Who Will Win the MLS Cup This Year? - kelvinmak's Blog

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Who Will Win the MLS Cup This Year? Stuck

Posted on March 8, 2013 at 02:22 PM.

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Goodbye, David Beckham. Hello, various over the hill ex-Premier Leaguers! (And, yes, good homegrown talents.)

Last week was a fun opening weekend for Major League Soccer, wasn�t it? The Timbers and the New York Red Bulls battling to a 3-3 draw (my, what sound and fury from the Timbers fans), and the Impact upsetting the Sounders with a 1-0 win. Good old unpredictable MLS.

So who�s going to win it all this year? I don�t know. I really don�t. On the one hand, the usual suspects�the likes of Sporting KC, Chicago Fire, New York Red Bulls in the east; the Earthquakes, Sounders, and Real Salt Lake in the west-- will probably be there or thereabouts by the end of the season. But on the other hand, especially with the playoffs, it�s not as easy to predict a winner in the MLS as, say, in the Premier League. The Dynamo were fifth in the east last year while the Galaxy�however much they underachieved�were fourth, and yet they played each other in the finals. Each of the aforementioned contenders have reasons to go all the way, but just as importantly, as strong as they are, they all have reasons not to either:

The Sounders didn�t just lose a playmaker in Fredy Montero, but also a player who made you feel like the game is never out of reach when he is on the pitch. Add to that, Obafemi Martins (remember him?) is still in Spain, with his transfer to the Sounders in limbo. As they showed in the loss to the Impact (with Alessandro Nesta turning back the clock in Montreal), the attack without Montero still needs a little gelling. But the rest of the Sounders core is still solidly intact, and they�ll certain be hanging around come playoffs time.
Meanwhile, in Kansas City, gone are Roger Espinoza and Kei Kamara�two pieces integral to the team�s quick and relentless 4-3-3 system. And judging from the performance in week one, Zusi has adjusted well to his new role. It will be interesting to see, going forward, how effective Sporting KC were in replacing Espinoza and Kamara (and to a certain extent Julio Cesar) with him and Feilhaber. On the bright side, you can pretty much bank on the team�s solid defense, and if they can get the goals, they will certainly have a chance to atone for their quick exit from the playoffs last year.
Then you have the changes in New York, where they have a new manager in Mike Petke, new playmaker (and a pretty damn good free-kick taker) in Juninho, and a new partner for Thierry Henry in Espindola. The talent is definitely there�and if first impressions are anything to go by, Espindola will certainly do just fine in New York, with the two goals on his debut�but this is also a club that has underachieved for a while now, and it remains to be seen whether the change of personnel can get them playing to their potential.
Speaking of Espindola, his old club Real Salt Lake has also dealt away Jamison Olave, and in turn recruited (re-recruited?) Robbie Findley and Joao Plata. Can they come in and make a contribution? Probably, but it�s not exactly a certainty, especially in the case of Plata. However, the rest of the team still looks strong, and under Jason Kreis� steady hand, playoffs should still be a minimum expectation for the club.
And then you have the bubble teams�the Vancouvers and the Chicagos�who are going to fight to the death with each other for the remaining playoff spots. And don't forget about last years' finalists, even with the Galaxy losing Beckham and Landon Donovan�s sabbatical. Houston, too, seems to be that team that can always grind its way into the playoffs. And then-- as they've shown last year-- who knows could happen once they're in?

So who�s your pick to lift the trophy?

(Photo via the MLS)

Comments

# 1 msuhockeycj @ Mar 8

Take issue with saying week one showed Zusi hasn't adjusted to his role. He had a goal, an assist, and played a vital part of the third goal. He was voted as having one of the top 3 performances in week one. I think he proved himself just fine. You can doubt Sportings new system will be able to pull it together fluently enough for a title run but Zusi won't ever be the problem in KC.

# 2 Dynastium @ Mar 8

The MLS has gone downhill from the 2012 season to the 2013 season. I don't see any stacked teams; I think we might see a surprise from Portland or Chicago this season.

# 3 kelvinmak @ Mar 8

@msuhockeycj: wow, that is why I shouldn't write blog pieces on a 16 hour transpacific flight with a terrible head cold. I jumbled that paragraph with Zusi-- definitely not what I meant. Fixed now, thanks.

# 4 Big_Mig_11 @ Mar 9

(avatar says it all)

# 5 Big_Mig_11 @ Mar 9

well, thought it was my Quakes one. HAHA. Quakes are beat up at the moment, but once we get healthy, get Lenhart and Gordon back, paired with the reigning MVP in Chris Wondolowski, the goals will come in bunches

# 6 msuhockeycj @ Mar 9

@kelvinmak thanks for the update. @dynastium I thought the overall level of play in week one looked a little more skilled than last year. The league lost Beckham, Najar, Shea, and the SKC duo. Beckham and Shea were not very good last year. The others were but seemingly each team added something substantial in the offseason. There wasn't a dominant team last year either nor will there likely be in the near future. That's not a bad thing. Outside of Chivas and maybe Toronto anyone can win a game on almost any field. That should add excitement.

# 7 Thrash13 @ Mar 9

I picked Seattle before the season started, and while they were upset in week 1, I'm sticking with them. They will make a move or two and gel, and they will be tough to beat late in the season. I like KC in the Eastern Conference even though Toronto beat them today. Yikes! It's going to be the best season yet, and I'll be following as always.

On a side note, I'll be cheering for FC Dallas as always. I think they are a playoff team, but they aren't an MLS Cup Championship team.

# 8 Dynastium @ Mar 9

@msuhockeycj I just prefer capitalist versions of soccer like the EPL. I'm not very big on salary caps I guess. I just don't see that one team, like a Manchester City or Manchester United that are a lock to compete at a very high level. I just worry about the quality of the game. I think it's exciting that there are no championship locks, it's just that the MLS doesn't have a real high-quality team that could win the CONCACAF Champion's League.

# 9 kelvinmak @ Mar 9

Speaking of Toronto, I was in the stands today to watch their game against Kansas. While I'm still fairly sure they won't make the playoffs this year, they also may not be as bad as we (well, at least I initially) thought either. I know it's just one game, but they seem to have finally given up the immensely romantic, and equally futile, notion of playing total football (Aron Winter's time here was a disaster, as you guys probably could tell) and instead are happy to grind out wins. I think at the very least they'll be much tougher to play against, and I think if teams get complacent, they can play spoilers to a bunch of them closer to the end of the season.