MLS 2021: On a scale of 1-10, my baby's 26

the1andonly3003

New Member
Jul 15, 2005
4,371
Chicago
man, I thought I was a hardcore MLS fan
the curiosity of Arlo White here in Chicago calling a few games got my attention. Actually hadn't took time to watch MLS on tv since the Walter Zenga days in New England.

I just checked the tables, did not realize that they were bottom 2 in the table...no wonder the quality was so bad...guess it won't be too expensive to get into Soldier Field this summer...
 

the1andonly3003

New Member
Jul 15, 2005
4,371
Chicago
this Beric guy is terrible. In a 20 minute span, he got in the way of his own team's shot in the 6-yd box, in the same sequence kick at the rebound at the same time as his own teammate. Minutes later, he misses an open net and then stumbles on a run after beating his defender
 

Arroyo Con Frijoles

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Jul 19, 2005
1,171
Not sure how or why but you posting got me to tune into the end. Late Chicago equalizer by your boy properly disallowed by VAR, and Cincinnati holds on!
 

steeplechase3k

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Oct 25, 2005
2,978
Portland, OR
Timbers fight back and get a midweek 2-2 draw in Houston. Valeri, Chara, Blanco and other key players played about 30 minutes at the end of the match and the they still got a point out of it.
 

67YAZ

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Dec 1, 2000
8,729
man, I thought I was a hardcore MLS fan
Welcome to my hell, boys. And I taped this match to watch later because I expected something…something against Cincy.

the curiosity of Arlo White here in Chicago calling a few games got my attention.
Apparently Arlo has family in Chicago and visits here every summer already. So why not get paid on vacation? He’s only here for about 6 weeks, then we’re back to Tyler Terens.

this Beric guy is terrible. In a 20 minute span, he got in the way of his own team's shot in the 6-yd box, in the same sequence kick at the rebound at the same time as his own teammate. Minutes later, he misses an open net and then stumbles on a run after beating his defender
Beric was getting a lot of national press love last fall because of his nice goal tally (11 non-PK), but I was really down on him. He would disappear for long stretches and was Kevin McHale-like in his propensity to turn every touch into a shot. But even against that standard, he’s markedly worse than season - averaging a shot more per game, but down from .56 to .14 goals per.

At the end there was a “Wicky Out!” chant. Things are trending in the wrong direction. But @the1andonly3003 is right, nothing like a nice lake breeze on a clear night at Soldier Field.
 

the1andonly3003

New Member
Jul 15, 2005
4,371
Chicago
This is highly selective endpoints, but since the first 11 minutes against the Revolution in their very first match, the Chicago Fire have scored 2 goals while conceding 14.

The good news is that the Chicago might be getting another soccer-specific stadium.

View: https://twitter.com/chicagobears/status/1405596779291230210
well, Soldier Field could become soccer specific? The announced attendance last night was 5k in a 60k+ seater? great for social distancing!
 

67YAZ

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Dec 1, 2000
8,729
well, Soldier Field could become soccer specific? The announced attendance last night was 5k in a 60k+ seater? great for social distancing!
They’d have plenty of room to move the Illinois Soccer Hall of Fame up from Bridgeview and give Brian McBride 10,000 glorious square feet of exhibit space.
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
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Dec 15, 2002
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First start, first goal for Quinn Sullivan ('04!), and what a goal:

View: https://twitter.com/MattDoyle76/status/1408948215236411398


2021 has been going really well for Gianluca Busio. He's been extremely influential every week. He's been heavily linked with a move to Sassuolo, though there are likely other bidders. The price is going up, because it's becoming increasingly clear that he has turned a serious corner, and he only turned 19 last month.

View: https://twitter.com/BrianSciaretta/status/1408933805575000064
 

67YAZ

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Dec 1, 2000
8,729
Sorry to all of you who watch Chicago-Cincy midweek, but Fire-Union was a 3-3 banger with some wild goals. At this point, I’ll take a point and a match that doesn’t make me want to light my screen on fire as a win.
 

ninjacornelius

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Aug 18, 2005
584
Austin, TX
Another goalless draw for Austin FC last night. For those keeping track, Austin's scored exactly one (1) goal in their past 713 minutes played. Thanks to Chicago's offensive explosion this past weekend, Austin now has the fewest goals in the league. A half-assed fbref search tells me that the lowest-scoring MLS team in history was 2013 DC United, which scored 0.64 goals per game and finished 33 points outside of the playoffs. As of now, Austin is scoring 0.55 goals per game. I'm almost impressed by the offensive futility on display.
 

