By Clemente Lisi – NEW YORK, NY (Apr 18, 2022) US Soccer Players – MLS has hit many milestones in recent years. The league celebrated a quarter-century in business, embarking on its 28th this past February. They've mushroomed to 28 clubs, and the biggest market finally produced a champion just last season. Fans are back in the stadiums after the worst of the pandemic, and TV ratings have seen some . . .
MLS tactics early in 2022
By Clemente Lisi – NEW YORK, NY (Apr 11, 2022) US Soccer Players – MLS coaches have gotten more tactically savvy in recent years. With better players come better tactics, and MLS teams have experimented with a wide variety of formations. Whether it's playing with three in the back or relying increasingly on intricate passing, MLS coaches aren't afraid to push the tactical envelope this . . .
The United States and Canada at the 2022 World Cup
By Clemente Lisi – NEW YORK, NY (Apr 4, 2022) US Soccer Players – It’s an event that will help fuel speculation for the next seven months. It will trigger predictions, many of them ending up being wrong, about who will or won’t win the planet’s biggest sporting event. The World Cup draw, which was conducted this past Friday, brought into focus the tournament’s eight opening-round groups and . . .
Three trends to watch early in the 2022 MLS season
By Clemente Lisi – NEW YORK, NY (Mar 28, 2022) US Soccer Players – It's just a month into the MLS season, and narratives are already beginning to emerge. In a league known for not exactly being predictable week-to-week, the expectation is that it takes time for the season to come into focus. The initial weeks are normally about teams trying to make some obvious points, but plenty fade as the . . .
The USMNT visits Estadio Azteca tied on points with Mexico
By Clemente Lisi – NEW YORK, NY (Mar 21, 2022) US Soccer Players – It's one of the biggest National Team rivalries on the planet. It's a game played in adverse conditions on both sides of the border. It's also one that the United States has dominated most recently, which should add even more pressure to its rivalry with Mexico. The legendary Estadio Azteca will host another meeting of the . . .
5 USMNT players to watch in Europe as the 2021-22 season winds down
By Clemente Lisi – NEW YORK, NY (Mar 14, 2022) US Soccer Players – As the English like to say, the various domestic leagues across Europe are reaching the business end of the competition. As the long winter gives way to spring, there are plenty of trophies to win, table positions to climb, and relegation to avoid. The spring is the time when titles races heat up and clubs, even ones who can't win . . .
NYCFC with one point from two games
By Clemente Lisi – NEW YORK, NY (Mar 7, 2022) US Soccer Players – Only three teams have ever won back-to-back league championships. That short list is DC United in 1996 and '97, Houston in 2006 and '07, and the LA Galaxy in 2011 and '12. It's no surprise in the league that doesn't like dynasties. It should also not be all that shocking that those three teams are among the best in MLS history. It's . . .
MLS has half the field in the 2022 Concacaf Champions League quarterfinals
By Clemente Lisi – NEW YORK, NY (Feb 28, 2022) US Soccer Players – Many are already picking Seattle as an easy favorite in the race for MLS Cup. They have all of the makings of a legit contender, even in a league where several teams have spent more this offseason. Part of that may be another competition where the Sounders are an easy pick, Concacaf's Champions League. They're one of the four Major . . .
22 for MLS in 2022
By Clemente Lisi – NEW YORK, NY (Feb 22, 2022) US Soccer Players – Season 27 of the MLS era officially begins this Saturday with a busy schedule of games. That starts with the Philadelphia Union hosting Minnesota United at 1pm ET, the first of 14 games this weekend to kick off the 2022 season. That also includes Charlotte FC's visit to DC United for their first-ever match on Saturday at 6pm ET. . . .
Expectations for the new MLS Designated Players in 2022
By Clemente Lisi – NEW YORK, NY (Feb 14, 2022) US Soccer Players – It's the eve of another Major League Soccer season, and with it, the standard speculation over the offseason moves. As usual, Designated Players will get lots of the focus. It's been that way since 2007 when MLS came up with that label for players who exceed the salary cap. DPs carry big expectations due to the superstars that . . .
