2019 MLS Recap

/ American Soccer, MLS / By

The MLS’s 24th season officially ended November 10, 36 days ago. In the following days, just about everyone wrote their cheesy article about how LAFC couldn’t finish off their, “magical,” season. Well, that’s not what this blog is about. This blog is totally about me gloating in everyone’s face about being right about my original season preview blog (for the 2nd yr in a row). It’s also a chance for me to get a ton of things off my chest. Let’s get right into it.

Yes Carlos Vela dominated the league

It didn’t take a rocket scientist to realize that Carlos Vela would undoubtedly be among the conversations of MLS MVP at the beginning of the season. I mean, c’mon. If a player is rumored to have had an offer from Barcelona, and he plays in the MLS, putting 2 and 2 together means that the player is obviously the best player in the league. Around these parts, we call them overachievers, but great talents nonetheless. Remember that time Zlatan said he was better than Vela, and come semi-finals time, Vela t-bagged Zlatans corpse all over Bank Banc of California Stadium? Yeah, good times. Also Bob Bradley and his pit stains won COY proving to everyone that you too can win a COY award when you have probably the best roster in the league with the best player in the league at your disposal.

Josef Martinez somehow won Goal of the Year?

Now don’t get me, Josef Martinez’s goal vs FC Cincinnati was nice. But, like, that all. It was just nice. Not out of the ordinary. I mean. I can’t do that, but I also don’t make a lot of money to play soccer. Definitely a robbery to gems like Zlatan’s goal. Or hell. Wayne Rooney was a couple yards behind midfield in his goal. All I’m saying is, we’ve seen better goals. That wasn’t it chief.

These players didn’t really do anything.

We start with Rooney and Acosta. What a story to be told. 2 men, maybe more like 1 and a half men, leading a city desperate for a championship (which later they somehow got) towards what seems like a hopeful season. Both coming off fantastic seasons cut short by a penalty loss to Columbus. One was starting to look like the Rooney of old and the other was rumored to be, “good enough,” to sit the bench at PSG. 9 months later here we are. The Rooney of old became an old Rooney. And PSG’s future bench player became Boca Juniors future bench player? I mean what happened. Was Rooney to busy helping his wife sift through all her Instagram followers to find the mole? Did Lucho spend his nights balled up in the corner repeating to himself, “Je suis ouvert,” over and over until he fell asleep? And Pity. 14 million, dude, the least you could do is get along with the shitty coach we left you with. Not to say he had a bad season, but you don’t pay 14 million to get a better looking Marco Pappa. And not really much to say about FC Cincy. They stink.

https://twitter.com/TheRenderMedia/status/1144068762552950784?s=20

Spaniards kind of killed it

Here’s a list of Spanish soccer players in MLS, well at least the important ones. Carles Gil, Alejandro Pozuelo, and Victor Rodriguez. Not a long list I get it, but those three players had themselves a damn good year. Carles Gil the man I choose to be the flop newcomer of the year because of his name being misspelled actually won newcomer of the year. He gave the Revs the jolt they needed to get Bob Kraft to actually give a shit about them. And by give a shit, I mean he just like added new weights to the gym and maybe a hot tub or two. Alejandro Pozuelo led, that’s right, led Toronto to the MLS final. Sure TFC has an okay team before adding him, but he came in, played half as well as Giovinco, and that’s all TFC needed to make a run. Oh Victor Rodriguez, quite possibly Seattle’s, not best but, most effective player. My mind can’t fathom what he could’ve done had he not missed a ton of games. And now he’s living Seattle to probably go to Spain leaving some mighty big shoes to fill. Hypothetically of course because no chance he wore bigger boots than a size 8.

VAR didn’t suck as bad, but more the lack of VAR did

I would deem myself a VAR fanboy. But not so much for what it is, but what it could be. I think refs are the WORSE and being able to have something that will fix their mistakes should be a plus. Unfortunately, that’s not what it has been. Why? Well, the fucks in the VAR office just don’t even care to tell the ref, “you know, maybe that should be reviewed.” That if plays are missed than plays are missed mentality is exactly why everyone thinks VAR should be banned. It’s too inconsistent and there is no reason for that to happen. They should implement an NFL style challenge flag where each coach gets 2 challenges a game. However, with these referees, we’re gonna get at least 4 stoppages a game.

Seattle is the Ruler of 2019 and the decade?

https://twitter.com/Jasoninho10/status/1189404204831518720?s=20

If you read my 2019 MLS season preview blog, you’d have known that I pled my case for Seattle to win the league. Apart from the below-par goalkeeping, this team was stacked. Raul Ruidiaz had a good year and an even better playoff run. That defense played incredibly after having lost two franchise players in Chad Marshall and defensive midfielder Ozzie Alonso. Speaking of the midfield, holy hell did they shine. Roldán played good enough I guess but man did Gustav Svensson shine. He took over that Alonso role and played his ass off. Nicolas Lodeiro and Victor Rodriguez were without a doubt the best players on the team and deserve more credit than I can hand out. Finally what a comeback story. The next Great white hope, 2016 ROY, Stanford standout, Jordan Morris. After blowing his ACL into a hundred little pieces, Morris spent the entire 2018 season on the sideline. He has since gone on to score 10 goals 7 assists, won an MLS Cup, and starred, and scored, in a couple USMNT games, and maybe was robbed of a US Soccer athlete of the year award? I love me some Jordan Morris and am absolutely happy to have seen him make the comeback he had this season. What a baller. And so Seattle, MLS team of the decade acquired their 2 championships ever.

So what did I miss? Vela dominating. Seattle running away with the trophy. DC United somehow stinking. VAR stinking. Oh yes, how could I forget? Poor little ole LAFC had a good season and didn’t win. There I think I covered it all. 2019 was an average season I guess. The more things change, the more they stay the same. New transfers, new teams, new stadiums and yet, Seattle and Toronto found themselves in the MLS final again. And so, it is this blog that puts the cap on the bottle that was MLS’ 24th season. No longer will you see blogs of the 2019 season. Now we get blogs about Miami being linked to every single player in the world. We get twitter replies filled with fake graphic designers trying to redesign the new Chicago Fire logo. We get the transfers of old superstars trying to keep the flame alive. That’s what we should look forward too. Happy holidays everyone! Enjoy locking yourselves in your room while everyone else pretends to get along with family members.

That ball control tho. Also, thank god he’s leaving.

 

 

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