Reader comments
James Edward: It's tough to evaluate a player's true value

Interesting | 9:54 p.m. June 16, 2009

Very interesting analysis. I think Russell is too slow. I don't see why the staff is so high on him. It doesn't surprise me that we are worse when he is on the field.

If Russell plays this week I think bad things will happen. I wouldn't say it has all been his fault, but he obviously hasn't helped any.

SoccerFan | 9:59 p.m. June 16, 2009

Those are some interesting statistics. I don't know how much stock you can put in the numbers, but trends do tend to lead to facts.
Thanks for the insight.

ajr | 7:48 a.m. June 17, 2009

Russell's best game by far was the cRapids home game minus the red card he was sending in some great balls... RF10 wasnt putting them away

Comments continue below

Objective Fan | 8:54 a.m. June 17, 2009

Interesting - Russell is one of the 5 fastest guys on the team. He has good distribution, delivers good balls into the box, stands attackers up when they get near the goal, and he makes great decisions (other than the red card).

These numbers tell us nothing, and this kind of analysis is useless in soccer as pointed out by the fact that you had to throw a game out of the mix. Soccer is best analyzed by watching the game, and not by the use of statistics.

RF10? | 10:10 a.m. June 17, 2009

Lol, Findley doesnt deserve acronyms.

astroboy | 1:32 p.m. June 17, 2009

i disagree with objective fan.. I think he is above average as a defender, but I think his delivery is poor, his distribution is horrible, and I think both are caused by him being extremely right footed (has to routinely maneuver the ball when passing or clearing to his stronger side).

Maybe in this new 4-3-3 formation where he'll be kept at home on the defensive more often he'll have less of a negative impact on the attacking end and show his true grit on defense.

Well | 2:05 p.m. June 17, 2009

I think it is an interesting look and analysis at the roster although it may not tell the whole story. Good read though.

Russel fan | 12:36 p.m. June 18, 2009

I think Russel has been the only consistently solid player on the team this year. He has been the one that RSL has called on the plug the holes left by our other (irresponsible) defenders. Thats probably why he has such a low rating.

Great Article | 11:25 p.m. June 18, 2009

Nice to see a different perspective through stats like these. I mostly agree with Objective Fan regarding their poor application to a game like soccer...but in the end stats are stats. Here's to more good stats rollin' in for RSL!

Curious | 10:40 a.m. June 19, 2009

I like Russell but would disagree with posters above. He's not fast. I don't care what the watch at practice says. My eyes tell a different story in-game. He's got average speed but takes good angles and makes good tackles.

If Russell is the plug to the other defenders "holes" then where are these holes when he's not there? I will agree that there are holes. Borchers on the trap has been terrible and Olave has mental lapses. Wingert doesn't close down well and his touch is bad right now. But these are all things that exist regardless of where Russell is.

Bottom-line for me: Russell is a central player that is too slow for the wing. He's aggressive on the ball and pushes up well. His touch isn't great as is his service. He's a bit prone to reckless tackles (see: Olave).

STEVE-O | 11:17 a.m. June 19, 2009

The only stat that means anything in soccer is the W-L-T record!!! Period! RSL averages the most shot attempts per game, but they don't have many goals to show for it (other than the one explosive game). It's the strikers job to produce results and it hasn't happened consitently with RSL.

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