ASN’s Brian Sciaretta presents up his ideas on the primary seven video games of the primary spherical of the MLS playoffs the place we’re seeing the advantages of homefield, expereince, and big-time designated gamers. In different phrases, issues we must always broadly count on.
BY
Brian Sciaretta
Posted
November 01, 2023
6:10 AM
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THE FIRST LEG of the primary spherical of the MLS Playoffs is sort of full with seven of the eight collection having performed their opening recreation. There’s a lot to unpack from these seven video games and a lot of the groups that gained at the moment are closely favored to advance to the second spherical.
Some issues are apparent. First, the homefield benefit was large. Six of the seven groups that gained, have been residence groups and not one of the video games resulted in penalties (fortunately). 5 of the seven video games have been a number of objective wins and the 2 one-goal wins haven’t been terribly even (Orlando had practically 60% possession and Houston had 71% possession). There was quite a lot of debate over the brand new playoff format, however to date the outcomes have the favored crew carry out effectively – and it does appear to put a a lot larger worth on the common season. Internet hosting playoff video games is such a bonus.
There hasn’t been a lot drama, however there was convincing play.
One other level that bears emphasis is that the playoffs are completely different than the common season in that the emphasis shifts from depth to the designated gamers within the postseason. Right now of yr, the designated gamers and true stars of the league are inclined to make the variations between wins and losses. This yr has been no completely different.
???? All Angles
Dénis Bouanga is now the #LAFC all-time chief in playoff objectives. pic.twitter.com/FXU4QpKw2w
— LAFC (@LAFC) October 31, 2023
Up to now within the first spherical, we’ve got had 25 objectives and 13 of the objectives have been scored or assisted by designated gamers or former designated gamers. Even past the objectives, the productiveness from the highest gamers has been key.
When it comes to the primary video games from the primary legs, listed here are some ideas.
Philadelphia Union 3-1 Revolution
Every crew had a distraction (albeit the Revolution’s distraction was much more important) however the Philadelphia Union didn’t let it have an effect on the efficiency.
“It’s a good reminder we’re still a good team,” Union head coach Jim Curtin mentioned. “We can beat anybody. Don’t forget about us… This format, it suits us.”
The Union are additionally unbeaten in 17 out of 18 residence video games this season. Once you mix that with their designated gamers doing effectively in Daniel Gazdag and Mikel Uhre, the Revolution having been in disarray for 2 months, high Revs participant Carles Gil selecting up an damage, and Union feeling slighted with all of the put up season picks in favor or Cincy, Orlando, Columbus, and even Atlanta, it makes for a extra harmful Philadelphia crew. The crew may be upset about Bedoya, however they’ve compartmentalized it effectively or have merely channeled their anger to on the sector.
The one drawback with Philadelphia is that high defender Jakob Glesnes can be out for possible the period of the playoffs with surgical procedure to restore a sports activities hernia.
There’s a lot to love about Philadelphia proper now.
LAFC 5-2 Vancouver Whitecaps
LAFC should have closely scouted the Vancouver Whitecaps’ set piece defending and located weaknesses as a result of Steve Cherundolo’s aspect scored 4 objectives off set items.
As Charles Bohem accurately identified, LAFC had an enormous benefit in that former Whitecaps supervisor Marc Dos Santos is now an LAFC assistant and is working LAFC’s free kicks. Is it a coincidence that this led to 4 objectives? No.
Issues have been pretty even from the run of play and LAFC has some room for enchancment defensively and from the run of play, however set items are ridiculously essential in knockout soccer. That’s how groups usually win silverware.
Simply how they drew it up ??#LAFC pic.twitter.com/GBUPbLuiI6
— LAFC (@LAFC) October 30, 2023
One other takeaway postgame is that LAFC mentioned they really feel rested and prepared after an extended season.
“The season was such a grind,” mentioned Ryan Hollingshead, who scored two objectives. “There’s so many highs, so many lows, and you get to this point now where games are spread out every week, you’re not playing these midweek games, we’ve got everybody back healthy for the most part. And that’s where LAFC is at its best.”
LAFC has an enormous edge in expertise on Vancouver and most different groups, however they’re older. If the playoff format permits LAFC to be at their finest, then they’re in nice form with Carlos Vela, Denis Bounaga, and Giorgio Chiellini having the ability to play at full energy.
Houston 2-1 Actual Salt Lake
This recreation was nearer than it ought to have been as Houston had 23-7 edge in pictures and a 71-29 edge in possession. Houston accomplished 619 passes on this recreation and RSL accomplished simply 210.
