Miami tighten grip on Supporters’ Shield, Cincinnati loosen theirs & more from Matchday 28
Man, I don’t really know where to begin with this one, so I’ll just let Rapids coach Chris Armas – whose team officially claimed the Rocky Mountain Cup for just the 4th time in the past 18 years – sound off.
“Early on in my tenure here, the fans let me know what was important to them. That’s what it was about, winning that Rocky Mountain Cup. Keeping that trophy here once it made the trip on the airplane. Securing that trophy for them,” Armas said in the postgame. “For the players to feel validated for the work that they did, they’re winners.
“I can see that on a night like tonight, the way that the boys hang in there [through a one-goal deficit, a blown one-goal lead and a prolonged weather delay] and can persevere. It’s tremendous for them and I’m happy for them. So, our fans, the players, and then I see a lot of people around here in our organization that work really hard. Of course, there’s the staff that’s to the left and right of me always, but the people that sell tickets and the extended staff. To see their faces tonight and they’re congratulating us, but I just say ‘Hey, congratulations right back to you.’ Seeing that everyone can take a small piece of that makes it a really special night.”
The Rapids haven’t gotten a lot of nights like this one, but they’re starting to stack them under Armas. Cole Bassett is officially leveling up – he had a goal and two assists in this one, once again playing as a No. 10 with Djordje Mihailovic on international duty – and is up to 9g/6a on the year. Moise Bombito is going to command a record fee. Sam Vines, Oli Larraz, Kévin Cabral, Jonathan Lewis… the list of contributors is a mile long.
Much the same could be said about Pablo Mastroeni’s RSL side. These two great rivals are mirror images in a lot of ways, in terms of both roster building (leave no stone unturned is the guiding principle for both) and game model (toggling between a structured press and a mid-block, with creative freedom from within the structure).
The difference in this one ended up being a whistle on a corner kick that earned Bassett the late, game-winning PK. It looked like the right call to me, but I’ll let you guys yell at Wiebe for his Instant Replay takes instead.
Big picture, though, is that this felt like the highest-level game of the weekend, even in the midst of all the delays, and even with the crucial absences on both teams. Colorado pressed high; RSL broke the press. RSL retreated into a shell; Colorado broke them down with clever interchange and overloads.
Give-and-take, adjustment-and-counterpunch. Just really excellent stuff.
