World Soccer Update….MLS Cup, Premier League and More

MLS Cup

So I have to admit, it was hard to get fired up for this game, considering the tough loss for our “local team”, Minnesota United in the Semi-Finals….that one still stings, dang it, up 2-0 in the 73rd minute. Uff Da! The finalists were the Seattle Sounders vs. the Columbus Crew.

The Columbus Crew have been part of MLS since its inception in 1996….one of the original 10 franchises to start the league. They have reached the MLS Cup finals three times (SPOILER ALERT) and now have two titles….2008 Winners, 2015 Runner Up and 2020 Winners.

The Seattle Sounders were not an original team, but came aboard as part of the MLS expansion into the Great Northwest…a soccer hotbed in the US. Once they established themselves, they have been one of the top clubs in the league. They have an amazing fan base and are among the league leaders in attendance every year. They had an 8 year run leading the league in attendance from 2009-2016, averaging over 40,000 in that time span….. and really changed the profile for a successful fanbase in the MLS. The past three seasons they have been second, usurped in their title by upstarts Atlanta United, another new franchise who have taken attendance up a notch, averaging over 50,000 per season and selling out about every game. Quite a site to see their home games and the crowd.

Interesting note here. MLS currently is the 3rd best league in American sports as far as average attendance. Would you be surprised to know that MLS has better attendance per game than the National Hockey League….okay….okay….you are not that surprised about that…I mean it’s Hockey. Are you surprised to know that MLS Soccer (22,000) has better attendance than the National Basketball Association (17,800)….oh, okay, I got you on that one! That’s right, MLS has better average attendance than the NBA….interesting. The two leagues ahead of soccer. If soccer continues its popularity run, possible it could inch into the #2 spot and replace America’s pastime…..Baseball (28,000). #1…and in NO danger of ever being replaced is the king of kings regarding attendance…..the National Football League (67,000).

So, what happened there, I lost track of the game. Let’s get back to it!! MLS Cup Final. The game was pretty exciting from a standpoint of big plays, shots, saves, the quality of the goals, the almost goals….but as far as drama….Columbus was in control and dominated the game for long stretches. The goals were high quality goals. The almost goals were pretty exciting too, and made for a fun game. But in the end, Lucas Zelarayan, Columbus Crew and Argentina born, were too much for Seattle. Zelarayan was the star of the night with 2 goals and an assist. Really good stuff. Check out the highlights here.

Congratulations to the Crew.

They have a nice team and some really strong players and were missing a few to injury as well. They might be dangerous again next year. Well done MLS….a nice season and a nice final. The Loons in 21! You heard it here first!

Premier League Match Week 14

We are almost thru Match Week 14, just a few teams who need to catch up and get in another game that was delayed due to scheduling conflicts. And as they say….the cream is starting to rise to the top. Things started very strange, have settled down a bit, and we now have the top teams settling in for the long haul. The team of the week….maybe Everton. They took down Chelsea, Leicester City and Arsenal the past week and after losing sight of the top 6, have made a big push right back into the mix for a title and Top 4 finish.

Quietly moving up the table without much fanfare is Manchester United. Struggling a bit out of the league, they have been steady in league, are winning pretty comfortably, have a game in hand that if they can pull off a win in their 14th game, can go 2nd in the table, their best position in a number of years. Watch out for the them, their history and fanbase are craving a big year and they certainly have the team to make it happen. And even though it has been different than last year, Liverpool are now back on top and in charge of the league. A few teams had opportunities to knock them down a peg, but did not deliver. Chelsea lost 2 straight before today’s win…Tottenham have lost 2 straight after leading the table. Manchester City have stumbled a bit. So….LIVERPOOL is right back on top.

