2001

Posted on February 22, 2016 by CT

The MLS Timeline Series (and SoccerTherapy.net for that matter) is back! Take a look at the 2001 tile and write up. 2002 is in the works and it’s going to be crazy. Keep an eye out for a belated-to-the-point-of-being-worthless post, MLS: Good, Bad & the Ugly from 2015

Regular Season

This season is likely most remembered for the fact that it was shortened due to the events of 9/11. Of the 12 teams, four played 27 matches while the other eight played 26 (teams were scheduled to play 32 matches). As a result, only two teams cracked the 50 point mark – Chicago and Miami finished tied atop the table with 53 points apiece. More about that coming up.

2001 represented the last year that a Florida club competed in MLS play, and both Tampa and Miami went out in historic fashion. Miami finished with 53 points to take the Shield while Tampa struggled to just 14 points in 27 matches. Miami went out on top, but Tampa’s 14 points still holds as the fewest an MLS club has collected in one season.

The Shield Race
Due to the 9/11 tragedy, this race didn’t play out in full, but in the end, they had to give the trophy to someone. Miami played attractive and entertaining soccer en route to collecting 53 points in their Swan Song season (can you say that about clubs or just players?). They took the Shield from Chicago on a tiebreaker; Miami defeated the Fire in two regular season meetings and played 26 games compared with Chicago’s 27, so they were deserving winners of the regular season hardware. But for Chicago to achieve the high point total in MLS for the second straight year and miss out on the Shield due to a tiebreaker yet again? That had to be pure devastation for their supporters.

All Star Game

This is the way All-Star games were meant to be played: the best players in the league going head-to-head, showing mutual respect and playing no defense whatsoever. The game took place in San Jose and hometown youngster Landon Donovan put on a show for his supporters, scoring a hat trick in the opening 19 minutes of the match and taking MVP honors.

These are highlights you have to see to believe: the defending is nonexistent, and reminiscent of the high-flying, outrageously entertaining NBA All Star Game that I’ve loved since I was a boy. After falling behind early, the East found their way back into the contest and even took a 6-5 lead on the strength of a brace from USMNT legend Brian McBride. Landon wasn’t done just yet, though, as he put his fourth past the ‘keeper in the 92^nd minute to earn his side the draw, the first in MLS ASG history.

Donovan’s standout performance in this midseason showdown was a sign of things to come, not only for this 2001 season, but over the next decade as he would go on to became the greatest player in league history.

US Open Cup

A handful of established MLS clubs fought for the Cup in 2001, with the Galaxy and up and coming New England Revolution joining previous winners DC United and Chicago Fire in the semifinals. On Oct. 27^th, LA Galaxy defeated New England 2-1 in dramatic fashion to take their first ever US Open Cup title.

It was a pretty legendary run for the SoCal side. In the quarters they took down in-state rival San Jose after an epic 10-9 penalty shootout. In the semis they defeated Chicago 1-0 on a 94^th minute goal from Alexi Lalas. Then in the final it was Danny Califf who scored the winner in the 92^nd minute to break the deadlock.

MLS Cup Playoffs

The first round (quarterfinals) was all chalk other than the 4-seed vs. 5-seed matchup, where San Jose made short work of the fourth seeded Columbus Crew. But the second round (semis) must have been an absolute joy for MLS fans at the time. Regular season juggernaut Chicago played USOC winners LA Galaxy in what looked to be a tight three game series. LA were always in control, though, as they drew Chicago in the first matchup and went on to win the next two. The other semifinal looks pretty epic on the score sheet. I’ll just put it here for you, but, suffice it to say, it went down to the wire:

MLS Cup Final: San Jose 2 – 1 LAG

After losing MLS Cup in 1996 and 1999, the Galaxy were determined to take home the precious hardware for the first time. They showed as much, taking a 1-0 lead in the 21^st minute. But 2001 was the year of Landon Donovan, and the budding star bagged the equalizer just before halftime. The game went into overtime at 1-1, where legend Dwayne De Rosario scored what has to be the greatest cup winner in league history.

With their third loss in the cup final after just six years of league play, LA were quickly becoming the bridesmaids of MLS. But as you will see throughout this series, the Galaxy finally figured out how to win the big one, and proceeded on their way to becoming the Evil Empire of American soccer.

Awards

Most Valuable Player: Alex Pineda Chacón – Miami Fusion
Goalkeeper of the Year: Tim Howard – MetroStars
Defender of the Year: Jeff Agoos – San Jose Earthquakes
Goal of the Year: Clint Mathis – MetroStars vs. Dallas Burn – April 28, 2001 (Watch here)
Coach of the Year: Frank Yallop – San Jose Earthquakes

More Set-Piece Genius from Papi

Posted on November 21, 2015 by CT

One of my Radar posts back in March featured a short paragraph titled Papi’s Set Pieces. Obviously the focus was on the second year head man at FC Dallas, Oscar Pareja, and his brilliant set piece tactics early in the 2015 season. I’ve taken that paragraph and re-posted it below. Below that, you’ll find a new paragraph and video featuring another creative play Oscar drew up during the MLS Cup 2015 Playoffs.

Papi’s Set Pieces

Pareja also deserves attention for drawing up a clever set piece in three consecutive matches to start the season. Each one is unique, taking full advantage of Dallas’ legitimate dead ball threats: Mauro Diaz’ right foot and Michel’s left foot. Video links and a brief description of each play are listed below:

Week 1: FCD v. San Jose: A sneaky, clever design as everyone in the building thought Diaz would try and curve it over the wall and under the cross bar. Perez should have scored.

