Bruce Arena and Team Chemistry in the MLS

I think we may have a problem when it comes to European ownership in the MLS. They just don’t understand how it really works in this great game of professional American soccer. See unlike over there in Austria we have this thing that levels the playing field and it’s called a salary cap, if you don’t like it well no one else really does either so deal with it.

I say all of this because the Bruce Arena leaving debacle. First off, I don’t really think he resigned, I think he was fired. The guy is a good coach but in this league it can be hard to succeed right of the get go. They played the team that almost had an MLS Cup in the first round, its not like they lost to a scrub. In European soccer I can understand when you put all the tools around someone to win and they don’t then it probably is the best idea to sack them. This isn’t really the case here. Every team is almost equal, any team can beat any team any given night. The Red Bulls seriously were going to be the team of the future if they would have stuck with Arena’s plan. Jozy is going to be a rock star! Reyna is a awesome field general. Then there is the rest of the talent on that team. Bringing in Juan Pablo Angel was genius because that guy still has it! Now you tell me that you ‘fire’ Arena because he doesn’t win a cup in the first year!

I believe that the Red Bull franchise just doesn’t know how to win in America. MLS soccer is about team chemistry, it’s about playing really good together and switching coaches every year and bringing in new players may get the job done every other year but you will not be a dynasty. Look at the Dynamo they just won their consecutive MLS Cups by sticking together. Look back to San Jose when they were the Earthquakes, they get relocated to Houston but they stick together and now they are the powerhouse of the MLS because they have stuck together and have the team chemistry that it takes to win in the MLS. So for all you European owners this is not the Euro leagues and as much as we would like it to be it just isn’t. One has to be patient and let the team develop and Red Bull has just hurt this New York team in the long run.

I’m sure Bruce will find another job, maybe go back to the NCAA where he is a god of a coach, maybe the Women’s team will take him, or maybe by some wind of fate he lands a Euro job because the guy is a great coach.

MLS Cup

So the table is set for the MLS Cup Finals on Sunday, November 18^th on ABC. The teams that will be playing are the Houston Dynamo and the New England Revolution; yes a rematch from last years final. That final saw the Dynamo take the cup but in a revenge game we could definitely see the Revs take it. At first look I think the Dynamo have the overall better team mostly cause of their spectacular defense and strikers though I do think that New England will win the midfield. The game is in Washington DC so that will give the advantage to New England because of the temperature but honestly it’s a final and with a team the caliber of the Dynamo it shouldn’t matter if the game was played in Antarctica. Throughout the week I will break down the Forwards, Midfielders, Defenders and Keepers so that we can really get down deep into this Final. Also sometime this week I will discuss in length the stupid removal of Bruce Arena away from a team that will be the best team in a couple of years.

DC United	4.5
CD Chivas USA	5
Houston Dynamo	5.5
NY Red Bulls	6
New England	7
Dallas	9
Kansas City	11
Chicago	13

Those are the odds for the MLS Playoffs which kick off in a couple of hours. DC United being the steady favorite as they should be but they do face a tough opponent in the first round as does everyone, a salary cap kind of does that.
The first round match ups are:
Chicago Fire vs. DC United
Revs vs. Red Bulls
Dynamo vs. FC Dallas
Chivas vs. Kansas City

DC is the favorite but I don't really see them with the easiest road because well any team can beat this team. This team has played the most over the last month and has looked a little gassed. I was talking to Bee about this and he said that if Blanco shows up that Chicago has a good chance of winning and I definitely agree with him. After all Chicago leads the playoff series against these two 4-0-1. Although I think DC United is a great team I also think they are in trouble here and I am going to pick the Fire to win this series.

This Red Bulls and Revs series could be the best series of them all. Both teams are pretty evenly stacked although the first 3 games head-to-head this season saw the Revs win all 3. Expect the goals to flow in this series because both teams are blah in defense and both teams can find the back of the net. As much as I like the combination of Jozy and Juan Pablo I just think that New England can find a way to win and will this series.

Dynamo is probably one of the best teams in the league with offense and defense on top of offense and defense with a goal differential of +20 second in the league only to DC United. I really don't think this series is a question. Dynamo is the better team and this is the playoffs and better teams should win.

Chivas and Wizards is the same case. Chivas has good defense and offense and lot of passion. The Wizards finished with a goal differential of zero. The Wizards know that is not good when you are playing a team that scores about twice as much as it lets in. Chivas rolls in this series.

