There’s always going to be an emphasis on how Designated Players perform in MLS, that comes with the territory of earning 20 times more than your teammates. And there’s always going to be an extra emphasis on Mexico’s internationals in the league, especially when they’re just 29 and stepping away from three years in the Bundesliga with Eintracht Frankfurt.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic loves to boast and has no lack of self-confidence. His league titles around Europe and amazing goals have placed him in the top echelon of players over the past decade. Even in MLS, Zlatan has already created several memorable moments, including his come-from-behind-victory brace against LAFC on his debut. But this time Zlatan has probably overestimated himself.
A big storyline from Major League Soccer’s opening weekend was the debut of 16-year-old LA Galaxy phenom Efrain Alvarez. The Los Angeles native was an academy product before becoming a revelation in the USL last year, scoring 12 goals and adding three assists in 17 appearances for the club’s reserve team, LA Galaxy II.
MLS returned for its 24th season this past weekend bringing new faces, a 24th club and lots of drama. The introduction of FC Cincinnati gives the league a more balanced schedule and gets rid of a team having to sit out bye weeks. MLS continued its fine form of entertaining and attacking soccer from 2018, averaging 3.4 goals per match. Yes, it's early, but there are still some key takeaways from MLS Week 1.
The 24th season of Major League Soccer kicked off yesterday with 20 of the league’s 24 teams in action on opening day. If you weren’t glued to your TV for 12 straight hours, you might’ve missed something. Here’s a quick recap of the major storylines from Day One.
We got things started in Philadelphia, where Mexican international Marco Fabián opened his Union account from the penalty spot, but a Michael Bradley brace helped Toronto FC to a 3-1 road victory.
Michael Bradley hadn’t scored a goal in MLS play since 2016. We know he has it in him, but we were starting to wonder if he’d ever score again.
The 24th season of Major League Soccer kicks off Saturday with 12 matches across multiple networks. FC Cincinnati joins as the latest expansion franchise to MLS, bringing the total to 24 teams. Atlanta United impressed on and off the field in 2018, winning the MLS Cup before record crowds and average attendance over 53,000.
The Galaxy had a Designated Player problem. With four LA Galaxy DPs — and only three allowed by MLS rules — the league’s flagship club had to do something before the start of the 2019 season.
Last year when Zlatan Ibrahimovic signed with the Galaxy, he signed a smaller contract to keep him under DP status because the club already had three DPs: Giovani dos Santos, Jonathan dos Santos and Romain Alessandrini. But Zlatan re-upped his contract in the offseason, putting him in DP money despite the fact the three others remained under contract.
There was a time when Brek Shea a lanky winger from the great city of College Station, Texas — home of the Dixie Chicken and the greatest football stadium in the country — looked like the next big thing for U.S. soccer. The Cockatrice, as no one but myself calls him, had a combination of skill, panache, size and athleticism that earned him a move to Stoke City after five seasons with FC Dallas.
The MLS season is quickly approaching. The buildup to the season has been full of interesting new kits and player signings.