Some clubs have already confirmed their summer plans. Others are still releasing information. Here is what we know so far about the top European clubs’ preseason tours for the summer, including an exceptional list of summer friendlies in the United States.

European clubs and where they will be this summer

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Arsenal

Arsenal has a date with Major League Soccer, as the Gunners will travel to the United States to play the MLS All Stars in July. Mikel Arteta’s team will then play two high-profile matches against Manchester United and FC Barcelona.

• 7/19 v MLS All-Stars (Washington DC) — Find tickets
• 7/22 v Man Utd (New York) — Find tickets
• 7/26 v Barcelona (Los Angeles) — Find tickets

FC Barcelona

Last summer, the major news coming from Barcelona was the club’s need to pull financial levers. This summer the big news is that the Blaugrana will visit the US for four friendlies as part of the Soccer Champions Tour. Barcelona will play against AC Milan, Arsenal, Juventus and Real Madrid in a special El Clasico. The Spanish club previously toured the United States in 2011, 2015, 2017 and 2018.

• 7/22 v Juventus (San Francisco) — Find tickets
• 7/26 v Arsenal (Los Angeles) — Find tickets
• 7/29 v Real Madrid (Dallas) — Find tickets
• 8/1 v AC Milan (Houston) — Find tickets

Bayern Munich

Bayern Munich will visit Asia this summer, with high-profile games against English competition. Die Roten will be in Asia from July 24 to August 3. Along with playing top teams from England, Bayern Munich will play against Japan’s Kawasaki Frontale. The tour will mark Bayern’s first trip to Japan since 2008. The German giants will then conclude with a visit to Singapore. 

• 7/26 v Manchester City (Tokyo)
• 7/29 v Kawaski Frontale (Tokyo)
• 8/2 v Liverpool (Singapore)

Borussia Dortmund

Borussia Dortmund first visited the U.S. in 1954. Since then, the States have been a common destination for the Yellow and Black. Dortmund will once again visit the U.S. in the offseason, as they play Manchester United at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. American soccer fans will get to see international Gio Reyna up close and personal. 

• 7/30 v Manchester United (Las Vegas) — Find tickets
• 8/2 v Chelsea (Chicago) — Find tickets 

Chelsea

Big-spending Chelsea will spend some time in the U.S. this summer. The Blues will play a massive friendly against America’s favorite Welsh soccer club, Wrexham. The Londoners will then participate in the Premier League Series. Chelsea will end their tour with a game against Germany’s Borussia Dortmund in Chicago before jetting off to England to start the Premier League campaign.

• 7/19 v Wrexham (North Carolina) — Find tickets
• 7/22 v Brighton (Lincoln Financial Field) — Find tickets
• 7/26 v Newcastle (Mercedes-Benz Stadium) — Find tickets
• 7/30 v Fulham (FedExField) — Find tickets
• 8/2 v Dortmund (Chicago) — Find tickets

Juventus

Juventus will be a part of the Soccer Champions Tour taking place in the U.S. in July and August. The Italian giants will face off with Barcelona, AC Milan and Real Madrid. The tour will begin on July 22 and conclude on August 2.

• 7/22 v Barcelona (San Francisco) — Find tickets
• 7/27 v AC Milan (Los Angeles) — Find tickets
• 8/2 vs Real Madrid (Orlando) — Find tickets

Liverpool

The Mighty Reds are skipping the U.S. this summer and will begin their preparations for 2023-24 in Germany with a training camp. Jurgen Klopp’s team will then visit Singapore for two friendlies. Liverpool has a large fanbase in Asia and will hit Singapore for the second straight summer.

• 7/30 v Leicester (Singapore)
• 8/2 v Bayern Munich (Singapore)

Manchester City

Manchester City will also descend on Asia, as the Cityzens visit Japan and South Korea. Pep Guardiola’s team will play fellow City Football Group-owned club, Yokohama F. Marinos before playing Germany’s Bayern Munich in Tokyo. A match against Spain’s Atletico Madrid in Seoul will finish the tour. 

• 7/23 v Yokohama F Marinos (Tokyo) 
• 7/26 v Bayern Munich (Tokyo) 
• 7/30 v Atletico Madrid (Seoul) 

Manchester United

Manchester United is arguably the most well-support English club in the U.S., and the Red Devils will return for another summer tour of the country. Soccer fans can see Man United play four high-profile games in July, as they take on Arsenal, Wrexham, Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund. 

• 7/22 v Arsenal (New York) — Find tickets 
• 7/25 v Wrexham (San Diego) — Find tickets
• 7/26 v Real Madrid (Houston) — Find tickets 
• 7/30 v Dortmund (Las Vegas) — Find tickets 

Paris Saint-Germain

France’s leading club, Paris Saint-Germain, is expected to head to the Far East. It will be the second consecutive summer that PSG visits Japan for a summer preseason tour. The Parisians are still finalizing dates and no fixtures are currently confirmed. There is still a lot up in the air for the club, with some high-profile players potentially leaving.

Real Madrid

Spain’s Real Madrid will enjoy four preseason matches in the U.S. Los Blancos will play on the Soccer Champions Tour 2023 alongside Juventus, Manchester United and hated rival Barcelona. Madrid will kick off the tour in the Rose Bowl against AC Milan.

• 7/23 v AC Milan (Los Angeles) — Find tickets
• 7/26 v Manchester United (Houston) — Find tickets
• 7/29 v Barcelona (Dallas) — Find tickets
• 8/2 v Juventus (Orlando) — Find tickets

Wrexham

America’s favorite Welsh soccer club will visit the U.S. this summer. It will be a remarkable trip for the Red Dragons. No other League Two teams will play the same high-profile friendlies in the offseason. Most League Two teams will remain in the United Kingdom. Not Wrexham as the Hollywood-owned club continues to see its profile increase in the States. Wrexham will return to the UK for the start of the League Two season on the weekend of August 4.

• 7/19 v Chelsea (Chapel Hill) — Find tickets
• 7/22 v LA Galaxy II (Los Angeles) — Find tickets
• 7/25 v Manchester United (San Diego) — Find tickets 

PHOTO: IMAGO / Icon Sportswire

Brighton manager Robert De Zerbi will feel hard done by poor referring decisions. De Zerbi and Tottenham interim coach Cristian Stellini were sent off just before the hour-mark, adding to the intense atmosphere at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.  

Controversial decisions go against seagulls

The Seagulls had several decisions go against them, including one penalty not being given and two goals being ruled out due to VAR. 

Social media was on fire throughout the match, with Premier League fans raging due to the injustices done to Brighton.  

Tottenham opened the scoring in the 10th minute through South Korean striker Heung-min Son with a stunning goal. 

The goal was Son’s 100th in the Premier League. Brighton’s Lewis Dunk equalized on 34 minutes, giving the Seagulls what they rightly deserved. Dunk’s goal came from a well-worked corner routine.   

With the game headed into the final 12 minutes, Spurs found the breakthrough thanks to Harry Kane. Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg created space down the right flank and cut the ball back to Kane in the penalty area. 

Kane smashed the ball and got a fortunate deflection, as the shot carried past Brighton goalkeeper Jason Steele to put Spurs back into the lead. 

In the 89th minute, Clement Lenglet appeared to have fouled Dunk in the penalty area, but referee Stuart Atwell waved play on. 

Spurs hold on for vital victory

Spurs held out for the 2-1 win and are now four matches unbeaten. 

The match was billed as a top-four battle, with both teams fighting for next season’s Champions League qualification. The win leaves Spurs in fifth place and three points behind Manchester United in the race for the top four. 

Brighton drifted to seventh and could fall to eighth if Liverpool defeats Arsenal on Sunday. De Zerbi was left seething and the manager must now turn his attention to getting the team back on track ahead of next weekend’s trip to Chelsea.

Photo credit: IMAGO / Action Plus

Lampard returned to Chelsea as interim manager in midweek following the sacking of Graham Potter. 

Despite the managerial change, Chelsea slumped to defeat against a Wolverhampton team battling against relegation.  

Wolves midfielder Matheus Nunes scored in the 31st minute to put the Old Gold into the lead which they did not relinquish.

Wolves tactics without Ruben Neves

Without midfielder Ruben Neves, who missed out due to a suspension, Wolves were expected to concede ground in the center of the park. 

As manager Julen Lopetegui chose a 4-4-2 formation, Nunes started next to Joao Gomes. The duo played well; fans hope that there could be life after Neves, who is expected to leave in the summer.

Lopetegui also chose to start former Chelsea hero Diego Costa, who played for just over an hour before being substituted.

Chelsea dominated possession, posting over 61% of the ball. The Blues struggled to get out of first gear, as they huffed and puffed, but failed to convert chances in the final third. 

Chelsea took 13 shots but just one hit the target during the 90 minutes. Joao Felix was especially wasteful, missing four shots. 

Lampard makes lots of changes

Lampard’s starting XI was much different than what fans saw in the dying days of the Potter era. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang started as the team’s central striker in a 4-3-3 formation. 

Mykhailo Mudryk started on the left side of the attack while Christian Pulisic on the opposite wing. 

Lampard also chose Conor Gallagher from the start in midfield. 

The manager’s player selection was similar to what fans saw during his previous reign at Stamford Bridge.

Despite the changes, Chelsea couldn’t get through a stubborn Wolves defence. Indeed, it was Chelsea’s defense forced to make last-ditch tackles to stop the Old Gold from scoring. Wolves only managed a 0.60 xG compared to Chelsea’s 0.82 xG. 

The victory for Wolverhampton Wanderers moves them into 12th place ahead of Leeds United and Crystal Palace. 

Wolves are now four points ahead of the relegation zone with Brentford and a six-point relegation fixture against Leicester City on the horizon. 

The defeat leaves Chelsea in 11th place and winless in four straight matches.  

Photo credit: IMAGO / PA Images

If Celtic’s Kyogo Furuhashi wasn’t cemented in the club’s history as a legend before Saturday’s Old Firm derby, the Japanese international is now. 

The title isn’t officially Celtics, but unofficially the Hoops will claim a 53 Scottish Premiership title in a few short weeks.  

Saturday’s lunchtime kick-off at Celtic Park was the fifth meeting in all competitions between the Old Firm rivals this season.

Celtic went into the game unbeaten against Rangers, with three wins and one draw. What fans witnessed was more of the same, as Ange Postecoglou’s team was simply unbeatable.  

The match was typical of all Old Firm derbies, as it started frantically with a full house urging on both teams. 

Both sides have goals ruled out

Celtic’s Furuhashi looked to have put the league leaders in front just moments after kick-off, but he was ruled offside after getting away from Rangers’ defense and slotting the ball into the back of the net. 

Rangers’ Alfredo Morelos also had a goal ruled out in the 20th minute for a foul. 

Furuhashi’s disappointment soon turned to joy. 

In the 26th minute, Furuhashi slotted home past a diving Allan McGregor from 12 yards out, with the Rangers defense at sixes and sevens.

Rangers’ poor defending, misguided clearances, and bad passing were hallmarks of their defeat at Celtic Park.  

Celtic dominated large stretches of matches, keeping 54.6% possession. 

The Blues had chances, but for the most part, were on the defensive. 

McGregor rebounded from conceding an early goal to keep Celtic from doubling their lead. His efforts proved vital just before halftime.  

Rangers captain James Tavernier stepped up to take a free-kick from 25 yards out. The right-back coolly lifted the ball over Celtic’s wall before it crashed against the underside of the crossbar and into the back of the net. 

Although Rangers were outplayed in the first half, they went into the break level at one goal apiece.  

Celtic get rewarded in second half

Rangers started the second half just as they had finished the first period. Morelos called Celtic goalkeeper Joe Hart into action in the 50th minute, with Hoops scrambling to clear their lines. 

Celtic settled in and took the lead once more just 13 minutes later. Rangers center-back John Souttar attempted to clear the ball with his head, only to misjudge the header, allowing Celtic’s Jota to nod it down to Furuhashi’s feet.

 The Japanese international made no mistake, hitting it with his right foot past McGregor.  

Jota, who had been fantastic running up and down the right wing, earned the rewards for his non-stop engine.

A poor pass by Rangers defender Ben Davies was intercepted by Jota, who rounded McGregor and scored from an acute angle. It was a goal Jota had no right to score. Yet, the Celtic winger’s industrious play was the catalyst for a fine goal.  

Rangers didn’t go away despite trailing 3-1. However, with Ryan Kent, Malik Tillman, and Morelos providing very little in attack, it was up to Tavernier to produce a spark. 

The right-back scored a second goal, this time getting his head to a Borna Barisic cross in the 89th minute. 

Five minutes of stoppage time couldn’t produce an equalizer for Rangers, as Celtic took the spoils for a fifth Old Firm derby this season.  

Photo credit: IMAGO / PA Images

American soccer fans went wild for Ted Lasso and Welcome to Wrexham. Indeed, it isn’t just American fans that love the shows. Both amassed followings across the globe. While Ted Lasso hasn’t caught on in the United Kingdom as the show’s producers may have expected, Welcome to Wrexham caught the imaginations of many soccer supporters with its engaging personal stories. 

Soccer fans may wonder which show is worth their time. Ted Lasso offers fans 34 episodes running between 30 minutes and 50 minutes. Welcome to Wrexham, on the other hand, produced 18 episodes with various runtimes. Season 2 of Welcome to Wrexham is in the works, as cameras follow the Red Dragons for the 2022-23 season. 

If you had just one of the two shows to watch, which would it be?

A fantasy soccer world 

Ted Lasso is a fully fictional soccer television series based on Jason Sudeikis’s soccer coach character, Ted Lasso. Lasso, an American football coach from Wichita State University, is hired to manage AFC Richmond, a soccer team, of the English Premier League.

Much of the series’ first season is about Lasso creating relationships with co-workers, players, and the people he meets in England. It is also about Lasso learning the subtle differences between the United States and Britain. 

The show was filmed on location around London. One location is coincidentally in the town of Richmond, just outside the English capital. The locations are real-life places, including the pub featured on the show that Lasso regularly visits. Known as the Crown and Anchor on series, the real-life pub is known as the Princes Head. 

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For the soccer scenes, training sessions take place at Hayes and Yeading United Football Club. That real club plays in the semi-professional Southern Football League. The stadium in the show is Selhurst Park, the home of Crystal Palace in the Premier League. In many ways, Richmond is an embodiment of Crystal Palace. A lower budget side fighting off relegation most seasons. Moreover, the two clubs share a color scheme.

Ted Lasso (available via Apple TV+) is a feel-good story about a person out of his depth, trying to navigate a world he doesn’t fully understand. It is charming, and entertaining, but lacks the laugh-out-loud comedy it seems to promise. 

A peek into the world of soccer outside the Premier League

While Ted Lasso offers up a look at the fictional soccer world, Welcome to Wrexham showcases the good, the bad, and the ugly sides of British soccer. The series follows Wrexham Football Club after its purchase by Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney. 

The series has some of the best storytelling available from a sports documentary. Indeed, only Netflix’s Sunderland ‘Til I Die can compete with the stories told in Welcome to Wrexham. The show isn’t just about soccer. Most of the show is about the town of Wrexham, the fans, the running of a professional soccer club, and the desire to make it succeed. There are some fantastic characters that television writers simply cannot make up.

The popularity of Welcome to Wrexham in the US has led to many fans making the pilgrimage to the Welsh town. Wrexham’s popularity in America, created thanks to a fantastic documentary, has already led to the club being more popular stateside than some established Premier League clubs. Plus many soccer fans in the US may know more about Wrexham than Major League Soccer’s 29 teams. 

In the summer of 2023, fans will have the chance to see Paul Mullins, Ben Tozer, Ollie Palmer, and the rest of the Red Dragons in San Diego. Wrexham play a friendly against Manchester United on July 25 at Snapdragon Stadium. Wrexham’s average home attendance for 2023 is less than 10,000 fans per game. Snapdragon Stadium’s capacity is 35,000.

Along with seeing Wrexham live this summer, soccer fans in the US can stream the club’s matches live via National League TV. Wrexham fans in Britain can’t watch the team’s games unless they are shown on television or live in stadiums. However, fans in the United States get to stream selected matches each week. 

Which show is better: Ted Lasso or Welcome to Wrexham?

In the end, it comes down to personal preference. Fans of fictional shows that provide an escape will enjoy Ted Lasso. Yet, it isn’t the knee-slapping comedy Jason Sudeikis was associated with in the past. Nor does it mean that many of its viewers are even soccer fans.

Welcome to Wrexham offers a far more realistic series on soccer and its intricacies in Britain. American soccer fans can learn a lot about soccer from watching Welcome to Wrexham (available via the Disney+ Bundle). The sport isn’t the squeaky-clean product the Premier League presents on NBC nor the sanitized product MLS creates. There is a rawness Welcome to Wrexham shows.

The characters are vulnerable, yet they aren’t created by a group of writers. There is authenticity to the show and the people. It is real life but not reality TV. For instance, Welcome to Wrexham is a TV show that shows viewers the reality of soccer with multiple viewpoints. For example, it has that of a player, a coach, a fan and A-list owners. If you have just one of the two shows to watch, Welcome to Wrexham is the one you should binge.

PHOTO: Apple

Yet, fans were treated to a farce from the US Soccer Federation. A frustrated soccer mom orchestrated a debacle based on the way USMNT head coach Gregg Berhalter treated her son.

US soccer became a laughing stock around the world after Danielle Reyna outed Berhalter for something that occurred over 30 years ago. Since then, the national team sought a new head coach. Berhalter remains a candidate for the USMNT manager role through 2026, even though his contract expired after Qatar 2022. Still, it would be a public relations nightmare to bring Berhalter back in. Anthony Hudson holds the temporary reins, and he will for the foreseeable future. However, the USSF is extremely bureaucratic, taking long periods to make the most basic decisions. It likely takes them several meetings to decide on what to have for lunch.

Instead of hiring a coach, US Soccer wants to hire a new sporting director who will then hire a general manager who will then hire a USMNT coach. Expectations set by US Soccer President Cindy Parlow Cone is that a new head coach may be hired by the end of this summer.

Between now and then, the USMNT play the Continental Clásico against Mexico in April, as well as the Concacaf Nations League semi-final against El Tri in June. Then, our national team competes in the Concacaf Gold Cup from June 24 to July 16. Meanwhile it appears that the US Soccer Federation are twiddling their thumbs.

The federation’s slow pace is preventing a national team coach from assuming the role. Consequently, the youthful US side is not getting the proper preparation for the biggest World Cup appearance since 1994. Fittingly, that is the last time the United States hosted. The USMNT cannot afford to fail in just over three years. Soccer’s growth in the country is at unprecedented levels, and the USSF must make the most of the competition. It must strike while the iron is hot. Or, it faces losing out on more growth within the crowded American sports landscape.

US Soccer continues to drag its feet

First off, the USSF wants to implement a new sporting director to oversee both the men’s and women’s national teams. Secondly, the organization wants to add a general manager to the fold to work directly with the men’s team. The slow, snail’s pace at which the USMNT will finally get a full-time coach could see the best options unavailable. Both the sporting director and general manager must agree on the candidate before the new coach is hired, further pushing back a coach taking up the role.   

The hiring process for a new sporting director, much less a head coach, could take until June or July of 2023. Add on the time to nail down a head coach, and the hiring process may not conclude until the end of this year.

International soccer is completely different from club soccer. A federation cannot just plug in any manager to lead a national team. Oftentimes, national team coaches are specialists in the international game. For example, Argentina won the 2022 World Cup with a coach who had never managed at the club level. In fact, he only retired as a player in 2015.

The new World Cup cycle is already underway. Continental competition is in place with the Nations League or other qualifying games across the globe. By the time US Soccer is ready to fill the head coach void, many of the top options will be off the board.

Lack of manager could doom USMNT in 2026

Hudson will likely get the job but not because he is the best coach for the position. Rather, he is the only one left for the USSF to appoint. Soccer is not a patient sport, especially at the international level. Coaches won’t wait for the USSF to hire a sporting director and general manager before choosing a job elsewhere regardless of just how promising the USMNT position is. A national team coach needs time to implement their tactics, philosophy, and energy into the role. There is no time to waste.

Hudson wouldn’t be the first interim coach to get the USMNT job on a full-time basis. Bob Bradley took on the interim role after the 2006 FIFA World Cup. The USMNT crashed and burned at the tournament in Germany, with Bruce Arena leaving the role. After winning three out of four games as head coach, US Soccer gave Bradley the full-time gig in early 2007. 

No urgency

But there is no urgency on the part of the USSF. Earnie Stewart and Brian McBride left their posts in late January. The USSF hasn’t made any new announcements, as Sportsology, a company hired to “analyze the structure” of the organization, kills time dissecting aspects of the organization that likely have little to do with a head coach. 

A sporting director should be in the office by the time the FIFA Women’s World Cup kicks off in July, according to the USSF. That is over three months away and three more months of wasted time. Some of the proposed names to fill the spot turned it down. That includes Sporting Kansas City’s Peter Vermes, and Philadelphia Union’s Ernst Tanner. Both are candidates because they have familiarity with the US Soccer landscape. An important, but perhaps not vital, qualification.

If Hudson doesn’t get the full-time job or Berhalter doesn’t regain it, then it is anyone’s guess who will be the next USMNT manager come 2026. Failure in that World Cup could come down to the USSF and its poor handling of hiring a new USMNT head coach in 2023. 

