MLS 2018: More Barco Than Bite

Titans Bastard

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Holy shit Wayne Rooney.

DCU sent everyone up for a corner in the 6th minute of stoppage time including their keeper. Orlando cleared and had a chance at the empty net. Rooney somehow caught up with attacker, made a clean tackle, got up, then hit a huge diagonal switch to DC's shortest player Luciano Acosta, who headed it home for a hat trick and the 3-2 win.
 

robssecondjob

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That one gets sent to all of my youth players:

1. Great soccer awareness in to reacting to the clearance.
2. 100% effort tracking back. Easily could have tracked back 10 yards and given up, didn't.
3. Great line to intercept.
4. Clean, textbook tackle.
5. Quick awareness that he could save the ball and start an attack.
6. Gets his feet set under him before the cross and gets his head up.
7. That switch/cross.

For 15 seconds Wayne Rooney was the best soccer player on the planet.
 

OCST

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That one gets sent to all of my youth players:

1. Great soccer awareness in to reacting to the clearance.
2. 100% effort tracking back. Easily could have tracked back 10 yards and given up, didn't.
3. Great line to intercept.
4. Clean, textbook tackle.
5. Quick awareness that he could save the ball and start an attack.
6. Gets his feet set under him before the cross and gets his head up.
7. That switch/cross.

For 15 seconds Wayne Rooney was the best soccer player on the planet.
He's capable of moments of absolute brilliance like this. He did it several times last year with Everton.

He also has slowed considerably, can't keep it going for 90 minutes, lacks a true position, and gets overrun in midfield by more dynamic players.

This was Everton's dilemma last year. On the whole, I'm glad he left. Seeing clips like this is like being suddenly reminded of the one fantastic weekend away with the girl you left because it just wasn't working anymore.
 

Awesome Fossum

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Austin City Council votes in favor of authorizing negotiation and execution of agreements with Precourt for constructing a stadium in time for the 2021 season. Happened earlier today.

My Twitter feed tells me that this is the vote that counts -- Austin is getting the Crew, for real.
 

Titans Bastard

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Austin City Council votes in favor of authorizing negotiation and execution of agreements with Precourt for constructing a stadium in time for the 2021 season. Happened earlier today.

My Twitter feed tells me that this is the vote that counts -- Austin is getting the Crew, for real.
This is a travesty and it makes me sad.
 

Titans Bastard

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Good read here, catching up with Caleb Porter. He seems more introspective than he was in years past.

This logo is making the rounds after it was trademarked by a firm related to Beckham's expansion bid. (cc: @dirtynine) I love adding pink to the MLS color palette and it's a sharp-looking crest. If this is indeed the logo, it confirms one of the rumored names — Inter Miami. Atletico Miami was reportedly also considered. I guess we'll just have to see.

 

Titans Bastard

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Josef Martinez just tied the single-season scoring record with his 27th of the season against Columbus. Atlanta still has 9.5 games left to play.
 

Titans Bastard

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DC fairly comprehensively beat the Revs for their third win in eight days. Rooney has been fantastic so far. DCU are actually...fun to watch, which is weird, and now they are just two points behind New England and five points behind Montreal. They have four games in hand on the Impact, too.

The Revs' slide continues. Mathematically they are far from eliminated, but it sure doesn't feel like a late season renaissance is coming.

It's starting to look increasingly possible that Philly and DC will take the #5 and #6 playoff slots in the East.
 

Titans Bastard

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Big game tonight: NYCFC vs. NYRB. Beyond the rivalry aspect, they are #3 and #2 respectively in the Supporters Shield standings, just behind Atlanta.

Unlike in previous years, NYCFC has still been pretty solid when David Villa has been injured...but it's always good to have him back.
 

Titans Bastard

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BWP with his usual goal against NYCFC.

Some Dude Eloi Amagat, a 33 year old signing from the Spanish lower divisions, gets a deserved straight red on his debut.
 

Titans Bastard

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The detestable Anthony Precourt announced the branding for his proposed Austin team, which looks ever more likely to happen.

"Austin FC", which is tremendously boring and lame.


This team is going to be so, so hate-able. I'm someone who has always enjoyed the growth of the league and cheered its successes, but I'll be actively rooting for this team to fail off the field.
 

OCST

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Going to NYRB - DCU on Sunday night - arranged by NYC Evertonians because of the Rooney interest. Looking forward to it. Will report.
 

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Wow, seeing Toyota Park is wild after watching games more on the New MLS!! side of the fence.

It’s like a tomb out there. Hell, even Gillette gives better TV atmosphere for the Revs, although I am sure the cavernous emptiness is worse live.
 