Week 2: FCD v. SKC: I thought Michel would whip one directly into the box, but he caught SKC off guard by quickly tapping it to Mauro Diaz, who tapped it right back to Michel in a more advanced position. Just like the chance in week 1, this was quite simple, but the play utilized the threat of Diaz and Michel to trick the defense and create a quality scoring chance.

Week 3 in Philly: The Union were surely concerned about Michel putting a dangerous ball into the box on this one, but then he tricked them, chipping to an open Tesho Akindele. This one put FCD in a fantastic attacking position again. Defenses across MLS are showing FCD respect inside the 18 yard box, giving us room to work the edges in dangerous set piece situations. Not the best video, but you get the idea.

All of that was back in March, and FC Dallas never amounted to a very dangerous set-piece club in 2015. It’s November now and the Hoops just polished off Seattle in the Western Conference semifinals. During the first leg of that series, in the 45th minute, Oscar Pareja’s club ran another clever and gashing play off a dangerous dead ball situation. Unfortunately, Dallas came up empty again, letting another of Oscar’s brilliant set-piece designs go to waste.

Here’s the link: watch as Mauro sends the D one way, gets the ball back, and places a beautiful thru ball at Watson’s feet.

MLS Radar: Week 9

Posted on May 5, 2015 by CT

Week 9 is in the books and the season fully under way as most clubs are starting to reveal their 2015 identities. RSL and San Jose played to a 1-1 draw in Utah, further establishing themselves as mediocre clubs with little hope for playoff success. Portland did the same in their scoreless performance at home against rivals Vancouver. DCU continued their early season run, taking down a good Columbus team 2-0 at RFK. United are now off to their finest start in franchise history, averaging 2.13 points per match through 8 games. That’s remarkable considering how successful the charter club has been over the last two decades. One club we haven’t had the chance to analyze in league play is Montreal, who’ve played just four matches so far this season while MLS accommodated to their unanticipated CONCACAF Champions League run. Speaking of that, it was fun while it lasted for the Impact, but inevitably, Club America finally turned it on with four goals in the second half of the second leg to take the final 4-2 on aggregate. In the midst of America’s goal explosion, Dario Benedetto stole the show with a nifty hat trick in a span of just 31 minutes – this highlight video was the best I could find, but some of those strikes are worth a look.

I frequently reference Matthew Doyle and his Sunday night piece that you can read on MLSsoccer.com. I’ll go ahead and throw in the hyperlink to his week 9 piece because it’s always a good read. Doyle has a way of describing things effectively and concisely. He’s long referred to FCD playmaker Mauro Diaz as a “Magical Little Unicorn” – which is both apt and hilarious. This week he offered another perfect player description – I’ve included the excerpt below:

Chris Rolfe is in one of his “I’m a freaking Wizard” streaks

I love this quote. It perfectly sums up Chris Rolfe because he really does look like a wizard on the pitch at times, whether creating quality chances or finishing off a world class goal himself. But then of course, he does have those stretches where he goes unnoticed and fails to impact matches, making him a streaky player.

UPDATE:

The Aztex are 3-3-1 and currently sit tied for 4th in the USL’s western conference. Not bad at all for the club’s inaugural campaign in the USL, but a closer look at the results reveals a disturbing trend: they are struggling with the better USL clubs and picking up points against the weak ones. Six of the club’s 10 points on the year have come at home against expansion side Colorado Springs (While Austin are new to USL, we are not a new franchise. ATX were founded in 2011 and have three seasons of experience in the USL PDL. Colorado Springs Switchbacks were founded in 2014 and played their first ever competitive match against Austin in the USL season opener, a 2-0 win for the Aztex).

Three more points came from a 2-0 win on the road against Tulsa Roughnecks FC, another expansion club playing in their first ever competitive season. And the tenth point ATX has so far in 2015 came at home against OKC Energy FC – a 2-2 draw in which Austin allowed an 87th minute equalizer (OKC, founded in 2013, are another relatively new club and have just one season of competitive experience). On the other hand, Austin have dropped points against stronger USL opposition: losing at home to Whitecaps II and Arizona United, and on the road against Galaxy II.

The team is young and the current group has had relatively little time to gel. This trend is no cause for panic, but Austin will want to grab a win against a quality opponent soon, before their confidence suffers as a result.

Victor Bernardez (Defender) – SJ

Any time I get the chance to give this award to Victor Bernardez I am going to take full advantage. I hate this guy. Victor was the clear winner in week 9 with this hilarious own goal that cost the Quakes a pair of points on the road. That was the GK’s ball all the way and an easy stop, but no.

Runner-Up

I hate to give commentators a hard time as I appreciate the difficulty of talking for two straight hours without sounding like an idiot at least once (or twice or a dozen+ times). But Paul Caligiuri must be mentioned for his clumsy and hilarious analysis of FC Dallas’ opening goal on UniMas’ #ViernesDeFutbol. Before watching, note that Houston’s ‘keeper is named Tyler Deric. The Dallas ‘keeper is Dan Kennedy.

I love seeing two FC Dallas players nominated for GOTW on MLSsoccer.com, but all four of our goals against Houston were classy finishes. Week 9 offered a nice selection of goals to choose from, but two in particular caught my eye. Some might wonder why I didn’t choose Sebastian Giovinco’s 35-yard free kick goal that decided the 1-0 match in Philly over the weekend. I hate to take anything away because it was an awesome strike, but I believe a better GK would have read it earlier and made the stop. Thus, no GOTW for you, Sebas.

