In this week’s Like/Don’t Like, we highlight a forward coming good in MLS, a team somehow flying under the radar, and a new jersey that has people talking … for all the wrong reasons.
LIKE:
King Kenny: Very quietly, Vancouver DP Kenny Miller is stepping up. Although injuries have prevented him from making more than six league appearances this season, his five goals have been key, and four have come in winning efforts. And while his golazo last week in a comeback win over New England deserves praise, he’s also inching closer to averaging a goal every 90 minutes – not bad for a guy who has gotten so much stick since arriving in MLS.
TFC – get to the good parts: I’m glad that a winner emerged from the battle of the basement, aka Saturday's D.C. United-Toronto FC match. Of course, TFC get the boost of finally getting a win, while United fall further into the dumps.
HIGHLIGHTS: DC 1, TOR 2
Here’s something I’ve noticed this season with Toronto: Their games tend to be dull for long patches. But watching the highlights of their games? They are the most exciting team in MLS! Sure, many of the results go against them, but if we’re talking about highlight-worthy plays, TFC may be the most entertaining team in the league right now. Now, if they can just figure out how to be on the right side of that excitement more often…
Streaking Portland: Is it possible the Portland Timbers are still flying under the radar? They have lost one game this season, and are unbeaten in their last 13 league games, a club record.
They have work yet to do to match the MLS unbeaten mark of 19 games shared by the 2004-05 Columbus Crew and 2010 FC Dallas sides, but dismantling league leaders FC Dallas last weekend should be a good warm-up against a dangerous-yet-struggling LA Galaxy on Wednesday (10:30 pm ET, MLS LIVE). It looks like the sky is the limit for the Timbers at this point.
DON'T LIKE:
Hendry Thomas taking umbrage: I wouldn’t necessarily say new San Jose Earthquakes coach Mark Watson needed to kick the ball back into play in the second half against the Colorado Rapids last week, but Rapids midfielder Hendry Thomas really took issue with it, confronting Watson and nearly causing a fight.
Thomas claims Watson kicked the ball at him, and it was pretty close to him, but Thomas actually moved over to his left slightly to receive the ball. Thomas is a fiery character, but I’m not sure the coach’s kick was as big of a deal as the midfielder claimed.
About that new LA Galaxy third jersey: What’s great about the new jersey? A fan created it and the fans voted for it. And to be honest, I didn’t recoil as much as most people did when checking out the combination of the 1996 original and 2013 style.
I could even be persuaded that it may be so ugly it’s great at some point in the future. But the fatal flaw? The shoulder section that looks like it has been transplanted from a Mexican national team shirt. It just doesn’t look right.
Montreal’s costly loss: In MLS, we all know that one game doesn’t make a huge difference during the regular season, especially for a team in first place. But Montreal’s 2-0 loss to a reeling Columbus side could blow the Eastern Conference race wide open. Montreal are currently sitting just one point ahead of the Red Bulls, and although they have three games in hand on New York at the moment, more dropped points could keep the Impact from running away with the East.
What do you like? What do you, er, Don’t Like? Let us know in the comments below.