OCST

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Wow, seeing Toyota Park is wild after watching games more on the New MLS!! side of the fence.

It’s like a tomb out there. Hell, even Gillette gives better TV atmosphere for the Revs, although I am sure the cavernous emptiness is worse live.
It’s a problem for MLS and it’s a sham because the original franchises in big markets did the tough work on lean budgets to keep the league alive and build interest.

My unscientific guess for the cause of this problem is that the low viability of the MLS project at the outset caused teams either to play in big football stadiums, which sucks, or get undesirable far-away land parcels for their own parks.
 

Titans Bastard

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The Fire are a trainwreck right now. They've mostly sucked for years, the FO has cultivated a very poor relationship with the supporters groups, everyone hates the owner, and the stadium is in a very inconvenient location. This season has been particularly demoralizing because they were unexpectedly good in 2017, then they sold key attacker David Accam to Philly and failed to address a number of glaring roster needs.

It's gotten to the point that I am wondering about this USL Chicago in 2021 effort, which has weirdly ambitious stadium plans (Lincoln Park Yards) and big-money owners (Tom Ricketts of the Cubs). If they pull off a successful launch in that location, they're going to feel an awful lot like a backup plan for MLS in Chicago.

OCST is absolutely right about a lot of the old clubs. Only one of the 1996/1998 clubs is in the top ten in attendance (LA Galaxy). The only team that has successfully rejuvenated themselves from moribund status is KC, which required a new owner, new stadium, and new name. A lot of the clubs with smaller attendances are in large media markets like Chicago, Boston, DC, Dallas, Houston, and Philly. I think the league sees this as a big concern.
 

Titans Bastard

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Josef Martinez is going for the MLS single-season goals record tonight against that soft, soft Orlando defense.
 

ThePrideofShiner

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Big match in Portland tonight. The Sounders have done their annual rise from the dead trick and could pass Portland in the standings with a win.
 

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It’s a problem for MLS and it’s a sham because the original franchises in big markets did the tough work on lean budgets to keep the league alive and build interest.

My unscientific guess for the cause of this problem is that the low viability of the MLS project at the outset caused teams either to play in big football stadiums, which sucks, or get undesirable far-away land parcels for their own parks.
I think it’s more of the former than the latter. All three Cascadia expansion teams play in stadia purpose-built for sports other than soccer and on artificial turf, and yet they are still (rightfully) considered model clubs for the rest of the league. The issue of exurban stadiums, however, is a bigger deal and is wrecking attendance in New England and Chicago. (I have no idea how Kansas City makes it work.) Weeknight matches, as discussed upthread, are particularly brutal as the drive from downtown to stadium can approach two hours.
 

Titans Bastard

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I think it’s more of the former than the latter. All three Cascadia expansion teams play in stadia purpose-built for sports other than soccer and on artificial turf, and yet they are still (rightfully) considered model clubs for the rest of the league. The issue of exurban stadiums, however, is a bigger deal and is wrecking attendance in New England and Chicago. (I have no idea how Kansas City makes it work.) Weeknight matches, as discussed upthread, are particularly brutal as the drive from downtown to stadium can approach two hours.
A downtown stadium is much better than Bridgeview/Foxborough, but I think it's a mistake to think a downtown stadium alone would save these clubs from the shroud of apathy and irrelevance in which they currently reside.

The problem is that they have bad owners. The Rapids have a nice little stadium that's not downtown but is far more central than Chicago or NE. They have crap attendance that's even worse than the Revs because they owner is Stan Kroenke, who sucks as much as Kraft and Hauptman.

Getting a good stadium built in a good location isn't easy for the Fire or the Revs for a variety of reasons, but a good owner might have gotten it done in Boston or Somerville or Revere when opportunities have come up and a good owner in Chicago at least would have prevented the cratering that we're seeing right now because the club can't fill glaring holes despite having multiple transfer windows.

Maybe someday Hauptman or a different-out-of-towner who buys the Fire will decide to move the club and the league will dutifully cite "business metrics" like they're doing with the Crew, but the fundamental problem is some of the owners are too cheap, too apathetic, and/or too unambitious for their clubs to succeed.
 

Titans Bastard

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LAFC have sold their captain Laurent Ciman to Dijon for $500k. From a financial standpoint, that's tidy business for a 33 year old would have been out of contract in four months. From an on-the-field standpoint, it's risky. Danilo Silva should be a solid replacement, but Dejan Jakovic is a pretty weak #3 center back if anything happens.

