Lake 3-2 at home thanks to goals by Ibson, Darwin Quintero, and Miguel Ibarra. The visitors staged a comeback with second half substitute Joao Plata scoring two, but fell short of stealing any points from the Loons. Lineup Minnesota again came out in their newer look 3-5-2 formation. Francisco…
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Match Preview: Houston Dynamo vs. Minnesota United FC
Categories: NewsContinue Reading: Match Preview: Houston Dynamo vs. Minnesota United FCFor just about the entire season, Minnesota United has been unlucky. Shots that could have gone in did not, individual errors in defense were punished with goals rather than swept up and forgotten, and defensive injuries have meant a revolving door in the backline. It has overshadowed the fact that the club looks better than last…
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Match Preview: Colorado Rapids vs. Minnesota United FC
Categories: NewsContinue Reading: Match Preview: Colorado Rapids vs. Minnesota United FCMinnesota United has spent much of the season at least tickling the playoff line. That is officially no longer the case. The Loons are six points back from the Western Conference playoff line (22 points, where two teams currently sit) and will need a hot streak, in combination with some stumbles by the teams directly…
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Match Preview: Sporting Kansas City vs. Minnesota United FC
Categories: NewsContinue Reading: Match Preview: Sporting Kansas City vs. Minnesota United FCOf the many reputations Minnesota United might have, it should probably be most noted as the “yeah, but” team. It seems most losses are softened by a “yeah, but half the roster is injured” or “yeah, but they played on short rest” (such as the loss to Los Angeles FC). Many wins, meanwhile, are interrupted with a…