Photo credit: Pat Radigan / Footy At 5280
In first game with club, Williams seems to be exactly as advertised
In game one of his MLS career, Loïc Williams cashed in on what Colorado Rapids coach Matt Wells saw in him.
The buzzwords he used were along the lines of tough, swift and smart. He was all three in the moment it took to score the game’s only goal in the final minutes of Wednesday’s match against San Diego FC.
Paxten Aaronson sent in a slow-moving ball into the mixer in the 90+5th minute, which Williams struck on a half-volley from the penalty spot with his weaker right foot. It dribbled slowly to the far post, kissed iron and found its way in.
“I saw the ball go to the goal, and in my mind, it took 10 minutes,” Williams said. He gestured an “A” with his fingers as his celebration, which he said was for his sister, Atenea.
At one point in the second half, Williams went down with an injury. Around the 55th minute, he was limping a bit after taking a knock. A few minutes later, he was on the losing end of an aerial duel with SDFC keeper CJ Dos Santos and seemed to have hurt his leg. He hobbled back to his own box before sitting down.
Lucas Herrington was moments away from taking his spot, but Williams motioned that he was OK. His grit worked out alright.
“I give him massive credit. Since the transfer was agreed, which was obviously a long time ago, he was balancing his duty to Granada, but once that season ended and he knew he was coming here, he prepared for it in such a professional manner,” Wells said. “I know he had a little knock, but he signaled that he was absolutely fine. … I thought his mentality was in line with the team’s tonight.”
Colorado largely struggled to put the finishing touches on otherwise good moves, aside from two goals called back for offside. Save for Williams’s winner, Rafael Navarro was the closest to scoring, putting two good shots just wide of the right post, one in each half.
Wells credited San Diego for making it tough, attributing the tight nature of the match to the fact both teams had more than a month to prepare for this match in particular. That said, SDFC tweaked its tactics in either half, beginning the game with a different look than Wells had expected. By the second half, San Diego reverted back to what Wells originally anticipated, but Wells adjusted by then.
“I thought (SDFC’s) recovery runs tonight and how they backfilled the penalty box was to the best level I’ve faced so far since I’ve been here in MLS,” Wells said. “… We were doing the exact same to them, so it was difficult for (Anders) Dreyer to find the space. I thought it was two really good teams going against each other, and the game could have gone either way.”
Wells told media after the match that the Rapids beat Minnesota United in last week’s closed-door friendly, 4-0. That’s a far cry from both the SDFC result and what occurred in the open friendly at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park against FC Juárez. But it does show what’s possible from the second half of the MLS season now that the team has had time to breath, reflect and re-focus.
The biggest jump in quality on Wednesday night was in the press. SDFC lost possession 29 times in its own half, more than double the amount the Rapids gave up. That’s despite a fairly even possession battle, which was advantage Colorado, 52% to 48%.
When San Diego did get into dangerous areas, the Rapids recovered well. Its best-looking chance was in the 64th minute, when Nico Hansen got a paw to a chip attempted by Onni Valakari. In terms of xG, San Diego’s best chance was a few minutes later, when a wide-open Valakari put a simple shot from the penalty spot wide.
“I keep talking to the guys about we have the ability to keep clean sheets because we have an incredible pressing organization, we have ridiculous fitness because of the work we’ve done and we have good organization in our own half,” Wells said. “… We have top quality defenders. I’m bringing Noah (Cobb) and Lucas onto the pitch — I’m not even bringing Keegan (Rosenberry) onto the pitch, I’ve got Miguel (Navarro) suspended, Jackson (Travis) injured.
“I’ve got an embarrassment of riches at the back, which is nice.”
Williams joined a long, growing list of Rapids players to score in debuts. Interestingly, they’ve all been defensive players: Herrington and Hamzat Ojediran in their home debuts against the Portland Timbers, and Kosi Thompson in his club debut against the Houston Dynamo.
