A too-soon MLS playoff preview of the final eight teams
We're down to eight teams, who will kick off their playoff series a full month after the playoffs commenced. (We should probably do something about this format.)
On the weekend of Nov. 22-23, plus an epiosde of MLS-style Monday Night Futbal on the 24th, eight teams will be winnowed down to four as the playoff picture gets clearer — and, dare I say it, more interesting.
With the exception of New York City FC ousting Charlotte FC in three matches, it's been all chalk, with the first through third seeds all advancing in both conferences, and Minnesota outlasting Seattle in perhaps the wildest playoff match since the Double Post match between the Portland Timbers and SKC in 2015.
Here's a rundown of what's on deck in about two weeks. (Not a fan of the November international break interrupting what momentum the playoffs were able to muster, by the way. Just thought I'd establish that, as I feel I'm not alone in it.)
Saturday, Nov. 22
Vancouver Whitecaps FC vs. LAFC, 8:30 pm CT
According to soccer journalist Manuel Veth, the 'Caps have already sold 50,000 tickets in BC Place for what is likely one of the best matchups of the playoffs. Despite battling a slew of unfortunate late-season injuries, Vancouver ousted Dallas in two games, though it took getting a stoppage-time equalizer and going to penalty kicks in Frisco to do so.
To move on, they'll have to vanquish LAFC, which is daunting on two levels. Historically, LAFC's knocked the 'Caps out of multiple competitions, and as we saw against Austin in their two first-round matches, Denis Bouanga and Son Heung-min play very well together, and the marquee matchup MLS Cup dream of LAFC vs. Miami is still very much in play.
Oh, and to add to the lore, former Whitecaps head coach Marc Dos Santos could end up being the next LAFC coach. He's currently an assistant under the outgoing Steve Cherundolo.
Sunday, Nov. 23
FC Cincinnati vs. Inter Miami CF, 4 pm CT
Certainly, that was not me on the latest Emergency Podcast predicting that Nashville would upset Miami in Game 3. What I clearly said was that Miami would win 4-0 with Lionel Messi doing Lionel Messi things, and that's exactly what happened.
While it's perhaps a bit surprising that both higher seeds needed three matches to get through the best-of-three series, it's a testament to the East's strength that such good teams ended up as No. 6 and No. 7 seeds. (Cue the elementary school class joyfully saying, "Six, seven!")
Cincy had a really bad game in the series, losing 4-0 at the Crew following a Yaya Kubo red card, but given the performance in the deciding match, going down around the hour mark and then roaring back with a Brenner brace, this could be as good as the match the night before. While an LAFC-Miami MLS Cup would have undeniable star power, a Cincinnati-Vancouver matchup would be the most fun option for the more hardcore MLS fans.
Philadelphia Union vs. New York City FC, 6:30 pm CT
And then we have the Supporters' Shield winners, who weren't particularly tested by the Fire in a series that only went two matches. The Union got a Tai Baribo brace within the first 16 minutes of their clinching match against Chicago, and they only needed that first goal.
Bradley Carnell ended up getting Coach of the Year honors by leading a team that concerned plenty of pundits in the preseason to the top of a crowded East.
NYCFC, meanwhile, traded road triumphs with Charlotte before winning Game 3 away, getting a brilliant breakaway solo goal from Nicolás Fernández Mercau just before halftime and an early second-half goal from Alonso Martínez to take it out of reach.
Though a less obvious choice than the first two, this has the potential to be compelling; an NYCFC upset would put the East final in the home venue of the Miami-Cincy winner.
Monday, Nov. 24
San Diego FC vs. Minnesota United FC, 9 pm CT
Certainly this didn't need to played on a Monday night, but here we are. Both teams got taken to three matches by Cascadia rivals in much different fashion.
For Minnesota, both home matches were decided by PKs, and while the first game had drama, the third had drama piled on top of drama. Seattle fans will feel like this one got away, but the Loons showed the resilience that characterized much of their season, plus Dayne St. Clair stepped up just enough.
Their reward is trekking to San Diego, who got taken to a third match by a scrappy Portland team that got an equalizer deep in stoppage time of the series' second match. On Sunday night, SDFC got early goals from Andres Dreyer and Amahl Pellegrino en route to braces from both in a 4-0 walk. Hirving "Chucky" Lozano also got in as a sub — noteworthy since he's been in a conduct-detrimental-to-the-team saga for more than a month now — and drew a red card when Juan Mosquera sloppily punched him in the chest 35 minutes after coming on as a halftime sub.
(Not a great end to the series for the Timbers, and possibly head coach Phil Neville's last game in charge.)
As with the East, I expect the West's MLS Cup representative is going to come out of the 2-3 match, but given how San Diego's playing, I expect the road to the final is going to wind through Snapdragon Stadium. I will prepare accordingly to stay up until 11 (or beyond, if PKs factor in) for this one to round out this level of the playoffs – taking a month from when the playoffs started to get to this round. (Maybe that's too much and we revisit this whole best-of-three thing in a World Cup year that will already have a break built in.)
Verde All Day is a reader-supported online publication covering Austin FC. Additional support is provided by Austin Telco Federal Credit Union. For more coverage, check out Emergency Podcast! (an Austin FC Podcast) wherever you get your podcasts.
