I haven't done any mathematical analysis but eyeballing strength of remaining schedule, we might have a chance. Of the hard games, two are 6 pointers.
RSL just nipping us on PPG with three games in hand. I took a quick look at the top 5 teams in the west (LAG, FCD, RSL, SEA, COL) and how the rest of the schedules line up and to follow up on what wheezl said, it does in fact look good. Hard (for me anyway) to do any kind of objective measurement of how these schedules compare, but it looks like SSFC has the easiest remaining road schedule, which should be helpful considering the USOC and CCL games that still remain. Of course only Salt Lake doesn't have to worry about any extra games so it's not like Seattle's alone there. For the purposes of this analysis, the top 8 I used are these 5 in the west and the top 3 in the east on PPG (PHI, CREW, SKC). Anyway, here's a basic overview of the remaining schedules. Seattle Sounders Points: 41 (PPG: 1.708) Games Remaining: 10 (6 H / 4 A) Games vs. Top 8: 4 (3 H / 1 A) Opponents PPG: 29.40 (30.67 H / 27.5 A) Key Games: @ Dallas; vs Columbus; vs Salt Lake; vs Philadelphia Los Angeles Galaxy Points: 48 (PPG: 1.920) Games Remaining: 10 (5 H / 4 A) Games vs. Top 8: 4 (2 H / 2 A) Opponents PPG: 29.67 (29.0 H / 30.5 A) Key Games: @ Kansas City; vs Colorado; @ Columbus; vs Salt Lake FC Dallas Points: 42 (PPG: 1.75) Games Remaining: 10 (4 H / 6 A) Games vs. Top 8: 4 (1 H / 3 A) Opponents PPG: 28.20 (29.25 H / 27.5 A) Key Games: @ Philadelphia; vs Seattle; @ Kansas City; @ Colorado Colorado Rapids Points: 37 (PPG: 1.480) Games Remaining: 9 (4 H / 5 A) Games vs. Top 8: 3 (2 H / 1 A) Opponents PPG: 29.11 (33.0 H / 26.0 A) Key Games: @ Los Angeles; vs Dallas; vs Salt Lake Real Salt Lake Points: 36 (PPG: 1.714) Games Remaining: 13 (4 H / 9 A) Games vs. Top 8: 5 (2 H / 3 A) Opponents PPG: 29.69 (27.0 H / 30.89 A) Key Games: vs Philadelphia; @ Seattle; vs Kansas City; @ Los Angeles; @ Colorado
Code: TEAM PPG LAG 1.92 FCD 1.75 RSL 1.71 SEA 1.71 PHL 1.50 COL 1.48 CLB 1.48 SKC 1.30 DCU 1.29 CHV 1.26 --------------- NYRB 1.25 HOU 1.22 POR 1.18 SJE 1.09 NER 0.91 CHI 0.86 TFC 0.80 As already noted, RSL barely edges us in PPG. What I find most interesting though is that the Red Bulls have fallen off the back of the playoff race. I guess this goes to show what happens if you way overpay for your starters and ignore your depth.
I thought New Jersey's season goal was the Emirates cup. Now they can just rest players for next year.
Code: Team PPG LAG 1.92 FCD 1.72 SEA 1.68 RSL 1.64 CLB 1.54 COL 1.54 PHL 1.48 DCU 1.36 SKC 1.30 HOU 1.29 ------------- CHV 1.25 NYRB 1.24 POR 1.13 SJE 1.04 TFC 0.88 NER 0.88 CHI 0.87 VAN 0.75 After RSL's loss, the Sounders are now in 3rd place by PPG. The playoffs are really starting to shape up with, realistically, only Chivas and NYRB having a chance at knocking someone out of the playoffs so they can get in.
Code: GP Pts W D L GF GA GD Los Angeles 25 [b]48[/b] 13 9 3 35 20 15 Dallas 25 [b]43[/b] 12 7 6 33 26 7 Seattle 25 [b]42[/b] 11 9 5 35 27 8 Colorado 26 [b]40[/b] 10 10 6 37 32 5 Columbus 24 [b]37[/b] 10 7 7 27 23 4 Salt Lake 22 [b]36[/b] 10 6 6 30 17 13 Philadelphia 23 [b]34[/b] 8 10 5 29 22 7 New York 25 [b]31[/b] 6 13 6 39 35 4 Houston 24 [b]31[/b] 7 10 7 30 29 1 Chivas 24 [b]30[/b] 7 9 8 30 26 4 ------------------------------------------- Kansas City 23 [b]30[/b] 7 9 7 32 30 2 D.C. United 22 [b]30[/b] 7 9 6 33 33 0 Portland 23 [b]26[/b] 7 5 11 29 37 -8 San Jose 24 [b]25[/b] 5 10 9 26 32 -6 Toronto 26 [b]23[/b] 4 11 11 25 46 -21 New England 24 [b]21[/b] 4 9 11 23 36 -13 Chicago 23 [b]20[/b] 2 14 7 25 32 -7 Vancouver 24 [b]18[/b] 3 9 12 25 40 -15 As of Sunday, August 14, 2011.