1. Liverpool 9-4-1 31 Points
2. Leicester City 9-0-5 27 Points
3. Manchester United 8-2-3 26 Points (13 games played)
4. Everton 8-2-4 26 Points
5. Chelsea 7-4-3 25 Points
6. Tottenham 7-4-3 25 Points

Rounding out the top 10; Southampton (24), Manchester City (23 but also only 13 games), Aston Villa (22 but only 12 games played), West Ham (21).
Relegation Zone has Fulham (10) in 18th, West Brom (7) in 19th and Sheffield United (2) sitting win 20th. Two more teams are within 3 points of the zone….Burnley and Brighton.

Hard for me to drop in Manchester United highlights, they are kind of the Yankees of soccer….so many titles over the years and you kind of don’t mind when they struggle…unless you are a Man U fan. But, they are playing well and just hit 6 against Leeds. Respect! Well done. Can you keep it going? It’s turning into an interesting battle for the title.

Team of the Week

So this may surprise or confuse you….the Team of the Week….the Vanderbilt Commodores. Yes, that Vanderbilt Commodores…college football Vanderbilt Commodores….SEC Vanderbilt Commodores. So you are thinking, wait a minute, this is a soccer blog, how does that work? Well, let me help connect the dots for you.

Soccer is called football in the rest of the world…..the football Vanderbilt Commodores play football in the SEC….the football Commodores had a series of injuries and COVID 19 issues that forced them to get creative in finding a kicker for their last few games….Sarah Fuller plays soccer for the Vanderbilt Commodores Womens team as a GK and had just been part of the team that won the SEC tournament and qualified for the NCAA tournament scheduled for the Spring….The football Commodores asked Sarah to come and kick for the team and she agreed….She suited up and kicked off in their game against Missouri at the start of the second half…..in their last game of the year against Tennessee, she was selected by the head coach for all kicks inside the 10 yard line based on the competition during practice as she was the most accurate from that distance…..and during their final game, she completed 2 extra points after Vanderbilt touchdowns……. Coach Derek Mason and Coach Todd Fitch stuck to their guns and selected her based on her skills and performance and provided her the opportunity to become the first women to score a point in a POWER 5 Conference Game……and so that’s how we get from Vanderbilt Football commodores to the Team of the week in Soccer. Whew—-hope you followed my strange and convoluted logic.

Here’s to you Vanderbilt football Commodores. For connecting football to soccer and becoming the Team of the Week!

Player of the Week

And of course, the Player of the Week is….drum roll please….SARAH FULLER. Vanderbilt women’s soccer player and Vanderbilt men’s Football player! A very cool story. She has been plagued with injuries during her 3 years at Vanderbilt soccer, but really stepped up for the team to win then SEC tournament. And then, with a crazy set of circumstances, becomes a Record Breaker. First woman to score a point in a Power 5 Conference football game. She announced she is done with football and will head back over to the Vanderbilt soccer team as they prepare for the NCAA tournament. We will be cheering for her. Way to go Sarah!!!

FA Womens Super League

We are in Match Week 10 of the 22 week season and just like the men’s league, the top teams are starting to separate from the pack. Several teams have only completed 8 or 9 games so that will flip things a bit once those games are played.

1. Manchester United. 26 Points and 10 games played
2. Arsenal. 26 Points and 10 games played
3. Chelsea. 20 Points with only 8 games played. With 2 wins, they will reach 26 and tie for the top.
4. Manchester City. 18 Points with 9 games played.

UEFA Champions League Update

The round of 16 is set with Round 1 of the Knock Out stage games during Feb 16th and 23rd weeks. Here are the 8 matchups in the next round. Home and Away games to determine the Quarter Finals.

1. RB Leipzig vs. Liverpool
2. Barcelona vs. PSG
3. Sevilla vs. Dortmund
4. Porto vs. Juventus
5. Athletico Madrid vs. Chelsea
6. Lazio vs. Bayern Munich
7. Atalanta vs. Real Madrid
8. Monchengladbach vs. Manchester City

Please keep an eye out for lots of soccer over the next few weeks. We are into the Holiday season with Premier League teams all playing 2-3 games a week. I hope you have some vacation time and are able to relax and watch some hight quality soccer!!