PHOTO: IMAGO / ZUMA Wire

Yet, I can’t say Ted Lasso is must-watch TV. While friends on both sides of the Atlantic praised the show and told me I had to watch it, I didn’t jump right into it. In fact, I didn’t watch the series until season 3 was in production. 

I was put off by the “gridiron football coach moves to England to become a soccer coach” plot. It didn’t help that soccer pundits in Europe had dubbed Jesse Marsch as Ted Lasso in a sarcastic jab. It felt like the producers of Ted Lasso were unwittingly playing into the thinking of Europeans, especially the British, about American soccer coaches, players and fans being clueless about the sport.

That familiar feeling

Within the first moments of watching Ted Lasso season 1, I felt they were simply ripping off Major League, the great baseball film from 1988 starring Charlie Sheen. It also felt a bit like the show Brockmire, a baseball sitcom in which Hank Azaria created an off-the-wall play-by-play broadcast character. 

It may not have been the same character or a carbon copy as the one Jason Sudeikis created, but it doesn’t feel too dissimilar. Unlike Brockmire or Major League, Ted Lasso has the charm and positivity the others lacked. 

Too often, American television rides the popularity of a TV show for too long. The good news is Ted Lasso is expected to end with the show at the peak of its popularity. Season 3 is, by all accounts, the end of the line.

The season was written as the last for the series, which seems to have been the plan for start. While the show has been a tremendous hit in the United States, thanks largely to Apple TV+ and soccer’s continued growth, Ted Lasso hasn’t been the same hit in the United Kingdom. 

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American love for Ted Lasso while the British feel it’s a retread

Ted Lasso isn’t necessarily about soccer. It is about relationships, club ownership and finances. One wonders how many Americans will watch the show and buy teams in England. Despite the show exploring these areas, Ted Lasso only has a niche audience in the UK. 

Perhaps it is due to a lack of Apple TV+ subscribers compared to the US. In addition, cord-cutting hasn’t hit the same heights in the UK as in the US. Soccer isn’t streamed on a variety of platforms in the UK. Therefore, fans continue subscribing to satellite and cable TV to see matches. The price of satellite TV may prevent some fans from also subscribing to different streaming services, especially if they aren’t packaged with a satellite TV bundle.

Apple TV+ is only in 8.7% of homes (1.69 million) in the UK. The low number also affects the UK audience in terms of watching Major League Soccer, which started the 2023 season with little fanfare on the British side of the Atlantic. Out of sight, out of mind.

There are also other things in the show that likely turn off British soccer fans. Britons are incredibly protective of the game, in the same way baseball or American football hardcore fans are of their sport. 

Ted Lasso is made for an American audience. Yet, perhaps the biggest reason Ted Lasso isn’t more popular in the UK is that fans have seen a show about an inept soccer manager before.

In 2005, comedian Ricky Tomlinson starred in Mike Bassett: Manager. The ITV series followed the 2001 film, Mike Bassett: England Manager, in which Tomlinson, as Bassett, took the reins of the England national team. The film poked fun at the Three Lions and the pressure of being the England manager. Writers produced the movie with the British soccer fan in mind. If it was remade in 2023, it wouldn’t translate to American audiences.

Is Ted Lasso season 3 worth a watch?

There is a fanbase that has already consumed the episodes released by Apple TV+ and is counting down the hours until the next. Those fans will stick by the show no matter what. Some soccer fans, like me, are not in a rush to watch the third season. We will get to it when possible.

I went into seasons 1 and 2 ready to laugh. After two seasons, I only managed to make a few chuckles. The show still entertained me. It just wasn’t the laugh-out-loud show I was led to believe it to be. Season 3 isn’t either.

If you liked Ted Lasso seasons 1 and 2, you would like the new season. If you didn’t, you probably would want to skip season 3. Ted Lasso season 3 isn’t for everyone, just like soccer isn’t for every sports fan.

Editor’s note: American soccer journalist Drew Farmer lives and works in Manchester, England.

Toronto FC may sit in third place in Major League Soccer’s Eastern Conference – tied with two other teams on 30 points – but the Reds have shown a history of up and down performances. As much as time changes, things seem to stay the same for the Reds. This season, the team has compiled 30 points from 21 matches, but fans and the team should be worried that the attacking problems from last year are still apparent. At least the defense has been sorted out in 2016.

This week, World Soccer Talk looks at 5 reasons Toronto FC is Major League Soccer Cup pretenders in 2016.

1. Reliance on Sebastian Giovinco

As a team, Toronto has only scored 28 goals this season. Of those 28, Giovinco has tallied 43% of the team’s scoring by netting 12 goals, according to WhoScored.com. The Reds are extremely reliant on the Italian to get them three points. In fact, Toronto has won just once in which Giovinco hasn’t scored or assisted a goal. That win came against LA Galaxy in June. The next closest scorers for the Reds are Jordan Hamilton and Justin Morrow, who have tallied three goals apiece. Giovinco has also added nine assists to Toronto’s 28 goals. In total, he has scored or had a hand in 21 of 28 goals.

2. Jozy Altidore has added nothing

Jozy Altidore is this season’s worst designated player, since Frank Lampard’s resurgence, and has arguably been on a downward spiral since joining English Premier League side Sunderland. The American international has played 10 times in 2016, scoring just once. Last season’s 13 goals was a decent return, helping the team into the playoffs for the first time. Although Toronto should have been better than sixth in the Eastern Conference. Altidore has been hurt for much of the season, and it was only against Columbus Crew over the weekend that he scored his first goal. It wasn’t anything special, a deflected goal that bounced in. If Toronto is to be more than pretenders – which it is not – the team will need Altidore to score more goals and take the pressure off of Giovinco. Toronto is paying Altidore $4.825 million a season as a designated player. That dollar figure, his production and injury problems in 2016 speak for themselves.

3. Counter-attacking team

Toronto does have something working in the team’s favor. The Reds lead MLS in counter-attacking goals with three. The team is excellent at going from defense to attack, but it is when the team is in that final third after building up the attack that needs to improve. Twenty-five goals have been tallied by Toronto when the team has not been on the counter this term. Those 25 goals are fewer than any team in the Eastern Conference’s top seven.

4. Western Conference is hurting TFC

Five of Toronto’s seven losses in 2016 have come from Western Conference teams. Sure, the Reds have done very well against the Eastern Conference, but with MLS’s two conference system, the club has struggled against the west. Yes, the team is only six points from first place, but at the same time, it is only four points from a non-playoff spot. The good news is, Toronto will only play twice more against Western Conference teams. The bad news is, the club must win these fixtures to prove it is one of the better teams in the league. Fortunately, Toronto will play four consecutive games at BMO Field in September.

5. Pray for Giovinco to stay injury-free

Since arriving at Toronto in 2015, Giovinco is yet to miss a match due to injury, according to TransferMarkt. Toronto fans should pray that he continues to stay injury-free, because if Giovinco goes down for an extended period of time, Toronto will struggle to pick up points.

Photo credit: Jennifer Buchanan-USA TODAY Sports

After more than seven years in Major League Soccer, the Seattle Sounders finally cut ties with coach Sigi Schmid. The two parties agreed to a mutual parting following Seattle’s thrashing at the hands of Western Conference rivals Sporting KC.

However, to blame Schmid for the Sounders’ problems on the pitch would be erroneous. It is his job to get the team ready tactically on the pitch, but the players let him down from the moment the season kicked off. In addition, Schmid wasn’t helped by the assembling of the side this season, which has hurt the club most of all.

This week, World Soccer Talk looks at 5 reasons Seattle Sounders can’t blame Sigi Schmid for the team’s 2016 shortcomings.

1. No replacement for Obafemi Martins

Out of the blue, the Sounders’ top scorer in 2014 and 2015 Obafemi Martins was sold to Chinese Super League team Shanghai Shenhua in February. Martins’ $3 million move to China took at least 15 goals a season away from the Sounders. The Nigerian designated player did make $3m in 2015, but his goals were well worth the price. Seattle did not sufficiently replace Martins after his sale. The best the team could do was adding Herculez Gomez. The Sounders have scored the third fewest goals in MLS, and the fewest in the West. The Sounders have also lost the most matches in MLS this term. The team desperately miss Martins’ goals.

2. Clint Dempsey is overpaid and overvalued

When Clint Dempsey returned to MLS in 2013, he was expected to set the league on fire. That hasn’t exactly happened and many have questioned whether he is worth the $4.6m contract the Sounders have him under. Based on statistics, this season is a down year for the 33-year-old. Three goals and one assist in 13 games doesn’t seem to warrant the price that is being paid to him. Although 2016 could just be regarded as an anomaly after back-to-back seasons with double digit goals and assists. Dempsey has been played in five different positions in 2016, according to WhoScored.com, but as the team’s leader, Dempsey should be providing more goals in the team’s time of need.

3. Did Seattle need a creative midfielder?

Seattle officially signed Uruguayan Nicolas Lodeiro on July 27 to a designated player contract. Yet, was a creative midfielder exactly what Seattle needed? The Sounders are averaging the most crosses per game in MLS, according to WhoScored.com. The team already has Andreas Ivanschitz in the side and the Austrian has collected two goals and five assists this term. The team also has Dempsey, who is just as creative a player, hence his double digit assists in each of the last two seasons. So, why not add another striker? Pursuing a striker that can finish the chances already being created would have been a better use of the Sounders’ resources. This team isn’t as bad as it appears in the table. The problem is, the club need a striker that will get 12 to 14 goals a season. The signing of Lodeiro isn’t something that happened under Schmid’s watch, but reiterates that the construction of the team wasn’t down to him either. The MLS obsession with creative midfielders is great, but only works if there is a striker to score the chances created.

4. Reliance on Jordan Morris

A lot has been put on the shoulders of 21-year-old rookie Jordan Morris this season. The Sounders’ new boy leads the team in goals with seven, and his all-around play has improved greatly since the opening weeks of the season. The Sounders’ play has been quite dependent on Morris. In the seven fixtures that he has scored, the Sounders have won six and drawn one. How he goes, the Sounders go. Without Morris in 2016, the Sounders would be propping up the foot of the overall MLS table. If general manager Garth Lagerwey expected the rookie to replace Martins, he got what he wanted. Unfortunately, Morris can’t do it alone.

5. Seattle held on to Schmid too long

While this is no fault of Schmid’s, the club’s executives should be held accountable for not cutting ties with the Hall of Fame coach earlier. Seattle struggled mightily at times in 2015, although the team made the playoffs. However, the Sounders should have pursued Jason Kreis as rumored last offseason. Kreis is now with Orlando City and there is no clear cut option for the team. The MLS Playoffs too often give teams a false sense of security and prevent coaching changes that warrant them. As long as teams qualify for the postseason they fail to pull the trigger on firing coaches when they otherwise should. Schmid should have left earlier, but arguably he earned the right to have one more crack at the MLS Cup in 2015. Unfortunately, instead of going out on top of a respectable season, Schmid leaves as Seattle try to rebuild and make a playoff run to end 2016.

FC Dallas is the class of Major League Soccer in 2016, and the club has done it with few – if any – big named players. Excellent coaching, brilliant defending and timely scoring have all pushed Dallas to the top of MLS’s overall points table, three points more than nearest Western Conference rival Colorado Rapid, and seven more than the Eastern Conference’s New York City FC.

With 20 of the team’s 34 games now in the books, Dallas has its eyes on the Supporters’ Shield. This week World Soccer Talk looks at 5 reasons FC Dallas is the class of Major League Soccer in 2016.

5. Chris Seitz brilliant in goal

Despite Jesse Gonzalez starting the season with two clean sheets from three, the goalkeeper’s play in Dallas’ Texas derby clash with Houston overshadowed his positive performances. That led Chris Seitz to taking over as goalkeeper, although injury forced Gonzalez out again in May. Seitz has started 15 matches in goal, posting nine wins, four draws and two losses. Seitz is currently tied for first in MLS in clean sheets with six, while making 41 saves this term and 1.5 saves per match inside the 18-yard box, according to WhoScored.com. Since taking over the No. 1 position for Dallas, Seitz is a big reason the team is in first place overall.

4. The muscle in the middle

Carlos Gruezo isn’t one of the most well-known players in MLS, but the 21-year-old designated player has been winning battles in Dallas’ midfield all season. In 16 matches this term, the Ecuadorian has averaged 3.3 tackles and 2.1 interceptions per match. Although Gruezo isn’t known for his offensive work, his ball movement from side-to-side is key in Dallas’ build-up play. Signed in January as one of Dallas’ three designated players, Gruezo is pocketing more than $680,000 in 2016.

3. Goals by committee

Dallas doesn’t have the names that New York City FC or LA Galaxy do, but the Hoops do have quality team players chipping in when needed. Michael Barrios leads the team with six goals, while Fabian Castillo and Tesho Akindele have five apiece. With only 14 games to go, it is unlikely that Dallas will have a player reach 12 goals this term, unless one of the three mentioned finds a rich vein of scoring form. Eleven different players have scored this term for Dallas.

2. Toyota Stadium is a fortress

Dallas has posted a seven win, three draw and zero loss home record in 2016. The club’s home form has kept them atop of MLS, as Western Conference rivals Colorado and LA Galaxy have both been undefeated at home as well. The Hoops have scored an impressive 20 goals while only giving up just six goals.

1. Mauro Diaz the creative link in the attack

Dallas attacking midfielder Mauro Diaz is on pace to break his MLS assists record of 10 this term. The Argentine has tallied nine assists, which is one behind league leader Sacha Kljestan. Diaz has four assists that have led to game winning goals, and he is averaging 3.1 key passes per match, according to WhoScored.com. While Gruezo has been the ball winner, Diaz has been the player that has unlocked defenses in the final third.

It sounds crazy, or perhaps so crazy it could work, that a soccer club would allow its fans to pick its weekly starting XI. Well, that is just what United London FC is doing. The start-up, non-league English side is working to bring fans back into the game, in a Football Manager meets fantasy sports way.

Starting play this season, United London will be the first ever club to be managed by its supporters. It is a team that will allow its fans to pick the starting XI week after week, thanks to updated scouting reports from the first team coaches and the use of social media.

Hearing about the club, it seems almost unreal, that a team could give so much power to its followers. Yet, soccer fans from around the world have already thrown their support behind United London, joining the team’s website and following along with every news post.

The club recently held its first trials in London, and reportedly identified 14 players that have been signed by the club. United London has also garnered quite the publicity, with Sky Sports, Radio Yorkshire and BBC Radio all jumping on board to interview club chairman Mark North.

With the success of players in recent times that came through the non-league system, players like Jamie Vardy, Chris Smalling and Charlie Austin, United London hopes to give footballers a chance to shine and move on to bigger clubs.

In a recent interview with BBC’s Radio 5 Live, United London chairman Mark North outlined the club’s ambitions.

“Basically United London FC is a football club with two main objectives,” North explained. “It’s to give grassroots players a unique platform to raise their profile and hopefully we can get them signed to semi-professional clubs or professional clubs.

“But also to engage with football fans that can vote on a real starting XI each week.”

Putting fans in the dugout and giving young players a chance to fulfil their dreams is a noble act in today’s soccer world. However, the biggest question will be, can this be sustained? Of course, time will tell, but right now the team is working to give fans a voice that many feel was lost since the debut of the English Premier League in 1992.

Including fans as the team’s “true manager”, is an interesting decision, but one that has got the media talking about the club. A new club, from scratch, can’t compete with the likes of Chelsea, Manchester United or Arsenal in England, but a club offering a different option could see the team reach success both on and off the pitch.

In recent years, clubs such as Wimbledon FC and FC United of Manchester have succeeded as supporter-owned clubs. United London is taking a step further by allowing fans to run the team, at least, to a certain extent. The club will have a first team coach in former professional Leon Constantine, whose job it will be to organize the team, and implement the tactics. Will fans have a chance to vote on tactics and substitutes someday? Perhaps they will as the club evolves. That will really put fans in the manager’s seat.

The club is doing something different, and are putting eyes on the team. The first ever manager-less team will take to the pitch next season in hopes of bucking the trend of current football teams.

Drew Farmer’s debut book Soccer Travels is out now NFR Publishing. Go to Amazon to pick up a copy in paperback or on Kindle.

When Claude Makelele was sold to Chelsea from Real Madrid, there was backlash. How could the Real Madrid president not understand the defensive midfielder’s worth? Teammates spoke about the influence and importance of the player, but it was lost on the suit wearing, non-playing personnel.

Makelele went on to have five successful seasons in the English Premier League with Chelsea. In west London, Makelele was the anchor to six trophies that included two English Premier League titles and an FA Cup. In fact, the term “Makelele role” was invented for a calm, tough tackling defensive midfielder that could keep the team’s shape together. Everything Makelele was known for as a player.

After the sale of Makelele, Real Madrid suffered, more interested in buying Galacticos than competent footballers that augmented the stars. This season Real Madrid finally found the heir apparent to Makelele, although it took them over 12 years to finally find the Frenchman’s replacement.

Casemiro came into Saturday night’s Champions League final with little fanfare outside of Real Madrid fans. Yet, he left San Siro having made one of the biggest impacts, not only on the game, but world football.

The Brazilian anchored Real Madrid’s defense in 2015-16, averaging 3.4 tackles and two interceptions per game, according to WhoScored.com. Add in an 87% pass success rate, and Casemiro has given Real Madrid a calming influence the team previously lacked in their star studded XI.

Against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League final, Casemiro brilliantly protected Pepe and Sergio Ramos. Casemiro led all tacklers, tallying eight of ten attempted, and making three interceptions. One of the most notable aspects about Casemiro’s tackling in the Champions League final was his ability to stay on his feet and not commit to slide tackles.

Casemiro’s passing was also pinpoint as the midfielder completed 59 of 65 passes for a success rate of 91%, according to WhoScored.com. Not only was Casemiro solid in central midfield, but the Brazilian won the most aerial duels with six. While the Real Madrid attackers will got most of the plaudits and man of the match votes, it was actually Casemiro that was the backbone to the side, never breaking when pushed by Atletico Madrid.

On loan to Porto in 2014-15, Real Madrid extended Casemiro’s contract until 2021 last summer. The Brazilian was a constant in Real Madrid’s side this past season, missing just three matches due to injury. In all, Casemiro appeared 36 times in all competitions for Los Blancos.

While he isn’t Real Madrid’s most glamours player, Casemiro was arguably their grittiest. Needing a win against Barcelona at Camp Nou in early April, Zinedine Zidane called upon the midfielder to solidify his side for the showdown. All Casemiro did in El Clasico was finish with the most tackles (eight) and an 82% pass success rate. With Luka Modric and Toni Kroos either side of him, Casemiro’s job against Barcelona, and Atletico Madrid in the Champions League final, was to give his two midfield partners the freedom to handle the creative part of the game. He did that in both fixtures and has the potential to be one of the best defensive midfielders in world football. Although, he may not get the accolades he deserves.

Being that Casemiro only cost Real Madrid £12 million, it seems strange that he is such a vital piece to Zidane’s puzzle. Despite not being favored by Zidane when the Frenchman first took over in January, Casemiro’s importance shown in the side, and Zidane couldn’t help but put the Brazilian in the team for every match.

In 2003, Makelele was sold to Chelsea as Real Madrid under-appreciated their most important midfielder. In 2016, hopefully Real Madrid have learned from their previous mistake, and will keep the defensive midfielder at the club to play the Casemiro Role.

Drew Farmer’s debut book Soccer Travels is out now NFR Publishing. Go to Amazon to pick up a copy in paperback or on Kindle.

Sebastian Giovinco has been left out of the Italy squad ahead of the 2016 European tournament. Of course, most US soccer fans know this since Major League Soccer has been up in arms over his omission, or at least Antonio Conte’s comments.

Giovinco played a small role, if any, in Italy’s qualification for this summer’s finals. Yes, he has been brilliant at Toronto, scoring 57% of their goals in 2016. However, Giovinco hasn’t played against the same level of talent as others selected in Conte’s provisional 30-man squad.

As James Horncastle pointed out in a recent article, the likes of Emanuele Giaccherini and Ciro Immobile both returned to Italy as their chances of making the squad waned. After returning, both have been selected for the provisional roster until Conte culls the castoffs.

The level of competition can’t be overlook in MLS. Tactics, skills and development are far behind those of Europe. Giovinco is the best player in the league, but he would be unable to duplicate his current form for top-tier teams in Europe. Although many will argue that point; Simon Borg, Landon Donovan or random fans, it can’t be denied that MLS’s talent level isn’t equal to the top leagues in Europe. Despite the level improving, it isn’t close right now.

SEE MORE: Pirlo and Giovinco’s exclusions from Italy squad are not an indictment on MLS

Italian Andrea Pirlo made a great point this week in an interview in which he spoke about MLS’s level of play.

“They pick them and they train them in much more than just running,” Pirlo stated. “They train them in stopping the ball. Here that doesn’t happen.

“So when a young man becomes a professional in the United States he still has some gaps that need to be filled when playing on the field”

Giovinco had a great two-year spell at Parma from 2010-11, during a time when Parma finished 12^th and 8^th, respectively. His time at Juventus, before and after Parma, were less than stellar. The competition amongst places in Turin kept him out of the Juventus squad. That type of competition and skill is what Giovinco would face at the Euros, if he got into the Azzurriside.

The biggest problem for MLS is Conte’s criticism of the league will hurt player recruitment this summer. The league needs more players of Giovinco’s ilk: skillful, competitive and most importantly in his prime. The league needs less 30-something designated players and more players like Giovinco. If players are thinking about joining MLS, Conte’s omission of the Italian is another reminder that they must join at their own risk.

