Liverpool FC Forum

by **soccerfreek421** » Sat Aug 12, 2006 2:54 am

I was wondering what people thought of the MLS. With the recent matches such as the MLS All-Stars defeating Chelsea 1-0 and defending MLS champions DC United tieing Real Madrid, I thought I should see what Premiership fans thought of the league as a whole. And what those recent matches did to their views on the league.

by **anti-hero** » Sat Aug 12, 2006 3:56 am

I dont really follow the MLS.

I appreciate the fact that the Galaxy won last year's Open, but to be honest, the MLS doesnt really have an appeal to me.

I just cant stand the fact that they have "trades" instead of transfers.

They're trying to "Americanise" the whole thing. I can still remember times when a draw was settled with penalty kicks, hockey style. i.e ball on the half way line, striker takes the ball into six-yard box and tries to beat the keeper.

Plus, the Conferences, (yes you English people. Conferences.) confuse me.

Whats the deal with the whole East side / West side thing?

There is also the matter of press it receives. I dont think they show any action reels from the MLS during the sports segments of your local 10 o'clock news do they?

Plus, American commentary is horrible.

Words like "ejection", "cleets", and I swear, I once heard the word, "umpire" watching a game.

And dont even get me started on Donovan and Adu. They're great players, I'm not in any way questioning their abilities, but they are so over-hyped and so over-rated by the American media that you could probably be forgiven if you thought that they had x-ray vision and had the abilitly to fly.

-----

But not all's negative though.

I think its great that the U.S actually has a football league. And the fact that the MLS is getting international exposure. Players like McBride and Beasley, they can only serve to lift the status of U.S football. Now, if only the rest of America can learn to appreciate football like the rest of us do..

by **babu** » Sat Aug 12, 2006 6:21 am

soccerfreek421 wrote:I was wondering what people thought of the MLS. With the recent matches such as the MLS All-Stars defeating Chelsea 1-0 and defending MLS champions DC United tieing Real Madrid, I thought I should see what Premiership fans thought of the league as a whole. And what those recent matches did to their views on the league.

I don't get any of the matches over here. I would be interested in reading what you thought about it. Who are the biggest clubs, their histories, the key players in the league and possibly your predictions.

by **IstanBuL-FenerBaHce** » Sat Aug 12, 2006 11:06 am

Hmm the biggest club is DC United i think. I always hear about them.

The clubs named like NBA clubs. LA Galaxy, NY Metrostars etc...

I really dont know much about MLS, but the name Chivas USA sounds well (something like Mexican

) - i like them.

BTW is London Donovan playing in MLS ?..

by **anti-hero** » Sat Aug 12, 2006 11:21 am

Yeah.. Donovan plays for the Galaxy. I myself dont know alot about who's who in the MLS but I do know Cobi Jones, the star for the U.S in the 94' World Cup plays for the Galaxy too.

And the NY/NJ Metrostars have gotten their name changed. They're now owned by Red Bull, and are the only club apart from Red Bull Salzburg in the world to have Red Bull in their name.

Oh and the L.A Galaxy and Chivas U.S.A share the same home ground, the Home Depot Center right here in Southern California. About an hour or so's drive from where I live.

Apart from that, I only know bits and pieces.

Freddy Adu, teenage sensation, plays for D.C United.

Clint Dempsey, who scored that beautiful volley against Ghana plays for the New England Revolution. (I think.)

And..

that's about it.

Oh and next year they're paving the way for a Canadian team,

Toronto F.C to take part in the league. They figured Canadians are half-French anyways, so they must be decent at football at least.

by **IstanBuL-FenerBaHce** » Sat Aug 12, 2006 12:02 pm

anti-hero wrote:

Thnx for the info anti-hero

Hmm Toronto is a half-american state i tihnk

Now Toronto FC after Toronto Raptors..

Freddy Adu, teenage sensation, plays for D.C United.

