Chivas USA has done it! They’ve managed go from MLS middle class (in the ranking, that is) all the way to the bottom. Here are Nos. 11-19 of ProSoccerTalk’s weekly countdown following Round 26.
(Nos. 1-10 are on deck …so check back)
19. Chivas USA – It has all gone completely pare-shaped for the Goats. Management is in disarray as the club is essentially a league-run organization these days. Even once-reliable goalkeeper Dan Kennedy is making mistakes, perhaps worn down from the weight of it all. Chivas USA has … get ready for this … allowed 18 goals over its last five matches. That is unheard of.
18. Toronto FC – Another bummer around BMO: giving up late goals to Mexico’s Santos put the club’s Champions League hopes on the skids. Back in MLS a few days later, Paul Mariner’s team gave Sporting Kansas City a scare but still fell, 2-1.
17. Colorado Rapids – Oscar Pareja’s men have a great opportunity to quickly overturn the weekend loss at Portland; the same teams meet Wednesday at Dicks Sporting Goods Park outside of Denver.
16. Portland Timbers – A 1-0 win over Colorado dragged the Timbers out of last place. Plus, news broke last week that Caleb Porter (pictured) will coach the team starting this December, upon conclusion of the college season. So, forward movement around Jeld-Wen, certainly a good thing.
15. Philadelphia Union – Having been stripped of his interim status and installed as full-time coach (and with the playoffs well out of reach), John Hackworth can begin long-term planning around PPL Park. This is clearly the right approach.
14. New England Revolution – About last week’s scoreless draw with Philadelphia: the less said the better. (Just two shots on target from the home team pretty much says it all.) So, we’ll look ahead: The Revs get Columbus at home Wednesday – and a chance to see the league’s top player at the moment, Columbus DP Federico Higuain. That’s something, right?
(MORE: Higuain is ProSoccerTalk’s Player of the Week.)
13. Vancouver Whitecaps – The latest response to Vancouver’s shocking southward spill was some shaking-up of the ‘Cap starting lineup. The latest result says the latest response did not amount to much. Not only did the Whitecaps lose their fourth consecutive match, they looked pitifully tame in doing so. Desperate to remain in the fifth playoff spot, all the visitors could manage against L.A. was a measly two shots? The only positive news for Martin Rennie’s club in Week 26: sixth-place playoff pursuers Dallas failed to get full points in its weekend contest.
12. FC Dallas – The club created enough chances to collect all three points against Seattle, but jayvee shooting from Blas Perez and Jackson dented the opportunity – and the club’s playoff chances took a big tumble as a result. So it’s really down to this now: Schellas Hyndman’s side meets Vancouver in both teams’ next MLS contest. The match is in Dallas, and anything but all three points will probably end the Texans’ post-season hopes.
11. D.C. United – It always looked like a bugger of a week, with a visit from New York and taxing trip just three nights later out west to Real Salt Lake. Sure enough, it ended with just a single point gathered (a 2-2 draw with the Red Bulls and a 1-0 loss in Utah.) Ben Olsen’s team played well at Rio Tinto Stadium, but the net-out won’t reflect it. Sizzling hot Columbus has lapped United, which now sits sixth in a race where only the top five spots pay.
