Your memory is better than mine. Unwanted by the MLS camp. Not me. I'm perfectly content with the Mexican opposition at the CWC from a European/Asian perspective.
Its like I knew the Ferrari was going to trash the reigning Liga mx champs and current Libertadores subcampeon
Bump. Three editions remain. 2018, 2019 and 2020. Not looking good for the USSF/CSA (i.e. MLS) I did like Dallas this year and they will be back in 2018.
with this new format, MLS have a chance, in only knock-out rounds, the chaos can happening MX vs MX in quarterfinals, then in semifinals, and MLS vs MX in the final ))
MLS won't win this tournament for a long time. Costa Rican top clubs are the best equipped to upset Liga MX clubs
Longest consecutive winning streak in each confederation's premier club competition: CONCACAF: 12 – Mexico (ongoing) OFC: 7 – New Zealand (ongoing) UEFA: 6 – England (end of streak 1982) CONMEBOL: 4 – Argentina (end of streak 1970 and 1975); Brazil (end of streak 2013) AFC: 3 – South Korea (end of streak 1998) CAF: 3 – Cameroon (end of streak 1980)
Mls always seem to bring the almost win vs Pachuca as the gap is closing but what they don't mention is the fact that Pachuca didn't even qualify to the playoffs and had a horrible season. I was told that fc Dallas was the best mls side in history by some fans and that they played a proactive football but they ended up playing like Honduras. Mls might be improving but so is liga mx.
Toronto FC will be the strongest and deepest team MLS will have ever sent in the tournament. They will be the true measuring stick in gap between MLS and Liga MX. Giovinco is for real
Pachuca were going through a rough patch domestically around their Dallas series. They went five consecutive games scoreless in Liga MX. They were basically only scoring against Dallas until the CCL final against Tigres. And in the first leg that was a Tigres own-goal. Dallas - Pachuca 2:1 (CCL) Queretaro - Pachuca 3:0 Pachuca - Puebla 0:0 Pachuca - Dallas 3:1 (CCL) Santos - Pachuca 1:0 Pachuca - Morelia 0:0 Pachuca - Chivas 0:0 Tigres - Pachuca 1:1 (CCL - Final, First Leg)
So, just to get this straight, you are saying that a victory by FCD over eventual CCL champions Pachuca.................is not a good result for Dallas? If I remember correctly, Pachuca started the Liga MX Clausura strong, and were actually the top defensive team in North America, at the time. Coming into the match against FC Dallas, Pachuca had only allowed 7 goals in 11 matches played. They rode that defense all the way to the CCL Title, and their only defeat in the CCL was against Dallas. So please, what exactly was your point? As for Dallas, they did not have their best player available for last years CCL, and it showed. The biggest weakness in MLS teams, is that if you lose a starter, the backups are not good enough to replace them. So yes, MLS will not win a CCL this decade.
Last 5 years - all 5 MLS spots averaged more points than Costa Rica. MLS is very different league than 5 years ago. Fact that they are pre-season when knock-out starts puts them at a big disadvantage, but less so under the current format as they get a couple games in before they face Mexican teams in the KO.. The days of MLS trying to knock off liga Mx with a back line consisting of a rookie DMid- (Koval), F/M (Kato) ; USL Outside Back (Francis) and a once retired journeyman CB (Harden) like the 2013-14 San Jose team that took Toluca to PKs are long over. The cap and lack of funds needed to get depth are much different. In the past MLS teams that were successful would have to lose players to make the salary cap. So KC won the MLS cup, then showed up without their keeper. DC was forced to let go their CB that started every game. In contrast Toronto just lost their starting outside back and bench depth - then added defenders from Serie A, Sao Paulo and likely others. Liga Mx still has more depth and a much more favorable time to play the tournament but the conditions that led to their dominance no longer exist. 5 years ago the top scorers for MLS were Jack McBean, Sammy Ochoa and Terry Dunfield. McBean still actually plays for a team in the tournament, but the odds of him even making the 18 are pretty slim.
Liga Mx is probably improving, but MLS is dramatically improving. Dallas was a solid team, but they didn't even make the playoffs in the weaker division. Galaxy had Dos Dos Santos and were the worst team in the league. MLS has the wealth and the increased willingness to spend some of it on players. Thing that is holding MLS back is poor coaching at the youth level means the league lack the home grown depth Liga Mx has.
You don't need that much depth in an 8 game tournament that ends by the end of April. The fact that only two of the semi-finalists were Liga Mx demonstrates that. Big challenge is timing. If I recall, Dallas was lucky last year and got work stoppage last year which made a lot of quality first teams available to play prior to the tournament. Not sure other teams will have the desire and similar luck. Anyone in QF has a chance to get some breaks and win.
Since 2012, the CCL draw was designed for MLS teams to avoid Liga MX clubs at the group stage. Costa Rican club didn't have that perk and had to face Mexican clubs in group stage often. The new format makes it more random noe.
Fair point. But the key thing is that history of the competition bears little resemblance to the present. Costa Rica is basically the same 3 team league where Saprissa, Herediano, Alajuelense gobbles up all the local talent in the country. Facilities and training are good with an increasing number of their top players moving abroad including about a dozen that are currently in MLS. Biggest change over the past decade is where they once had a good chunk of their line-up very experienced in cut-throat international competition, that is increasingly less the case now. So while these are still formidable teams with the benefit of playing league games since Jan. I don't think they are as strong as the once were. MLS has changed dramatically. The days a fairly weak team doing well and getting gutted by salary cap and expansion are close to gone. You still get an outlier the dramatic drop of the LA galaxy, or Colorado's surprise two years ago. But with large influx of money for core salaries, teams that are good one year are largely good the next. Salaries/team had largely doubled from $5,0 mm/team in 2013 to $9.8 last year with a big influx of money into the league. Fact the competition is pushed back a couple of weeks will allow MLS teams will reduce the inequality in preparation.
Monterrey was eliminated in the Group Stage. Tigres and Pumas played in the Quarterfinals, so even if the best three Quarterfinalists were Mexican, they were limited to two Semifinalists. Tigres beat Pumas and Vancouver by 4-1 aggregates. If you consider Pumas and Vancouver equal, that means Pumas could have beaten the Red Bulls like Vancouver did.
I don’t think you know how long we have been reading some version of your post. Until someone gets it done on the field all that improvement just impresses MLS fans
I'm quite aware. Basically it is similar to when Mexico's men's national team was dominating the US. Anyone analytical capability could see the tipping point coming. When it did, the US not only beat Mexico, but had a better over the next decade or two. The pre-season start has masked the changes that have happened. Mexican teams have more depth, but the differences are not very large. There is a lag between when things change and the general population realizes it. In 2013 there was only 1 MLS in TransferMarket vauled at over $10MM GBP. 4 years, there was not a single team under $10MM. In 2014 the highest value team MLS was $17.3MM while the top 6 were all over $40MM.. Last year, 8 MLS teams were above the highest team in 2014. And I'm using the October window which is after the summer transfer window when MLS teams were at their peak value, not early spring when CCL knockouts to place. This past year MLS significantly increased spending yet again, and now only Tigres and Monterrey are listed as having 10% more value than Atlanta's current value of $35.4.