Senator Donut

post-Domer
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Apr 21, 2010
5,500
Another goalless draw for Austin FC last night. For those keeping track, Austin's scored exactly one (1) goal in their past 713 minutes played. Thanks to Chicago's offensive explosion this past weekend, Austin now has the fewest goals in the league. A half-assed fbref search tells me that the lowest-scoring MLS team in history was 2013 DC United, which scored 0.64 goals per game and finished 33 points outside of the playoffs. As of now, Austin is scoring 0.55 goals per game. I'm almost impressed by the offensive futility on display.
FCC scored 12 goals in 23 games last season, so they have the crown at 0.52 goals per game. I know this because I did this same research before Chicago’s offensive explosion.
 

Section30

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Aug 2, 2010
1,260
Portland OR
Timbers went down 1-0 after 90 seconds to Minn. on Saturday. The game was pushed back 1+1/2 hours. It was still 106 degrees on the artificial pitch at 8pm.

I'm still feeling the aftereffects from attending the game today. Stayed home from work to recover as we will reach 111 to115 today.
 

ninjacornelius

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Aug 18, 2005
584
Austin, TX
FCC scored 12 goals in 23 games last season, so they have the crown at 0.52 goals per game. I know this because I did this same research before Chicago’s offensive explosion.
Yeah, I should’ve specified that I was only looking at non-shortened seasons. 2020 created some really wacky stats across the league.
 

ninjacornelius

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Aug 18, 2005
584
Austin, TX
Timbers went down 1-0 after 90 seconds to Minn. on Saturday. The game was pushed back 1+1/2 hours. It was still 106 degrees on the artificial pitch at 8pm.

I'm still feeling the aftereffects from attending the game today. Stayed home from work to recover as we will reach 111 to115 today.
I watched the second half of this match and for a neutral it was fun as hell, but I have no idea how nobody fainted from playing on that turf. Even on TV it looked physically painful for everyone involved.
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
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Dec 15, 2002
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I watched the second half of this match and for a neutral it was fun as hell, but I have no idea how nobody fainted from playing on that turf. Even on TV it looked physically painful for everyone involved.
Crazy conditions, and it's worth keeping stuff like this in the back of one's mind. There's a reason why American players have a reputation for fitness in Europe, and there's also a reason why sometimes players say training in MLS isn't as intense. Euros have a meltdown when the game temperature is >75 F and the "long journey" from a place like Southampton to Newcastle is basically a local derby in the US (shorter than literally every trip some MLS teams make!)

After a trip/game like that, how could Portland or Minnesota possibly go as hard in training as PSV Eindhoven in March?
 

DJnVa

Dorito Dawg
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Dec 16, 2010
53,840
Another goalless draw for Austin FC last night. For those keeping track, Austin's scored exactly one (1) goal in their past 713 minutes played. Thanks to Chicago's offensive explosion this past weekend, Austin now has the fewest goals in the league. A half-assed fbref search tells me that the lowest-scoring MLS team in history was 2013 DC United, which scored 0.64 goals per game and finished 33 points outside of the playoffs. As of now, Austin is scoring 0.55 goals per game. I'm almost impressed by the offensive futility on display.
Yeah, but I *love* their kits.
 

Senator Donut

post-Domer
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Apr 21, 2010
5,500
Yeah, but I *love* their kits.
Sports leagues, but especially MLS, need more teams wearing green. At one point, 30% of the league had green as a primary color (Galaxy, Mutiny, and Rapids) but all those clubs rebranded. Until Austin we only had Portland and kind of Seattle.

In England, not many sides wear green. Norwich yo-yos in and out of the top flight, but you otherwise rarely see that color in the EPL. It does seem to be more common elsewhere in Europe (e.g. Betis, Wolfsburg, Sassuolo, Ste. Etienne)
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
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Sports leagues, but especially MLS, need more teams wearing green. At one point, 30% of the league had green as a primary color (Galaxy, Mutiny, and Rapids) but all those clubs rebranded. Until Austin we only had Portland and kind of Seattle.

