Image Credit: Daniel Budasoff
Hempstead, NY - It was déjà vu all over again!
The New York Cosmos picked up where they left off in their first home game, providing another dramatic, late, game-winning goal.
This time it came off of the head of Henry Lopez who played a perfectly crossed ball by European Champion Marco Senna. Stoppage time at James M. Shuart Stadium should probably be renamed “Cosmos Time” as the team seems to have a penchant for finishing games after the 90th minute.
While the over 6,000 fans may have left the stadium at Hofstra University buzzing, many in the organization felt a bit differently. Head coach Giovanni Savarese and star player Marco Senna are both sick of the team’s need for theatrics late in the game.
“We have to learn from this match because we have to try to kill off matches earlier so this doesn’t happen again,” said Savarese in his post-game interview.
Senna added, “Really, we don’t want to suffer like that.” The former Villareal man has been an important part of the Cosmos revival, serving as a midfield general.
The team has dominated ball-possession in their games since returning to the NASL but has failed at capitalizing on goal-scoring opportunities. Carrying a 2-1-1 record, the team has only scored four goals.
The passing hasn’t been the problem as much as the distribution in the final third. The team’s strikers have not provided the creativity or killer edge to bury the game early.
Against the Scorpions, the offense was almost non-existent until Diomar Diaz buried a strike just before the end of the first half that seemed to be more the case of being at the right place at the right time.
As the Cosmos prepare to travel to Edmonton for Labor Day weekend, the team has quite a bit to work on. However, they are in the great position of having the talent and management that can most definitely bring it all together.
This is not a broken engine but more of a machine that needs a few tweaks. Expectations are unreasonably high for this first year team but hype has a way of demanding unrealistic things.
And in a league with only a fourteen game season, it will be very important for the Cosmos to get it right sooner rather than later.
Anthony Merced is also a filmmaker, photographer and blogger. Please check out more his work at www.merlardo.com. Follow him at @AttitudeAJM.
Image Credit: Borough Boys