Code: GP Pts W D L GF GA GD Los Angeles 26 [b]51[/b] 14 9 3 37 20 17 Seattle 26 [b]45[/b] 12 9 5 36 27 9 Dallas 26 [b]43[/b] 12 7 7 33 27 6 Colorado 27 [b]41[/b] 10 11 6 39 34 5 Columbus 25 [b]40[/b] 11 7 7 29 24 5 Salt Lake 23 [b]36[/b] 10 6 7 32 20 12 Kansas City 25 [b]36[/b] 9 9 7 36 31 5 Houston 26 [b]35[/b] 8 11 7 34 32 2 Philadelphia 24 [b]34[/b] 8 10 6 30 24 6 New York 26 [b]32[/b] 6 14 6 41 37 4 ------------------------------------------- Chivas 25 [b]31[/b] 7 10 8 32 28 4 D.C. United 24 [b]31[/b] 7 10 7 34 35 -1 Portland 25 [b]29[/b] 8 5 12 32 41 -9 San Jose 25 [b]25[/b] 5 10 10 26 34 -8 Chicago 25 [b]24[/b] 3 15 7 28 33 -5 New England 26 [b]23[/b] 4 11 11 26 39 -13 Toronto 27 [b]23[/b] 4 11 12 25 48 -23 Vancouver 25 [b]18[/b] 3 9 13 26 42 -16 As of Sunday, August 21, 2011.
Code: GP Pts W D L GF GA GD Los Angeles 26 [b]51[/b] 14 9 3 37 20 17 Seattle 27 [b]48[/b] 13 9 5 42 29 13 Dallas 27 [b]46[/b] 13 7 7 36 29 7 Colorado 28 [b]41[/b] 10 11 7 39 36 3 Columbus 26 [b]40[/b] 11 7 8 31 30 1 Salt Lake 24 [b]39[/b] 11 6 7 33 20 13 Kansas City 26 [b]36[/b] 9 9 8 38 34 4 Houston 27 [b]35[/b] 8 11 8 34 33 1 Philadelphia 24 [b]34[/b] 8 10 6 30 24 6 New York 26 [b]32[/b] 6 14 6 41 37 4 ------------------------------------------- Portland 26 [b]32[/b] 9 5 12 33 41 -8 Chivas 27 [b]31[/b] 7 10 10 32 30 2 D.C. United 24 [b]31[/b] 7 10 7 34 35 -1 Chicago 26 [b]27[/b] 4 15 7 30 33 -3 San Jose 26 [b]26[/b] 5 11 10 27 35 -8 Toronto 28 [b]24[/b] 4 12 12 26 49 -23 New England 26 [b]23[/b] 4 11 11 26 39 -13 Vancouver 26 [b]21[/b] 4 9 13 27 42 -15 As of Sunday, August 28, 2011.
Interesting how our record is so similar to LA's. We're really the only two teams this season that can dominate on the road, with many teams still struggling to get more than one or two wins on the road. Makes me even more sick of losing to fart sniffers like Donovan. Someone make a Dallas v Sounders 8/30 thread.