My official week 9 winner is the third and final goal in Seattle’s 3-1 win over NYCFC thanks to the sublime assist by Clint Dempsey. Once Deuce put him through, the control and the finish from Obafemi Martins was pure confidence and quality. Those two have been downright filthy of late and are proving to be in a class of their own every time they take the pitch. No play illustrates that better than the week 9 GOTW.

There’s nothing wrong with silver and I simply loved this goal, so the GOTW runner-up goes to the entire Revs attack for their second of the night in a 2-1 win over rivals NYRB. What amazing team work, kind of like a slow version of Arsenal! The passing was quick, crisp and crafty, and I love seeing the patience and composure from Teal Bunbury to finish off the move.

@HeyHayward, producer of top notch programs Soccer Morning and The Best Soccer Show, had the best of the CCL tweets from Wednesday’s second leg. This is Jurgen Klinsmann in a nutshell, apparently Piatti was running his ass off at that stage in the match.

But the tweet below Hayward’s is the official week 9 TOTW. @BBCSporf deserves credit for spotting it, but the distinction is awarded to the Notts County FC social media team for their perfect response to a fan’s inquiry.

I’ve got little more to add to this week’s post. Week 9 was fun but 10 could be even better with matchups like CHIvRSL, MTLvPOR, CLBvSEA, DALvLA and a game the folks in New York have been waiting to see for nearly two years now: NYRB vs. NYCFC, 5/9, Red Bull Arena, FS1, 7 ET.

The Best March Madness Spot in History

Posted on March 19, 2015 by CT

This might be a weird thing to say, but nothing does it for me quite like a well done TV commercial. I’ve enjoyed television ads so much (the good ones anyway) in my life that I even decided to study the subject of advertising when settling on a major in college. This wasn’t a smart move on my part as I quickly learned, upon studying the subject and looking beyond the catchy TV ads, that there are so many other not-so-cool things about the advertising profession in the modern world.

Having said that, I still love a bad-ass, inspiring or otherwise highly memorable ad. So with today being the official start of March Madness 2015, it seems like a perfect time to revisit the greatest ad campaign, in my opinion, to ever be associated with the event. Not surprisingly, it was NIKE who came up with the brilliant Bracketville concept that made the NCAA Tourney feel like it was something out of Peter Pan’s Never Never Land.

Watch the 30 Second Spot here

#MLSinTX

Posted on February 13, 2015 by CT

I cannot think of a better day than this one, the kickoff of the ATX Pro Challenge, to post one of my favorite pics: MLS in Texas

With the tourney kicking off in a few short hours from now, I am making gameday preparations. I plan on getting some good pictures and putting a nice album together. I’ll try to live tweet the games as much as I can (@SoccerTherapy) and I’ll post a recap after the weekend. Hopefully we will get a nice turnout, tough to really know though.

Soccer Therapy’s 2015 Calendar

Posted on February 6, 2015 by CT

Now that the 2015 schedules for both MLS and the USL are available, Soccer Therapy can finally start planning the year! This column looks at the Austin Aztex home schedule to see which clubs are coming to House Park during our inaugural USL Pro season. More importantly, I’ll line up Austin’s home games with FC Dallas’ schedule and determine how many weeks I’ll be able to catch a live game in ATX without missing one second of FCD’s 2015 campaign. Below, I have written about parts of the schedule that caught my eye:

SIX! – Only six of Austin’s home matches occur on match days for FC Dallas (listed below and marked on the calendar above). The times for most of these matches are TBA and hopefully they won’t all overlap. However, it’s likely that most games listed below will start somewhere between 7 and 8pm central time.

Sat 3/28: FCD v. SEA / ATX v. Colorado Springs
Fri 5/1: HOU v. FCD / ATX v. OKC Energy
Sat 5/9: FCD v. LAG / ATX v. Real Monarchs (RSL II)
Sat 5/23: FCD v. MON / ATX v. Tulsa
Sat 8/15: FCD v. LAG / ATX v. LAG II
Sat 8/22: FCD v. VAN / ATX v. Orange County

Friday Night Soccer – In 2013, I launched a Twitter assault of sorts on MLS commissioner Don Garber. For about two months, I bombarded him with “You guys should have Friday night soccer” tweets, especially on Fridays. Check out the image below to see my efforts at encouraging MLS to schedule more Friday night games. The efforts paid off and the league has responded favorably. Univision, the Spanish language television network, will show MLS Friday Night Football on all but five Fridays throughout the season. Not only will we be getting more Friday Night Soccer in 2015, we will be getting more FCD on Fridays as the Hoops play nine of their 34 MLS matches (more than 25%!) on a Friday. Friday night offers a nice little window in the sports schedule for MLS to showcase itself to the traditional North American sports fan, so hopefully the league will offer up some entertaining matches.

Brutal Finish for FCD – Five matches in the final 22 days of the season to be specific. We will be hosting bitter rivals (1)Houston Dynamo, traveling to BC Place where (2)Whitecaps FC are one of the toughest home clubs in MLS, hosting those same (3)Whitecaps in Frisco, traveling to Rio Tinto where (4)RSL are nearly impossible to beat, and then hosting a (5)Quakes squad who could be good, bad or anywhere in between come October. All of that, in just 22 days. FCD would be wise to earn themselves a nice cushion in the table going into this brutal run.