Just looking at raw numbers, Myrto Uzuni's already contributed more in one season than Emiliano Rigoni did in a season and a half worth of matches. But that doesn't tell the whole story.
It's not that Austin FC didn't show a desire to win on Sunday. It's just that they left themselves vulnerable to counterattacks against a team that excels at them.
On the weekend of Nov. 22-23, plus an epiosde of MLS-style Monday Night Futbal on the 24th, eight teams will be winnowed down to four as the playoff picture gets clearer — and, dare I say it, more interesting.
With the exception of New York City FC ousting Charlotte FC in three matches, it's been all chalk, with the first through third seeds all advancing in both conferences, and Minnesota outlasting Seattle in perhaps the wildest playoff match since the Double Post match between the Portland Timbers and SKC in 2015.
Here's a rundown of what's on deck in about two weeks. (Not a fan of the November international break interrupting what momentum the playoffs were able to muster, by the way. Just thought I'd establish that, as I feel I'm not alone in it.)
Saturday, Nov. 22
Vancouver Whitecaps FC vs. LAFC, 8:30 pm CT
According to soccer journalist Manuel Veth, the 'Caps have already sold 50,000 tickets in BC Place for what is likely one of the best matchups of the playoffs. Despite battling a slew of unfortunate late-season injuries, Vancouver ousted Dallas in two games, though it took getting a stoppage-time equalizer and going to penalty kicks in Frisco to do so.
To move on, they'll have to vanquish LAFC, which is daunting on two levels. Historically, LAFC's knocked the 'Caps out of multiple competitions, and as we saw against Austin in their two first-round matches, Denis Bouanga and Son Heung-min play very well together, and the marquee matchup MLS Cup dream of LAFC vs. Miami is still very much in play.
Oh, and to add to the lore, former Whitecaps head coach Marc Dos Santos could end up being the next LAFC coach. He's currently an assistant under the outgoing Steve Cherundolo.
Sunday, Nov. 23
FC Cincinnati vs. Inter Miami CF, 4 pm CT
Certainly, that was not me on the latest Emergency Podcast predicting that Nashville would upset Miami in Game 3. What I clearly said was that Miami would win 4-0 with Lionel Messi doing Lionel Messi things, and that's exactly what happened.
While it's perhaps a bit surprising that both higher seeds needed three matches to get through the best-of-three series, it's a testament to the East's strength that such good teams ended up as No. 6 and No. 7 seeds. (Cue the elementary school class joyfully saying, "Six, seven!")
Cincy had a really bad game in the series, losing 4-0 at the Crew following a Yaya Kubo red card, but given the performance in the deciding match, going down around the hour mark and then roaring back with a Brenner brace, this could be as good as the match the night before. While an LAFC-Miami MLS Cup would have undeniable star power, a Cincinnati-Vancouver matchup would be the most fun option for the more hardcore MLS fans.
Philadelphia Union vs. New York City FC, 6:30 pm CT
And then we have the Supporters' Shield winners, who weren't particularly tested by the Fire in a series that only went two matches. The Union got a Tai Baribo brace within the first 16 minutes of their clinching match against Chicago, and they only needed that first goal.
Bradley Carnell ended up getting Coach of the Year honors by leading a team that concerned plenty of pundits in the preseason to the top of a crowded East.
NYCFC, meanwhile, traded road triumphs with Charlotte before winning Game 3 away, getting a brilliant breakaway solo goal from Nicolás Fernández Mercau just before halftime and an early second-half goal from Alonso Martínez to take it out of reach.
Though a less obvious choice than the first two, this has the potential to be compelling; an NYCFC upset would put the East final in the home venue of the Miami-Cincy winner.
Monday, Nov. 24
San Diego FC vs. Minnesota United FC, 9 pm CT
Certainly this didn't need to played on a Monday night, but here we are. Both teams got taken to three matches by Cascadia rivals in much different fashion.
For Minnesota, both home matches were decided by PKs, and while the first game had drama, the third had drama piled on top of drama. Seattle fans will feel like this one got away, but the Loons showed the resilience that characterized much of their season, plus Dayne St. Clair stepped up just enough.
Their reward is trekking to San Diego, who got taken to a third match by a scrappy Portland team that got an equalizer deep in stoppage time of the series' second match. On Sunday night, SDFC got early goals from Andres Dreyer and Amahl Pellegrino en route to braces from both in a 4-0 walk. Hirving "Chucky" Lozano also got in as a sub — noteworthy since he's been in a conduct-detrimental-to-the-team saga for more than a month now — and drew a red card when Juan Mosquera sloppily punched him in the chest 35 minutes after coming on as a halftime sub.
(Not a great end to the series for the Timbers, and possibly head coach Phil Neville's last game in charge.)
As with the East, I expect the West's MLS Cup representative is going to come out of the 2-3 match, but given how San Diego's playing, I expect the road to the final is going to wind through Snapdragon Stadium. I will prepare accordingly to stay up until 11 (or beyond, if PKs factor in) for this one to round out this level of the playoffs – taking a month from when the playoffs started to get to this round. (Maybe that's too much and we revisit this whole best-of-three thing in a World Cup year that will already have a break built in.)
Verde All Day is a reader-supported online publication covering Austin FC. Additional support is provided by Austin Telco Federal Credit Union. For more coverage, check out Emergency Podcast! (an Austin FC Podcast) wherever you get your podcasts.
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