MLS Update
The MLS 2020 Playoffs kicked into action this weekend. 18 teams are participating with 4 teams part of a Play-In process and then the final 16 in a single elimination tournament. So let’s see how this thing is kicking off so far. The two play in games were completed on Friday.
New England took down Montreal 2-1 to advance while Nashville blanked Inter Miami 3-0 to advance. So the 8 games in round 1 are now set. Here is the first results and upcoming schedule.
#4 Orlando City defeated #5 New York City FC 1-1 in a shootout, 6-5.
#3 Columbus Crew edged past #6 NY Red Bulls 3-2 to advance.
Games on Sunday 11/22. #1 Sporting KC vs. #8 San Jose Earthquakes. #4 Minnesota United FC vs. #5 Colorado Rapids. #3 Portland Timbers vs. #6 FC Dallas.
Games on Tuesday 11/24. #2 Toronto FC vs. #7 Nashville FC. #1 Philadelphia Union vs. #8 New England Revolution. #2 Seattle Sounders vs. #7 Los Angeles FC.
Check back for Updates later today on Sunday’s Results!
UPDATE: The MLS Playoffs are off to a fast and epic start.
What a night for the MLS. The Sporting KC game with the San Jose Earthquakes was pretty epic. It was 2-2 when I turned on the game around the 70th minute. And then things started to get interesting. San Jose seemed stronger toward the end of the game. All Time MLS goal scorer Chris Wondolowski looked dangerous and on the verge of a goal and then over the course of 5 minutes, Wondo hits the post, Sporting KC counter with an amazing goal to end it….but no….in extra time a ball into the box finds Wondolowski’s head and shockingly, its 3-3 and into OT. And then on to the PK shootout after 30 minutes of extra time. And something I have never seen in all my years watching soccer. The GK for Sporting KC, Tim Melia, stopped all three of the shots from San Jose, leading the team to a 3-0 Shootout win. Wow. That’s pretty amazing, stopped all 3 shots.
Minnesota United FC advance with a dominating 3-0 win over the Colorado Rapids. This is super cool for our local soccer community, having our “local” team advance to the next round. The team is hot, playing well, and takes some momentum into the next round. Go Loons!
And then to end the night, another epic PK shootout. Portland Timbers and FC Dallas ended the game at 1-1. But it took a 93rd minute goal by FC Dallas to get the game to OT. Wow. And then this.
Premier League Update
It’s Match Week 9 of 38 this week and a few big games with Top clubs impacting the table. The top match of the weekend is being played soon with Top 4 Clubs Leicester City facing off against last years runaway winner Liverpool. A huge match that should build serious momentum for the winner. In the top match so far this weekend, current table leaders Tottenham Hotspur (the best nickname in soccer and maybe all of sports I think!) took down a struggling Manchester City 2-0. Manchester City was tabbed by many to be the favorites this year and currently they are struggling to get into the top 10, sitting in 13th but with a game in hand that could take them into the Top 10….but definitely not up to their recent standards. And then there is Tottenham….a team with a ton of talent who just has not found a way to rise to the top of the table. But this year….they seem to be finding something special. Jose Mourinjo has brought his coaching experience and injected a new sense of confidence. No more “spursy” moments yet this year. Big game next week against his former club Chelsea. BIG match!!
Other winners this week include: Chelsea 2-1 over Newcastle, Brighton 2-1 over Aston Villa, Manchester United with a PK for a 1-0 win over West Brom, Everton back on track with a 3-2 victory over Aston Villa and West Ham United over Sheffield United 1-0. Still 4 games left to complete the Match Week 9.
The Table is in flux with games for Week 9 still being played. Current Top 4 includes:
- Tottenham
- Liverpool
- Chelsea
- Leicester City
Table updates after the Liverpool game ends.
UPDATE: Liverpool takes down Leicester City in dominating fashion, 3-0, and sets a franchi se record of 64 straight home games without as loss. That’s crazy, all wins our draws and no losses for 64 straight. That’s a home field advantage!!
FA Womens Super League Update
So, seriously bummed. The FA Womens Super League decided they needed a little break in play. No games scheduled for a few weeks….but then I kept snooping around and BAM!…..the league is taking a few weeks off for Cup play. So now I get to report on the update to the FA Womens Super League Cup games. The League Cup is a competition of 23 teams from the top 2 divisions in the English soccer. Currently, the are 6 groups of teams playing round robin games. Once completed, the top 6 from each group plus the top 2 second place teams will advance to a Quarter-Semi and Finals for the League Cup. Currently on Top and likely to quality include:
Aston Villa, Chelsea, Manchester City, West Ham United, Leicester City and Bristol City.
In a tough way to go game, Tottenham finished their Cup game against bitter rival Arsenal 2-2 and the game went into a PK shootout to determine the winner. USWNT player Alex Morgan, now a member of Tottenham stepped to the line at 5-4 in the shoot out and needed a goal to advance the game…..the shot flew high. A tough loss.
UEFA Nations League Update
We are down to the Final Four….but will have to be patient for the next round. The Nations League tournament has completed the Group stages with teams completing their 6 round robin games. The top team from each of the four groups in League A will advance to the semi-final and finals to be played in October 2021…..yes, you read that right, October of 2021. This tournament has taken the place of annual International friendly matches and so the schedule gets a bit weird. They squeeze games into the international breaks from Club competition across Europe. With Covid, the other impact was that in 2020, the European Championships, held every 4 years, were postponed from 2020 and moved to June/July of 2021…..and that pushed back the Nations League Semi-Finals/Finals as well. The good news….next summer will be fun….Euros 2020 and Nations League between June-July and October. The Final Four:
Italy–Belgium–France–Spain
That’s a pretty strong final four….Uff Da!
Spain redeems themselves….and delivers an epic blow to Germany. In the final game of Group 4 this past week, Spain faced off against Germany, yes, powerhouse Germany, and yes, a struggling Spain side that had some detractors. From winning the 2010 World Cup, being the most dominant force in world wide soccer, to a string of losses and frustrating fans with their lack of scoring and creative play. Admittedly, Spain sets a pretty high bar, but regardless, they were not living up to their own standards. They finished outside of the top 4 in the last two Word Cups. We all remember the 4 year run……Euro 2008 Winners……World Cup 2010 Winners….Euro 2012 Winners. What a run…amazing…but then not much. So we come to last weeks games pitting two of the giants of the game. You kind of figured Germany would prevail. Let’s see what happened.
Spain delivered one of the worst defeats in Germany’s storied soccer history, a 6-0 thumping, their worst defeat since 1931. A very humbling loss to proud Germany. And Spain, the team with no flair or scoring prowess, delivered 6 goals. And Ferran Torres, remember that name, delivered a hat trick, scoring three times. How bad was it for Germany…well their first shot on goal came at the 77th minute of the game. And based on a few really good saves by German GK Manuel Neuer, this could have been 7-0 or 8-0. the German defense was just non existent. Holes were everywhere, the break outs and space was massive. Curious how Germany reacts in the Euro 2020 matches next year. Now they need to redeem themselves and we get to see if Spain is ready to step back to the top of European soccer. Or was this just a really really bad night for Germany. Huh?
The German supporters were pretty stunned from this result. Folks calling for the current coach Joachim Low to step away from the team and start over. A very proud team with epic results, but this was epic in all the wrong ways for Germany. It will be very interesting to see the reaction from the team and if the German Federation makes any moves on the coach.
That’s it for now…More coming next week with Premier League action, more FAWSL updates and of course…MLS Updates!!