Revs at Crew Make It Make Sense Edition

Someone or more must be fired.

No, I'm not talking about the Revs. I need to know who scheduled this Revolution Crew match tonight at 7:30pm behind the Apple Season Pass paywall and against the USMNT-Panama game at 9pm. Or a little game with No. 2 Ohio State at the same time in Eugene, Oregon.

I can't believe Oregon is in the Big Ten… but that's not why we're here.

I'm pretty sure I've complained about this in the past and the league playing during international breaks is always stupid. I understand that this particular game could be a CCC postponement earlier in the year as the Revs and Crew both reach the continental semi-finals, and in that case there may not be another day off for either side.

Mauricio Pochettino is already changing USMNT

But there is no excuse to play this game against the USMNT and not have it free. It's the only league game today and tomorrow is the only game between Vancouver and LAFC, and there's no clear indication of a “FREE” game anywhere on the league website.

Make it make sense.

At least the league figured out that it should let teams have a legitimate backup goalkeeper after the Crew's debacle in Seattle, when they let a midfielder play in net for an hour after a red card. Stanislav Lapkes was called up for the fifth time The Crew 2/NextPro occupies the substitute bench behind injuries and international absences.

The fact that Lapkes appears to be on the bench in the CCC and friendlies counts towards a four-player call-up limit, which is absurd for a league that not long ago had a pool goalkeeper list to prevent such things. I understand league game call-ups are limited, but CONCACAF play should encourage giving time to NextPro/Reserve/Development players.

Goalkeepers should be an exception anyway. It is not that we want another reason to question the competitive nature of a 34-game season, punctuated by an intracontinental tournament and the staging of international matches with multiple absences on each side, as fair and balanced.

Anyway, this game should have been played around 2:30 in the afternoon and streamed for free so everyone can go out and watch the Ohio State-Oregon game at 7:30 or the USA game later. God forbid the Revs hurt something important at this point.

As always, our good friend Tyler Fisher from Massive Report talks to us about how disappointed we are that they didn't get a result against Inter Miami so we could keep our Shield record and a few other things. Be sure to check out their website to find my answers to his questions.

TBM: Revs fans were hoping for a Crew result against Miami for Shield record reasons… Did the rest of the league just watch a preview of the Eastern Conference Finals and what Columbus needs to do to get through the Herons ? in the playoffs?

TF: I think so. It's been back and forth with Inter Miami all season. A 2-1 defeat locally, then a win over them in the League Cup after coming from behind, and then another defeat due to questionable officiating. What Columbus needs to do is play its football and limit Lionel Messi's opportunities. In the first part of the first half I had the feeling that Malte Amundsen and Co. did well to silence him. But we all know that if you give him an inch, it will take him a mile. If both teams make it this far, it should be a very interesting conference final.

TBM: No question – just make your case for your boy Cucho over the other MLS MVP contenders.

TF: I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Cucho gets the job done on both sides of the ball: scoring and passing the ball. If you're looking for a number 9 who will retreat to midfield to collect a pass from the back line and attract the attention of multiple defenders Hernandez is your guy. After being disciplined by head coach Wilfried Nancy at the start of the season, he has turned things around and become one of the best, if not the best, players in the league for the reigning MLS Cup champions. He also plays defense, unlike a certain number 10 who just runs around a lot. I'm just saying…

TBM: Can you tell me approximately how confident you and/or the Crew fans are of reaching the MLS Cup final again? Winning it is a different story, but winning it back would be a massive achievement.

TF: I think the probability of reaching the MLS Cup final is 85-90%. I think a lot of fans are at the point where they say, “We all know Miami is going to win,” but the confidence is there. I think we can win the whole thing. After Miami won the Shield, I said to a few people, “Looks like we're just going to have to win the whole damn thing again.”

Lineup/Injuries/Absences/Predictions/etc.

GK: Romero

CB: Amundsen – Cheberko – Camacho

CENTER: DeJuan Jones – Matan – Nagbe – Arfsten

FWD: JRR – Rossi – Ramirez