The one purpose why this recreation was shut is that Diego Luna was capable of get open on a pleasant run off a nook to equalize the sport within the 54th minute. Luna continues to appear to be a great choice for the USA U-23 Olympic crew.
Sure, Chicho Arango wasn’t there for RSL, however this recreation confirmed that the issues are deeper for Pablo Mastroeni’s membership. Arango would have been starved for service even when he performed.
Perfection from HH ???? pic.twitter.com/RzVeWekLyR
— x – Houston Dynamo FC (@HoustonDynamo) October 29, 2023
Returning to the mountains for recreation 2, RSL ought to be extra comfy at residence however Houston has an enormous edge in expertise on this recreation. I really like the best way their central midfield performs with Hector Herrera, Artur, and Amine Bassi. That trio simply opens the sport up superbly.
Ben Olsen has executed such an important job with Houston. The mentality of this group has been spectacular given how they skilled no letup in any respect after profitable the Open Cup. That’s very laborious to do for groups that win a midseason match.
Cincinnati 3-0 Purple Bulls
After an important month to finish the season and the wildcard play-in recreation, the clock struck midnight and the Purple Bulls became the membership all of us figured they have been all through a lot of the common season. The Purple Bulls created possibilities on this recreation however didn’t have the weapons to compete with the superiorly proficient FC Cincinnati crew.
Then when the frustration kicks in, so do the errors. Andres Reyes had a comically dangerous 40-yard header backpass that started the calamity the led to a Luciano Acosta objective for a 2-0 lead.
After the sport, Purple Bulls midfielder Peter Stroud defined the place the Purple Bulls fell aside tactically.
“I think they dropped [Álvaro] Barreal back a little deeper which kind of tweaked our pressing,” Stroud mentioned. “It’s always difficult when the team drops a fullback a little deeper. That means we have to set our line at a different spot and then there’s also a lot more ground to cover to get pressure on the ball, and that’s how we want to play obviously. So it took time to figure that out for sure. And they were kind of hurting us down that side. But I think we figured it out in the second half, and I think we gave them a run for their money here. We had a couple more shots than in the second half. We just can’t start like this on Saturday.”
Lucho buries it from 35 yards out?? pic.twitter.com/nSghgliymr
— S – FC Cincinnati (@fccincinnati) October 30, 2023
True sufficient.
Purple Bulls supervisor Troy Lesesne deserved quite a lot of credit score for the crew’s win midweek in opposition to Charlotte within the play-in recreation. He tweaked their signature press slightly to permit Charlotte to own the ball for a couple of passes earlier than the press. This threw Charlotte off.
On this recreation, Lesesne mentioned he had the sport plan for Cincinnati however it wasn’t executed. He additionally mentioned he doesn’t plan to vary it a lot. Now, it can simply be a query whether or not the Purple Bulls can end possibilities, come out stronger to start out the sport, and reduce out the errors.
The final month has proven us they’ve the flexibility to try this. However the totality of the 36 MLS video games, the 4 Leagues Cup video games, and the 5 Open Cup video games exhibits us that whereas attainable, it’s unlikely. Particularly when Cincinnati confirmed us they’re prepared for the playoffs and wouldn’t expertise the letdown that has affected a few of the high seeds traditionally.
“I’d say eliminating unnecessary mistakes,” Lesesne mentioned of what wants to vary within the subsequent recreation. “That doesn’t just mean the things that happen on the goals. So much so, the details of what our match plan was. I think our match plan was there. We didn’t execute it fully. So that’s what going to get to in preparation going into the next match, because not a lot is going to change. I think there’s going to be some small adjustments. It’s kind of a unique situation. It’s the same opponent back-to-back matches.”
St. Louis 1-4 Sporting KC
This was the large recreation of the primary leg and the one time from the primary seven video games {that a} visiting crew has gained. I predicted that St. Louis may very well be in hassle on this collection and it wasn’t an earthshattering choose. It simply takes a couple of primary understandings of knockout soccer and momentum.
First, knockout soccer is simply completely different than common season soccer. For knockout soccer, issues are a lot much less forgiving. Everybody knew St. Louis was going to win the highest seed and St. Louis wasn’t beneath a lot strain. Sporting Kansas Metropolis, in the meantime, is a way more veteran savvy crew with a veteran savvy coach. They’ve been in these conditions earlier than and it exhibits. However every time St. Louis was enjoying in knockout strain, reminiscent of within the Leagues Cup and the Open Cup, they weren’t practically as sturdy as they have been in common season video games.
Second, Sporting Kansas Metropolis’s seed within the playoffs is deceptive. That they had a horrible first 10 video games of the season however since then, have been among the many higher groups within the Western Convention. However due to that poor begin, there was much more strain on them for a lot of the remaining video games this season to make the playoffs. They’re used to enjoying video games they can’t afford to lose. They’re used to enjoying with depth.
