RSL Back Line Under the Microscope

It has been over a month since I took a close look at the RSL defenders. Without a weekend match to go over, I thought this would be the perfect time to revisit our back line and see how they are doing now. As a reminder, with the defense I look at minutes per conceded goal (MpCG) not minutes per team goal. With MpCG, the higher the number the better. Here are the player stats for MLS games:

Player	Min	Goals	MpCG
Maund	90	0	N/A
Beltran	1429	11	129.91
Mansally	368	3	122.67
Borchers	1260	12	105.00
Salcedo	451	5	90.20
Wingert	778	9	86.44
Schuler	1080	13	83.08
Watson-Siriboe	630	8	78.75
Palmer	683	10	68.30

For comparison sake, the team as a whole is giving up a goal every 95.00 minutes which is second best in team history. Maund is at the top of the list with the one match that he played being a shutout. Beltran's numbers continue to be very impressive. This is why I have been saying that when we look back at the players we lost for Gold Cup, it might be Beltran who we will miss the most.

Mansally's MpCG is also very high, although in somewhat limited minutes. I find this interesting as most people consider Palmer a better defender than Mansally. With Palmer having to sit out the next match with a red card suspension, RSL will have no choice but to give Mansally more time. If he plays well I would very much advocate he take over Palmer's spot as Beltran's backup.

Palmer's numbers really surprise me. I have liked Palmer when he has played. He really seems to be an offensive minded player. But in looking at the numbers, that might not be a good thing. Look at it this way: Beltran has played 746 more minutes than Palmer, but the team has only given up one more goal when he has played. That is pretty staggering. 

Here is a look at how the team does when a particular player is not on the field:

Player	Min Not Played	Goals	MpCG
Palmer	1039	8	129.88
Schuler	630	5	126.00
Watson-Siriboe	1080	10	108.00
Wingert	900	9	100.00
Salcedo	1259	13	96.85
Maund	1620	18	90.00
Mansally	1345	15	89.67
Borchers	450	6	75.00
Beltran	281	7	40.14

The number that totally shocked me in looking at this was Schuler's. The defense has played great since he has been injured. And prior to the team giving up two goals to Philadelphia, that number was at 180! The team needs Schuler to get healthy for added depth in the back line, but I am not sure if he should be put right back into the lineup.

Finally here is a look at the center back pairings and who plays best together.

Players	Min	Goals	MpCG
Borchers/Maund	90	0	N/A
Borchers/Schuler	540	5	108
Borchers/Salcedo	360	4	90
Schuler/Salcedo	90	1	90
Borchers/Watson-Siriboe	270	3	90
Schuler/Watson-Siriboe	360	5	72

I think the most interesting thing to take away from this is how many different combination that we have used this year. The fact that our defense has played so well with so little consistency with who is playing in the back line is pretty incredible.