In the East tonight, NYRB heavily rotated their squad but still pulled out an ugly win over Houston. This puts them one point ahead of Atlanta for the Supporters Shield, though ATL has a game in hand. Philly won their fourth game in a row at DC. Their playoff chances have really solidified in the last month and now even surpassing the Crew doesn't seem out of reach.
 

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Good read here, catching up with Caleb Porter. He seems more introspective than he was in years past.

This logo is making the rounds after it was trademarked by a firm related to Beckham's expansion bid. (cc: @dirtynine) I love adding pink to the MLS color palette and it's a sharp-looking crest. If this is indeed the logo, it confirms one of the rumored names — Inter Miami. Atletico Miami was reportedly also considered. I guess we'll just have to see.

They went with Club Internacional de Futbol Miami. Probably will be called Inter, but Club Miami would be amazing. Like the name of the best terrible 90s MTV dance show
 

Titans Bastard

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They went with Club Internacional de Futbol Miami. Probably will be called Inter, but Club Miami would be amazing. Like the name of the best terrible 90s MTV dance show
That's a clunky name, but I do enjoy the logo and color scheme.
 

Titans Bastard

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There's only been a very small number of games this week due to the international break, but the Revs got a win midweek! On the road! Against NYCFC! Most have ruled New England out of the playoffs not because they are impossibly behind in the standings, but because they have been so unconvincing (this was their first win in ten games). Can there be a sudden transformation of form? Maybe, although there are some tough games on the schedule.

NYCFC actually has bad in bad form lately; in two home games this week they picked up only one point, against DC. They have just one win in their last eight and the Supporters Shield now looks like a two-horse race between Atlanta and NYRB.

From a development perspective, it's been good to see a bunch of young players get their first action of the season over the last week or two. Isaac Angking ('00) finally debuted for the Revs after missing much of the season with some sort of illness. James Sands ('00) has gotten a few starts for NYCFC now. Cole Bassett ('01) debuted for the Rapids and George Bello ('02) — the emerging great hope at left back — saw his first MLS action at age 16. Gianluca Busio ('02) has been working his way increasingly into SKC's rotation. In the non-teenage division, Portland even gave Jeremy Ebobisse ('97) a start!
 

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In the non-teenage division, Portland even gave Jeremy Ebobisse ('97) a start!
And he played REALLY well. Had one goal called offside (that was really close in the replays I saw), and scored one later. Had great hold up play all night, and made dangerous off the ball runs others. It was great to see. I (and a bunch of other Timbers fans) had been getting frustrated with him not playing.
 

Titans Bastard

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Sigi out. The Galaxy are bad and look like they're going to miss the playoffs. They have pieces that don't fit together and a defense that is plain bad. I think Sigi is past his sell-by date in this league, but the organization is fooling themselves if they think the real problem isn't their FO.
 

Pesky Pole

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The Union finally got the silky scoring striker they’ve needed for 5 years....oh wait, instead they got a snake with arms and legs and a Mohawk. Meet Phang. Does anyone have a mongoose I can borrow?

 

Senator Donut

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Sigi out. The Galaxy are bad and look like they're going to miss the playoffs. They have pieces that don't fit together and a defense that is plain bad. I think Sigi is past his sell-by date in this league, but the organization is fooling themselves if they think the real problem isn't their FO.
At one point Smid had personell control in LA (I’m not sure when we lost the GM title) so he was part of that mess too.
 

Titans Bastard

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At one point Smid had personell control in LA (I’m not sure when we lost the GM title) so he was part of that mess too.
That's true, but this FO has been making these mistakes for a while now. I thought Schmid had reached questionable retread status when they hired him, but I can also see the case for him at the time. Curt Onalfo, though? That's indefensible and the FO made that choice. We'd also be remiss if we didn't mention the academy, which has been spectacularly unproductive despite LA's location in the most productive metro area in the country.

It's good that LAG has some local competition to keep them honest.
 

Titans Bastard

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Outrageous goal for Zlatan tonight.


It's going to be fun watching him rip LAG a new one when they inevitably miss the playoffs.
 

Kliq

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That goal was insane. I’ve never seen someone score like that.
 

ThePrideofShiner

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The Sounders keep rolling, winning their ninth in a row to move into a tie for fifth in the West. Pretty crazy to consider where they are compared to earlier in the season.
 

Mugsy's Jock

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I went to the LAFC/Revs game last night, and can't praise the Banc of California stadium and game operations there enough. It's a beautiful, perfect-sized venue with great sight lines, broad concourses, excellent not-too-badly-priced food, and a raucous good-natured crowd. Even went to the game via the Metro, which worked a lot more smoothly than I'd anticipated.

