Let's just say, I find it odd. What's "it?" Nothing in particular, just a lot of things that have occurred in and around MLS since we kicked off in April. And that's how we'll begin this week's First XI, heading into our 10th All-Star break, with a look at some of the oddities that have come out of the pre-ASB portion of the season.
11. Revs best-ever start to a season. Aren't the Revolution under Steve Nicol supposed to be the team that starts slow, feels its way through the early portion of the schedule, then comes on like a freight train down the stretch? Well, that's the way Nicol's teams have done it for years. So who'd have thought the Revs, basically the same team that sauntered their way through the 2004 regular season, would begin 2005 with an 11-game unbeaten streak? I guess the answer to that question would be the Revs and Nicol. Watch out for this team the rest of the way. Not only do they have loads of talent, especially in midfield and up front, they also seem to possess the magic to pull out late results. They have the look of a team that's destined to win its first ever MLS Cup.
10. Rongen in, Rongen out. There was no bigger shock than when Chivas USA, supposedly the first Spanish-first soccer club in the U.S., hired Dutchman Thomas Rongen to be its first head coach. One had to figure that C-USA had a long-term plan with Thomas. I mean, at least you figured they'd give him time to learn the language. Alas, after a 1-8-1 start, Rongen was sacked. It was the shortest tenure for an MLS coach since Eddie Firmani was canned by the original MetroStars after eight games back in 1996.
9. Big winners, big losers. No one has won more games to date than the Chicago Fire, who have 11 Ws heading into the break. What's odd, however, is that when the Fire lose, they tend to lose big. Chicago has lost by three goals, three times to three different teams. The Fire certainly have to be the most revamped team in league history, as they've added (by my count) 15 new players to their roster since 2004. Another Chicago oddity is that they've gotten little production from high-profile signings like Andy Herron and Lubos Reiter and huge production from twin third-rounders Gonzalo Segares and Chris Rolfe.
8. Clint breaks free. Clint Mathis gave us more reason to wonder how he ever went 22 regular-season MLS games without scoring goals. How's that? Well, when he finally broke free for his first two goals, both came on free kicks (once Clint's trademark). It was not that hard to see why he wasn't scoring from open play, but it was almost incomprehensible that he could not longer strike a quality free kick. He's back on track.
7. L.A. road woes. That Home Depot Center turf sure is nice, isn't it? The Galaxy certainly must think so. Steve Sampson's boys have yet to win a game on any other surface this year. the Galaxy have company in the winless on the road category as expansionites RSL and Chivas, and Columbus also have goose eggs away.
6. Metro none or a ton. The MetroStars played 16 games without scoring one goal. Huh? What I'm saying is that for their first 16 games this season, the MetroStars scored either zero, or two or more, goals in every game this season. When they finally did score one, it was in a 1-1 home tie with Colorado.
5. Chivas USA hammers RSL. Chivas USA had given up a five-spot twice but did not look like a team that was ever going to hit the net that many times in a game. Yet on July 9, there they were, pinning five big ones on their expansion brethren Real Salt Lake. Chivas followed that big effort up with a zero vs. the Galaxy and a gritty 1-0 win against the Revs (another didn't-see-that-coming moment). What's in store for the rest of the season?
4. RSL hammers Dallas. Goals have not come easily for Salt Lake. They've been shut out eight times through their first 19 games. And since most of their wins have been of the grind-it-out variety, it was odd to see RSL put a big 3-zip on FC Dallas last week. Is it a sign that Clint and Co. are going to make a playoff push? Or was it simply that FCD took a night off a little before the break?
3. Esky no. In 2004, there was no more promising young striker in the league than Alecko Eskandarian. With an intense hunger in the box and a left foot that can rip a ball like no one's business, Esky broke out a year ago for 10 regular-season goals and four more in the playoffs. This year, he's battled some injuries, but also seems a bit snake-bit around the box. With D.C. United full of weapons like Christian Gomez, Jaime Moreno, and now it appears Freddy Adu, one has to wonder if Esky becomes trade bait soon.
2. Don't ignore the supplemental guys. The team that used to be the Dallas Burn have gotten five goals out of two Supplemental Draft picks. That would be Abe Thompson, who's got three goals, and Aaron Pitchkolan, who's got two. Nice work by Colin Clarke and his staff. Also, kudos to the Columbus Crew's now-departed coach Greg Andrulis for uncovering recent starter Eric Vasquez and defender Ryan Kelly in the Supplemental Draft. Just goes to show you what seems like a formality can be a boon to teams.
1. Midfielders fire. And finally, what's up with the MLS shots leaders list? The top three shot takers in MLS are all midfielders. That would be Ronnie O'Brien of FC Dallas with 51, Kansas City's Chris Klein with 49 and Guillermo Ramirez (Galaxy) with 47. The next four players on that list are forwards. It would be odd if one of the forwards doesn't top that list by season's end.
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.
