11May/150
MLS Team of the Week: Dempsey, BWP, Kamara All Score Twice in Week 10
The best attackers in Major League Soccer were out in full force during Week 10. Thirty-two goals were scored over the course of six days. Although the week started slowly, with one goal from two midweek games, the action began to heat up Friday. Only Philadelphia failed to find the back of the net at least once during the wild weekend of play, which featured a five-goal contest in Columbus and a four-goal encounter in Orlando. Due to the massive amount of terrific attacking displays this week, we formed our MLS Team of the Week into a 3-4-3 formation, along with a bench of players who nearly made our starting XI. Continue reading on to see which players were named to the list of Week 10's best. Begin Slideshow7May/150
Under-the-Radar MLS Players Who Will Be Household Names by 2016
Everyone across the globe is aware of the star power that graces the Major League Soccer rosters. The likes of Robbie Keane, Sebastian Giovinco, Obafemi Martins, Clint Dempsey and others are on highlight reels week after week. Due to the decent number of superstars in the league, some productive players fly under the radar of the casual fan. Whether the cause is playing in a small market, starting for a struggling team or featuring in an unpopular position, certain players do not receive the attention they deserve. With that in mind, we prepared a list of 10 under-the-radar players who have the potential to be stars by the time the 2016 season begins. Continue reading on to see which 10 players we selected to become household names over the next 12 months.Begin Slideshow5May/150
MLS Power Rankings: Who Is the New No. 1 After Week 9?
MLS Week 9 has come to an end, and there were some monumental results that significantly altered the standings. The New England Revolution, D.C. United and FC Dallas picked up huge wins to move into a tie for first place in their respective conferences. Elsewhere, the Vancouver Whitecaps and Portland Timbers battled to a scoreless draw and the New York Red Bulls finally lost. These games not only influenced the MLS standings but this week's power rankings as well. There are a few teams on the rise, and one of them has claimed the No. 1 spot. Here are the MLS power rankings after Week 9.Begin Slideshow5May/150
MLS Player Rankings: Martins, Dempsey & Castillo Climb to Top
The ninth week of play in Major League Soccer taught us one valuable lesson that we should keep in mind from now until the MLS Cup Final. Obafemi Martins, Clint Dempsey and Fabian Castillo are the top three players in the league at the moment, and they should be for the rest of the season. The trio, who might be caught by Toronto FC's three designated players and Kaka at some point, produced a ton of class in their respective matches in Week 9. Due to the impeccable quality of the three stars, they all catapulted to the top of our latest ranking of the top 20 players in MLS. Continue reading on to see which one of the attackers claimed the No. 1 position in the Week 9 edition of the MLS Player Rankings. Begin Slideshow4May/150
Bradford Jamieson IV Leading Wave of USMNT U20 Players in MLS
With one swift cut to the left and a rocket into the bottom right corner of the net, Bradford Jamieson IV jumped onto the radar of many United States men's national team fans. Most people around the LA Galaxy and U.S. Soccer knew the 18-year-old had plenty of talent. But April 26's match against the New York Red Bulls marked the day everyone else started to find out how special of a player Jamieson could be. Jamieson's success with the Galaxy couldn't have come at a better time for club and country. At the club level, the young forward is filling in for an injured Robbie Keane. He is also gaining valuable playing time ahead of the FIFA U-20 World Cup, which begins May 30 in New Zealand. The 18-year-old has impressed many over the last three weeks starting next to Alan Gordon in the Galaxy's two-forward system. Thanks to the heavy influence from Keane in training, Jamieson felt ready to fill the void left by the Republic of Ireland international early in the season. “(Keane's helped me) tremendously. It’s a huge compliment to him that his play is affecting guys like me. That’s the way you should be benefiting from playing with an experienced ...4May/150
New York City FC Matches Come with Song Sheets
New MLS team New York City have got to build up a tradition, and the plan to inspire the likes of David Villa and (soon) Frank Lampard to hit the heights includes song sheets with chants for every game. For fans in England, that sort of thing doesn't sit right. Being told to sing, "You might have some history, but we don't give a crud" (yes, "crud"), might seem a bit patronising. And it probably won't take long to learn the words to "N...Y...C...*clap*." But it's (almost) all forgiven for this Mix Diskerud Kiss tribute: "I, wanna Diskerud all night, and party every day!" [h/t Balls.ie]Read more MLS news on BleacherReport.com4May/150
Clint Dempsey Pulls off Backheel Flick for Obafemi Martins Goal in Sounders Win
Clint Dempsey and Obafemi Martins combined in style to score for the Seattle Sounders in their MLS clash with New York City FC.Dempsey's backheel flick was outrageous, splitting the defence and allowing Martins through.The Nigerian did the rest, applying a cool finish. Dempsey and Martins look unstoppable. #SeattleSounders http://t.co/4bnVjLyMOR— The Fantasy Football (@TheFantasyFB) May 4, 2015 [@MLS, @TheFantasyFB, Twitter]Read more MLS news on BleacherReport.com4May/150
MLS Team of the Week: Seattle, FC Dallas Put 3 Players on List of Week 9’s Best
The first weekend of May brought us a few spectacular attacking displays across the pitches of Major League Soccer. The two clubs who stood out the most were FC Dallas and the Seattle Sounders, who each boast a trio of players in this week's MLS Team of the Week. Outside of the two Western Conference dynamos, a few Eastern Conference stars delivered key showings at both ends of the pitch in two early-season showdowns. Due to the large amount of strong attacking performances in Week 9, we molded the best 11 of the week into a 4-3-3 formation. Continue reading to see who was named in the Week 9 edition of our MLS Team of the Week. Begin Slideshow1May/150
Montreal Impact Winning CONCACAF Wouldn’t Have Altered MLS Landscape
The Montreal Impact were minutes away from a historic CONCACAF Champions League title. However, Club America showed its dominance in the final 45 minutes of the second leg in a 4-2 win in Montreal. It was a not-so-subtle reminder that MLS is still far behind Liga MX. Even if the Impact won the Champions League, this wouldn't have done anything to boost MLS' reputation. Cynics would have labelled Montreal's triumph as "lucky" and would still say the league cannot be taken seriously. Some of this criticism is fair. There are plenty of detriments in MLS. The low salary cap hinders teams' chances to compete in continental competitions. ESPN FC's Doug McIntyre claims that America's wages are 10 times higher than Montreal's. The squad rotation from both sides showed the vast difference in salary. Right-backs Hassoun Camara and Victor Cabrera were injured; plus Eric Miller was inexperienced, so midfielder Nigel Reo-Coker had to start on the right side of defense. Following goalkeeper Evan Bush's suspension, the Impact had to sign Kristian Nicht from Indy Eleven of the NASL. The team had to acquire Nicht because backup Eric Kronberg was cup-tied and third-choice Maxime Crepeau was recovering from injury. The Impact squad as a whole isn't the greatest ...30Apr/150