My pick to win the Cup is Chivas beating the Fire. Play the bracket challenge at www.mlsnet.com

End To An Era

When you think of defense and US soccer one name comes to mind, Eddie Pope. The quiet man in the middle has been the face of the United States Men’s National Team for a long time and more recently Real Salt Lake. This year saw an end to both Eddie’s Club and National Team careers. As a season ticket holder for all of RSL’s first 3 seasons I’ve had the pleasure of watching what I think has been the best football player the U.S. has ever produced for many games. I’m sad to see him go. I think the National Team is in good hands with Carlos Bocanegra but no one will ever truly replace Pope’s play in the middle. This will be a hard thing to swallow next year as an RSL fan. His absence has left a gapping hole.

Up next for the man will hopefully be a position in the RSL Front Office as he has stated he wants to stick around in the MLS before he heads to his next goal, coaching a college team.

I’ll end with a big and understated “thank you” to Eddie for giving my nation and home club something to cheer for all these years! You will be missed! LONG LIVE #23!!

Week 28 Recap

This will not be a long post just want to share my thoughts on the games this week.

I thought that Columbus had an out-of-body experience this weekend vs. the Revs. I didn't get to watch the game but I'm just wondering if the Revs have mailed it in until the playoffs, which isn't a bad idea cause they can't catch DC and the bulls can't catch them, look for them to throw up another lame performance in their next game but this is the MLS so that probably wont happen.

Chicago should have taken the points but hey a draw is good, I think I would rather set myself up to play Chivas in the playoffs than DC United.

The other games on Saturday went as I thought they would but the Sunday game, what the hell happened to Chivas? Colorado is a team they should be able to beat at home especially when there is a lot on the line, you got to get those 3 points mates!

As for tonights game, take the over and if you need to choose a side, choose Dynamo because they are the better team. The over is safer cause this is the MLS and because both teams have proven they can score.

I'll post odds for next week and EPL as soon as I get them.

Saturday and Sunday MLS

Game	Spread	Over/Under	Moneyline
COLUMBUS CREW	+1 1.77	o2½ 1.69	+ 5.60
NE REVOLUTION	-1 1.91	u2½ 2.15	+ 1.55
Draw			+ 3.50
KC WIZARDS	+½ 1.81	o2½ 1.63	+ 4.00
NY RED BULLS	-½ 1.85	u2½ 2.30	+ 1.85
Draw			+ 3.20
CHICAGO FIRE	+1 1.74	o2½ 1.67	+ 5.85
DC UNITED	-1 1.95	u2½ 2.20	+ 1.50
Draw			+ 3.75
TORONTO FC	+1 1.91	o2½ 1.71	+ 5.50
L.A. GALAXY	-1 1.77	u2½ 2.10	+ 1.50
Draw			+ 3.50
COLORADO RAPIDS	+1 1.91	o2½ 1.87	+ 8.00
CHIVAS USA	-1 1.77	u2½ 1.87	+ 1.35
Draw			+ 4.10

Odds from betmaker

Chicago Fire on the moneyline look good today and since the Spread is at +1 but Chicago is pretty big chalk on that spread does that mean that the oddsmakers are thinking draw. DC United knows that with Chivas hot on their heals for the Supporters Shield that they need this game but the fire are playing good football on the road over the last month getting 5 points in 4 games that includes a draw in Chicago vs. DC. High risk could result in high reward taking Chicago on the ML but a lesser risk would be to take them on the spread, if they win you win, if they draw you get your money back.

Take the Draw in the Red Bulls vs Wizards, a pivotal game in the Eastern Conference. Although the Red Bulls have not had that much success against either DC United or New England they would rather play the lesser of the two which is New England and if the playoffs started today they would end up playing the Revs in the first round and Kansas City would be playing DC. So the Red Bulls will either be playing for the draw or going for the win and with the way they have been playing lately the draw sounds about right. Of course after their poor performance against Toronto you might be thinking that this team is falling fast but they aren't and Bruce will get them going. I see draw as they play it safe to keep their playoff position.

Thats really all I got, too much chalk out there for the rest of the lines, the only other play i would do is Chivas -1 and if you can reduce the chalk take the -1 1/2 because I think they will play great in Los Angeles vs. the Rapids. Also if you feel that there could be unders out there the lines are all plus money so that might end up profitable but I doubt many will hit and the overs are just too chalky for my taste.

