Sunday’s eight-and-a-half straight hours of playoff action certainly dragged at parts. (Who among us didn’t despair while Toronto FC vs. NYCFC slogged through the first 84 minutes?) And the actual on-field results yielded few surprises – just go to my colleague Andrew Wiebe’s column on how variously seeded teams should view their successes and failures on the day.
But what’s keeping things truly popcorn-worthy, headed into the second leg of the Conference Semifinals this weekend? A host of whiplash-inducing face and heel turns. Both on-and off-field drama has yielded a new crop of heroes and villains – well, okay, villains-lite, maybe — that are keeping things spicy, and maybe a little emotionally confusing, for some.
Lovable LA?
Just look at the LA Galaxy, who collectively, despite the lasting Narrative, have landed themselves in the Good Guy camp this fall. Sure — booo, hisssss, there are always going to be some who can’t stand the Galaxy’s flash and panache, and who will always nurse conspiracy theories around them reaching the stars.
Here’s the thing though – they’re winning by being flat-out good, their new retooled training and tactics paying off, with the team thriving thanks exactly to the players many doubted. Jelle Van Damme came into the league as a question mark, someone either destined for greatness or, well, otherwise.… And he’s handily proven to be arguably the best center back in the league, a master on the counter attack who can also contribute a much-needed, lovely assist.
And how about his other colleague at defense, Ashley Cole? No, he didn’t actually menace a pigeon in New York City, and yes, he’s almost quietly, under-the-radar fit right in. He’s mentioned beaches exactly once – in order to rightfully mock some of the peanut gallery’s thoughts – and put in 25 starts along the way.
Here’s where I should also shout out his American fan base, the #ColeMiners. See, he even has his own hashtag!
And no Robbie Keane starting? No problem – Giovani Dos Santos has easily taken over a winning role up top, racking up 14 goals and 12 assists over the regular season. How could you flat-out reject this success – and this smile (unless, say, you’re a Quakes fan)?
Then, of course, there’s Landon Donovan, who has managed to start four games since returning in the regular season, in a feat that shows his “retirement” wasn’t all about golfing, after all. Look, we now live in a world where Landon Donovan and Gio Dos Santos are soccer friends. What. A. World.
Plot twist in Montreal
But then there’s the Montreal Impact – whose biggest star hero is taking a pseudo-heel turn. Of course, it’s Didier Drogba, who brokered peace and ended a civil war in his country, and has proven one of the world’s greatest humanitarians and footballers of all time.
So why does his MLS legacy need to end with drama, seeming passive-aggressiveness between player and coach, and the wailing and gnashing of teeth? Why do we have to have Drogba on the sidelines, ostensibly with a sore back, dressed like a street-style star? Why is life unfair? What’s with today, today?
Luckily for the Impact, though, a new hero has emerged. Besides the still-untouchable Ignacio Piatti, we now have another figure to save the day: Matteo Mancosu. Previously, his loan period from Bologna didn’t seem all that spectacular – until the postseason, when he suddenly turned into a clutch goal-scoring machine. Also, he popped up in the mainstream conscience here.
…Wait, Drogba might be back after all – so this part of his plot line remains to be written.
Unlikely hero
That brings us to Nelson Valdez, perhaps Mancuso’s closest analogue in Seattle – well, except for the news-making DP contract and everything. We all love him now, right? Sounders fans, you can take back all your mean tweets from over the course of the regular season – he was obviously saving all the good goals for last, or something.
Despite all these good-to-bad-and-back-again stories, though, a few teams in the running remain more or less unchanged in the collective conscience. FC Dallas? The hardest-working, most-deserving team in the West, who probably got a raw deal having to start out their conference battle in Seattle. The New York Red Bulls? Same-ish in the East, eternal contenders who maybe should have gotten some more calls in their favor as they strive for their first MLS Cup.
Toronto FC? Primed for success with Sebastian Giovinco’s blazing return, Jozy Altidore’s recent excellent form, and even Michael Bradley’s upbeat attitude and equally uplifting play. And NYCFC….
Your Villa feelings?
Well, there's David Villa. Up to now -- and frankly, in my opinion -- he's been unimpeachable as a team captain, the top-class example of what an MLS DP should be. But almost anyone who's not a rabid MLS fan -- and not one of NYCFC -- is going to seize on his rare, much-discussed on-field incident this past weekend at Toronto. He won't be suspended for his kick out at TFC's Armando Cooper, and will be available this Sunday to create some real scoring danger on his home field, and that's going to make plenty of people mad.
But on the whole, NYCFC remain a star-studded, flashy lot who folks love to hate, and who might still surprise everyone.
And that’s half the fun of the MLS postseason – anything could happen. A double-post could happen. A goalkeeper converting a penalty kick could happen. Your favorite could turn into your punching bag, or the other way around. Whoever you think are this post-season’s heroes and villains are so far, chances are, it’ll all flip again by Sunday’s final whistle.