Giovinco’s nationality is his biggest drawback. Italy is a top-tier nation, regardless of their recent World Cup performance. Italy has the ability to pull players from the top leagues in Europe who have played against some of the best players in the world during the season. Giovinco can’t say he has done the same, and as much as it is a shame he won’t be in France, there’s no denying he hasn’t faced the same level of as the other players in the squad.

SEE MORE: Watch Sebastian Giovinco’s astounding goal for Toronto FC

Italy’s 30-man squad looks quite strong. Stephan El Shaarawy was brilliant from January after moving to Roma. Meanwhile, Inter Milan’s Eder was brilliant before moving to the Nerazzurri in January. However, both can play similar roles to Giovinco and both have played in Serie A this year.

Yes, the forward area is thin for Italy, but a tactical re-work by Conte could be done. The Italian has plenty of weapons at his disposal that can play a similar role whether it be Giacomo Bonaventura or Antonio Candreva to fill any void currently left in the team.

Giovinco’s omission can go one of two ways this summer. Italy can fail miserably and Giovinco’s snub will look more ridiculous than it does now. However, if Italy succeed, Giovinco’s omission will be forgotten, and MLS will carry on like before.

Drew Farmer’s debut book Soccer Travels is out now NFR Publishing. Go to Amazon to pick up a copy in paperback or on Kindle.

Photo credit: Peter G. Aiken-USA TODAY Sports

Joao Plata is in form and extremely dangerous. Four goals and three assists in five games, Plata has been Real Salt Lake’s most important player through the opening stage of the Major League Soccer season.

As a matter of fact, Plata has had a hand in at least on goal in every Real Salt Lake match. He has scored the highest rating of any Claret and Cobalt player at 7.73, according to WhoScored.com.

Despite being a mere 5ft 2in, Plata has shown his superb nose for goal and ability to pick out teammates with passes. In Saturday’s 1-0 win over Colorado, Plata once again stole the show. A 93% pass success rate, topped off by a 72nd minute winner, pushed Real Salt Lake to second in both the Western Conference and the MLS combined table with 11 points from 15 available. It was Plata’s stealth presence and explosive burst of speed that allowed the attacker to pounce on a missed clearance before out pacing Colorado goalkeeper Mac MacMath to goal.

“For me it’s good. I feel great. It’s why we’re training hard every day,” said Plata following the win. “We got three points, but we know we need to keep going and I look forward to the next game.”

Since arriving from Toronto FC in January 2013, Plata has been on an accelerated ascent at Rio Tinto Stadium. In his first season in Utah, Plata tallied four goals and eight assists, ranking second in Real Salt Lake’s assist category. However, it was 2014 that was Plata’s breakout year, not only with Real, but in MLS. That season saw the diminutive winger tally 13 goals and six assists in 26 matches.

A broken foot suffered in preseason prevented Plata from repeating his heroics in 2015. The Real Salt Lake suffered without him, gaining 14 of a possible 33 points during his time out. Even upon returning, it was apparent Plata needed time to regain fitness and form. The Ecuadorian played a mere 19 times in all. However, this season Plata has regained the form that made him indispensable for the club.

Plata has overcome those original labels of being too small for MLS. Despite being the shortest player in the league, Plata has used both his size and speed to his advantage. A strong finisher and highly capable of dissecting defenses, Plata has completed over 81% of his passes this term. In addition, Plata is averaging 3.4 key passes – the final pass that leads to a shot at goal – which is over two more than any teammate.

“He’s doing it with free kicks, he’s doing it through the run of play, he’s getting assists and passes and free kicks, so he’s kind of doing it all right now,” said Real Salt Lake coach Jeff Cassar.

The tricky winger was awarded the league’s Player of the Month Award for March. Already, he is making a strong case for back-to-back awards. Currently second in MLS’s goal scoring charts, Plata has four of Real Salt Lake’s nine goals this term and is on pace to repeat the brilliance of 2014.

With Plata back to the top of his game, Real Salt Lake is looking strong in the early stages of the MLS season.

Despite two clubs ceasing operations after the 2015 North American Soccer League season ended, the league is about to kick-off its sixth year since returning in 2011. With a fresh TV deal announced with beIN SPORTS this week, the NASL can legitimately offer Major League Soccer some much needed competition.

Labeled as the US and Canada’s second division, the relationship between the NASL and MLS has been a strange one from the start. At times they have both looked to work together to better the game. Yet, it seems as if the two leagues are now in an arms race to see which league can expand to the most cities.

The league’s loss of two franchises shows the political game of soccer in the US. San Antonio ceased operations due to the city buying the stadium and installing a USL team in its place. Meanwhile, the Atlanta Silverbacks ceased operations due to the majority of team owners in the league that are unwilling to financially support the team’s existence.

DON’T MISS: Ranking the top 20 cities for MLS, NASL and USL expansion

Despite the losses, the NASL has added three new clubs. Miami FC, which is co-owned by AC Milan legend Paolo Maldini, will begin play under the eye of head coach Alessandro Nesta.

Rayo OKC will also begin play as Spanish La Liga team Rayo Vallecano have joined the growing soccer market in North America to partner with an American club. The club will feature the likes of former Celtic striker Georgios Samaras and journeyman midfielder Derek Boateng.

The third team that will join the NASL is Puerto Rico FC. Like the growing list of celebrities getting involved with soccer in the US and Canada, Puerto Rico is no different as NBA star Carmelo Anthony owns the club and will expect big things from the team.

SEE MORE: NASL team in Chicago wants to start at Soldier Field, says Peter Wilt

Looking over the rosters of the NASL teams, there are familiar faces. Justin Braun and Lovel Palmer play for Indy Eleven, Miami FC have signed former Tottenham midfielder Wilson Palacios, while former US soccer prodigy Freddy Adu plays for Tampa Bay Rowdies. The New York Cosmos, meanwhile, have signed Croatian midfielder Niko Kranjcar. While the big name designated players aren’t in tow, the NASL can claim several players that couldn’t find a home in MLS.

The NASL will stick with their split season structure in 2016 with a spring and fall term broken up by a four week summer break. The spring season will only feature 11 clubs while the fall will see all 12 NASL teams join the fray. Puerto Rico will miss out on the spring season. While the spring term will see only ten matches played, the fall session will feature 24, with each team playing the other home and away. While not as straight forward as MLS’s playoffs, the NASL has added a quirk to their league format that fans will argue is better.

With the league’s announcement of another expansion team for 2017, this time in San Francisco, the NASL is adding to the growing number of professional soccer teams in America. The NASL is set for another year of action and it all kicks off on Saturday, April 2.

Find out where to watch the NASL either in person or on TV/online.

Despite having a better win percentage than his two predecessors, Jurgen Klinsmann continues to find himself in the firing line for a misfiring, often pitiful looking team.

Criticized by both American players and fans, Klinsmann is currently suffering through his most difficult stint as USA manager. Although it is hard to remember a time when he was universally accepted. Sporting KC’s Benny Feilhaber, a player continually overlooked by Klinsmann despite last season’s form, has been uncharacteristically outspoken, saying earlier this year: “I don’t think that Jurgen calls in the best players available to him. I think that’s an issue.”

It seems, outside of the USA going undefeated and making it to the World Cup final in Russia in 2018, Klinsmann can do little right at the moment. There are a lot of different camps currently pining for one thing or another, from Klinsmann resigning and the United States Soccer Federation employing more scouts, to Major League Soccer teams performing better at development and MLS expanding further.

While there isn’t necessarily one solution, there seems to be more of a combination of answers needed to all the questions being asked of US soccer at the minute. Yet, one problem that is being overlooked by many is MLS’s over-expansion realistically hurting player development.

Due to the continued founding of new franchises, roster spots have been opened to field teams in cities across the USA and Canada. More than having promotion and relegation, the reduction of MLS teams to 18 would benefit the USMNT. With fewer teams comes fewer roster spots, which would provide MLS clubs with something they do not have currently: competition for positions. Competition would breed better players across the league and would then provide MLS teams playing improved competition every week in matches. Expansion heavily dilutes the talent pool in MLS. Fewer teams means the talent pool remains strong.

Remember back to the 2002 World Cup when the USA made it to the quarterfinals. The MLS contained a mere ten teams in the league that season. The year prior it was 12. At that World Cup, 11 of the 23 man roster came from MLS, a league in which the players would have gotten more playing time and focus thanks to fewer teams in the league and more competition for places. It also helped that the players playing in Europe at that time were some of the best to put on a USA shirt.

In addition, keeping with the current structure of a promotion/relegation-less MLS, USA and Canada soccer should look to use the North American Soccer League as a feeder league or minor league system. That could then trickle down to the United Soccer League and National Premier Soccer League. MLS clubs, like Major League Baseball, would benefit from sending SuperDraft picks and other acquired players to be developed into the lower leagues; rather than immediately throwing players unready for MLS to the lions. This season, Seattle Sounders have done just that to rookie Jordan Morris, who is sinking rather than swimming currently. Despite being such a highly rated prospect, Morris currently sits last in ratings of Sounders’ outfield players according to WhoScored.com. Is the college and homegrown development system working for the young players American players? It is great to say that MLS is bringing through homegrown kids, but being able to produce in the league is another thing. Looking at MLS’s homegrown player list, it is safe to say there have been quite a few hits. Yet, how many more would have succeeded with further development through a minor league system before being called up? This is just one suggestion in an attempt at finding a solution to a problem.

MLS fans in favor of promotion and relegation are looking at the system through rose colored spectacles. These fans may have never experienced the highs and extreme lows of supporting a team that has been relegated. In addition, MLS owners are comfortable in their current system without movement between leagues. What would keep an owner from immediately pulling out their support of a team if they were relegated? How many supporters of a team would continue to put down their hard earned cash to continue to go to games if their team was relegated? Too much money is at risk. Current fans of relegation and promotion are also under the assumption that the average American soccer fan understands that finishing last in the league demotes you to the lower division. There is also an assumption that the casual MLS fan understands the intricacies of the European game. It seems many fans are understanding the concept of the US Open Cup.

While many have argued in favor of relegation and promotion, citing that it would improve player development, it seems, could be just a pipe dream. There is no doubt it would raise the excitement levels. But to expect young players to be developed is just an assumption. A team fighting for their lives is just as likely, if not more, to pay for survival with experienced veterans as to throw a group of unknowns into the crapshoot that is a relegation dogfight. It is one idea, however.

Yes, everyone wants to say what is wrong with the USMNT. But, perhaps what is wrong is the support. Expectations are high after a good showing from the team for more than a decade. The USA is not a soccer nation and the sport is still the fourth most popular – possibly fifth – despite the fantastic attendances in MLS. Soccer is not American football, basketball or baseball. It is not taught the same way in schools nor does it have coaches and parents that can fill in the gaps for players in the same way other sports do.

In the end, there could be a much simpler argument to why the USA are in the current rut they are in. It could just be a bad cycle in which the current crop of players are just not up to scratch. Clint Dempsey is massively out of form for the Seattle Sounders and on the wrong side of 30. Michael Bradley and Mix Diskerud were just voted as two of the most overrated players in MLS by their MLS colleagues. In fact, Diskerud was singled out as the most overrated. But give some credit to Guatemala as well. They still had to go out and win the match, which was no small feat.

Orlando City has dipped into the Brazilian player market once more as attacking midfielder Julio Baptista has joined the club.

Baptista had been training with the Lions in early March as he sought out a new team. The 34-year-old has been out of contract since December after his deal with Brazilian side Cruzeiro Esporte Club expired.

Baptista had played for some of the biggest clubs in Europe before returning to Brazil in the summer of 2013. Sevilla, Real Madrid, Arsenal, Roma and Malaga were all stops for Baptista during his European sojourn. While in Europe, Baptista tallied 95 goals in 295 matches, making him a much sought out player. His best stint during that time came with Sevilla between 2003 and 2005 when he netted 43 times for the La Liga club.

According to The Mane Land, Orlando City already have 12 international players for their allocated ten international roster spots, per MLS policy. Therefore, the team will be clearing some space in the coming days with the suggestion that former Sporting KC center-back Aurelien Collin may be the man to make way. However, that is purely speculation at this point.

Baptista’s friend and former teammate Kaka tweeted about the move, writing, “Another life and career moment that we’ll course together!”

Orlando City have obtained five points from a possible nine, and are yet to lose in 2016. However the team has managed just four goals in their opening three fixtures with three coming from star striker Cyle Larin.

Baptista will give the club more options behind Larin and can even slot in as a striker to partner the Canadian. The signing of the Brazilian will also add more depth to a midfield that was short on goals a season ago. Known for his long shots and one-two passing combinations, Baptista gives Orlando City manager Adrian Heath more options to play on either side of Larin in the 4-3-3 he has favoured this season.

Sporting KC’s 1-0 win over Toronto FC on Sunday leaves the Midwest outfit as the only Major League Soccer team to have a 100% win record. Brad Davis’ 70th minute goal kept Sporting perfect as the team continue a strong start to 2016.

While the club were limited in turnover during the offseason, few would have expected the team to come together so quickly.

“We have only played three games so far and one thing we are, is well organized,” manager Peter Vermes stated following the match.

“I think the team is disciplined.  I think we have been taking our chances pretty well.

“Everyone is stepping up from different places.  I think that is the reason why we are getting results.  But it is so early in the season, I can only imagine what is going to come.”

One of Sporting’s biggest surprises has been the solidity of the defense. The backline of Chance Myers, Matt Besler, Nuno Coelho and Amadou Dia have been compact and difficult to breakdown. Along with Tim Melia, Sporting have kept two clean sheets in their first three matches.

“I think our organization defensively has been excellent,” Besler said Sunday.

“We call it active defending when our attacking defenders are going forward with the ball, we are organizing the people in front of us, so when we do lose it, we are able to be in the right spots to cut off plays.”

Compared to this time last season, Sporting had already given up four goals after their opening three games as the club gained just two points from those fixtures. Currently 10th in MLS in saves with nine, Melia has seen fewer shots thanks to the pressure his defenders have put on opposing attackers.

SEE MORE: Schedule of MLS games on US TV and live streaming

Sporting defense limited last season’s MVP Sebastian Giovinco to a 70% pass success rate, according to WhoScored.com. Giovinco had tallied two goals and two assists in Toronto’s previous two matches. Yet, the attacker failed to create many chances and was limited to a mere two shots on target. In all, Melia was called into action to make four saves against the Reds.

With a week off before welcoming Western Conference rivals Real Salt Lake to Kansas City, Vermes will focus on keeping his squad fresh.

“We have a few guys going away on International duty and we are going to give the guys a couple of days off and then we will come back on Wednesday,” Vermes explained.

“We will try to get back into a rhythm. They [Real Salt Lake] have always been a very tough opponent of ours and we know it will be a battle when they come in.”

Major League Soccer’s week 3 was another that showed anything can happen in the league. Here are 5 things we learned from Major League Soccer’s week 3.

Penalty!

After three weeks of MLS fixtures, the league has seen 12 penalties given by referees. Of the 12 penalties awarded this season, all but two have been converted. Four penalties have been given each week, which either shows an eagerness by referees to whistle for a spot kick; or poor, overly eager defenders. In Seattle Sounders’ 2-1 loss to Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday night, Mark Geiger awarded two penalties to the Canadians. The first was due to Joevin Jones tripping Vancouver winger Christian Bolanos in the 18-yard box. While the first incident was a penalty, thanks to Jones’ clumsiness, the second wasn’t so clear cut – unless you are a Whitecaps’ supporter. Chad Marshall, while lumbering, fairly beat Blas Perez to a 50/50 ball. Contact was made, but after the ball was away and itt was both players’ momentum that caused Perez to fall over Marshall. Geiger’s immediate penalty call changed the game, and kept the Sounders pointless in 2016.

Sporting KC off to 100% start

Peter Vermes has built something special in Kansas City, and it has shown over the last few years as Sporting KC won the 2013 MLS Cup and a pair of US Open Cups in 2012 and 2015. This season, Vermes has Sporting off to the best start in the league. The team has conceded a mere one goal, keeping two clean sheets. The attack may not be scoring at will, but Sporting have found timely goals when needed. After a week off, Sporting will host their arch-rivals Real Salt Lake, which will test Sporting’s credentials as the best team in MLS.

Seattle Sounders need a change

At the end of the 2015 season, there were rumblings of Sigi Schmid’s possible exit from Seattle Sounders. In charge since the club’s inaugural MLS season in 2009, Schmid has taken the Sounders to four US Open Cup triumphs. Yet, the team have failed to replicate that in the MLS Playoffs. This season he and the team have got off to a terrible start with the Sounders losing their three opening matches. Most significantly, Seattle sold striker Obafemi Martins in January to Chinese Super League side Shanghai Greenland Shenhua. Martins had scored 40 goals and tallied 23 assists in 72 matches. The club failed to address the striker’s exit and thus far have paid for the sale in 2016. The hype around rookie Jordan Morris has been just that, and designated player Clint Dempsey has made little impact for the team in their opening three fixtures. It’s too early in the season to change coaches with the parity that runs through the league, but a trade or transfer is needed immediately. MLS roster rules in 2016 allow for trades or transfers until May 11th. The club need to shake things up.

Strike power

Seven players currently sit atop the MLS goal scoring chart on three apiece according to WhoScored.com. Two names immediately jump out: Chris Wondolowski and Will Bruin. Wondolowski is off to a great start with San Jose Earthquakes as the striker has tallied three of San Jose’s four goals in 2016. The 33-year-old has notched 11 or more goals in each of the last six seasons, and barring injury, this season should be no different. However, having 75% of the team’s scoring shows just how dependent the ‘Quakes are on Wondolowski this term. While San Jose is reliant on one man, currently, Houston Dynamo have got scoring from different areas. However, Bruin’s three goals have him as the team’s leading scoring in the young season. Bruin has scored in or assisted a goal in each of the Dynamo’s three matches. Since joining the Dynamo in 2011, Bruin has been a consistent player, tallying 49 goals in 150 games. While the Dynamo are still looking for stability under coach Owen Coyle, Bruin has been fantastic as the team’s lone striker, and is benefitting from the likes of Giles Barnes, Andrew Wenger and Cristian Maidana playing behind him.

Odds on favourites

According to UK betting website Bet365, the LA Galaxy are favourites to win the MLS Cup at 4/1 odds. This is far from surprising after the offseason signings the Galaxy had. In addition, the Galaxy’s notoriety is far reaching compared to other MLS sides. Chicago Fire currently have the longest odds at 125/1. Currently, Eastern Conference leaders Montreal Impact are 16/1, a good value for those MLS fans in the UK looking to put down a bet.

Week 2 of the Major League Soccer season is in the books. Teams have made a case for being considered favorites and others left fans scratching their heads. Here are five things learned from week 2.

Are Sporting KC and Montreal Impact the league’s best teams?

While Sporting and Montreal lead their respective conferences and both have collecting six points from six, it must be argued that neither have played the best teams in MLS, yet. Sporting have now beaten Seattle Sounders and Vancouver Whitecaps, both pointless in 2016. Meanwhile, the Impact have picked up maximum points against New York Red Bulls and the Whitecaps. Of course, the Red Bulls have lost both of their opening games. Although both Sporting and Montreal have put together excellent squads in 2016, they have benefited from unexpectedly poor opposition to start the season. Remember, it is not how you start in MLS, it is how you finish.

Parity reigns supreme in week 2

LA Galaxy and FC Dallas had little difficulty in casting their week 1 opponents –DC United and Philadelphia Union – aside. Yet, week 2 was much different as the Galaxy fell to Colorado Rapids away from the Home Depot Center and Dallas lost their intrastate derby to Houston. While LA can be forgiven for giving up a stoppage-time winner to Marco Pappa, Dallas were thoroughly outplayed by Houston, losing 5-0. Dallas were better in several key areas: 55% possession, 79% pass success rate and 11 total shots, according to Whoscored.com. However, Dallas did make the most of their chances and were absolutely destroyed by Houston winger Andrew Wenger, who picked up Man of the Match honors thanks to his one goal and two assists – all coming in the opening 30 minutes of the game. Dallas will host Houston in early June, and by then, Dallas will need to have figured out how to corral Wenger and withstand Houston’s early onslaught.

Jordan Morris is sleepless in Seattle

Deployed as a right wing in Seattle’s 4-2-3-1, Jordan Morris has found life in MLS more difficult than the college ranks. Morris had 19 touches against Real Salt Lake on Saturday according to Whoscored.com, 21 fewer than the previous week. Of Seattle’s four attackers, Morris registered the fewest touches. In addition, Morris only made nine passes, the fewest of the team’s starting outfield players. Substituted in the 75th min, his replacement Darwin Jones did no better. Morris’s immediate inclusion in the side looks partly down to Seattle’s thin roster and the need to get such an important young player into the starting XI. Seattle coach Sigi Schmid has to find ways to integrate the 21-year-old into the side better, and help him find some form, or it is going to be a long season for both Morris and the Sounders.

Flavor of the month

After the first two weeks of the season, it appears the favored formation of MLS is either a 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3. For the most part, managers are selecting teams with one striker. There are exceptions, however, most notably Chicago Fire. New manager Veljko Paunovic deployed a 3-5-2 against Orlando last weekend. His selection of David Accam and Kennedy Igboananike as his strikers was not only a bold choice, but the right one, too. Despite only picking up one point from a possible six, Paunovic’s Fire look far more exciting and attacking than the appalling side Frank Yallop led during his tenure with the club.

