This entire tournament really puts into perspective how god damn incredible our run was last year and how god damn tragically we blew the opportunity of a lifetime.
"There are some people who might have better technique than me, and some may be fitter than me, but the main thing is tactics. With most players, tactics are missing. You can divide tactics into insight, trust, and daring." - Johan Cruyff
5-0 was no surprise.
Saying we “blew” it is too harsh. Our performances in the away legs in Mexico were three of the great games ever played by any MLS team anywhere.
"There are some people who might have better technique than me, and some may be fitter than me, but the main thing is tactics. With most players, tactics are missing. You can divide tactics into insight, trust, and daring." - Johan Cruyff
Yep. After years of Mexican B teams they’re also starting to take CCL more seriously after TFC’s run.
SKC has looked good so far and is at or near the top of MLS power rankings... and got absolutely destroyed.
Last year we had an insanely difficult bracket and crushed it. We were basically CCL champs, even if this team is cursed on penalties.
It just goes to highlight the gap between MLS and other leagues, despite what users on this forum and elsewhere say. “But LigaMX team average is only one point higher on FIFA!” “The gap between Belgian League and MLS is closer than you think!”
Yeah, nope. Good, full-strength MLS sides are still getting blown out in MLS 3.0, even with SKC having the most players of any team over the salary line as well, NYRB winning the shield, or Atlanta being the new “best ever” team.
Absolutely agree on all of the above and I still tell people as difficult as 2018 was to go through, I wouldn't change the run and subsequent regular season for anything ... well wait, "Winning CCL" would have been insane, so other than that I love the team for going all in.
This is still a very good team.
One point on the leagues, MLS is on a very slippery slope on expansion. Even at 24 teams it is getting diluted. We need strong clubs with quality football.
COYRs
The way SKC set up to play last night, away, in that atmosphere, was suicidal.
I'm going to say this & I know people won't like hearing it:
Vanney was not as naive about his opponents last year as has been the other managers since then. (Marsch wasn't naive either).
Vanney screwed the pooch against Independiente this season, so he's not perfect.
BUT, where Vanney is best is in his pragmatism towards the opponent. The guy talks a lot about the best formation he'd like to play & if he has the best in place against the right opponent, he'll play TFC style - but I think in his heart of hearts, he wants to win with what he has in place & if that means an ugly 4-4-2, so be it.
We had best in their lifetime performances from Morgan, Chapman, Zavs and others that did not carry forward since then. And part of that was putting those guys in positions where the likelihood of them failing was low.
And we had Drew freaking Moor until the Azteca.
I don’t disagree with you — Vanney’s approach tends to be pragmatic and he definitely showed the sort of attitude you describe in last year’s CCL. The grit and heart from the team was immense throughout the tournament as well. You could tell that they believed in it too.
SKC was playing like they played against a Montreal missing key players, including Piatti... all the while knowing they are MLS’ last remaining team and not trying to throw the tournament.
TFC set the bar incredibly high, and even the Mexican teams were surprised. As we’ve seen this season, the gap is still pretty far despite the excuses people can wrangle up (salary cap, pre-season tournament, FIFA ratings, etc.). People here were still lauding MLS’ stature even as TFC got blown out by a Panamanian side (and are apparently now buying one of their players) because our FIFA ratings are one below LigaMX on average, or that Pozo wouldn’t be a good signing because he came from the Belgian league where teams compete in Europe and produce world-class talent.
You're right, but we laid an egg in the first leg at home vs. Chivas. Those goals we gave up were just bad.
To think of how MLS has struggled in this tournament... and we could have won the whole thing sweeping not just 3 Mexican teams in a row, but arguably the three biggest Mexican teams out there, AND playing the second leg away each time? Historic doesn't even cover it. And we did the whole damn thing playing Bradley at CB and with Vazquez watching from the press box.
I'm proud of the run we put together and think we got unlucky in the final more than anything... but it's hard not to play the "what if" game with this one.
And just to rub salt in the wound... the draw for the Club World Cup that year would have had us play Kashima Antlers from Japan (Chivas lost to them 3-2) for the right to play Real Madrid. Just imagine TFC playing Real god damn Madrid in a competitive fixture.
I hope to see it someday.
"There are some people who might have better technique than me, and some may be fitter than me, but the main thing is tactics. With most players, tactics are missing. You can divide tactics into insight, trust, and daring." - Johan Cruyff
Next year, gentlemen.
Next year.
This is getting embarrassing for MLS and Garber who has seen the league grow incredibly under his tenure, however, will always have this as a sour spot of his years as commissioner of the MLS, the incompetence of MLS teams in the CCL versus Mexican teams. Apart from TFC’s run last year and a few other runs by MLS teams a few other times it’s been one disaster of results after another and so many MLS teams not only losing but getting embarrassed with lopsided scores . Sporting Kansas City who is one of the MLS’s top teams should not be losing 5-0 and easily beaten 5-0 . But this is nothing new in the CCL where most years MLS clubs seem to always get embarrassed by the better Liga MX teams.
Monterrey finishing in style. SKC was never in it & looked like a div 3 team playing a div 1 team in a league cup.
There's a bit of me that wonders what might have been if we had gotten to SKC in the quarters - don't think we would have beaten Monterrey but I don't think we would have been that embarrassed.
That win over the two legs against America... good to savour that today. SKC allowing 10 goals, yeesh.
God our run was something else. I don’t think I have ever been happier for a single player than when Ashtone Morgan scored that goal.
"There are some people who might have better technique than me, and some may be fitter than me, but the main thing is tactics. With most players, tactics are missing. You can divide tactics into insight, trust, and daring." - Johan Cruyff
The MLS intelligentsia melt down over this is kinda annoying. Maybe its my perspective having watched us play in the CCL over the years while being a crappy team.
The US fascination with being the best & with top level soccer in Europe creates weird ripples in US soccer.
The MLS teams are Belgium to Liga Mx's Spanish League - we can often times beat the mid level teams but beating Barca & Real Madrid (Tigres & Monterrey) ? Nope.
Stop worrying about beating Juve & start working on developing the next De Brunye.
Last edited by OgtheDim; 04-12-2019 at 11:50 AM.
Tigres at home vs Monterrey in leg 1 of CCL final on univision deportes if anyone is interested. Excellent atmosphere. Miss it so much
One interesting thing about this two leg final , no away goals rule in this final it’s a two game total goals series , therefore, if series is tied after the two games in total goals they won’t go to away goals to break the tie. I guess this is something new for this years two leg final because I’m sure in last years final with TFC the away goals rule was in effect.
Last edited by SoccMan2; 04-23-2019 at 10:01 PM.