By Luis Bueno – RIVERSIDE, CA (Dec 6, 2018) US Soccer Players - Only two teams are left standing in what has been an entertaining and memorable 2018 MLS season. Atlanta United will host the Portland Timbers as one team will lock down immortality while the other will rue the day for years to come. The final will culminate a month-long march that has had moments of drama and surprise. While only a . . .
MLS Power Rankings: The contenders come in hot
By Luis Bueno – RIVERSIDE, CA (Nov 1, 2018) US Soccer Players - It’s finally playoff time, when MLS games carry an extraordinary amount of weight compared to the regular season. While teams have a vast amount of leeway during the regular season, now the margin of error is nonexistent. It's the stretch run that turns teams into playoff threats. The top three teams in this month’s power rankings . . .
MLS Power Rankings: Atlanta stays top, moves for the Galaxy and Sounders
By Luis Bueno – RIVERSIDE, CA (Aug 1, 2018) US Soccer Players - Surges by some and skids by others caused for some major movement in the MLS Power Rankings. The LA Galaxy and Seattle Sounders decided to start playing soccer once more while Chicago and Sporting KC have forgotten how to do so, and all of that reflects in the table this month. Atlanta still dominates the table as Josef Martinez . . .
MLS Power Rankings: Time running out for struggling teams
By Luis Bueno – RIVERSIDE, CA (Jul 5, 2018) US Soccer Players - Summer is well underway. In MLS, that means teams can still overcome early-season misgivings, but only by sorting out their issues now. Seattle reached MLS Cup the last two years despite carrying a poor record into July. The Sounders were 5-7-6 through June 2017 and 5-9-1 through June 2016 and yet both times were able to turn things . . .
MLS Power Rankings: The World Cup break
By Luis Bueno – RIVERSIDE, CA (Jun 7, 2018) US Soccer Players - The unofficial halfway point of the 2018 MLS season - the World Cup - is nearly upon us. MLS teams will shut it down for the duration of the tournament’s group stage. During that time, teams will either try and get things right or continue building on what works. There are more teams mired in the muck than there are in the first . . .
MLS POWER RANKINGS: Atlanta swaps places with NYCFC
By Luis Bueno – RIVERSIDE, CA (May 3, 2018) US Soccer Players - Like a midseason coaching change, I am taking over the MLS Power Rankings. Two months in means there is still plenty of time this season to formulate opinions, change those opinions and in the process show where my deficiencies lie. Being based in Southern California forces me to take a harder and longer look at the Western . . .
MLS Power Rankings: NYCFC takes top spot
By Jeff Rueter – SAINT PAUL, MN (Apr 5, 2018) US Soccer Players - One month in, and the MLS season is just as unpredictable as any other. Teams are still figuring out their identities in the early goings of the 2018 campaign, leading to many an upset through five weeks. As always, it’s good to clarify the role of power rankings. While one can look at the table and see whose results have been . . .
MLS Power Rankings: Toronto the obvious choice to start 2018
By Jeff Rueter – SAINT PAUL, MN (Mar 1, 2018) US Soccer Players - Another March, another new MLS campaign. We've all read about the new players, new coaches, bounceback candidates, and impending busts. Now the players get their chance to make us look bad. In the first week of each month, I’ll try to make sense of where the teams stand in a tiered power ranking. From contenders to pretenders, . . .