Ignacio Piatti is on fire

Montreal’s Ignacio Piatti has started 2016 on fire: two matches, three goals and one assist. Add in an 85% pass success rate and it is no wonder the Impact are flying high after two match days. The Argentine is in his second full season with Montreal, and if the opening two games are any indication, Piatti will top his numbers from 2015 – ten goals and eight assists. In Saturday’s win over the Red Bulls, Piatti completed 41 of 50 passes for an 82% success rate. With Didier Drogba coming back soon, Montreal may have, arguably, the best attack in MLS.

It wasn’t until the BBC documentary The Class of ’92, that I learned about Salford City Football Club. As an American transplanted in Salford, England, I had lived in the area for three years before finding out anything about them. However, once I saw an episode of the documentary and learned about the connection the club have to Nicky Butt, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs and the Neville brothers, I had to get to a game.

Currently, Salford City play in the Evo-Stik League Northern Premier Division, the seventh level of the English football league system. In comparison to the English Premier League, Salford City are six leagues below the top-flight. For those unaware, Salford is in Greater Manchester and the club’s Moor Lane is less than a 30 minute drive from either Manchester United’s Old Trafford or Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium.

Only four miles away from my house in Salford, the Moor Lane ground would be missed if you weren’t looking for it. Across the street from the Kersal Moors and stuck in between housing estates, Moor Lane is rather unassuming. A grey concrete wall runs the length of the ground, separating it from the street and any would-be passersby. Those that dare to peak over the wall would see a football ground with character, but calling it a stadium would be a stretch. At one end of the ground, just beyond the goal, sits a small car park where stray shots routinely strike the back windows of cars.

Across from the gate on Moor Lane is the main stand, which backs up against a street of houses. The main stand is old and brown, with some of the old rooms in the back blocked off by cones. Although there are no security guards stopping kids from running around the back, kicking footballs. For the most part, the stand is made up of concrete ledges for fans to sit or stand on. And luckily, the stand has a proper room, preventing fans from getting wet. The dugouts match the stands and recalls a bygone era. They are proper dugouts, no comfortable modern chair back seats like you see in the Premier League.

Newer portable cabins have been installed in recent time, giving supporters a chance to relax inside with a pint during match day. Strolling around the ground, I walked into the humble club shop. A man looking every bit in his 70s ran it, offering shirts, hats and old programs from around the country. Although I never caught his name, he welcomed everyone into his little piece of Salford, making small talk and asking where spectators were from as he detected various accents. With the popularity of the ‘Class of ’92‘, people from all over were out for the game. A group of fans from Carlisle had made the over 100 mile journey to see the match. Irish fans had also made the trip over from Dublin, and sipped pints of Foster’s while standing in the cold February wind.

Opposite the parking lot end sat an embankment with plenty of space for kids to kick around a football. During the match, a pick-up football match broke out with fans of both Salford City and the day’s opponent Ilkeston.

As for the match itself, it was highly entertaining, especially for semi-professional football. Although the player I had been most excited to see went off early due to injury. With David Beckham good looks, footballer and model Gareth Seddon is one of the highest profile players in non-league football.

Seddon tallied 31 goals in Salford’s promotion winning season of 2014/15. A decade ago, the striker was forced to quit playing professionally at the age of 25 due to illness that doctors couldn’t pinpoint originally. Seddon later made a comeback partnering Leicester City’s Jamie Vardy when both played at Fleetwood. However, a part-time soccer career has been Seddon’s life for much of his career.

Despite only seeing the 35-year-old striker play 32 minutes, Seddon was head and shoulders above the competition. The striker dominated in the air, winning the ball when called into action, and putting teammates in on goal with his flick-ons.

Ilkeston didn’t offer much on the day, despite beating Salford City just a week prior. Second half goals from Danny Webber and Jordan Hulme gave Salford all three points as they stalk a second consecutive promotion.

With just under 900 fans turning out for the match at £7 ($10) on match day, Salford City are one of the most high-profile teams in non-league football. With ambitious owners and a growing fanbase, Salford City are profiting from their new found celebrity.

Major League Soccer has kicked off the 2016 season and set a record amount of goals on opening day. With the fixtures coming fast and furious in the weeks to come, here are five things we learned from week 1.

1. Patrick Vieira off to a winning start, defense still needs work

Arsenal legend Patrick Vieira got off to a winning start in charge of New York City FC. Despite the club’s flowing attack, the defense is still shaky. More than once, Chicago Fire strolled through the back four, and Frederic Brillant was anything but brilliant. While the defense harkened back to a season ago, the team looked much better in possession, controlling 57% of the game according to WhoScored.com. The team complete 494 passes, 190 more than the Fire, at a 79% success rate. Deployed in a 4-3-3 formation, NYC’s midfield did a fantastic job of protecting Andrea Pirlo, who was able to complete 81% of his passes. Thanks to the support of Mix Diskerud, six tackles during the game, Pirlo was provided a chance to dictate play. Once Frank Lampard is fit, however, Vieira may have difficulty shoehorning him into the side, if NYC continue to play well in midfield.

2. LA Galaxy have most depth in MLS

The Galaxy continue to have an embarrassment of riches. Not only do they have star players capable of the spectacular, the Galaxy also have role players on the bench that can make a difference. Case in point, Giovani Dos Santos left Sunday’s match against DC United at halftime. His replacement, Mike Magee, went on to get the game winner before adding a second in the 87^th minute as LA won 4-1. The Galaxy still have the likes of MLS veterans Alan Gordan and Jeff Larentowicz to come back from injury. The Galaxy’s depth will be put to use later in the season as they currently have the oldest squad in MLS. However, Bruce Arena will have the benefit of being able to rotate his squad early and often.

3. DC United look rough

DC United traded Chris Pontius to Philadelphia, Perry Kitchen was out of contract and neither side could come to an agreement, and Bill Hamid is injured for at least the next four months. DC United’s Ben Olsen has his work cut out for him this season, and the side he deployed at the Home Depot Center looked like a ramshackled bunch. The midfield of Chris Rolfe and Patrick Nayarko on either side of Marcelo Sarvas, did very little and the three midfielders combined to make four tackles; which was just one more than LA’s Nigel De Jong. Looking at DC’s team, it should be a concern where the quality is in the side. Maintaining until the summer transfer window should be the team’s best hope, with hopes of a late season’s playoff push.

4. MLS doesn’t need the big names

Didier Drogba, Jozy Altidore, Frank Lampard and Kaka all missed the opening day of the 2016 MLS season. Yet, the league soldiered on without the high-priced stars and was just as excellent without them. Thirty-six goals were scored on Sunday, shattering the previous record of 27 set in 2001. Of course, the league is continuing to attract older stars as designated players, but with the output on opening day, those big names may not be needed to produce excellent, attacking soccer.

5. The need for third kits

Toronto FC’s visit to Red Bull Arena once again proved that MLS teams need third kits – or at least away kits that are distinct. With the both TFC and New York Red Bull primarily using red on the day, the clash between the two was annoying to watch on TV. The only real solution would have been to have the Red Bulls wear their secondary kits of blue and yellow. However, the Red Bulls were at home, a place they shouldn’t have to worry about these trivial things. In the end, it showed that TFC needs to rethink their away color scheme or have a third kit to prevent these kind of clashes.

The LA Galaxy are a wounded team. Coming off a season in which they were knocked from the Major League Soccer playoffs in the knockout round, the Galaxy are looking for redemption. Yet, the team’s first attempt at revitalization, the CONCACAF Champions League, saw the Los Angeles outfit crash and burn to Mexico’s Santos Laguna 4-0 on aggregate.

Never to be outdone by other MLS teams spending money, the Galaxy overhauled their team in the offseason. First the Galaxy sold defensive bedrock Omar Gonzalez, a fixture at center-back since being drafted by the club in 2009. The Galaxy then sent defensive midfielder Juninho to Liga MX side Tijuana for a reported $2.13 million.

With the money generated from the sales of the two MLS Cup winners, also gaining valuable salary cap space, they wasted no time in spending the cash. Hands down, the MLS’s two biggest signings in the offseason, in name only, were former Manchester City and AC Milan midfielder Nigel De Jong and former Arsenal and Chelsea full-back Ashley Cole. But the question remains, did the Galaxy spend their money wisely on the two marquee players?

There’s no doubt, the Galaxy needed to freshen up the team. However, the club sold two cornerstones of the team, both only 27-years-old. De Jong and Cole are both on the wrong side of 30, with the latter clocking in at 35. The Galaxy will kick-off 2016 as the oldest club in MLS. Considering the travel and hot weather that awaits them in the latter part of the summer, their aged legs may very well be their biggest stumbling block by the time the playoffs roll around.

The Galaxy also signed MLS veterans Mike Magee and Jeff Larentowicz. Magee is coming off a hip injury that kept him out for large chunks of 2015. He did manage 14 games with Chicago Fire last season once fit, scoring twice in the US Open Cup and collecting two assists in MLS play.

Larentowicz, Magee’s teammate in Chicago, maybe the most underrated and overlooked signing of the MLS offseason. Capable of playing in central defense or as a defensive midfielder, Larentowicz should fill the hole left by Gonzalez, but can also move into midfield to partner either De Jong or Steven Gerrard. Deployed at center-back throughout the Fire’s season, Larentowicz obtained a higher pass success rate than Gonzalez, clocking in at 79% according to WhoScored.com. Larentowicz’s tackles and interceptions per game in 2015 were similar to Gonzalez’s. However, the former Galaxy defender just edged his replacement with 1.6 tackles per game compared to Larentowicz’s 1.4, and 5.9 interceptions compared to the new man’s 4.9, according to WhoScored.com.

SEE MORE: Read our 2016 MLS preview

Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena begins his eight full season with the club. Since joining the side in 2008, the USA’s most decorated coach has brought stability to the crazy world that the Galaxy live in. Last season, Arena favoured a 4-4-2 formation, playing it in 29 fixtures. Designated Players Robbie Keane and Giovanni Dos Santos had a tremendous amount of success playing as the team’s strike duo. Although more will be expected from Dos Santos. His 11 appearances last season yielded three goals and five assists, just a small sample size of what the Mexican international can do over the course of the season.

Yet, despite all the positive moves the Galaxy made, it all goes back to the signings of Cole, De Jong and even Gerrard. The Liverpool legend has said this may very well be his last as he hinted at retirement recently. Gerrard was rather off the pace for the Galaxy last term after a bright start for the club. Playing alongside De Jong in midfield will give him the freedom to get forward and support Keane and Dos Santos. Unlike Juninho, however, De Jong is certainly an upgrade in midfield and will be able to cover for Gerrard when he makes his lung busting runs. A proper offseason to rest and get over nagging injuries should help Gerrard as well.

SEE MORE: Schedule of MLS games on US TV and live streaming

Cole is the wild card. The Englishman’s Roma excursion lasted a mere 11 games and the awkward preseason Roma team photo was only a hint of what was to come. There is no doubt he should be more at home in the US than Italy; especially with Gerrard and Keane. But physically Cole has lost a step or two, and is far from the player he was at Chelsea not too long ago. Cole was in the side that saw the Galaxy draw the first leg of their Champions League match against Santos Laguna at the Home Depot Center. However, he wasn’t included in Arena’s 18-man squad in the return leg. The Galaxy have truly taken a punt on the left-back, and those left scratching their heads at his signing, won’t be surprised if he fails to finish the season with the club.

Ambitiously, the Galaxy overhauled their side for 2016. Yet, the team that Arena takes into their MLS opener against DC United has more questions than certainties.

One Major League Soccer playoff appearance in their six season existence has left Philadelphia Union fans hungry for more, much more. Despite two consecutive runner-up performances in the US Open Cup, the Union have underachieved mightily since their first MLS game in 2010. From shaky goalkeepers to allegedly abusive managers, and even a stint from former US wunderkind-come-bust Freddy Adu, the Union have seen a lot in their short time.

However, 2016 is shaping up to be different. Jim Curtin is in his second full season in charge of the team. The former defender has posted a win percentage of 36% while in charge of the Union, and despite being a novice head coach, is quickly gaining his feet as another former MLS player turned manager. In spite of leading the team to back-to-back runners-up performances in the US Open Cup, Curtin still has a lot to prove in the City of Brotherly Love.

“In terms of Curtin turning the team around, the jury remains out on that,” Dan Walsh, founder of Philly Soccer Page, explained to World Soccer Talk.

“New Sporting Director Earnie Stewart has certainly increased the level of talent being brought in, but Curtin still has to prove he can do something with it.

“In the past, you could say he didn’t have sufficient talent, but that is no longer the case. Curtin will be on the hot seat this season, and if this club isn’t in the playoff hunt come mid-season, he will get the axe.”

Stewart has certainly added talent to the club since being appointed to the position last fall. After finishing last season 18th out of 20 MLS sides, Stewart went about blowing up the group, ridding the Union of 15 players from last season’s squad. Twelve players have been brought in, according to MLS’s official website, leaving expectations raised for 2016.

“The 2016 team will be a very different club than the ones that reached the US Open Cup finals [2014, 2015], with as many as seven or eight new starters and a lot more depth,” Walsh clarified.

One new signing that will be familiar to Union fans, is former DC United player Chris Pontius. Capable of playing as a second striker or on either wing, Pontius brings creativity and pace to a side that scored the fewest goals in MLS’s Eastern Conference in 2015.

The 28-year-old will most likely slot into the left wing position, a place formerly filled by midfielder Andrew Wenger, who was traded to Houston Dynamo. Pontius may have had a poor season by his standards in 2015, but a hip injury saw the attacker miss 13 matches. Injuries have played their part in each of the last few seasons for Pontius. However, if the Union can keep him fit, a return to his 2012, form which saw him tally 12 goals, is realistic.

“The Union added so much midfield talent this off-season that Pontius could go to the bench very quickly, if he doesn’t produce,” Walsh stated.

“Injuries have really dogged him the past few years, and he basically has one year in the shop window for the Union, who probably won’t renew him at a high salary if he doesn’t have a productive, injury-free season.”

Philadelphia’s wealth of midfielders should continue to influence Curtin to play a 4-2-3-1 formation. According to Whoscored.com, the Union deployed this formation 32 times last season. Curtin will most likely set out his side with C.J. Sapong as the lone striker, supported by Swiss international Tranquillo Barnetta, an astute signing last summer. Meanwhile, Pontius and club legend Sebastien Le Toux will play down the flanks.

The attack will depend on whether or not Le Toux, Pontius or Sapong can stay fit. Regardless, the intent from Philadelphia is there. Add in new signing Brazilian Ilsinho, and the Union look far more impressive on paper than in any of their previous seasons. The midfielder brings a wealth of experience to the side, and will add another dimension to the team’s attack.

A difficult set of road games welcome Philadelphia into the new season. The Union’s attack will be put to the test early as they look to improve on last season anaemic goal scoring output. However, 2016 should be an improved year for the club and their second foray into the MLS Playoffs.

Antonio Nocerino has become the newest European import to join Major League Soccer as the former AC Milan midfielder joined Orlando City this week. While Nocerino has spent the last two seasons shuttled between various teams in England and Italy, his experience and quality will provide Orlando City with a player that can link defense and attack; or score much needed goals from midfield.

With only three goals from central midfielders in 2015 – Darwin Ceren, two; Cristian Higuita, one – Nocerino will be deployed to improve the team in this area.

Brought up in Juventus’ youth academy, Nocerino signed with Palermo in 2008, playing over 100 matches for the Sicilian side. However, it wasn’t until 2011 when Nocerino was sold to AC Milan for just under $600,000 that the former Italy youth international showed his goal scoring capabilities and defensive tenacity.

Nocerino’s first season at San Siro saw the Italian play 35 times in Serie A, notching ten goals and registering an 84% pass success rate, according to Whoscored.com. Unfortunately, Nocerino’s playing time and stats dipped in the subsequent seasons. Although that can be partly attributed to coaching changes made at Milan and partly due to the sales of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Robinho and others.

“He suffered from Ibrahimovic’s departure, simple as that,” Gazzetta World editor Ogo Sylla explained.

“Beyond just Ibrahimovic leaving, lots of upheavals in both coaching and player staff meant he got lost in the shuffle.”

Last season, Nocerino split time between Parma and Torino on loan. His time at Parma was marred by the club’s financial situation as the Crociati went bankrupt. Despite not receiving his wages, Nocerino still played 20 matches for Parma, recording three goals and an assist for a team that sat in the Serie A relegation zone for 37 of the league’s 38 weeks.

The Italian midfielder will join Orlando City on preseason, fresh from Italy where he has only played 66 minutes of Serie A action in 2015/16. With yet another coaching change ahead of this season, Milan saw Nocerino as surplus to requirements. Fresh legs and nearly a full preseason will enable the Italian to bed in to the team and survive the long, arduous MLS season.

However, any supporter expecting another Sebastian Giovinco or Andrea Pirlo will be sorely disappointed. Nocerino is not of the second striker, creative variety of Giovinco, nor is he the deep-laying pinpoint passer that Pirlo is. Rather, Nocerino is a midfield engine that can not only log plenty of minutes, but play box-to-box. In short, his style is a perfect fit for the North American brand of soccer.

“A lot of people underestimate the physical nature of MLS and if Nocerino is anything, it’s an ultra-athletic player,” Sylla stated.

“Of course, he’ll need time to regain fitness, because he hasn’t played with much regularity. But I think Orlando fans should appreciate his grinta.

“The money in MLS is new and I’m sure players seeing how much Giovinco was earning in Toronto, the best paid Italian player, certainly gave Italian players ideas.

“Plus the fact that Giovinco’s performances in MLS also kept him in the Azzurri fold will be another thing players can feel reassured about in terms of making the MLS switch.”

According to Whoscored.com, Orlando City used a 4-2-3-1 formation 28 times last season, achieving 11 wins and 7 draws. Lions’ manager Adrian Heath’s preferred formation should suit Nocerino perfectly, as he can thriving at protecting the back four as one of the two defensive midfielders. Yet, he can get forward if his midfield partner sits to defend.

“Looking at the player on paper though, beyond being generous in his efforts, he’s a player who’s got a great long range shot and times his runs in the box very well,” Sylla remarked.

“He’s box-to-box and given he has got some goals in him, marketing and entertainment-wise, he’s a good pick up as far as defensive midfielders go.”

At only 30, Nocerino should have plenty left in the tank to for a squad that has an average age of 25.5. With an average attendance of over 32,000 in 2015, Orlando City is embarking on their second season in MLS, a year after narrowly missing the playoffs by five points. In a league of such narrow margins, Nocerino can make the difference between Orlando City making the playoffs or spending November and December on holiday.

Mario Balotelli may be the latest big name footballer to move to the Chinese Super League, as Liverpool look to offload the out of form striker to the Far East.

Currently, on loan at AC Milan, Balotelli has failed to crack the starting XI of the Italian team when fit. Recently, the striker was heavily criticized by manager Sinisa Mihajlovic after a poor two minute outing against Genoa.

Mihajlovic, who has turned around Milan’s form this term, had to be restrained from running on to the pitch to confront the striker. During his press conference after the game, Mihajlovic hinted at the striker’s future being in doubt with the San Siro club.

Balotelli signed for Liverpool in 2014 for £16 million from Milan, the striker scored a mere one goal in the English Premier League despite playing 16 times for the club.

Despite spending time out due to an injured groin this term, Balotelli has fared similarly with the Rossoneri, scoring once in ten matches – eight of which have been substitute appearances.

Balotelli would be just another in a recent list of players exiting Europe for the riches of China. Chinese Super League teams spent more money than the English Premier League during the January transfer window, splashing around $270m on new recruits.

Liverpool transfer target Alex Teixeira has been the most expensive signing, as Jiangsu Suning splashed $54.7m on the midfielder. His signing was an Asian transfer record. Jiangsu also secured the signature of former Chelsea midfielder Ramires.

According to the Manchester Evening News, Manchester United could even be swayed into selling star Wayne Rooney to a Chinese Super League club in the summer, if the price is right. The league’s financial might could influence more stars to pop up in the Far East.

With Balotelli’s current form for AC Milan and parent club Liverpool interested in cutting ties with the striker, the Italian may be one of the next big names to arrive in China.

5 Players to move to China this winter

Paulinho – Guangzhou Evergrande, $14.2m

Gervinho – Hebei China Fortune, $19.7

Demba Ba – Shanghai Shenhua, $14m

Fredy Guarin – Shanghai Shenhua, $14.2m

Jackson Martinez – Guangzhou Evergrande, $44.7m

Has a sleeping giant awoken? It looks that maybe the case at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza as AC Milan continued their strong play under coach Sinisa Mihajlovic with Sunday’s 2-1 win over Genoa.

After beginning the season losing four of their opening seven, the Rossoneri have played well, losing only twice in their last 18 matches. Currently sitting in sixth place, Milan are on the cusp of Serie A’s European places. The Rossoneri haven’t made Europe in either of the last two seasons, but that could be ended if Mihajlovic can continue to get results. The Milan coach is in his first season at the club and rode the wave of high expectations coming into 2015/16. Milan spent over $90 million last summer and immediately raised hopes around the red and black parts of the city.

Sunday’s win against Genoa halted a three match losing streak to the Ligurian side. Thanks to goals from Carlos Bacca and Keisuke Honda, Milan strengthened their push for Europe as a gap has opened between sixth place Milan and seventh place Lazio.

