By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Jan 15, 2021) US Soccer Players - MLS history is a bit deceiving. As a league with a quarter-century of existence, MLS has packed a lot into a relatively short period. With parity a central feature, the fortunes of clubs have risen and fallen in dramatic ways at shorter intervals than happens in the rest of the world. Those big swings can be disorienting when it . . .
Fulham draws at Spurs, Juventus and Barcelona advance
Thursday's soccer news starts with Fulham getting a point in a version of the London derby. Antonee Robinson's Fulham drew 1-1 at Spurs in a game rearranged due to Aston Villa's coronovirus issues. Trailing from the 25th minute, Ivan Cavaleiro equalized in the 74th minute. Tim Ream was on the bench for Fulham, in 18th-place with 12 points from 16 games. "To a man we were superb under what we . . .
Toronto resets without Greg Vanney
By J Hutcherson (Dec 1, 2020) US Soccer Players - Toronto FC can now add a coaching change to its disrupted 2020 season. The 2019 MLS Cup finalists played out the remainder of the 2020 season in Connecticut due to border restrictions. That ended with a playoff loss to Nashville on November 24. Now, the club is looking for a new coach. Greg Vanney didn't leave courtesy of that MLS cliche of a . . .
The Canadian MLS clubs in 2020
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Nov 11, 2020) US Soccer Players - The 2020 Major League Soccer regular season is over. We all know that means reckoning with the results. Plenty of clubs, whether they made the playoffs or not, will use the unique 2020 COVID-19 conditions of the season to justify the final standings. Ambition is a factor, of course. Some clubs won't be satisfied with anything but a . . .
The problems at the top of the Eastern Conference
Wednesday's soccer news starts with MLS taking the work week off, a rarity since the season resumed. Many are correctly asking if it's possible to determine much of anything about this league week-to-week. Pick a team, and there's probably a lack of coherency and results that are cause for concern. The playoff safety net still looms, but it's going to be a questionable reward for the teams that . . .
Toronto’s streak ends
Montreal ended Toronto's undefeated streak in league games that stretched back to last August. Rudy Camacho scored in the 14th minute with Clement Diop making six saves to keep the clean sheet at BMO Field. Toronto had a first-half stoppage-time penalty called back after Alejandro Pozuelo passed the ball rather than taking the shot. Pablo Piatti though he had equalized from the pass, but the . . .
Is Toronto FC the best team in MLS?
Tuesday's soccer news starts with the kind of question that's becoming easier to answer. The top six teams in the Eastern Conference are level on games played with eight. As ridiculous as that number seems on the first day of September, it's Toronto FC at the top of the East with 18 points. Their lead over Columbus is all of a point, but it's worth stressing a significant difference between . . .
Seattle, Toronto, and contending in this version of MLS
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Jul 29, 2020) US Soccer Players - Say goodbye to the champions. The Seattle Sounders exited the MLS Is Back tournament in Orlando on Monday night, humbled by LAFC. Call it revenge if you like, though the stakes are just a bit different. The Sounders knocked LAFC off of their championship path in the 2019 MLS Cup playoffs. Say goodbye to last season's MLS Cup . . .
The Galaxy, Atlanta, and Toronto face preseason pressure
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Jan 22, 2020) US Soccer Players - Now that all 26 MLS clubs are underway with preseason camp, it's worth taking stock of where they are right now. Late winter is the season of perpetual hope. MLS works hard to make sure no group of fans is without some reason to believe that their beloved side might make a surprise run to a final in any given year. The odds of a . . .
Valeri and Bradley stay put
By Jason Davis – WASHINGTON, DC (Dec 18, 2019) US Soccer Players - The Portland Timbers announced late Monday that Argentine playmaker Diego Valeri signed a new multi-year contract to remain with the club for the foreseeable future. The 33-year-old Valeri helped the Timbers lift an MLS Cup back in 2015 and won the league's Most Valuable Player Award in 2017. He remains one of the most dangerous . . .