— Sporting Kansas Metropolis (@SportingKC) October 30, 2023
Peter Vermes hinted at this.
“So every game that we went into, we’ve had to get a result, we’ve had to get points,” Vermes mentioned. “As the season wound down, there was less and less room for mistakes or [poor] results. So, the guys had to find a way to battle, time and time again.”
Third, and simply constructing off what Vermes mentioned above, St. Louis isn’t simply absent strain, they got here into the playoffs enjoying poorly having misplaced their final two video games. Momentum can also be important within the playoffs and St. Louis has no momentum whereas Sporting has quite a lot of it.
Once you add all this collectively, the 4-1 win for Sporting was not shocking. St. Louis seemed like a deer-in-the-headlights. Sporting seemed like a crew on a warpath.
Does St. Louis have what it takes to now head to Kansas Metropolis and win on the street? Certain, they’ve greater than sufficient expertise. However nothing else is trending of their favor proper now.
Orlando 1-0 Nashville
Nashville was a tricky matchup for the upstart Orlando Metropolis crew that was a classy however justified choose to make MLS Cup. However Orlando was capable of prevail within the first recreation 1-0 due to a spectacular Wilder Cartegena objective within the first half. From there, Orlando buckled down and performed an ideal street recreation mannequin, regardless of enjoying at residence.
However that displays the character of Nashville, a gentle defensive crew that’s robust to breakdown and nonetheless has sufficient particular person expertise – aka Hany Mukhtar – to select off wins. In reality, Mukhtar hit the crossbar on a unbelievable 40 yard shot.
Orlando deserved the win, however of all the house groups that gained up to now within the first spherical, Orlando nonetheless appears like essentially the most weak. Nashville can very effectively win at residence. If that occurs, the third leg might once more be a detailed one the place perhaps Mukhtar doesn’t miss and pulls off one thing spectacular.
— Brian Sciaretta (@BrianSciaretta) October 31, 2023
The xG on this recreation was comparatively even, so Orlando nonetheless has quite a lot of work to do and desires quite a lot of enchancment to advance.
I’ve a sense this collection goes to be very, very shut.
Seattle Sounders 2-0 FC Dallas
Credit score to Dallas, that they had their possibilities to win this one and the penalty they conceded was right, however it was additionally not a horrendous mistake they’ll make once more. Jesus Ferreira had three good pictures contained in the field when the sport was inside attain.
However the huge story is the damage to Alan Velasco within the 18th minute that compelled him out of the sport. That enormously impacts Dallas’ possibilities to make a comeback on this collection in opposition to a veteran-savvy Seattle crew. The query for Seattle is what degree of an impression Nicholas Lodeiro and Raul Ruidiaz will make off the bench.
Passing clinic ????
The buildup forward of our second objective featured these 1??2?? slick passes! pic.twitter.com/mJubFOYFRb
— Seattle Sounders FC (@SoundersFC) November 1, 2023
Seattle is now the clear favourite as a result of Dallas must be firing on all cylinders to make this a collection, and proper now it doesn’t appear to be that would be the case as a result of along with Velasco, Bernard Kamungo wasn’t capable of begin this recreation after selecting up an ankle damage within the season finale win over the Galaxy (the place he scored two first half objectives to basically clinch the playoffs). Regardless of Dallas lacking some nice possibilities, Seattle had lengthy stretches of management the place they didn’t even must get out of third gear.
Seattle is an extended shot choose to win MLS Cup given their age and the decline of Lodeiro and Ruidiaz, however they’re in good condition on this collection.
Columbus vs. Atlanta on Wednesday
The Columbus Crew host Atlanta United on Wednesday. All eyes are on Atlanta United which has a ton of expertise and a few of the finest gamers within the league, however who enters the opening recreation the underdog, for 3 causes.
First, Columbus additionally boasts quite a lot of expertise however they’re additionally extra constant. Second, Atlanta United is with out Thiago Almada who’s suspended for the opening recreation. And third, Atlanta Untied’s protection is solely not what championship groups are product of, and it’ll take a championship-level effort to beat Columbus in a three-game collection the place two video games are scheduled to be in Ohio if the collection goes the gap.
We all know Atlanta can nonetheless rating even with out Almada. However when watching this recreation, the telling signal can be how effectively Atlanta’s protection holds up in opposition to an elite Crew assault led by Cucho Hernandez and Diego Rossi. If Atlanta can comprise these gamers, they’re be in wonderful form. If not, it may very well be a fast exit for the 5 Stripes.
