The Road to MLS Cup XII, Week One

With the benefit of one week of results, here are some initial thoughts about the off-season moves by MLS teams.

(1) Goals? A number of writers fretted about Chicago's septagenarian defense. I wonder how they'll score goals after losing Jacqua and Herron. Rolfe and Mapp are two of my favorite players in the league, but Rolfe seems to wilt in the spotlight despite his obvious talent. And Mapp? Bless the boy-- I think he might already be an elite US player-- but with his finishing, you don't want to rely on him to score goals. Maybe Blanco will be the answer-- I don't think you can count on Logan Pause to score every week...

(2) Goals? Part II I was also wondering how Chivas USA would do without the Loco and Paco Show. I mean, Palencia's a legend in Mexico, right? And Loco Garcia's a fringe national teamer. These guys were good in MLS-- Palencia, in particular, had a great rapport with Ante Razov, helping the moody US striker have a banner year. Why doesn't anyone seem too concerned about losing them? I got one hint from Jesse Marsch: "We'll be better with the ball [without Loco Garcia]. Loco was dynamic in terms of creating some decent [scoring] opportunities, but his turnover rate was much higher than Amado's is going to be." http://www.latimes.com/sports/printedition/la-sp-chivas7apr07,1,4863834.story?coll=la-headlines-pe-sports

Interesting, right? The MLS guy-- Guevara-- is better with the ball than the Mexican league guy...

Still, it remains to be seen if Razov and Galindo will partner consistently well-- but the first Chivas goal, created with Galindo's speed, has got to be a good sign for the Goats.

(3) Who needs Dempsey when you've got Dorman? Seriously. Dempsey was the best player in the league for large stretches last year. Dorman looked good last year, especially when Dempsey went down, but his performance at the Fire has got to make Revs' fans hopeful of another chance at MLS Cup.

(4) RSL might not be so bad after all. Yes, the last minute goal was horrendous (is Rimando ever going to get his mojo back?), but I think Adu and Ballouchy are going to create some great opportunities and Jeff Cunningham is going to finish them. Some folks might find it funny that Adu got traded from a Supporters Shield team to a non-playoff team and still isn't good enough to start in the middle. I think it's probably more a question of Ellinger getting his best 11 on the field. Yes, you would always want Christian Gomez and Jaime Moreno with the ball over Adu, but I think the early returns show that Adu will do fine with the extra responsbility.

(5) This guy must be good-- he played in Australia! I watched the A-League Championship (what's the official name again? The Grand Final?) and was impressed with Fred. But I'm not sure why everyone assumed he'd be the answer for DC United. MLS is simply a different league (note, I didn't say it's better-- these things are tough to judge from a distance and nothing annoys me more than MLS fans bitching about not getting enough respect, while at the same time spouting off things like "Saprissa? Who the **** are they?") Some players simply are better fits in certain leagues (Diego Forlan anyone?) It's too early to tell with Fred, but he hasn't been a game changer so far. Let's try to save the hype next time.

(6) Claudio ******* Reyna. I've been waiting for Reyna to play in MLS for years so that his detractors could see him compared to MLS talent. Reyna's vision and passing stood out for the Red Bulls in the first half- he was clearly the best player on the field, true to form. Of course, also true to form, he picked up a knock and was limited in the second half...

(7) Speaking of European talent... Waterrreus was pretty good. Some folks have said that the Red Bulls got rid of one aging keeper only to go out and get another one. That's true, but Waterreus looks like a huge upgrade over a struggling Tony Meola. MLS has always been deep with goalkeepers, but watching Waterreus's positioning, I got the sense that European keepers still might bring an added dimension. Or maybe it was just the hair.