In England, not many sides wear green. Norwich yo-yos in and out of the top flight, but you otherwise rarely see that color in the EPL. It does seem to be more common elsewhere in Europe (e.g. Betis, Wolfsburg, Sassuolo, Ste. Etienne)
Distinctive uniforms are good, which gives me another opening to call Inter Miami dumb for picking pink and then being chickenshit about using pink in their jerseys.
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
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San Jose fired their GM, Jesse Fioranelli. I thought this was interesting:

View: https://twitter.com/pkedit/status/1409995640386428933


External hires for this role are tricky! #6 is Ernst Tanner (Philly) and #13 is Kevin Thelwell (NYRB). The rest of the teams (MTL, SJ, CIN, DAL, VAN, and CHI) are all different flavors of pretty bad right now, and none of them are new this season.
 

Senator Donut

post-Domer
SoSH Member
Apr 21, 2010
5,500
Another goalless draw for Austin FC last night. For those keeping track, Austin's scored exactly one (1) goal in their past 713 minutes played. Thanks to Chicago's offensive explosion this past weekend, Austin now has the fewest goals in the league. A half-assed fbref search tells me that the lowest-scoring MLS team in history was 2013 DC United, which scored 0.64 goals per game and finished 33 points outside of the playoffs. As of now, Austin is scoring 0.55 goals per game. I'm almost impressed by the offensive futility on display.
And it feels like they're creating chances, just no ability to finish.
Austin seems have figured it out. They have four on the board right now against Portland and they’ve thoroughly dominated the last half hour or so that I’ve watched.
 

ninjacornelius

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Aug 18, 2005
584
Austin, TX
You can tell from the atmosphere in this short clip that upon entering the league, Austin immediately became the biggest club in Texas from an off-the-field perspective.
It's a pretty low bar to clear, but I agree. It's a market that is perfect for MLS, and the team arrived at the perfect time. The way things are going, they'll be considered in the very top tier of MLS culture very soon.
 

Awesome Fossum

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Jul 20, 2005
3,894
Austin, TX
This is probably naive, but I know Austin's supporters are going to place a lot of emphasis on the Texas rivalry games -- maybe that helps generate some buzz in those markets as well?
 

ThePrideofShiner

Crests prematurely
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Jul 16, 2005
10,687
Washington
I've always liked FC Dallas and they have generally always put forth a competitive team, but man is their stadium in a stupid spot. So difficult to get to.
 

ninjacornelius

Member
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Aug 18, 2005
584
Austin, TX
This is probably naive, but I know Austin's supporters are going to place a lot of emphasis on the Texas rivalry games -- maybe that helps generate some buzz in those markets as well?
I think that this is possible, if only because the Austin supporter’s groups can provide a road map of what solid fan leadership looks like. They’ve built a soccer culture out of absolutely nothing, and there’s no reason why other teams can’t follow suit.
 

67YAZ

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Dec 1, 2000
8,729
Speaking of poor supporter cultures, Atlanta United come to Chicago tonight. No limits on Solider Field attendance! But uh…is going to be about 90 with 80% humidity at kick off. Not a nice night.
 

67YAZ

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Dec 1, 2000
8,729
Tyler Wolff getting his first career start against the Fire tonight. Nice touch.

Wicky rolling out a 3-3-2-2 kind of formation here. I’m worried about how the wide spaces are going to be defended, in no small part because Johnny Bornstein is on the left side of the back 3. I don’t think that passes as real cover for the space behind Navarro.
 

67YAZ

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Dec 1, 2000
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Aliseda!!! A goal from open play - actual intentional build up play, too!
 

67YAZ

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Dec 1, 2000
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Aliseda does the double inside the first half!

for the squad leading MLS in possession, Atlanta have been super sloppy tonight.
 

ekim colorwaterpit

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Jul 21, 2005
1,242
Minneapolis, MN
I took my son to his first MLS game yesterday. (MN United vs. San Jose) and it was an absolute blast. What a great atmosphere. I think we both enjoyed it more than the baseball and basketball games we have been to.
 