“Where can we improve?” Mihajlovic was asked following Sunday’s win. “There are many areas, as when Mario Balotelli and Jeremy Menez are fit we will have more attacking options and it’ll be more difficult for the opposition to close us down.

“Riccardo Montolivo brings balance and Keisuke Honda did really well. They were jeered in the past by fans, but with grit and determination won everyone over.

“We are in the running for the Champions League play-off and putting pressure on the others.”

While the club spent big in the summer, it has been club captain Montolivo that has improved his play significantly, and the team overall. Despite producing only one assist this term, Montolivo has played some of his best football at Milan. Now in his fourth season at the club, Montolivo has seen the team go from European regulars to tenth place finishers a season ago. According to WhoScored.com, the midfielder is averaging 60 passes per game and completing 82%. Last season, Montolivo never got out of the starting blocks in a poor Milan side under coach Filippo Inzaghi. Ahead of Italy’s 2014 World Cup Finals campaign, Montolivo suffered a broken tibia, causing the Italian to miss 168 days of football. After six months out, Montolivo never got fully fit, playing a total of ten matches. This time around, Montolivo is firing on all cylinders, and has been the backbone to the team, controlling play in attack and helping to break up play when the opposition in in possession.

Yet, Milan wouldn’t be where they are without the excellence of others. Unsung heroes like Giacomo Bonaventura (five goals, seven assists) and M’Baye Niang (five goals, four assists) have been stellar for the club. However, in the club’s excellent run of form, it has been one of their summer signings that has shone. Milan spent over $30m on striker Carlos Bacca, and the Colombian has 13 goals for the black and red. Five of those 13 have come in the team’s last six matches. Bacca’s form has kept the likes of Luiz Adriano and Mario Balotelli on the bench, and has the curva sud dreaming the ex-Sevilla man can get the team back into Europe.

Milan will be put to the test next week as the club travel to play Napoli, who are fighting for their first Serie A title since the days of Maradona. With Europe in sight and Milan in the semi-final of the Coppa Italia, Mihajlovic may put the Rossoneri back in familiar territory.

Antonio Sanabria, now 19, played just two times for Roma in 2014/15. Twice used as a substitute by former Roma coach Rudi Garcia, Sanabria clocked a meager 33 minutes of time. Sent on loan to Spain’s Sporting Gijon ahead of this season, Sanabria has emerged as the premier teenage goal scorer in Europe’s top five leagues.

With ten goals from 16 matches for struggling Sporting, Sanabria has carried the newly promoted side throughout much of the season. In five of the six matches Sporting have won, the Paraguayan striker has scored. With two hat-tricks already to his name, the 19-year-old has bagged nearly half of the team’s total goals (24) and has many Roma fans expecting big things from the youngster in the future.

“I’m a young player who still has a lot to learn and this is a very good team for me to do that,” the striker explained to Spanish media earlier this season.

“I’m very comfortable here and we’ll see what happens at the end of the season.”

A product of Barcelona’s youth academy, Sanabria left in search of first team football in 2014. A stop off at Serie A’s Sassuolo before being signed by Roma for around $5 million, Sanabria was unable to make the breakthrough to a Roma side built to push for a Serie A title. Loaned out in August after Roma signed Edin Dzeko and Iago Falque, the striker is now getting regular first team games away from the intense pressure of the Italian capital. Interestingly, Sanabria’s ten goals are more than Dzeko, Falque and club legend Francesco Totti’s tallies combined.

Yet, it hasn’t all been roses for Sanabria at Sporting, and assuming the wunderkind could duplicate his current form at his parent club is presumptuous. Different expectations and defensive tactics could prevent the 5ft 9in striker from having a similar impact on Serie A.

However, AS Roma English contributor Wayne Girard, believes Sanabria has the ability and potential to add a lot to Roma’s attack.

“He probably could have done the same [at Roma] if the tactics were centered on making him the main scorer,” Girard stated.

“However, Roma is a team with 17 different goal scorers this season, showing, not only Garcia, but Luciano Spalletti’s ambitions to have a mixed attack without a focal point to play the ball through.”

The striker sat out much of October and November due to a thigh injury picked up in training. Coupled with a four match dry spell in front of goal, and things looked bleak for the northern Spanish side as Christmas approached. However, Sanabria’s first hat-trick on December 6^th, has ushered in a period of form that has seen the Paraguayan go no more than two games on the trot without tallying a goal. In fact, Sanabria now has eight goals in his last eight fixtures.

Whether Sanabria ends up back at Roma next season isn’t known, and with the money being paid by English Premier League sides currently, a place for a young, hungry goal scorer is always available in England.

“He will face challenges of overtaking Dzeko’s spot at Roma,” Girard continued.

“Spalletti has shown the tactical diversity to play Diego Perotti as the false No. 9, which would put Sanabria on the bench.

“Furthermore, Sadiq Umar has been a sensation this season. Roma suddenly has a wide range of offensive talents which make the starting center forward place extremely coveted.”

Sanabria left one club already in search of first team opportunities. If his options are limited in the Eternal City, the Paraguayan may once again pack his bags for pastures new, as he stakes his claim to being the top goal scoring youngster in European soccer.

In four in and half years of service to Atalanta, German Denis became a modern club legend. After 152 matches and 55 goals for the Orobici, Denis signed off as the club’s all-time leading foreign goal scorer.

As he set to bid arrivederci to the club on Saturday night, Denis provided Atalanta supporters with one last moment to remember him by, as he slotted home an 82nd minute equalizer against Sassuolo, before leaving to a standing ovation.

Following the match, el Tanque, was celebrated on the pitch by teammates and coaches as a large banner was unveiled in his honor. It simply read: “#19 Grazie German.”

In addition, Denis took to social media and posted an emotional goodbye to Atalanta fans, thanking them for their support over the years.

“Dear Bergamo,” read Denis’ Instagram post. “I wouldn’t know where to start. Maybe with just a huge ‘thank you’!

“My family and I felt so welcomed and we leave holding you close to our hearts. I will always have a special bond with this city, which fate brought me to and which I have come to love so much.

SEE MORE: Serie A TV schedule for soccer fans in the USA.

“Thank you for all you have given me. I have matured so much here, as a player and as a person. I am eternally grateful.”

At 34, and with Atalanta nearing safety in mid-table, Denis will return to his native Argentina with Independiente. The striker previously starred with the Argentine club, scoring 37 goals in 70 games, before joining Napoli in 2008 for around $7 million. Despite three solid, but unspectacular seasons with Napoli and Udinese, the Argentine striker found his feet with Atalanta in 2011.

With the team newly promoted and deducted six points in Denis’ first season with Atalanta, he led his new team to a comfortable 13th place finish after scoring 16 goals. A dark period hungover Bergamo that season thanks to a betting scandal involving former captain Cristiano Doni. Looking for a new hero, fans flocked to Denis’ side, admiring the striker for his work ethic. Making the Argentine a beloved idol as another crumbled.

In spite of a decrease in goal production in subsequent seasons, Denis still dictated Atalanta’s success, even with the sales of stars Giacomo Bonaventura and Andrea Consigli. Perhaps, calling time on his days in Bergamo came too early. Yet, leaving now, still on top of his game, will leave supporters with countless memories of the striker’s exploits.

Following Denis’ farewell performance, Atalanta Ultras said goodbye in their own way. Denis and his family were treated to a firework and flare sendoff before addressing the crowd. It’s not often that a player in this day and age finds a common bond with supporters, but Denis did.

Yet, the importance of the striker was also celebrated by his teammates. Atalanta players wore shirts that read “per sempre German Denis,” (Forever German Denis). A respect that permeated the entire club on and off the pitch, Denis will be remembered for his leadership. The displays witnessed in Bergamo would typically be for a player that had spent an entire career with one club. Yet, in only four and half years with Atalanta, the bittersweet celebrations showed the impact Denis had on the provincial outfit.

“German Denis was so much more than just a striker for Atalanta,” Forza Italian Football writer Conor Clancy explained.

“He was Bergamo. He was the fans on the pitch. Every week he gave everything for the cause. His celebrations epitomised that.

“The passion he exudes made him impossible not to love. Every time he scored he ran to the Curva and embraced his sons. It was more a feeling of family than a player for a football club. There was a genuine mutual love.”

Atalanta have already moved to substitute a player that is possibly irreplaceable. The man tasked with replacing the tank is Marco Borriello, who has joined from Carpi.

“The loss is upsetting, for both parties. Borriello likely won’t be the proper replacement. In the 4-3-3, [Mauricio] Pinilla will be the main man,” Clancy continued. “If Reja persists with the 3-5-2, they could both play together, but likely that Diamanti will play behind Pinilla than Borriello.”

A journeyman striker with a pedigree of playing for three of the biggest clubs in Italy, Borriello will most likely fail to reach the status of Denis at the Stadio Atleti Azzurri d’Italia.

A move to Monaco was supposed to reignite Stephan El Shaarawy’s injury plagued career, but four months on, El Shaarawy is set to return to Italy, on loan to Roma. Frozen out at Monaco after 15 games without a goal or assist, the one-time promising Milan player is still looking to rediscover what made him the highly sought after 20-year-old that was valued at €20 million.

By the end of business on Monday, with El Shaarawy in Rome, the move was in its final stages. Roma will get the Italian international on an initial loan move for €2m, according to reports, and will have the option to buy him outright in the summer for a further €13m. If all goes according to plan.

Despite El Shaarway’s form over recent years, Roma are in need of a player with his potential, as the Giallorossi need someone to set light to their smoldering performances this season. Although El Shaarawy has potential, it can’t be overlooked that this is a definite gamble by Roma, a club that were supposed to finally win an extremely elusive Scudetto in 2015/16.

Reinstalled Roma coach Luciano Spalletti wasted no time in hunting down El Shaarawy’s signature as he cuts away at the team’s deadweight.

“I remember El Shaarawy in a very positive way. He has technique, quality, pace and can score goals. He lost his way a little, I had the chance to speak to him and he gave me positive signals,” Spalletti told reporters in a recent interview.

“If he comes here to play the final six months of the season and get back his image and a place in the Italy squad, he has to do well. There isn’t much time.

“Anyone can have moments where he delivers less than he is capable of in a profession, and I think this happened to him, too.”

El Shaarawy became an unlikely star in the wake of AC Milan’s sale of Zlatan Ibrahimovic to Paris Saint-Germain in the summer of 2012. The former Genoa youth player scored 16 times in 36 Serie A matches for the Rossoneri.

However, all of those 16 goals were scored in the opening 26 weeks of the Serie A season. El Shaarawy was unable to keep that form going, especially with the addition of Mario Balotelli in January 2013, as the Italian striker became the focal point of Milan’s attack.

It didn’t help that many of the teams around the peninsula had figured out El Shaarawy’s penchant to slalom down the left before cutting in on his right foot. Tactically discovered, El Shaarawy struggled in a league known for it’s defensive nous.

Not helping El Shaarawy’s form was his fitness. The Milan player missed 55 games over two seasons due to injury. Missing a total of 305 days kept Il Farone from duplicating those early days at the San Siro.

SEE MORE: Can Sarri and Higuain lead Napoli to glory?

In El Shaarawy’s breakout season, the winger averaged 2.8 shots per game compared to 1.8 this term at Monaco, according to WhoScored.com. His key passes per game are down to 0.6 from 1.5, although his overall passing percentage is still excellent, at 84%.

Meanwhile, El Shaarawy’s dribbles are down as well, from 3.9 per game to 1.9 in league play. El Shaarawy’s pace and ability to take on defenders was his biggest asset. That has almost dried up as injury has cut away at the speed he once used to beat defenders with.

Now with another chance to rekindle his best, El Shaarawy has the opportunity to rescue Roma’s season. Currently fifth, 12 points behind Serie A-leading Napoli, the Giallorossi cannot be counted out from having a resurgence.

A scudetto is highly unlikely, given the way Roma have performed thus far; however, obtaining another Champions League birth is not. An El Shaarawy revival could, once again, leave Roma supporters hoping next year will be their year.

Gonzalo Higuain – Napoli

20 goals in 20 matches

Higuain has long been seen as one of the premier strikers in Europe. However, this season under Maurizio Sarri, Higuain has found the form of a lifetime. Twenty goals in 20 games leads all strikers in Serie A and makes Higuain ideal for fantasy football managers around the world.

Higuain has already bested his output in his two previous campaigns with Napoli (2013/14, 17 goals; 2014/15, 18 goals), and he is on target to top his best season with Real Madrid (2009/10, 27 goals). His two strikes in Sunday’s 3-1 win over Sassuolo strengthened Napoli’s title credentials, keeping the Partenopei two points ahead of Juventus.

If Higuain’s form continues, there is no reason Napoli won’t be able to lift the Scudetto in May. Nor is there any reason he shouldn’t be shortlisted for the next Ballon d’Or.

Paulo Dybala – Juventus

11 goals in 19 matches

Paulo Dybala arrived last summer with a hefty price tag, €32 million. Since then, the Argentine has done his best to make Juventini forget all about Carlos Tevez.

A strong dribbler and just adapt at setting up teammates as he is scoring, Dybala has been the complete package for Juventus as the Turin club have soared up the table. During his team’s run of 10 straight Serie A victories, Dybala has scored eight times, including a brace in Sunday’s 4-0 win over Udinese. Making Dybala even more dangerous has been the addition of his five assists during those 10 matches, running his season total to seven for the season.

Although Juventus’ success hasn’t been solely down to the Argentine, it wouldn’t have been as brilliant without him.

SEE MORE: Midterm report – Juventus surge lands holders in wide-open title race.

Leonardo Pavoletti – Genoa

10 goals in 13 matches

Pavoletti burst onto the scene 12 months ago at Genoa, and ever since, has made the club’s No. 9 position his own. Ten goals from 13 games, including Sunday’s brilliant bicycle-kick goal to round off Genoa’s 4-0 drubbing of Palermo, has kept the club’s head above the relegation zone this term. One goal every 99 minutes has Pavoletti knocking on the door of Antonio Conte’s Italian national team as well.

Without Pavoletti’s goals, Genoa would be mired in a relegation scrap, more so than they currently are. The striker’s brilliant form will need to continue if the Grifone are to ward off the drop.

Carlos Bacca – AC Milan

9 goals in 20 games

Carlos Bacca’s nine goals in 20 games may not sound too impressive. However five goals in his last seven games in all competition, has Bacca recalling his best form from his time with Sevilla.Currently Milan’s leading scorer, Bacca’s form has the Rossoneri up to sixth; still capable of qualifying for next season’s Champions League, Although the Europa League maybe more likely.

Other than Bacca, the Milan giants have no other striker hitting form. Luiz Adriano is heading to China after only a few months playing for Milan, while Mario Balotelli has made only five appearances. Bacca’s signing brought a lot of expectations back to the once great Milan team. His current form maybe just the beginning of big things to come for the club.

Eder – Sampdoria

11 goals in 18 matches

Sampdoria’s Eder was controversially called up to the Italian national team in 2015, qualifying for Italian citizenship via his great-grandfather. That call-up was a reward for the striker’s form, which hasn’t waned since being added to the Azzurri. Five goals in his first three Serie A games of the season, Eder has Sampdoria fans expecting another top of the table finish. Despite a coaching change, Eder’s form has been steady while Sampdoria have tried to stabilize the ship. Currently in 14th, the Blucerchiati have plenty of talent to prevent finishing in the bottom three. Without his 11 goals, Sampdoria would be far worse off, and if the Azzurri want to get out of the group stages in next summer’s European Championships, they will need an on form Eder to help get them into the later rounds.

Napoli were crowned Serie A’s winter champions on Sunday following their 5-1 demolition of relegation fighters Frosinone. Despite Napoli’s current form under first-year coach Maurizio Sarri, the Partenopei are looking over their shoulders at arch-rivals and reigning Scudetto holders Juventus as they close in.

The Scudetto Race

Although Napoli and Inter Milan have shown their title credentials, Juventus cannot be overlooked, as Massimiliano Allegri’s men have coolly adjusted to life without Andrea Pirlo, Carlos Tevez and Arturo Vidal. A poor start saw the Bianconeri win once in their opening six matches. Since then, Juventus have lost only once, reeling off nine consecutive wins. Paulo Dybala’s nine goals have led the wawhich could save the club around €9.6 milliony as the Argentine’s scoring has made up for Tevez’s departure.

Roberto Mancini’s Inter are outside favorites, but three losses in their last six matches have put a major dent in their championship push. More goals are needed from the Nerazzurri’s front men. Captain Mauro Icardi has scored eight in 16 matches. He needs to find the back of the net more often, however, for Inter to overtake both Napoli and Juventus.

SEE MORE: Real Madrid leading the race to sign Paul Pogba.

Inter have been built on a stingy defence, keeping 12 clean sheets and giving up a mere 12 goals in 2015/16, a clear change to last season’s team. Inter recently terminated the contract of central defender Nemanja Vidic, which could save the club around €9.6 million –a hefty sum that may help Inter add reinforcements this month.

Maurizio Sarri wasn’t expected to get Napoli to the top of Serie A by many, yet the Italian coach has got the best out of his top players, something his predecessor, Rafael Benitez, continually struggled to do. Losing just twice in all competitions, both times in Serie A, Napoli have soared to the top by playing some of the most attractive soccer in Europe. With 38 goals, the most in Serie A, Napoli will need Gonzalo Higuain (18 goals) to continue his brilliance for the club to bring home their first Scudetto since the days of Diego Maradona.

La Salvezza

At the bottom end of the table, Hellas Verona look up at the rest of the league, obtaining a meager eight points from 19 fixtures. Andrea Mandorlini was replaced in December by Luigi Delneri after a winless start to the season. However, nothing has changed, and Hellas are still looking for their first win in a desperate attempt to save their season. Minnows Carpi and Frosinone have given themselves a fighting chance at la salvezza, but they will need Palermo and Genoa, 16th and 17th respectively, to continue to drop points in the season’s second half.

SEE MORE: Barros Schelotto walking into dysfunction at Palermo.

Teams to Watch

Sassuolo have been one of the most exciting teams in Serie A this term. Their attacking brand of football goes against Serie A stereotypes. The Neroverdi are a definite team for neutrals or new fans of Serie A to follow, as Eusebio Di Francesco’s men are making a run at Europa League qualification. Sassuolo don’t score many goals (23), but have come up with timely wins, including last weekend’s late goal against Inter to push them up the table.

Empoli have quietly climbed to seventh on the back of the ageless Massimo Maccarone (eight goals) and future star Riccardo Saponara (five). Like Sassuolo, they are a surprise package built on good coaching and talented players.

Meanwhile Roma have just sacked the much-maligned Rudi Garcia after two and half years of ups and downs. Former Roma coach Luciano Spalletti has been reappointed after over four years in charge of Russia’s Zenit St. Petersburg. Spalletti won back-to-back Coppa Italia trophies at Roma, and the club’s fans and hierarchy will expect him to push the team toward another trophy as he takes over a team of underachievers. The Giallorossi are currently seven points behind top place Napoli.

Finally, Fiorentina and first year coach Paolo Sousa are only three points back of Napoli. However, hanging onto a top-three place is nearly as important for the club as winning their first title since 1969. Nikola Kalinic’s 10 Serie A goals have been a revelation, while Josip Ilicic has chipped in nine. Yet, despite their current fourth place, Fiorentina will need to do even better in the season’s second to finish top. A run a third is more likely.

With the Serie A season kicking off its second stage on Saturday, the race for this season’s Scudetto is a close one that will no doubt give fans plenty to talk about.

The conventional wisdom in recent years around Major League Soccer has been to employ head coaches with some kind of North American soccer experience. Whether that’s as a former player or college coach, clubs have preferred to appoint candidates with some familiarity with the league. The thinking has been that these coaches can get the best from their respective teams, as they understand the intricacies and labours of MLS.

New York City FC have now gone against that grain by hiring Arsenal legend Patrick Vieira as manager. The Frenchman’s hiring, promoted from within due to the team’s connectios with English Premier League side Manchester City, should be seen as a landmark moment for MLS. Not since Ruud Gullit’s ill-fated hiring at LA Galaxy has such a high-profile former player entered the league as a coach.

MORE MLS: David Moyes is tailor-made for MLS, would fit US Soccer.

Vieira’s coaching career has been one of humble beginnings compared with some former players that are thrust into management following retirement. Even former NYCFC manager Jason Kreis became a head coach immediately after hanging up his boots. The former striker retired in May 2007 and promptly took over for former coach John Ellinger on the Real Salt Lake bench. Two seasons later, Kreis’ RSL lifted the MLS Cup.

Prior to this week’s appointment, Vieira had spent all of his coaching career working with Manchester City’s reserves and Elite Development Squad, a fancy name for the club’s youth team. Under Vieira, the EDS captured the 2015 Premier League International Cup, and the players he has helped develop can be seen in both the US and Europe due to various loan deals struck by the Citizens. Currently, the ‘next’ Paul Pogba, France under-19 international Olivier Ntcham, is on loan at Italy’s Genoa, while closer to home, Manchester City loaned both Shay Facey and Angelino to NYCFC. Both made tremendous contributions to the MLS team in 2015. The three Manchester City EDS alumni are just a small sample size of Vieira’s work at the Etihad Campus in Manchester, and all three are now gaining first team experience to build on what was learned from the former Manchester City midfielder.

MORE MLS: 10 things we learned from the second leg of MLS’s conference semifinals.