I guess we could call this week live by the sword, die by the sword.. After stealing 3 points from SuKC a couple of weeks ago and dashing FCD's hope of pulling away, FCD returns the favor this week and keeps the race for second place a 2 point race. Code: Team PPG LAG 1.96 SEA 1.78 FCD 1.70 RSL 1.63 CLB 1.54 COL 1.46 PHL 1.42 SKC 1.38 HOU 1.30 DCU 1.29 ------------- NYRB 1.23 POR 1.23 CHV 1.15 CHI 1.04 SJE 1.00 NER 0.88 TFC 0.86 VAN 0.81
Code: GP Pts W D L GF GA GD Los Angeles 26 [b]51[/b] 14 9 3 37 20 17 Seattle 27 [b]48[/b] 13 9 5 42 29 13 Dallas 27 [b]46[/b] 13 7 7 36 29 7 Salt Lake 25 [b]42[/b] 12 6 7 35 21 14 Colorado 28 [b]41[/b] 10 11 7 39 36 3 Columbus 26 [b]40[/b] 11 7 8 31 30 1 Kansas City 26 [b]36[/b] 9 9 8 38 34 4 Houston 27 [b]35[/b] 8 11 8 34 33 1 Philadelphia 25 [b]34[/b] 8 10 7 31 26 5 New York 26 [b]32[/b] 6 14 6 41 37 4 ------------------------------------------- Portland 26 [b]32[/b] 9 5 12 33 41 -8 Chivas 27 [b]31[/b] 7 10 10 32 30 2 D.C. United 24 [b]31[/b] 7 10 7 34 35 -1 Chicago 26 [b]27[/b] 4 15 7 30 33 -3 San Jose 26 [b]26[/b] 5 11 10 27 35 -8 Toronto 28 [b]24[/b] 4 12 12 26 49 -23 New England 26 [b]23[/b] 4 11 11 26 39 -13 Vancouver 26 [b]21[/b] 4 9 13 27 42 -15 As of Sunday, September 4, 2011.
Code: [B]Team PPG[/B] [B]Playoff[/B] LAG 1.93 W1 SEA 1.78 W2 FCD 1.70 W3 RSL 1.68 WC1 CLB 1.54 E1 COL 1.46 WC2 SKC 1.37 E2 PHL 1.36 E3 HOU 1.30 WC3 DCU 1.29 WC4 -------------- NYRB 1.23 POR 1.23 CHV 1.15 CHI 1.04 SJE 1.00 NER 0.88 TFC 0.86 VAN 0.81 Not really much in the way of changes. RSL's win converted one of their games in hand to three points and put them within punching range of FCD. LA's draw converted their game in hand to 1 point, so the Sounders drew a little closer in the SS race. SKC pulled ahead of Philly in the Eastern race thanks to their draw and Philly's loss.
Thanks Yoshou. I like the PPG format with the playoff codes (showing how the playoffs would be seeded if the season ended today). Nicely done!
That's not the purpose of this thread. You can go to the league web site and see the playoff positioning tables. The purpose of this thread is to display the league standings in a single table since this season (and last season) is contested with a league-wide balanced schedule. The single table is a way for fans who appreciate fairness and common sense to essentially fantasize over what should-have-been had the league not implemented such a silly playoff format, and also follow the Supporters Shield race which -- due to the league-wide balanced schedule -- is now more worthy of the "champion" tag than MLS Cup. Also, PPG is not dense enough information-wise. The single-table format tells a more detailed story. If a team has 3 games in hand, for instance, and is 9 points behind, you can tell that they will need to win all three games. PPG does not expose this information. Some people have gotten pedantic over the "unfair" rankings in the single table because some teams have games in hand. But the story of how a points gap can be closed is more important than where teams stand in the table at any particular time, and it nicely frames our perceptions of each week's schedule of games.
Sheesh! Relax! I'm aware of the table on the league web site and I share all your opinions about the idiotic playoffs and related qualification system. I totally agree with the SS being more worthy (and, anecdotally, I ran into Tyson Wahl yesterday who also agrees). I would MUCH prefer a single table, end-of-year-best-of-table champion like the rest of the world, which is why I visit this thread (so I can dream)! I like your full single table format a lot but I also like seeing the PPG table along WITH the single table as it adds a dimension the full single table doesn't (PPG), which is a very predictive statistic as we can plainly see. And I don't see why I can't thank a poster for providing some interesting additional information even if it is slightly off topic. I figure if the mod posts it here it can't be that far off topic.
That's why I asked if you'd be interested in adding PPG to your single table, bright. PPG has some value in that it is a good way to compare where teams that have a different number of games actually rank in comparison to each other. Clearly it has some limitations because a team isn't going to convert those games in hand at the same rate their PPG shows, but just showing points is also deceptive as it shows the rankings as if the games in hand are losses. I also didn't want to devalue the good work that you're doing by including the information from your post in mine.
There is no deception. The number of games are listed with the number of points, so it is easy to derive the nature of the gap between the teams. Like I said in the other post, there is no reason to read so much into the table positions as if they are "rankings". They are not. The table is not intended to convey anything so subjective as "rankings". Ultimately, the season is a points chase, so all that ever matters is the points earned. That said, I don't think your PPG posts really detract that much from the focus of this thread, mostly because a lot of people have used it to chat about the bastardized playoff race anyways. Personally, I would like the thread to be a testament to how awesome these past two seasons have been for long-time soccer fans. We finally got our league-wide balanced schedule, and despite the league continuing with its habit of making a mockery of things, some of us can still acknowledge what the balanced schedule means.