Is Adu a wonderful talent as everyone said?..He is the youngest USA national player all the times but is he great?..

by **soccerfreek421** » Sat Aug 12, 2006 5:13 pm

IstanBuL-FenerBaHce wrote:
anti-hero wrote:

Thnx for the info anti-hero Hmm Toronto is a half-american state i tihnk Now Toronto FC after Toronto Raptors..

Freddy Adu, teenage sensation, plays for D.C United.

Is Adu a wonderful talent as everyone said?..He is the youngest USA national player all the times but is he great?..

My opinion on Adu, he isn't that great. Everyone is making him out to be the "savior of American football" when in reality, he didn't start at all his rookie year, and he complained about that, and he has no international experience (I think he may have played in a friendly against Canada). So in my opinion, he is not that great, in a few years maybe but I don't see anything special about him.

by **woof woof !** » Sat Aug 12, 2006 6:58 pm

Don't give the MLS a seconds thought . No disrespect but european teams only play MLS teams in pre season friendlies which mean nothing other than an excercise in gaining match fitness and team understanding.

I have however been impessed with the progress the USA national team have made over the last 10 years . One day you could win the world cup , but not in my lifetime .

by **IstanBuL-FenerBaHce** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 1:50 am

BTW everyone has his own 'football heroes', and one of mine is Alexi Lalas :buttrock

I watched him in USA 94 and dreamed him to sign with Fenerbahce..

BTW I read now that he went New York Red Bull to become their new General Manager and President

by **babu** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 6:10 am

Didn't Adu turn down Arsenal last year? Said something like 'i need more time to mature as a player before making the move to european football' ? or am i remembering stuff that didn't happen?

by **soccerfreek421** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 7:31 am

I don't remember that, it's possible though.

by **anti-hero** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 7:57 am

babu wrote:Didn't Adu turn down Arsenal last year? Said something like 'i need more time to mature as a player before making the move to european football' ? or am i remembering stuff that didn't happen?

I heard the rent-boys were after him.

Wanted to sign him this year but the Chairman of the MLS loathed the idea of selling off his "most prized asset".

Money-wise of course.

by **CardinalRed** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 1:17 pm

I watched a couple of games on ESPN2 while I was in the States this summer.... They have an irish bloke commentating on them called Tommy Smith....! When I heard the name I though it was OUR Tommy Smith at first but when he spoke it was obvious he wasn't, dunno who he is.
The games seem to be about League 2 standard when they're being played. The League is organised around a similar structure to the NFL and MLB (baseball) in that the winners of each "conference" (league) play each other in a grand final at the end of the season to decide the champs. If they played over here, our punishing schedules would kill 'em, they'd soon end up visiting places like Yeovil and Exeter on a regular basis I reckon. They can't be measured by what they do in friendlies, you get the impression some of the players are trying to catch the eye of European managers when these games are played...

:cool:

by **RUSHIE#9** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 6:32 pm

anti-hero wrote:Oh and next year they're paving the way for a Canadian team, Toronto F.C to take part in the league. They figured Canadians are half-French anyways, so they must be decent at football at least.

So as of next year there will be the MLS World Series at the end of each season.

TBH what i've seen of MLS on FIVE at about 2AM has been extremely useful stuff....................................

It soon cures my insomnia!!

by **The Manhattan Project** » Mon Aug 14, 2006 12:07 am

American soccer fans need to be patient.

It's not going to challenge the NFL, NBA, MLB, and NHL for the forseesable future, but it must be allowed to slowly grow.

I don't mind the game being "Americanised" as long as the basic rules are intact. Whatever gets soccer over with the American people is fine with me. Team nicknames, franchise relocations, American terminologies, etc....are to be expected. That's OK.

I understand it's a fast growing sport amongst kids and teens in the States, so eventually they will come through and it will become more popular. Having one team in each major city should be enough. The MLS shouldn't make the league expand too quickly. Small soccer-specific stadiums are also fine at the moment. I suppose if it catches on, team can share stadiums with NFL teams.

I would love America as a powerful soccer nation. More coaches, more training, a college system, grass-roots development and so forth. Not everyone has the brawn to play hockey and grid-iron, or the height to play NBA, so soccer is there as an alternative.

It will take time, but it will get there.

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