Preparing for the Storm Ahead - Bay Area Sports Nation

In the middle of a tight playoff race, the Quakes find themselves in a better position than in previous seasons. While Arena managed to build a pretty solid team this season, improvements are still needed.

As the DeJuan Jones move showed, any sort of upgrade to this team can have an immediate impact.

For the first time in a few seasons, the Quakes profile as a real playoff team.

Arena put together a solid team to challenge for a spot, but he left it open for possible improvements.

While most of the starting eleven, especially after the Jones move, seems to be set in stone, a few areas could benefit from help. Not the defensive disaster class of years past, the glaring issues with some of the backline remains a place where Arena struggles with. However, the Jones move gave this team more flexibility with the backline.

Again, credit should go to the manager for finding a way to get more production from the bench. Judd, showing more life in recent weeks, has given them more room to consider bringing in another piece to the bench. With all that being said, however, the return of López surely promises to complicate things as well.

In order to reach the playoffs, the team can’t just rely on what is already working.

Any marginal move gives the team more flexibility going into the second half of the season.

Center Back

When healthy, the partnership of Bruno Wilson and Rodrigues showed promise as a core part of the team. The third piece in that backline, Dave Romney, continues to be the weak piece.

Too slow and technically limited to start every week, he becomes the target of every opposing forward. As Romney showed against St. Louis, he struggles with long balls that go over him, opening more space for attackers. Whenever he pushes forward, Romney’s limited passing range kills off any chances, with most passes just going backwards.

Furthermore, his fit with Rodrigues and Wilson has never been perfect. Wilson plays the role that Romney would fit the best at, the defensive stopper who provides clean-up duty. Rodrigues bombs up and down the pitch to offer the team another dimension, which Romney struggles with.

If Munie fit better on that left side, Arena could justify not needing a move. Instead of bringing in a player from a different league, expect any move to be like that of Jones. An MLS team looking to move off a player, especially if that team is laboring below the playoff line.

Raoul Petretta of Toronto FC, a left-sided center back, seems to be the type of player who would be a prime target. This team can’t survive a playoff push with Romney starting down the stretch.

Bench Depth

For the most part, what seemed like the team’s Achilles heel in the preseason has been decent thus far. Over the past few years, the Quakes’ bench resembled that of a USL Championship bench, but Arena has managed to get production from them.

So far, only a few players have stood out as potential playoff players on the bench. Bouda, Judd, and Ricketts all promise to at least have some sort of impact in the postseason. Especially Bouda and Judd, who both saw a kind of revival in recent weeks due to all the injuries.

Outside of that trio, the pickings become pretty slim. Niko Tsakiris’s development continues to stall, which seemed likely when Arena was announced. This lack of development essentially forced Arena to get more creative with the absence of López. Similarly, Pellegrino remains a bust for the Quakes, offering next to nothing outside of cutting in on his right foot.

This is an area where a marginal move would have the greatest impact. Making a move within the league for another creative midfielder would offer this team another desperately needed piece for the playoffs.

More likely than a trade or transfer is an interior development. This means that moving either López or Martinez to the bench remains more likely to happen and help the team. Both players demonstrated that they deserve to start, but may just be casualties of an influx of talent.

Formation

With López still easing his way back into the team and a myriad of other injuries, an interesting problem for Arena is likely to arise soon. Having essentially found a winning formation, how will the return of key players necessitate changes?

In the absence of López and Arango recently, Arena tweaked his starting formation slightly, pushing up Espinoza from that wingback position he started the season at, the team is now playing with two wingers surrounding the striker. No longer using that more central playmaker, the impetus falls on the wingers to open up play.

Upon returning to the starting lineup, Arena tried to put López on the wing, but due to a bit of rust and a lack of experience in that role, he struggled. Not a traditional winger like Espinoza, to have López be a key piece, he needs to be given the opportunity in that position. Ultimately, to get the most out of this team, Arena needs to get López up and running in this setup.

Martinez, perhaps, benefits the most by moving to this 3-4-3, as he can come off the bench. Being that ultimate supersub allows Martinez to come in and go straight at the goal. Additionally, this gives the team valuable help off the bench that the team currently lacks.

Given how well the team continues to perform, any significant changes to the formation shouldn’t be on the table. What Arena needs now is to figure out how to get López to fit into this team, or be prepared to move off of him.