MLS 2018: More Barco Than Bite

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
Philadelphia's 2-0 win at Montreal today means that their last 10 road wins no longer include a win over Chivas USA.
 

steeplechase3k

Well-Known Member
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Oct 25, 2005
2,976
Portland, OR
Timbers Sounders today, for the 100th time in history. As far as I can tell that's counting all the different leagues they've been in (NASL, A-League/USL, MLS) and the US Open Cup. I don't think it counts "friendlies". I should figure out how many of these I've been to. Going back to 2004, and going to pretty much every away match too, could be over 30. That's pretty crazy.
 

Kliq

Member
SoSH Member
Mar 31, 2013
22,622
This was like watching an overmatched hitter trying to catch up with a Randy Johnson fastball:

 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
NE scored a fortuitous win over an injury-crippled Toronto this weekend. There is now a clear separation in the Eastern Conference standings between the top six and the bottom five. The Revs are #6 and still have some work cut out for them. Toronto is going to come back with a vengeance once healthy, so the Revs need to somehow find a way not to be the member of the current top six that loses its spot.

Philly, Montreal, DC, and Chicago all look too weak to be a threat right now.


Elsewhere, a nice graphic from the MLSPA salary dump:



LA Galaxy: woof
 

Monbo Jumbo

Hates the crockpot
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 5, 2003
25,229
the other Athens
This INC.com piece is more about business than soccer, but interesting nonetheless.

How Home Depot's Billionaire Co-Founder Used This 1 Secret to Launch a Different Kind of Startup

Arthur Blank used a startup mentality to build a soccer team in Atlanta. The blueprint contains lessons for every entrepreneur.

"...The team's owner knows something about building a successful enterprise: It's Arthur Blank, the billionaire co-founder of Home Depot. What's the difference between founding startups and soccer franchises? "It's exactly the same," Blank says. "In terms of things that are important, there really are no differences..."
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
The second round of the USOC took place yesterday. This is the moment when the first wave of pro clubs join the competition and the draw is set up to create mostly amateur vs. pro matchups.

The USL went 15-7; combined with a couple of all-amateur matchups, that leaves nine amateur clubs still standing. Three are from the PDL, four from the NPSL, and two are local qualifiers. The only local-ish club left is the NPSL's Elm City Express, who play in New Haven.

Third round draw:
North Carolina FC (USL) vs. Ocean City Nor'easters (PDL)
Pittsburgh Riverhounds (USL) vs. FC Cincinnati (USL)
Richmond Kickers (USL) vs. Penn FC (USL)
Charleston Battery (USL) vs. Elm City Express (NPSL)
Louisville City (USL) vs. Saint Louis FC (USL)
Jacksonville Armada (NPSL) vs. Miami United FC (NPSL)
NTX Rayados (LQ) vs. FC Wichita (NPSL)
Nashville SC (USL) vs. Mississippi Brilla (PDL)
San Antonio FC (USL) vs. Colorado Springs Switchbacks (USL)
Sporting Arizona FC (LQ) vs. Fresno FC (USL)
FC Golden State Force (PDL) vs Las Vegas Lights (USL)
Reno 1868 (USL) vs. Sacramento Republic (USL)

The NTX Rayados vs. Wichita game guarantees one amateur club will get through and likely get a game against an MLS club in the fourth round.
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
NE scored a fortuitous win over an injury-crippled Toronto this weekend. There is now a clear separation in the Eastern Conference standings between the top six and the bottom five. The Revs are #6 and still have some work cut out for them. Toronto is going to come back with a vengeance once healthy, so the Revs need to somehow find a way not to be the member of the current top six that loses its spot.

Philly, Montreal, DC, and Chicago all look too weak to be a threat right now.
Big win for Toronto over Orlando tonight with no Giovinco, Altidore, or left backs. Orlando still doesn't have a quality win this season (barely beating NYRB's B team doesn't count). The Revs' best chance of making the playoffs may well depend on how many points Orlando's shaky defense manages to drop over the course of the year.
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
Revs lose 1-0 at home to Columbus. Friedel's pressing scheme, which has been pretty effective, has now been scouted by the smarter, above-average managers in MLS like Berhalter. Let's see if Friedel has any other cards up his sleeve.
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
Atlanta United fans are not going to be very happy with this ref tonight...
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
Weird, scary injury for Kemar Lawrence, who fell down awkwardly. It looked like he hit his head and was knocked out, but the replay shows his head never made contact with the turf. Could be a back/neck?
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
Two goals, one red card, one VAR, five substitutions, and one potentially very serious injury equals 12 minutes of stoppage time, in case anyone was interested.
 