Taking nothing away from Kreis or the other former MLS players turned coaches, an influx of European educated managers could greatly help the league develop. The argument that coaches without MLS playing experience fail to understand MLS’ rules is a simple cop out. With a general manager working hand in hand, a European coach working on team development and tactics would further player growth, giving a GM the opportunity to piece together a squad while tiptoeing the lines of MLS rules. If MLS clubs continue to look at Europe or South American for designated players to shape and improve teams, it’s time the same is done in management.

Recently, former US men’s national team player and Borussia Dortmund reserve team coach David Wagner joined English Championship team Huddersfield. One couldn’t help but think MLS clubs missed out on the German-American. Although prior to his appointment at Huddersfield, few knew of the coach who played a mere eight times for the US during Steve Sampson’s national team reign from 1996-1998. Yet a coach like Wagner, with a specific ideology for playing soccer, would change the landscape of faceless counterattacking or long ball soccer.

MORE MLS: From champ to chump, DC United is toying with irrelevance.

The league can bring in as many designated players as it wants. However, if coaches with fresh ideas and methodologies aren’t brought into the league as well, MLS will suffer. Vieira has the opportunity to change the tactical and development problems of MLS by implementing his approach into an expensively assembled team.

Just as Jason Kreis influenced the former player straight into management trend, his exit from the NYCFC hotseat may usher in the return of the European educated coach. Vieira’s success still depends on results, but just signing the former French international shows one MLS club is thinking outside the box.

Building on the success of August’s National Premier Soccer League Championship Final, the NPSL has announced five expansion teams ahead of the 2016 season.

The fourth-tier of American soccer will welcome Grand Rapids FC, North County Battalion from Carlsbad, California, Birmingham Hammers, Little Rock Rangers and Shreveport Rafters FC.

With the addition of the five teams, the NPSL’s 2016 season with showcase 70 teams across the USA; although more teams could be announced in the coming months.

The league will once again feature a regional conference structure with conference winners gaining promotion to the playoffs. Last season, teams were split into 11 conferences throughout the country.

Shreveport is the most recent team to be announced for next season and will compete in the South Region’s South Central Conference.

“The Rafters expect to create a family-friendly soccer experience for all types of fans with a competitive team, engrained in furthering the game of soccer in our cities,” club co-owner Will Broyles explained.

“We have a wealth of knowledge in sporting event promotions and a love of the game. Our game day experience for fans will be unparalleled in the league.”

Little Rock Rangers will join Shreveport in the South Region, playing their games at War Memorial Stadium. The club hopes to grow the game in the state and build on the success of the league in the southern part of the USA.

“We hope to grow the awareness of this league and team, not only in Little Rock, but in the state of Arkansas as well,” Little Rock President Jonathan Wardlaw stated. “We hope the people of Arkansas embrace us and show us the same passion and support as they do anything else that comes from the city of Little Rock.”

Last season’s Championship Final saw 18,227 people witness New York Cosmos B’s 2-1 win over Chattanooga FC.

Follow Drew Farmer on Twitter @DrewMFarmer. Drew Farmer is a Manchester, England-based journalist/blogger that writes for World Soccer Talk. Drew also writes his on blog at Soccer Travels. Drew has contributed to Radio Yorkshire MLS Monday, Forza Italian Football, MLSGB and Soccerly. Originally from southwest Missouri, Drew covers Italy’s Serie A, English Premier League, German Bundesliga and the USA’s Major League Soccer.

Only six times in Major League Soccer’s previous 19 seasons has a Supporters’ Shield winner won the MLS Cup.

Let’s look at that again. Since MLS’ first season in 1996, only six times has the Supporters’ Shield winner gone on to claim the MLS Cup; the most prestigious prize in USA and Canadian club soccer.

Of the six occasions that this has happened, only four teams were able to claim the double: DC United in 1997 and 1999, Kansas City Wizards/Sporting KC in 2000, LA Galaxy 2002 and 2011, and the Columbus Crew in 2008.

With the Supporters’ Shield winner winning the MLS Cup only six times, this begs the question: does the Supporters’ Shield matter?

The simple answer is no.

MLS’ postseason format doesn’t reward the overall points winner. In fact, the only rewards the top team in the regular season receives is a bye into the Conference quarterfinals and a berth into the CONCACAF Champions League. The latter is a competition no MLS team has won yet, though Real Salt Lake and Montreal Impact have both put on strong showings in the tournament. In the case of the former, the MLS Cup Playoffs is a competition that has shown that teams need to be in form and to be hot at the right moment. Just being the overall points winner in the regular season has little to no bearing on postseason results.

For all the great work FC Dallas has done this term, there is no guarantee the team will make the final. In truth, accumulating the most points in the regular season has been a detriment when the playoffs have arrived.

Despite only six teams winning the MLS double, one would expect more Supporters’ Shield winners to at least make it to the final. Yet, only on one occasion has a team, Chicago Fire in 2003, been the best in the regular season and lost in the final.

The MLS regular season is taxing. Travel across time zones, varying weather conditions in different regions and a salary structure that promotes a few star players, several above average to average MLS competitors and numerous players that lack talent and skill, or both.

How does MLS make the Supporters’ Shield mean more?

The simplest solution to making the Supporters’ Shield mean more is to give teams more of an incentive to win it. MLS Commissioner Don Garber can rest easy, because there is no need to abolish his beloved playoff system or the two conference structure the league believes North American soccer fans crave.

The simplest answer is, the Supporters’ Shield winner should automatically qualify for the MLS Cup Final. No need to play four additional games to get to the final, no need to exert themselves anymore than the team already has. The team should that is the best in the regular season shouldn’t have to prove themselves against teams they weren’t as good in the 34 previous matches.

Looking at the table with one weekend of play to go, FC Dallas currently sits top of the Supporters’ Shield table. If the Texas club hold on to first place, as it appears they will, the club will still need to put down two clubs to get into the final.

Dallas has ten losses this season. Six of those defeats have come against four of the five teams that have, as of today, made the Western Conference playoffs. Again, there is no guarantee the Hoops will host the final. MLS’ 20th season looks just as likely as the 19 before to finish with a team unable to complete the double, which again shows the league’s best team may not be crowned as the league’s best team. 

Follow Drew Farmer on Twitter @DrewMFarmer. Drew Farmer is a Manchester, England-based journalist/blogger that writes for World Soccer Talk.Drew also writes his on blog at Soccer Travels. Drew has contributed to Radio Yorkshire MLS Monday, Forza Italian Football, MLSGB and Soccerly. Originally from southwest Missouri, Drew covers Italy’s Serie A, English Premier League and the USA’s Major League Soccer.

On August 8, the National Premier Soccer League shocked the US soccer landscape by drawing a record crowd to Chattanooga FC’s Finley Stadium for the NPSL National Championship match. Although many of the 18,227 fans left disappointed after Chattanooga fell to New York Cosmos B, interest in the league and Chattanooga FC was raised.

Considered the fourth-tier of US soccer, the NPSL was made up of 68 teams stretched across the country in 2015. Split into regional conferences, Chattanooga FC played their fourth NPSL Final in six seasons. Always the bridesmaid, the club are still looking for their first piece of NPSL Championship silverware. This year’s final marked the second consecutive year the team had lost to a ‘B-squad’ from New York, as the team lost the 2014 installment to New York Red Bulls U-23. Despite the setback, however, the club is extremely optimistic for the future; and proud of the ground they have covered since debuting in 2009.

Recently, in an exclusive interview with World Soccer Talk, Chattanooga FC co-founder Tim Kelly spoke about the club’s success and their ambitions for the future.

Drew Farmer: Firstly, let’s start with the amazing crowd that came out to Finley Stadium for the NPSL National Championship game between Chattanooga FC and New York Cosmos B. A reported 18,227 were at the final. What was the atmosphere like for that game and how has the support for the club been throughout the season, because most of the US soccer media has only just picked up on Chattanooga FC thanks to the final?

Time Kelly: The atmosphere for that game was incredible. Watching the pre-game ticket sales climb past our previous total attendance record was just surreal, and then seeing that crowd in the stadium was just beyond anything we dreamed possible when we founded the club. Support throughout the season was good, but slightly lower than what we hoped for, largely, we think, due to some mid­week games. However, I think we still lead the NPSL by a wide margin in average attendance at 4,673.

Drew Farmer: Obviously, the soccer has to be good to bring people out, but Chattanooga regularly does well in attendance. What’s the team’s secret to success?

Tim Kelly: Well, if it were a secret, I’m not sure I’d share it, but as best I can tell, it’s this: we have an incredible supporters group, the Chattahooligans, who really make the players feel loved, so they play great, which attracts more fans, which attracts the best players the following season, and the “virtuous circle” just spirals upwards. It also helps that we have a great facility in Finley Stadium, and we stay on top of technology and social media to market and manage the enterprise in the most efficient way possible. And finally, we manage our brand very carefully and intentionally.

Drew Farmer: With such a great turnout for the final, do you feel Chattanooga, Nashville or Memphis, could be a future home to a North American Soccer League or Major League Soccer franchise? Is Tennessee able to support a team at that level?

Tim Kelly: We actually just created a spreadsheet with all of the data with all the markets we feel are comparable to try to determine what’s reasonable. The thing that jumped out at me was that Chattanooga plus Salt Lake City is not as large as Nashville! Chattanooga is a small market of modest means, plain and simple (#99 in the MSA rankings) so we need to be very careful to just be the best version of ourselves and not try to be something we’re not. We’re not thrilled with the setup, structure, or stability of any of the current league structures, so we are biding our time, and are not going to do anything unless we’re sure it’ll honor our fans and our city, and their wallets, in the process.

Drew Farmer: Let’s talk about Chattanooga FC and your history as a team. The club currently play in the National Premier Soccer League, which is the fourth-tier of US soccer. Is the team’s main objective to develop future professionals in MLS, NASL or United Soccer League?

Tim Kelly: Our internal “vision statement” established after our first season was to be “The best amateur soccer club in the US”. Having won the Hank Steinbrecher Cup this year, we can now say that on the field and I think from the front office perspective as well, considering our attendance. The question for us now, is whether to continue with that, or try to ramp it up to the next level? Frankly, we’re pretty darn happy doing what we’re doing.

Drew Farmer: So, 2015 was the seventh season for the club. Can you tell me about some of the notable players to come though the team and gone on to teams in higher tiers of the American soccer pyramid?

Tim Kelly: Some of the more notable have been Mark Sherrod (San Jose Earthquakes), Niall McCabe (Louisville City), Sean McFarlane and Thomas Hunter (Atlanta Silverbacks).

Drew Farmer: With the success of Chattanooga FC, is there a chance the club will look to join the third­ tier United Soccer League or the second ­tier North American Soccer League in the future?

Tim Kelly: We see the PDL as a lateral move, at best, so that definitely isn’t happening. We don’t agree that it’s the third-tier, and NPSL is fourth. We beat PDL teams regularly. As for the other moves, we are not in any hurry. We know who we are, and are flattered by the attention, but are not going to betray our roots or our core principles, which are to provide a great value to our fans and reflect the culture of our city.

Drew Farmer: Back to this past season, tell me about some of the standout players and coach Bill Elliot. How important has his work been with this club?

Tim Kelly: Bill has been outstanding, obviously. He’s just a great fit with the players and the board and would probably enjoy being here even if we stank because he grew up here, and this allows him to bring his wife and kids back here in the summer to be near his parents. As far as players go, they are quite literally a team, and have meshed with the community phenomenally well. There are plenty of favorites, but as an old goalkeeper, I have a special place for Greg Hartley and Chris Baker, an outstanding keeper, though he didn’t get a ton of time in net. As for the others, we clearly would not have gotten where we did this year without Luke Winter. Luke has that nose for goal that cannot be coached. And at the back, Sean Rutter really got it done for us this year as well. Leo DeSmedt was also very key at clutch times, and a ton of fun to watch. He caught the eye of many new fans. In addition, Chris Ochieng has been a soldier for us for many years, just a bedrock of a player. Other standouts that must be mentioned: Luis Trude and Zeca, our No. 8 and No. 9, both gave opposing sides absolute fits and created tons of space for the strikers to work with.

Drew Farmer: Finally, let’s look ahead to 2016. What are the club’s plans? Can we expect more crowds like the ones we saw at the end of the season at Finley Stadium?

Tim Kelly: Well, our dirty little secret is that we’re run by a volunteer board of six to eight guys; depending on workloads, day jobs and vacations. We really love this game and this city, and bust our butts to put on this show every year. We really have only one paid administrative staffer. We’re realizing now that this has grown beyond our ability to do in our spare time, so we will be doing some “deep dives” in the off­ season to see what’s next. But I think you can expect that it’ll be bigger and better. We are not backing up, that’s for sure!

Check out Chattanooga FC’s official website for more information on the club along with the NPSL’s official website.

Follow Drew Farmer on Twitter @DrewMFarmer. Drew Farmer is a Manchester, England-based journalist/blogger that writes for World Soccer Talk. Drew also writes his on blog at Soccer Travels. Drew has contributed to Radio Yorkshire MLS Monday, Forza Italian Football, MLSGB and Soccerly. Originally from southwest Missouri, Drew covers Italy’s Serie A, English Premier League, German Bundesliga and the USA’s Major League Soccer.

After four consecutive Scudetti titles, it looks like Juventus’ grip of Serie A has narrowed. The reigning four-time Italian champions kick-start their Serie A campaign on Saturday night against Udinese, but the side that faces the Zebrette will have many questions surrounding it. 

Coach Massimiliano Allegri must replace the irreplaceable, as Carlos Tevez, Artur Vidal and Andrea Pirlo are all gone. Tevez will be the most difficult to replace, but new signings Paulo Dybala and Mario Mandzukic look capable, both scored in Juventus’ Supercoppa Italiana win against Lazio. Without Tevez’s 20 Serie A goals, there could be room for change at the top.

Roma’s additions of Iago Falque, Edin Dzeko and Mohamed Salah, has many believing this could be the Giallorossi’s year. Roma was expected to run Juventus close last season, but after a great start, the Romans nosedived – going winless in nine of ten matches between January 11th and March 16th. In the end, the Giallorossi missed out on its first Scudetto in 14 years. This season, expectations are as high as ever in Rome and Rudi Garcia must be at his best following last season’s disappointment or the axe will finally fall on the Frenchman. 

SEE MORE: beIN SPORTS renews Serie A TV rights in US through 2018.

This Serie A season will also be a season of firsts as both last season’s Serie B champions Carpi and runners-up Frosinone will compete in Serie A for the first time. They will be joined by playoff winners Bologna, who bounced back to Serie A after one year in the lower division. The road will be difficult for all three and expectations for the debutants to return to Serie B are high. 

In the fashion capital of Europe, Inter and AC Milan have both been busy upgrading their squads. The two Milanese clubs finished eighth and tenth respectively a season ago. Roberto Mancini has worked hard to strengthen an Inter team that was short on talent in 2014/15 and has already added a proven Serie A goal scorer in Stevan Jovetic. Geoffrey Kondogbia arrived for €28 million and the former Monaco midfielder brings a tough tackling style to what was a soft Inter midfield.

Programming note: Even if you don’t have a TV subscription to beIN SPORTS, you can watch the Serie A live throughout the season on fuboTV. Sign up for a free 24-hour trial.

While Inter’s dealings have been modest, AC Milan has spent money this summer, signing Italian playmaker Andrea Bertolacci (€20m) and goalscorers Carlos Bacca (€30m) and Luiz Adriano (€8m). In addition, the Rossoneri finally addressed a hideous central defense that gave up 50 goals last term. Alessio Romagnoli arrived from Roma for €25m. 

While last season’s third place finishers Lazio have done very little in the transfer market, the Biancocelesti had far less to do than its direct rivals.  Lazio has already gotten its Champions League campaign up and running, beating Bayer Leverkusen in the first leg of the playoff round. Despite consistent form under coach Stefano Pioli, Lazio’s biggest problems are a lack of quality depth. Despite this, Felipe Anderson will be key to igniting Lazio’s attack. The Brazilian tallied 10 goals and seven assists in 32 games last season. Expect another big year from the Lazio No. 10.

Last season’s fourth and fifth place finishers, Fiorentina and Napoli, both disappointed in the end. However this term, both are back with new coaches and a new set of expectations. Paolo Sousa takes over at the Stadio Artemio Franchi and is joined by new arrival Mario Suarez from Atletico Madrid. The Viola will look to finally crack the top three, but with Roma and the Milan clubs upgrading, it will be difficult. The key is Giuseppe Rossi, who has played a mere 22 Serie A games since arriving in 2013. If Rossi can stay fit for once, then he can add to his 16 career Fiorentina goals and lead them into Champions League soccer. 

Last May, Napoli said, “Arrivederci!” to Rafael Benitez. The Spaniard’s time at Napoli will be remembered for winning the Coppa Italia and the Supercoppa Italiana. Other than that, there weren’t too many positive notes. Maurizio Sarri takes over from Benitez after leading Empoli to 15th place last season. Despite being tipped to be relegated back to Serie B, Sarri played a team of Italian youngsters and Serie A veterans. The results were stunning as Empoli took points away from Roma, Lazio and Napoli on its way to Serie A survival. 

Napoli has done excellent transfer business, bringing Pepe Reina back to the club where he played in 2013/14, and signing Allan from Udinese and Mirko Valdifiori from Empoli. All three should improve the side and despite Sarri’s lack of experience at a “big” club, Napoli should improve on last season’s fifth place finish. 

The rest of the 2015/16 Serie A will be made up of dreamers and also-rans. The two Ligurian clubs, Genoa and Sampdoria, have seen changes to last season’s overachieving sides. Genoa has already seen several players leave through sales or expired loan deals. On the other hand, Sampdoria lost its coach as Sinisa Mihajlovic is now at AC Milan. 

Torino, Hellas Verona, Palermo and Sassuolo have all retained their coaches ahead of the season, and that stability should see another season of mid-table security . Finally, Atalanta, Udinese, Empoli and Chievo, all have coaches that have been in the job for less than a year. Can they be more consistent and stay away from the relegation zone this time around? 

The questions will begin to be answered on Saturday as the 114th season of Italian top-flight soccer kicks off. Only one thing in Serie A is for sure and that is, this season will be like no other before it.

Follow Drew Farmer on Twitter @Calciofarmer. Drew Farmer is a Manchester, England-based journalist/blogger that writes for World Soccer Talk. Drew has contributed to Radio Yorkshire MLS Monday, Forza Italian Football, Soccer Travels, MLSGB and Soccerly. Originally from southwest Missouri, Drew covers Italy’s Serie A, English Premier League, German Bundesliga and the USA’s Major League Soccer.

Close your eyes and imagine for a moment, that you are the owner or president of a Major League Soccer team. Despite being five points from the last playoff spot, the team is in last place in its conference. Your team is the only team not to win a road game during the regular season. You have a chance to make the playoffs with a strong push. The talent is there, but the tactics and use of the players is not. What do you do?

Now, what if your team hired a “club legend” to be coach. This former player had no prior coaching experience. The team has scored the fewest amount of goals in 2015, look lost on the field and the team’s highest goal scorer happens to be a designated player that has only scored four times. What do you do?

Open your eyes, because these examples come from the 2015 MLS season. The former is the Chicago Fire while the latter is the Colorado Rapids. Two teams that have been awful this season and neither club seem to want to improve. 

No MLS head coach has been fired since the season started. How this has happened is mind-boggling due to the fact that several teams have been abysmal. With no sackings taking place, it begs the questions, do the suits running MLS teams know what good soccer looks like? Or do they care if they make the playoffs? It seems the suits are happy if their team backs its way into the playoff. Unfortunately, backing your way into the playoffs is something that happens in MLS. 

With 12 teams making the postseason in MLS, it’s not that difficult for teams to qualify. And as numerous teams have shown over the years, all you have to do is make the playoffs and something special may happen. In the Eastern Conference, 34 points may be enough to make the playoffs. That’s one point per game. The west is better, though slightly, and it should take 40 to 45 points for the last playoff spot. Something Colorado Rapids will not achieve as the team sit 11 points behind sixth place Seattle. 

The MLS Playoffs, unfortunately, reward mediocrity by allowing teams into the postseason that don’t deserve to be there. The MLS Cup and the Supporters’ Shield are both devalued when teams that barely make the playoffs have a chance at winning the most prestigious prize in the league.

Frank Yallop’s Fire has been bad, there’s no arguing. Long a team built on defense, Chicago has been poor in recent years with 2014 being its worst in team history. Yallop has three Designated Players in David Accam, Shaun Maloney and Kennedy Igboananike. Maloney has been injured much of the season and continues to be linked with a move to English Championship side Hull City. Meanwhile, Accam and Igboananike have combined for 10 goals. But Yallop has failed to find a way to get his DPs firing consistently. Tactically, the Fire favor attacking down the flanks and crossing into the box, which statistically (according to Soccernomics) is a low percentage way to score. 

Colorado isn’t any different and every time Pablo Mastroeni earns a victory he’s praised as the next former player excelling as a MLS coach. Like the Fire, Colorado prefer long ball tactics. Poor finishing has been one of the Rapids’ downfalls in 2015, which points to their league low in goals scored. 

Colorado can say the club is building for the future, but this season will be its second without making the playoffs. Chicago on the other hand, can’t be given the benefit of the doubt. If the club is building, it looks poorly built, though the Fire’s attack has been assembled better than the rest of the team. 

If the Fire do not make the MLS Playoffs in 2015, that will mark the fifth time in six seasons the club hasn’t qualified. The 2012 season was the last time the Fire graced the postseason, losing in the knockout round to Houston Dynamo. 

