By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Apr 24, 2019) US Soccer Players - As April moves quickly towards May and temperatures begin to climb, the time has come to check on the status of those Major League Soccer coaches who haven’t had the best starts to 2019. The league gets tougher for coaches by the year, commensurate with rising budgets and more demanding fans not to mention bosses. That said, “job . . .
A Whitecaps win amid bigger issues
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Apr 19, 2019) US Soccer Players - Wednesday night in Vancouver was a big one. The Whitecaps, a team that hired a new head coach and turned over two-thirds of their roster this winter, won their first game of the season. The 1-0 victory over LAFC happened because of a smart defensive gameplan, the skillful work of Inbeom Hwang, and individual effort across the . . .
Barco and Browne in a changing MLS
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Apr 17, 2019) US Soccer Players - Ezequiel Barco arrived in Atlanta in early 2018 with massive expectations in tow. A drawn-out chase for the Argentine teenager by Atlanta United only intensified the pressure for him to perform. Fans in Atlanta used the #BarcoWatch hashtag to chart the progress of the transfer, feeding into the idea that he would light MLS on fire . . .
The LA Galaxy makes a defensive move
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Apr 12, 2019) US Soccer Players - The LA Galaxy moved to strengthen its defense on Wednesday with the signing of Costa Rican center back Giancarlo Gonzalez from Serie A side Bologna. Gonzalez returns to MLS after nearly five years in Italy where he also played with Palermo. The defender played with the Columbus Crew for half a season back in 2014 before the club . . .
Depth becomes an issue for DC United
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Apr 10, 2019) US Soccer Players - After Saturday’s rout at the hands of LAFC, DC United star Wayne Rooney suggested that getting back on the field quickly would be good for his team. The idea was that playing a competitive game would help United put the embarrassment of the loss behind it and push the team to regain the form that had the Black & Red as an early . . .
Detroit City looks for its place in American soccer
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Apr 5, 2019) US Soccer Players - Detroit City Football Club is the platonic ideal of a grassroots soccer team, at least when it comes to American soccer. Launched by five friends in 2012, the club garnered a surprising response from the soccer community in Detroit. That was despite being amateur and playing a short summer schedule. They parlayed that response into . . .
MLS contenders already looking for turnarounds in 2019
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Apr 3, 2019) US Soccer Players - Before the 2019 Major League Soccer season began, a list that started with Atlanta United, New York Red Bulls, NYCFC, and Portland Timbers could have been an easy preseason power ranking of the top four teams in the league. Atlanta United entered the campaign as the defending league champion. The Red Bulls won the Supporters' . . .
Sporting KC’s youth movement
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Mar 29, 2019) US Soccer Players - Sporting Kansas City has been many things over 23 seasons in Major League Soccer. The club that was originally called the Wiz and then the Wizards for the first 15 of those seasons won an MLS Cup in 2000. They also produced some of the lowest average attendances in MLS history. The club’s first venue was Arrowhead Stadium, home of . . .
The end of the extended MLS preseason
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Mar 27, 2019) US Soccer Players - Let’s call the first month of MLS the “extended preseason”. Sure, the results counted for actual points in the standings. Still, as is so often the case in March, nothing quite seems resolved. There's a limit to what we can actually claim to know about any of the 24 MLS teams. What we don’t know is still vast. Even the best teams . . .
MLS games, Toronto’s revival, and San Jose’s problems
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Mar 22, 2019) US Soccer Players - Major League Soccer is taking the FIFA international break... to a point. While most of the league will be off through this week and into next, 10 teams have games on the schedule. That, quite naturally, means 10 teams will be dealing with key absences when they hit the field for matches that matter. Never an ideal situation, the . . .