MLS Realigns – With the additions of NYCFC and Orlando City and the retraction of Chivas USA, MLS has realigned its conferences again. MLS is making the obvious geographic decision by moving Sporting KC and Houston Dynamo over to the western conference to make room for the two new east coast clubs. Despite both struggling in 2014, Houston and SKC have been two of the east’s stronger clubs in recent years, combining to win the east in 3 of the last 4 years. This could make it tough out west, which was already the stronger and deeper of the two conferences. It’s not just LA Galaxy and their dominance, it’s RSL and Seattle too. Portland, FCD and Vancouver make for tough midtable opposition as well. Houston and SKC are two of the best run clubs in MLS and they have the trophies to show for it. Adding them to the west will make the conference that much more difficult to compete in.

Tough Venues – SKC’s addition to the west is unfortunate because Dallas will be traveling to the Cauldron twice in 2015. That is a damn tough arena to get points out of and we can’t realistically expect much from those two matches. It’s not all bad. Like SKC, Portland, Seattle, RSL and LA are some of the toughest teams to beat on the road. All of these teams have quality squads, great fan support, and tend to handle FCD when we travel to their place. Fortunately we will only be traveling to Seattle, RSL, Portland and LA once apiece in 2015. This is a massive break for FCD as we have dropped countless points on the west coast over the last few years (not to mention a frustrating playoff draw(loss) in the Emerald City last fall).

Thoughts on Aztex Inaugural USL Pro Campaign – I do not follow the USL closely, so I look forward to learning more about the league as I track the Aztex in 2015. I have read about clubs like Sacramento Republic FC and Indy Eleven and their MLS aspirations. I have also followed the growing number of MLS clubs that now field their own second squad in the USL. While I don’t know much about the league, I do have a sense for which clubs I’d like to see live. The Aztex host 14 USL matches from late March to early September. Here is my list of marquee home games that I’ll be sure to attend in 2015:

March 28^th – Colorado Springs, Inaugural USL Match + Home Opener
April 1^st – Whitecaps II
April 11^th – Arizona United SC (FC Dallas affiliate)
June 27^th – Sacramento Republic FC
July 17^th – Arizona United SC
August 1^st– Portland II
August 15^th– LA Galaxy II *Side note: FCD hosts real LA Galaxy in Frisco on this day
September 5^th – Sounders II

Other Notes – (1) I did not address the US Open Cup in this column because it does not begin until April and MLS Clubs do not participate until June. Make no mistake, Soccer Therapy loves the USOC and will be addressing the topic when the time is right. (2) Preseason is an afterthought on this blog but one 2015 event needs mention on this post. The ATX Pro Challenge happens in February, when the Aztex and FC Dallas will be sharing the same venue and potentially going head to head in the final round. (3) I will be heading to San Antonio on April 15^th to see the USMNT take on El Tri for what should be a breathtaking experience. I hope to have quite the 2015 photo album when all is said (snapped?) and done.

Link to each club’s complete 2015 league schedule:
Austin Aztex 2015 USL Pro Schedule
FC Dallas 2015 MLS Schedule

For the Record…

Posted on January 28, 2015 by CT

Legendary Soccer Commentator Sir Ian Darke

I’ve always been torn on whether or not I should use “soccer language” when discussing the Beautiful Game. Silly thought maybe, why not use the language of the game to describe the game itself? But in North America we have our own brand of sports language which conflicts with soccer sayings from across the pond. Americans call athletic shoes cleats, but Brits refer to soccer footwear as boots. I have always referred to a playing surface as a field, but in soccer (or “footy” as some say) it is the pitch. The list of little differences in sports language when comparing American English with England’s is endless:

USA Version = English Version
Cleats = Boots
Field = Pitch
Sideline = Touchline
Doctor = Physio
Coach = Manager
Team/Franchise = Club
Fans = Supporters
Speed = Pace
Mental Toughness/Bravery = Bottle
Amazing/Incredible = Brilliant

Okay, that last one was a half joke. The point of this column is that I am especially torn when it comes to the grammar I should use when discussing teams (clubs). In American sports, teams are often referred to in the singular form, for example:

“FC Dallas is a really classy club.”

But in footy language, soccer clubs are referred to in the plural.

“FC Dallas are a really classy club”

My concern is that I would hate for a friend, colleague, potential employer etc. to read this blog and think it is filled with grammatical errors. That is why I am writing this column, because from here on out I will be saying “FC Dallas are a classy club” – just as the rest of the soccer world would. And hopefully, for those who come across this blog and aren’t entirely familiar with the language of the game, they will see this post before coming to any conclusions. Despite my new found commitment to using the language of the game, I will still use the word soccer and reserve the word football for the American version.

While on the subject, I’d like to add that saying “the MLS” is becoming a real problem. It is Major. League. Soccer. Unless your are referring to the MLS Draft or the MLS Cup, it’s just MLS, no the is necessary, unless you want to say “The Major League Soccer is good. I really like the Major League Soccer “

Like I said, the list is truly endless:
game = fixture
standings = table
tie = draw
skill = quality
playing well = good run of form
appearance = cap

The New Logo

Posted on January 10, 2015 by CT

The more I look at it and tinker with it, the more I have come to like this first Soccer Therapy logo.

It certainly isn’t original in one sense. It seems at least 1 in every 3 MLS fans uses some altered version of this logo for their profile pic on Twitter (see more about this in my MLS Good, Bad and Ugly piece) . I went ahead and followed their lead, going the easy but stale route. However, I added a few tasteful Texas twists.

“1st Half”

I read somewhere that the three stars MLS’ new logo represent club, country and community. So I took the three teams I support, my three truly beloved clubs, and replaced the stars with each of their shields. It is convenient that I support three clubs, but my reasons for supporting each club align perfectly with each star in MLS’ logo. The Aztex are my hometown club and play just a few miles from where I grew up. FC Dallas is the be-all and end-all for me in soccer – My Club. And of course, the Stars and Stripes will always be number one.