OCST

Sunny von Bulow
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Jan 10, 2004
24,483
The 718
Sports leagues, but especially MLS, need more teams wearing green. At one point, 30% of the league had green as a primary color (Galaxy, Mutiny, and Rapids) but all those clubs rebranded. Until Austin we only had Portland and kind of Seattle.

In England, not many sides wear green. Norwich yo-yos in and out of the top flight, but you otherwise rarely see that color in the EPL. It does seem to be more common elsewhere in Europe (e.g. Betis, Wolfsburg, Sassuolo, Ste. Etienne)
Celtic of course
 

67YAZ

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Dec 1, 2000
8,729
The Fanbulance is a cheesy pre-game tailgate vehicle/hang out for the Section 8 Fire supporters, the biggest and most active fan club.

Last year, the Mansueto and his new team screwed up by trying to marginalize Section 8 and start a new team-backed supporters club. It was a sled-inflicted wound that the Fire have been trying to recover from.

well, their brand new team President just shelled out $2k toward the $5k the Fanbulance Needs in repairs. It’s been amazing to watch Mansueto make so many mistakes early on and then work to reserves those quickly.

 

Dummy Hoy

Angry Pissbum
SoSH Member
Jul 22, 2006
8,232
Falmouth
Little help here guys-

I don’t follow MLS at all. That said, I’d like to take in a Revs game with a friend- who should I go see? From skimming things the Orlando City match looks like it could be a really good (and exciting) game, but I’m primarily interested in seeing individual players. Who are the guys I should be looking to see live before they go onto bigger and better things?

edit: Pepi and Cowell were my first two thoughts but neither will be in Foxboro this year
 

ThePrideofShiner

Crests prematurely
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Jul 16, 2005
10,687
Washington
Daryl Dike does play for Orlando, so that could be fun. The Union match should be a good one as well. The Revs don't have a ton of interesting home games remaining.
 

Titans Bastard

has sunil gulati in his sights
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Dec 15, 2002
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Little help here guys-

I don’t follow MLS at all. That said, I’d like to take in a Revs game with a friend- who should I go see? From skimming things the Orlando City match looks like it could be a really good (and exciting) game, but I’m primarily interested in seeing individual players. Who are the guys I should be looking to see live before they go onto bigger and better things?

edit: Pepi and Cowell were my first two thoughts but neither will be in Foxboro this year
Okay, so if the focus is on upwardly mobile young prospects, I'd consider the DC United game on 8/18. Kevin Paredes (winger/LWB) and Moses Nyeman (CM) are both 18 year old prospects who are rated near the top of their specific age group, which is shaping up to be one of the strongest+deepest prospect cohorts in US men's history (the aforementioned Pepi and Cowell are also part of this group). Since the bell finally tolled for BennyBall last year, DCU is actually playing better soccer under their new manager as well.

There's a reasonable chance that Dike will be gone by the time Orlando shows up in September, anyway.

The backup option would be vs. Philly on 8/8. Leon Flach is a German-American who was acquired cheaply from St. Pauli and has been unexpectedly very strong in the midfield, and has entered the periphery of the USMNT #6 discussion. They also have a variety of young players who rotate into the squad but it's hard to predict who may or may not play. Quinn Sullivan (17) scored an epic bike in his first start lately, and Jack McGlynn and Paxten Aaronson (Brenden's younger brother) are both rated highly by the organization.

It's too bad that there aren't any home games vs. NYRB (Caden Clark).
 

Dummy Hoy

Angry Pissbum
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Jul 22, 2006
8,232
Falmouth
Thanks TB. I forgot the little Aaronson played for Philly, that game is a good call. And I think 8/18 would work perfectly…maybe I’ll make a couple of games.
 

67YAZ

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Dec 1, 2000
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Right. Here's the national broadcast slate.

I'm teaching tonight, but am on break now so I checked the updates...and yeah, Orlando are not as sloppy with the ball as Atlanta. Plus, Wicky rolled out the same line up & shape as the last match, so the novelty is gone. Orlando had video to study. Maybe Wicky has some halftime adjustments? Please?