MLS is Back!? What should I watch… | OneFootball

To paraphrase Lewis Carroll: “O frabjous day! Calloo! Callay! The MLS is back to play!”

Given that the World Cup completely cleaved the MLS season into twain, the scheduling wonks really had their hands full in finding times to squeeze in enough games. So to appeal to the soccer-deprived, they put four games in today, between the World Cup semi-finals and the penultimate weekend. 

These are good games, too, with three derbies and a mouthwatering clash featuring two legends of the sport.

CF Montréal vs. Toronto FC

Kickoff: 7:30pm ET / 4:30pm PTStade Saputo, Montreal, Canada

MLS 2.0 kicks off with the Canadian Classique. The Toronto team bus, and their supporters, will travel up Ontario Highway 401 to visit CF Montréal.

Despite signing Josh Sargent from Norwich City in the most expensive transfer in Toronto history, the Reds haven’t exactly exploded offensively. Sargent only played in 8 matches, generating a respectable but hardly worldbeating 3 goals and 2 assists. He’s under the microscope now. After a seven-game unbeaten run from March through late April, the club stumbled hard into the World Cup break. They lost four of their final five matches, shipping 12 goals in the process, and dropped into 10th place in the Eastern standings. They also were eliminated from the Canadian Championship on a 3-1 loss to Atlético Ottawa.

CF Montréal wasn’t expected to perform well, and has lived up to those expectations. After losing six of their first seven games and conceding 19 goals, they even fired their head coach Marco Donadel. Since then, things have improved. They have 3W, 2D, 2L, and have advanced to the semi finals of the Canadian Championship. So much of Montréal’s success rests on the shoulders of Prince Owusu. He’s got 15 contributions (9g/6a) across their first 14 games. He also played two seasons with Toronto, so you know he’s up to beat the old club.

Chicago Fire FC vs. Vancouver Whitecaps

Kickoff: 8:30pm ET / 5:30pm PTSoldier Field, Chicago, Illinois

It’s no derby, but this fixture could be called: “The Clash of the Bayerns.” Two absolute legends of that storied German club have jumped across the pond to MLS. Late last season, Thomas Müller moved over to the Whitecaps and had an immediate impact. Just last week, Robert Lewandowski confirmed his move from Barcelona to Chicago Fire. The two were Bayern teammates for eight seasons, terrorizing defenses in that time. Now they sit on opposite sides. 

(Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images)

Outside of this storyline, Vancouver entered the World Cup break #1 in the West and #2 in the Shield race. They’re on 32 points (10W, 2D, 2L) with a +22 goal differential and a league-high 2.54 xg. 

Chicago have definitely improved from last season, where they just sneaked into the playoffs. They sit third place in the East, refreshed and re-energized by the changes initiated by Gregg Berhalter. Hugo Cuypers has scored 13 times in 11 games, up there with league leaders Lionel Messi and Petar Musa for Golden Boot contention. The big question is how the Belgian will play with Lewandowksi. The Pole is a more traditional no.9, which should allow Cuypers more freedom to roam and be dangerous. In any event, having two class strikers to pick from is a problem most managers would LOVE to have.

St. Louis CITY SC vs. Sporting Kansas City

Kickoff: 8:30pm ET / 5:30pm PTEnergizer Park, St. Louis, Missouri

Did I say they were ALL good games? This one might be a stretch. Sure, it’s a Midwest matchup between cities on the Mississippi. Supporters will be up for this one even though, to be honest, neither team was particularly good in the first half of the season. The long break presents both sides the opportunity to press a “reset” button and salvage something. Unless you’re a passionate fan of either team, I’d watch the other one.

Seattle Sounders FC vs. Portland Timbers

Kickoff: 10:30pm ET / 7:30pm PTLumen Field, Seattle, Washington

One of the longest running derby’s in MLS, and among the spiciest. Expect plenty of noise and passion from the stands, and on the pitch. Seattle is the stronger of the two here, and should run away with this one. Their fifth place position is despite playing two fewer games than every other MLS team (not sure how the schedulers explained that one). If points per game were used instead of points, they’d be third. Offensively, Seattle is not robust; their 17 scored is the third-worst in the west. Paul Rothrock (4), Albert Rusnák (3) and Cristian Roldán (3) lead the scoring. Sounders are winning with the stingiest defense in the league. They’ve conceded 10 goals, nearly two-thirds fewer than Portland (28). 

Portland was just bad in the first half. They’re soft defensively, and just middle-of-the-pack on the attack. Thinking they can muster any substantive resistance to Seattle on the road is wishful, though they have scored more goals. Kevin Kelsy and Norwegian Kristoffer Velde are the team scoring leaders. Of course, with both teams are coming in cold and no momentum, it could be an upset.