The Major League Soccer season will eventually reach a point where it’s very difficult to find reasons to watch every single game. Games between two teams who don’t have a legitimate chance of winning MLS Cup in 100 degree heat usually aren’t the best. But this early in the season, every game matters and there are lots of interesting things to watch out for.
Major League Soccer, Week 2: Burning questions and reasons to watch
This early in the season, there’s a good reason to check out every single MLS game. Here’s what to watch for and what’s interesting about all of Week 2’s action.
Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
Burning Questions
The first week of the season raised some big questions, with some teams and players defying expectations in positive and negative ways. The Red Bulls and Portland Timbers attacking midfielder Diego Valeri look shaky, while Houston Dynamo forward Will Bruin and league-owned Chivas USA had great first weeks.
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Will home field make a big difference for New York?
We certainly hope so. Not as fans of the Red Bulls, but just fans of decent soccer. If playing on the Red Bull Arena pitch with starters Thierry Henry and Jamison Olave returning to the lineup doesn't make New York any better, they're in for a long season.
The Red Bulls were downright crushed by the Vancouver Whitecaps, who won their season opener 4-1 and could have scored even more. New York's only goal came in stoppage time, after the 'Caps had switched off. They host the Colorado Rapids on Saturday and their fans will be expecting a seriously improved performance from a team that won last year's Supporters' Shield and lost no key players in the offseason.
Did Will Bruin locate his shooting boots?
Bruin was one of the league’s best strikers in 2012. He looked set for a monster 2013 and a potential place in the United States men’s national team, but he was one of the league’s worst finishers last season. Fast forward to 2014 and Bruin appears to have found his form, scoring twice in less than 20 minutes in Houston’s season opener.
Saturday's opponent for Houston, the Montreal Impact, don't have a better defense than their Week 1 opponent, the New England Revolution. Bruin is almost certain to get chances. If he scores again, it's fair to say that constitutes a pattern.
Has Diego Valeri reclaimed his body from the impostor that stole it?
Last year, Valeri was a serious MVP candidate. One of his best assets was his first touch, but he looked all kinds of uncoordinated on the ball against the Philadelphia Union. It was odd to watch the ball bounce off Valeri's foot like it was a brick wall, so keep an eye on his first touch against the Chicago Fire. Was it just a bad game, or is something up with him?
Are Chivas actually respectable?
Probably not, but it’s nice to dream. Given that the Whitecaps obliterated New York last week, it’ll be time to take Chivas seriously if they turn in a good showing against them on Sunday. That’s not to say that they’re going to be a playoff team. We’ll just need to stop laughing at them. Maybe.
Reasons to watch
These are games that feature things that are less question-arising and more simply fun and/or awesome.
Must Reads
Michael Bradley's debut and some USMNT on USMNT violence
Presumably, Michael Bradley will play the first game of his second Major League Soccer stint for Toronto FC on Saturday. Since he's going up against Clint Dempsey and the Seattle Sounders, this one is unsurprisingly getting the full NBC Sports Network and TSN treatment. Bradley and Dempsey will actually end up in the same areas of the pitch regularly, so you'll get to watch them beat the crap out of each other.
No one knows how good Philly or New England is
The Philadelphia Union were pretty impressive away to Portland last week, while the Revs -- a serious dark horse MLS Cup contender -- got slaughtered by the Dynamo. No one knows how good either team is, so this could be fun because a blowout going either way is very possible.
FC Dallas has a measuring stick
Unlike Philly and New England, we know exactly how good Sporting KC are. They lost their opener, yes, but they outplayed Seattle for most of that game and went on to beat Cruz Azul in CONCACAF Champions League midweek. They’re a clear MLS Cup contender, which makes them a good measuring stick for FC Dallas. Oscar Pareja’s boys were good against the Impact in Week 1, but they were at home and the Impact probably stink. A good performance at Sporting Park will get a lot of people wondering if Pareja can do with Dallas what he did with Colorado.
The progression of RSL
Real Salt Lake pulled out a stunning 1-0 win away to the LA Galaxy last Saturday, but they were hardly impressive in the process. Their defense was poor and they could have lost by multiple goals if it wasn't for LA's poor shooting and Nick Rimando's excellent saves when the Galaxy actually did hit the target. They have a tough game this weekend away to a San Jose team with a lot of good strikers, and it will be interesting to see if their defense has improved at all.
Schedule (all times ET)
Union vs. Revolution - Saturday, 4 p.m.
Red Bulls vs. Rapids - Saturday, 4 p.m.
Sounders vs. Toronto FC - Saturday, 4:30 p.m.
Dynamo vs. Impact - Saturday, 8:30 p.m.
Sporting KC vs. FC Dallas - Saturday, 8:30 p.m.
Earthquakes vs. RSL - Saturday, 10:30 p.m.
Timbers vs. Fire - Sunday, 3 p.m.
Chivas USA vs. Whitecaps - Sunday, 7 p.m.
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