Senator Donut

post-Domer
SoSH Member
Apr 21, 2010
5,485
This one was Chris Penso (who has a similar haircut to Geiger)
Geiger was the VAR official who disallowed the goal and gave the penalty.

United don’t play until a week from Wednesday against the Revs, so they’ll be without Garza (straight red) and Pirez (fifth yellow).
 

lostjumper

Member
SoSH Member
Apr 27, 2009
1,277
Concord, NH
Geiger also called for a VAR review on the first red card given, which was changed to a yellow upon review.

I actually didn't have a problem with the disallowed goal. The red bulls defender clearly got tripped from behind. I don't think it was intentional, but it was a clip.
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
Ooh, intrigue in RSL:


I feel like RSL have been so bad this year, but somehow they (and Minnesota! and the Galaxy!) are only two points out of a playoff spot. The West is weak this year.
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/mls/article211712754.html

Could David Beckham’s Major League Soccer team finally have a name?

Nobody is saying yet, but according to an online search of the United States Patent and Trademark Office, a company calling itself Miami Freedom LLC applied on May 17, 2018 to trademark the following four names: Miami Freedom Football Club, Miami Freedom United, Miami Freedom FC and Miami Freedom.

Among the goods and services the trademark application lists: posters, decals, trading cards, stickers, media guides relating to a “professional soccer team”, souvenir programs, admission tickets, calendars, pencils, t-shirts, fleece tops, jerseys, hats, caps, shorts, sweat suits, jackets, scarves, headbands, infant and toddler clothing, soccer balls, soccer ball bags, toy figurines, golf accessories, Christmas tree ornaments, “soccer exhibitions live in a stadium, ”plastic films for electronic devices, computer and video game software, magnets, sunglasses, DVD’s, and downloadable artwork.
That's embarrassingly bad.
 

Senator Donut

post-Domer
SoSH Member
Apr 21, 2010
5,485
Geiger was the VAR official who disallowed the goal and gave the penalty.

United don’t play until a week from Wednesday against the Revs, so they’ll be without Garza (straight red) and Pirez (fifth yellow).
Red Bull will be without Parker and Adams due to national team duty, while the Revs will only be missing Zachary Herivaux (Haiti), so they'll have a huge opportunity to earn points from two of the best teams in the east.
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
FC Cincinnati was officially awarded a place in MLS for the 2019 season today.

Obviously it's a club that already exists and has a large following, which helps, but that's a fast timeline. Minnesota United was another club that already existed, but they bungled roster construction and are still suffering in that regard. FC Cincinnati will play at Nippert Stadium, their current venue, for their first two seasons.

That will put MLS at 24 clubs next season, with Nashville and Miami joining in 2020 to make 26. Garber & MLS have made it clear that they are going to at least 28. Perhaps eternal bridesmaid Sacramento will finally get in.

The last six clubs to join MLS are known as "FC", "City", or "United". Come on, people.
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
Chris Tierney is out for the season with a torn ACL. While Tierney has mostly not been playing this season anyway, it leaves the Revs with just about zero LB depth behind Gabriel Somi. That's something that should be addressed in the summer transfer window.
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
The Revs locked up an important win over NYRB to temporarily move into fourth place. New England is doing an epic job of facing the best teams in the East when they are short-handed for whatever reason.

Toronto blew a 3-0 road lead at Columbus. They are really making life tough for themselves.

After winning six games in a row against bad teams, Orlando has now last four in a row to good teams (and Chicago). Their mediocrity is showing.

Colorado has lost seven games in a row. They are real bad. The Rapids have been at the top of my Do Not Watch list for years. Anthony Hudson may somehow be even worse than Mastroeni.

Dallas beat Vela-less LAFC and have quietly ascended to the top of the West. RSL have won three in a row and are somehow in third place. I guess it feels like they should be lower in the standings because when they've lost this year, they've gotten totally thrashed. Their defense is playing better now that Danny Acosta is out of Petke's doghouse and starting at LB.

Seattle is in an ever-deepening hole. Their defensive record is among the better teams in the league, but they've scored an amazing seven goals in 11 games. Ouch.
 

Infield Infidel

teaching korea american
SoSH Member
Jul 15, 2005
11,463
Meeting Place, Canada
Pretty epic dos rojos on Medunjanin and Bedoya in Atlanta Philly match. Pretty fair imho because Medunjanin was going bonkers. Union did well to only lose 3-1 after going down to 9 men and giving up a penalty all in the 19th minute.
 