“2nd Half”

I took the blank white slate that MLS so wisely offered to their supporters (see Good, Bad and Ugly article) and filled it with a beautiful ATX sunset and a 4th-division soccer match being played on a high school football field. But, it’s still soccer being played in Austin’s “venerable” House Park. The match took place during the Aztex PDL championship season, and, if you look hard enough, you can see the flag, drum and 20 or so folks representing Eberly’s Army (the Aztex lone supporters group as far as I know).

So there you have it, the new logo twisted into a nice little depiction of my soccer happy place. Maybe I’ll remove that stupid kick stand now that I think about it – MLS’ silly logo breakdown attempts to explain the meaning of that damn kick stand. From MLSsoccer.com (I’ve highlighted the key parts referring to the kick stand):

“SLASH: The slash refers to soccer’s speed and energy. The slash begins outside the perimeter and drives upward at a 45-degree angle to illustrate both the nonstop nature of our game and the rising trajectory of our league. It bisects the crest to create a “first half” and “second half.”

As far as I can surmise, the kick stand represents the “nonstop nature of (soccer).” Are you f***ing serious, MLS? Whatever, this is my logo now and I won’t be trying to incorporate any sillyness. Besides, we don’t need no stinking kick stands at Soccer Therapy. Up top is the cause I truly care about and really want to believe in, MLS. Below are the three clubs that make up my soccer fan hood. And below that is a picture taken on a great soccer night in ATX with great people.

I encourage any and all readers to offer feedback on the new logo, however minor, critical or insensitive.

Comic Book Movies Rule!

Posted on December 12, 2014 by CT

Here at Soccer Therapy, I like to mix it up from time to time. This piece lists my favorite comic books gone Hollywood in the last decade or so. To be clear, I am not a comic book or graphic novel buff. I have simply fallen in love with a genre of movies and that has inspired me to put this list together. I have compiled THE List, which consists of beast-mode comic book movies (CBMs) that make the highest grade for their excellence and awesomeness. Then I have a list of some Honorable Mentions – these are solid movies that deserve to be mentioned, but do not deserve a place on THE List. I also have some Non-honorable Mentions – I liked them, but I wouldn’t recommend watching unless you are a real CBM junkie. Finally, I have a section for CBM busts that I would never recommend to a friend – that is the These Movies just Sucked section.

THE List

Simply put, this includes only the greatest comic books to ever go Hollywood. I am incredibly picky and I don’t throw just any CBM on “THE list.” Despite this, my hope is that it continues to grow as CBMs are produced. “THE list” is ordered chronologically because I couldn’t bring myself to rank them.

Batman Begins (2005) – We know about the Dark Knight and how much everyone loves it, and sadly, I think this prequel gets overlooked as a result. I love stories about the rise of a hero (Luke Skywalker comes to mind), so watching Bruce Wayne overcome his demons to become Gotham’s new savior was a pleasure. After having to watch Michael Keeton (great actor, but he is no Batman) play the role in the 90s, Chris Nolan’s Batman Begins truly showed me how badass the Batman story can be.

Sin City (2005) – Long but good. I always go back and forth deciding which feature story is the best. Mickey Rourke, Clive Owen and Bruce Willis each feature in their own unique story. Directed by Robert Rodriguez, Tarantino and the creator of the graphic novel himself, Frank Miller. Enough said. Admittedly, if I were ranking these, Sin City would rank lower on THE List.

V for Vendetta (2005) – One of the most unique and badass characters from any story. The storyline, writing and overall production are simply excellent. This one is a 5-Star CBM for me, no doubt about it.

300 (2006) – The second one sucked, don’t ever watch it. But if you like action, fight scenes, blood, bravery and heroism, 300 packs more of that stuff into 117 minutes than just about any movie I have ever seen (maybe not any more than Rambo, tough to top my boy Rambo). But this is a thoroughly entertaining watch with great visuals and storytelling.

Iron Man (2008) – The original and still the best. Robert Downy Jr. led a star studded cast including Terrence Howard, Gwyneth Paltro and of course, The Dude (Jeff Bridges). Top-notch visual effects and a very cool story – if you are unfamiliar with the Iron Man tale, go watch this now! – but I won’t give anything away. There is so much action you would never know it’s a 2-hour movie.

The Dark Knight (2008) – Yeah yeah we all saw it and it was really good. The Dark Knight is widely considered to be the best CBM produced to date. Heath Ledger’s performance gets all the accolades and it should. It is a real shame about Heath too because director Chris Nolan said himself: the biggest mistake from the Tim Burton Batmans of the 90s was killing off The Joker after only movie. This suggests that the Joker would have been part of the Dark Knight Rises had it been possible. The Dark Knight is like the Lebron James of movies: ridiculous hype that would be impossible to live up to, but then it exceeds the hype by giving you more than you ever could have hoped for.

X Men First Class (2011) – In terms of the actual comic books, X-Men may very well be the best. The relationship between Professor X and Magneto has always been a strange one, and this movie takes a close look at that. The visual effects are amazing, it has a pretty solid plot that revolves around the Cuban Missile Crisis, and of course, Kevin MothaF***n Bacon. I can’t quite put my finger on just what it is about this movie that I like so much. But I think it’s probably Michael Fassbender playing the Magneto role to perfection. As far as the best all time characters go, Magneto is right up there with V (for Vendetta) and Heath Ledger’s Joker. The scenes in this movie where Magneto gets revenge on former Nazis are pure gold.

Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) – I didn’t think this one would be good but I was thoroughly surprised. It is unquestionably the funniest CBM of all time and it differs from other CBMs in that badass songs from the 70s are a motif throughout the film. Very original and very well done, also kind of long, but it was one of those that I didn’t want to end. It just came out and I have only seen it once, but this one promises to grow on me even more over time.

Honorable Mention
Pretty good, but not really even sniffing “THE List”

X-Men (2000) – Pretty good, but for the first real X-Men movie, I think we were all hoping for a little more. Still, whenever I flip by this one on the tube, I set the clicker down and enjoy what’s left.

X-Men 2: X-Men United (2003) – Striker! A cool character (pictured above) that is as integral to the amazing X-Men story as any. But like the first X-Men film, I think this one left fans wanting more.

Thor (2011) – Like many average films, Thor was awesome for the first half of the movie while the second half was a let down. The main character, played by up and coming actor Chris Hemsworth, makes the movie.

X-Men Days of Future Past (2014) – Good, but for me, not as good as X-Men First Class. Again, Magneto steals the show.

Non Honorable Mention
it’s still a mention!

Avengers (2012) – Good, not great. But, it’s got Agent Coulson! (even though he misspells the name).

X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009) – To this day, I have not talked to one person who endorsed this movie or said it was much better than a steaming pile of dung. I guess I am in the minority, but I liked it. Striker!

These Movies just Sucked
Way too long, but they would still suck if they were short

Hulk (2008) – Okay, maybe this movie didn’t suck. But I wouldn’t give it three stars or anything. And I just couldn’t justify putting it on the non honorable mention list.

The Dark Knight Rises (2012) – Maybe this is a product of high expectations. Still though, this movie was ridiculously long and did nothing to make me feel like it was a good use of time. A disappointing ending to a three-part series that landed two CBMs on THE List.

Captain America: The First Avenger (2011) – 124 minutes long but it felt like an eternity.

Iron Man 2 (2010) – I just remember thinking this movie sucked. Mickey Rourke and Robert Downy Jr. too, how do you screw that up? Plus, I love Don Cheadle as much as the next guy, but it really bugs me when a different actor plays the same character in a sequel. Terrence Howard played the James Rhodes/War Machine role just fine in Iron Man 1.

Iron Man 3 (2013) – Like Iron Man 2 this movie sucked, and makes me wonder how they did such a good job on the first one.

The Fantastic Four Movies: Yes, I saw these. And yes, my blog just went down a notch in everybody’s book (justified).

The Unlisted/Unwatched
-Any Spider Man movie – never cared for the Spider Man tale.
-Green Lantern
-Watchmen
*A bunch of other comic book/graphic novel films that I am probably forgetting*

Hope you liked the CBM commentary – if you are looking for soccer stuff, check below, and above (or go to the SoccerTherapy.net homepage).

The Good, Bad and the Ugly from MLS in 2014

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Major League Soccer’s 19th season has come to a close and I am taking a look at some of the biggest talking points from this World Cup year. I’ll also hand out some biased awards and share my favorite highlights from an amazing year of soccer in North America.

THE GOOD

MLS Next is Here

Earlier this year, in typical MLS fashion, the league put on a ridiculous branding show called “MLS Next” that was basically a glorified logo unveiling. I think most MLS fans were excited by the idea of a new logo, but also skeptical about the league actually getting it right. Since 1994, there have been five “different” MLS logos. Have a look:

As you can see, the league hasn’t exactly been getting creative. The newest edition, which will go into use in 2015 for the league’s 20^th season, was initially met with a negative reaction. Many thought it looked, cheap, thoughtless, lacked substance, and why is that damn kick-stand sticking out of the shield!?! Those are all fair assessments, because on the surface, it does seem overly simple to the point that it lacks identity. But since these initial reactions, the logo has started to grow on fans around the league. MLS was brilliant to observe that so many of its supporters liked to take the old logo and alter the image to do different things with it, including myself:

MLS took notice of the trend and really embraced it when designing the new logo. They gave some silly explanation about how the red half of the shield symbolizes the first 45′ and the white half symbolizes the second 45′, but I believe they wanted to engage fans with a blank space in the logo to let them play with. This is brilliant marketing, but enough about logos.

NYCFC – The Connection

Manchester City’s investment into MLS has blown open a number of really cool possibilities for the league. First of all, the New York market should be taken advantage of, and NYRB certainly aren’t doing their part right now. In terms of building a more prominent product within the American pro sports hierarchy, establishing a proud, dominant, inner city club in NYC is about the most obvious thing any league could do. MLS has yet to do this, but if the Yankees-ManC partnership can make a stadium happen, NYCFC could earn legitimate international popularity. They are certainly off to a good start with the likes of Super Frankie Lampard and David Villa set to take the pitch this coming spring. Beyond the two decorated designated players (DPs), I’d imagine NYCFC will find a way to incorporate ManC’s youth talent into their MLS roster and maybe even get around some salary cap restrictions as a result. NYCFC has a veteran MLS coach with a proven track record and an MLS Cup title to his name. They’ll pick up some MLS veteran household names, surround them with 18 year old English kids and three high profile DPs. For people who hold out hope that the U.S might one day become a soccer power (at the club and international levels), this tangible link between MLS and world soccer power Manchester City is absolutely a big deal.

