Except you had Keane off the bench and Gordon is a super-sub. And Zardes started. That was no second team. BA is doing what he has to to be 100%, absolutely sure they advance with a high seed. In the past he almost came across like he was trying to lose (remember the 2010 Puerto Rico game???). I think the Galaxy have a directive from on high to make CCL priority #1 and really try to win the damn thing. I can tell you, that hasn't been true in the past. That runs the risk of losing some pride if you get spanked, but at this point it looks like the Galaxy can get 12 points in the group stage and still make a run for the Supporters Shield. It's 2016 where they have really hard decisions to make, if you're going to write off some MLS games in order to put up a real effort against a Mexican or MLS team. Of course, they may get a bunch of TA money if Zardes leaves and they can bring in some more depth.
C'mon. Rowe, Gargan, Meyer, Romney, Garcia, Walker, Vayrynen, Maganto and Gordon are all subs at best. 9 of 11 guys aren't regular starters. I'd say that's about as second string as you can get. A number of those guys don't even make the gameday 18 for regular season matches. Arena didn't even want to play Keane. When asked about it after the match he said something to the effect of, "I didn't want to play him, but if I hadn't he probably would have punched me in the face. At my age, you've got to bend a little."
To the poster's original point, most fans in those countries only have soccer as a sport to follow, which is why there are so many side tournaments and regional competitions for soccer elsewhere. I've wondered about the long-term viability of additional soccer tournaments in the US for that reason.
All the hand wringing about "importance" are ridiculous. This group stage so far has been evidence that you can't draw any conclusion from these lineups as to how much MLS teams want to win it. MLS teams are winning most group stage games with their B teams. It's obvious that an MLS coach is well within his rights to expect (demand?) that his B team qualify to the knockout round. The tournament for MLS teams begins at that point. Managing an MLS season these days requires a deep roster. MLS teams have very often played B teams in regular season games too … especially in congested weeks ...
Yes. LA played several starters in those two games, but most of the team wasn't. Despite this, they've just about won the group and have a huge lead on the field when it comes to seeding. I'm interested to see how much they care in the quarters.
Bruce seems to be taking it more seriously. He fielded a very young squad but one that was very likely to win. I imagine the away matches will have more G's that can handle the pressure. And hopefully the rest of the tournament will feature mostly senior players.
Honestly, though, if you look at LAs squad, its the deepest its ever been, with many of our bench being MLS starter quality anyway. Having the USL side allows our younger players competitive matches where they get experience, and get vetted in a competitive envieonmwnt., just because someone is good in training, doesn't mean squat for gameday.
Guess you missed the last knockout round. I saw big crowds, committed teams, nail biting games, upsets … Not sure what more you can ask for as a soccer fan. We're never going to be UEFA but that doesn't mean we can't enjoy what we have.
I don't see a way of stopping that. If a club is trying to make the playoffs of course that will be their number one priority. If a English club is in Euro League and in a fight for the domestic cup at the same time they will prioritize their domestic cup. I don't agree with it but for some reason the Champions League in CONCACAF is not catching on with the fan base. I think it would be better to make it a single game elimination tournament with less teams. Right now your fan base simply demands you to prioritize MLS over CONCACAF and the finances of it dont give you much choice either. If they want it to be a bigger deal they can start with not having it on Fox Sports 9 and try to work it into their contract so that someone with basic cable can watch the games. They might be able to get some sponsorship behind it and put a little more in the winners purse as well.
Actually it is catching on. CCL is miles ahead where it was just a few years ago as far as fan, league, sponsorship, and broadcaster interest.
I don't understand this attitude towards CCL. I think it is a great tournament and 1000 times better than that joke SuperLiga they tried to get going. A tournament between just two leagues??? Now that was "crap"
A rather topical statement, considering The Don is trying to make a cup consisting of the winners of MLS Cup, USOC, EPL, and FA Cup.
I agree while I see that as slightly different considering it would probably only consist of 4 teams and it is teams from different regions/continents.
Yeah I feel the same way (not sure how I feel about it). I see it as just a marketing ploy to try to give the Euro preseason games against MLS teams slightly more importance than they do now. It would only give them more importance if the fans and media show any interest in this proposed "cup".
World soccer is already over saturated with cups. Making more cups won't create interest especially when it's between two countries arbitrarily coupled together just for $ exploitation. It would be the equivalent of the various preseason cups in Saudi Arabia and Hong Kong that nobody can name let alone care about …
I think there is a little more of a historical connection between USA and England Vs Saudi Arabia and Hong Kong.
Especially if the ages of the Cup competitions are played up. Sure it's mostly about cash, but there's something helpful in creating a narrative.