Soccer Saturday
So much soccer, yet again. San Jose host LAFC, FC Cincinnati host D.C. United, Josef hosts Atlanta United in his new house, and more. See the full schedule here.
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Back to it. Kind of a quiet weekend all things considered, but still plenty to discuss. Here’s what to keep an eye on this weekend.
You know me. I’ve been high on the 2023 Quakes since I saw them muscle up against Atlanta in Matchday 1. They immediately had the balance and vibe of an Audi MLS Cup Playoffs-caliber team even if a late Thiago Almada stunner kept them from points that day. Since then, they’ve largely proved that feeling correct.
After 10 games, San Jose are sitting in fifth place in the Western Conference, equal on points with Dallas and collecting points at a 1.5 points-per-game clip. That’s right on track for a definite playoff-spot-clinching, and maybe home-game-clinching, 51-point season. On top of that, their underlying numbers have them as a playoff-caliber team as well. Maybe not a world-beater, but definitely playoff-caliber. The team as a whole is doing a lot right, and Cristian Espinoza is doing literally everything right. He’s put in an MVP-level performance over the past month.
It looks like the Quakes are set to break a lengthy playoff drought. I mean, they technically made it as the last seed after the 2020 and 2017 seasons. But if you make it as the last seed in and then bow out in Round One, you were more like a background extra than an actual cast member. In that sense, they haven’t “made the playoffs” since their incredible 2012 season.
But do they have more than that in them during their first year under Luchi Gonzalez? They’re currently sitting right below the elite teams in the West. It feels like they’ll need time, depth and a little quality at the top of the lineup to join that group. In that sense, we can probably call this a potential “year before the year.”
Today we’ll find out how far they have to go. To some extent anyway. It’s not clear what kind of lineup LAFC will run out after taking down Philadelphia in CCL on Tuesday. But, to be fair, LAFC’s backups are better than the majority of the league’s starters. Even a rotated LAFC team is a problem. How well the Quakes can handle that problem at home 11 games into the year may give us our best sense yet of where exactly this team is going.
Especially in front of the kind of massive crowd they’ve normally reserved for Cali Clásico games. I almost forgot, but they’re taking this one to Levi’s Stadium. This is a “Big Deal” game. It would have been the most intriguing game of the day anyway, but then they decided to involve 40k people or so.
This might have been the story of the weekend under different circumstances. “Josef Martínez, ‘El Rey’ himself, hosts the team where he became and remains a legend for the first time.” It seemed to have that potential at the beginning of the year, anyway. Instead, it’s been a bit of an afterthought.
To put it bluntly, there’s a good chance you won’t see too much of Josef Martínez today. He simply hasn’t performed up to the standard Miami had hoped when they brought him in on a reported max-TAM deal from Atlanta. He hasn’t scored yet for the Herons, he hasn’t started in about a month and he stayed on the bench for the entirety of Inter Miami’s 2-1 win over Columbus last week.
To be blunt again, it’s been a rough start to Josef’s time in (near?) South Beach. His numbers across the board are easily some of the worst among starting strikers in the league. Part of that is due to some of Inter Miami’s struggles since losing Gregore to a foot injury. But the bigger part of that is Josef falling short of what you might have come to expect. Then again, it’s been a long time since 2019.
Today is going to be super weird for everyone either way. Like running into your ex at the wedding of a mutual friend. You’ve had the save the date for months, you’ve prepared yourself, you have to show up, and that’s not going to make it any less uncomfortable.
Regardless of how much playing time he actually gets though, knowing Josef, don’t be surprised if he pulls off something special against his old team. It would feel fitting. And Atlanta fans would probably just be happy to see him happy.
Bob Bradley and Bruce Arena go head-to-head tonight with hundreds of wins and trophies and all that under their belt. Charles Boehm has a good piece on it in The Reading Rainbow. Go check that out.
Also, check out what’s going on in Cincy tonight if you get a chance. I’m not quite as confident in D.C. United’s playoff quality as I am in San Jose’s, but they’re facing a very similar test tonight as they travel to TQL Stadium. D.C. have pulled off three wins in a row, but it’s fair to say they haven’t been toppling giants. The wins have come against CF Montréal, Orlando City and Charlotte. But still, in MLS, you take what you can get. Especially if you’re last year’s Wooden Spoon winner.
D.C. have been fun of late though and could still have their eyes on a playoff spot regardless of what happens tonight on the road against one of the East’s best. If they pull off something special, it will probably be time to start thinking about just how high an increasingly lifted ceiling can go.
- Bob Bradley and Bruce Arena face off this weekend in a battle of MLS elder statesmen.
- Christian Benteke is proving he still has plenty to offer D.C. United.
- Jonathan Sigal let you know what to know and how to watch each game on MLS Season Pass today.
- Schuyler Redpath has your guide to MLS Fantasy & Gaming for Matchday 11.
- I have your MVP Power Rankings right here.
Good luck out there. Leave a legacy.
