MLS Week 5, Bottom 10 Clubs in xG difference: REAL BAD TIER 30) Kansas City: -10.5 29) Orlando: -7.1 MAKES SENSE TIER 28) Alanta: -4.0 T27) Toronto, Austin: -3.9 25) Portland: -3.8 24) Montreal: -3.5 WAIT, WHAT? TIER 23) Minnesota: -2.1 22) Miami: -2.0 21) Philly: -1.8

My MLS 22u22 Rankings (Week 5) 1) Duah, SD, CB, 20🇬🇭 2) Gozo, RSL, RM, 19🇺🇸 3) Martinez, LAFC, LW, 20🇻🇪 4) Mehmeti, RBNY, CM, 16🇺🇸 5) Hall, RBNY, ST, 17🇺🇸 6) Silvetti, MIA, RW, 20🇦🇷 7) Ferree, SD, GK, 19 🇺🇸 8) Mbokazi, PHI, CB, 20🇿🇦 9) Herrington, COL, CB, 18🇦🇺 10) Tsakiris, SJ, AM, 20 🇺🇸

MLS Top 9, Wk 5 in xG+A/90: 1) Surridge, 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 1.19 (NSH, 27) 2) Bouanga, 🇬🇦 1.06 (LAFC, 31) 3) White, 🇺🇸 1.07 (VAN, 30) 4) Guilavogui, 🇬🇳 0.99 (RSL, 28) 5) Pec, 🇧🇷 0.98 (LAG, 25) 6) Cuypers, 🇧🇪 0.94 (CHI, 29) 7) Musa, 🇭🇷 0.93 (FCD, 27) 8) Hall, 🇺🇸 0.93 (RBNY, 17) 9) Dreyer, 🇩🇰 0.90 (SD, 27)

💣 BREAKING: Antoine Griezmann is traveling to finalizing a summer transfer to Orlando City from Atletico Madrid, per sources. Huge deal for Orlando who land the World Cup winner and Atleti legend. w/ @paultenorio.bsky.social, Mario Cortegana www.nytimes.com/athletic/713...

MLS Week 5 Power Ranking by xG difference (rank change vs wk 4) 1) Vancouver: +9.3 2) Nashville: +5.7 (🔺2) 3) San Jose: +5.6 (🔻1) 4) Colorado: +4.3 (new) 5) NYCFC: +4.0 (🔻2) 6) CHI: +4.0 (🔺1) 7) LAFC: +3.3 (🔻2) 8) LAG: +3.2 (🔺1) 9) RSL: +2.7 (new) 10) CLB: +1.6 (new) Dropped out: SD, RBNY, FCD

MLS US u22 Report, Week 5 Tier 1: Elite Outing Hall, 17, RBNY, ST (8.1, goal, 0.78xG, 2/2 dribbles, 20/23 passes, 90) Tier 2: Great Match Gozo, 19, RSL, LM (7.8, 90, 0.36xG+xA, 3/4 dribbles) Baker-Whiting, 20, NSH, LB (7.2, 78, 0.48xG) Yapi, 21, COL, LW (7.1, 61, assist, 0.62xG+A)

That was a heck of a ball by Chambost to free Arfsten. Arfsten didn't have a defender within 10 yards when he sent over a looping cross that found Abou Ali (who was defended by three defenders), who found the corner of the goal with a looping header.

Real dual national panic! (I actually think he's gonna hold out for a USMNT full call up post WC)

So for quarters, I Have: Nashville slight favorites vs Club America just based on CA form being awful. Nashville's first competitive game in Mexico is scary though LAFC even with Cruz Azul. A lot of talent, not all clicking. LAFC's natural counter style should work here though.

Worth repeating... Denkey said it as well.

This game was really lost in the first 10 minutes. Those goals were 100% Cincinnati not coming out with focus and honestly a bad line up. Then, when you take out Evander and have zero counter threat, you're asking the team to bunker for 14 minutes straight. That's really, really hard and a mistake.

Combined xG between both legs FCC 2.54 (4) v Tigres 3.65 (5) Deserved winners by Tigres

Cincinnati trying to close shop with likely 9 minutes to go. That's a long time to defend without a counter threat

CCC Games in Mexico in the last 5 years by MLS Clubs: 3 - VAN, CIN, CLB, PHI, SEA 2 - SD, ORL, MTL, NE 1 - LAG, LAFC CCC Games in the US by Liga MX Clubs: 7 - Tigres 4 - Monterrey, Pumas 3 - Cruz Azul 2 - Leon, Pachuca, America 1 - Santos, Atlas

Denkey misses a golden chance. Oh dear.

Answer ... Nah. Tigres might drop 7 in this game

Teenage Hadebe leads FC Cincinnati with touches with 38. The next highest is Gidi with 28. Which means Tigres is actively hunting him down their right. I'd swap out Barlow for Nwobodo and maybe even Miazga if he's healthy enough for Hadebe. Let Evander roam, give cover to the left.

My toxic trait is that I believe MLS should only be sprint seasons.

A trade that has been rolling around in my head: SD trades Chucky & $6m in cash to SJ for a first round pick. If there's any manager in MLS you'd bet on managing egos it's Bruce. And despite all the drama, Chucky was good last year (his G+ was better than Dreyer's!). The cash covers

I mean, you can't keep doing that if you're San Diego. It's not working playing that short out of the back. Just tempting fate over and over until it breaks

Oh Pellegrino with a golden chance, wide for San Diego! And Badwal with a banger for Vancouver vs Seattle

Aggregate xG, both legs: PHI 2.95 (1) - Club America 1.57 (2)

Genuinely believe Nashville should be favorites over this Club America side ... which is not in good form at all.

