As we come out of the All-Star break and head down the homestretch for the MLS season, First XI will turn back the clock and present an old-school format FXI ... a stream of conscience, what's on our mind list of what to watch as MLS Season 11 plays itself out, on the road to Frisco, Texas, for MLS Cup.
11. The New England Revolution will eventually wake up.
There is simply too much talent for the Revolution to be scuffling along on 28 points. Obviously, they've had some injury woes, and losing Clint Dempsey for the World Cup set them back, but for a team most picked as East champions before the season, they should be more than three points clear of being out of the playoffs. While they managed only draws against Chivas USA and Kansas City since the All-Star break, their long road odyssey is finally over and seven of their final 10 games are at home. There's their chance to push forward and secure the second home field slot in the East.
10. No one is out of the playoffs.
No team in the league is more than seven points out of the playoff race. In the East, no team is more than eight points out of second place. Buckle in for some battles the rest of the way. Just look at a team like Real Salt Lake, which needs to make up four points on Chivas USA in its final 10 games. By beating D.C. United just before the All-Star break, RSL proved it can take points from any team in the league. And don't think every team in the league is not using the 2005 Galaxy as their motivation to "just get in."
9. Richie Williams deserves coach of the year votes.
The Red Bulls have looked like a team the last month thanks to one of the greatest competitors the league has ever known. Williams got Amado Guevara back on the same page as his teammates. He's employed his personnel in the best possible formation. In a nutshell, he's made a team that looked like a joke the first half of the schedule into a group that will be a tough out the rest of the way. Incoming coach Bruce Arena owes him a big debt of gratitude. And Richie now moves to the must-interview list for all future coaching vacancies in the league.
8. This might be the best MVP race ever.
My inclination is always to give the MVP vote to the best player on the best team. But, what do I do when I look at D.C. United and see Jaime Moreno and Christian Gomez? How do I decide who is the better, more valuable player for that team? Moreno has better stats, but only by a slim margin, and Gomez always seems to be setting up Moreno. Then again, Moreno sets up Gomez, too. And what to make of Ante Razov, who's got 12 goals and 8 assists. Can he become the third member of the 15-15 club in league history? Only Jason Kreis (1999) and Diego Serna (2001) have reached those numbers. Kreis was the MVP, while Serna was nosed out for the award by Alex Pineda Chacon.
7. Worst to first is a thing of the past.
Remember when it seemed like going from worst to first in MLS was no big deal? Remember the 2000 Wizards? The 2001 Earthquakes? Well, if you don't count the Kings of Draws, the 2004 Crew, who won the Supporters Shield on 48 points, there hasn't been a worst-to-first team in MLS in five seasons. The league is simply not what it used to be in terms of quick-turnarounds, and more and more you see that the best teams, D.C. United and Dallas as examples, are the teams that build it up over two and three years.
6. It's make-or-break time for the Galaxy.
The last time a defending MLS Cup champ failed to make the playoffs was in 2000, when D.C. United, a team shredded by cap issues, finished at the bottom of the East after winning MLS Cup in 1999. Will the same thing happen to the Galaxy? If the Galaxy want to get themselves back in the hunt, they'll have to do it the hard way as after this home match against FC Dallas, they go right back on the road (after four in a row away from The Home Depot Center), and still have a game left against D.C. United before ending the season with a home-and-home set against FCD.
5. The 1998 Galaxy's record 68 points will not be broken.
As great as D.C. United has been this year, taking 46 points into the final third of the season, the '98 Galaxy's record of 68 points is safe. D.C. would have to win eight of its final 10 games down the stretch to better Octavio Zambrano's run-and-gun Galaxy. The thing I love about this United team is the way they bring it every night. But I expect in the heat of August, with first place in the East secure, Peter Nowak's boys will take their foot off the gas a bit to prepare for the playoffs. I know from talking to Ben Olsen a while back that D.C. has a bitter taste in their mouths from their failures in tournaments a year ago, and I expect their focus to be on winning trophies, not achieving a record number of regular-season points.
4. An all-Chivas USA rookie race.
Chivas USA went into the 2005 SuperDraft with only one pick in the first three rounds, and they traded the No. 1 overall pick to the Red Bulls, but it appears the top two candidates for Rookie of the Year wear red-and-white stripes. The front-runner for the award has to be versatile left-footer Jonathan Bornstein, a fourth-round pick, but veteran Jesse Marsch is on the record as saying that first-round pick Sacha Kljestan is the most complete rookie player he's ever played with.
3. Carey Talley's goal is one of the best ever.
There have been some great goals this season, no doubt. Many of them (remember Razov's ridiculous volley against the Galaxy? Youri Djorkaeff's free kick against D.C.?) weren't even Goals of the Week. But I am on the record this week saying there will not be a better goal this season than the one that Carey Talley hit against Chivas USA. That's a Goal of the Year anywhere.
2. Remember the date: October 14.
It's all set up. The final week of the regular season, every single game will have playoff implications. Book it. New England hosts Columbus, which will need a win to have a chance. New York hosts Kansas City with playoffs riding on the line for both clubs. Houston hosts Colorado, which will be trying to hold on to a spot. Los Angeles will need the full three points in its home match with FC Dallas. Supporters' Shield winners D.C. United will host a mathematically-alive Chicago Fire team. And Chivas USA will host RSL in a win-and-in match for both clubs. OK, maybe I've exaggerated a bit here. But it's shaping up.
1. Enjoyed the Show.
Finally, my favorite MLS All-Star Game ever was MLS vs. Chivas at The Home Depot Center. My second favorite ever was when MLS sent that team to play Real Madrid. The first one was a cool victory, the second one a humiliating loss. So, how cool to see the MLS boys put their best foot forward and beat Chelsea in Bridgeview, Ill? Sure, it was a friendly game and in the big picture of soccer it meant nothing (remember the MetroStars beating Sampdoria in '97?), but still, an MLS victory over an EPL opponent raised a few eyebrows at ESPN The Mag's editorial room.
Jeff Bradley is a senior writer for ESPN The Magazine. Send your comments and complaints (200 words or less, please) to Jeff at jbradleyespn2003@yahoo.com and he promises to read (but not respond to) all of them. The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author's, and not necessarily those of Major League Soccer or MLSnet.com.
