By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (May 7, 2021) US Soccer Players - Just three weeks into his first season as head coach at any level, while leading a team brand new to Major League Soccer, Josh Wolff is already ahead of the curve. Expansion teams aren't supposed to win two of their first three matches. They certainly aren't supposed to do that when all of the games are on the road. Wolff is the . . .
No need to panic three weeks into the MLS season
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (May 5, 2021) US Soccer Players - Panic rarely makes things better. By its very nature, the word conveys an emotional response to a problem. Letting emotions loose without hanging onto some modicum of logic tends to lead to rash decisions. Rash decisions upend plans, restart processes, and end progress before it has a chance to begin. It's usually best to avoid . . .
Jesse Marsch’s coaching plan
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Apr 30, 2021) US Soccer Players - Just a little more than six years ago, Jesse Marsch was an out-of-work soccer coach. Following a stint as the first MLS boss of the Montreal Impact, Marsch was a young coach with a good representation but not much of a profile. There was no guarantee he had a path to success in Major League Soccer, much less one that would take him . . .
Producing elite soccer talent in the USL Championship
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Apr 28, 2021) US Soccer Players - American soccer has taken undeniable strides when it comes to player development. With that comes an increase in the reputation of the young American player in the hallowed halls of Europe's biggest clubs. It wasn't that long ago that getting players from the United States into high-level European environments turned on the . . .
Daryl Dike goes on a run in the Championship while Orlando City waits
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Apr 23, 2021) US Soccer Players - It's getting silly now. What started as a 20-year-old American striker with just a partial year of professional experience getting an opportunity is now something else. Daryl Dike's move to Barnsley just a few months ago is now a phenomenon. It could change the fortunes of the player and the club he joined on what seemed like a . . .
Mixed results for new MLS coaches
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Apr 21, 2021) US Soccer Players - The start of the 2021 MLS season took place over three days this past weekend, pitting 26 teams against one another in 13 games. Only one team, Real Salt Lake, awaits its turn to get its campaign underway. An odd number of teams this season means there will always be a team sitting out a given round of matches. Unlike several of . . .
The MLS youth movement in 2021
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Apr 16, 2021) US Soccer Players - The odd thing about progress is that it's not always permanent. The phrase "one step forward, two steps back" exists for a reason. Gains often come just ahead of regression. Bad habits can undo even the best of intentions, retreating to the comfort of old ways. With that in mind, MLS begins the 2021 season facing a test. After . . .
Besler, Agudelo, and MLS free agency
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Apr 14, 2021) US Soccer Players - The game of off-season Major League Soccer musical chairs moved some experienced faces to new places this winter. The introduction of tradeable allocation money and the limited version of MLS free agency helped. Still, even though MLS vets with USMNT experience making moves is becoming an annual occurrence, it feels strange. All . . .
The Union in the Champions League
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Apr 9, 2021) US Soccer Players - The Philadelphia Union added to its list of firsts on Wednesday night. Just five months removed from securing the club's first trophy, Jim Curtin and his team traveled to Costa Rica to face Deportivo Saprissa in the quarterfinal round of the 2021 Concacaf Champions League. Not only was it Philadelphia's first match in the . . .
The new coaches in MLS
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Apr 7, 2021) US Soccer Players - Perhaps no season in MLS history provided a ruder introduction to the league for new coaches than 2020. A typical preseason led directly into two games before a two-month layoff with no games and effectively no training. The return to play, first in Orlando at MLS Is Back, then in a truncated regular season that featured few fans . . .