Picks:
Chicago +1
KC vs RB draw
Chivas -1

FC Dallas vs Chivas USA Cont

When it comes to sports betting I am a fan of line movements to see where the people are on the game but when it has come to soccer I have always looked at news and the form of the teams. Lets look at both, Betmaker now has a spread bet on this game at a pick but here is what is interesting me, the Chivas line has gone down tremendously and the Dallas line has gone up, that means money is being piled on Chivas. The question is why? These teams have played a home/away series already with both times the home team winning 2-0 so could it be because the form of Dallas is just absolutely horrid? That could be but we also have to look at the fact that FC Dallas can still get the home field advantage from the Dynamo but at the same time Chivas could still win the Supporters Shield with a couple more wins. Which would mean that Chivas would be headed to the Champions Cup without having to win the playoffs.

Form
Chivas USA Last 5 League Games
3 wins 2 draws 0 losses

FC Dallas Last 5 League Games
1 win 1 draw 3 losses

FC Dallas is playing such sub par soccer that you have to go back to July 4th to find a win against one of the top of the table teams and that win was against Chivas here at home. Chivas hasn’t lost on the road since July 30th against Kansas City.

I look with line movement and Chivas having a little more to play for than FC Dallas that the play has to be the pk on Chivas, I say take the spread because this could very well be a draw.

Chivas PK @ 1.91 Betmaker

FC Dallas vs Chivas USA Odds

Betmaker
2.15 - 3.20 - 2.90

BetUs
2.30 - 3.20 - 2.75
BetUs has a spread bet
Pk FC Dallas 1.65
Pk Chivas USA 2.05

Over/Under
Betmaker
Over 2 ½ 1.83
Under 2 ½ 1.91

BetUs
Over 2 ½ 1.80
Under 2 ½ 1.80

I only put these two sportsbooks because well Bodog isn’t really good for American soccer bettors but it is easy to get money in and out. Betmaker seems really US friendly so I would go with them plus I would like to start some competitions through them in the future. I will post what I think about this game later, but I am leaning towards an FC Dallas win or a draw.

MLS and International Play

Does Major League Soccer actually care about international soccer? I don’t think so because they handicap their teams in international play because in the MLS you are given a senior squad of 18 and a reserve squad of 10 and you can only have 4 international senior players. Take for instance last week when DC United took on their international rivals in Chivas Guadalajara in the Copa Sudamericana, a team that excels above any other team in MLS looked absolutely gassed. One could say that this was because of the travel to Mexico but I don’t really think so, I believe that it is because the roster limit and the way the MLS rosters are set up that really hampered the form of DC United.
MLS teams have never done very well in international competition, except for the CONCACAF Champions Cup which we have won twice. When it comes to the Champions Cup the competition kind of plays to the MLS teams advantage since it isn’t in our season, its actually a month before and US and Mexican teams don’t even have to qualify like Caribbean and Central American teams. Back to the point though, most leagues that focus on international play don’t have a roster limit or if they do it is to the clubs benefit and allows the team to go out and really compete against other top teams in the competition. Take for instance a league in Europe that I think we could compare the MLS league to in forms of skill, the Greek League, take teams to Europe in the Champions League and in the UEFA Cup and are able to bring their ‘A’ game whether its in the middle of league play or not, because they have enough roster spots, not only 28 and 10 of those 28 are not part of their ‘B’ team.
If you wanna make soccer big in America well you need to bring the talent here and you can’t do that if your not going to be able to compete internationally. 10 years into this league and the league has done nothing but grow and with Beckham here the league will become even more well known but we really need to be focusing on the international game cause if every year we are just looking to see who wins the MLS Cup then interest will be lost. Sure you can say that NBA, NHL, NFL, and MLB all have playoff systems and that works for those leagues but those are all the top knotch leagues with the top knotch talent, MLS isn’t that type of league but that is a frustration for another blog entry.
I end this with saying that for the MLS to eventually go for the World Club Cup championship they have to change some things. Every team needs a A team and a B team with a youth academy. Also International play needs to be more hyped up, it needs to be a big concern for the team at the beginning of each campaign. Last but not least, take the damn salary cap off. Remember the Chelsea, AC Milan, Manchester U, Barcelona teams did not get the glory they have from winning their domestic league every year.