10 Bold Predictions for Clint Dempsey’s Return to MLS

This Sunday, Clint Dempsey really gets welcomed back to Major League Soccer. After a somewhat underwhelming start to life with the Seattle Sounders—by his lofty standards, at least—the United States international will be the focus of attention as his side host the Portland Timbers in one of the bigger rivalry games of the season. Over 66,000 fans are expected to descend on CenturyLink field for the contest, making it the biggest home crowd (at club level at least) that Dempsey will have ever played in front of. Dempsey told the official MLS website this week: I can’t even imagine what it’s going to be like when the whole stadium is completely packed and they are behind us. We’ll feed off that energy and we’ll make sure we give everything we have to let them go home happy. Winning one game is not the sum total of all the Sounders' fanbase started hoping for after signing Dempsey, however—they now have far bigger goals in mind. In that spirit, we make some predictions for Dempsey's much-vaunted MLS return.Begin Slideshow

Thierry Henry’s 5 Best Goals in MLS

Since arriving in Major League Soccer three years ago, Thierry Henry has become one of the most contentious players in the league. On the one hand, Henry can appear disinterested in games and has struggled come playoff time, scoring only one goal in six MLS playoff games. On the other hand, he has scored 14 and 15 goals in the last two seasons, respectively, and has repeatedly shown his class with some of the best goals in MLS history. Here are five of his best.Begin Slideshow

How Clint Dempsey Will Fit at Seattle Sounders

The dust has settled. Clint Dempsey is plying his trade for the Seattle Sounders. Unfortunately, his two games in the Emerald City have not given a fair sample as to how head coach Sigi Schmid might deploy him when Seattle have a full side. In Dempsey’s first match, the team’s other Designated Player Obafemi Martins was forced out of action early due to injury. In Deuce’s second match, a 3-1 loss to the Houston Dynamo, both Martins and strike partner Eddie Johnson were missing because of Martins’ fitness and EJ’s disciplinary suspension. A lack of a fully loaded Sounders side has seen Dempsey float about the field at his will, picking and choosing the times he wishes to drop deep and create from midfield. Even though Seattle have not had a full complement of players, Schmid should continue to allow Dempsey to play with this type of freedom of movement. Sure, Dempsey can play as an outside winger. He has done it before at both the club level and for the USMNT in the past. He is effective at it, too, crossing with precision and lively enough to skip past defenders on the flank. He is also able to play as a true striker, stationed firmly ...

European Stars Destined to Play in the MLS One Day

While David Beckham will forever be the stick that others are measured by in terms of their impact on Major League Soccer, players who starred in the biggest European leagues have been coming to MLS for years. From Barcelona and Bulgarian national team legend Hristo Stoichkov to modern-day stars like Thierry Henry and Robbie Keane, MLS has a rich history of top-notch talent. Here are eight more players who've had big careers in Europe that may be headed to MLS one day.Begin Slideshow

The Home Guard: MLS Players in the US Men’s National Team Player Pool

Welcome to the first edition of the Home Guard, a weekly review of Major League Soccer players in the US Men’s National Team player pool. Any current fantasy starting XI for the USMNT in Brazil will include 4-7 MLS players. This means MLS players will have a profound impact on the Nats’ performances in Brazil. Much like the ubiquitous Americans “abroad” features, we’ll look at the players' club performances for the past week, provide some metrics courtesy of MLSsoccer.com, and assess how that player’s performance affected his chances of making the final World Cup roster and the overall quality of the USMNT. The MLS/USMNT player pool will consist of any current MLS player who was either capped in 2013 or whose name appeared on any of the last three USMNT rosters. If you think there is an MLS player who could figure into coach Juergen Klinsmann’s plans for Brazil, drop me a note in the comments and I’ll consider adding their name to the Home Guard.Begin Slideshow

20 Best Players in MLS Right Now

The 2013 Major League Soccer season is entering the home stretch with the playoff races in both conferences starting to heat up. As teams prepare to get themselves enough points to make the playoffs and put themselves in position for a solid postseason run, let's take a look at the 20 best players in the league right now.  Begin Slideshow

Week 25 MLS Power Rankings

Three was the magic number in Major League Soccer this weekend.  Three managers were ejected from matches, three players netted a brace, and Robbie Keane scored three goals against Real Salt Lake.  As for how the number three relates to this week's Bleacher Report MLS Power Rankings, the new No. 1 club jumped three spots into the top slot.  Read on to see who claimed the No. 1 position in the latest B/R MLS Power Rankings. Begin Slideshow

Best and Worst from MLS Week 25: Robbie Keane, FC Dallas and More

The fight for three points intensified in MLS Week 25. Unfortunately, Saer Sene and Bakary Soumare decided to take it a step further. The New York Red Bulls and Philadelphia Union lacked the punching power for 90 minutes on Saturday. The two played to a scoreless draw in front of a capacity crowd at Red Bull Arena. With the result, both clubs remain separated by one point in the standings. It should come as no surprise, but some tough competition kept New York and Philadelphia from making the list of best and worst from MLS Week 25. Read on to find out why.Begin Slideshow

New York City FC: How Will the Club’s Entrance into MLS Realign the Conferences?

In 2015, New York City FC will be the newest member of Major League Soccer. While there certainly won't be any expansion teams in 2014, it's entirely possible there will be a club or two entering MLS in 2015. But for the sake of this article, let's pretend that this will not happen. When NYCFC—which has a nice ring to it—enters the league, there will be 20 teams. Which means (hallelujah!) there will be two conferences with the same number of teams in each. With 10 teams in the East (NYCFC will play in that conference, obviously) and nine in the West, an Eastern Conference club will make the switch to the West. The question is, which one? The teams on the coast are ruled out, so no Red Bulls or Revolution. Any team in the Eastern time zone is safe for that matter, so Toronto, Montreal, Columbus, Philadelphia, and D.C. United will all be staying put.  That leaves the three teams in the Central time zone, Chicago, Sporting KC and Houston. Chicago is safe, because it's visibly more east than either Kansas City or H-Town. On a map, Houston is only slightly more to the west than KC. That's not the only reason they should move ...

MLS: Should the League Introduce a Community Shield?

A few days ago, I was listening to the MLS Extra Time radio podcast, and they touched on something I'd been thinking about for a long time. What if MLS were to introduce a Community Shield of sorts, a cup final that is a trophy of it's own? The first question is, is this a good idea? I certainly think so. Having a game to kick off the new season would be a great way to start, like the traditional Thursday season opener in the NFL. It's the only game on and it gets the season underway. The next question is, who will be in it? While there may be some shouts for the Supporters Shield winner, it has to be the winner of the MLS Cup and the US Open Cup. If a team wins both then they can play against the Shield winner. Who should host it? This is also intertwined with the amount of legs there should be. Although all the top European leagues have a cup final between last year's champions, the amount of legs varies. While the English Community Shield is one game at a neutral venue, the Spanish Super Cup is two legs where each team hosts ...