Prior to the Rapids midweek match against Seattle Sounders FC, we sat down with one of the greats in MLS history, Tony Meola. The former goalkeeper quickly became one of the top netminders in all of MLS during the league’s inaugural season. In 11 seasons, the American made 250 appearances across stints with the New York/New Jersey MetroStars and the Kansas City Wizards. In 2000, Meola scooped up just about every accolade the league offered, earning MLS MVP, MLS Goalkeeper of the Year, and MLS Cup MVP honors after leading the Wizards to their first ever league title.
Since his retirement, Meola has transitioned his career to the broadcast booth, where he now calls games for FOX Sports. He will be on the call for this Wednesday’s match in Seattle alongside Mike Watts on FS1.
What have your general thoughts been of the Rapids season so far?
I think when you watch Colorado, you have a clear picture of how they want to play. Chris Armas, pretty much the day he came in, has made it clear they want to be a little bit more high energy than what they were, pressing a little bit more, pick the pace of the game up, especially without the ball. I think we see that. The one thing that sticks out to me when looking at the team is the five losses at home, and only because preparation at home, with the altitude, is a massive, massive advantage. I think that’s the one thing that sticks out. But all in all, when I watch Colorado, and I say this about teams that I cover or watch in general, I always want to know what the team is trying to do, which means they have an identity and, of course, you have to play well and what you're trying to do to try and win games. That's the true sense of what I get when I watch Colorado. Clear pictures, clear ideas, and now it's up to the players to execute.
What does a result like Saturday do to a team following a stretch of tough matches?
You're talking about a team that beat Vancouver, where, for good stretches of this season, they were in first place in the league and it's a team that's battling at the top of the Western Conference. Of course, it's always important when you're playing a cross rival in your conference. We call them six pointer games. It's always important to win those. It's been a bit of a tough stretch since going back to the Portland game at the end of May. It's been a tough stretch since then. Whether it is the players or managers, everyone wants a little proof of concept, right? You work on things, you think that they're going to be successful, and in the end, you want them to be successful. I think they have 11 games left in the season, now is the time where you want your team playing well. We've seen in the past where teams have made runs that maybe have had stretches where it hasn't been great, but at the end of the season, all of a sudden, you find a little bit of form. You get a win here or there, and you find yourself in a position where you're feeling good about the team going into the playoffs. That's where you want to be. You want to feel good. Obviously, you have to make the playoffs first, but it's always important. I look at last year, I think the Red Bulls finished in seventh place last year, and they had two wins in their last 14 games, if I'm not mistaken. They had a bunch of draws in there, didn't have a lot of losses, but they found some form in the end. They found some grit and determination and all these things that add up. So, get to the playoffs, feel good about where you're at, and have a clear understanding of what your team is trying to do, and then try and make a run.
What have you seen from Zack Steffen so far this season and during his time with the Rapids?
Obviously, he’s back playing and back on the field now. That's the most important thing because he had this opportunity with the U.S. National Team, and then he gets the injury, so it's good to see him get back in the lineup first and foremost. It's a guy that has grown. We've seen his talent over the years, we saw it through the youth national teams at the World Cup. He played in Columbus then got the big move, and it didn’t quite work out probably the way that he wanted to in the end, but he found himself a home in Colorado. He's a bit of a pillar for this team. When you look at leaders in this team, I'm sure he's someone that this group looks to. I'm just looking in from the outside, but I would expect that that's a responsibility that he takes seriously. He's had a decent run in the group. In Leagues Cup last year where he had a run of successful penalty kick shootouts and things like that, that have really helped him gain a little bit of confidence. It'd be nice to see him to now take it to the next level and push this team where it needs to go. Certainly, a good goalkeeper. I think this was a crucial move in his career at this point, to get to Colorado with a manager that believes in you and with a team that trusts you.
What Rapids player or players do you see having an added impact in this match against Seattle?
The one thing that stuck out to me was the midfield for the Seattle Sounders between Obed Vargas, Cristian Roldán, and Albert Rusnák. That trifecta in the middle of the field was really effective against Kansas City. I think they're going to have to be equally matched with Cole Bassett, Connor Ronan, and with Djordje Mihailovic playing in that 10. I think that's where the game is won or lost this weekend. Whose midfield is able to control things? I saw Seattle live this weekend in Kansas City, and they were solid. That's the part of the field they're going to have to match. Can Rafael Navarro up top find some opportunities with two bigger, stronger centerbacks in Jackson Reagan, and I assume Jon Bell is going to play again. Can Navarro have a little bit of success against the centerbacks? For me, this game comes down to the midfield and eventually the back four and Zack Steffen dealing with the movement up top. The one thing that we know is dangerous is that Jordan Morris can stretch the field. How do you keep him from being able to run in behind your back four and having success. Those are a couple areas of the field that I will focus on, for sure.
How do you see tomorrow's match playing out?
Should be a game that's played at a higher pace I would think. Early in the match, my expectation is that, when the ball turns over in favor of Seattle, Colorado will go and pressure them all over the field and make it really difficult. The one thing I would look for is how much you can disrupt the rhythm of Seattle. They are a team that likes to get in a rhythm and have everybody touch the ball in the final third of the field. Occasionally they'll try and stretch you. So just be alert in those moments. You're always going to have to defend well against Seattle, because they do have players in the attacking part of the field and guys coming from behind that love to get forward. You're always going to have to be solid defensively. Even when they don't play well, they give you things to think about defensively. So, that's kind of how I'm looking at things going into this game, but the one thing I have learned in 15 years of doing this, the way you look at it sometimes, is not the way it turns out. It actually rarely turns out that way. So, I stopped predicting what games would look like, only because, as much as we sit and talk about it, the managers are also talking about the same things, and everybody's trying to be productive in disrupting what the other team's trying to do. So, in general, that’s what I think both these teams offer.