Player Acquisitions

MLS took a massive step forward when Seattle signed Captain America (C. Dempsey) back in the summer of 2013. The league validated that step forward when it brought in USMNT stud midfielder Michael Bradley and Premiere League talisman Jermaine Defoe in January. Orlando City SC signed the Brazilian Kaka – sure he may be old, but this is the kind of acquisition that has alluded MLS in the past. It’s also nice to see an expansion club in Orlando contribute to the league with a marquee signing before even taking the field (Note for Austinites: this Orlando City Soccer Club, which will make its MLS debut next spring, is actually the original Austin Aztex, who controversially left town, set up shop in Orlando, and now the rest is history). The Houston Dynamo signed two players that got serious time in Brazil this summer, although one of them is Honduran and the other is quickly becoming a washed up American fullback (Beasley). I already mentioned Frank Lampard and David Villa signing with New York. The number of DPs in MLS is growing. Owners and technical directors across the league are faced with constant pressure to sign real talent just to avoid a bottom table finish (Case in point: Colorado Rapids). As a result, North American clubs are making bigger moves with each coming transfer window, and it is becoming less of a stigma for star players to sign with an MLS club.

Keeping Players Too!

USMNT regulars Graham Zusi and Matt Besler signed with SKC rather than a European club when the option was theirs. The league is doing everything in its power to hang on to Cubo Torres, the Mexican striker who followed up a breakout year in MLS with a national team call up and a goal for El Tri. FC Dallas will be desperate to hang on to their young super talent, Colombian winger Fabian Castillo, after Mexican powerhouse Club America showed interest in the 22 year old earlier this year. Here is a pair of highly recommended highlights from each of the young attackers – one from Cubo Torres and one from Fabian Castillo.

The Homegrown Initiative

In my MLS All-Star* 2014 piece, I mentioned the inaugural Chipotle Homegrown Game and the league’s effort to showcase the talent produced by its club’s youth academies. MLS clubs will eventually be required to start their own lower-division team or affiliate with one. Austin’s Aztex just affiliated with the Columbus Crew while FC Dallas just partnered with Arizona United SC for the 2015 season. LA Galaxy became the first MLS club to field their very own lower-division club, the Galaxy II, who just completed their inaugural season in USL PRO (3rd tier of US Soccer pyramid). They will be joined by RSL, Portland, Seattle, Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto as each of these clubs will be fielding a USL PRO squad in 2015.

Perhaps the truest sign that player development in the U.S. is improving is the sale of DeAndre Yedlin to Tottenham earlier this year. He is a great young talent and the league will miss his marketability, but the fact that an MLS homegrown was granted a work permit in England so quickly after Totttenham showed interest suggests that maybe even the English are starting to take MLS seriously. 2014 was genuinely a landmark year for homegrowns in MLS. FC Dallas saw the rise of Moises Hernandez at left back and Victor Ulloa at d-mid, two very young players who look to be MLS regulars for the next decade (Hernandez could eventually garner European interest – he looks that good). Seattle Sounders homegrown Jordan Morris (currently playing college soccer at Stanford) received a call up to the national team earlier this year. Gyasi Zardes bagged a goal in MLS Cup and is garnering national team interest himself after a 16-goal season up top for the Galaxy.

We are seeing MLS’ player development efforts pay off before our own eyes. At the same time, the league and the U.S. Soccer Federation continue to ramp up these efforts and establish a more thorough and intense player development system resembling that of a European country. If the league and its clubs continue to take player development seriously, it could lead to great things for both MLS and the USMNT.

Stadium Movement

As fans of MLS know, soccer specific stadiums have played a massive role in the league’s growth by offering passionate supporters a place to call their own. Beautiful stadiums that sell out at 20,000 tickets rather than 50,000+ make it much easier for clubs to create a fun and exciting atmosphere for fans and players alike – make no mistake, that “Player Acquisitions” section above would not exist if teams were playing in half empty NFL stadiums. The point is that soccer specific stadiums are critical to the success of MLS and the league is making real progress in finding suitable venues for each of its franchises. The New England Revolution remain a concern as they play in Gillette stadium, a massive NFL venue with an artificial surface. But one of MLS’ proudest franchises, DC United, seems to have secured a new stadium deal so they can finally escape the laughable RFK. The Earthquakes will play their first game in their new San Jose stadium this spring. Orlando City has broken ground on the site where they will build their new soccer specific stadium. Here is a great view of one of SKC’s many supporter’s sections – this scene is becoming commonplace across the league:

The Bad and the Ugly
I spent so much time talking about the good things going on in Major League Soccer that this column couldn’t possibly squeeze much more into it. I’ll just list some of the “bads” and “uglys” with a quick thought to keep it brief. After all, Soccer Therapy is a place for happy thoughts. Then, it’s onto awards and highlights!

THE BAD

Scheduling – Unlike most domestic leagues, MLS’ schedule does not accommodate to the FIFA international calendar. Like Scandinavian leagues, MLS doesn’t want to play soccer in the ice and snow, and nature forces the North American soccer season to run from spring to fall. That is fine, but I would like to see the league make some effort to give its clubs a break during FIFA international dates. Currently, MLS does not recognize these dates and it is incentivising clubs to target players who don’t factor into their respective national team pictures.

Secrecy – I have not read them in detail, but those who have assure me that the league rules make no sense, and if they did it would not matter. Many felt the league basically just made up the rules as it went along so that it could bring in stars Dempsey and Bradley. If this is the case, we are better off with these guys than without them, but it severely damages the young league’s credibility when it contradicts itself with one player acquisition after another.