Bottom of the west, the Rapids can afford to wait until the offseason, though it is unlikely the team will make a change. The Fire, who has an outside shot at the playoffs, the time is right now. A shake up in training, tactics and personnel could push them in closing months of the season. This won’t happen and if it does, won’t happen in time.  

Listen to Drew on Radio Yorkshire MLS Monday

Follow Drew Farmer on Twitter @Calciofarmer. Drew Farmer is a Manchester, England-based journalist/blogger that writes for World Soccer Talk. Drew has contributed to Radio Yorkshire MLS Monday, Forza Italian Football, Soccer Travels, MLSGB and Soccerly. Originally from southwest Missouri, Drew covers Italy’s Serie A, English Premier League and the USA’s Major League Soccer.

Gone are the days of Rory Delap’s long throw-ins, Robert Huth’s physicality and Tony Pulis’ route one soccer at Stoke City. Not that there’s anything wrong with that style of play. The traditional refrain of “a rainy, cold Tuesday night,” no longer applies to the side that has been constructed.

The brand of soccer that fans at the Britannia had grown accustomed to under Pulis has slowly changed in recent years. In his third season as manager, Mark Hughes has reinvented the club’s style. No longer are Stoke recruiting from the lower leagues of English soccer, rather the Potters have gone European in their recruitment of player personnel.

Hughes has recruited talented players with “big” European club experience. Marc Muniesa, Bojan Krkic and Ibrahim Affellay, just three examples of their new recruits, who all played for Barcelona, which has landed Stoke the new nickname ‘Stokelona’.

While all three were astute signings, Stoke’s arrival as a team to be taken seriously was cemented by this week’s club record £12 million ($18.7m) signing of Xherdan Shaqiri.

Enter Shaqiri

Bought by Inter Milan last January for £10.5m ($16.4m), according to Transfermarkt, Shaqiri failed to fit into coach Roberto Mancini’s side after the Italian originally persuaded him to join the Nerazzurri. The Swiss international played 15 times, starting eight and contributing a mere one goal and two assists during his seven months at the San Siro.

Inter finished a disappointing eighth, just missing out on Europa League qualification. With Inter desperately in need of addressing key areas to a poor team, it was Mancini himself that urged the Swiss attacker to seek pastures new.

Enter Stoke City

“It’s no secret that we have been pursuing Xherdan for some time now and we are delighted to have finally secured his signature,” chief executive Tony Scholes said.

“He’s an exciting young player who is really looking forward to playing in the Premier League having played at the very highest level in Germany with Bayern Munich and in Italy with Inter.”

“Xherdan will be a fantastic addition to our squad and adds to the attacking options at the manager’s disposal.”

Capable of playing in central attacking role or as a winger, Shaqiri certainly adds to Hughes’ options. In Sunday’s loss to Liverpool, Hughes played a 4-2-3-1 formation, with Afellay on the left and Jonathan Walters on the right of a attacking trident – along with Charlie Adam – supporting Mame Biram Diouf. Presumably, Shaqiri will slot in for Walters, giving opposition full-backs headaches with the two attackers capable of working down the flanks or cutting inside.

“He’s a dynamic and explosive player who will bring something different to the group and at the age of 23 he still has a great deal of potential,” manager Hughes said.

“In the chats I’ve had with him it’s obvious that he’s excited about playing in the Premier League and showing what he’s capable of.”

While an eighth place finish was disappointing at Inter, a top eight finish would be praised at the Britannia. Hughes has a contract with the Potters until 2019, which gives the Stokelona project a chance to grow under the Welshman’s guidance.

Follow Drew Farmer on Twitter @Calciofarmer. Drew Farmer is a Manchester, England-based journalist/blogger that writes for World Soccer Talk, MLSGB and can be heard on Radio Yorkshire MLS Monday. Drew has also written for Forza Italian Football, Bleacher Report and Soccerly. Originally from southwest Missouri, Drew covers Italy’s Serie A, British football and the USA’s Major League Soccer. Check out his personal blog Soccer Travels.

On Saturday at Old Trafford, Sergio Romero’s Manchester United career got off to a shaky start thanks to a couple wayward passes. However, the former Monaco and Sampdoria goalkeeper settled down, preserving United’s lead late in the team’s EPL curtain raiser to beat Tottenham Hotspur 1-0.

Manchester United weren’t great in attack, needing an own goal from Spurs’ Kyle Walker to get off the mark. The Londoners were the much more adventures side early on, until the goal forced them back into a more conservative shell.

However, when Spurs finally came forward near the end of the 90 minutes, it was Romero’s solid goalkeeping, four saves, that kept Tottenham at bay in the second half. Romero commanded his area expertly, claiming balls that came into the 18-yard box as well as stopping Christian Eriksen’s ferious shot from just outside the area.

Clearly United’s number two goalkeeper, Romero was a shock selection as David De Gea’s possible move to Real Madrid gained more traction with the Spaniard in the stands. De Gea sat next to two other current United goalkeepers in Victor Valdes and Anders Lindegaard, both out of favor.

SEE MORE: Read Manchester United’s 2015/16 season preview.

In his pre-game interview courtesy of BT Sport, manager Louis van Gaal looked a bit nervous fielding questions about De Gea’s exclusion from the season opener. Luckily for both player and manager, Romero was able to quiet any critics for the time being.

Signed on a free-transfer following the completion of his Sampdoria contract, Romero’s addition surprised many; especially those that witnessed some of his performances in Serie A last term. Despite being Argentina’s No. 1, a fact down to the country’s lack of goalkeepers more than anything, Romero seemed to lack the qualities of a goalkeeper for a club like United.

On Saturday against Tottenham, however, Romero’s decision making was excellent; and he manned his line as if he was already the club’s No. 1. He had a point to prove and, for at least now, he proved that De Gea may be expendable. Though Romero’s distribution showed he has plenty to work on in training.

Obviously, Romero will be put to the test in weeks to come, that is, if he is still in goal. Even if De Gea is sold, Spurs’ Hugo Lloris could be on his way to Old Trafford. Lloris sat out the Saturday’s affair due to fitness. Though, he did make Spurs’ bench.

In terms of Romero, the 2012/13 season was the last time he played more than ten games in a term for one team as that year he played 32 times for Sampdoria.

He followed up that successful Sampdoria season by moving to big spending Monaco on loan. There he found playing time difficult, and featured a mere three times before returning to Sampdoria as a back up to Emiliano Viviano.

Against Spurs, Romero and right-back Matteo Damian looked like United’s most astute summer signings. Although Morgan Schneiderlin put in a good, if not unspectacular, shift. It was actually United’s attack that looked in need of help as near $30 million signing Memphis Depay got his Premier League feet wet for the first time. He did what he could, but Wayne Rooney was left to feed on scraps at times.

United travel to Birmingham to face Aston Villa next Friday before opening UEFA Champions League qualification against Belgium’s Club Brugge. Romero’s performance, for now, will give Van Gaal respite until the De Gea saga is over.

Follow Drew Farmer on Twitter @Calciofarmer. Drew Farmer is a Manchester, England-based journalist/blogger that writes for World Soccer Talk. Drew has contributed to Radio Yorkshire MLS Monday, Forza Italian Football, Bleacher Report, MLSGB and Soccerly. Originally from southwest Missouri, Drew covers Italy’s Serie A, British football and the USA’s Major League Soccer.

The National Premier Soccer League National Championship match between Chattanooga FC and New York Cosmos B has been set for Saturday night August 8th.

The fourth-tier of US soccer showcases talent from around the country with 65 teams in 12 regional divisions. The NPSL will hold its show piece final in Chattanooga, Tennessee at Finley Stadium with kick-off taking place at 7:30pm ET.

Chattanooga set the league’s attendance record (9,236) in their previous match, which helped the league’s decision to play the game in Tennessee. 

“The NPSL National Championship will be a great showcase for the NPSL in front of what we expect to be a record setting crowd,” stated Cosmos Chief Operating Officer Erik Stover. “Cosmos B is about developing young talent for our first team and this will be a great test for our guys.” 

New York Cosmos B is in its first season of play in the NPSL while Chattanooga has been in the league since 2009. This is Chattanooga’s second consecutive season in the final, losing last year’s championship match 3-1 to New York Red Bulls U-23. 

“We are thrilled to host such an iconic soccer name as the New York Cosmos,” Chattanooga FC General Manager Sean McDaniel added.  “Showcasing the NPSL National Championship in Chattanooga will definitely put this match and the entire league on a national stage. We drew over 9,000 fans for the NPSL National Semi-Final and have every expectation to draw that many again and more.”

For those not in the Chattanooga area, the game will be streamed live and free of charge. 

Follow Drew Farmer on Twitter @Calciofarmer. Drew Farmer is a Manchester, England-based journalist/blogger that writes for World Soccer Talk. Drew has contributed to Radio Yorkshire MLS Monday, Forza Italian Football, Bleacher Report, MLSGB and Soccerly. Originally from southwest Missouri, Drew covers Italy’s Serie A, British football and the USA’s Major League Soccer.

The 2015 season was meant to be one of rebuilding for the New York Red Bulls. Gone were Thierry Henry and Tim Cahill, two players that were expected to bring silverware to the franchise. 

That silverware never really materialized, at least not the trophy, the MLS Cup, that matters most. The Red Bulls did win the 2013 Supporters’ Shield, but fans of MLS may be forgiven if they had forgotten that feat. 

Along with losing two of their highest profile players, the Red Bulls had a shake up at the management level as Andy Roxburgh retired and Ali Curtis took over as Sporting Director. His first action was to fire coach Mike Petke. 

Curtis installed former Montreal Impact coach Jesse Marsch as new first team coach, and with New York City FC entering MLS play, expectations seemed lowered.

In terms of player personnel, the Red Bulls’ biggest off-season move was to sign star striker Bradley Wright-Phillips to a designated player contract – nearly doubling last season’s base salary of $330,000. 

In addition to adding the Englishman to the league’s DP list, the club landed former Chivas USA and US international Sacha Kljestan from Anderlecht. While with the Belgian giants, Kljestan became the only American to regularly appear in the UEFA Champions League. 

With the retention of Wright-Phillips and the signing of Kljestan, the Red Bulls were merely meant to compete for a playoff place in the east. New York City FC, the Red Bull’s new noisy neighbors invested heavily in older, more experienced players. With the investments in David Villa, Andrea Pirlo and Frank Lampard, who would have thought the Red Bulls would continue to be the premier team of New York?

“Personally, I always thought they had the pieces to compete,” Empire of Soccer’s Dave Martinez told World Soccer Talk this week. “Having said that, yes, they are exceeding expectations,” 

Despite being eight points behind current Eastern Conference and Supporters’ Shield leaders DC United, the Red Bulls cannot be written off for either title by season’s end. Due to the summer friendly fixture list, the Red Bulls have three games in hand. Those nine points can easily help the Harrison outfit to overcome their I-95 rivals. It also helps that the Red Bulls are the current form leaders in the Easter Conference. 

New York made two key additions at the end of July, with one already coming good in the team’s win over Philadelphia Union on August 1. Shaun Wright-Phillips joined his brother Bradley in the city that never sleeps, and made an immediate impact, winning a penalty and later adding an assist for Bradley to expertly slot home. 

The club also added Argentine striker Gonzalo Veron from San Lorenzo on a DP deal days later. The club paid a $2.2 million transfer fee to the Argentine club.

Regardless of the money spent, neither man is guaranteed a place in the team’s current starting XI.

“Shaun Wright-Phillips joined last week and Marsch never guaranteed him starting minutes,” stated Martinez. “Veron will have to earn his spot, DP or not.”

Investment in both Shaun Wright-Phillips and Veron is down to the promising position the Red Bulls are in at the halfway point of the season. With the transfer window closing, the Red Bulls should be lauded for their summer dealings.

The third and final Hudson River Derby is on tap for this weekend at Red Bull Arena. This will be the most star studded and fiery yet as both clubs should have their “big” names available. 

With the playoffs approaching and teams positioning for a spot, the Red Bulls will finish the 2015 season with eight of 13 matches at Red Bull Arena, including an August 30th encounter with DC United. The Red Bulls are on the up and DC United need to look over their shoulders as MLS hits the final stretch.  

Follow Drew Farmer on Twitter @Calciofarmer. Drew Farmer is a Manchester, England-based journalist/blogger that writes for World Soccer Talk. Drew has contributed to Radio Yorkshire MLS Monday, Forza Italian Football, Bleacher Report, MLSGB and Soccerly. Originally from southwest Missouri, Drew covers Italy’s Serie A, British football and the USA’s Major League Soccer.

Major League Soccer’s teams have been very active this season searching for designated players to increase the already high profile of the league.

With teams like New York City FC going for experienced 30-somethings and LA Galaxy signing a mix of experienced ex-EPL players and internationals, there is a plethora of talent the rest of MLS is overlooking.

With the MLS transfer window ending this week, here are five players that clubs in the league should be – and should have – been targeting all along. There is, however, always the next transfer window.

1. Alexandre Pato

Alexandre Pato spent many of his final days at AC Milan watching from the sidelines. The Brazilian was often injured and when we he wasn’t he struggled to find his form. In spite of this, he still tallied 51 goals in 117 games in Serie A.

Since moving back to Brazil, Pato has had mixed results, despite scoring 30 times for Corinthians and Sao Paulo, respectively. Currently, Pato is only on loan at Sao Paulo and Corinthians are shopping the striker around. Pato is reportedly available for just under $8 million and has been offered to English Premier League side Sunderland.

Looking to make a splash, Pato would have been an interesting signing by any ambitious MLS playoff hunting team. Despite his injury problems, MLS would be more kind to the Brazilian’s body than the EPL.

2. Fabio Borini

Fabio Borini is surplus to requirements at Liverpool and is finding a move away from Anfield a little bit difficult this summer. Much like Mario Balotelli, Liverpool seem desperate to get Borini off their books. A deal with the Reds could be done on the cheap – possibly a loan – as Borini has managed a mere three goals in 38 appearances for Liverpool.

Despite his Liverpool output, Borini is a very talented striker and has featured for the likes of Chelsea, Swansea City and Roma in the past. With Roma, the Italian tallied ten goals in 26 games. The 24-year-old has plenty of potential and a move to North America could be just what the striker needs to rediscover his form.

3. Alberto Aquilani

Alberto Aquilani cost Rafael Benitez’s Liverpool nearly $27m in 2009. Despite being injured when he was purchased from Roma, big things were expected from the Italian.

Twenty-eight games and two goals later, Aquilani was sent out on loan to Juventus before spending a season on loan at AC Milan.

Cutting their losses, Liverpool sold the midfielder for just over $1m to Fiorentina, where he was able to rediscover some of his form.

After three seasons with the Viola, Aquilani is currently a free agent, according to Transfermarkt. Capable of playing as an attacking playmaker or a deep laying passer, Aquilani would be a Pirlo-alternative to a team in need of some midfield pass creativity.

4. Heiko Westermann

While some may love the free scoring MLS, there is no doubt the league is quite defensively inept. Former German international Heiko Westermann could be one way of fixing those defensive problems for teams near the top of the table

At the beginning of the 2015 season, only four designated players were defensive personnel: Matt Besler, Liam Ridgewell, Omar Gonzalez and DeMarcus Beasley. Gonzalez has since become the guinea pig for the Target Allocation Money mechanism in MLS, while Beasley has traditionally been a winger.

Westermann’s leadership and experience would be a huge asset to New York Red Bulls or DC United as both clubs exert their dominance in the east. A solid center-back in front of Bill Hamid would make the red and black even more dangerous as the postseason approaches.

5. Urby Emanuelson

A product of the famed Ajax youth team, Urby Emanuelson would be a perfect fit to any MLS team. Though the Dutchman found life very difficult since leaving Ajax in 2011 with stops at AC Milan, Fulham, Roma and Atalanta, his high-energy approach is similar to the North American style.

Emanuelson has been used as a utility man in recent times and can play at left-back, left wing or in central midfield. That versatility is what many MLS coaches and general managers crave when putting a team together.

At 29-years old, Emanuelson is in need of revitalizing a stagnating career in Europe. A step down in levels would be a way of doing that and help the Dutchman forget about the last three seasons in Italy.

Follow Drew Farmer on Twitter @Calciofarmer. Drew Farmer is a Manchester, England-based journalist/blogger that writes for World Soccer Talk. Drew has contributed to Radio Yorkshire MLS Monday, Forza Italian Football, Bleacher Report, MLSGB and Soccerly. Originally from southwest Missouri, Drew covers Italy’s Serie A, British football and the USA’s Major League Soccer.

Following the success of his younger brother Bradley, former Manchester City, Chelsea and Queens Park Rangers’ winger Shaun Wright-Phillips has officially put pen to paper – sealing a move to the New York Red Bulls. 

Now with New York’s premier Major League Soccer team, Shaun Wright-Phillips will attempt to do the same thing his brother Bradley did, revive his flailing career in the US and Canada’s top-flight. 

Unlike Bradley, however, Shaun will not occupy a designated player roster spot, leaving the team open to make a big-money deal in the coming weeks. 

Shaun Wright-Phillips, who spent numerous years with three of the richest club’s in England, broke into top-flight football with Manchester City. At the time, the club were far from the big spending, star-studded team they now resemble. 

Making his debut in 1999, the tricky, speedster spent six seasons with City before making a lucrative £21 million move Chelsea. City, eager to cash in on Wright-Phillips at the time, sold the playmaker despite his desire to stay with the club. 

“I didn’t actually have a choice,” he said later in an interview. “Everybody seemed to think it was something that I wanted to do, but I was happy playing for City. I didn’t want to leave, but [staying] wasn’t an option I had. City were in a bad situation and the money they were offered was hard for them to refuse.

“In the car on the way down I was crying because I didn’t want to go.”

That desire to stay could explain Wright-Phillips time at Chelsea as in 124 appearances for the Stamford Bridge outfit, Wright-Phillips managed a mere ten goals as he failed to make an impact on the squad. He was sold back to Manchester City for less than half the transfer fee that took him to London.

The winger’s return to Manchester under manager Mark Hughes was heralded by fans. However, Wright-Phillips was unable to return to the consistent form he had shown in his first spell at the club.

Four miserable seasons with QPR followed with each season being progressively worse. Last term, Wright-Phillips featured an unimpressive four times, although he reportedly took home just over $5m in wages as the Hoops were relegated from the English Premier League. 

Wright-Phillips signing shows the Red Bulls are attempting to put winning over name-value in 2015. The club’s biggest move prior was the transfer purchase of former Chivas USA midfielder Sacha Kljestan. 

Kljestan, currently making a base salary of $400,000 in 2015, has excelled since returning from Belgium’s Anderlecht. There’s no question Shaun Wright-Phillips can do the same as he joins Kljestan and Lloyd Sam as a triumvirate of attacking talent, supporting main man Bradley.

Living in the shadow of their new noisy neighbors, New York City FC, the Red Bulls are benefiting from what appears to be a more relaxed media eye. Instead of competing with NYC’s big money signings, the club are doing their talking on the pitch, adding quality when available.

So far it is working as the club sit third in the Eastern Conference, nine points behind first place DC United. While nine points may seem insurmountable, the Red Bulls have four games in hand as the club return to MLS action at the weekend. 

Wright-Phillips is expected to make his debut on Saturday against the Philadelphia Union as both he and brother Bradley will play together for the first time since 2004, when both wore Manchester City blue. 

Though the Red Bulls haven’t made the same waves as the new team in the Bronx, they’ve quietly put together a solid season. Further re-enforcements and the Red Bulls should battle eastern rivals DC United right down to the final match day for top spot in the conference. 

Follow Drew Farmer on Twitter @Calciofarmer. Drew Farmer is a Manchester, England-based journalist/blogger that writes for World Soccer Talk. Drew has contributed to Radio Yorkshire MLS Monday, Forza Italian Football, Bleacher Report, MLSGB and Soccerly. Originally from southwest Missouri, Drew covers Italy’s Serie A, British football and the USA’s Major League.

If the Los Angeles Galaxy weren’t the favourites to win the 2015 MLS Cup, and why wouldn’t they be after winning three in the last four seasons, than they certainly should be now. 

Not only did the Galaxy sign Steven Gerrard to a designated player contract last January for a reported $9 million, 18-month contract; but the team have now one-upped themselves with what is being called the “biggest signing of the summer”. 

Los Angeles’ only MLS side have now added Mexican star Giovani Dos Santos to their solar system for a cool $7m transfer fee. The Los Angeles Times reports, Dos Santos contract will run for the next four and half years, earning the Mexican international $27m.

Controversial signing or not, Dos Santos’ addition is enormous for the club. While the Mexican may have played for seven clubs previously – including Barcelona, Tottenham Hotspur and most recently Villarreal – his draw on and off the pitch is massive. 

At 26-years-old, Dos Santos is in the prime of his career. Despite 2014/15 being a down season for him at Villarreal – one goal and three assists in 26 games – Dos Santos can be for the Galaxy, what Sebastian Giovinco is for Toronto FC. His pace and ball control will be no match for many of the league’s defenders and his accuracy from a dead-ball gives the Galaxy an embarrassment of riches from set pieces.

The Galaxy have had difficulty stringing wins together in 2015, winning no more than two matches consecutively at any one time in MLS play. With eight wins, seven draws and six losses, the Galaxy are far from championship form and the club were recently dumped out of the US Open Cup by Real Salt Lake. But needs have been addressed to ensure the club begin to improve things down the stretch. 