Getting word that a CAF spokesman has declared Inter Miami winners of their round of 16 matchup with Nashville.

I don't understand why Carnell takes out Cavan right after showing how he's dangerous. It's almost automatic.

Man so good from Cavan there, Harriel needs to put that on target

I feel Columbus should trade Daniel Gazdag back to the Philly Union for like a 3rd round pick. Columbus get back their DP slot and cut their losses. Philly get a player who knows their system and can contribute to their attack

Heck of a result by Nashville who've throughly earned winning this tie vs Miami. The Espinoza free agent signing might be the best in MLS history

VENEZUELA! (David Martinez CCC winner and World Baseball Classic win within 2 minutes of each other)

For TV sports viewing in a vacuum, there's not a huge difference between Friday & Saturday night. This last Dec MLS Cup (ever?) though coincides with CFP first round and I think the better games are on Sat, so may avoid that. Definitely better than competing against SEC championship in the States.

Berchimas has scored 3 goals in 3 games in MLS Next Pro. (They also have Alocko (19) who has 7 goal contributions in their first 3. They can't do more than that to prove they should get 1st team minutes for Charlotte.

Top MLS teams in xG difference through week 4: 1) Vancouver: +8.8 2) San Jose: +6.1 3) New York City: +4.2 4) Nashville: +3.0 5) LAFC: +2.9 6) San Diego: +2.5 7) Chicago: +2.3 8) RBNY: +2.1 t9) FCD & LAG: +1.9

Two of these are not like the others

U22 Starting Xi LW: Martinez ST: Hall RW: Silvetti CM: Badwal DM: Donkor CM: Mehmeti LB: Johnson CB: Duah CB: Herrington RB: Westfield GK: Ferree

My way too early MLS 22u22 Rankings (Week 4) 1) Duah, SD, CB, 20🇬🇭 2) Mehmeti, RBNY, CM, 16🇺🇸 3) Gozo, RSL, RM, 18🇺🇸 4) Martinez, LAFC, LW, 20🇻🇪 5) Hall, RBNY, ST, 17🇺🇸 6) Silvetti, MIA, RW, 20🇦🇷 7) Ferree, SD, GK, 19 🇺🇸 8) Donkor, RBNY, DM, 21🇬🇭 9) Herrington, COL, CB, 18🇦🇺 10) Badwal, VAN, CM, 20🇨🇦

MLS Top 9 in xG+A/90: 1) Bouanga, 1.11 (LAFC, 31, DP) 2) White, 1.07 (VAN, 30, TAM) 3) Cuypers, 1.02 (CHI, 29, DP) 4) Surridge, 0.95 (NSH, 27, DP) 5) Hall, 0.95 (RBNY, 17, HG) 6) Dreyer, 0.94 (SD, 27, DP) 7) Messi, 0.92 (MIA, 38, DP) 8) Musa, 0.90 (FCD, 27, DP) 9) Pec, 0.90 (LAG, 25, DP)

Andrew Thomas had a heck of a game. Saved nearly 2 xGOT. Ragen and Lopez were immense. SJ plays like that they'll still be very good but they're a few attackers short of being great.

MLS Week 4 US u22 Report Tier 1: Match winners Tsakiris, 20, AM, SJ (8.1, 90, 0.85 xG+xA, 4 chances created) Tier 2: Excellent Match Gozo, 18, RM, RSL (7.9, 90, 3 chances created, .43xA) Mehmeti, 16, CM, RBNY (7.7, 90, 16 passes to final third) Westfield, 20, RB, PHI (7.6, 90, assist)

Seattles depth is always impressive. San Jose has deserved an equalizer, Judd with two golden chances.

I genuinely think it's Wagner more than anyone for PHI. He was a chance creation machine that could also play in this system. Not easy to find to replace

I feel like an Atlanta win today as divine punishment for Philadelphia not playing Cavan Sullivan

Deserved goal and tie by RBNY, imo. Much better game in general than the Montreal disaster, having an xG advantage of 2-1. Still allowing 1.5 jailbreaks per game and again TFC punished this for the second week in a row after RBNY getting away with it in weeks 1&2. Need to address that!

No Cade today due to the birth of his child (congrats!) and is replaced by Sofo. Sofo was a bottom 10 player last year in G+, but is young and talented. Keep an eye out to see if he can use his speed to get in behind or if he ends attacks with turnovers

Tigres in a giving mood! A gift for Denkey, Cincinnati up 1-0!

It's a fair point but let me break it down to two separate points: 1) I'm not a believer in that the schedule shift will be a slam dunk. The clear positive from the league standpoint is that the MLS playoffs (by far the best MLS product) will be during the spring with minimal football competition

Hey, I wrote a thing! It's about why MLS might want to be more like the NBA and not the NFL, as it has more natural similarities with the modern MLS. One thing I didn't write was how the NBA really has understood the social media content creators culture. They've created programs to allow content

St Clair is having his best game for Inter Miami, so far. He's the reason it's still 0-0

Me watching this CCC game.

Cavan & Iloski were the most dangerous players for the Union in the first half, so of course Carnell pulled Cavan at half.

This PHI-Club America game is helter skelter, and not in a good way.