Salary Cap – The “secrecy” concern is legitimate, but also understood because MLS is operating in an environment where it is destined to fail. A domestic soccer league has never thrived north of the border, and if it means ridiculous levels of control by the front office to keep the league afloat, I suppose that is better than the league collapsing like its predecessors. I think the league is trying to keep the cap figure low as its core of investors turn soccer franchises from debts into revenue generating businesses. Not all owner pocket books are created equal, and a salary cap represents the best way to maintain parity and excitement. But MLS has stated that it would like to be considered a top league in the world at some point. It would also be nice if MLS clubs could compete with LigaMX clubs: In the last six editions of the CONCACAF Champs League, only four MLS clubs have reached the semis, only one has reached the final, and none have managed to win the cup. MLS is walking a fine line between being a growing league and one with real aspirations. But until teams are given the salary cap freedom to sign DPs and still fill out a deep, solid, veteran roster, the league will not be able to compete with Mexican clubs.

THE UGLY

TV Ratings – As an avid MLS supporter I have a hard time finding anything “ugly” about the league, but the TV ratings have been objectively hideous. The biggest problem is that I do not see where the league can showcase its product without going up against a much more popular American sport. Summer time seems like a good window as many American sports are on break as well as popular European domestic leagues. The ideal time to show MLS games would be at the conclusion of the season when playoff spots are on the line and then the playoff games as well. In 2014, the MLS Cup playoffs began on 10/29 and ended on 12/7. There is this little thing called the NFL that happens to be going on four nights a week during this stretch. I truly have no idea how MLS is going to get TV viewers going forward. Maybe, just maybe, this is real cause for the league to consider getting on the FIFA calender so they can showcase their product without competing against the NFL. But again, the weather in North America simply does not allow for that.

Awards:

Commentary Highlight of the Year: watch (and listen) as commentator Paul Mariner encourages his beloved New England side to keep a clean sheet in the opening minutes of a match only to see the boys give up a goal within seconds of saying it: “Well there I am, Brad, talking about keeping it clean…” – this is priceless.

Rookie of the Year:
Harrison Shipp, Attacking Mid, Chicago Fire

The young homegrown (more homegrown love!) played his first MLS season after a standout career at Notre Dame and absolutely tore it up. After 7 goals and 6 assists, he finished 2nd in the real rookie of the year voting to FC Dallas’ Tesho Akindele. Tesho had a great season and was deserving of the attention, but his winning the award was a result of a great social media campaign by FC Dallas. Shipp is the rare American footballer with European skills and vision. While he is great over the dead ball and a lethal finisher in front of goal, his ability to find and make the pass is what truly separates him. This 15-second highlight is a little fuzzy, but you should get the idea. The voters had their reasons though: this is the best highlight from Tesho’s 7-goal rookie campaign.

Coach of the Year
Oscar Pareja, FC Dallas

Oscar took over a team that had the 5th overall pick at each of the last three MLS Superdrafts. He led the club through an absolutely brutal western conference and got FC Dallas their first playoff win since 2010. He took the squad to the USOC semifinals as well. FC Dallas was never beaten when they were ousted – losing on PKs in the USOC semis and an away-goals-tiebreaker in the playoffs. How did Pareja do it? He wasn’t afraid to put the young kids out there. He gave everyone on the roster a chance and really brought along the young talent that former manager Hyndman refused to give playing time. The team also set a franchise record for goals scored in a season, playing some exciting soccer at times. I may be a homer, but this seems like a no-brainer of a decision.

Team Bust: Toronto FC

Portland was at least expected to make the playoffs after finishing top of the table in the west last year. Houston is always expected to make a run at MLS Cup rather than take a dump in August and September. Philly had a much better squad than their place in the table would suggest. But the winner of this award has to go to Toronto FC. After all the talk this off-season about ending the playoff drought thanks to their big player signings, they came out of the gates hot, only to stumble to the finish. They dropped 14 out of 15 points in their last five matches, missing the playoffs by eight points. The signing of Bradley in a World Cup year hurt them badly, and their other big signing, Jermain Defoe, was bugged by injuries throughout the season. Still, more was expected of this squad and the loyal fans in Toronto deserve much better.

Surprise Team: DC United

FC Dallas might even get a look here as many expected us to struggle in a stacked western conference. But no one could have expected the turn around made by DC United this year after a historically bad 2013. They finished top of the table in the east only to tumble out of the playoffs in the conference semis. It must be nice to be a DC United fan: the proud franchise still managed to shock the world during their miserable 2013 campaign by winning the US Open Cup at Rio Tinto over RSL. Even in the bad years they bring in silverware. Then, they seem to put those bad years behind them overnight.

MVP
Robbie Keane, LA Galaxy

Some say Obafemi Martins of Seattle was the MVP while others say the Revolution’s Lee Nguyen was more deserving. I actually saw Keane and Nguyen live, but did not see Obafemi. I am not going to go into any analysis here, but Robbie Keane has been far and away the most valuable player in MLS ever since he joined the league in 2011 – as evidenced by his club’s winning three of the last four MLS Cups.

Goal of the Year

These things are biased – do you like the upper90 screamer from 30 yards out? Maybe you prefer a beautiful team build up or some spectacular individual technical ability. I settled on this goal as the best of the season because it is simply absurd. Some of the coolest goals you will see are met with a debate: did he really mean to do that? In this case, we can all be certain that the chip is exactly what Obafemi was going for. And if you are all about the build up play, check out that chip through ball that led to the goal.

Breakout Player
DeAndre Yedlin, Seattle Sounders FC

Tweet of the Year – this is pure gold

And there you have it – MLS 2014. Hope you enjoyed it and I will try to post a little more frequently.

Soccer Therapy

Because I have no one else to tell

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