All Entries Tagged With: "MLS"
Why Is MLS Sides Losing To Big Teams Good? Humble Pie.
By Andrew Villegas People looking to glean some sort of noble truth about the MLS by how it performs against heavyweights in their preseason are often met with a scoff and a few spoken caveats: It’s preseason, and the players have come a long way – often just returning back to playing form – for [...]
Youth academies could kindle burn if Designated Player signings not stoking MLS fire
By Andrew Villegas If Mexico’s U-17 World Cup win this week has shown us anything, it’s that the gap between U.S. Soccer and FMF development has widened into a gulf. In that tournament, the U.S. lost to Uzbekistan in the group stage after beating the Czech [...]
Gold Cup 2011: Asleep At the Wheel: Americans Hindered By Lack of Rest
By Andrew Villegas Americans playing in Europe have never had more luck, chances or playing time in Europe, perhaps, than they’ve had this past year. And they look it. They’re tired and USMNT supporters hold their breath that every run by Clint Dempsey and every clearance by Steve Cherundulo will finally fully empty the tank [...]
Which MLS Player Will Have the Best Gold Cup 2011 ?
By Andrew Villegas MLS clubs are well represented on the rosters of the nations participating in this summer’s Gold Cup (37 players total), and with good reason. National team managers are recognizing and tapping a growing pool of player talent in the United States’ domestic league to fill their Gold Cup teams despite the league’s reputation [...]
Bob Bradley: The Riverboat Gambler?? Thoughts on the Gold Cup Roster
By Neil W. Blackmon First thought on the US Gold Cup team? Bob Bradley…riverboat gambler? What happened to the guy who started Ricardo Clark in the biggest match he ever managed? Yesterday’s media conference call was easily the most fascinating of the long-tenured USMNT manager’s career, as he fielded all manner of questions in the [...]
Create Your Own MLS Salary Adventure!
By Andrew Villegas Every year, we working stiffs await with eager anticipation the day when MLS salaries are released. We crunch numbers and either feel good or bad about how much money professional soccer players in America make. Also we feel better or worse about how much money we make ourselves. With that in mind, below [...]
Will MLS Ever Have Its Own Clasicos ? After A Month of Barca-Real: We Wonder Aloud
By Andrew Villegas Soccer fans, heave a collective sigh of relief – no pun intended. So much theater, so much wrestling, so much on the line, so much falling over coupled with ankle grabbing and head embracing — the four Clásicos are finally over. Now back to football. Is there so much on the line (millions [...]
Latest Wave of Injuries Just MLS Growing Pains
By Andrew Villegas In America, we’re constantly splashed by images flying off the screen of men in plastic armor beating up other men in plastic armor. The two fight over an oblong ball that they throw from end to end, smashing, clothes-lining, up-ending each other in the process. They pay in bone breaks, brain-damage and [...]
How “Silent Stan” Kroenke’s Arsenal Takeover Benefits MLS
By Andrew Villegas If MLS is to become a global brand, then this week’s announcement that Stan Kroenke will take a controlling stake in Arsenal must have many mouths at MLS headquarters agape in anticipation. Kroenke – that Missouri businessman and part heir to the Wal-Mart family fortune – has a reputation, one that almost [...]
The Dilution Delusion: MLS Expansion
By Andrew Villegas Even the most casual followers of soccer around country have heard this tune before: Startup sports league with huge eyes identifies niche, sees potential for growth, money, more TV coverage, better press and eventually a multi-tiered youth academy system that feeds a multi-tiered league system. Glory, praise and football — all with Pele. [...]