Best of all, there was an autograph table pre-game manned by Manny Mota and... NOMAR! When I saw him sitting there, I gasped like a little girl (sorry for politically incorrect phrasing, but go with me)... and when I made it through the line to shake his hand and get a picture I may or may not have said "I just loved watching you hit line drive after fucking line drive". Apologies to all children in the area, but again, go with me.

Now that I'm a most-of-the-time LA resident I need one LA team to root for, and this is it. If any SoSHers find yourself out here and there's a game at BoC, I really recommend it. And PM me.

PS. It was a good game too -- Revs secured a 1-1 tie late.
 

SocrManiac

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That goal was insane. I’ve never seen someone score like that.
Goal compilation videos are fairly awful in general, but I'd suggest watching one of his. He's scored some spectacular goals using similar techniques (check out Number 9 in particular here). He credits martial arts training for developing that skill set.
 

Titans Bastard

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Mikael Stahre is the third firing and fifth managerial departure of the season. No surprise at all, as the Quakes have been a directionless tire fire all year. Stahre was in the job for less than a year and the Quakes' FO deserves blame for bad signings, but there was no sense that Stahre was building anything.

 

Senator Donut

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Rallston’s men look impressive so far against ATL UTD! I’m glad he’s getting a shot at a manager job, as he was one of my favorite players to watch. Elsewhere out west, I’m hoping for a late Sounders winner to give me some more false hope about the Revs season.

I don’t really care about watching an exhibition involving Tigres and an MLS side literally worse than the Revs. However, I’m proud to point out New England remains the last MLS club to win a Concacaf trophy.
 

Senator Donut

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Of course, the 10-men Union score a stoppage time winner against the win streaking Sounders because why would we have nice things?
 

ThePrideofShiner

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Jesus Christ, the Sounders just shit the bed. They had a million chances to score early and didn't. They lost Ruidiaz to injury. Frei did a horrific pass that led to a goal in the 94th and Seattle up a man.

Shit. That's how you blow a playoff spot.
 

Titans Bastard

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Jesus Christ, the Sounders just shit the bed. They had a million chances to score early and didn't. They lost Ruidiaz to injury. Frei did a horrific pass that led to a goal in the 94th and Seattle up a man.

Shit. That's how you blow a playoff spot.
Maybe, but you honestly don't have to be great to snag 6th place in MLS, just mediocre. Mid-table teams are surrounded by others busy choking away opportunities. LAG is a tire fire, so I'd only be worried about the Whitecaps...but I don't have much faith in them to make up the four point gap.

IMO, it was a much bigger win for Philly than it was a big loss for Seattle. The Union have a tough schedule to close out the season, which they have to balance with the USOC final midweek next week. This balances out the crushing home loss to Montreal and gives them some real breathing room.

EDIT: And I just looked up Seattle's end-of-season schedule, which is a total dream. It can't get softer than this:

@ LAG
vs. COL
vs. HOU
@ ORL
@ HOU
vs SJ
 

Titans Bastard

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An all-time classic halftime manager interview with Gio Savarese:



Meanwhile the Revs tied the lowly Fire at home, which is another bad two points dropped. They need a miracle at this point.

NYCFC drew at Montreal. They've won one game in their last nine now and are in a real tailspin. It's still quite likely that they'll host a play-in game, but they need to sort out their form.

There are a couple of major Eastern Conference six-pointers next weekend. DC vs. Montreal is huge for the 6th spot. NYRB vs. Atlanta represents NYRB's big chance to narrow the gap in the Supporters Shield race to one point.
 

lostjumper

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I was at the Rev's game last night, such a disappointment. The Rev's controlled possession for 70% of the game, and should have put in more. The Fire were dangerous on the counter attack, but both the goals given up by the Rev's were terrible. One was an own goal by the left back, and the other was a terrible give away by the left back. It was a fun atmosphere though, had to be more than 20,000 people. Better than it's been the other times I've been there.
 

Titans Bastard

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I was at the Rev's game last night, such a disappointment. The Rev's controlled possession for 70% of the game, and should have put in more. The Fire were dangerous on the counter attack, but both the goals given up by the Rev's were terrible. One was an own goal by the left back, and the other was a terrible give away by the left back. It was a fun atmosphere though, had to be more than 20,000 people. Better than it's been the other times I've been there.
Revs always do seem to get their best crowds in September and October.

They just don't have the horses this year. I'm curious to see what, if anything, changes with Friedel having a full offseason and a year of experience with this group under his belt. He's not the GM, but I figure he has a better chance of influencing things in the FO than Heaps did.
 

Pesky Pole

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Another great result for the Union. They play their B team against Sporting KC (with an eye toward the US Open Cup final on Wednesday) and win 2-0. Jay Simpson with the brace.