Senator Donut

post-Domer
SoSH Member
Apr 21, 2010
5,485
MLS is fairly well-represented at the World Cup, despite the US and Canada not making it. Notable snubs include Belgium's Laurent Ciman, who was on their preliminary roster. Venegas and Calvo both scored over the weekend. I'm not sure what it is about a Costa Rica shirt that turns MLS journeymen into world beaters.

Egypt
MF Omar Gaber Los Angeles FC

Peru
MF Andy Polo Portland Timbers
MF Yoshimar Yotún Orlando City

Costa Rica
FW Johan Venegas Minnesota United*
MF Rodney Wallace New York City FC
DF Francisco Calvo Minnesota United
DF Kendall Waston Vancouver Whitecaps FC
MF David Guzmán Portland Timbers
FW Marco Ureña Los Angeles FC
DF Rónald Matarrita New York City FC

Mexico
MF Jonathan dos Santos LA Galaxy
MF Giovani dos Santos LA Galaxy
FW Carlos Vela Los Angeles FC

Sweden
MF Gustav Svensson Seattle Sounders FC

Panama
DF Michael Amir Murillo New York Red Bulls
DF Harold Cummings San Jose Earthquakes
DF Fidel Escobar New York Red Bulls
DF Román Torres Seattle Sounders FC
DF Adolfo Machado Houston Dynamo
MF Aníbal Godoy San Jose Earthquakes

*Venegas is on loan with Saprissa, I probably missed other loanees
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
The Vieira-to-Nice rumors have died down this week, so I guess it's NYRB's turn.


Bild isn't a particularly reliable source, though.
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
The Revs were immediately dumped out of the USOC last night at Louisville City by a 3-2 scoreline. A youthful Philly lineup thumped Richmond and DC squeaked by North Carolina FC on penalties.

The remaining 13 matches of the fourth round are tonight.
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
Colorado and Seattle join New England in the beaten-by-USL club. Of the three, only Colorado played something close to a first team lineup and only Colorado lost by multiple goals. The Rapids are so, so bad.
 

OCST

Sunny von Bulow
SoSH Member
Jan 10, 2004
24,483
The 718
Colorado and Seattle join New England in the beaten-by-USL club. Of the three, only Colorado played something close to a first team lineup and only Colorado lost by multiple goals. The Rapids are so, so bad.
Do they have much of a following, TB? Denver seems a similar market to KC and the Cascadia teams, so I would think it would be one of the higher profile teams, and its stadium seems decent. What's up?
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
Do they have much of a following, TB? Denver seems a similar market to KC and the Cascadia teams, so I would think it would be one of the higher profile teams, and its stadium seems decent. What's up?
I think the characteristics of the market matter a lot less than club ownership. Like the Revs, the Rapids have poor quality, semi-absentee ownership that is much more focused on other sports properties. The Rapids do have a nice little stadium, but they are frequently very bad on the field. Even when they had their fluky good season under Mastroeni, the soccer was not inspiring. They are averaging about 17k which isn't catastrophic, but

A lot of the 1996+1998 MLS clubs have really fallen behind.

If you run down the list of weaker clubs off the field, it's basically a laundry list of MLS originals (plus Chicago which arrived in 1998).

New England
Colorado
Columbus
Dallas
Chicago
DC

Those are currently the bottom six in attendance. It's a problem for the league because there are some big media markets in that list. The reasons why each of these clubs are struggling vary, but there's one common thread: mediocre-to-bad owners. And they are in markets with a lot of pro sports competition; all have teams in all Big Four leagues, except Columbus whose owner is currently re-enacting the plot of "Major League". They have a harder job in getting out from under the brand damage that occurred when the league was worse on and off the field and they aren't getting it done.

The other 1990s teams? Two don't exist (Miami, Tampa Bay), two are doing well enough but face strong challenges from newer teams in their market (LAG, NYRB) [I'm being a little charitable to NYRB here, who have always underdrawn relative to the size of their market], one totally reinvented itself under new ownership (KC), and one has a weird franchise history and is currently middle of the road (SJ).

Nine of the top ten clubs in attendance started play in 2007 or later.
 

steeplechase3k

Well-Known Member
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Oct 25, 2005
2,976
Portland, OR
USOC Next round draw:


Orlando at D.C. United
Red Bulls at Philadelphia
Chicago at Atlanta
Nashville at Louisville
Minnesota at Houston
Dallas at Kansas City
Sacramento at LAFC
LA Galaxy at Portland
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
It really sounds like Vieira is gone. The Nice rumors have picked up in the past few days, and now this:

 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
9th(!!) goal of the season from Teal Bunbury to equalize at Chicago. An exquisitely garbage goal for the Revs there.
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421

Those are three clubs with significant followings on SoSH. Anyone have info on this guy?
 