The biggest problem area has been the team’s creative side of play. Currently, Robbie Keane not only leads the squad in goals, but assists, too. The Galaxy are in need of someone to take the burden off of Keane. Meanwhile, Gerrard, though still excellent in terms of MLS quality, isn’t the inventive swashbuckling playmaker that Dos Santos is capable of being. 

Dos Santos’ signing should provide Keane the ability to stay further forward and keep the 35-year-old from exerting too much energy as the summer heats up. Dos Santos is dangerous off the dribble and his movement will free the Irishman up, in much the same way Landon Donovan did in years past. 

Off the field, Dos Santos can be that link to the Mexican-American community that doesn’t follow MLS; or those that turned their back on soccer after Chivas USA were contracted. The Spanish speaking community has been highly coveted by MLS brass for years and this may finally be the league’s chance to reach them. 

The good news for the Galaxy is that Dos Santos should be ready to play in August, just in time for the MLS Playoff run-in. The bad news currently, is that Dos Santos picked up an injury in Mexico’s recent CONCACAF Gold Cup game against Trinidad and Tobago. Though the injury has been declared a “minor” one, the Galaxy’s new DP will need full fitness to help push the star-studded Galaxy to a second straight MLS Cup. 

Anschutz Entertainment Group have made a point to put stars on the field in each season since David Beckham’s arrival. However, unlike in seasons past or even earlier this year, the club have looked more long-term by adding Dos Santos. Although the Mexican’s track record for staying at clubs is abysmal, this could be the move in which it all clicks for the former Barcelona youth player.

Dos Santos signing has been a project for the Galaxy, and after years of courting, the club should rest assured that they got their man. Much like David Beckham’s arrival in 2007, the Galaxy now have a player that can transform them both on and off the pitch.

Follow Drew Farmer on Twitter @Calciofarmer. Drew Farmer is a Manchester, England-based journalist/blogger that writes for World Soccer Talk. Drew has contributed to Radio Yorkshire, Forza Italian Football, Bleacher Report, MLSGB and Soccerly. Originally from southwest Missouri, Drew covers Italy’s Serie A, British football and the USA’s Major League Soccer.

New York Red Bulls are quickly becoming the team in Major League Soccer to churn out quality, American center-backs.

First it was Tim Ream to come through the Red Bulls before joining Bolton Wanderers, where he has enjoyed personal success, winning the club’s Player of the Year Award two years running.

Now the Red Bulls have another young stud in the making. That stud, Matt Miazga, looks likely to exceed the high standards set by Ream.

Of course, Ream didn’t have the luxury of coming through the Harrison, New Jersey based club’s youth team, as Miazga did. That opportunity led the 19-year-old to breaking into the first team in 2013 as a homegrown player.

At 6 foot 4 inches, Miazga is strong in the air and dominant at set pieces. That aerial prowess enabled the centre-back to score his first career goal on Sunday versus New York City FC. Miazga’s goal pushed the original New York team over the line and ensured the club will win the season series against their Bronx rivals. The Red Bulls are now just one match away from doing the treble over the Blues in 2015.

Even before Sunday’s Hudson River Derby win, Miazga’s season had been a home run. In 12 games this term, the Red Bulls’ stopper is averaging 3.2 inceptions, 2.7 tackles, and seven clearances per game. In addition, Miazga possesses a 75.8% pass accuracy rate according to WhoScored.com.

The dust had yet to settle on the Red Bulls win at Yankee Stadium when transfer rumours started in regards to Miazga. Gary Monk’s Swansea City are rumoured to have had scouts in the Bronx to watch Miazga play. Referred to as the Red Bull’s “prize prospect”, rumours of a mere £500,000 ($785,000) could pry the youngster away from the Big Apple. Although reports do indicate the New Jersey-native could fetch more towards £2 million ($3.14m).

While a sale and short-term finances would be nice for the Red Bulls, hanging on to their defensive jewel would be wiser. Miazga, who has represented both Poland and the USA at youth levels, should be considered for a big contract. For years, fans, pundits and MLS insiders have spoken about paying the best American talent to stay and play in the league. Why should it be about bringing back Americans from playing in Europe? Why not keep the best in the country to begin with?

DC United wrapped up Bill Hamid in May with a multi-year contract extension. It wasn’t designated player money, but it was still enough to keep the 2014 Goalkeeper of the Year in MLS. So why can’t the Red Bulls keep Miazga in red and white, at least another season or two? Miazga’s 2014 base salary was $65,000, which could easily be doubled and then some to keep him at Red Bull Arena until he’s at least old enough to legally drink.

Take into consideration two of the designated player imports: Carlos Rivas, 21 and Bryan Rochez, 20, both South Americans playing for Orland City. Although they play different positions, Rivas in midfield and Rochez as a forward, neither have had the impact as Miazga.

The point is, young American talent that is proving itself in the league should be rewarded over the unknown quantities being introduced. Miazga, like Hamid, should be kept as a prize asset for years to come.

Despite it being wise for MLS and the Red Bulls to lock up Miazga for long-term, the ease in which Ream headed to Bolton is probably a sign that Miazga will be allowed to leave, too.

Money is great and the Red Bulls enjoyed on field success following Ream’s multi-million dollar move overseas. But keeping a young stud in the team for years to come, could mean more than a few million dollars today.

Follow Drew Farmer on Twitter @Calciofarmer. Drew Farmer is a Manchester, England-based journalist/blogger that writes for MLSGB and World Soccer Talk. Drew has contributed to Radio Yorkshire, Forza Italian Football, Bleacher Report and Soccerly. Originally from southwest Missouri, Drew covers Italy’s Serie A, English football and USA soccer.

Freddy Adu’s signing with Finnish team Kuopion Palloseura (KuPS) was supposed to rejuvenate his ailing career. It was a move that was supposed to remove the haters and critics, and once again put them on the side of support. That has not happened.

Four months since signing with his eleventh club, KuPS, Adu is nearing the exit door. Although the club haven’t said his time is nearly up, their actions have spoken loudly.

Unfit and unable to even make the bench for KuPS, Adu has found himself in the team’s reserve squad. The club’s reserve team, Kuopio Futis-98 (KuFu), currently play in the fourth-tier of Finnish soccer and it is a place Adu is expected to find some semblance of form in. Yet, that hasn’t exactly happened.

“Freddy is apparently nowhere near match-fit and the coach has refused to put him on the bench,” Finnish soccer blogger Rich Nelson told World Soccer Talk. “Despite some gentle encouragement from the board.”

While Adu’s play for KuPS has been nothing to write home about, he did tally his first goal for KuFu a week ago. It was Adu’s first goal since September 2012 while playing for the Philadelphia Union. And since arriving, Adu has shown very little of what made him so sought after a few years ago.

“From what I saw of his early games, he seemed to still have the occasional moment of class and excellent set-pieces,” explained Nelson. “But yes, definitely out of shape.”

Now forced into the reserve side by coach Marko Rajamaki, Adu may be the most well paid Finnish soccer player. The former media proclaimed “next Pele”, who was playing for the USA in the CONCACAF Gold Cup this time four years ago, is thought to be the owner’s signing. Hence, another reason Rajamaki has forced Adu into the reserves and the board’s considerable nudging to get the American back into the first team.

“I don’t know what his wage is, but I understand there’s a structured element based on games, goals, etc,” Nelson stated. “The average monthly income for a Veikkausliiga [Finnish first division] player is around €1800 a month ($2000). So, I’d bet he’s on a lot more than that.”

Adu’s chances of playing in the United States, if he wants to, are probably still quite high. Although, it is assumed that many Major League Soccer teams will think twice before signing the former child prodigy after his last stint with the Union. The North American Soccer League could be a place for Adu, but that is if his time in Finland has already run out.

Regardless, Adu’s not helped himself and someday soon, ESPN 30 for 30 will tell us all where it went wrong.

Follow Drew Farmer on Twitter @Calciofarmer. Drew Farmer is a Manchester, England-based journalist/blogger that writes for MLSGB and World Soccer Talk. Drew has contributed to Forza Italian Football, Bleacher Report and Soccerly. Originally from southwest Missouri, Drew covers Italy’s Serie A, English football and USA soccer.

Though Andrea Pirlo’s move to New York City FC hasn’t hit saga levels yet, it already feels rather tiresome.

While nothing is official as of now, although in the world of football that can change in nanoseconds, Pirlo is expected to sign for around $5 million to $6 million a season. Which is said to be around the regions of already signed Designated Players David Villa and Frank Lampard.

Whether Pirlo will join this summer or in January 2016 is still up for debate, as reports in Italy suggest, the Juventus playmaker is still hopeful of an Azzurri call-up for next summer’s European Championship.

Though conflicting reports from the BBC indicate the former Inter midfielder wants to be released from his contract now.

Pirlo is still a magician with the ball at his feet, able to pick a pass with pinpoint accuracy. The Italian World Cup winner was never blessed with amazing foot speed, but that hasn’t stopped the 36-year-old from being one of the best to ever play as a regista.

Presumably, he will adapt to Major League Soccer play quite easily. With Italian football known for its defensive fluidity and difficulties to breakdown, the Italian should be able to pick the less tactical MLS apart with more ease than Serie A.

However, it’s less of what Pirlo’s individual skills can do for NYFC than what the overall team will look like when he arrives. NYCFC will have quite a high-priced central midfield pair in Lampard and Pirlo, not to mention the highly-rated USA international Mix Diskerud.

Manager Jason Kreis will either need to drop one of the three or play a formation that suits all to get the best out his squad. Playing 4-2-2 will presumably mean one drops to the bench. However, Diskerud being the most youthful could either move out into a wide position or play off the main striker.

If Kreis goes for a 4-3-3 formation, this leaves the club without a true ball winner. Instead the club would have three midfielders more suited to attack than to protecting the club’s back four.

Currently that back four are playing very well, giving up three goals in their last four matches, including a clean sheet last weekend against Toronto FC. Of the three – Lampard, Pirlo and Diskerud – who will do the work needed off the ball and in defence is up for debate. With that defence playing so well currently, there’s no reason to adjust it now.

While neither Lampard, Pirlo nor Diskerud are ball winners, Kreis does have Andrew Jacobson; the only one of the four who is a true defensive midfielder – currently averaging three tackles and 2.1 interceptions a game.

Against Toronto last weekend, Kreis deployed a conventional 4-4-2 with Diskerud and Jacobson playing as his central pairing. Jacobson played his part well, winning the ball and starting the attack as Diskerud moved into more advanced roles to support Villa. Jacobson had 49 touches, six tackles and completed 81.3% of his passes according to WhoScored.com. Overall, a good night for the American.

Regardless of how Kreis deploys his side once Lampard, and presumably Pirlo, join the team; it seems Jacobson will be the odd man out. Perhaps that is why last weekend’s performance was so good, he is a man playing for his position.

However, if Kreis wants his two stars on the field along with his young jewel – Diskerud – and his grafter – Jacobson – than a five man midfield would work best.

Deploying Pirlo as his deep laying midfielder with Jacobson to protect him is ideal. Diskerud and Lampard would be able to cover much of the ground box-to-box and NYCFC would have a dynamic, creative unit.

The only problem is, the club would be devoid of true wide players. However, against the Reds, Kreis used Mehdi Ballouchy and Ned Grabavoy, traditionally central midfielders, to play down the flanks.

It may not be perfect, but Kreis can use his pieces in an effective manner. A sign of a truly good manager.

NYCFC are trying to make a splash, no doubt about it, and while their current team building doesn’t appear anywhere near long-term – something the Red Bulls could be just as guilty of – they are trying to get fans interested right away.

The club sit on 17 points, in eighth place after 16 games, but only due to goal difference are they outside of the playoff places. Lampard and Pirlo’s arrivals could be what propels the club to the playoffs in a very weak Eastern Conference.

Down the line, the club will need to address the elephant in the room, which is the age of their three stars. The club’s three Designated Players – Lampard, Pirlo, and Villa – combine for an average age of 35.3-years old.

Of course they are Designated Players, yet the club will have around $18 million wrapped up in them. Although the East is weak, the cynical soccer fan would assume the three stars – a Spaniard, an Englishman and an Italian – are just there to sell shirts in the city that never sleeps.

While fellow MLS debutant Orlando City elected to sign two fairly unknown South Americans to support Kaka, NYCFC have gone all-in. Will it pay off? Expect some further structuring to the team in July and August. Right now, however, NYCFC have done enough to put themselves in the frame for the playoffs.

Follow Drew Farmer on Twitter @Calciofarmer. Drew Farmer is a Manchester, England-based journalist/blogger that has writes for MLSGB and World Soccer Talk. Drew has also been read on Forza Italian Football and Soccerly. Originally from southwest Missouri, Drew covers Italy’s Serie A, English football and USA soccer.

June marked the release of Kindle best-selling author Giancarlo Rinaldi’s 20 Great Italian Games II. Since its release, 20 Great Italian Games II, has garnered praise from readers for its depiction of classic calcio and legendary players.

20 Great Italian Games II is the sequel to Rinaldi’s original book released in 2013. The original, 20 Great Italian Games, current sits in Amazon’s top 20 books on European football.

With an expert’s insight into all things Italian football, the Scottish-Italian Rinaldi has been writing about the game on the peninsula and his beloved Fiorentina for some time. Covering Italian football for Football Italia, Rinaldi has seen much of the country’s highs and lows over the years.

Now with two highly praised books and a blog of his own, fans new and old can learn more about calcio through Rinaldi’s spectacles.

This week World Soccer Talk spoke to Rinaldi about his new book, Serie A and Fiorentina.

Drew Farmer: Giancarlo, your new book 20 Great Italian Games II, hit bookshelves this month. Firstly, what has the reception been like for it?

Giancarlo Rinaldi: It has taken a couple of years to produce a second edition and people have been remarkably patient. A lot of people said the first edition was an ideal read for their summer holidays so, hopefully, they will find this one the same. There is a bit more detail in this edition in response to some constructive criticism of the first.

Drew Farmer: For those not necessarily familiar with the previous book, tell readers what they can expect from it?

Giancarlo Rinaldi: I have been following Italian football all my life and writing about it for about 25 years. I have tried to tell the story of some of the greatest matches I have seen and a few that were before my time. There is a special focus on the golden age of Italian football in the 1980s and 1990s when most of the world’s best players were in Serie A.

Drew Farmer: How did the concept for both books come up and tell me about some of the research you did when writing 20 Great Italian Games?

Giancarlo Rinaldi: I used to write a lot of historic match reports for my blog – Rinaldi’s Blog – and they always got a good response. By the time I had gathered a significant number I decided to put them into a volume for publication. Research included watching the games again, reading match reports of the time and, of course, ploughing through my own memories.

Drew Farmer: Serie A and Italian football tends to get a bad rap in English speaking countries, at least from my experience writing about calcio. Do you feel your writing has opened new eyes to Serie A?

Giancarlo Rinaldi: I think a whole generation of writers have helped to dispel a lot of the myths about Italian football. Some people still hold onto old prejudices but most have seen that calcio has changed a lot since the times of catenaccio. I’d be proud to have played a small part in letting people understand the passion and drama that the game holds.

Drew Farmer: Giancarlo, after writing these two books, what would you say is your favourite Italian game of all-time and why?

Giancarlo Rinaldi: That is a real tricky one, but I’d have to say that one which readers nominated for this edition was pretty special. It was a Roma versus Inter clash when Zdenek Zeman and Roy Hodgson were the managers and it produced a real flood of goals. I won’t spoil the result, go and buy the book to find out. But it was a game with a star-studded cast, especially in that Inter side.

Drew Farmer: I’d be remiss if I didn’t ask you a few questions about Fiorentina. A great season in 2013/14, overachieving or on par with where they should have been during the season?

Giancarlo Rinaldi: I think the Viola did about as well as could be expected with the squad they had. You have to remember that Giuseppe Rossi missed the whole campaign and Mario Gomez, sadly, never really fitted in. I guess they might have sneaked into third place in Serie A with a bit of luck and it was a real shame not to make one of the finals in the competitions where they made the semi-finals. But they did lose out to the eventual winners on both occasions.

Drew Farmer: Coach Vincenzo Montella was sacked, which to me, was quite unexpected. How will that hurt the Viola next term and who do you think will take the hot-seat?

Giancarlo Rinaldi: It will take some time to adjust to a new coach as Montella had a very definite style and vision of play. Paulo Sousa has been tipped to take over which would be interesting but he would definitely take time to adjust. Safer choices might be the likes of Roberto Donadoni or Giampiero Ventura who know Serie A so well.

Drew Farmer: Getting back to your book 20 Greatest Italian Games II, can we expect a third edition or are you looking to put this to bed with the sequel?

Giancarlo Rinaldi: I’d really like to produce an edition for the national team , 20 Great Azzurri Games, maybe. Think of all the dramatic matches Italy have had at World Cups and European Nations. If the demand is there, I’d like to write it.

Drew Farmer: Giancarlo, if you had to tell readers about one match to watch that you wrote about, which match would that be?

Giancarlo Rinaldi: I think I’d go for Inter’s amazing comeback game against Sampdoria when Alvaro Recoba helped to turn the match. The Nerazzurri looked dead and buried, but produced some of the most pulsating final minutes of a game I have ever seen. Only the most hard-hearted Milanista (or possibly Juventino) wouldn’t get dragged into that epic clash.

Drew Farmer: Finally Giancarlo, Juventus just lost in the Champions League Final and the Europa League featured several Serie A clubs, including your beloved Fiorentina. Is Serie A on the way back up or are more hard times to come for the Italian top-flight?

Giancarlo Rinaldi: I’d be cautious about trumpeting a major revival as there are still a lot of structural issues that Italy has to address. However, it was pleasing to see a Serie A side make an impact in the Champions League and also to see the teams take the Europa League seriously. Nonetheless, it will take some time, I think, to challenge on a regular basis. Italian teams need to make sure they maximise all revenue streams – via matchday tickets, self-owned stadia, merchandising and the like – before they can really compete. I am not necessarily an advocate of selling up to wealthy overseas owners which has worked for other countries, though. I think with a bit of imagination, Italy can compete without having to flog off its “crown jewels” to the highest bidder.

Giacarlo Rinaldi’s 20 Great Italian Games and 20 Great Italian Games II are both available from Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk in paperback and Kindle formats.

Follow Drew Farmer on Twitter @Calciofarmer. Drew Farmer is a Manchester, England-based journalist/blogger that has writes for MLSGB and World Soccer Talk. Drew has also been read on Forza Italian Football and Soccerly. Originally from southwest Missouri, Drew covers Italy’s Serie A, English football and USA soccer.

One thing has been made clear in Toronto FC’s opening 12 matches of the Major League Soccer season – the league’s MVP race goes through BMO Field.

Sebastian Giovinco’s signing turned heads in the offseason when the diminutive Italian playmaker put pen to paper in a five-year deal worth more than $7 million.

Toronto had looked more and more desperate after missing the playoffs in their first eight MLS seasons, the club needed something, to not only keep fans coming, but to foster winning.

Giovinco has done just that as he has become irreplaceable in the TFC starting XI. La Formica Atomica has contributed to 37% of the Reds’ scoring in 2015 with seven goals. As a matter of fact, Giovinco has used a shoot on sight mentality as he leads the league in shots per game with 5.1.

In Toronto’s last six matches, Giovinco has carried the team, contributing four goals and three assists. The only game in which he didn’t score or create a goal did result in a Toronto loss to Houston.

Thanks to his outstanding play, Toronto are now top of the Eastern Conference form table after picking up 13 points from a possible 18.

But worrying for Toronto coach Greg Vanney, is that however Giovinco goes, so does the rest of the team. The Reds are winless when the Italian does not score or assist a goal.

Luckily for Toronto, Jozy Altidore has been in goalscoring form after his fruitless spell with Sunderland. But outside of Giovinco and Altidore, seven goals have been scored by seven different Reds’ players.

This past weekend, Giovinco toppled DC United on his own. Two of the Italian’s seven goals came in his man of the match performance.

Watching the highlights from the game, showed that nearly everything positive was down to the Italian, while 10 other players in red tried to keep up with him. The gulf in class is immense.

Simply put, Toronto’s winning is down to Giovinco. And right now he is showing exactly what owners expected a single Designated Player to do when the “Beckham Rule” was instituted in the 2000s.

Although the Italian national team have moved on from Giovinco since his previously shocking call-ups under Antonio Conte, it hasn’t stopped many from crying out for his inclusion in the Azzurri. At least on the North American side of the Atlantic.

Yet, while national team football looks beyond Gionvinco, unless he continues this form and then some, the MLS Most Valuable Player Award does not.

No player in MLS has been as vital for his team in 2015 as Giovinco has been for Toronto. Although Sporting KC’s Benny Feilhaber is having a career season, he has the pieces around him that are also contributing regularly.

Giovinco hasn’t had the same contributions, and despite Altidore’s goals, those have all been thanks to the little Italian.

Giovinco still has a long, hot MLS summer to go through before he and the Reds qualify for their first league post-season. Based on his perfect start to MLS life, Giovinco has proven the MVP race will be centered in Toronto for the rest of 2015.

Follow Drew Farmer on Twitter @Calciofarmer. Drew Farmer is a Manchester, England-based journalist/blogger that has written for Forza Italian Football and World Soccer Talk. Originally from southwest Missouri, Drew covers Italy’s Serie A, English football and USA soccer.