I just go to http://www.settingthetable.info/ and I can see both the current single table standings and then sort on PPG which is another useful metric.
Code: GP Pts W D L GF GA GD Los Angeles 28 [b]55[/b] 15 10 3 40 22 18 Seattle 28 [b]48[/b] 13 9 6 43 31 12 Dallas 28 [b]46[/b] 13 7 8 36 31 5 Salt Lake 26 [b]45[/b] 13 6 7 37 22 15 Colorado 29 [b]41[/b] 10 11 8 39 37 2 Kansas City 28 [b]40[/b] 10 10 8 43 36 7 ------------------------------------------- Columbus 27 [b]40[/b] 11 7 9 32 33 -1 Philadelphia 27 [b]36[/b] 8 12 7 35 30 5 Houston 28 [b]35[/b] 8 11 9 34 36 -2 D.C. United 25 [b]34[/b] 8 10 7 37 35 2 ------------------------------------------- New York 27 [b]33[/b] 6 15 6 42 38 4 Portland 27 [b]33[/b] 9 6 12 34 42 -8 Chivas 28 [b]31[/b] 7 10 11 32 33 -1 San Jose 27 [b]29[/b] 6 11 10 29 35 -6 Chicago 27 [b]27[/b] 4 15 8 30 35 -5 New England 28 [b]27[/b] 5 12 11 32 43 -11 Toronto 29 [b]27[/b] 5 12 12 30 51 -21 Vancouver 27 [b]22[/b] 4 10 13 28 43 -15 As of Sunday, September 11, 2011.
Couple of changes on the PPG side of the standings. With FCD and Seattle losing this weekend, RSL jumped from 4th in the West to 2nd, Seattle down to 3rd, and FCD down to 4th. In the East, DCU has passed Philly for 3rd. Code: Team PPG POS LAG 1.96 W1 RSL 1.73 W2 SEA 1.71 W3 FCD 1.64 WC1 CLB 1.48 E1 SKC 1.43 E2 COL 1.41 WC2 DCU 1.35 E3 PHL 1.33 WC3 HOU 1.25 WC4 -------------- NYRB 1.22 POR 1.21 CHV 1.11 SJE 1.07 CHI 1.00 NER 0.96 TFC 0.93 VAN 0.81
Code: GP Pts W D L GF GA GD Los Angeles 29 [b]58[/b] 16 10 3 43 22 21 Seattle 29 [b]51[/b] 14 9 6 46 31 15 Salt Lake 27 [b]48[/b] 14 6 7 38 22 16 Dallas 29 [b]46[/b] 13 7 9 36 32 4 Colorado 30 [b]41[/b] 10 11 9 40 39 1 Columbus 29 [b]41[/b] 11 8 10 35 37 -2 ------------------------------------------- Kansas City 29 [b]40[/b] 10 10 9 43 37 6 Philadelphia 28 [b]39[/b] 9 12 7 36 30 6 Houston 30 [b]39[/b] 9 12 9 38 39 -1 New York 28 [b]36[/b] 7 15 6 43 38 5 ------------------------------------------- Portland 28 [b]36[/b] 10 6 12 37 42 -5 D.C. United 26 [b]34[/b] 8 10 8 37 38 -1 Chivas 29 [b]31[/b] 7 10 12 34 36 -2 Chicago 28 [b]30[/b] 5 15 8 33 37 -4 Toronto 30 [b]30[/b] 6 12 12 32 52 -20 San Jose 28 [b]29[/b] 6 11 11 30 37 -7 New England 29 [b]27[/b] 5 12 12 32 46 -14 Vancouver 28 [b]22[/b] 4 10 14 28 46 -18 As of Sunday, September 18, 2011.
Code: Team PPG Pos LAG 2.00 W1 RSL 1.78 W2 SEA 1.76 W3 FCD 1.59 WC1 CLB 1.41 E1 PHL 1.39 E2 SKC 1.38 E3 COL 1.37 WC2 HOU 1.30 WC3 DCU 1.30 WC4 --------------- NYRB 1.29 POR 1.29 CHI 1.07 CHV 1.07 SJE 1.04 TFC 1.00 NER 0.93 VAN 0.79 Not much movement in the Western Conference, but Philly jumped ahead of KC and DCU and DCU is clinging on by a thread to the last playoff position.