SoxFanInCali

has the rich, deep voice of a god
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Jun 3, 2005
15,557
California. Duh.
Benitez brought him to Liverpool from Barca to help rebuild the academy. By all accounts he did a really nice job with it, but there was a ton of reshuffling done during all the managerial changes (from Rafa to Uncle Woy to King Kenny to The Brodge) and he eventually was let go during the Rodgers era. I remember fans being pretty annoyed at the move, as we were finally starting to see some prospects from the Academy (Sterling, Flanagan) contributing to the first team.

Can't really speak to his coaching style, since he was never part of the first team setup at Liverpool.
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
Benitez brought him to Liverpool from Barca to help rebuild the academy. By all accounts he did a really nice job with it, but there was a ton of reshuffling done during all the managerial changes (from Rafa to Uncle Woy to King Kenny to The Brodge) and he eventually was let go during the Rodgers era. I remember fans being pretty annoyed at the move, as we were finally starting to see some prospects from the Academy (Sterling, Flanagan) contributing to the first team.

Can't really speak to his coaching style, since he was never part of the first team setup at Liverpool.
Thanks. With CFG backing, NYCFC should be able to land someone solid for MLS.

It's now official:


Another Vieira replacement rumor going around Domenic Torrent, who like Borrell is an assistant at Manchester City.


The Marsch-to-RB Leipzig rumors aren't quite as hot and heavy, but they aren't going away either. Most recently, there was a report in a Hungarian outlet that RB Leipzig assistant manager Zsolt Low is heading to PSG to join Tuchel's staff in which Low claimed he was offered the NYRB job.
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
That was quick:


Torrent seems like an interesting hire, but who knows.
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
San Jose signed Matt Miazga's CB partner at Vitesse, Guram Kashia.


My analysis: Georgian food is badly underrated and I wish it existed in Boston.
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
Friday Afternoon During Portugal Vs. Span News Dump:



Orlando has some decent talent, but they've been underperforming. Kreis has really struggled since leaving RSL. You can maybe give him a pass at NYCFC because he was saddled with bad contracts for big-name Euro players who didn't fit into the team well, but he had two years to put his stamp on Orlando City.

Very curious to see who Orlando hires.
 

Senator Donut

post-Domer
SoSH Member
Apr 21, 2010
5,485
This is why you never doubt TB. He saw it coming, even immediately after they had won five straight matches,
You're welcome, Jason.

We'll see how they do when their schedule toughens up, though. This stretch included wins at home over a CCL-weakened NYRB team, Portland and SJ and away at Colorado and Philly. There's no "signature win" in that group. I'm being a little harsh though - five in a row is decent enough regardless of opponent.

Their defense is not very convincing. Only one team in the East has conceded more goals.
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
Lifetime Member
SoSH Member
Dec 15, 2002
14,421
After a short break, the league is back in action today. There's been a bit of news over the break:

The USOC quarterfinals are set. Louisville prevailed over Nashville in the all-USL R16 game. Chicago managed to eke out a win at Atlanta.

Philadelphia vs. Orlando
Chicago vs. Louisville
Houston vs. KC
LAFC vs. Portland


Orlando is looking at Caleb Porter for their managerial vacancy as well as LAFC assistant Marc dos Santos and Louisville manager James O'Connor.

FC Dallas shipped out Bulgarian left back Anton Nedyalkov to Ludogorets Razgrad after just half a season; apparently, he needed to be closer to his family. Ryan Hollingshead will be a solid option at LB for them anyway.

Orlando signed center back Shane O'Neill, who is out of contract after a spell at Excelsior in the Netherlands. O'Neill was on a nice upward trajectory before leaving the Colorado Rapids for the highly shady Cypriot club Apollon Limassol. He still hasn't really gotten back to where he was a few years ago, but Orlando's CBs are bad so he'll get chances.
 

Jed Zeppelin

Member
SoSH Member
Aug 23, 2008
51,252
The NYC faithful are doing God’s work today putting in a full 90 minutes booing Michael Bradley.

He’s been shite as well.
 
Last edited:

Senator Donut

post-Domer
SoSH Member
Apr 21, 2010
5,485
The long-rumored Rooney to United transfer will be made official today, according to BBC. The secondary window opens on July 10 and Rooney will debut alongside DC's new stadium on July 14.